Bridgerton Season 1 vs. Season 2
Music
We traded Taylor for Madonna, Ariana for Alannis, and Billie for Nirvana. If you are a modern pop enthusiast without much love for music history, that might not be your favorite. For me personally, though I love the ladies I named whose songs played in Season One, nothing beats the songs in Season Two. But more even than taste, it was clear that in S2, the music was chosen with much deeper purpose, both in the arrangement and the content of the songs. While the Thank U, Next scene is one of the best uses of a song I've ever heard, the Bad Guy or Wildest Dreams scenes just don't fit as well content wise, though the sound is still pretty strong. In general though, I found the music in S1 more forgettable, that it seemed to be chosen simply because the songs were popular. The scenes that had recognizable songs felt more interchangeable, like any number of songs could have been used to the same effect. In contrast to that, hearing You Oughta Know over the heart-rending scene in the woods tore me to pieces. Wrecking Ball over the last dance gave me shivers. And How Deep Is Your Love as they came together for the first time reset my bar for what sensuality truly means. The youthful pop music of S1 is fitting for the more immature nature of the season, mirroring Daphne's own lack of understanding and her arc toward growing up. But Season 2 isn't messing around. It's hitting us with Madonna in the first episode. It also cannot be ignored that S2 brought in elements of culture with Bollywood music that deepened and enhanced the storytelling in a massive way. When I give this victory to Season Two, some of that is certainly taste. But from the mania of Stay Away to the volatile triumph of What About Us, I can't imagine anything better. The soundtrack of Season One was great, but Season Two was unprecedented.
Winner: S2
Subplots
Both seasons do quite well with subplots and iconic moments. Season 1 has Marina and Colin's love, lies, and scandal, Anthony and Siena's tempestuous relationship, Benedict's Bohemia and Granville, and Eloise's search for Whistledown. Season 2 had the Featherington plot, which I found sublime even if others didn't, a peek behind the curtain at Whistledown, and Eloise's deeply charming love story with Theo. And while there are of course a lot of things I loved about the Season 2 subplots, the edge here has to go to Season One, in no small part because Jonathan Bailey creates one of the most spectacular subplots I’ve ever seen, setting himself up perfectly as the lead for the next season and providing incredible depth and emotional vulnerability. Still more, Colin's plot was more cohesive and fitting to the theme, though his plot in 2 set him up well as the lead for next season. Benedict in particular had a better plot in 1, and I wished they had continued with the representation they started with Granville rather than burying it. I think I prefer Eloise's in S2 because of Theo, but her searching for Whistledown was good in S1 because it was still fresh whereas it kind of staled by S2. Overall, there were strong aspects of both for the subplots, but I think Season One carries the better stories that seem less like treading water than did Season Two. Subplots are hard, especially as we know none of the characters can be with their forever until it's their season, so creating stakes under those circumstances is extremely difficult. Season One handled that more deftly and deeply as a whole, and gave us some amazing stories to enjoy as we wait for the main story to progress.
Winner: S1
Costumes
Costuming is an integral part of the way Bridgerton tells a story. Part of the reason we love this show as much as we do is the beauty and opulence. A costume is hardly ever worn twice, and the sheer effort put into creating everything from the Queen's gowns to the Duke's waistcoats, to Kate's nightgown, is phenomenal. Season 1 and Season 2 have very different styles, both to match the theme. 1 is a lot more pastel and babydoll silhouette. It's mirroring Daphne's initial immaturity that slowly develops over the course of the season. In 2, it is richer tones, playing more with the blending of colors and the shape and structure of the attire. Both have their virtues to the story and they both match that well. However, I have three reasons why I am going to pick the winner that I do. Firstly, the waist of the dresses in Season 1 are simply too high either for historical accuracy, flattering shape, or any character reason. Second, the color theory in Season 2 is unmatched. While they use color very well in Season 1, the depth of it in 2, the way it develops character, plays with expectation, and incorporates another culture, is sublime. Lastly, Season 2 is simply more. They went bigger, broader, richer, more beautiful. Some of this is stylistic preference on my part as I like the deeper, richer colors overall, but some of it is that they hit their stride in their sophomore season. They took bigger risks, and it paid off. The costumes in Season 1 are fantastic, but since costume, color, and style are there to communicate the internal realities of the main characters, as well as be beautiful, that give the edge to slightly to Season 2.
