(upbeat music) - Dearest watchers something that I could have never predicted on my 2022 bingo card
happened to me last month. (soft music) Hi my name is Mina and I've
been at "Bridgerton" stand for approximately three weeks now. I'm not joking I even went
to the Bridgerton Fan Event called the Queen's Ball last weekend, and I got this dress made
by my friend Emma Collins, who is a dress maker
and I highly recommend getting something custom
made by her if you can, because she just does
emaculate work as you can tell. My inspiration for this dress was Keira Knightley's
"Pride and Prejudice" dress. And I know that dress is
not historically accurate in the slightest, but I just
love that dress so much. And I was like, if I'm going
to go to a Bridgerton Ball, I'm gonna wear whatever I want because no one cares about
historical accuracy anyway. And also I just don't
really like regency dresses to begin with. I think that the, whatever the empire line they do, which kinda comes up
to like literally here is a little unflattering for my body type. So yeah I opted for a Joe
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rating excellent overall. You can use my code Mina25 to get 25% off all Wild products. Listen, listen, I know you're thinking, and no I do not regret making my anti British and video last year, because season one was bad.
Season one was a hate watch. I can still say that as
reformed Bridgerton fan, season one was bad. Daphne and Simon had
little to no chemistry, the pacing was off, the explanation for their post
racial society was very weird and I will not forget how
Daphne's assaults on Simon was just largely brushed off
with no real consequences. But season two, season
two, where do I begin? So for anyone who needs the recap, season two centers, Anthony Bridgerton. The way that the "Bridgerton"
series is formatted, takes after Julia
Quinn's Bridgerton books, in which every book centers around a different member of
the Bridgerton family. So last season's main
character Daphne Bridgerton takes a backseat and her husband Simon is nowhere to be seen. And because of how series was set up, I don't even think their
screen time was missed. After Daphne and Simon get married, they move out to Simon's estate, so they're not even based
in like London anymore. So it makes sense that they
wouldn't really show up. Anthony also gets a
major character reboot, which I thought was hilarious because he's virtually a
totally different character than who he was in season one. I just feel like the writers
looked at what they did and they were like, no, no,
no, this is not gonna work. His personality in season one
was very aloof, very playboy, and in this season he's
extremely serious and responsible going on and on about how
he's such a gentleman. - I'm a gentleman, I'm a gentleman. I am a gentleman. I am a gentleman. - Which I'm a fan of the
Anthony character reboot, because I found his character in season one very insufferable. And for this season
they really played into Austin fan sensibilities
towards a repressed man who's actually very gentle
on the inside. Mr. Darcey. And I do think it like could make sense the way that his character has developed, because maybe he just
had a moment of crisis, a moment of realization after his lover left him in season one, and after Daphne gets married, maybe he's like starting to think, oh, I need to get my shit together. His love interest is Kate
Sharma a new character. Kate is Indian and the
oldest of the family. Her father died so she
lives with her stepmom Mary and half sister Edwina. So the deal with Mary
is that she was cut off from her noble parents
the Sheffield's years ago when she ran off to India
with a man below her class. But unbeknownst to Mary and Edwina, Kate has written to the Sheffield's and they were an agreement that if Edwina finds a
gentleman match in London, they will pay the dowry and give the family
back their inheritances. This is probably the plot line that I had the most difficulty digesting, because it just didn't
make any sense to me. I don't understand why Kate
wasn't transparent about the deal with the Sheffield's
with her mom and sister, because I don't think it
would change anything. Edwina was still set on
marrying a gentleman in London, and she still had the option
to choose whoever it was. I don't think it like
really would mean anything for her to know this
arrangement was happening. But anyways Edwina is pronounced
the diamond of the season, and Anthony pre-decides
that he's going to marry whoever the diamond is because surely a diamond would
