Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Bridgerton’ Season 3 Part 2 on Netflix, Where Lady Whistledown’s True Identity Starts Wreaking Havoc On Everyone

Colin Bridgerton loves Penelope Featherington, but he is no fan of Lady Whistledown. It’s a real conondrum considering that they’re one and the same and he’s about to marry them both. On Bridgerton Season 3, Part 2, Colin and Penelope’s secrets begin to eat away at them, but they’re hardly the only Bridgertons bringing the drama.

BRIDGERTON SEASON 3, PART 2: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Penelope Featherington sits at her desk penning the latest Lady Whistledown newsletter. “Dearest Reader,” it begins, “while most seasons of our fair marriage mart follow a predictable pattern, this author likes it most when there’s a surprise.” She is, of course, writing about her own engagement to Colin Bridgerton, news that will go public when Whistledown’s letter gets published the next morning.

The Gist: The fact that Colin actually proposed to Penelope at the end of Season 3’s first half feels like a dream in so many ways. Penelope had written it off as an impossibility, and so now, as Colin drags her into Bridgerton House to show her off to his family as his betrothed, it only makes sense that the moment would be shot in a loopy, delirious slow motion, Penelope’s head unable to wrap around any of this.

And while the Bridgertons are generally happy for the pair, Eloise is definitely not; she sneers at Penelope and wonders if this is all just another secret ploy Pen was keeping from her, and threatens to expose Penelope’s identity as Whistledown to Colin, unless Penelope does it first. As Penelope grows increasingly sick over what will happen to her when the truth is exposed, she’s not so sick that she can’t write a new Whistledown announcing her own engagement to Colin for everyone – including her mother and sisters – to read. Portia Featherington isn’t happy that she has to find out about Pen’s engagement from Whistledown, but hey, status is status, being a Bridgerton-in-law isn’t the worst thing, so she doesn’t stay mad.

Over at the castle, Queen Charlotte, tired of being bested and snarked on by Whistledown, puts a bounty on her. Anyone who can reveal Whistledown’s true identity to the Queen gets a cash prize. Obviously Pen is panicked by this and by Eloise’s ultimatum, but the real shock is that Cressida Cowper, who seems destined to marry an old, rich prune unless she can come up with a better plan, doesn’t just vow to find out Whistledown’s identity so she can make the cash grab; she actually assumes her identity, telling anyone who will listen that she is Whistledown. And with that, either all of Penelope’s problems are solved, or, her pride won’t let Cressida take credit for her life’s work. Either way, nothing is simple, and it makes Penelope pass out from the stress of it all.

Our Take: The first half of Bridgerton Season 3 was the lead up to Colin and Penelope’s engagement; the obstacles in their way, the strained feelings between Pen and Eloise which threatened to expose Penelope’s identity as Lady Whistledown, and Eloise’s new, often confusing alliance with her greatest foe, Cressida Cowper. Most of these things have done a complete 180 in Part 2, and the show deftly pivots around all the changing relationships as Eloise and Pen ease back into friendship in an effort to prevent Cressida from ruining them all. If part one felt strained because people weren’t acting like we’re used to them acting, part two is a return to form for many of the characters.

Bridgerton works so well because of the way it allows every character to be layered, usually not revealing the deepest layers until absolutely necessary; most of the motives behind everyone’s actions are due to things beyond their own control. Cressida sucks so bad because her parents are forcing her into a life she knows she’ll hate, she’s desperate and will do anything to not marry some old man or move to Wales. (Welcome to… Wrexham?) Portia Featherington does everything she does also out of some sort of desperation; as the season progresses, she, too, has moments of softness that also manage to explain why she’s the status-obsessed daughter-pusher that she is. And Penelope also gets her moment to articulate why it’s just so hard for her to give up being Lady Whistledown, even now that she’s got something better on the horizon, a marriage to the man of her dreams. The show justifies everyone’s behavior, that’s a tribute to the writing, and it’s a feature than many shows lack. This season’s stakes feel higher than ever because Colin has been set up to see Whistledown as his enemy, one whose downfall he will delight in. So while we can gleefully celebrate Polin, the real drama is the tension that builds as we work our way toward Colin’s discovery, and what it will mean for everyone.

Sex and Skin: Penelope and Colin finally do it! There are boobs! There’s butt! All day long on the chaise longue.

Parting Shot: Cressida Cowper, desperate to win the Queen’s financial reward for revealing the identity of Lady Whistledown, announces, “I am she,” and declares that she is the gossip maven. The room full of guests is stunned by her reveal. Antony and Kate, who had been trying to tell the room full of people that they’re expecting a baby, are stunned into silence. Penelope, who had been trying to find the right opportunity to tell Colin that she’s actually Whistledown, faints.

Performance Worth Watching: Jessica Madsen is crushing it this season as Cressida; able to gain our sympathy one minute while eroding our trust the next, she’s complicated and messy and a delight to watch. Now that she’s revealed the fake news that she’s Whistledown, the question is, how is she maintain that ruse convincingly?

Memorable Dialogue: “Until he knows the real you, he cannot possibly love you,” Eloise tells, nay, threatens Penelope, giving her former friend an ultimatum to tell Colin about her secret identity before the clock strikes midnight. So dramatic!

Our Call: STREAM IT. We always knew that Polin would be a juicy chapter in the Bridgerton story, but there are so many aspects of the show, from Penelope’s glow up to Cressida’s love-her-or-hate-her complexity and the Queen’s witch hunt for Whistledown, that have enriched the show and given the central love story of the season some complicated obstacles to maneuver around.

Liz Kocan is a pop culture writer living in Massachusetts. Her biggest claim to fame is the time she won on the game show Chain Reaction.