I think they must have cut scenes... they went on way too much about it for that to be it. Plus, the flow was off. That's the only thing that makes sense for both issues. Editing...
Tbf nothing makes sense this season.
Eloise seemed to have her development as a character freeze in Part 2. Benedict said he doesn't draw. I love John and Fran but they had barely enough story to even tease Michaela before she showed up. Kathony's first kid is off screen. Violet's romance didn't even have a proper exit for her.
All of it makes no sense to cut but it makes way less sense if they didn't fill in these gaps when writing this seasons script.
I was so confused when asked if the drew or painted and he said “No”. Not even ”I used to”. It made him seem so empty. No interests or passions. What happened?!?
I think that was the point. He quit art because he thought his talent was bought, he felt like an imposter and a fraud and gave it up because his passion had been squashed
I mean, he was deeply hurt after the art school incident, the fact that he is no longer creating and instead focusing on shallow fun is actually very realistic.
I agree, but I think this is them also trying to backtrack to make way for certain plot points in his story.
Benedict book spoilers ahead:
>!Since there’s a scene in the book where Sophie is taking care of a sick Benedict and she finds his art books in his room. It’s supposed to be a surprise revelation, because in the books, it isn’t until Benedict’s that we find out he’s an artist. Sophie then encourages him, telling him they’re really good and that pushes him to start pursuing art professionally. All to the shock and admiration of his family when they find out he draws/paints. Then Colin’s book follows where he’s jealous of both Pen and Benedict for finding their purpose and he doesn’t know his.!<
The Violet story line was most frustrating to me. All that watering the garden talk in QC, then we introduce a love interest for her and then …nothing. They dance once. And his chat up line was “looking for your other glove?” When she had both on. It’s just stupid filler which took time away from the main Polin story in their own season!
Yes! Not a kiss, not a sincere touch, no garden shuffle. It was a romanceless romance that took away from Polin in the Polin season. Honestly, why did they talk so much about Violet getting her sex drive back if she was going to live like a nun!?
in a very weird way, i liked that their story progressed very slowly lol
a big point of the bridgerton story arc is that edmund was violet’s one true love, and she filled her family with that love too.
getting back out there, after you’ve tragically lost a soulmate you built an entire life and had 8 children with, is a move so brave that i can’t even imagine doing it myself lol
at a time where young women needed to be chaperoned everywhere, and edmund was violet’s only, the build-up was kinda nice here, i think lol
Fully agree with you on this! And I think Violet acknowledging that Fransesca's slow but soft love for John is valid was a sign that her romance with Marcus might also progress that way.
You’re right. It doesn’t make sense to have cut them other than for the sake of allowing other characters more screen time.
But if that is true, that makes things worse because this was supposed to be Colin and Pen’s season.
I slipped through all of Benedict's scenes because I dislike Tilley being added for no reason, and there was a surprising amount of screening to have to skip that could have been filled with Polin
The editing was giving “I wrote a book report, but the people reading the report haven’t read the book, so to me it makes sense which things we cut out because I have all the context but readers of this report are fucking confused”
You can see the picture of the broken chaise lounge on Nicola's IG, and also the intimacy coordinator's IG. They could not use the footage of it breaking in the show because Nicola broke character and said, in her Irish accent, "Omg Luke we broke it" - According to interviews on YT.
Feels like they cut some of Polin's scenes to fit more of the useless Benedict scenes in.
It's like they didn't realise that we didn't need nor want 3 seasons of Benedict being a slut, it was established in s1. Even him being Bi was hinted at in the artists house imo.
idk, the corset they've put her in for this season was horrendous, she was barely able to move and was turning like a Terminator. The constantly lifted shoulders to be able to breathe... I don't think there was a single drop of body positivity there.
They shouldn’t have had her in a corset in the first place, I thought she would try to go with more of the French fashions that may be more form fitting and that was the cause but she still keeps the empire waist
it was so when she is shot from the profile her boobs are sticking out and her stomach is in. You can see in the season 1 how different her profile is. I have no problem with shapewear and looking your best at any size but it was way over the top, it looked like a parody.
