Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to be disappointed in Bridgerton?

268 replies

Scatterlingsofafrica · 30/12/2020 02:07

I love costume dramas and was excited when I heard there was a new one on Netflix. But it’s awful! I can’t watch it- the costumes, the dialogue, the plot are all completely implausible and unconvincing. Anyone else feel the same?

OP posts:
mammmamia · 30/12/2020 08:29

Oh I loved REIGN so can’t wait to watch this in that case Blush

maverickallthetime · 30/12/2020 08:29

I'm 3 episodes in but loving it!! An easy watch when life is crappy is what I needed.

knittingaddict · 30/12/2020 08:31

@RoSEbuds6

I love it, but so much sex! So pleased I wasn’t watching it with my mum!
I watched the first episode with my husband because our adult daughter recommended it. The sex in the first episode wasn't too much, but I could see which direction we were going in. Thankfully husband fell asleep in the last 15 minutes, so don't think he will be that interested in watching with me again. I've already told him that I'm definitely not watching it with her when she stays at New Year. Too excruciating for all of us.
SimplyRadishing · 30/12/2020 08:36

It's shonda rhimes who seemingly loves self indulgent unbelievable characters - Olivia pope and Meredith grey anyone?
If anything this show has more substance than previous efforts.

Backbee · 30/12/2020 08:37

Heyyyy what's wrong with Mer?

MaMaLa321 · 30/12/2020 08:37

I started watching it and really disliked it - just too stupid!
Then I went back and I'm hooked. I don't like colour blind casting, but it doesn't bother me here - it's just fantasy, after all. For some reason, it would bother me if it was a 'proper' novel that it was based on, like Heyer.
Anyway, the production values are amazing - the costumes, the sets are superb. And it's fun to watch, with not as much sex as I was expecting.
The only thing I still find annoying is Eloise.

Potatoespuds · 30/12/2020 08:37

‘Also, the weird Queen Charlotte possible African ancestry justification for using a black actress’

This was the point that I decided they must be in some sort of alternate Britain where race didn’t matter in the 18th century.
Loved it tho, wasn’t watching it for historical accuracy and enjoyed the casting. Hope they get started on season 2 soon!

BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 30/12/2020 08:39

It felt to me, in terms of the costumes and set, like Nanny McPhee for grown ups.

milienhaus · 30/12/2020 08:40

@mammmamia If you liked Reign then it is definitely for you! Though Bridgerton was much more predictable - Reign plot lines were totally insane.

Thatwentbadly · 30/12/2020 08:42

@knittingaddict

I enjoyed, but I read loads of regency romances. It was as expected, but may be a surprise for those who don't know the genre. I really loved the clothes and the frothiness of it. Regency romances have a formula and I fully expect to see every plot point coming a mile off.

I've only seen the first episode, so haven't seen the bit about the withdrawal method, but that is a common theme in 90% of steamy romances set in this era.

As for making the Queen black, I assumed that was colour blind casting rather than casting aspersions on the Queen's heritage. After all the Duke and his family are black and I don't think there where many black people with titles at the time. I'm pretty sure there were none. Personally I like colour blind casting.

There was a very ham fisted reference to the queen been black and the other black characters position in society.
Ginfordinner · 30/12/2020 08:45

@Maudythebudgie

I can see why people would be disappointed if they were expecting authentic period drama, but I loved it because it wasn't! Loved the diverse cast, music, the costumes and sets. I didn't have to concentrate to watch and it was all visually delicious. Just what I needed at this time.
I agree with this ^^ It's just implausible, escapist nonsense, and very watchable.
LadyIsabellaWrotham · 30/12/2020 08:48

It’s not colourblind casting, it’s an alternative universe where Queen Charlotte, as a black woman, magically made England more or less non-racist and enabled Simon’s dreadful father to be ennobled for unspecified services and a whole bunch of other black people to enter high society.

It’s a wholly implausible contrivance if you look at it too closely, but it’s just a device to enable them to hire the actors they want to hire and tell the story they want to tell. It also means that any historical inaccuracy can be waved away with “well of course it’s not our 1810s, it’s an alternative universe where the rules for (eg) who gets to be called dowager are different”.

Like all post 1950 regency romances I strongly suspect that the majority of the original author’s research comes from reading Heyer rather than going to primary sources, but to be fair, Heyer did her research so thoroughly that it’s a reasonable enough shortcut to take.

It’s rubbish, but I’ll forgive it a lot for an actual bona fide duel scene. They’re such a huge feature of Heyer that I was thrilled to see one on screen with all the key features ticked off.

thefemaleJoshLyman · 30/12/2020 08:54

I loved it. Even DH watched it with me which never happens! I must admit that my dreams have been full of the Duke of Hastings the last couple of nights. Blush. I know it was trash and have just started reading the books which seem equally rubbish but match my usual low standards for reading!!

ZaraW · 30/12/2020 08:56

@Camomila

The 2012 Upstairs Downstairs is on iplayer...people might enjoy it more, there's a less sex and a lot more plot!
No thanks.
RainingBatsAndFrogs · 30/12/2020 08:56

I started watching it last night.

