What a Barb! Episode 50 - What a Way with Words! [Bridgerton Season 3 Part 2 Reaction] 

I was SO MAD at Colin during my first watch of Part 2 for the "entrapment" line, but then upon rewatch I focused on his POV, and he was so clearly sick with worry because of Pen's behavior throughout the engagement party and beyond. I was so focused on Pen's stress that I didn't realize Colin was on the verge of a breakdown the entire time as well! In Pen's case, she was panicking over telling him about LW, but Colin doesn't know this. So what does he witness? Pen, without explanation, slipping back into her default Season 1&2 avoidant behavior (not meeting his eyes, fidgeting, looking distressed but not expressing why). She is clearly uncomfortable throughout the party, even hiding in another room from him at one point to dodge his questioning. She faints, and makes up a story about being ill so he won't visit. When he does manage to visit, she pulls her hands away, tells him he shouldn't stay long in case what she has is catching, then lies about the ink on her hands (you can see the doubt in his face - he knows she isn't being entirely truthful). Yes, there are a few moments where she smiles and tries to reassure him, but there is still an imbalance, she is withholding from him in a way she wasn't before. It's completely understandable that his mind shifts to "oh my god she doesn't love me and she's second guessing everything and I took advantage of her in a moment of weakness and now she feels trapped"; his comments to her about getting swept away, about him understanding if she'd changed her mind and didn't share his feelings, etc. telegraph the fact that he still doesn't truly believe she loves him, or if she does, that her feelings are not as strong as his. Again, like in Part 1, he's never questioning his own love for her, but instead, questioning whether the intensity he feels is unrequited. Then we get the church scene, and she does manage to calm him a bit and assure him of her love, BUT only a day or two later, LW is revealed, and in the worst way possible. And if she is able to lie to him about such a major part of her life, why wouldn't she also be capable of lying about (or at least exaggerating) her feelings for him as well? This feeds straight into his deepest insecurities and also brings up many unpleasant parallels with his engagement to Marina, who had manipulated him so easily and skillfully just two seasons prior. So with all this in mind, the "entrapment" scene really hit different the second time through for me. He was incredibly hurt that she had lied (by omission AND overtly at times), grappling with feelings of unworthiness, and externalizing his own feelings of guilt over compromising her. Because, really, he was the one "swept away" by his love for her, and it caused him to make some very rash decisions. If he hadn't been so impulsive and eager to lock her down, courted Pen properly and given the development of their relationship some time to breathe, the truth regarding Whistledown would have likely been revealed to him organically during that process. Projection, thy name is Colin! He wanted to believe he had grown up, that he was much more mature than had been during the Marina engagement, but no doubt Anthony's words from S1 Ep 6 (and even S3 Ep 5) haunted him here, because it made him realize that he still had some growing up to do.

I feel that Penelope’s lack of telling Colin she loves him is somewhat down to never being told she is loved at home. I cant imagine “I love you” being used often in the Featherington house

“And he didn´t even know there was a race, but he f***ing won it straight up” was absolutely hilarious!! 👌🏻😂 And I need in S4 a conversation between Eloise and Pen, where Eloise asks pregnant Pen: “So now you know how babies are made, so tell me right now.” And then Eloise in S4 needs to fangirl a little bit about LW and ask Pen how has she been doing it all this time and Pen tells her about the carriage driver´s lights as a signal and about the Irish accent maid and everything!

I think Colin being at Bridgerton house early in the morning when the letter would get there was enough to show he was part of the plan but i hear ya

Can we talk about the bird metaphore? Deblin is going to Antarctica to save the ancestor of the penguin, but fails. Just like he fails to save Cressida. Also, the bird doesn't fly, and neither does Cressida, metaphorically. She remains a bird in a guilded cage, unable to fly away to freedom. The tragedy is that, had she been herself instead of what she thought these men wanted, she might have been married. But, she lost all of them to someone who was not pretending.

Agree, the full season together makes it way more cohesive. The only thing this needed was a few more physical moments like a touch or kiss from Colin during the emotional angst to keep them connected during the emotional angst for the casual viewer because it felt too sad for them both

Funny thing is I was emotional and happy after finishing from Ep 1 to 8 only to came online to see people stating they hated that storyline, that dialogue and that moment 😂😂 Here are my thoughts - 1.) I also have some valid criticisms as well and I totally agree with Lechi , I would not want to change framework but just some tweaks here and there and add extra even 20 seconds moments here and there post marriage to show even with physical distance they are not emotionally distant (like you guys said him giving her jounals to edit). Removing some out of character dialogues and some more Polin post reconciliation. 2.) Editing could have been better in Ep7&8 , there so many moments I wished camera should have stayed on Polin and let them breathe instead of cutting to 100 other random characters. In conclusion, I am just content and happy because I waited 2 years for my favourite ship and got many things I was not expecting ( letters role, both continuing with thier writing at end, parents polin) At this point I don't want to lament about the coins we lost in the way when we got the whole pot full of gold. ✨✨

I agree that the "entrapment" and "annulment" comments didn't come for pen or colin but actually from portia as she planted the seed in their brain and colin was already insecure about pen's feelings for him, and pen always feels undeserving of love so her first reaction is to back off with the "annulment" offer rather than fighting for the love of her life. Although it reallly hurt when Colin accused her of entraping him (while it was him who actually chased down her carriage and compromised her 😂) but I know where he's coming from especially because of the whole marina trauma coming back...