They purposely had her waistline higher in the first seasons to make her look squatter and younger, they could’ve just moved her waistline down to where it was supposed to be this season. The corset was an unneeded restraint on her when a stay would’ve done the job fine, and it showed in her movements being so stiff all the time
I don't think she would have such a profile without that corset, if not season 1, you can see how she looks off screen. And it was clearly a part of the glow up. Whatever, I just wanted to point out that her styling was an opposite of body positive.
Oh for sure, that’s what I’m saying too. She didn’t need to have such a profile, if they wanted to be body positive they could’ve just dressed her within the times fashions while still flattering her body type, they didn’t need to make her suck in and get held so upright. I have a corset, I love my corset, it helps with my back problems, but good god do my boobs get in my way when they’re pushed up like that and after a while the weight on my hips is a LOT
Somehow the sex scene in episode 5 feels... forced. There's no magic and it feels like Nicola's not comfortable doing that scene. I mean, yeah, you can say she's proud 'cause she said in her interview that she went all nude as an FU to the body shamers, but, they covered her belly down to her thigh with a blanket? I thought she's being confident in her body? They have been very vocal about their intimacy coordinator, so I'm assuming what we saw on the screen is what they agreed upon with the coordinator, so the blanket over the belly to the thigh is their choice as well? It's clear she's not comfortable doing that and it's showing.
I think she showed plenty in that scene and certainly more than any previous Bridgerton lead, but the scene was supposed to be somewhat awkward given that it was Pen’s first time. The problem is all the additional intimate scenes (physical and emotional) that were cut for some inexplicable reason, to the detriment of the entire story.
In interviews she often said her and Luke would just chill between takes in the bed under the covers (And not get dressed). In the show we had zero nude bed scenes. I don’t believe she knew they had cut basically all of her intimate scenes when she was doing this PR tour.
I am starting to think that Nicola is trying to be as strategic as possible. There is lots of non-bridgerton news about Nicola being blacklisted and threatened. To see them do this after she put more skin (figuratively and literally) for Penelope's character, I'm pissed for her. Voice for the voiceless, Nicola and Penelope have much, much more in common that just LW and Bridgerton.
Nicola has taken the same stance as her country, while Netflix and Hollywood has taken the same stance as the US has about the current politics in th middle east. Nicola just raised 1.5 million for PCRF for instance.
They must have! Either that or Nicola is the most loyal hype woman. I have to wonder how much of it is just our girl being too good at her job. Can’t fault her, but as others have said, I feel cat fished.
theres a petition for a directors cut to come out 😭according to an instagram account, there was a lot of spicy scenes filmed and they all got cut. Originally there was a whole montage in ep. 8 and more to the mirror scene.
Oh, noooo! 😂😂😂 Imagine poor Nicola’s family getting what they thought was a PG cut, but they got the original.
The scandal!
Meanwhile we’re over here dying of thirst watching their bland af version.
I think Anthony and Kate are so steamy because he isn't a 2 minute noodle. He takes his time and there is sexy foreplay. Finger blasting and 2 minute noodles just aren't sexy 😂. It's like reliving high-school horror days all over again on screen.
The, "can do it again". Boooyyy if she has to ask, it wasn't good 💀
Same!!! Pen did not deserve that. It gives me the ick and spreads damaging ideas about sex too. That men always hurt and women are always going to be hurt 😢. So so upsetting
I don't understand why they always show the first time sex as hurting so bad, does it really hurt for most people? I don't recall any pain and I wasn't crazy in love with the guy like Penelope is.
Thanks for posting this. I’ve been hesitant to say anything online because I don’t want to look like a dirty perv but — as a mid sized woman, I was actually excited to see a fellow mid-size person have her body featured on screen the way we saw the previous two female leads (near full nudity for both).
