Bridgerton Season 3’s Growing Pains, and My Advice for Season 4

Bridgerton Season 3 is an unabashed success. Still racking up the watch numbers, S3 has already cemented it’s position in the pantheon of great shows as the sixth most watched English language show in Netflix history. Like most shows, there are some massive wins, and some notable struggles, in this season. The struggles, I think, mostly come from one place (Two places, if you count studio notes, but I think that’s still part of the major thing I’m going to talk about): Growing pains.

Bridgerton came out mid-pandemic. Season 1 hit Christmas at the height of Covid when were home and needed an escape. Season 2 filmed during the pandemic, even having to pause due to positive Covid tests, and consequently didn’t have much of a press roll out. Still, it became the most watched show at the time in it’s first four weeks, and is still sitting handsomely at number ten overall with the 91-day watch numbers. Queen Charlotte, the spinoff, also did very well at sixteenth overall. Basically, Bridgerton is a juggernaut. So when Season 3 came along it had two beloved, returning characters at the helm and no pandemic-related restrictions, the gloves came off, so to speak.

Every dial was turned to eleven. Usually it’s a series’ second season that has the growing pains, while they find their way through expanding the world, often getting an increased budget, and finding their voice. Bridgerton in some ways had that in their first two seasons, but Season 3 unleashed a whole new series of problems, the majority from excess.

While the style is absolutely iconic in this season, one of the biggest critiques I’ve heard is that the costumes could be distracting. I think the reality is that they wanted to ramp everything up, so even the costumes got, at times, a little out of hand. They are undoubtedly works of art, and they do certainly serve the story, but costumes are not actually the stars of the show. And when they steal attention from the scene, when they encumber blocking at times, it can be an issue. Like I said, growing pains.

Another, very similar way this issue crops up is in the music. Frankly, there was just too much of it. They doubled the number of modern songs, and it clogged up the narrative. At times it was simply unnecessary, like Cheap Thrills, and at other times it was downright distracting, like Dynamite. But it’s hard to be sure of that until they give it a try. It’s hard to find the balance without adding in a few more to see how things go. Still, there should be a lot of meaning behind when those songs are used, otherwise it defeats the entire purpose of highlighting the moment, and it just becomes one of a bunch that loses almost all significance.

One of the biggest realities of the growing pains is that the show is literally growing, getting ready to expand into other storylines and places outside of Mayfair. The new show runner, Jess Brownell, had the frankly daunting task of concluding what I’m calling the “Whistledown Era” of Bridgerton, the first three seasons that have LW at the center, and beginning the next phase that broadens the world and gets us into the Benedict, Eloise, Francesca stories. Crafting that balance was hard, and while it often went very well, there were some bumps along the way, particularly in trying to ensure there was enough drama to push them through to the end. It was occasionally a bit cumbersome, similar to season 1 in the way that people behaved in ways that I’m not sure were properly forgivable. However, the emotional conclusion was significantly better earned here than S1 did, so while there were some growing pains, it certainly didn’t entirely miss.

Since it is so notable to change show runners, it seems as though there was more studio interference this season than in previous. One of the biggest complaints is about the consistency, or lack thereof, with Colin’s character. It seems Jess Brownell had a much more cohesive and coherent character arc for Colin before she was pushed to make him more of a rake. A lack of full trust in Jess’s vision is another signal of growing pains. Hopefully with how incredibly successful Season 3 is, they will interfere less in Season 4.

Moreover, this season had growing pains with increasing diversity. Just like when Season 1’s casting was announced and many people declared they would not watch with a black Simon and even after the premiere declared they were boycotting because of the diversity of the cast (if you weren’t in the fandom in those days, it was rough), just like the racism Simone faced and homophobia Johnny Bailey faced, just like the fatphobia Nicola and Polin faced…on and on it goes. Now, as the season embraces diversity of sexual orientation and gender, there are, of course, people who take umbridge. And that is exactly why inclusion is so important. Representation onscreen actively makes a difference in how viewers see the world, but there is of course a mountain of crap that usually has to be waded through before we get to the better world on the other side.

This season also went big on promotions, some would argue too big. The immense saturation of just how many interviews, photo shoots, premieres, press appearances, it was overwhelming to say the least. I think it burned out the most avid fans, like myself, and it was largely not appreciated by the more casual fans. But again, this is the sort of thing it’s hard to find the sweet spot for until you’ve gone overboard.

The biggest problem with this, though, was the unrealistic expectations it set. There is promoting the show, then there’s overselling to the point where I think a lot of fans were expecting something that literally could never be. Nothing is going to please all the people all the time, but somehow, in all the promo, things got a bit distorted, and I think people began to expect something this season was not. Without that, I think some people would have been a lot more pleased with the product, because seen on it’s own without the expectations of press, it is a very strong season.

So, with all of this in mind, what are my recommendations for Season 4?

First, focus on character development first and foremost. Give your writing team leave to craft a story that is exactly as big or small as it needs to be, just based on what is best for the characters. Even if something doesn’t seem like it will be popular, let that be the case because it’s right for the world and the people inhabiting it.

Second, trust your show runner. You put her in charge for a reason, and over-interference can, and often does, cause more harm than good. Jess Brownell has made one of the most successful shows in Netflix history, and she clearly has a strong vision, crafted in tandem with Shonda Rhimes. Let her continue with that vision in Season 4, and beyond.

Third, scale back your costuming and music choices. Remember that, while those things are part of what makes us love this world, it is not what we’re here for. Don’t let it distract from the narrative, let it support the story and the character development without pulling focus.

Fourth, find a happy medium with your press tour. Mix some live events with interviews and fun content with the cast. But significantly less will actually provide you with a lot more mileage for each promo, and keep your biggest fans from feeling burned out or overestimating the season with things that no one and nothing could deliver.

Finally, Bridgerton, do not be cowed by the bigots and the haters. The people who simply don’t yet understand or see the vision will see it if you follow through and serve the characters and story first. And the people who are only out to be hateful will fade away. You’ll end up with a better fan base, and likely a bigger one, by standing up for what’s right and bringing in more representation, as that is what made Bridgerton stand out in the first place.