We can't wait for more of this show! Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re taking a deep dive into “Romancing Mr. Bridgerton”, the next “Bridgerton” novel to make it to Netflix, for our MsMojoNotes series!
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00:00 "Your eyes, the most remarkable shade of blue."
00:05 Welcome to MissMojo, and today we're taking a deep dive into romancing Mr. Bridgerton,
00:10 the next Bridgerton novel to make it to Netflix for our MissMojo Notes series.
00:16 We're going to be summarizing the plot of the book and speculating on Bridgerton Season
00:21 3, so there will be huge spoilers ahead for the books and the show so far.
00:26 "Yet somehow they shine even brighter when you are kind."
00:30 While Season 3 of the show is set to take place only three years after the beginning,
00:35 there's a much larger time skip during the book series.
00:38 "Goodnight, Mr. Bridgerton."
00:39 "Do you not need a chaperone?"
00:41 "Spinsters do not need chaperones."
00:42 "You are not a spinster."
00:43 Netflix has decided to skip an offer from A Gentleman, the third book in the series,
00:49 that covers the romance between Benedict Bridgerton and Sophie Beckett, for the time being though.
00:55 We're sure Benedict will get his due later.
00:58 Instead, we're taking a look at Pollen, Penelope Featherington, and Colin Bridgerton, who are
01:03 the subjects of the fourth book.
01:05 "If you are going to make me say it out loud, I miss you."
01:10 "You miss me."
01:12 This means there are even fewer events to bridge in the show.
01:16 While the book picks up a decade from the beginning of the series, and from Lady Whistledown's
01:21 first column.
01:22 Penelope is now 28, and Colin Bridgerton is 33.
01:27 He's spent most of his 20s travelling Europe, seeing Greece, Italy, and other parts of the
01:32 UK, notably Scotland.
01:33 "I'm in my third year on the marriage mark with no prospects to show for it.
01:36 What would you call that?"
01:37 At 28, Penelope is firmly a spinster.
01:41 While in the show, she's still only in her very early 20s, making her proclamation that
01:46 she's on the shelf in the season 3 promos a little ridiculous.
01:51 "Something wrong, Pen?
01:53 Between us, I mean.
01:54 I wrote to you this summer, as I always do, and what, you did not respond?"
01:58 In both the book and show, Penelope is in love with Colin from afar, and Colin is oblivious
02:04 to this.
02:05 The prologue begins by showing us how they first met, with Penelope's bonnet accidentally
02:09 blowing into Colin's face, knocking him from his horse.
02:13 "Pen."
02:14 "Colin!"
02:15 "I did not know you would be here."
02:18 "Sorry to disappoint."
02:19 We then find out how Penelope and Eloise Bridgerton became friends, which is actually through
02:25 Violet Bridgerton, who takes pity on Penelope and her overbearing family, and frequently
02:30 invites her to Bridgerton House.
02:32 "You know who is flying?
02:34 Lady Whistledown.
02:35 She is up in the sky.
02:36 A brilliant woman of business who fools the entire ton whilst pocketing their money."
02:41 In the third book, Colin, while in an argument with his brothers, proclaims that he's not
02:45 going to marry Penelope, which she takes to heart.
02:48 "You're courting the girl, Bridgerton."
02:50 "Ah, are you mad?
02:52 I would never dream of courting Penelope Featherington.
02:54 Not in your wildest fantasies, Fife."
02:59 He then disappears on his travels, not returning to London until much later.
03:03 "Colin!
03:04 Colin!"
03:05 "Glad to see things have not changed?"
03:06 "Brother!"
03:07 "Colin!"
03:08 "Brother!
03:09 You set aside the latest family squabble and embraced me."
03:11 His return is announced, of course, in Lady Whistledown's society papers, at which point
03:17 Portia Featherington latches onto the idea that Colin should marry her youngest daughter
03:21 Felicity, who hasn't yet appeared in the show, nor does it seem likely that she will.
03:26 "Penelope, put down that book at once.
03:28 You shall confuse your thoughts."
03:29 Unlike the elder Featheringtons, Felicity is popular with the ton's many male suitors.
03:34 "I am not nervous, Mama."
03:36 "What she is is two stone heavier than she ought to be."
03:39 "Those blemishes on her face are quite difficult to conceal."
03:42 Luckily, Felicity isn't particularly interested in Colin, because she already has a suitor
03:47 on the precipice of proposing, Mr. Albansdale.
03:50 "My mistress apologised for the delay.
03:53 This is for today, it must print before noon."