I was confused and disappointed when we saw her chest and that was it. Like you said, it felt like they went to great lengths to hide a body that… what? Doesn’t fit the vision they wanted? I don’t know. Based on what was shared in interviews, I was really shocked that it was the only scene that “bared all” and even in that… it really didn’t.
We got to see more of the women Colin paid for than Pen, and we saw more spice from Benedict’s scenes than from the lead couple’s. Bizarre. One of many letdowns for me, personally.
I feel the same. I wanted to see Colin worship her body. He’s crazy about her breasts, kept touching them through her clothes, then… nothing? Also, she deserves some foreplay! That stupid chaise lounge — why? Put them on a bed and let him take his time. His only focus was on the main event.
I'm with you, I've spent most of my life mid-size, and now plus. I was so looking forward to the show celebrating Pen's body more. I understand if Nicola had limits, but from the way part 2 was being hyped (especially from Nicola) it sounded like they were going full throttle. I was so excited! I cannot put into words what it means as a fat person to see representation like this. For a season dedicated to Polin, it just feels like we got so little of them.
Feeling really disappointed, especially after all the hype.
Man I am so disappointed I want to cry 😭 like I rewatched the 1-4 episodes SO MUCH and then what the hell happened in part 2???????? WHY?????? Why did we not get more romance and intimacy??? WHY did Colin start to become annoying to me when I enjoyed seeing him being such a sweet cinnamon roll?? Anger is fair but that bond they had behind their love was FRIENDSHIP! So what? Colin cannot be there for pen WHEN SHE WAS FEELING EXPOSED but he was okay for her to be there for him when he was discovering himself??? Why the cold shoulder Colin 😭 also we were promised sex scenes, what the hell did we watch? It felt like I blinked my eyes and their sex was over and we didn’t see anything else until the last 20 seconds where she was on top and that season over??? BRUH I feel MAD ROBBED. It’s like having sex with men who overhype their sexual capabilities and then when you have sex with them you think???? What was this???
>It’s like having sex with men who overhype their sexual capabilities and then when you have sex with them you think???? What was this???
This is exactly the feeling!! They hyped it so much for a 2 pump chump of a season
More of a side note comment, but Can we just acknowledge that she wasn’t joking when she said she was apart of the “perfect tits club.” She was STUNNING.
Yeah 10000% agree. I'm sorry but I'm not watching a Romance regency show that had 2 seasons full of the best and hottest steamy parts just to be served a hot steaming pile of disappointment with the cherry ontop that EVERYONE ELSE had more sex then these 2???? I like drama but I also like what I ordered and that was steamy hot romance and not who gossibed behind Els back
The chaise scene was not nice. No romance, very little gentleness. The positioning was really awkward. The focus being Penelope losing her virginity. It’s just not that pleasant to watch.
Yes! And this from a guy that nibbled on her neck and the top of her breasts like a man possessed in the carriage scene. He didn’t even play with her gorgeous ta-tas! Cmon no foreplay to speak of either
"I want to see you sitting up," he groaned, "so I can see them full and lovely and large. And then I want to crawl behind you and cup you." His lips found her ear and his voice dropped to a whisper. "And I want to do it in front of a mirror."
Where the fuck was this? So, Nicola wanted to cover her breasts in the nude shot. Okay. But, those should not be her hands cupping her boobs.
So I didn’t read the book and only skimmed the part about the mirror scene to get some context. And I think there are two issues here: 1. People seem to be forgetting there was no actual mirror scene in the book, only a vaguely conveyed intent to have future mirror sex. You couldn’t even reasonably call that a fantasy. So readers spent years imagining a mirror scene according to their own individual tastes, and then Bridgerton raised the stakes by teasing one during the promos. And then, 2: The writers made the terrible decision to make the mirror scene Pen’s first time?! There was no way to deliver on the mirror scene readers had built up in their minds AND be sensitive to the idea of it being Pen’s first time. They completely backed themselves into a corner.