make a dependable good wife. But he and Kate fall in with each other after he's already proposed to Edwina, and the two of them repress those feelings in lieu of being
responsible eldest siblings. But in the end, Edwina chooses
to call off the wedding because she finally realizes
what's been happening, and she has her moment of
empowerment where she's like Kate, I'm old enough to decide
what I want for my life, you can't just tell me what to do. - Today, you have lost your power. Well I have made up my own mind, and that's just victory enough for me. - And because it's "Bridgerton" the scandal of this canceled wedding that the queen literally endorses, dies down within like a week, and Kate and Anthony go off to live their happily ever after. So the biggest change
that I noticed this season from season one is that Kate and Anthony have a fiery chemistry. For season one, I feel like
they just casted Rege-Jean and Phoebe who played Simon
and Daphne respectively, because both of them
are good looking actors, and yeah, that's it. They're just like very good looking. But Simone and Jonathan who play Kate and Anthony respectively, they're not just good looking, they also have this magnetism on screen. I cannot emphasize enough how the energy between the two leads is essential for a good romcom. Even if you gave me a
lame ass boring storyline, I would probably still be invested. I would probably still enjoy it. If I could see that the characters are realistically pining for each other. I also don't know if I'm just not a fan of Julia Quinn's story crafting, but I know that for
season two the writers, the show writers actually made
a lot of changes to the plot, which I ended up liking. The most notable is that
originally during the bee scene, Anthony is supposed to
try to suck the venom out of Kate's boob after she's stung. The two are then caught and
similarly to Daphne and Simon, they're forced to marry on the spot. I'm really glad they did away with this force to marry plot line, because they essentially
already did that in season one, and it would just feel kind of redundant if they did it again for season two. The show writers also added an engagement between Edwina and the Viscount, which didn't happen in the books. Look I normally hate love triangles, and I'd be the first to say
it. I don't really care. I was never in that whole team Jacob, team Edward Twilight thing, because I just like don't
care about love triangles. Like the minute you
throw in another person I'm like checked out. But in saying that I actually
really liked this new addition in season two to the plot, because I genuinely was surprised when Anthony proposed to
Edwina like I was shocked and because I was shocked, I was more invested in what's happening. And also I just like, couldn't
fathom how Kate and Anthony would get together with Edwina in the mix because she's such a great character, and Kate obviously feels
so much for her sister, so I was just on the edge of my seat, cause I just didn't know
what's gonna happen. Another thing about season two is that it was way less color blind. What I mean by that is in season one yes they did give this weird explanation for why "Bridgerton" is now
in this like post racial era. - We were two separate
societies, divided by color, until a king fell in love with one of us. Love your grace conquers all. - But for the most part there isn't really any indication
of any other culture outside this one British culture. So I liked that for the Sharmas. They comment on the fact the
family's Indian multiple times, and we actually get to see
how that Indian culture translates into the Bridgerton world. For example, the day
before Edwina's wedding, she and her family do
a ritual called Haldi, which incorporates the use of tumeric to protect and ward off spirits. In the books the Sharmas are actually a white family
called the Sheffields. But an interview with talent
and country executive producer Shonda Rhimes explained, "Finding some South Asian
women with darker skin and making sure that they
were represented on screen authentically and truthfully, feels like something that we
haven't seen nearly enough of." Costume designer Sophie
Canale told the "Zoe Report," "The jewel-tone palettes of Kate's outfits represent shades from Indian culture. I've also used lots of Indian silks in the cut of the Sharma family's costumes for pashminas in their sleeve
shapes and I used gold trims. I was inspired by Indian fashion
and the culture's jewelry. Therefore the accessories
for both the Sharma daughters and their mother Mary,
stem from Indian designs, such as intricate bead work
