After the masquerade ball’s fantasy, tensions rise as the characters try to settle back into reality in Bridgerton Season 4, Episode 2, “Time Transfixed.” Thankfully, this episode, written by Azia Squire and directed by Jaffar Mahmood, is mostly dedicated to Benedict and Sophie. They spend most of the episode, which spans months at a time, apart. When they are close together, they aren’t close enough. So, “Time Transfixed” exemplifies why this season is for the yearners, of which both Benedict and Sophie are. With Luke Thompson and Yerin Ha as the season’s leads, the time and space between their characters are full of believable longing and tension.
Simultaneously, there are smaller yet impactful nudges forward for characters like Eloise, Francesca, and Violet. Beyond the season’s leads, the most significant story in “Time Transfixed” belongs to Queen Charlotte, Lady Danbury, and Brimsley. There are turns among those three that are impossible to shake – just incredible work. Even so, this season’s themes are so specific and already so well-woven into the different stories that any pivot to the ensemble never detracts from Benedict and Sophie.
Instead, every story bolsters another, creating a narrative support system for a rather heavy episode. More specifically, after meeting the Lady in Silver, “Time Transfixed” reveals some wonderful highs and devastating lows of Sophie Baek’s life. This episode is one that Bridgerton needs to come down from the masquerade ball and find its footing before delving further into the season. There is some fantastic character work in this episode – in Sophie’s story – that really embraces the lights and shades of the ensemble. All the while, Bridgerton continues to bring pages of Julia Quinn’s An Offer from a Gentleman to the screen in its own way.
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A History of Friendship
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story isn’t necessarily required viewing to understand Bridgerton. “Time Transfixed” definitively changes that. This episode builds on the prequel show’s foundation with the most careful, considerate moves. For example, Charlotte’s increasingly visible fear of George’s inevitable death looms over every one of her scenes. Also, Mahmood’s direction catches looks, like the one between Charlotte and Brimsley when Agatha leaves that first scene, that make the history between the three characters palpable. It’s more like a fourth character; their shared past holds that much resonance.
The script itself has Brimsley say as much in his plea for Agatha to help Charlotte. Hugh Sachs’s performance is enough to knock one over. The gradual, undeniable emotion in his eyes and voice points to that friendship’s critical importance. Brimsley presents it as a salve to “The whole world is getting smaller.” While this season is about Benedict and Sophie’s romance, Bridgerton also has these moving, platonic love stories in its arsenal.
Establishing that makes Bridgerton’s commentary on Charlotte and Danbury’s shifting dynamic, further incentivized by Lady Baird’s dismissal, even more compelling. The themes of place and position wrap around Charlotte and Agatha’s dynamic. That movement brings the question of friend or subject to the forefront. That conflict is even present in Golda Rosheuvel’s incredible delivery of “You are my subject.”
Rosheuvel also delivers a stunning performance when the camera holds on Charlotte when Agatha bows to her – there’s so much in Charlotte’s expression. Relatedly, Mahmood’s framing of Charlotte and Agatha’s reconciliation is amazing. It places Brimsley between them in the background. That shot tells a whole story on its own. It’s yet another example of Bridgerton Season 4 featuring intentional, thoughtful storytelling across the board. It almost makes Netflix’s gaps between the seasons less irritating.
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Introducing Sophie Baek
“Time Transfixed” does the heavy lifting in introducing Sophie Baek to the world of Bridgerton. The script is packed with details about the character’s past, present, and what she thinks is possible or what society deems as such for her future. Paired with Yerin Ha’s compelling performance (Sophie screaming into her hands!), there’s a real sense of knowing Sophie by the end. “Time Transfixed” utilizes flashbacks for the first time since Season 2, which certainly helps. It’s also smart that Bridgerton only slightly turns back time at the start. That choice doesn’t interrupt the season’s pacing; it plays better into the episode’s title.
The few scenes before the masquerade make Sophie’s relationship with Alfie and Irma feel lived-in. There’s truth and warmth in Irma telling Sophie, “You deserve to belong. It is your birthright, just as much as Miss Li and Miss Posy.” However, Sophie and Alfie’s friendship is outstanding. Ha and David Moorst have excellent chemistry. It’s believable that Sophie and Alfie have known and worked with each other for years. That familiarity shines through Alfie knowing the difference between “witty, spiteful Sophie” and “sad, sulky Sophie,” or when Alfie keeps Sophie company while she cleans shoe after shoe.
By the time Alfie takes Sophie’s hand and encourages her to go to Benedict, Bridgerton earns that heartfelt beat between the friends. Adding this dynamic is also a fascinating way to externalize some of Sophie’s more internalized thoughts from the book. Her hesitance to believe that Benedict looks for her finds its pushback in Alfie. He knows that Sophie deserves a Happily Ever After, making Moorst’s delivery of “Do not say anything. I want to stay angry” entirely heartbreaking. Beyond Alfie, Sophie’s exchanges with Posy – hidden smiles and stolen shoe clips – differentiate their dynamic from that between Sophie and Rosamund.
