The Duke and I

Same note - great costumes and indoor settings ant that's all about it. I tried and tried to connect with something meaningful. Even an obsolete storyline like this could become successful if it is give good acting, good music, good flavor. None of those happened. The Duke tries the to keep the dignified posture and stiffness one expects from a British aristocrat, and then he makes awkward faces and pops out his eyes, cannot control his lips while speaking and his tiny body movements while standing. The speech given to the queen lacks substance and acting. Broken chemistry between the 2 lovers is evident. The Queen acts like a common gossiping woman.

Well it's about damn time, honestly kids, learn to speak to each other and you can avoid dreadful misunderstandings. Fairly decent episode, good acting, but check the frayed dress at the dressmakers?! Cmon wardrobe department.

Don't understand the negative reviews. I liked it! Refreshing!

It's not to everyones taste, with things such as black people in high society in 1804 and Billie Eilish and Lewis Capaldi songs twisted into edwardian string music, people who want a historically accurate period piece will be let down but once over that and once you get to this episode you will want more.

I love British historical dramas done right so I started to watch the first episode of Bridgerton. During the first fifteen minutes I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I'd ever seen. So far from historically accurate as to be laughable. I figured it had to be the worst kind of wokeism, trying to rewrite history to inflate the role of minorities in early 19th century Britain. But I stuck with it and by the thirty minute mark I was hooked on the story itself. I can't guess the intentions of the producers and whether or not they intended to make a social statement. But they do a fairly good job of storytelling. It's a bodice ripper version of a Downton Abbey saga and has all the necessary elements- greed, lust, romance, sibling drama, etc. A lot more graphic sex scenes but each scene advances the plot so none of it seems forced or gratuitous. They have a stable of good older British actors like Polly Walker and Ruth Gemmell who give their usual good performances. The younger actors are surprisingly good and show a range of emotions without overacting the way a lot of younger actors do in these kinds of productions. I even began to enjoy the Queen's character. I thought it was terribly overacted but by the fourth episode she begins to show some range of human feelings. I wasn't thrilled with the casting of Daphne. She's physically delicate to the point of looking like she's about to break any minute and her constant wide eyed demeanor gets boring. The actor who plays Simon is absolutely wonderful in the part. You immediately forget the fact of his skin color and see only the character. They shouldn't have bothered to explain why or how so many people of color were raised to the ranks they occupied in that society. Their explanation isn't really believable and it's not germane to the storylines. I see it as a great costume drama in the style of Tim Burton. The sets and costumes are over the top, the storylines are a little over the top and the casting is pure fantasy. But if you enjoy that kind of drama and tension it's a good watch. I'm frankly hoping for a second season. And I'm praying that Julie Andrew's comes back as the narrators,