Bridgerton Season 4 makes it an irrefutable fact that Francesca, John, and Michaela are all critical pieces in each other’s stories. It does so by showing the relatively early days of John and Francesca’s marriage, reintroducing Michaela and her specific relationships to both characters, and depicting John’s death and the aftermath of such a loss. That’s a lot for eight episodes to juggle, but Bridgerton does so with confidence, heart, and intention. The season takes some inspiration from Francesca’s story in Julia Quinn’s When He Was Wicked. It still leaves plenty of the sixth-born Bridgerton’s book’s plot to unfold later.
Bridgerton’s structure also means it can make some pacing changes that benefit the characters in this medium. Most notably, the TV series spends far more time with John than the book does. Instead of picking up after John’s death, like the source material, Bridgerton uses its visual medium to spend 12 episodes that span two seasons with him. That choice makes the loss of John have a larger impact on Francesca and Michaela individually. Not to mention, his death rocks the show itself, propelling the season into its final and life-affirming act.
Taking all of that time – feeling John’s presence and sitting in the loss of him – also benefits the build-up to Francesca and Michaela’s love story. Bridgerton Season 3 diverges from Quinn’s book to gender-swap Michael Stirling, John’s cousin, to the ever-charming Michaela Stirling. That choice likely means that some of the book’s narrative will adapt to fit Francesca and Michaela, as it already has and should continue to do. So, it’s worthwhile that Bridgerton Season 4 never dismisses either relationship in Francesca’s life to bolster the other. Instead, Bridgerton validates both – as well as that between John and Michaela – as essential and unique love stories for all three characters.
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The Romance (and Potential for It) Is There
Even though it depicts their specific courtship and ends with their marriage, Bridgerton Season 3 only scratches the surface of Francesca and John’s relationship. The fourth season gives them the space to live as a married couple. Admittedly, the show does lose a significant portion of that chapter in their lives by leaving their trip to Scotland a mystery. While it’s unfortunate to miss out on the freedom they have as newlyweds in Scotland, that off-screen gap certainly amplifies tension between Francesca and Michaela. Though frustrating to lose such pivotal screen time for the characters, Bridgerton Season 4 finds a solution. Francesca and John find their footing as a couple in society.
That choice opens up the pair, mainly Francesca, to the season’s themes about society’s roles. In retrospect, the season could do more with John’s characterization and interests. Assuming the emphasis on legacy and succession in When He Was Wicked will make it to the show in some form, knowing more about the Kilmartin estate or John’s seat in Parliament would have been beneficial. Most importantly, the show never doubts John’s love for Francesca. Debates stirred about the extent of their feelings for each other after the Season 3 finale. Bridgerton Season 4 presents Francesca and John as present in and passionate about their marriage all the way through their last moments.
It’s a real gift of the medium’s longevity to spend that quality with John and Francesca, especially since the source material mainly deals with the aftermath of John’s death. The storytelling’s pacing gives Bridgerton a runway to Francesca and Michaela’s second-chance romance. Relatedly, in the Season 4 finale, Francesca says, “I have had my great love. One time is enough.” That same season shows the opposites-attract buzz between Francesca and Michaela.
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There Are Multiple Love Stories Here
In turn, Bridgerton shows each relationship through a specific lens with unique contexts – each significant in its own right. John compliments Francesca in the quiet, while Michaela pulls out a new side of Francesca. That sentiment comes together nicely with the puzzle metaphor: John completes the ground, Michaela the sky. As Michaela says, “You cannot have one without the other.” While that line is a bit on the nose, it’s honest in a way that some viewers may need to hear. Bridgerton ensures that everyone knows that this story can only be told with all three characters and the love that exists between them.
This season does an excellent job of establishing that dynamic between John and Michaela, who have known each other their whole lives. Like feeling Francesca’s pain, that work is imperative to feeling how much John’s death rocks Michaela. She loses the person she’s closest to and the most comfortable with, and that’s a massive shift for her to experience. It’s also immensely moving to watch Francesca and Michaela repeat the pattern of pulling apart and coming back together through their shared love of John. It’s a testament to the show and the performances – Hannah Dodd, Victor Alli, and Masali Baduza do incredible work – that no pairing among the three feels underdeveloped.
Without earning those relationships, the show doesn’t land the impact of Francesca being the one who must place the final piece in that puzzle. By the time Francesca and Michaela’s romance takes the lead with a two-year time jump in Season 5, Bridgerton Season 4 will be the foundation it needs. Examining the various tethers between the characters makes the love stories between them as complex as they should be. After all, romance contains depth, and there is a history and future full of it for Francesca, John, and Michaela.
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