03:55 It's crucial to note that while in the show we're already aware of Lady Whistledown's
03:59 identity since it was revealed at the end of season 1, nobody yet knows who she is in
04:04 the book.
04:05 "Perhaps I will come forward one day.
04:09 Though you must know, dear reader, that decision shall be left entirely up to me."
04:16 Eloise and Hyacinth Bridgerton hatch another plan to find out who she is, which involves
04:22 searching through her old columns and trying to find mistakes she has made, which they
04:27 hope will let them identify her.
04:29 "Mr. Bridgerton, I believe you owe me a dance this evening.
04:34 And I have only one more space remaining on my card at present."
04:37 "How convenient."
04:39 Colin and Penelope reunite at a birthday party for Violet Bridgerton, the dowager Viscountess,
04:45 which Antony is throwing.
04:46 There's a mishap with an eclair, and the two fall back into their friendship, with Colin
04:51 telling Penelope all about his time in Greece.
04:54 "Colin."
04:55 "I owe you an apology.
04:58 I did not see it at first, but I know you were only trying to prevent me from heartache
05:03 with Miss Thompson."
05:04 They talk about how Colin, with his famous charm, is able to get away with anything and
05:09 weather any scandal, while Colin secretly longs to have a purpose like his elder brothers.
05:14 Penelope, meanwhile, only wants him, but she's never afraid to put him in his place when
05:19 necessary, especially when she remembers his declaration that he'll never court her.
05:23 "You miss me but you would never court me, is that correct?"
05:26 "Pen, I…"
05:27 "I overheard you at my mum's ball last season, telling everyone how you would never, ever
05:33 court Penelope Featherington."
05:36 They bicker throughout the party, and Penelope is convinced that Colin is only dancing with
05:40 her because he feels obligated to.
05:42 "Surely another rumor provided by that vicious, scandal-mongering writer.
05:46 Should her degradation know no bounds?"
05:49 It's here that Lady Danbury announces she's putting a price on Lady Whistledown's head
05:54 - a thousand pounds to whoever unmasks her.
05:58 "Lady Whistledown may write what she sees.
06:00 Perhaps we need to help her to see things a bit more clearly."
06:04 Later, Colin and Penelope encounter each other again in Berkeley Square.
06:09 Colin catches Penelope dancing in the middle of the green and offers to dance with her,
06:13 though she points out that if anybody sees them, the ton will think that they're courting.
06:17 "Perhaps we should talk about this somewhere more private."
06:20 "Because I embarrass you."
06:21 She doesn't understand why this is an issue, but she believes that a fake courtship between
06:25 them will never go anywhere, and when it ends, it'll look like Colin left her, making her
06:31 even more undesirable to the other gentlemen.
06:33 "I'm the laughingstock of the ton even when I change my entire wardrobe."
06:37 But Colin is, by now, beginning to see Penelope in a different light - not as the girl he's
06:43 always known as Eloise's friend, but as her own person.
06:47 Eventually, they leave the rainy square so that they can have dinner with his family,
06:51 as Penelope is also attending, at 5 Bruton Street.
06:55 This is the new home of the unwed Bridgertons, as Anthony, Kate, and their children now occupy
07:01 Bridgerton House themselves.
07:02 "I let the couch and toast go round."
07:05 "No, I want to dance with you."
07:08 "I'm in the couch, I'm in the couch."
07:09 We'd imagine we'll still see them all living together under one roof in the show, though.
07:13 They have a pleasant enough time together, listening to Hyacinth and Eloise speculate
07:18 about Lady Whistledown.
07:19 "Look no further than Lady Whistledown.
07:22 She possesses a huge talent for writing, and yet she must hide away and publish under a
07:26 false name."
07:27 Days later, things heat up for Penelope and Colin, when Penelope, again, journeys to Number
07:32 Five and stumbles across Colin's journal.
07:34 "Colin, you know where I've heard you can get excellent tomatoes?
07:38 Greece.
07:39 Perhaps you could bring back a tomato plant for Miss Thompson as a souvenir when you return
07:44 from your travels this year."
07:45 Colin catches Penelope reading it as he has left it open on a desk and loses his temper,
07:51 accidentally injuring his hand with a letter opener.
07:54 Penelope tends to the wound and bandages it for him, while she apologises for the intrusion.
08:00 "One must make a name for oneself.
08:02 This life is to mean anything at all."
08:04 "An noble pursuit."
08:05 "Thank you, Pen."