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Lady Araminta and Penwood House
Penwood House becomes tangible with the flashbacks. They’re particularly useful in supporting Katie Leung’s excellent work in conveying Araminta’s evolution. For instance, there’s only a single sequence of Araminta with Sophie’s father, Lord Penwood. That’s all Leung needs to convey the love that Araminta has for him. That feeling contextualizes the grief – the second time she has lost a husband – she feels in the episode’s final flashback at Lord Penwood’s grave.
It also makes it so Bridgerton can showcase the shift in Araminta upon meeting Sophie, Lord Penwood’s “ward.” Leung’s entire demeanor changes as reality sinks in for her character. Araminta’s hopeful ideas for her future vanish just before Sophie registers that she won’t have a positive relationship with Araminta or her daughters. It’s such a pivotal moment for both characters.
Bridgerton doesn’t excuse Araminta’s cruel behavior, but it attempts to explain it with these flashbacks. Araminta’s manipulation and mistreatment of Sophie only dial up from there. She belittles Sophie’s mother’s life as a maid and deems that’s all Sophie can hope for, too, as the illegitimate child of a nobleman. It’s tough to watch because of Leung and Ha’s present performances. They feel locked into every one of their scenes, which really draws one into their characters’ intense and important dynamic.
That flashback is a standout of “Time Transfixed” for Araminta and Sophie. It taps into the significance and influence of place and station – Araminta’s value of status, Sophie’s inability to access it, despite it being her birthright, love and legacy entangling, and the distinction that her father, who vowed to protect her, didn’t include Sophie in his will. It’s complex, and, in one affecting episode, Bridgerton communicates it all. The new characters and their personal stakes are established early so that Bridgerton can move forward with purpose.
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Benedict’s Search for the Lady in Silver
Meanwhile, Benedict Bridgerton is stuck in time. He’s drawing again (!); the Lady in Silver is his only muse. He’s seeing her features in debutantes; he’s holding hands with her glove. Given their closeness, it’s satisfying to see him turn to Eloise in his search. It also gives Eloise a purpose for “Time Transfixed” that leads her to the swingset siblings scene. Of course, Benedict’s dedication to finding Sophie resonates with Eloise. He’s always been in the seat beside her. There are certainly implications, albeit entirely speculative, in Benedict leaving Eloise there.
Regardless, their search folds Penelope – and Lady Whistledown – into the mix. Penelope’s consideration of the Lady in Silver’s reputation, and that of other young women, is relevant to see. In turn, it’s telling that Benedict offers himself up to be the subject of speculation instead. That’s a fun scene, as is Violet trying to pull information out of Benedict. Ruth Gemmell and Luke Thompson are entirely delightful in it, and it has a similar energy to the book.
Then, there’s a wonderful snapshot of Benedict at Penwood House. He’s curious and kind, expressing interest in Posy’s dreams. This sequence is some of Mahmood’s best work in the episode. Sophie seeing Benedict through the crack in the door represents their obstacles. It’s practical but impressive storytelling. It’s impactful to hear Sophie articulate her reality while the dream plays out in her mind – set to a classical version of Taylor Swift’s “Enchanted.” Having Benedict’s eyes just miss hers – it’s stunning!
Bridgerton diverges from the book (Benedict’s search lasts years), and that’s for the best. “Time Transfixed” does well with the time it has. The edit is particularly great in the montage. Thompson’s physicality captures Benedict’s depleting hope, which works for where the episode ends.
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Benophie’s Reunion at Cavender’s
There’s a scene in the countryside that becomes more significant after the mid-season finale. “Time Transfixed” conveniently introduces a new character, Hiscox, to the show, but an old friend of Benedict’s. His greatest purpose stands in telling Benedict he has asked Virginia, an actress, to be his mistress, and she agreed. As a book reader, this exchange feels important.
Bridgerton also makes some changes when adapting the text originally published in 2001. Most recognizably, Sophie intervenes to rescue her friend, who is later revealed to be named Hazel. The scene still maintains a similar, terrifying tone to the book through Cavender and his friends’ actions against Hazel and Sophie.
Regardless, as a fan of Luke Thompson, it’s exciting to see him get to play more sides of Benedict. The character has never been quite as angry as in the fight sequence. Technically, it’s great that the camera catches Benedict falling on the broken glass without it becoming distracting. There’s also so much in the words themselves. Cavender says that Sophie is “only a maid,” but Benedict makes Cavender apologize for the treatment of “any woman.” That dialogue, coming before the flashback where Araminta tells Sophie that all she will be is a maid, feels intentional. Benedict sees more.
As he later tells Sophie, he was taught to respect maids as people. Bridgerton constantly puts that fantasy in reality in conflict, which makes their reunion in this scene so beautiful but painful. Benedict and Sophie are convinced they won’t find the other, and they have without Benedict knowing it. The “Enchanted” reprise is as hopeful as Sophie’s eyes, practically begging Benedict to remember her. In a moment spiritually similar to Mr. Darcy in Pride & Prejudice (2005) and the perfect beat to end on, Benedict’s memory is slightly jogged by Sophie’s hand in his.
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