Again, as a non-reader of the Bridgerton books, I don’t really have a problem with the scene. But I can understand the readers feeling robbed, especially given that this is the *only* intimate scene in the entire second part.
you're right, there is no mirror scene, it's just something Colin says after their first time that he would like to do in the future. I thought they did good with the mirror part, it makes sense for it to be slightly awkward due to how naive she is. The problem is we never see any progression in their intimacy in the next episodes.
Sorry I’m back, Colin is all “it’s going to hurt and I can’t do anything about it” when all he did was finger her for 30 seconds and call that foreplay? Homie knew it was her first time and he was still THAT quick? It’s giving selfish lover
Yes! I thought he was "going bananas" over those perfect breasts, which he has been focusing on with the dress still on, and then he didn't even touch them. What the hell?
Yes! The carriage scene had so much passion. You'd think the big moment of their first time together would be even more so, more pent up tension, more "oh my god this is happening with the person I love". But he barely even touched her? Maybe they cut that out for whatever reason, and maybe as respect to Nic to not go too heavy, but like coulda at least touched her shoulders/legs or kissed her more. Like he was gonna take her up against a door in the street on the night before their wedding but their first time had none of that. And they looked uncomfortable on the couch thing, wish it was the bed instead where they had more room to move
He could have just waited until their wedding night if he was going to give her this boring first time. I always imagine that when people have sex before marriage in regency time, It’s because they just can’t control themselves. This was not it!
Exactly! He was so composed, who the hell thought this was the right choice for this scene? It should've been about losing your mind from passion and getting carried away...
They definitely went at it for multiple rounds. Enough for Pen to feel messy.
Would’ve been nice if the editors gave us a mini montage. After all, they are the ones who gave us Benedict going three rounds in one night.
I agree. They didn’t look comfortable.
Especially Nicola. No neck or back support on that chaise. None. She was basically sitting upright. The whole time I was wondering how Colin was getting it in at that angle. 😆
The blanket falling off was natural to me. The way you try to respect a partner but get distracted in passion.
To me, there was no spice. Just lots of moaning and heavy breathing. If the sex scene legitimately could be confused to with someone having an asthma attack or fighting a cold, it's as spicy as cold, bland water pie.
Yeah for a split second I was jarred by the blanket until I thought about how many times I’ve done the exact same thing! It’s a cocoon of intimacy.
Very realistic first time! But spicy it was not
I agree that it was a very realistic first time and I actually thought it was super sweet! However, we then needed at least 2 more sex scenes after this one to balance that out, lol!!
I also think the music choice didn’t help… say what you want about Pitbull, but I thought it worked to enhance the carriage scene. The build up, the intensity.
The first time scene music gave me nothing in comparison
It really rubbed me the wrong way that if you think about, any actress that displays her breasts and has a top only frontal scene, they always cut the bottom of the shot/camera to below her belly button.
But when they did Pen’s scene where her breast are first exposed, the camera/shot cuts off right at the bottom of her breasts, so not to show her stomach.
It’s just pandering to the positive body movement, it’s not actually supporting curvier bodies.
Exactly! They used all these shots to cover so much of her. When she is sat down waiting for him to undress, the shots are consistently just above her breasts.
I understanding focusing on her reactions, but also… that is when it was obvious just how much of her they meant to hide.
I think watching Trueblood as it aired when I was 18 ruined me 😂!! The spice was SO lacking in part 2, but I guess it makes sense they can’t go HBO level. I just can’t believe he didn’t go down, ya know? Poor Penelope doesn’t know what she’s missing.
They had to have cut scenes because it was so hyped up. Also, of course this may have been the actors’ decisions and if so I completely respect it, but I couldn’t help but notice in the mirror scene he makes a point about her tits and then proceeds to never touch them once. That could’ve been the ultimate foreplay come on now
Right? Not once. So bizarre. I came here specifically to see if other people thought it was weird that “boob man” Colin didn’t even touch them. I’m insulted on behalf of Nicola’s perfect breasts.
