Queen Charlotte: Fear into Faith
By Sioph LealFollowing the hit second series of Bridgerton is a companion series that weaves in and out of the past and present to document a fictional take on Queen Charlotte (India Amarteifio as a young version and Golda Rosheuvel as the present). Mostly focusing on the young Queen’s marriage to King George (Corey Mylchreest), how it sparked a societal shift, and how she navigated the British and her new position as Queen of the United Kingdom. To force this into being a Bridgerton universe story, characters such as Lady Danbury (Arsema Thomas as the young version and Adjoa Andoh as the present) and Violet Bridgerton (Connie Jenkins-Greig for the younger iteration and Ruth Gemmell as the present) have their own plots going on that occasionally intertwine with the subject of the series: Queen Charlotte. With the marriage of Charlotte and George comes a societal shift in the ton, where people of colour, such as the newly titled Lady Agatha Danbury rises to become influential figures in British high society. In the present day, the older Queen Charlotte (Golda Rosheuvel) must focus on the survival of her husband’s legacy and bloodline.
As Queen Charlotte flits between the present and past, both versions of Charlotte are the most enjoyable to watch. While it is nice to see familiar faces in Andoh and Gemmell, their present-day counterparts take away from Charlotte's story. It’s a similar problem that fans of the main series pointed out in season two. Instead of focusing on the main story at hand, after the third episode, the storyline of Charlotte takes a back seat to side characters such as the younger Lady Danbury and her quest for more influence within the ton.
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story finds its strength in the casting of India Amarteifio as the young version of the titular character. Not only does Amarteifio bear a striking resemblance to her older counterpart, but she embodies them perfectly, respecting what has already been done with the role while adding more to such an entertaining character. Amarteifio quickly makes the character more dimensional by giving nuance and layers to the role even when the writing tries to let her down. Through her, there is much more to Charlotte than what viewers know from the original series with an added charm that carries through every movement and scene. No matter the subject or emotion, Amarteifio delivers with well-rounded performances that elevate every scene and help even the struggling performances. Her performance compliments Rosheuvel, who continues with the fan-favourite role of Charlotte in an established role as Queen.
As Queen Charlotte is a romantic story about the love between her and King George, Mylchreest takes on the role as King George and adds more to him than a typical romantic lead. George has struggles that are shown not just in factual history but in the canon of the main series. Mylchreest manages to toe the line between romantic and charming lead and a man struggling with his mental health, massive burdens and discovering love then not wanting to hurt it. Amarteifio and Mylchreest form a perfect match as the characters and as performers.
There is an easy chemistry that comes across natural and warm once despite the many hardships the writers throw as curveballs normally in the final scenes of the episodes. The growth of their relationship and their chemistry carries the series even through its worst moments. It makes the end scene of the present iterations laying in George’s safe space as they stand together between heaven and Earth, understanding each other and being there completely for another. The build-up of their relationship tied with impeccable casting and performances create a sweet and earned dynamic that culminates in a tender moment. The pair are a true meeting of minds, with a patient and warm romance that almost feels inviting. Both characters have their struggles, but despite their differences and despair, the two always try to come back to each other no matter the circumstance. As Charlottes advises her own children, love is not easy, but it is needed.
The show’s promotion had dubbed this limited series to highlight the rising friendship of Lady Danbury and Queen Charlotte, but unfortunately, the two characters barely share a scene. Throughout the series, Charlotte sacrifices everything to make herself the ideal Queen of England, while Lady Danbury finds more gain in sharing personal information about her Queen with Princess Augusta for her own rise in society. Lady Danbury’s betrayal is a sharp comparison to the ever-dutiful Brimsley (Sam Clemmett).
The inclusion of Lady Danbury and Violet Bridgerton, both versions, is an odd choice with no real aim other than to use the Bridgerton brand to encourage people to watch while they wait for the next season of the parent series. There is an entire subplot for the two characters that does not fit into the world but is thrown in near the end of the series, has a conflict, then a resolution in record time just to include the present-day versions of the characters. It has no impact on Charlotte or her rise to power and feels like a plot for an entirely different show or season. Queen Charlotte falters when the series starts to focus on other characters, such as present-day Violet and Lady Danbury, focusing on building their friendship. It has nothing to do with Charlotte’s influence in England or present day situation but takes up a lot of screen time in the later episodes.
Bridgerton is known for many things, such as the leading couple’s chemistry and stunning ballroom scenes, but what sets it apart from many period pieces was the decision to be colour conscious when it came to casting. Rightly so, it has been praised for this decision, but many fans of the show have called out the writers for explaining that love cures racism. Perhaps the teleplay author Shonda Rhimes and the book author Julia Quinn forgot this fact. Instead of embracing the world of interracial couples or people of colour holding high positions, Queen Charlotte focuses on the racism behind it. From characters of colour being refused entry into normal events of the ton to the young Queen Charlotte being painted with a much lighter skin tone, it’s jarring and uncomfortable to watch. The series wants us to believe that love conquered all in Bridgerton’s pilot season, but interracial marriages and characters of colour getting dubbed "the great experiment’ seems like quite a leap in the show’s timeline.
For a series that prided itself in colour consciousness and how it did not let racism be a factor in their show, much time is dedicated to that very subject. There are long scenes of microaggressions, characters refusing to interact with characters of colour in high society because of their skin colour and even referring to them as “those people,” in disdain while being vehemently against people of colour getting titles from the King and Queen. It is bad enough that it makes it into the show which should be about love, a woman's rise to power but there are times when the writing simply forgets for a long time per episode only to shoe-horn it in for the sake of a snarky comment by one of the more historic titled characters.
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is a good inclusion, had it focused on Charlotte and not gotten lost with side plots to ensure that it could be classed as a Bridgerton story. It is the relationships Charlotte builds in her desire to be a good queen that propel the story. The chemistry between the two romantic leads can have a repetitive formula starting with them struggling to get along, a resolution, and a new conflict in the last scene only to repeat again in the following episode, but once that is dismissed, exploration and understanding of each other give a good framework when coinciding with the present storyline and Charlotte’s struggles.
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story was screened for review and will release 4th May 2023 on Netflix