Shonda Rhimes' 'Bridgerton' spinoff series about the young queen was the best TV romance of the year
An entire generation of romance lovers has been raised on Shonda Rhimes' prose. From the sublime enemies-to-lovers tale in A Princess Diaries 2: A Royal Engagement (Did you not know that was Shonda? Surprise!) to the iconic early seasons of Grey's Anatomy, Shonda Rhimes has set the bar for modern pop-culture romances.
We thought she outdid herself with the first season of Bridgerton in 2020, but little did we know that Rhimes was only just getting started.
On paper, the story of how the austere Queen Charlotte (Golda Rosheuvel) met her husband, King George III (James Fleet), doesn't seem like the most compelling material for a Bridgerton spinoff (especially when the Violet Bridgerton prequel novels were right there), but Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story proved all the haters wrong.
It is immediately apparent from young Charlotte (India Amarteifio) and George's (Corey Mylchreest) first meeting that Rhimes wasn't just executive-producing the series, her masterful writing was fueling the chemistry between these two characters. Rhimes wrote or co-wrote five of the limited series' six episodes, and it shows.
Queen Charlotte is a rollercoaster of the best romance tropes: arranged marriage to love-at-first-sight that somehow morphs into a version of enemies-to-lovers (George and Charlotte never really hate each other, but there's a lot of resentment in those early episodes), before finally landing at epic soulmates.
As with all of Rhimes' greatest fictional romances, Charlotte and George's story is never just one thing. It's charming and sexy but also frustrating and heartbreaking at multiple points. George spends a good chunk of the season torturing himself in an effort to suppress his spells of "madness," and Charlotte spirals in her loneliness as her husband seems reluctant to be in the same room as her.
It all comes to a head when Charlotte discovers what George is doing and puts an end to his questionable doctor's cruel methods. Then she confronts her husband and pushes him to reveal his true feelings for her. He protests that he is a madman who can't be loved, but Charlotte stays steadfast in her conviction that they belong together, and what unfolds is signature Shonda Rhimes magic.
Charlotte: George. I will stand with you between the heavens and the Earth. I will tell you where you are. Do. You. Love. Me?
George: I love you! From the moment I saw you trying to go over the wall, I have loved you desperately. I cannot breathe when you are not near. I love you, Charlotte. My heart calls your name.
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, Episode 5 "Gardens in Bloom"
Move over, "I burn for you" and "You are the bane of my existence and the object of all my desires," because "I cannot breathe when you are not near...my heart calls your name," has entered the chat and taken the crown of the Bridgerton universe's most epic confession of love. Would you believe that confession isn't even the most emotional moment of their romance? It all comes back to the wall when adult Charlotte finds her husband under the bed, their safe place from the heavens, and tells them their line of succession is secured. In a rare moment of lucidity, George expresses his relief that Charlotte never went over the wall, and you can cue the tears right now.
What's truly crazy about Queen Charlotte and its superior romantic content is that Charlotte and George are not the only bittersweet romance in the series. Lady Danbury (Arsema Thomas) and Lord Ledger (Keir Charles) have their own affair that ends with them having to stay away from each other. We need to grab another packet of tissues if we even dare to think of Brimsley (Hugh Sachs) dancing alone in the garden without Reynolds (Freddie Dennis) in the series' final moments.
Post a Comment