TV Review: Shonda Rimes, I’ve Missed You!!

‘Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story’ is a Gem!

I’m not going to lie; I love costume dramas about European royalty, and Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is the best I’ve seen this year.  From the cold open to the last frame, this series is the best of what Shonda Rimes and her writing team offer.  Every element, from the writing, acting, and direction to the costumes, makeup, and hair, is divine.   Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton  Story is more than a prequel that tells how Lady Charlotte becomes Queen; the narrative jumps several decades forward with storylines involving Queen Charlotte and the middle-aged ladies of court we all know and love in the present Bridgerton reality.

Instead of ignoring race, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton series goes beyond colorblind casting by creating a storyline explaining why Charlotte was chosen to marry George and the ripple effect it has in this world. Shonda Rimes and her writing team are stunning. I couldn’t help but think of Meghan and Harry as I watched young George and Charlotte’s relationship dawning. I’ve watched the Harry & Meghan Netflix special and the Oprah interview that ignited a fury against the couple and stand firmly on the side of Meghan and Harry.  It struck me that they had an instant connection and knew they were each other (using a Meredith Greyism), each other’s “person.”Meghan and Harry’s true life story would work perfectly as a series in Shondaland, and I think Queen Charlotte may have gotten some inspiration from the current Royals love story.

Speaking of Grey’s, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story gives us the best of themes from Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, with a new level of maturity that moved me to tears at some point.  Yes, I’m all about young love, but I tend not to want to watch those stories because I’ve seen them a million times.  I’m much more interested in the different seasons of love and marriage, what women’s lives are like at stages of life beyond motherhood, and being a wife, and the stories of single, child-free women throughout time.  Queen Charlotte is giving us all of the experiences that women experience at all stages of life, and I am here for it.

Like  Showtime’s Yellowjackets, Queen Charlotte’s storylines occur in two different periods. The creative team makes this format their own, fitting nicely into the Bridgerton world. There’s something special about seeing the origin story of such an unforgettable character like Queen Charlotte.  The actors are all stellar. Golda Rosheuvel as older Queen Charlotte and Adjoa Andoh as Older Lady Danvers both have substantial storylines that portray middle-aged female life beyond court gossip and matchmaking. I loved seeing these women be brilliant, funny, heartbreaking, and reckoning with their younger selves’ choices.  We get to experience all kinds of love and the yearning for love in various circumstances beyond happily ever after.  As we meet the younger versions of Queen Charlotte(India Amarteifo, Sex Education), King George (Corey Mylchreest, The Sandman), and Lady Agatha (Arsema Thomas, Redeeming Love), it was sweet to see the challenges these young people endured.  The casting of George and Charlotte’s fifteen children is odd.

I’m always interested in how friendships between Black and white women are written on TV.  With the current diversity trend, when Black and white women are in friendships, the Black female character functions as a support system for the white female character.  As the elder Lady Danbury and Lady Bridgerton form a company in this series, there were hints of this phenomenon happening in early episodes, but as this storyline develops, there’s a nice and surprising turn that gives their relationship a complexity that was unexpected and pleasantly surprising.

The wigs and costumes were art pieces. I hope these departments win Emmys this year.  It made my heart so happy to be able to witness the gorgeousness of this world in all of its elements. There were moments where you could see flaws in the CGI for some of the larger crowd scenes.  Other than that small glitch the cinematography is simply lovely.  I love this era of showing scenes of intimacy without the female actors having to be nude. Every moment of intimacy moved the narrative forward while taking care of the character’s dignity.

Did I cry several times? Yes.  Did I love the string quartet versions of songs by Beyoncé and Alicia Keys? Of course.  Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story was all the romance, intrigue, wit, and downright steaminess I needed from Shondaland.

I give Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story 4 out of 5 Stars.

All six episodes of the limited series are now streaming on Netflix.

I write about how TV & Film makes me feel.

Thanks for reading. I’m a Film & TV Critic, Entertainment Journalist, VisAbleBlackwoman The Podcast host, and Contributor to Black GirlNerds.

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