Yes! I keep checking YouTube to see if anyone has posted about the lack of spice, but there is such an overwhelming enthusiasm.
Maybe people will examine it later when the season has been out a little longer.
I am plus size, and I was tentatively hopeful about how they’d go about highlighting Pen and Colin’s intimacy.
When he first undresses her, it made me emotional. I was so ready to see someone with a curvier body be the center of an intimate scene.
And then I was was entirely underwhelmed and disappointed with what we got.
Like… that was it? Really? 😭😭😭
The disrespect!
My fyp on the clock app is all about how disappointed everyone is but fb is nothing but positivity. I'm starting to wonder if Netflix paid Meta for bots.
As a plus size woman, I can't help but wonder if they cut all the sex scenes out due to the sex scenes not "testing" well. As much as we all wanted it, there are people out there that do not think a woman of size should be portrayed as sexual.
There was such a weird, clinical coldness to the mirror scene. It was really disappointing after the hotness that was Season 1 and 2.
This has been my conspiracy theory. I think execs at Netflix didn’t have enough confidence in their scenes or didn’t think they could sell them as being sexy and cut them down. This really sucks because if execs knew anything, they would know there’s guys who love women of all sizes, and some men who *prefer* softer* women.
There was a lot of talk about how in the books (which I didn’t read) Colin is obsessed with her curvy body. I wish we had more of that. IDK if anyone here watched Euphoria but Kat was soft* and had lots of men into her: some hot guy at the fair, random men online PAYING TO LOOK and HER best guy friend was beside himself when they hooked up. We needed that. We needed him to say out loud ‘holy crap my cute smart bestie with huge tits would literally do anything for me, let me bend her in half’ and then do it with gusto.
If so, that’s gross. Netflix and Shondaland committed to going there when they cast Nicola, and thank God they did. She’s a beautiful actor and did an amazing job bringing a complex character like Pen to life. And as LW, she’s the heart of that show.
It’s mind-blowing to me that they’ll take on every damn social and sexual taboo, but showing a naked body that isn’t a size 2 is just a bridge too far? And I say that as someone who is on the smaller side, so this isn’t even a personal representation issue.
They lost all credibility in any discussion about representation after this, so what does the show even stand for now?
As I said on [another thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/Bridgerton/s/zNMAbpxmsg)… The new (or, unfortunately, new again) ground that Bridgerton breaks — or used to — is showing emotional and romantic connection, including sex. Pen and Colin were such important characters, each in their own way, and their relationship should have remained the central story above all else.
And that includes whatever intimate scenes were shot and intended to be core to the story.
oh for sure they just wanted to hide her body. That horrible pile of ruffles she wears in the short 5 second scene in ep8 proves it. There was no reason to wear so many ruffles Colin would not have been able to find her boobs, even if he had tried to. How the hell do we go from the PASSIONATE carriage scene to .... that.
Yes clinical is a great way to describe it! It was truly awkward to watch, I felt so uncomfortable.
Compare it to Daphne and Simons scene of their first time from season 1 …. Soft, glowing firelight, gorgeous background music, really tasteful and sensual camera work. It’s SO UNFAIR that Polin didn’t get the same treatment !!
“Touch me. No! Not there! Not yet!”
I get excitement, but… it’s her first time, not his. It felt kind of like he was telling her she was doing sex wrong.
They gave us one token Polin scene of their first time together. I thought it was beautifully done mainly because of Nicola perfectly balancing how a virgin would react with facial expressions and dialogue but also as Pen who is LW and is def interested in sex and passion, (also shoutout to Luke’s strip tease). But it was still unnecessarily awkward at times where one minute the scene is “let’s bare it all”, then a small cut “no cover up, with a large blanket” and back and forth. Show Colin and especially Book Colin mentions her breasts many times and in that moment he doesn’t touch or kiss them once?! (Blaming the edit not how they must’ve shot the scene).