1:51:27 As much as I hated it too, I think Colin had to "sleep on the couch" on their wedding night because the viewers needed Pen to have some really serious consequences for all of the damage she has done as LW. 1:55:51 I too hated Colin telling Pen it wasn't up to her to decide how to handle Cressida, and agree that it could show how deeply invested he is in his marriage and protective of his wife... however, we have to remember the context that it is 1800s hero Colin after all, which is VERY patriarchal (just like when he raised his voice at Portia to say "I am still speaking" or how Cressida's father has a ton of ways to control her and her mother that were completely acceptable at the time). I think, like Pen, we tend to put Colin on a pedestal... and this season was so modern in so many ways we may expect everything about it to reflect modern sensibilities. 2:06:45 Given your insider scoop about Pen getting pregnant in the mirror scene, It is hilarious that Pen pulls Colin hands against her stomach right after he says "as long as you live with this secret, there will always be something between us"... double entendre much?

The Bridgerton Reddit page is tearing this season apart to bits and pieces like a character could breath for too long they would complain about it. They are even criticizing the acting of Nicola and Luke, mostly criticizing Nicola saying that she can’t act. All this time the fandom agreed that Nicola is a talented actress with incredible range but now that it’s her season they are saying her acting has never been good in Bridgeton. Like I couldn’t not believe what I was seeing on Reddit. I’ve never seen so much hate before. I thought Simone Ashley had it worse and now they are coming for Nicola. The Polin Reddit page and this Podcast is my safe space.

A small thing I liked when just before Colin says the entrapment line...when he says "we were intimate" and the way he says it is he closes his eyes as if he can see that moment and before it over takes him he says the entrapment line as if to force it out of his mind😢....i like to see it that way it makes the whole scene a bit better to bear

So you know how at the end of s2 Benedict closes the art supplies using 4 fingers and its assumed that was a nod to him being season 4? As Eloise gets in the carriage to head to scotland with fran and john, and oddly puts her hand on the window showing all four fingers and her thumb. I think this means she'll be season 5.

Great pod episode! After re-watching, it’s Colin’s arc that still bothers me. It’s all great, I just needed a scene that articulated Colin’s journey to self-awareness. It feels like a big jump for his character, between the scene after Frans wedding and the reunion at the ball. Maybe Violet could have gone to him with Pens letter, spotted the pillow on the sofa and given him Lady B wisdom or maybe ‘Love is not finite’ Benedict could have been deployed. Just a scene so the audience isn’t trying to make the mental leap of his turn around. I’d also have liked it if Colin and Violet had gone to stand with Portia while Pen was speaking in the middle, signalling their support. In the book, when all the drama is over at the ball, Pen asks Colin to take her home, so they can go to get that marriage started. Boom, loved up Polin is back. It’s all so near perfect, but for me, the end just missed slightly. Nic and Luke were fantastic. Also if they’d got the lead couples story absolutely right, much of the criticism and debate, around side plots melts away because the main audience is satisfied. I hope you’ll be back with more episodes. x