Winner: S2
Inclusivity/Representation
One of my biggest problems with Season One was that the “representation” felt a little more like tokenism than actual representation. It felt like colorblind casting – not necessarily a bad thing on it’s own, but it lacked a lot of the depth I wanted. It was a little like they were actors of color cast in white roles without full depth and attention given to the nuances of race and ethnicity. There were head nods toward something deeper, like Simon’s father demanding excellence and the extra pressure on minorities to not only be as good but better, above reproach, in order to be given even a fraction the respect or opportunities. But it wasn’t delved into in a meaningful way.
Contrast that with Season Two where Indian culture, the history and heritage of the main women, are inextricable from the story. It adds depth and honesty that frankly floored me. Not only was it showing women of color as the epitome of beauty and desirability, but it was showing the culture as something strong, beautiful, and worthwhile to display onscreen. It felt so refreshing to have those aspects of culture woven into the fabric of the story that it makes Season 2 stand out not just in the Bridgerton world, but in the larger landscape of television history. On a personal level, it has been such an incredible opportunity for me to have authentic conversations with people with different lived experiences and varied walks of life. It has been a pleasure to watch my feed and my comment section diversify, and that is due fully to Bridgerton Season 2. That kind of representation, the kind that fuels honest and authentic connection, that sparks conversation and understanding in the real world, is so much more than just what's on the screen. Absolutely we wouldn't be here if Season 1 didn't set up this world, but Season 2 matured in it, grounded it, and set what I hope is a new precedent for television in the future.
Winner: S2
Theme
The themes of these two seasons are pretty clear and consistent. In Season 1, Daphne gives us the lesson in an almost-to-camera declaration that just because something isn't perfect does not make it less worthy of love. All Season, perfection has been the enemy. Simon's fears about his stutter because he was never good enough for the perfect standards of his father. Daphne crumbling under the pressures of the diamond and the unthinkable high expectations of Duchess left by her predecessor. Meanwhile, Season 2 is about, you guessed it, duty. More specifically, that true love is worth putting all else, duty, reputation, and pride, aside. We don't get quite the thesis statement they give us in 1, but because Anthony hasn't shut up about duty all season, the theme is pretty clear. Moreover, Season 2 further explores the ramifications of duty in Marina, showing where Anthony will be five steps past where he's thought. She is content, a phrase repeated by our main characters to show that they are denying themselves yet again for duty. Season 1 starts to crumble a bit on theme for a few reasons. When your whole theme is about how ideas about perfection are harmful, it's maybe not making a lot of thematic sense to suddenly make the Duke and Duchess the perfect family. There are other reasons for him to have a son, and that's great, but it feels a little like cheapening the theme when suddenly poof, they are magically the perfect family. It is a romance so that can generally be excused, but the ideas of perfection are looser across all of Season 1. In contrast, S2 is unfailingly devoted to theme. It permeates every single scene, every line of dialogue, every incident of heavy breathing intensity. Duty is the single, core issue in every moment between Kate and Anthony, and every moment they have with others. S1 does a very good job with theme, but the detailed and devoted way S2 teases out the theme in these two main characters every second they're onscreen is almost unmatched in my entire TV viewing experience. Theme is a strong element in both seasons, but S2 gives it both more subtly and more maturely, so it gets the crown here.
Winner: S2
Trope
There are several tropes at play in both seasons, with Simon and Daphne having a bit of a friends to lovers, Kate and Anthony being a slow burn forbidden love, but really, each season has one prominent trope in particular that dominates the narrative. For S1, that's Fake Dating and for S2, it's Enemies to Lovers. So, how did these seasons stack up with their respective tropes?