and the use of rose gold as a base of their jewelry." And speaking of their jewelry. I also saw this tweet the other day, "Anthony's dad's ring not
coming off Kate's finger versus Kate's mom's bangles
interrupting an entire wedding. The situation was so dire, the souls of their deceased parents had to join forces from the afterlife, to force these idiots together. So true queen the Sharmas also wear Paisley printed garments
also known as Boteh. Boteh translates to flower
bud or a spray of leaves, and its thought have
derived from the fusion of Floral motifs with a cypress tree, the Zoroastrian symbol of eternity. This textile actually originated in Persia over 2000 years ago, but the term Paisley comes
from the Scottish town Paisley, which was the biggest producer of Indian style shawls in great Britain. You see in the late 18th
and early 19th centuries, Indian textiles were considered a major luxury in the British empire. Author Elizabeth Gaskell, actually refers to the cashmere shawl in her book of "North and South." She portrays these Indian garments as highly desired items for
the English bourgeoisie trusso. Noting their spicy
Eastern smell, soft feel, and brilliant color. So yes these British reproductions
of the cashmere shawl were considered to be
cultural appropriation. And if you ask me they
were shitty reproductions because cashmere shawls the way that they were produced in India, they were produced by very
high skilled artisans. Whereas in Europe, they were produced in stuffy
factories by child laborers. But back to "Bridgerton," once again, I don't know why the costume
team forces the actresses to still wear what sounds
like really tight corsets. When regency stays are known for being on the more flexible side. I have a pair myself and I can say that unless
I'm purposely tight lacing, I can breathe and move
around pretty freely. But Simone Ashley told "Glamor Magazine," "I realized when you wear the
corset, you just don't eat. It changes your body. I had a smaller waist very momentarily. Then the minute you stop wearing it, you're just back to how your body is. I had a lot of pain with the corset too. I think I tore my shoulder at one point." Why is her corset cinching her waist? When the regency stays do
not even go to your waist. And then also the dresses that she wears, do not cinch at the waist either. I think the actress who
plays Lady Feathering, did complain about her corsets, but that makes a little bit more sense because her corset, her dresses were clearly
like cinched at the waist for comedic effect,
but for someone Ashley, like she's wearing the very
tubular tubular regency gown. So it just doesn't make any sense why they would put her in these garments. And if it's like tearing at
her shoulder or anything, it means the corset is
either cheaply made, or it's not fitted to her body properly, which is even more confusing because "Bridgerton" has
a huge costume budget. So there's really no excuse
for these undergarments, to not fit these actresses properly. And I'm overall kind of annoyed by it because one you're putting
these actresses in pain for literally no reason, and two, all these interviews
that they do afterwards, kind of just lend to this myth that corsets were these very restrictive, like oppressive garments, when we all know that they
were not in actuality. - Wait a minute I'll hold
into place, now pull. - So I'm not gonna roast
the costumes for this video because I did that
already for my last video, and they're pretty much
the same stylistically. Like am I still confused by Lady Featherington's
pentagonal neckline? Yes. Do I think some of the
dresses fit weird? Yes. But I do appreciate that there's at least no more sensationalized
corset lacing scene. So let's just take a
quick look at the Sharma's because of the newest
additions to the court. I like how Kate wears heavy tafidas, which gives the indication
that she's very rigid and mature beyond her years. Do the responsibility she's
taking up as elder sister. She also wears stronger
colors than Edwina, who dresses in muted pinks and peaches. This is no doubt to show the difference and personalities between the two with Edwina acting sweeter and more innocent than her sister. Kate and Anthony actually
both wear a lot of teal, perhaps to show how they're very similar. I think also having the season set almost entirely in London, allowed for more screen time
for the other Bridgertons, which I was really happy about. I liked seeing Benedict's
nepotism art kid struggles, for instance, including his
little opium indulgence. - Decades.