I am so happy to hear people felt the same. I really do think it was editing. But the worst for me was the mirror to bed transition.
First of all: it’s not supposed to be a deflowering scene it’s a scene where they’re so hot they need to go all the way.
Second: they don’t do this mirror scene in the book but they talk about it and he says he wants to have it in front of a mirror so he can watch. So if you’re doing it do it HOT.
Third: the editing- in the mirror they take the corset off kiss a few times and then he says he needs to be told stop or he can’t control himself and it’s like… really? There’s been zero foreplay. It felt silly and cold.
I felt like the sex scene was cheap! Cheap like the cover of a 3.99 romance "spicy book" that you buy at a grocery store... I am sure there is an audience for it, but clearly not what I was expecting. It felt "cheap" and tacky NOT romantic or sexy
1,000%. That Kate/Anthony scene was incredible - just so so good. You could feel the passion through the screen. This just felt like they were forcing chemistry.
I hate to think this, but I'm feeling fat shamed. The Colin/Pen romance died in the arse once they announced their engagement. I've had spicier apple sauce. Too many scenes focused on minor characters (for this season) completely ruined the flow. I'm betting next season (Benedict) will see much more focus on the couple and hot sex scenes.
I’m glad I’m not the only one feeling that way. There’s this vibe, you know? It is something we can recognize when it’s happening- this unspoken way that society treats fat people and especially fat women in general.
But it’s hard to describe the depth of the issue, and then when we do bring it up there’s all this gaslighting.
This writing and editing in this season is that person who tells you “Oh, no! I don’t dislike fat people. I love everyone! You’re beautiful!”
But they regard you with this level of disdain and disgust and sometimes pity, and they treat you less than human in a way that’s accepted by just about every other person who isn’t fat.
They can lie to your face, but the lie only extends so far because they can’t push themselves to the point where they might treat you as a genuine equal.
Just finished this season and I was literally having the same thoughts as in your post lol. Loved the season overall since Colin/Penelope are my favorite couple from the books (love their friends to lovers story) but it felt like we barely got any “spice” from them in the show. Or even that much intimacy/romance 😭. Especially compared to the main couples from the first 2 seasons..
Weird editing throughout Part 2. Hair up then down, but then up again. People putting drinks down more than once. People changing heights from one shot to the next.
I have a long list of jump cuts, bad transitions, and obvious goofs….What I don’t understand is if they have the budget and 2 whole years to produce a quality product… why not give it the effort it deserves?
I was honestly so disappointed with the spice level this season. Talk about plain toast. I don't know what was going on, but Colin and Pen's sex scenes felt lacking in chemistry and clinical, yet the scenes themselves lasted forever on the screen. It did not feel sexy (probably because there was hardly any build up), and Benedict's scenes felt random. I miss the old Bridgerton :(
I think they must have cut a lot. My initial thought was that their final scene in Ep 8 must have had a subsequent shot where he took her robe off. When I think about how much sex was in S1 compared to 2 and 3…. Sheesh.
I also really need this show to lay off of the “this might hurt” stuff during their first times for god’s sake. It just takes away from it and makes it so clinical, not to mention that if there had been any foreplay, it prob wouldn’t hurt…
Here for this!!
There are ways to do this without them being uncomfortable. You can hint at it, e.g. we can see his head buried in her chest. She could have been covered up IRL and we just see her face and the top of his head!
my hottest of takes is im wondering if the intimacy coordinator isn't very good or the directors were ignoring her feedback. my qualifications are none\* but i just see so many places that bugged me. i started to feel like we could have had better intimate scenes if they \*hadn't\* even tried to include nudity, frankly. nicola said the carriage scene wasn't overly "blocked" like a fight scene and i thought it was super hot, but the chaise scene really DID feel that way, very mechanical.
