Queen Charlotte Leads the List of Best TV Shows of 2023 (So Far)
With a 94% Tomatometer score, Queen Charlotte proves the romantic genre is on the rise.
The year 2023 has brought a wave of good content to TV fans. If anything, the competition between streaming services and networks has never seemed so fierce. Hundreds of shows released their seasons in the six months since the beginning of the year, including more than 20 limited series.
A limited series (or miniseries) is a show that tells a complete story in a limited number of episodes, usually no more than ten, hence the name. This year, the miniseries spotlight was stolen by the first Bridgerton spin-off, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, as evidenced by Rotten Tomatoes' ranking of the best TV and streaming shows of 2023.
Created by legendary showrunner Shonda Rhimes, the show serves as a prequel to Netflix's romantic hit and tells the story of young Queen Charlotte, who is 'sold' into marriage to the new King of England, George, but ends up falling deeply in love and becoming the anchor that helps George become a worthy king despite his mental health issues.
Queen Charlotte premiered strongly on Netflix in May and quickly took its place among the network's most popular series, rivaling the popularity of its parent show. As a matter of fact, many Bridgerverse fans even consider Queen Charlotte to be better than the first two seasons of Bridgerton.
'QC was objectively better in all capacities, better writing, pacing, acting, costume design, etc. It touched heavily on some dark things while still throwing in some lightheartedness,' a fan commented on the poll, where hundreds of viewers chose the spin-off over the original. 'Shonda really outdid herself.'
Critics seem to love Queen Charlotte as much as viewers, as the show's Tomatometer score of 94% is higher than any other limited series premiering in 2023. Queen Charlotte has outperformed such popular miniseries as AMC's Lucky Hank, Apple TV's Platonic and Hijack, Peacock's Watch Mrs. Davis, and Marvel's Secret Invasion.
On a larger scale, the immense popularity of Queen Charlotte and shows like Virgin River and Outlander prove that the romantic genre is having its moment right now. The rest of the year will show if this trend continues and if the Bridgerton prequel manages to stay at the top of the miniseries list.
In the meantime, let's enjoy the moment of love over fear and drama.
Sources: Rotten Tomatoes, Reddit.