08:06 The creators of Bridgerton have assured fans that this crucial scene will survive in the
08:11 Netflix version.
08:12 Colin forgives Penelope when she compliments his writing and encourages him to keep going,
08:17 and to tell her what happened to him next during his long travels.
08:19 "I am certain you will find your purpose one day.
08:22 Everyone must eventually."
08:23 "Have you found yours?"
08:24 "Of course not."
08:26 Colin confesses that his travels aren't enough, though, and he wants to be accomplished, just
08:30 like Anthony and Benedict are.
08:32 They argue, with Penelope calling him spoiled, but still telling him he should work out what
08:37 he wants to do with his life and pursue it.
08:40 "Your dreams are grander than you let on, Pen."
08:42 "Yes, they are mere fantasies, but I do believe we must allow ourselves those private moments
08:49 so that we may face reality armed with our reveries."
08:53 Later on, they both attend the notorious annual Smith-Smithe concert, poorly regarded by society.
09:00 "Colin, we, uh, missed you at the ball last night."
09:05 Lady Danbury shares her own thoughts about Whistledown, saying she believes Whistledown
09:09 has a heart because she often pities the "Smith-Smithes" too much to mock them in her column.
09:16 She also says that she thinks Penelope may be Lady Whistledown, while Penelope accuses
09:20 Lady Danbury in return.
09:22 "It's quite the life you've imagined for her, El."
09:25 "We must meet her, so that she might share her secrets of how to avoid such a wretched,
09:29 uninteresting fate."
09:30 "Lady Whistledown's identity is quite protected."
09:33 Colin arrives and the two reconcile, and Penelope tells him he should edit and publish his travel
09:39 journals.
09:40 Two days later, Colin calls on Penelope to reveal that he has his own Whistledown theory.
09:45 He believes Lady Whistledown to be none other than Eloise.
09:48 "Because if anyone knew who Whistledown truly was, she'd be strung up for what she said."
09:52 "That is not my point."
09:53 He suspects her because she is constantly locked away in her bedroom writing, which
09:57 she later explains is because she's writing letters, a hint to her romance in her own
10:02 book, To Sir Philip With Love.
10:05 "Are you Lady Whistledown?"
10:06 "You're an accomplished writer.
10:10 Was scribbling in that diary of yours and you certainly know everyone else's business."
10:14 They argue about Whistledown and how worried Colin is about the woman behind the pen, and
10:18 Colin finally realises that he wants nothing more than to kiss Penelope.
10:23 "Colin, might I have a word?"
10:27 "Penelope, of course."
10:29 Things heat up significantly when Penelope asks him to do just this, merely because she's
10:33 never kissed anybody and she's in her late 20s.
10:36 "I believe you deserve to know."
10:37 "Is there something on my face?
10:38 Has it been there all evening?
10:39 It has, hasn't it?
10:40 Sorry, um, go on."
10:44 Of course, he obliges, and sparks fly, much to Colin's surprise.
10:50 "You really are very good, you know that?"
10:53 But when he invites her to continue, she merely thanks him.
10:56 This upsets him and he storms out of the house, accusing Eloise of being Whistledown when
11:01 he gets home.
11:02 "You'd have my full support and admiration either way, sister."
11:05 "No?
11:06 Is it you?"
11:07 "No."
11:08 To everyone's shock, ahead of the season's next ball, Lady Whistledown announces she
11:14 will be retiring in her final column, as attempts to unmask her and claim Lady Danbury's prize
11:21 reach a fever pitch.
11:22 "You have no idea how horrible it's felt to keep this from you, from everyone, for
11:28 so long!
11:29 Whistledown has been all I have had and I have given it up.
11:32 I am done with it."
11:34 Penelope continues to speculate about who she is, or was, when Cressida Twombly, who's
11:39 still Cressida Cowper in the show, shocks the room by announcing she is Lady Whistledown.
11:44 "I'm afraid I cannot offer you that dance, Miss Cowper.
11:47 I am to escort Miss Featherington to the floor."
11:51 This sets the whole ton talking, but Penelope is steadfast in her disbelief, saying that
11:56 it would, quote, "break her heart" if Whistledown turns out to be Cressida.
12:01 She and Colin reconcile again, but he still sets out the following day to apologise to
12:06 her in person.
12:07 However, on his way, he sees Penelope entering an unmarked carriage and heading to the east
12:12 end of London.
12:13 "Where did you get all of this money?"
12:15 "Louise, what are you doing going through my things?"
12:18 "Answer me."
