Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story takes the crown today! After the long wait, the Bridgerton spinoff and prequel lands on Netflix. And, while we are going to break down all the episodes separately, we wanted to take this opportunity to tell you about the story of Charlotte and George, but also about all the characters that surround them and who equally fought to be the owners of their own lives. Ready?
Here we go!
Love Stories…and Something Else in Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is sold as a love story between the prince and the princess, and it is. But when you take a closer look, you realize that, beyond that, this is the story of strong women who are getting to know themselves and discovering who they are as opposed to who they are being forced to be. And precisely this last part is what makes the difference.
That’s how it was for us. We came to Queen Charlotte for the Bridgerton-style love story, with low expectations after Bridgerton Season 2, but we stayed for the true story of this show.
Speaking of the love story, everything starts with an obligation. Charlotte doesn’t want to get married but she is a woman in a man’s world and that means she has no right to decide on her own life. But, if you are expecting to see a complacent woman who is content to be what others want her to be, you are very wrong. Queen Charlotte was already a queen before she had a crown.
She decides to run away but someone interrupts her. George, her future husband, is right there. They talk and…there’s a spark between them. Charlotte, for the first time, considers a future next to the man chosen for her. She can see a fairy tale taking place right before her eyes because George is not who she imagined he would be. He’s like she dreamed he would be.
Fairy Tales Don’t Exist
But soon, Queen Charlotte realizes that her marriage and her life are far from being a fairy tale.
From there, Queen Charlotte has to fight not to lose herself in neglect, boredom, and loneliness in a world where everyone cares more about appearances than anything else.
Queen Charlotte is alone. She only has one accomplice who really cares about her: Brimsley. Her husband doesn’t seem to care and society only sees her as the new toy to be played by the usual rules. She can’t trust anyone but Brimsley…and Lady Danbury. She’s the only one Charlotte can talk to about everything that’s really going on in her marriage.
However, none of this is enough to prevent the routine in solitude from ending up denting the fighting spirit of Queen Charlotte. She ends up sinking into a depression from which Brimsley and Lady Danbury fight to snap her out off. But Charlotte is nothing if she is not a fighter and, in the end, she manages to react and go looking for her husband. In addition to asking for explanations about his indifference.
And, without giving anything away to save us an ace up our sleeve for reviews per episode, as far as George is concerned, he’s not having a good time either. We promise he has an explanation for not being there for our Queen Charlotte. A clue: the secrets of the crown are always twisted…and they stay hidden no matter what.
Checkmate
Apart from Charlotte, one of Queen Charlotte‘s strong points is undoubtedly Lady Danbury. She sees in the queen both a friend and an ally. For the first time, a Black woman like her is at the center of British Royalty. And Lady Danbury sees that for the opportunity that it is.
Lack of diversity in the British crown, classism, and racism are a central focus of Queen Charlotte. We’re going to talk a lot about that soon. But, for now, the point is that Lady Danbury sees in Charlotte an opportunity for all the wealthy Black people that was not considered part of the high society…until now.
So Lady Danbury starts a game of chess with the Queen Mother that sees her dance between friendship and interest when she approaches Queen Charlotte. But she is the one in charge of opening Charlotte’s eyes to the reality of Black society living within Britain. They are close, but not part.
And that’s one of the reasons that helps Charlotte wake up from her lethargy and depression. It’s one of the reasons that encourages her to fight for what is hers, her husband, the crown, and the power that comes with it. From what we can say: checkmate, Queen Mother.
Unexpected Romances in Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story
The present plays a very important role in the show. Not only does it act as a reflection of the Queen that Charlotte ends up becoming, but it also reveals some secrets about Lady Danbury and Violet Bridgerton that have implications not only for this show but also for Bridgerton Season 3.
In addition, through this look at what is happening in the present time, we see that Charlotte becomes the Queen she was destined to be, but that doesn’t always coincide with the person she proposed and fought to be, leaving us with a bittersweet flavor as only life itself is capable of leaving.
Queen Charlotte has some weak points, which we will talk about but it fulfills everything it promises: an imperfect love story, which almost breaks at the seams, and ends up being a fairy tale. But it also gives us so much more with a web of complex female characters, unexpected romances, and stories of women who fought tooth and nail to achieve their own place in society.
Here ends our Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story Season review. Stay tuned for our upcoming episode reviews!
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is available to stream on Netflix.