This is part two of my long-ass comment. Hopefully it won't be too far away from part one, so there's some sense of continuity. Again, I'm so sorry for the length, but I needed this outlet okay? 😅 Continuing with my bullet point thoughts: -- I was so thrilled about Pen saying she should've used LW to give a voice to the voiceless bc in my RMB reading vlog, I said that if LW does have a new mission statement going into S4 and S4 is Ben's story, that's such a good setup for Sophie coming in and I feel very vindicated lol -- I think we could still have Colin getting turned on by Irish Maid Pen in future seasons. Maybe next season, they're having sexy times and he's like, "Could you do the Irish accent?" Just bc S3 is over, doesn't mean my clown makeup is going anywhere 🤡 -- When Colin said, "I will never forgive you" I was like sure, buddy lol. Obviously, I knew we'd get our HEA, so I wasn't really that worried about the ending, just about how we get to that HEA and I didn't really take that line very seriously even on the first watch. I don't even see this episode as Colin holding a grudge against Pen bc we see that he really wants to forgive her and he's trying to, he just has A LOT of emotions to work through and that's gonna take a while. -- The entrapment line...I'm begrudgingly accepting. I don't love it, but I guess I can understand it. If it had to be there, I would've preferred Pen be more frustrated with him than hurt by it. Like obviously he says it bc he's trying to hurt her like she's hurt him and I think she knows that, so that's why she kinda just takes it and just says, that's not what happened. I would've liked to have seen Pen be like, "Oh, you think I meant to entrap you? We can call off this engagement right now if that's what you want?" Kinda like Obvs says about Pen offering to call off the engagement, although idk if that's quite what you were going for lol. Or for her to be like, "I know you, I know what you're trying to do here, you know that's not what happened, so shut tf up about entrapment" lol. I just feel like Pen's been on this journey of becoming more secure in herself this season and I think learning how to stand up for herself, so I would've liked for her to assert herself more right here. I think she feels like she deserves the dig in this moment and that's why she doesn't and I'm like, but babe, you didn't deserve it. -- I do love Kate and Anthony talking to Colin and being like, does whatever happened negate the love you have for her and he's like no, it doesn't, but Anthony being like, "What do you mean our marriage isn't perfect?" "Our marriage isn't hard work at all" and Kate's like, "Can you just work with me here?" chef's kiss, lmao 🤣 -- I started sobbing when Yellow started playing during the wedding and as soon as I recovered from that fucking You Belong With Me comes on and I was gone and I still cried the second time I watched it, and I don't know if I will ever be able to make it through that sequence without tears lmao -- I was so hoping we'd see Colin go back and reread her letters during this season. I think originally I imagined him reading them when he was realizing he had feelings for her and like rereading them, he'd be like, oh it's always been there between us, but the fact that her letters help him reconcile LW as a part of who she is, was just so wonderful. I'm so pleased with that. -- That moment when Pen tells Colin that he doesn't need to do anything to be worthy of her love, it's who he is that makes her love him. I think it is beautiful, but prior to part 2 coming out, I had a little head canon where this moment would be a callback to ep 2 when he's talking about how they first met and showing her that she's already a charming and engaging person to be around and she always had been. He gives his perspective on their first meeting to assuage her insecurities. I really wanted her to call back to that and be like, "I was so afraid you'd yell at me and be furious with me for knocking you off your horse, but you just brushed it off and it was the first time someone in this world that we grew up in was kind to me and you made me feel safe to be myself around you and tease you about it. That's all I've ever needed from you and that's why I love you." I may have to write a little one-shot of this alternate version of this moment or something tbh lol -- Pen holding her hand to her stomach is really reminiscent to me of how Portia brings the back of her hand to her mouth when she's stressed or emotional and trying to pull it together -- My final thought to share is that the epilogue is so perfect 🥹🥹 I loved it. Again, overall I think I'm happy with what we got. I just wish that I was a part of the writers room and was able to add/amend certain moments lol Okay, you know, I managed to rein myself in somewhat, I thought this comment was gonna be a lot longer than it was. I did end up having to split it into two parts, but at least it wasn't like three or four parts, and this is how y'all know I love this podcast so much 🥰🥰

I truly enjoyed part 2. Polin are my favorite so I'm glad I went in without any expectations or a wish list. Altho after watching I was left wanting more Colin and Pen. Colin's cheekiness, Pen's naivete and coyness should be fun to watch next season because I was delighted with a tease of it in the last scene. "Your father is always distracting with a clever word and a beguiling smile" "You think my smile is beguiling?" 😅

**Long Post Alert** I am happy that we finally got a season for Polin.. After a few disappointments before, I have made a rule to not read books if I like a web series. So I was not going to read Bridgeton books. However, with so much waiting for Polin season and the fact that I absolutely adore them, I ended up reading the book a few months before the Part 1 release. I had some confidence in the Bridgerton showrunners and so I was absolutely sure this is going to be magnificent. Just to avoid any heartache (as it has happened before) I kept telling myself that Chris van Dusen did write few episodes first 2 seasons and he is writing none for season 3- so we don’t know yet how this is going to be. We will know when we know. I do think writers are the main heros for such huge series. And I was right, although I am happy with what we got with this season, I do feel it would have been much better if Chris had some hand in writing or if he was there overlooking the entire thing. I do feel Colin’s arc could have been much better in this season. First he says some harsh, out of character things (entrapment line, its not up to you..). He or Bridgertons are not standing with Pen during those final LW reveal moments (Colin at least should have been standing with her). Also, we did not get to see her telling colin about the plan (probably she did, colin did not look surprised when violet reveals she receives a letter from his wife). All of this happens because they wanted to explore that hero complex thing for him which I do not think was there in the book at all. In book, he is jealous of her but he does not have hero complex. I do not understand the need to make this such a big theme for colin this season. A man and woman are equal contributors in a marriage. A man contributing something in the marriage, does not always mean he has a hero complex. and then as if to make up for all this he says in final moments- if my only purpose in life is to love a woman as great as you, then I will be a very fulfilled man indeed. Can just loving one man/woman be the purpose of life or can it lead life to fulfillment? It does not feel genuine and will a strong woman such as Pen would love a man whose only purpose in life is to love her. The “Pen on top” moment felt like overdose of penelope’s arc without any room for subtlety. Also, for someone who has not read the book, it looked like: what would have happened if Queen did not bless Pen? Would colin still come back to Pen? It felt like he changed after Queen’s blessings and when he was sure his family was safe. The annulment line: if it had come before Queen’s blessings, would have made so much sense and would have had huge impact. It felt like everybody played safe. Pen describing that there might be some trouble in future does not make up for the damage already done. Overall they sacrificed Polin’s bond getting stronger with them standing together to face adversary for the overdose of women empowerment (which absolutely had no bandwidth in a love story).