12:19 Concerned for her safety, he has his driver follow and catches her red-handed placing
12:24 a secret message to her publisher, revealing to Colin that she has been Whistledown this
12:30 whole time.
12:32 "Hearing you repeat all that gossip tonight has struck me, because I have never heard
12:36 you like that."
12:37 In the books, this is the big reveal.
12:41 Colin is angry at first, and then worried for her reputation.
12:44 "Louise, I'm sorry.
12:45 I'm so sorry.
12:46 You were right about all of it.
12:49 I was trying to protect you."
12:50 "Is that what you were doing?"
12:52 He's ultimately impressed by what Penelope has achieved as Whistledown.
12:56 "Come with me."
13:00 He takes her home in his own carriage and, on the way, very nearly gives in to his most
13:04 carnal desires and seduces her while they ride through central London.
13:09 He stops himself, however, and tells Penelope that he intends to marry her.
13:12 "Father, do you believe the best foundation for love is friendship?"
13:16 "It is rare, but you must follow your heart."
13:19 Together, they head into the Featherington home for him to announce his intentions to
13:24 Portia and the rest of the family, who are all gathered there for their usual Tuesday
13:28 afternoon family meeting.
13:30 "Some tea, Mr. Bridgerton?"
13:31 "That would be lovely."
13:33 There's a brief miscommunication where Portia believes Colin is asking for Felicity's hand,
13:38 but eventually he makes himself clear, and Portia and Violet Bridgerton get to work planning
13:43 the wedding.
13:44 "To know now that our families will be joined forever."
13:47 "Yes, it certainly is something."
13:51 It's still not plain sailing for Pollen, however.
13:53 Penelope's publisher does manage to get his hands on Whistledown's last column, in which
13:58 she denounces Cressida.
13:59 "Enjoying your evening?"
14:00 "What?"
14:01 "Are you enjoying your evening?"
14:02 "Oh, yes, I just came from the dance floor."
14:07 He spectacularly publishes and circulates it during Colin and Penelope's engagement party.
14:13 Colin is furious, and takes Penelope to his room, but again, passion gets the better of
14:18 him.
14:19 "Colin, I wish to tell you something."
14:20 "I have something I wish to tell you as well, Anne."
14:22 Though they're still unmarried, Colin and Penelope can no longer resist each other,
14:27 and they consummate their relationship, while Colin is secretly jealous of her Whistledown
14:31 accomplishments.
14:32 "Shall we dance?"
14:33 "No, I'm all danced out for the night.
14:37 Colin, good luck on your tour."
14:41 He makes their impropriety known to Portia and Violet so that the wedding can be sped
14:45 up, which it is, and Colin and Penelope are wed.
14:49 "So, you compromise this young lady?"
14:52 "Certainly not.
14:53 I'm a gentleman."
14:54 But it's not entirely happy, as he's still not confided in her about what's really upsetting
14:59 him.
15:00 While maintaining that he thinks it will ruin her if the Whistledown secret gets out, he
15:04 does finally decide to share his journals, though, showing her a passage about his travels
15:09 in Scotland, and she again tells him he ought to try and publish them.
15:13 "I thought you would have been bored of my travels by now.
15:15 You read and replied to more of my letters than anyone else."
15:18 "I suppose I did."
15:19 He tells her he values her opinions about writing more than anybody, and he finally
15:23 explains that he's not ashamed of her.
15:26 He's jealous.
15:27 Just when marital bliss seems within reach, however, Cressida Twombly reappears.
15:31 "People have real problems, mature problems, problems that have nothing to do with the
15:36 secret identity of some silly writer."
15:38 "And you are so mature now."
15:41 Because in Whistledown's final paper, Penelope also wrote it would break her heart to see
15:46 Cressida take credit for her work, Cressida has put two and two together.
15:50 "You love him."
15:51 "What?"
15:52 "No, it makes sense now.
15:53 Your objections, your meddling.
15:54 You love Colin Bridgerton."
15:55 "You know not of what you speak."
15:59 She knows Penelope's identity, and the entire ton knows Cressida is in dire financial straits.
16:05 She demands £10,000 from Penelope to keep her secret, which Penelope, despite amassing
16:11 a small fortune, doesn't have.
16:13 Cressida gives her a week, and when Colin arrives home, Penelope explains the situation.
16:19 She wants to persuade Lady Danbury to publicly take credit, but Colin has his own idea.
16:25 He doesn't tell Penelope what he's planning, but brings her to a ball being held by the
16:28 Duke and Duchess of Hastings that evening under the close guard of Violet, Eloise, and
16:34 Hyacinth.