Fake Dating, or in this case, fake courting, has a long and celebrated history in the romance genre. There is little better than confusion as true feelings emerge, yet they don't know if the other is really falling for them or still acting. There's no small bit of humor in the idea that they think they're tricking everyone, but really, they're only fooling themselves. They do a good job in S1 of carrying on that trope, which at its heart is about pretending, even after the couple gets married. Simon is pretending (read: lying) about kids. Daphne is pretending (read: learning) to be a Duchess. And, after the sexual assault, they're pretending to be happy when they aren't. Finally, it turns out they aren't pretending, still love each other, and all is well. They did a good job stretching out the trope and keeping the themes alive even after it reached what might otherwise have been thought the logical conclusion.
As for S2 and enemies to lovers, the central aspect is heat, and these two bring it. They do a good job of setting them up as philosophical opposites with the way Anthony speaks about women that Kate overhears, and it gives her legitimate grounds to dislike him. The thing with Dorset is also very well written to make them at odds. They are driven so strongly by their pride and their unwillingness to give in that when they finally do surrender to their desires, it's born of a fight. The slow, careful way they reveal more and more to each other, the way they fall in love by degrees, is spectacular. Enemies to lovers is so alluring because it shows that there is something undeniable about love and attraction, that hate and love are close emotions, and that no matter what we try to deny, those feelings and that truth comes out.
Really, these two seasons handle their trope equally well. The thing that makes me edge to giving this to S2 is that they avoided the rampant toxicity that is almost always present in enemies to lovers stories, as it was in the source material. So kudos to them, and S2 gets the W here.
Winner: S2
Adaptation
I went back and forth on the criteria as to how to rate this; what makes a good adaptation? Faithfulness to the plot of the book? If so, obviously Season 1 wins out. But personally, that isn't my idea of how adaptations succeed. In the word adaptation, it implies change. Certain things work better on paper and others work better on screen. Tones are different, actors put their own input, and times change. S2 made some major changes to the book, but what it kept and even improved was what was most important to the story. The trope, the central relationship, and the theme. It carried off the enemies to lovers perhaps even better than the book, developed the characters through plot events born entirely of theme, and the relationship created was loving, powerful, and deep. Really, this had to go to S2 because while S1 didn't change some things that should have been, 2's changes were necessary and powerful. So even when some didn't like them, like Anthony and Edwina's wedding, they were there for the very specific purpose of developing the characters via the theme. I simply don't subscribe to the idea that an adaptation should be a dramatization of the events of the source material. It is much more interesting when the creative people who have access to the material are allowed to grow and change it, to add their own experiences and expertise. That's shown clearly in 2. The reality is, though the books are lovely reads, they are hardly gospel. Every change, from the bee scene to the wedding to how they get together does something special and unique for the characters, story, and theme. It added to the maturity and depth in meaningful ways. Bravo to them for having the courage to change the source material to fit the story they're telling. I hope they continue to have the courage to do what's right for their story and their characters and not be beholden to the books. Telling the best story is and should be the only thing that matters. S2 is able to honor the source material while still changing and improving it to fit the narrative and the time. That is an impressive feat and they should be lauded for it.
Winner: Season 2
World Building
Bridgerton is historical fiction, but they aren't trying to be historically accurate, so we can calibrate how they do in the department of world building. How do they create and fill in this alternative version of history? Season 1 does this remarkably well. They're very on-theme with a love ended racism narrative via the Queen that allows the diversity in the aristocracy. It's a fantasy, and a worthwhile one, where it highlights people of color in broad, beautiful, period pieces where they're often shut out. They created Mayfair and the palace, the immense social structure, the marriage mart, the diamond and pressures to wed, introduced the bohemian scene with Benedict, established a huge cast, the concept and application of Lady Whistledown, and so much more. Obviously that has to be done in the first season, and props to them for doing it so well. Season 2 struggled a bit in this area though. Obviously no one expects S2 to do as much world building as S1 because there just isn't as much to introduce. If S2 had just kept it to the same areas as before, this might not even have been a category, but they seemed to try to expand, then kind of let it fall flat. Areas like the art academy had an interesting potential to further develop and explore personal and sexual freedoms frowned upon in polite society, but that whole setting seemed largely an afterthought. The closest we got to an expansion of the world was Eloise in the poorer parts of town, learning and growing. But even that quickly became more about Theo than what class inequality actually looks like in Bridgerton. Same with the Mondrich storyline. There seemed to be a ton of potential to expand the world from just the shiny, privileged few, but it was almost like they weren't sure if they wanted to show something true and gritty, or if they wanted to keep it only to the bright colors and clean romance of high society. It's a question they need to answer, because the middle ground of 2 didn't work exceptionally well. There was a chance to build out the world in S2, and they didn't handle it great. In contrast, one of the best things S1 did was establish the world and the people that have so captivated us.