Although it was hard to see them (polin) not be on the same page, I believe it’s important to show couples disagreeing. In the end, Colin and Pen made mistakes but they were able to forgive each other and grow together.

I’ve made my peace with this season. The first watch through of Part 2 was VERY HARD, but after finding more grace for Colin (I highly recommend Sammy Bates’s character breakdown), I love Colin and the choices they made with him. He’s a sensitive boy that doesn’t know how to deal with complex negative feelings. I mean, being betrayed twice by a fiancé, feeling stupid about it again, questioning every kind reassurance that Penelope gave, trying to reconcile cinnamon roll Pen with Whistledown… it’s a lot. And in all honesty, this show makes the men do horrible things. Almost marry my sister? Bruh. As you said, Pen trusts him to come around, and Colin feels ashamed when he admits to his jealousy. I don’t know. 🤷‍♀️ At the end of the day, I don’t know if any of it was out of character for show Colin. It was painful to watch, but it was the growth Colin needed to be a full partner to her. I think for us who have been simping over this anticipated love story, it was just hard to adjust to things going down the way it did. Perhaps we needed a few sulky nights to adjust as well?

Totally agree with rewatching Part 2. I don't know if its bcoz I was tired, too hyped up or something but my 1st watch was kinda... Meh... But after taking a breather & rewatched it again. I sort of finally saw & felt the emotions of those scenes (ex. The Wedding, even though they are at odds, they still clearly love each other and still want to be together) I also did expecting Pen to offer to call off the wedding during the entrapment comment or just published it in Whistledown (Then Colin would be more pissed but still try to woo her back ASAP) but alas, another disappointment. I also agree with some lines/scenes that should have been cut or added. Colin's characterization for me was way off or out of place (ex. Him flirting on the 1st part gave me the Ick... It was not smooth at all. I'm sorry LN! I know was simply the brief. Him being too distant before & after the wedding upto the very end). It was too much, specially knowing that Colin is a kind, sensitive, considerate & understanding man. More importantly, he Loves Pen, that should have been enough to melt his heart, he could still be frustrated with her but definitely not Cold. His coldness, I would even say... Cruelty was way off for me. Him being distant with Penelope for a quarter of the season is what I think made it feel like, we didn't get enough of Polin. Their bliss moments or them being so in love. Another thing, right after the mirror scene, I expected Colin, just like in the book to rush the wedding coz he really wants to be with her, a stolen kiss or just to see her or him climbing up the tree outside her window as you guys on your previous episodes mentioned or do some ungentlemanly conduct (ex. Interrupting Pebling's Dance) just to be near her in public or private. I think this tiny Polin moments would have soften the blow of the coldness from Colin that follows. My Unpopular Opinion... Its like Colin finally accepted her as Whistledown just because the Queen accepted her. I know its only for dramatic purposes & how they paced it But, What If?!? What If... The queen didn't forgive Pen, arrested her, off with her head or something & She & Colin still didn't reconcile? What then? They would have been torn apart without reconciling. I know it will always be a Happy ending, its Bridgerton!

I was disappointed after the first watch of part 2, for many of the reasons you mention. I recently rewatched the whole season, however, and it held together better. I’m so happy to hear your opinions on it!

Thank you for all you've done over these years! Also, loving that this is the 50th one 🤩

Someone on Reddit said something about the entrapment that made sense. They said Colin, saying that is how he reconciles his still wanting to marry her. Like, "Well, I have to" "I'm mad, but I can't live without her, so I'll hurt her with this excuse."

I think it’s ok that he didn’t want to sleep together on the wedding night, but we needed a makeup scene that paid off on that moment. And I think we didn’t get that.

About Francesca's reaction. I am really hoping that they made the sparks clear on her end in order to signal to the audience who hasn't read the books that there is something going on there.

I listened on Spotify and have to agree, the way the jacket swished post reveal made it all ok that Colin didn't accompany Pen home from the printers!

Thank you for all the videos throughout the months/years particularly this one. Its nice to hear from someone who cares about the books that our feelings are validated. There's so much I wanted to have been done differently in the film but I can let it all go except the entrapment issue. Same as you, its a pain to hear Colin lashing out at Pen to both season 2 (wildest dreams) and season 3 (entrapment). It's like, can the writers give Pen some break with all her heartaches and Colin having some character growth with all his hurtful words when hurt or cornered. We are at 2nd to the last episode and here he was throwing back her mothers word at her. Pen sure did know Colin didn't mean it but I salute film Pen because I would not have done that. I would rather take away all my Whistledown money and go to a faraway place and start a new life. Maybe the writer could have added one liner like, I love you and will always will but this is how i feel and i am beyond hurt. Just some assurance and hope will do miles than just plain harsh words 😢 But it is what it is. This is canon for the film. I just hope that when Polin returns for S4, they would stop all the drama for Polin and let them have their well deserved HEA short scenes.