I sort of enjoyed it as a rather preposterous pastiche of a Regency novel.

But I had been told it was colour blind casting. But it isn’t. Hastings’ family is a black family. If it was simply actors playing roles he need not have had two black actors as parents.

True colour blind casting (have a black actor play a Featherstone sister, Lady Brigerton, etc) would avoid the whole question of authenticity, picking over Charlotte’s heritage, authenticity etc.

Sinful8 · 30/12/2020 08:56

Is this the one with the rape scene thats doing the headlines atm?

FutureDuchessofHastings · 30/12/2020 08:59

It's light-hearted fun, based on novels. Easy watching. I'm not aware that it promised anything else. I binge watched it over two days and absolutely loved it. It was something a bit different from the usual period drama. The clothes (and the Duke) are absolutely beautiful.

Theredjellybean · 30/12/2020 09:00

I loved it but I viewed it as a pantomime
It did get a bit near pornography in later episodes... I was watching with my 13yr dgodd... And was a bit 😳

RollOnForever · 30/12/2020 09:07

The colour blind casting thing is the only bit that's annoyed me. I had read on here that it was colour blind casting and once I got used to that it was fine and I didn't really notice. No one made reference to colour. And then they did, like a PP has said in a totally ham-fisted off hand comment. Right. So it's not colour blind, it's an alternate reality!

I've enjoyed everything else so far although tempted to skip episode 6 if it's mostly sex scenes between Daphne and the Duke. Sounds dull.

knittingaddict · 30/12/2020 09:15

@LadyIsabellaWrotham

It’s not colourblind casting, it’s an alternative universe where Queen Charlotte, as a black woman, magically made England more or less non-racist and enabled Simon’s dreadful father to be ennobled for unspecified services and a whole bunch of other black people to enter high society.

It’s a wholly implausible contrivance if you look at it too closely, but it’s just a device to enable them to hire the actors they want to hire and tell the story they want to tell. It also means that any historical inaccuracy can be waved away with “well of course it’s not our 1810s, it’s an alternative universe where the rules for (eg) who gets to be called dowager are different”.

Like all post 1950 regency romances I strongly suspect that the majority of the original author’s research comes from reading Heyer rather than going to primary sources, but to be fair, Heyer did her research so thoroughly that it’s a reasonable enough shortcut to take.

It’s rubbish, but I’ll forgive it a lot for an actual bona fide duel scene. They’re such a huge feature of Heyer that I was thrilled to see one on screen with all the key features ticked off.

Was it like that in the book? I am disappointed if it was a way of explaining the black actors if it wasn't in the original material.

Writers of Regency romance from the US are notorious for getting things wrong ie wrong titles, using US terms for things in the UK and many online reviews mention this. I have read a book that was to all intents and purposes a Regency romance, but they set it in a fictional place and time. I imagine that was to get passed the pedantic readers when the author couldn't be bothered to do the research. I wonder if Julia Quinn did the same thing here. Might have to read the books now just to find out.

Just seen that the first book is on Amazon kindle for 99p. I think I can stretch to that, for research purposes. No mention in the reviews that there are black characters, so I imagine that's just for the tv series. Lots of mentions of historical inaccuracy though.

Happymum12345 · 30/12/2020 09:18

I absolutely loved it! Don’t take it too seriously & just enjoy it for what it is.

yetanothernamitynamechange · 30/12/2020 09:19

@Bitcherama

Load of daft nonsense but am enjoying it on the whole.

Minor annoyances: get the bloody titles right. Women were not the Right Honourable and Lady Bridgerton isn't the Dowager until Lord Bridgerton gets married. Also, the weird Queen Charlotte possible African ancestry justification for using a black actress. Queen Charlotte was white. The actress who plays her is great; her ethnicity isn't relevant, so don't make up some unconvincing bollocks for something that doesn't need to be justified in the first place.

I think its meant to be some sort of parralel universe where George married a black woman rather than Charlotte. Might have got that completely wrong though...
yetanothernamitynamechange · 30/12/2020 09:21

Also, I recommended it to my mum BEFORE it got all soft porny so feeling a bit Blush at that. The ENTIRE episode where they were newly weds was ridiculous. I mean, we get it, they enjoy having sex with each other move on.
Still liked it on the whole though.

SpiderGwen · 30/12/2020 09:23

I’m rather disappointed - I was hoping for something a bit more Georgette Heyer.

SinkGirl · 30/12/2020 09:24

It’s absolute trash but quite fun. And the people on the knife / fork thread would certainly have a field day - did you see the lack of table manners? Elbows on tables and everything. For shame!

I also find it quite funny to see how Americans think English nobility works - it’s like they’ve heard the term “your grace” on The Crown and thought oh that sounds good, let’s use that without any understanding of who it’s used for. Fair enough for the Duke, but it seems everyone is “your Grace”. Evidently they should have spent a bit of time on Wikipedia looking up English nobility but it’s quite funny to see the American view of it.