Winner: S1
Love Triangle
Unsurprisingly for a show based on romance novel tropes, the love triangle showed up in both seasons, but was used very differently. In S1, its a classic love triangle in the sense of a girl drawn between the "bad boy" and the "better choice." But the love triangle between Daphne and Simon and the Prince felt like a small ploy to delay the inevitable. Yes, jealousy is part of what prompted Simon to go after Daphne in the garden, but it didn’t land particularly well as it never seemed like a possibility to me she would end up with anyone else (I hadn't even heard of the books yet when I watched). Contrast that with the love triangle in S2 where the sheer number of polarized reactions to it shows just how well it was done. People want to make a villain of one of the women (and they shouldn’t, but that’s a rant for another day), and the way it's so carefully crafted as to make every step excruciating but completely understandable is storytelling at its finest. It's a much more nuanced version of the trope as Anthony has made very clear to everyone that he doesn't and can't love Edwina, but Edwina falls into what so many young women do, thinking she can change him, reading into his feelings. He doesn't bother to correct her because he doesn't want it to be obvious that he's falling for someone else. We get Kate as the primary driver in the latter part of Anthony and Edwina's relationship as it's his love for Kate that makes him marry Edwina. Wow! That is a complicated mess of feelings just wild enough to feel truly human. They did a spectacular job of not making it two women fighting over a man; Edwina never begrudges Kate her feelings for Anthony. She is only angry and upset that Kate outright lied to her. The triangle actually is a triangle, not just one person caught in the middle, because the love goes each way. Kate and Edwina's relationship is just as important narratively, and the love triangle here is used to show who each of these people are and better define their needs and wants, and how they relate to each other. I get that some people didn't like this part, especially in S2, but its not like other triangles we've seen if you look a little deeper. It's superb on every level, and why this category goes to S2.
Winner: S2
Balls
Is it even Bridgerton without balls? Honestly, not really. The beautiful set design, astonishing choreography, romantic music, and absolute escapism of the Bridgerton Balls is so much of what makes the magic of this series. Comparing across the seasons, there is a lot to love in both, but I wanted to focus on the balls. Not the choreography or the writing, but the design and how everything plays out as a whole. The standouts in Season 1 are of course the final ball in the rain and fireworks one at the end of the first episode. For Season 2, they are the Hearts and Flowers and thr Featherington Ball. Of course, both seasons have great other moments as well, like Daphne descending the stairs to make the Duke jealous or the beautiful Conservatory Ball.
While I think that the content of the balls, the emotional aspects, land better in Season Two, between the magic of Vauxhall and the beauty and intensity of the final ball, I think the edge goes to Season One. There really is no beating the absolute majesty I felt watching the outdoor dancers and the fireworks overhead as Simon's voice over sends shivers down your spine. The dream as they go back to that moment and make it more sensual is a perfect display. And a rain drenched ball, fitting perfectly with the theme, is the ideal cap to the season. While Season 2 supplied some truly gorgeous fare, I think there was something special in Season 1 about the balls themselves, as if this couldn't have happened anywhere or anytime else, as if we got to slip into the glittering shoes of the diamond of the season and fulfill our every whispered fantasy. Both seasons have truly amazing balls, but I think there's a slight edge in those from Season 1.
Winner: S1