As a whole i really loved this season. I feel that we had really beautiful moments between Pen and Colin. The first kiss, the carriage scene, the mirror scene, a beautiful wedding and dances between them. I loved Colin's declaration of love and admiration at the end. Of course it's never enough 🤭. My friend was not happy with him staying angry at Pen for so long, but come on. He angry and hurt by LW since season 1. Was he just supposed to get over it like that?? Just kiss and everything would be fine?? He needed time to process it all and i still think he got over it rather swiftly 😊. Thank you for this podcast, I was really looking forward to it ❤ Oh and i forgot the dream scene. Okay, it was a dream and not real but i think it was a beautiful dream. I loved them meeting in the street and actually discussing why she wrote what she wrote. What she was thinking when she wrote those things. I was happy that he was willing to listen to her. And when she screams that she loves him, he just couldn't fight his own feelings anymore

I like that Cressida's outfits range between bad b"ch, when she's trying to be Lady Whisledowne and child-like bows, when she's scared.

I definitely liked part 1 better than part 2 specifically 6,7,8 are the episodes I have issues with. Other than that I loved the season overall I just wanted a bit More polin specifically Colin I felt like this was Penelope’s season and Colin was just put on the backburner and it didn’t help there were 11 side stories. I liked the Benedict storyline but why did we have a great moment and randomly just show him having threesomes 3/4 times when that time could’ve been used on polin or anything important 😭 idk I think things could’ve been better than what they were.

So happy that two of you were at the premiere i was really hoping for that!❤ you mentioned sharing videos from it, may we see them?🤗🙌

I disagree that Penelope is playing a part of manipulating things during her reveal speech at the ball. She is not comfortable being in the spotlight and having everyone's attention. She has proven this and spoken about it this season and even in this speech. I think her anxiety and fear about the possible horrible outcome of this if she makes even a tiny misstep is what sends her reeling back to relive this whole process of becoming Whistledown and merging with the alter ego over time. At first it was a mask put on by a scared girl playing dress-up to cope with being presented too young. A character she created in her writing of an older, wiser, braver person who could rescue her and punish those who hurt her. It's only been over time that, in playing that character, she incorporated those traits into herself and made peace with the differences and similarities between her actual self and the character she created for her pen-name. She gets more and more calm, then confident, as she remains on stage and gets to talk about her learning about life from writing about it. As she sees that her words are resonating with the audience, rather than setting them off. If you've ever had stage fright or performance anxiety, you might feel this, too. When I first get on stage, sometimes I get so anxious that it feels like my first day of rehearsals when I didn't know my lines or blocking and everything flies right out of my head or gets swallowed under that lump of terror in my throat. She started this column as a 17 year old debutante with social anxiety, so her fear takes her right back to that voice and posture. It's only once she sees the encouragement of her family and friends in the audience that she comes back to her married, 20 year old self to stick her landing. Yes the bit at the end about the queen's cunning is a slightly manipulated nod to her that they both know this is the point of the game where Penelope has to sacrifice her pawn in order to win forgiveness, but that's more of a joint manipulation of the ton than anything hurtful or any kind of power play. It's rather like that game of chess that the queen played with Agatha, two queens bowing to each other for the fun of continuing their game. Penelope starts that speech as the pawn she felt like as a girl and ends it as the queen she's grown into through her experience. The queen bowed to Pen in letting her take the stage, the spotlight, and say her piece instead of standing towering over her or anything like that. Pen bowed back when she acknowledged the masterful scheme to out her was successful. Tit for tat. Now they get to continue playing. If the queen routed her, the game would be over. If Penelope simply conceded or quit or ran away, then the game would end, too. Neither party wants that. So, they play out this scene to explain to the ton why each should be allowed to continue playing, so long as better rules are established. There are lines from earlier in the season where Agatha talks about staying in the game and playing by new rules or words to that effect with multiple characters, including the queen. I think this whole scene does a neat play on that in the style of "Alice through the Looking Glass" and life as a game of chess. It takes a couple rewatches to pick it out, but it's there.

