Romance Movies & Series

He went to America, made a bunch of money, and has returned to England as an untitled but eligible bachelor in need of a wife. Maybe end up living more freely in Scotland?

They’ll spar a little about him finally being good enough for the “poor little rich girl,” he will help Eloise find freedom and show her marriage doesn’t haven’t to be stifling, and Eloise can avoid potential depression den that comes with marrying Phillip.

At least based on books, Im thinking Eloise’s political leanings may not flourish with Phillip, unless we are pleasantly surprised. I want Eloise to benefit as well.

Also, please for the love of God, Jess Brownell, these are meant to be romantic love stories. Self discovery doesn’t mean she doesn’t get to find love and be pleasantly surprised. I want Eloise to be wrong about what marriage can be for her specifically and find joy in it.

Honestly, he was so good in the scenes that required him to show his warmth, softeness, hurt, anger... his emotions behind his eyes and body language in the dramatic and romantic scenes made me admire his work and wish we would give him more praises. Specially with how some other places treat him and him being aware of it.
So, to keep the positivity and give Luke the praise he deserves, what are your favorite scene of his?

I'm rather surprised at myself to just have start watching Queen Charlotte a few days ago- I've been a casual Bridgerton watcher since season 2 but I never really paid much heed to QC once it came out. I finally decided to check it out recently after finishing season 3, and wow, I'm absolutely amazed.

I just finished episode 4, and my god everything was ASTOUNDING. The cinematography, the stunning performance of the actors, and especially the devastating story you see unfold through all of this. This is not to say that there aren't stakes between the Bridgerton couples, but this is the first time where I actually felt impacted by the tragedy of the main couple conflict.

It is amazing we slowly witness the stories hidden layers emerging through Charlotte discovering George's mental illness and seeing his own heartbreaking perspective of the past episodes. His desperation to be normal for Charlotte and torturing himself so he can be 'fixed' for her. Him gifting the dog to Charlotte as 'one cage to another', Reynolds holding George's shoulder to comfort him. Then how we see that Charlotte and George were both extremely lonely without the company of one another, and of course Charlotte realizing that she crushingly believed herself to be the one at 'fault'. Out of all the couples, I think QC managed to capture how well they are suited for each other and the love and tragedy of it all.

I love it a lot so far!

Just for fun...

You can add three scenes, no more than a minute long, anywhere in S3 to make it your perfect season. You can't erase anything that's happened, only add to it.

What are you adding?

My choices:

1. Ep7: After the modiste scene, after they are interrupted by the carriage, they just talk before she leaves. Colin says 'I love you. I don't yet know how to forgive you. But I know I still love you.' Then they can follow with the 'I'll see you tomorrow' exactly like they have in the show.

My main heartbreak over S3 was I really didn't feel it was a happy enough wedding. The nod from Colin was lovely, but it all still felt very grim to me. Pen was miserable all morning because of how awful things were. I just wanted more of an acknowledgment from him more than sexual desire (which was all that happened outside the modiste). I wanted him to even angrily exclaim how furious he is, but that he knows he has no choice but to marry her, not because of duty, but because the only thing worse than her being LW is him being without her.

I am all for nuance and not over-explaining things, but it's very clear Pen was miserable and scared the morning of her wedding. And that is not the vibe I want at all wedding. It actually sucks- particularly when the groom sleeps in the f@cking couch that night.

2. Ep8. I want a loving Polin scene of them laughing intimately AFTER LW reveal. In the same way as the second sofa scene. I wanted Colin dragging his hand up her leg (in the same way as the carriage scene) and asking 'And what would Lady Whistledown write about this??' mockingly, in the same way as Pen showing how comfortable she was with the 'women in Paris' comment.

Something to show they are fully past it and stronger than ever. This is the scene I would give all my time to. And it didn't even have to contain anything sexual, it just had to be joking and smiling, a confirmation that it wasn't just sex that had returned.

I don't want Julie Andrew's speaking over their reconciliation (as much as I adore her). We needed to see their friendship was restored, because tbh, the final speech between the two of them was lovely but far too formal. I wanted giggly/stupid/teasing Polin back.

3. In a montage after Fran leaves, I want a moment of Colin sitting at his desk. Pen comes up and whispers in his ear. He suddenly turns, looking elated,touches her belly and then kisses her passionately. Then we have the epilogue.

These are just small bits I would have loved, but I'd love to hear yours!

On each and every watch, I get stuck on this dialogue from Colin. I have felt that, - "I am proud to call you my very good friend" is not colin wanted to say initially.

There is this brief, but very noticeable pause after that "and". and it really makes me curious what Colin was actually thinking at the moment.

what are your thoughts?

