5 Key Things Bridgerton Got Right About the Book to Screen Adaptations
Some of the changes Shonda made were necessary.
Julia Quinn's popular 'Bridgerton' romance novels have gotten a spectacular Netflix treatment, with the third season due to be released in only a few months.
In honour of the latest instalment, here's a look at 5 key things that the creators of Bridgerton got right when adapting the books.
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Creating an inclusive world
Much has been made of Bridgerton's 'post-racial' landscape, and for good reason. For much too long, period dramas have excluded characters of colour, essentially erasing their presence from history.
Bridgerton doesn't fall for that trap, nor does it force these characters to only take silent background roles. Instead, the show creates an alternate version of Regency England, where racial hatred is a thing of the past and everyone is free to fall in love (or lust) with whoever they choose.
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Keeping Simon's stutter
The Duke's speech impediment is a major part of Quinn's second Bridgerton novel, The Duke and I. Sometimes movies and television adaptations are uncomfortable with disability, and it's a relief that the show's writers refrained from glossing over these struggles. Simon's stutter mostly appears during his childhood scenes, but it returns at times of high stress.
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Elevating Lady Danbury
In the novels, Lady Danbury is a bit of a punchline – she's the stereotypical old lady, no-nonsense to the point of rudeness but not contributing much to the plot. In the television show, she's a woman of intense intellect, emotional understanding, and strength of character.
She protects Simon from an abusive father and becomes a surrogate mother to him. Her story unfolds even further in the prequel series Queen Charlotte, and really underscores the fact that Lady Danbury is the best.
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Loving Penelope just as she is
This is admittedly a bit of a guess, as Season 3 of Bridgerton has yet to be released. But promos for the upcoming year seem to confirm that Colin falls for Penelope just as she is – the cunning, brilliant, and beautiful girl-next-door that's gone unnoticed for far too long.
Sadly, the books make a point of saying that Colin doesn't really fall for Penelope until she's lost a lot of weight. Blech.
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Anthony and Kate's engagement
Fans are torn over a lot of the changes made to the 'Kanthony' romance, but there's one change that was definitely for the better. In the novel The Viscount Who Loved Me, a bee stings Kate on the bosom. Anthony panics and is trying to suck the 'venom' out with his mouth when the two are spotted and (due to the intimacy of the moment) forced to become engaged.
Not only would this scene have been unintentionally comical on screen, it would have been almost identical to the events of the first season, when Daphne and Simon were likewise found in a compromising position and forced to wed.