K E

Even if you go into this show with the understanding that it is not a legitimate historical fiction/period piece nor a romantic drama, but JUST A FLUFF of a show, you will still find it difficult endure it because it is JUST THAT BAD. The only thing this show has going for it is that it is PRETTY (the people, the costuming, the sets). If watching attractive young people walk around wearing pretty clothes on pretty sets saying cliché lines that a 6th grader would write is enough for you, then this show will do! If you are actually interested a show with character and relationship development through smart dialogue and an intricate storyline, you will be quite disappointed. There are a few stand-out performances by supporting characters (siblings Eloise and Collin Bridgerton, Lady Danbury, Penelope Featherington), but it's not enough to carry the show because the male and female leads were given such weak dialogue and don't appear to be developed actors - not yet anyways. The female lead character - Daphne Bridgerton is so bland and uninteresting you will want to pull your hair out!! The male lead character - Simon Hastings (the Duke) is also pretty boring, but he at least has a captivating backstory that gives him something to draw from. (SPOILER ALERT: And don't even get me started about how Daphne forces Simon to (potentially) impregnate her. I'm guessing this was in the books, but I feel it was not handled well. In order to not have the audience come to hate her after she does this to Simon - and then has the audacity to be made AT HIM - I think the director/writers should have taken the liberty to have her be incredibly remorseful and apologetic, and to never ask him to give her a child again. It's hard to root for a heroine who is so bland at best to at worst: disgustingly entitled and self-righteous in her interactions with her husband.