Also feel free to have some fun with wrong answers, these are mine bcuz I don't have a logical answer😆

"You are clever and warm and did you see the latest horoscope reading, it says redheads should marry brunettes"

"You are clever and warm and did you burn my letters by any chance?"

"You are clever and warm and please marry me"

"You are clever and warm and tell me you missed me too"🥹

"You are clever and warm and we should elope and get married in Gretna green"

"You are clever and warm and.......*zones out looking at her Roobies nodding his head in tiny* error! error! colin.exe has stopped working.

Lets talk marriage dynamics in S3 of Bridgerton!

S3 of Bridgerton is the first one to have SO MANY couples and potential marriage dynamics to watch and compare. It's a great way to add nuance to what we see of Penelope and Colin's gendered and traditional expectations of what a relationship could be before carving out a unique marriage dynamic of their own.

Anthony and Kate Our first returning leading couple! This season gives us a glimpse into their actual couple dynamic and from the very beginning we see that it is modeled on the most traditional marriage roles. Anthony is the Viscount Bridgerton, and Kate's status and role in the household and in society comes from Anthony. Anthony has his duties (the paperwork he briefly tries to catch up on) and Kate has hers in the domestic/social sphere for the family. But they're at the beginning of trying the figure out what their marriage will be, and they take a break from fulfilling these prescribed roles as Viscount/Viscountess and head of the Bridgerton family to explore it. And by the end of the season, Anthony too upends the traditional dynamic in favor of taking his little family to India to instill pride in Kate's family history, valuing her side just as much as the Bridgerton legacy.

Will and Alice The Original Bridgerton Healthy Marriage. Will and Alice's dynamic has been a joy to watch since S1, with Will being a certified Wife Guy from the very beginning. But what sets Will apart from some of the other wife guys present in this season is that there's still a traditional dynamic to their marriage. Will, for all his deference to Alice (wife duties come first), is a provider, going back to his days as a boxer and bar owner, which is why its so difficult for him to give up on the bar. But they are a true partnership. Will gets Alice to let go of her caution around breaking rules, and Alice, gets Will to follow the rules when necessary for a great sense of balance. They support each other every step of the way, taking turns to be the push the other needs when they need it. With their change in social status, their marriage could've become something unrecognizable to S1 Will and Alice, but with open communication of their needs (Will discarding the separate rooms decree, Alice telling Will she needed him at home with the family) their marriage is just as strong as it ever was.

The Featherington Sisters are where we get into the non-traditional dynamics. Both sisters have married Wife Guys, and Finch and Dankworth are actually so deferential to the Featherington family matriarchy that Portia doesn't even consider them heads of their families in any way. Both men are absolutely run by their wives, albeit in slightly different ways. Prudence treats Dankworth like a trophy husband at times, preferring to show him off to others while coming off vaguely annoyed by him. Finch is absolutely besotted with Philippa, and the simpiest simp who ever simped, and Philippa does love him back, even when she tries to block his natural inclination towards kindness when it comes to Penelope. While their marriage dynamics don't really change by the end of the season, the Featherington family has made an overall shift towards a kinder more supportive unit.

Lord and Lady Featherington They're an example of toxic traditionalism. Without even being present Portia's husband left his mark on the dynamic of this season, so this marriage warrants a mention. Portia married a man she considered cruel, and did so for financial security that he didn't even provide. Portia's candid conversation about the dynamics of her marriage was a huge influence on Penelope's behavior in the last episodes of the season. The idea of having to marry a man and hope he can live up to your dreams is traditional. "Ladies do not have dreams, they have husbands" is brutal. And she knows it. She even tells Penelope that the beginning of her marriage was about catering to a man's every desire, but eventually finding her joy in her children, speaking to the shifting dynamic of what a marriage can become when it changes for worse, not for better.

The Cowpers Just heinous, omg. Toxic traditional absolutely. Lord Cowper keeps his wife under his thumb, controlling the purse strings to control her, and belittling her parenting abilities at the first sign of trouble. He also seems way too old for Lady Cowper, which makes me think their awful marriage dynamic would've been repeated with Cressida and her dad's creepy friend, the one who wanted to confine her to a life of no music, no socializing, and making babies. Just like with Portia, a bad marriage trickles down into bad parenting, with Lady Cowper refusing to stand up for Cressida to her husband due to his threats to banish her. While the Cowpers are ultimately static with no redemption from beginning to end, they serve as a subtle reminder of the power a man has over his entire household should he choose to exercise it- at various times Lord Cowper attempts to use financial abuse, isolating his daughter from outside influence, and banishment to get his way.