- Oh Benedict dear. - [Mina] I also liked seeing
Anthony's flash backs, which showed us where
his trauma stems from. I just wish that we also
got flashbacks of Kate and her father. I also really enjoyed all
the Featherington drama because Lady Featherington is probably the funniest character on the show. - Mama may I take a play with Eloise. - Ladies do not play Penelope. - Forgive me mama might I go
proclaim seats with Eloise? - Very well then. - [Mina] I thought Eloise
becoming more political was interesting but I'm kind of annoyed because I thought for sure she
would get a queer storyline, and they kinda just shut that down with the introduction of Theo. Similarly in season one, I kinda felt like they
queer beating with Benedict and that just ended up going nowhere. I mean there's eight kids, and one of them has to
be the gay cousin right? And honestly while I think
Nicole Kathleenn is a darling, I don't think the writers
should have revealed that Penelope was Lady
Whistle down so early on because it made me less interested in the whole Lady Whistle
down plot line this season. But I still felt really
bad for Penelope in the end when she's cast aside
by both Eloise and Colin in the span of like five seconds, but it was also kinda deserved. So those are my general
notes for the season. Once again I had a lot of fun and I feel like I actually
finally understood the hype of "Bridgerton." But regardless of how I
personally feel about the show, I do think after having
some time to think about it, that "Bridgerton" is
like a cultural reset. - Hello, let's celebrate that. - [Mina] "Bridgerton" made
waves at the end of 2020, because it was one of
the first of its kind, a sexy, anachronistic, trashy, gene Austin with a diverse cast. Prior to "Bridgerton," we have a Chris Benny and
dubbed in the Telegraph, "The Downtown Abbey Era." This era signifies the time
period between the 1970s up into the 2000, which was a period of untrammeled success for the British costume drama industry. For instance we had
"Brideshead Revisited," BBC's "Pride And Prejudice,"
"North and South," "Jane Eyre," and so much more. Not only were these costume dramas, impeccably loyal to
their source materials, and mostly visually historically accurate, they were also overwhelmingly
slow and white. And as clear that post "Downtown Abbey," viewers have flocked to
more liberating fast-paced and diverse portrayals of ye olden days, like "The Great," "David
Copperfield" and "Dickinson," to name a few. Chris Van Dusen Bridgerton's writer, told "The Independent," "As much as I love a good period piece, I feel like they're considered
a little traditional and a little conservative. The tone of "Bridgerton"
is spirited and daring. People talk fast and
there's a banter there, but it's also really, really sexy in a way that you don't always get in a more traditional period show. Personally I'm a fan of the latter, which I know is probably surprising because I've made a number
of videos on YouTube, just tearing down period dramas for the lack of historical accuracy. But listen I adore historical anachronism truly like to my core I
love "Marie Antoinette," I love "Anna Karenina," I really love anything
Joe Wright has ever done now that I'm thinking
about it, but I digress. I can appreciate a good BBC costume drama. I had like a little phase in high school, where it was just like
very tuned into the BBC, but I also think though
they're kind of suffocating, the dialogue is kind of
hard to follow sometimes, and they require just a
lot, a lot of brain cells to get through. So even when it comes to the
more traditional stories, I prefer the 2005 "Pride And Prejudice," the 2019 "Little Women," the
2020 "Emma Interpretations," despite all their historical inaccuracies. They're just more enjoyable
to me as a viewer. And I think most of the people who are staunchly anti "Bridgerton" are just traditionalists
which is totally fine. But I think it's worth
setting that boundary between a costume drama and "Bridgerton," because they are inherently
two different genres and they deserve like
different critical lenses when we're viewing them. "Bridgerton" is
essentially a bodice-ripper in a Netflix format. And if we go into it
thinking of it as such, then we wouldn't be so
upset by the inaccuracies, or by the creative liberties
that the writing team takes. For anyone who doesn't know
what a bodice-ripper is, it's basically a sub
genre of romance fiction that came about in the 1970s. It's mostly a pejorative term used by male critics to
denigrate a type of book that women love to read, but I've kind of reclaimed it
personally as a positive term. Journalist Carol Thurston
defined bodice-rippers in 1981, as stories with complex storylines
and character development fast-paced action and
frequent sexual activity, at an average of 418 pages in length." These books were actually
pretty progressive at the time, in the sense that they offered
women an escapist world where women could explore
freedom, respect, love, and sex. Carol Wrights, "These are