Fair warning: this comment is way too fucking long, but I'm not changing a thing lol 😂 As a fellow Pisces, I'm rooting for Beans and Pisces boy! And Nicola looked like a princess at that premiere, I still cry every time I see pictures and her and Luke matched so well, it was beautiful 🥹 Okay, so if I were to sum up my feelings about this season overall, I'd say, I'm happy with it in the sense of, there's not much I wish wouldn't have happened and I'm sure y'all will talk about the few things I do wish wouldn't have happened quite in the way that they did (I'm typing this comment as I go through the episode, might switch to bullet points later to make this comment slightly more readable lol), but there are some things that I wish would've happened. So I'm happy with what we got, I just feel like they tried to cram a lot of stuff in with the side plots and there was just no way to fit in all of the Polin scenes I would've wanted while still giving the time needed to the ensemble. I do still need to rewatch the season more start to finish to really fully process it. I've only had the chance to watch part 2 twice through bc it's been a tough couple of weeks with my chronic illness. My main thing is I wish we'd spent more time with Colin's character development as an individual. I know why I love Colin because I've read the book several times, I've read tons of fanfic and I've obsessed over every second of screen time he's gotten in the previous two seasons, but I feel like viewers who aren't as big into Polin as we are seem to feel like they didn't really get to know him well enough to understand why we all love Colin as much as we do. Like we got writer Colin, for example, but I feel like it was v easily lost in the million other things going on this season. This isn't to say I disliked the side plots or feel like they should've been cut or anything. Honestly, I think I'm just still mourning the days of 20 episode seasons of TV. I went to film school bc I wanted to write that kind of TV, to really have the time to dig into characters, and I graduated film school and those kinds of shows were few and far between. Jess Brownell has talked about how difficult it is to fit everything they need into eight episodes and this season, especially, I could see why. They had a big task ahead of them making it all fit and I think they did a pretty good job, but I just wish we would've gotten maybe two more episodes, but I think with a show like this in particular, that focuses on one main couple each season, it feels a bit unfair for one couple to get more episodes than others did, so idk... Okay let's go bullet points now: -- To Beans' point about this season not being meant to be separated into two parts, I totally agree. TV has changed so much in the past few years like there was a time when shows were written to be watched one episode per week and writers wrote shows with a midseason finale/hiatus in mind, but this show was written to be watched in one sitting. Yes, episode four had what seemed like a natural midseason cliffhanger, but every episode has somewhat of a cliffhanger, so that the audience watching it will click, 'next episode' when they're done. I think Netflix wanted to milk the Bridgerton hype for as long as they could, but it ended up manufacturing this sense that the season was disjointed, but this show has always been meant to be viewed in one sitting, or over the course of a weekend or something. (This was a long bullet point, I'm starting to think bullet points don't make much of a difference lol) -- Episode 5 really is a masterpiece. Honestly, no notes, it'll probably become one of my most rewatched episodes in full, like once I get to the point when I'm only rewatching my favorite parts of the season, I will skip parts of this episode the least (ep 2 was that episode for me with part 1). -- Y'all talking about Hyacinth hugging Pen made me think, have we gotten a Polin hug? Again, I need to do another full rewatch, but I can't remember if we've gotten a Polin hug, but I feel like the answer is no and we need a Polin hug bc judging from the press tour, Luke seems to give really good hugs and Pen needs a Colin hug. (Y'all, I'm only 30 min into this ep, I'm worried about how long this comment might be) -- That Cheese Man has always been and will always be my hero (sorry Hero Colin) -- Anthony was furious that Colin stole his thunder, I died when he found out about the engagement 😂 And then him later in charades is truly amazing. I love that when flowers come up, his first thought is lilies 🥹 -- I really love that El ends up being the one to tell Pen to let Cressida get away with her scheme instead of Colin, I thought that was a really great way to adapt an element of the book to the story they were telling and then the rift between Colin and Pen is more so that they just can't find a way to work through the fact that they're not on the same page about LW, rather than Pen constantly trying to explain to him why she can't let Cressida take the credit and him blatantly ignoring her every time. And El doesn't even ignore Pen when she suggests Pen let Cressida take the credit, she's just like, yeah, you worked hard to build this and you've had a good run with it, but it's not worth everything it could cost you now, so let it go and then Pen has Portia tell her that "Ladies don't have dreams, they have husbands" (great fucking line) and so throughout the episode we actually have a decent case made for Pen giving up LW and we almost believe she might (except for those of us who know our Pen v well ofc, we know she can't give up LW). This was an aspect of the book I really didn't like and I thought it was so well done in the show. -- Yeah, I heard that "Were you ever punished as a child line" and I was like, that's not a line that makes sense to non-book fans in that moment, why would they put that there? 😂 Like, I'm all for the inclusion of book lines (though this one wasn't really on my wishlist tbh), but I'd like for show fans to be able to enjoy them, even not knowing that they're from the books lol -- I really wanted Cressida to figure it out for herself too bc I felt like that was where they were headed with it, there were plenty of clues for Cressida to pick up on, so that really does feel like a missed opportunity to me My comment was too long, so I have to split it into two parts, I'm so sorry lmao 😂

Just finished my second viewing of season three and it’s grown on me. Perhaps I was a bit too hasty and jaded in my initial reaction to part two and I know now that while not perfect, nothing ever really is. I will miss Polin dearly 🩷

I think there were 2 or 3 lines that should have been cut or 1 or 2 that should have been added. First the "I will never forgive you" either don't say it or say "get back in the carriage now" but I need care in the anger. Not just anger. The "planned entrapment" comment. Don't say it. You know she didn't. Did she climb onto your carriage and ruin your engagement? That was just hurtful to be hurtful. I wanted her to give the ring back in that moment and she doesn't even fight back. The "You should have told me" relating to Marina. Pen should have said "I did Colin, I tried, you weren't listening". I also think they should have made up prior to her reveal to the Ton so they could be a more united front. And if you insist on keeping it all in. I needed a bit of knife twisting. I'll explain. Yes, there is a subtle shock in Mean-Colins face when Pen says "I would not object to an annulment if your requested one. I do not want any harm to come to you or your family as a result of today" After that, I want her to say "You are not trapped Colin". Yeah the offer of an annulment was a dagger to his side, but he was so verbally cruel that I need her to twist it. Just a little. Because that 'Pen Apology Tour' just felt wrong. People that think he spent only 2 days on the settee. It was more. At least a week. Thats too long for best friends and lovers. When I get angry at my boy sometimes I'm like: "I need you to be my best friend now, because you will never believe what my boyfriend did to me!" Thats my rant. - Bye

I really needed more Polin moments and missed Colin’s love declaration line from the book-I worship the ground you walk on

You ladies need to team up with Sammy Bates!

