Queen Charlotte A Bridgerton Story review: A good place to satiate your Bridgerton obsession

Just like the two seasons of Bridgerton, here too there is a central couple around whom the entire show revolves. This time the focus is on Queen Charlotte (India Amarteifio) and King George III (Corey Mylchreest), only unlike season one’s Daphne and Simon, and season two’s Anthony and Kate, Charlotte and George haven’t chosen each other. It is a marriage of convenience, set up by George’s mother, Dowager Princess Augusta, and Charlotte’s brother Adolphus (Tunji Kasim). The 17-year-old Charlotte is ‘given away’ to King George III as a part of a ‘Great Experiment’ where people of colour are included in British society (thus explaining why an actor of colour was taken to portray the queen of England).

This marriage of convenience begins with a meet-cute of the two betrothed, which takes a tragic turn when the new bride is deserted by the groom on the wedding night. From here we are served the central conflict of the show: why did George leave Charlotte? Does he have a mistress or is he a “beast or a troll”? This conflict is as interesting as the one between Daphne and Simon in Bridgerton’s first season. There is as much back and forth between Charlotte and George, and their chemistry keeps you engaged. Amarteifio and Mylchreest are fine actors and they fill the shoes of their royal characters well while bringing out their vulnerabilities. Mylchreest gives the most honest performance as a king slowing descending into madness; he never makes it melodramatic or uncomfortable.

Shonda Rhimes has missed none of her usual bag of tricks for a period drama — elaborate costumes, and sumptuous storylines, steamy romance and a lot of sex. Despite each episode stretching to over an hour, the six episodes of Queen Charlotte: The Bridgerton Story flies by as the creators have filled the 18th-century setting with passion and heart. Also, you won’t miss the Bridgerton balls here either.

Young Lady Danbury is played by Arsema Thomas. (Photo: bridgertonnetflix/Instagram)

Also, to serve the obsession of Bridgerton, we are served with the present-day Lady Danbury and Lady Bridgerton. Only this time, they are not focused on finding suitable partners for their royal heirs. Instead, they realise their need for companionship. When Lady Danbury validates Lady Bridgerton’s need for intimacy after the death of her husband by making her understand that love is not only a thing for the young, you root for her. And, there is as much reason to admire the younger Lady Danbury (Arsema Thomas), who makes her way into Buckingham Palace by becoming a confidante of the queen, and informer of Princess Augusta with her sharp wit and ready intelligence. She also brings moments of comic relief when she confides in her maid Coral after every sexual act with her much older husband and their interactions are among the best throughout the show. Thomas plays the layers of her character with utmost finesse and establishes how remarkable she is in her craft.

Unlike the two seasons of Bridgerton, the supporting cast gets to do a lot in Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story. The romance between the right-hand men of Queen and King — Brimsley and Reynolds — gives the show some of its most beautiful moments, and their cute romance flows naturally. There is also a subplot involving Lady Danbury and Lady Bridgerton’s father, which gives an expression to love blossoming between two individuals irrespective of their age and race.

Sam Clemmett ad Freddie Dennis in Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story. (Photo: bridgertonnetflix/Instagram)

Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story does a better job at engaging you in the royal lives and time-travelling you into the 18th century than the two Bridgertons. Now, I want a second season of Queen Charlotte instead of a third season of Bridgerton.