Penelope and Lord Debling The marriage of convenience. Although they never even get engaged, Penelope and Debling actually discuss what their marriage will be during their brief courtship. It's explicitly a loveless marriage built around each person having individual interests that keep them occupied and fulfilled separately. Debling calls it "a practical match but a happy one." The happiest person about this is Portia. She sees it as an opportunity for status, influence and financial security for Penelope and her family as a whole, more traditional values. And that is definitely Debling's draw- while he's a near pariah in the ton, we do see that the marriage minded mamas do appreciate him for his wealth, estate, and title, and the bros Colin tries to pry gossip from also note that yeah he might be a vegan but he's a RICH vegan. The question is whether a practical marriage is enough for Penelope, and -to be fair- we never see her answer that question when it comes to Debling, because Debling actually dumps her. She is not practical enough for his needs, and once he realizes she'd actually be quite the inconvenient wife, he's outta there.

Colin and Penelope This is actually where we get the answer to whether a practical marriage is acceptable to Penelope. And the answer is a big fat NO. Penelope goes from a girl who thought she couldn't have anything to a woman who wants it all, and she gets it. She does not have a practical regency marriage, she gets a fantasy modern partnership. Colin and Penelope have to move past the idea of a traditional regency marriage in order to make their relationship viable in the end. It becomes the true growing pains of their relationship.

Colin has it in his head that he has to earn Penelope's love, which he plans to do in multiple ways- protecting her, providing for her, and proving himself worthy. The idea that he could earn her pride in him by writing a book aligns more with Portia's ideas of what a marriage should be. Colin becomes a successful author and Penelope would be fulfilled by being married to a successful author. He's not a bad man for thinking this way, this is the general expectation of their society. Colin had the spirit of a Wife Guy, but he was wife guying through the lens of patriarchal masculinity rather than being the Wife Guy Penelope actually needed.

Protect, Provide, Prove- one by one, part 2 removes Colin's ability to do any of those things for Penelope. He stands up for Pen to Portia, quickly shows Penelope their new home, and in the afterglow of sex he's asked to share more of his writing with her. This is the life he'd begun to imagine, but the Whistledown reveal has both Colin and Penelope truly stepping into unknown territory into a unique marriage dynamic that has never been modeled for either one of them. Penelope cannot live like her mother, she cannot step back into the shadows of her own marriage and thrive off of Colin's potential achievements, and ultimately, when he asks, she won't give up her column even if it means giving up Colin.

Colin says the quote "We will decide what this marriage will be" and this is quite the line in the sand issue. Essentially, when Colin asks Pen if she will still publish Whistledown he believes he is asking her to choose him and to choose his vision of what marriage will be. Penelope becomes more confident in her decision to keep it, going from "I do not know" to a firm "I am Lady Whistledown" by their wedding day. With Penelope putting her foot down on this issue, it's on Colin to move towards her and see her POV if they were to reconcile. This is why Colin's final confession hits so hard, not just with Wife Guy level pride in Penelope as Lady Whistledown, but also accepting that Penelope's love alone is enough in return.

Their episode 8 confessions -both Colin's and Penelope's at Frannie's wedding- are the beginning of the forging an entirely new direction for what a marriage can be. Far from entrapped, it's a marriage free of obligation. Penelope is free from having to fit into a prescribed role of what a traditional "wife" is in order to make Colin happy. Colin is free from the pressure of having to prove himself. By freeing themselves from the obligation, they become free to enjoy these roles in ways they never would have if they felt forced into and constrained by these roles, like Colin proudly crediting Penelope for helping him edit his book, and Penelope getting to be one of the moms but not having her child become her only joy in life. Penelope is Lady Whistledown... but she's also Penelope Bridgerton. Colin is a Wife Guy, but Penelope isn't his only purpose in life in the end. They are true partners.

This got SO long winded just from talking about Colin and Pen, and I could still say more! But I gotta close this out on an honorable mentions for marriage dynamics: The married ton couples who drink too much and dance too much at parties. 10/ 10 marriage dynamic, they're winning at life.

And what of Frannie and John? TBH this is the hardest dynamic to discuss, because im not really sure what's going on with them as a couple. Their relationship seems like it's built on a foundation of mutual understanding, friendship, and comfort, but I'm curious to see what their marriage will be next season, because we didn't really get much of that this season other than a desire for quiet and privacy. Which is fair, it's not their season, and they needed to introduce a lot about Frannie, John, and now Michaela before we can truly see what their marriage looks like. The one thing to say about them for sure is that Frannie's expectations of what her marriage would look like changed multiple times throughout the season. She wanted a practical match and didn't think she needed to look for love. Then she found a love match in John, (and I have no doubt she loves him). I think her idea of what her marriage would be shifted after the wedding kiss, and might shift again now that she's met Michaela.