16:35 "Pen."
16:36 "Oh, Colin."
16:37 "We did not get a chance to speak this morning."
16:39 "We did.
16:40 I said Colin, but..."
16:41 There, he reveals all to Penelope that he is going to announce that she's Lady Whistledown,
16:47 and enlist the most influential members of society to support her and save her reputation.
16:52 She's initially against this, but discovers that she has the support of both Antony, Viscount
16:57 Bridgerton, and Simon, the Duke of Hastings, who publicly applaud when Colin makes his
17:02 speech.
17:03 "You're... sawn off women, then?"
17:04 "Not for the time being."
17:05 "I am a woman."
17:06 "You are Penelope."
17:07 "I am not Penelope."
17:08 "You are not Penelope."
17:09 "I am not Penelope."
17:10 "You are Pen.
17:11 You do not count.
17:12 You are my friend."
17:15 Lady Danbury is, of course, also thrilled by this news.
17:19 Finally, we arrive at the epilogue.
17:22 Colin's first book, An Englishman in Italy, has been published, after Penelope helped
17:28 him to edit it.
17:29 "You think highly of my family."
17:30 "I am not in the habit of consorting with those I hold in low esteem."
17:33 "I never thought of it like that."
17:35 Penelope, meanwhile, wants to write under her own name, and is working on a novel called
17:40 The Wallflower.
17:41 They live happily ever after.
17:43 Until the next novel in the series, of course.
17:46 "You have always been so constant and loyal, Pen."
17:51 "I do not believe I deserve such praise for my loyalty."
17:55 Already, it's clear that there are going to be major differences between the third season
18:00 of the hit show and the book.
18:02 "Lady Crane, what did she say?"
18:05 "That you cared for me.
18:07 And you would never forsake me.
18:11 I'm beginning to believe that now."
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18:30 From the promos, we know that a large plot point this season is going to be around Colin
18:35 teaching Penelope how to be charming so that she may seduce the men of London and finally
18:39 claim a husband, something that doesn't happen at all in the book.
18:43 "I might say something like that if you were a C-Type."
18:48 We're sure to also see more drama from the Featherington family, whose financial troubles
18:52 don't exist in the books, just like Felicity.
18:56 And in the final episode of season 2, we saw that Colin wasn't speaking to Anthony and
19:00 Benedict when he proclaimed he would never marry Penelope.
19:04 He was joking with his friends in high society, which is even more un-gentlemanly.
19:08 "Penelope Featherington.
19:09 The way you were dancing with her looked rather interesting."
19:13 There's also the issue with Lady Whistledown, who has committed far greater crimes in the
19:18 show, embroiling Colin in the scandal about Marina Thompson and her pregnancy, for instance,
19:23 as well as betraying Eloise and her friendship with Theo Sharp.
19:26 "Your love is an unrequited fantasy.
19:30 Colin sees you as you are and regards you no differently than he does Eloise, or even
19:34 little higher strength."
19:36 When in the books, Whistledown does little more than report idle gossip, and plenty of
19:40 people appreciate her for this.
19:42 It's much easier to understand how Colin forgives her, but Penelope has done much worse
19:46 in the show so far, and her identity has also just been uncovered by Eloise.
19:51 "The only person you were interested in saving was yourself."
19:54 We're sure that Eloise will now become an obstacle, stopping Colin and Penelope from
19:58 being together.
19:59 And who can blame her?
20:00 When Penelope brought scandal down on the Bridgertons.
20:03 "You've been back a matter of hours yet you're already in my way."
20:07 "How I've missed you too, El."
20:09 We can't wait to see how it all plays out, and we're betting that splitting the season
20:13 into two parts is because Colin will discover the truth in the mid-season finale, leaving
20:17 us to wait another month to see how Penelope begins to redeem herself, and to see whether
20:23 she'll retire Lady Whistledown for good.
20:25 "Do not laugh at him.
20:26 She makes a fool of him already."
20:28 "You are no fun anymore."
20:30 And that was our Miss Mojo Notes deep dive into romancing Mr. Bridgerton.
20:37 Which Bridgerton sibling is your favorite?
20:39 And how do you think Colin and Penelope's relationship will unfold in the show?
20:44 Let us know in the comments.
20:45 "It just never occurred to me that you of all people could be so cruel."
20:51 Do you agree with our picks?
20:53 Check out this other recent clip from Miz Mojo and be sure to subscribe and ring the
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