The idea that the the next Lord Featherington walked down the isle with his mum to join his father as "Yellow" played... A viewer posted somewhere that Colin had to rush home and change his journal entry that says the most beautiful women were in France (immediately after the mirror scene with his Fiancée in London). I thought Eloise was going to slip up and confess to Colin that she did know Pen is LW when he was in fact talking about Cressida. One of the most lovable and consistent things about Colin is how much he loves dancing with Pen. Potential plot twist... Cressida is the woman in the mask that Ben falls in love with at the masquerade ball. Her redemption arc includes her being brought low and becoming her true self in the country under the cruel tutelage of her aunt (the proxy for the cruel step family), and she finds a way to sneak into the ball (despite her aunt depriving her of all society and new gowns). She then runs away from her aunt and becomes a servant to support herself and the rest of the story plays out in similar fashion to how it does in the book.

Will you guys do each episode in detail? I loved this overall review but there are soo many details that you can focus on and discuss

Thank you!! And a special thank you for the song at the end it was amazing!

That’s amazing that you ladies got to go to the premiere ❤

Finally! Ugh so happy for your videos, I’ve been watching and rewatching. Waiting for your opinions to come out! So exciting 🤩🥰gonna rewatch part 1 and 2 analysis again lol

Thanks so much for this episode.!.! Well done on all the sleuthing and crumbs. It definitely makes a big difference watching all 8 episodes. It helps with flow and pacing much more. *went back and rewatched 2006 Jane Eyre. Soooo good 😊

I still haven't processed anything but I am just going to say one thing that scene in episode 8 where he goes to get the blanket, Should have been chapter 20. Where they talk about how it all started. If we had gotten that all the mess would have been bearable...

I'll admit, I was feeling somewhat let down after my first watchthrough of P.2 - but I knew once this podcast came out I'd feel better, and I am now ready for a season rewatch I think. Hopefully I can find my favourite parts now.

Does anyone else think it would still be great if Cressida ends up being Debling's practical match, since they each totally get the family strife and disapproval dynamic and she seems like she'd love being kept by a wealthy man who is almost never there and may never have more than fondness for her. He doesn't need her family money or connections, so her being exiled from the family wouldn't be an issue for him. She doesn't want or expect love and togetherness, given her experience of what marriage looks like, so he will be a huge step up for her even besides the status of being Lady Debling. Plus, the man is going to die or go missing on his arctic voyage, so she won't really have to put up with any of it long. As long as she gets pregnant with a boy before he goes, she's set for life. Even with a girl, it would be many years before they would be legally allowed to pass the title to anyone else and declare him dead (they take years on that even now). Not a bad "get out of jail free" card, actually. Plus, going back on the market still relatively young and beautiful but also wealthy and powerful and experienced at managing a vast estate is a great advantage over where she's been the last 3 years, losing out on every suitor she could get by freaking Bridgertons or future Bridgertons. I wouldn't be surprised if she has a tic now when she hears the name. I don't like her, but I don't hate her and I really think she's a product of this flawed system of manufactured superficial "society." That this society so easily molds perfectly acceptable people into caricatures like her is a sign of how corrupt and corrupting it is. She is not evil, but rather proof of the flaws in their system. She is who they made her, she did everything she was told to do and became everything they told her she should be and now they all hate her for it. That's hypocritical, but so common. This season, Colin almost let himself fall into this trap and so did Eloise, which is why I think you see them both giving her more room to grow than they might have beforehand. They tried to be what society expected them to be and hated it so much they reverted back to form. But they had a supportive loving family to let them do that. Cressida doesn't have that option. She's not allowed to be quirky or eccentric, not with her parents and not by the ton's standards either. I can't wait to see if they finally do explore her character beyond "villain" or "victim" now that she's going to get some time away from society and her family. She could come back later with a different outlook and be a reformed character. We shall see...😊

Thank you!!!❤❤❤❤

2:21:25 I think she actually wants that kind of love.In episode 1 after her conversation with Violet about love she's looking at the portrait of Violet and Edmund kinda longingly and goes back to her music sheet like she don't want to think about it.She may be afraid of that kind of love (because of how it ended for her parents) and she likes peace and quiet, which she wouldn't have if she was looking for that rare love, so she isn't looking.I think she hoped that the kiss will make her feel passion, butterflies etc. but didn't so she disappointed for a minute.And her reaction to Michaela was needed to show that's its not Francesca's happily ever after yet, because many non book readers were confused why she's having love story when it's not her season and assuming that she will not have her season and also to confirm her at least bisexuality so book readers would not be like "she's straight in the books, so Michaela is just Michael's twin"

But what of the pod?! What shall happen? 😮😅

Thank you❤ can you add subtitles😌

For any POC who has been in a bi-racial relationship, Anthony supporting Kate (wanting their baby to know their Sharma side and moving to India) is significant. The choice is another layer of representation and visibility.