feisty women of integrity, fighting for independence, equality, and respect in a man's world, accepted as individuals, fighters, not ashamed to seek
satisfactions of those needs." According to the "Oxford
English Dictionary," the first print use of the term, was in a New York Times
book review back in 1979. But most people would say
that the first bodice-ripper was "The Flame And The Flower,"
by Kathleen E WoodiWiss, which was published in 1972. This was a really momentous publication because most of the books
on the market at the time, were very chased. "The Flame And The Flower"
was erotic, highly graphic, and depicted sexual assault multiple times within its 600 pages. So like the name bodice-rippers are not generally focused
on historical accuracy. It's kind of in the name itself. In real life bodices are
very difficult to rip because back in the day they
were made with whalebone, or steel and you probably
wouldn't wanna rip them up anyway, because clothes were very expensive. When I'm reading I wouldn't
have the same expectations for bodice-ripper as I would have for like a piece of historical fiction. In saying this a lot of
fans have noted though, that this season there's
been a lot less sex. We only got one sex scene,
which is at the very end. In comparison back in 2020, Bustle published an article
ranking the show sex scenes based on how much of
Simon's ass we could see. For hardcore "Bridgerton" fans, this lack of sex goes against
the whole ethos of the show, which is balancing the
prude social scriptures, and ranch behind closed doors. As the saying goes, "Lady in the streets,
freak in the sheets," "Business in the front,
party in the back." For people like me though who
are more into the romance, slow burn aspects of
traditional period dramas, I was totally fine with this because I was actually more
thrilled by the flash of leg than by anyone's butt. - Finally, favorite fucking thing. - So with everything that I've said, I feel like season two
is actually more of like an in between in the spectrum of like historical drama and bodice-ripper. I'm curious to see what's
gonna happen in season three, but I think we can all agree that deeper than the sex scenes, the pull of "Bridgerton" is that, it's a form of escapism
that highlights romance in a way that's both
realistic to the modern day, as well as charmingly antiquated. And maybe the reason that we're
all so drawn to "Bridgerton" especially right now is because there is a deficit
in the romcom industry. There's truly nothing else on the market that fills the void. Nothing else that mirrors
the flirtatious banter that Kate and Anthony did in the show. I honestly can't name,
I think any good romcom that have come out in the last 10 years, and that is so, so upsetting. But when I was watching this season, I literally felt myself
becoming so insane. Like it was embarrassing
how crazy I was getting over these two fictional characters. - You're the bait of my existence, and you object all my desires. Night and day I dream of you. - It just like totally revived
this fan girling spirit I had inside me that I just like thought didn't exist anymore once
I graduated high school. But no I just really nothing's
happened to me internally, it's just that nothing good has come out to trigger this kind of like
emotional response for me. So what I'm trying to say is that we definitely need more
of this kind of media, especially, especially in these times. It definitely makes me recall, I don't know if any of
you have seen the movie "Sullivan's Travels," which
is a pretty old movie. It's from the 1940s. But there's this one scene basically okay, let me start from the beginning. The protagonist I don't
even remember the name because I watched this movie so long ago, but the protagonist is a movie director, and he's known for making these comedies and he decides that he wants
to make like an actual drama, because he's tired of making comedies, and it's like a whole odyssey, but basically in the end
he ends up in this prison. There's like this one day
a week that this prison, they go to watch cartoons in a church. And in that moment when he's
like watching the cartoons and he's like laughing, and
he's had like all this struggle working on his chining, and everyone in the
church is like laughing he realizes the remedy, the
medicine that comedy provides for people during tough times. And it's like so true. We need romcoms. We just need. They are our cultural necessity. I'm gonna end this video with this quote by English novelist Georgette Heyer, who one set of her own regency romances. "I think myself, I ought to be shot for writing such nonsense, but it's unquestionably
good escapist literature and I think I should rather like it if I were sitting in an air-raid shelter, or recovering from flu." Okay, that's all I have for today. Thank you so much for listening
to me go on about this. Let me know in the comments, what you think about
"Bridgerton" season two, and how you think compares
to "Bridgerton" season one, and yeah I'll see you all next time. I hope you have a lovely
rest of your day, bye bye. (soft music)
