March 2, 2026 by Kayla Magnus (‘29)
Spoilers Ahead!
When it comes to the fourth season of Bridgerton, I think it is one of the most profound seasons we’ve gotten thus far.
The past seasons of the show showed us just how great one’s affection can be for another and how strong love and a connection can become. We saw the immense care for one another between Simon and Daphne, even though they claimed it not real. We saw Kate and Anthony begin to despise each other and continue to fall deeper and deeper in love every time they looked at one another until they were infatuated. We witnessed the deep love that Penelope had for Colin, and the revelation Colin had when he found out he had always felt the same way, just never realized it. And finally, we have now seen a great amount of yearning, love being found in people they never though they would feel this way about, and the pursuit of one’s abundant love for another, no matter what stands in its way.
This season was more than love. One of the things that made this season so much more culturally significant than past seasons, was the intersectionality of identity and the borders we have put up around each other socially. Humans have always created boundaries and teams; first it was tribes, then territories, skin color, rank, wealth, popularity, etc. There is always something stopping us from connecting and being one united species. Love can be something that has the ability to break down these walls; there should be nothing stopping people from loving each other. This season showed us that although these walls are thick, real and strong love can break them down. Benedict and Sophie never gave up on each other, even though Sophie would get overwhelmed by the forbiddance of their love, Benedict always made it known that he loves her more than anything, society and even his family. Benedict’s family has always slightly disapproved of his way of life and now when he finally does what they’ve always wanted him to and finds someone he wants to take as a wife, a love match at that; of course she has to be not an acceptable wife in society. He didn’t care though; he chose her over everything but thankfully his family came around and supported him. Family and love are much stronger than the hate that is given to us from the world.
This season also brought an end to one of the sweetest, most innocent and lovely relationships in the show, Francesca and John. I don’t know about everyone else but even though we know there is more out there for Francesca, her and John’s relationship just felt right. They felt like, at least at this point in their lives, they completed each other, even if they had some hiccups to address along the way. To see him die and the sorrow it brought her just killed me. This season also showed how