It’s not the sexiest question, but it’s a good one: Just how much has our dear Benedict Bridgerton learned about power dynamics since the first half of “Bridgerton” Season 4? Just how much has the entire “Bridgerton” writing staff learned? Refreshingly, the answer to both is plenty!
When we last left Benedict (Luke Thompson) at the halfway mark of the latest season in Netflix‘s wildly popular adaptation of Julia Quinn’s beloved Regency-era romance series, the second son of the titular gentlefamily had breathlessly issued a truly terrible offer to his lady love. (Quinn’s Benedict-centric book is titled “An Offer from a Gentleman,” and that’s surely meant to be funny.) While we understood why Benedict would think that asking lady’s maid Sophie Baek (the wonderful Yerin Ha) to be his mistress sounded appealing to him (as a member of Britain’s upper class, there is no way he can marry someone below his station; his discovery that a gentleman friend had recently made a mistress of his own love to great success had proven to be a great inspiration), we also knew why the concept was so offensive to Sophie herself.
Over the course of the previous four episodes, showrunner Jess Brownell and her writing staff clearly laid out Sophie’s fraught history. The daughter of a gentleman and a maid, Sophie was orphaned at a young age and forced into servitude by her own father’s wife, the staggeringly bitter and petty Lady Araminta Gun (Katie Leung). So, no, being asked to be some rich man’s mistress (even if he is some rich man she loves) is just about the worst thing our heroine could be asked. But even without Benedict knowing the truth of Sophie’s parentage, much of Season 4 is dedicated to him learning the ins and outs of power dynamics.
That’s not nearly as boring and staid as it sounds because, as Benedict learns more about the wider world around him (read: everything and everyone not beholden to the rules and ways of the ton), so too does “Bridgerton.” And while the first half of this season felt overstuffed with subplots, its second half settles more evenly into all of them, including the woes and romances of both London’s elite and its more lower-class members. In teaching Benedict about the richness of life, “Bridgerton” also begins to heal its own issues with juggling subplots.
None of that, however, robs the series of its enduring appeal: hot-and-heavy love stories. Tortured romance! Yearning! Miscommunications soothed with a kiss (and maybe even an actually good proposal)! All of that is on offer (hehe) in the final half of Season 4, and the combination of swoon-y romance and better-balanced plotting for everyone in the Bridgerton orbit makes for a powerful combination. Fans of Quinn’s books will likely not be disappointed by the inclusion of some of Benedict and Sophie’s greatest hits, and while the novel about their romance is rife with more icky elements, on-screen Benedict and Sophie have been lightly retrofitted to pump up their genuine connection and respect for each other.
The season’s other big themes — particularly the value of gossip (a perennial favorite in a series partially built around Penelope’s wildly popular Lady Whistledown newsletter) and the price of convention (a bent really driven home by Benedict and Sophie’s unique situation) — are big, meaty issues to chew on, and “Bridgerton” does well by them. And while it might seem as if our lovers spend a whole heck of a lot of time ruminating on them (particularly Benedict, whose love for Sophie has directed his once-wild ways into a state of perpetual worry), that choice ultimately makes Season 4’s conclusion feel much more earned.
But, before all that, the final four episodes make the time to check in with everyone else in the pair’s orbit, all of them similarly beset by questions about gossip, convention, romance, and what it all means. Despite quite sternly bilking the marriage mart (and the convention of marriage in general), Eloise (Claudia Jessie) finds herself off the shelf and back in the mix again. Is this a hint at what’s (and who’s) to come in Season 5?
Meanwhile, Francesca (Hannah Dodd) is struggling with her own marriage to the lovely Lord John Stirling (Victor Alli). (We will choose this moment to stop pointing out when and how this season’s big themes pop up — they really are just everywhere.) While the reserved pair are certainly happy, Francesca’s realization that their physical bond might not be up to snuff continues to haunt her, tipping into her emotional state, which continues to be mussed by John’s vivacious cousin Michaela (Masali Baduza). But fans of the series know that Francesca and Michaela are on the cusp of a deeper connection, even if it’s one only possible due to profound tragedy, one of the most wrenching the Bridgerton family has had to endure yet (and this is a series that started with the death of their beloved patriarch).
A brief visit from Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate (Simone Ashley) serves as a sterling reminder of what a loving, intimate, and passionate marriage can look like, even within the tight confines of the ton. The pair’s return, while short-lived, is very welcome indeed, and we hope the series will continue to thread together both “new” stories and their older compatriots in further seasons. The show is called “Bridgerton,” after all, and we do miss the family when they disappear. (Daphne? Who is Daphne?)
Romance is not the only driving force at play here, however. Elsewhere, Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) considers her career path as Lady Whistledown, just as Alice Mondrich (Emma Naomi) and Lady Danbury (the ever-regal Adjoa Andoh) are similarly pondering the ways in which they spend their days. A pink-washed ball — presumably to look like tasty candy, the whole thing comes off more as intestine-themed — brings those queries (and more!) to the fore in the kind of lavish style that only “Bridgerton” could serve up.
That is, somehow, not all that unfolds in Season 4’s final four episodes, but the real pleasure of this entry is watching all of this unspool in natty succession. “Bridgerton” has long struggled with keeping the spotlight on its principal couple and making the space for scads of other storylines (to say nothing of the inevitable need to set up whichever sibling will take center stage next), but Season 4 proves that is indeed possible, even (gasp)… powerful.
(And, as Netflix loves to provide a detailed list of not-to-be-revealed spoilers for its buzziest series, all we can tell you is this, dearest gentle reader: This season and its merriment does not conclude until the final credits have rolled on its last episode. Don’t miss it, we think it’s the event of the season.)
Grade: B+
The final four episodes of “Bridgerton” Season 4 will be released Thursday, February 26 on Netflix.