Episode 5 was GORGEOUS, but it went downhill after that for me. I know it doesn't matter at this point -- the season has been made, it's out in the universe, and it is what it is, but episodes 6-8, specifically in terms in Polin, were such a disappointment for me. You, ladies, have been able to get me to see the good in a lot of this season, especially in part 1, but it will always bother me that Colin was still angry at Pen on their wedding night. I get why he was angry and he deserved to be angry, but an intimate (not necessarily physical) reconciliation between the two was missing from the their love story. Colin's love declaration at the end was absolutely beautiful, don't get me wrong, it just didn't pack as much of a punch for me solely because they spent a majority of the two last episodes of them being "estranged" in some way. edit: thank you for everything you've done for us Polin fans!!

I actually found a post where they tried to read what Colin was writing, and they thought it was referencing Penelope´s debut in S1 at the Palace when she was distracted and looking at the ceiling and Colin was watching her….could it be the reference? 🤔🥹

Also, with all of this discussion of gender bending characters and Cressida's return, I dont think she should be "Sophie" or related. I genuinely hope Cressida has a happy ending with her lesbian partner 😂 Benedict I think it could be interesting if there's something about Gender Swapping where "Sophie" is at the ball as a woman but is trans and in there real self is a servant, rather than a maid

Not happy with Michaela.....the actress is very pretty okay? But you would think if they wanted a queer story or whatever it would be Benedict or Eloise. The Fron love story was tragic and beautiful especially when it came to infertiliity issues....very sad of the change

I am so happy to finally listen to you guys ❤️ I haven't listened to the whole episode yet (only the first 25ish minutes) I think my reaction to part 2 is a bit of a mix of what you experienced. I was sick by the time part 2 was released. Honestly this month of waiting between the two parts took a toll on me. With all the tension and everything. I am not joking. I only watched ep5 the first day and I agree it was a masterpiece. 🥹 Then second day I rewatched ep5 and then went on with ep6. But I couldn't watch ep6 till the end... You can laugh at me, but you need to understand, I was still sick and exhausted and I knew the strife between Colin and Pen was about to come and my poor little soul didn't have enough strength to endure it at that moment 😭😂 And then I let a day pass without continuing my watch. Only rewatched ep5 & 6 again (enjoying happy Polin there 🥰). But again stopping 6 before they brought the fake Whistledown note by Cressida. And the day after that I felt as if I was facing a dilemma. Am I going to resume my watch or not ? 😂 or am I forever going to be stuck at that moment? It was the weekend so I finally gathered courage and binged the 4 episodes of part2 in one go. Ooh I was not feeling well when last episode ended. It was hard to swallow and process it all at first. I decided to let some days pass. To cool my mind and clear my thoughts. And then I decided to rewatch part 2 a week later. I have done yet another rewatch after that. And yes, rewatch definitely helps. The shock you experience during the first watch is gone, and wherever there's a scene that comes up you had a difficult time watching the first time (because you didn't enjoy the twists and turns of that scene, the writing of it or whatever the reason) it feels easier to take it in, for as you say, you know what is coming after that. Now I am more at peace with everything. Like Obvs, I wanted writer Colin, we had him, he has published his travel diaries. I wanted Pen to keep on writing and she does. Even though I am really curious to see what she'll do in season 4 with that column in its present form. I am not going to say I feel skeptical about it. But I don't really know what she can do with it now that everyone knows her identity. Maybe I would like more for her to transition to write novel perhaps? It's a two years wait & see before we get the answer 👀 They're happily ever after for them now and I guess that's what matters. Even have a baby! There are quite some scenes about the baby race with the Featherington sisters so it only came as half of a surprise that Pen would be taking part in the race too (during this season I mean). And there was no doubt Polin would be the one to have baby Lord Featherington :P I am a bit sad we didn't get to have a scene with Mr Finch about naming his baby girl Daisy, because that little text was soooo adorable and beautiful. But it's ok, I still love the Featherington in-laws, you can even add Colin in the bunch now, how awesome in that? 😁 I just want to say something about the fact that Bridgerton is known to have this sort of quick resolution at the ending. It's not because you have done some form of writing regarding the way a season ends that it means you always have to stick to this exact same way for each season? It can be a whole debate I know, but not all the couples are the same seasons after seasons, so why do a same form of ending? You could want to do different too for the ending. Yeah that's just a little rant from someone that's still on the process of recovering from the fact we didn't get more meaningful Polin conversations and happy intimate Polin post LW revelation. I would really have loved to have longer episodes or 1 or 2 more episodes to get the possibility to expand on things. I have not rewatched sesaon one in ages so it didn't come to my mind when I watched this season's ending. It's completely true that the ending part of ep8 bears an uncanny resemblance to that of episode 108. Wow. Now I'm on the way to feel better with how things played out in part2. I really should try to do a full season rewatch now, to see how it feels as a whole. Only did separate rewatches of the parts, now I have a wonderful excuse to dive into it again!