Bridgerton Season 4 — Review

 

Image credit — https://www.dailytargum.com/article/bridgerton-season-4-is-full-fantasy-fairytale-20260304

I watched Bridgerton and stayed up to date with the show and up to the latest season. Book-wise, I only read Anthony's book, which is the second one, and I am currently reading Eloise’s book. I might do a book review on it once I’ve finished reading.

I felt that even though season 1 was more traditional and stuck to traditional period drama fashion and tropes, I enjoyed season 2 more. I liked when Kate's Indian culture was added, and how well it fit into the world of Bridgerton. I think when Bridgerton strayed from being truly accurate, that was when, for me, it got better.

I love tension and drama in my stories, which is why I loved season 2 so much. It felt like all the plots came together and seemed believable. However, season 3 was the opposite for me. I felt like Collin came off too dismissive of Penelope, and I wish there had been more shown of their childhood or the friendship side of their friends-to-lovers romance.

Bridgerton, even within the show, has primarily focused on the upper class, with viewers getting only small glimpses of the servants and lower society. However, in this season, there is a much deeper look into how the servants work, how they are treated, and also how important the servants can be to how the ton functions and operates.

The servant wars arc really showed how important the servants' work was to the different houses and how they kept things like the balls running. I loved seeing how things would change when the dynamics shifted, and servants started leaving and moving to other houses because of how they were treated.

Sophie and the Bridgerton’s head maid really showed how connections grew between the staff and the house, and how important this was. For example, Violet building an almost friendship with the head maid, and how Sophie, while working for the Bridgertons, became closer to Eloise and Hyacinth.

As much as I adore season 2 for its tension and still consider it my favorite, I would say season 4 is my second favorite. Season 4, even within the historical fantasy that Bridgerton feels more grounded and realistic, both in terms of romance and the drama and workings of the ton.

With season 3, it felt like a lot of the plots had been thrown into the story, and it made the season feel very messy and tangled up. This meant that there wasn't much time to focus on Collin and Penelope's story. In Season 4, they had simplified the side plots so that the main couple had enough screen time, and this, to me, made the story feel more organized and focused.

The characters, especially the main love interests of that particular season, are what make the world of Bridgerton feel more alive. In that sense, I would say I enjoy seeing how Benedict transitions from being his more playful and less serious self in previous seasons to now having to embrace responsibility. He finds this within trying to find a wife but also in taking over Anthony's work while Anthony is away with his Kate in India.

Benedict's sexuality was something that was explored during season 3, but I’m glad that in season 4, not only is it accepted, but it is also not his entire character. In period dramas, especially, there is a pitfall where a character's sexuality can be used as just another plot point to create drama, which in some cases isn't a bad thing. But when that's not the main focus, I’m happy it was accepted especially by Sophie.

Sophie is very timid, which makes sense considering she is a servant. I liked how, even when she wanted Benedict, she understood that the world wouldn't allow it without bigger repercussions. Similar to the anime Code Realize, there is a reason why she is quieter and more timid.

I love how the stories and side stories are nicely woven together and come together for the main plot in the end, while also pushing each character forward for future stories. Eloise, for example, is rumored to be the next main Bridgerton in season 5, and by the book order, this would make sense. The way they developed her character very much prepared her for her story in a way that felt natural and true to her, without breaking the world of Bridgerton.

Compared to season 3, season 4 balances each plot point very well, and each one, in a way, ties into the other by the end, setting stage for seasons 4 and 5. I felt like the fertility plot being played within her mourning expanded on how the Regency era treats women.

But does the realism and drama overshadow the fantasy and whimsy? No, for example, the outfit that Sophie wears during the masquerade ball is an amazing mix of what Cinderella wears at the ball while sticking to Regency fashions without taking away from the magical elements of her outfit.

This show is both complex and realistic within that fantasy Regency setting. I do wish that Sophie had remained a servant by the end of the story; however, I can also understand that doing so could have broken the conflict and made it less believable for her to still be a servant, so the twist still worked well.

Compared to season 3, the sideplots don't take over the main plot and even play into the story. As compared to the books, Benedict is less conniving. A good example is that in the books Benedict threatens Sophie with framing her for stealing if she doesn't become a servant for his family, and within the show, this scene was fully taken out.

Compared to many other Cinderella adaptations, there is a lot more built upon the main Cinderella story points, along with how it fed into the main Bridgerton world. I appreciated how the show didn’t try to redeem Araminta since I felt that would have ruined the story for me along with making her reasons to why she would do what she did to Sophie believeable.

I am hesitant but excited for Eloise's story, and I will be back to review it when it releases, dear readers.