Here’s everything you can expect from the highly-awaited final episodes of Bridgerton, aka Season 3 Part 2.
Gentle readers, was it only mere weeks ago that Bridgerton season three was bestowed upon the world? After four episodes of romantic comedy with leading lovers Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) and Colin (Luke Newton), the show’s steamiest (unchaperoned!) carriage scene has dropped the couple at Bridgerton House with a marriage proposal made. But how will Penelope respond to such a spontaneous offer? Will the show’s version of the character differ from the Penelope of Julia Quinn’s Romancing Mister Bridgerton novel? More importantly: How will Claudia Jessie’s Eloise, sister of Colin and former best friend of Penelope, react to news of their romance?
Some of those questions—she said yes!–get answered in the first official trailer for Bridgerton season three, part two, which centers on Penelope’s secret identity as Lady Whistledown. “Who needs fresh air when there is fresh gossip?” asks Lady Danbury (Adjoa Andoh) in the newly-released footage. But the Ton’s hottest blind item threatens to derail Colin and Penelope’s betrothal—especially after Eloise threatens to tell her brother of her former best friend’s sordid secret. And pressure from Penelope’s meddling mama (Polly Walker) doesn’t help: “Ladies do not have dreams,” she warns her daughter. “They have husbands.”
By releasing the season’s final four episodes in June, Netflix is forcing heated viewers to take a breather.
Ahead, a preview of what’s to come in Bridgerton season 3 part 2—from the release date to what’s in store for Mayfair’s finest.
So, when will Bridgerton season three return?
The Shonda Rhimes–produced series will debut its second half on Thursday, June 13—almost exactly one month after the first drop. “We didn’t initially plan for there to be a break in the middle,” series showrunner Jess Brownell,who took over for Chris Van Dusen in season three, previously told Vanity Fair. “Netflix approached us about splitting the season in two. It’s something I think they’re trying out across their platform, and it worked out perfectly, actually. We had a natural break at the end of episode four. I’m sure it’s going to be frustrating for some fans, but it’s nice to have that break to take it all in and speculate about what’s to come, build momentum before the second part comes out.” Anticipation—it can be a good thing!
Remind me, what happened at the end of Bridgerton season three’s first four episodes?
When we last left the Ton, Colin and Penelope had finally confessed their more-than-friendly feelings for each other. After spontaneously hooking up in the back of a carriage bound for their shared street, Colin asked: “For God’s sake, Penelope Featherington, are you going to marry me or not?”
While he awaits an answer, his reserved sister Francesca Bridgerton (Hannah Dodd) is deciding whether to pursue a relationship with the similarly stoic John Stirling, Earl of Kilmartin (played by Victor Alli). Her older brother Benedict (Luke Thompson) is navigating a no-strings-attached arrangement with the widowed Lady Tilley Arnold (Hannah New). Meanwhile, matriarch Violet Bridgerton (Ruth Gemmell) has struck up something of a flirtation with Marcus Anderson (Daniel Francis), the so-called rakish brother of her best friend, Lady Agatha Danbury. And Eloise has found herself entangled in a surprising friendship with resident mean girl Cressida (Jessica Madsen), who was hoping to steal Lord Debling (Sam Phillips) away from Penelope back when their betrothal seemed imminent. Oh, and the garish Featherington sisters (Harriet Cains, Bessie Carter) are cracking open their editions of What to Expect When You’re Expecting—that is, if all their attempts to create a family heir have paid off.
What can we expect in Bridgerton season 3 part 2?
In short, a lot more drama. “They just keep taking layers off this season, both physically and emotionally,” Luke Newton told VF of Colin and Penelope’s newly defined relationship, which will soon have to contend with the Whistledown of it all. “We need to really uncover everything that’s been felt over the last however many years they’ve known each other now.”
Eloise will be hurt by the shift in dynamic between Colin and Penelope, two of the people who know her the best, said Claudia Jessie. “I just can’t see that she’s going to react well,” said the actor. “I’m nervous for everybody watching. If the Whistledown thing hadn’t happened, I know there’s a world in which Eloise would be like, I’m so happy Penelope’s [potentially] gonna be my sister. Just as happy as she was that Kate Sharma was gonna be her sister. But because of the Whistledown thing, I feel like she’s gonna be like, ‘Oh, and this? So you’re Lady Whistledown and you want to sleep with my brother?’”
Showrunner Jess Brownell has teased a few elements of Bridgerton season three, part two, including “a set piece in episode five in which all of our major characters are together” and, “in episode six, a Demi Lovato song that really just lands.”
As for online theories that, if he finds out about Penelope’s secret, Colin may channel his own writing into a Lord Whistledown persona? “I haven’t heard that,” Brownell told VF coyly when presented with the idea. “Well, we know that Colin and Penelope have written letters to each other every time Colin goes away for the summer, and that’s where they really built their friendship, so writing is central to their connection, for sure. How that plays out this season will be left to be revealed.” She continued: “When Colin and Penelope get together, there’s a part of Penelope that wants to be known fully by Colin, and so it’s a question for her of whether or not to reveal this secret to him, which she has to navigate.”
Where can I spend my time while I await Bridgerton season 3 part 2?
Right here at Vanity Fair, where all angles of Bridgerton season three are being covered with the snark and style of Whistledown herself. VF’s Still Watching podcast, which recapped the season’s first four episodes, will be back on June 13 for full coverage of episodes five through eight. And next week, Nicola Coughlan stops by the studio for a special solo episode. “People are going to have our heads,” she previously said of the third season’s midway cliff-hanger. “It’s only a couple of weeks. They’ll live.”
Originally published on Vanityfair.com