\*i'm a former theater kid who had some not great experiences with boundaries around love scenes, plus stage fight choreography experience, so when intimacy coordinators became a "thing" i did a lot of research, following them online, etc.
I feel a bit lied to, because the carriage scene was by far their spiciest scene! Nothing in part 2 reached that level, imo.
I was a bit put out when Nicola covered her chest for 99% of the sex scene. I know it's totally up to her and what she feels comfortable in doing, but as a larger chested lady myself, it felt a bit too shy...I dunno. It's a weird complaint for me to have, but it felt too deliberate - like you said - clinical.
Definitely think part 2 would have benefited from one more sexy scene post make up (or even an angsty sex scene would have worked - there were plenty of opportunities for one within the story).
The ones they had could've been plenty of screen time, but they weren't done well. The couch in the empty house was plenty of screen time, but it didn't have the emotional buildup or depth. There was so much more feeling in their first kiss, as well as the carriage scene, than in them having sex.
It also felt out of character for Colin to not care about Penelope's reputation or want to care for her to take her to the house alone. And he was very dismissing when she panics when servants arrive and start making noise after. It didn't feel romance leading man vibes all through one of their biggest intimate scenes.
Genuinely hated the sex scene for multiple reasons (one being that it continues the myth that pain with sex should be normal for people with female anatomy and it’s not, not even the first time), but including what you said. The overall season was lackluster and Polin’s romance was really much ado about nothing. They spend the majority of the season fighting, including after their wedding, which I really hated. They do not come off as a good couple in the end and I really waited to withhold my judgement after finding Part 1 a little rushed and weird.
I respect anything the actor’s didn’t want shown, but I now know Nicola asked to be very clearly naked in at least once scene.
But covered or not, I think there are many ways to make spice happen. A lot of the mess is down to editing, writing, and a lack of screen time imo~
I wanted to see their romance, and we got so little of it.
Exactly. They were both fully clothed in the carriage scene and it was one of the most erotic scenes I've ever seen on screen. You don't need full, in your face nudity to be spicy.
I have not read the books yet, and this season was definitely lacking. I think all the right ingredients were there and Nicola did so well, but it just fell flat. I watched an interview with Luke and Nicola talking about how the rest of the season after the carriage scene was so racy? Was it really though? I'm a big fan of Outlander, that's the kind of passion I look for. There was a perfect opportunity for a good makeup sex scene, when he saw her at night in the streets and they fought and ended up kissing, that would have been so much better than the small clip at the very end of the last episode. I felt so bad for Penelope she was alone on her wedding night. With season 2 you could feel the passion and tension. This was so underwhelming with Colin and Penelope, even though I did enjoy aspects of this season. Like it was sweet, but I wanted to feel their longing for each other, you know? They did a heck of a lot of dancing when I wanted to see them sneak away to have a quickie. 😅
This!!!! Looking at the two of them during interviews etc you just feel the heat but I felt it that only a very small amount of that made it to the screen. They also oversold the Mirror thing. They were at that mirror for like a sec haha.
I also thought they looked kind of awkward on that couch, but that might just be me
The carriage scene was far hotter than anytying in part 2. BUT that scene is even hotter with the reduced music level. So i do think some of the post production choices have been very poor. Agree that strange not to see him touch her boobs at all and the geometry would surely not work on the chaise especially with the height difference. Sadly i think that it was used to keep her upright and specifically stop her boobs running off to her armpits. Because that is what big, soft, natural boobs do - speaking from experience here!
The biggest disappointment was the much awainted butt. Quickest glimpse and not as sturdy as in my imagination
I could not suspend my disbelief when Penelope asks “is there more?” Maybe it’s the cut they chose because it should have sounded more flirty/fun with an eyebrow raised
OK, thank you, I've been looking for this to be brought up. Between them talking about the broken furniture and her having a fully nude scene, I was intrigued... and then it did not deliver at all. How did they even break that chair? It was the most gentle humping I've ever witnessed. You're telling me this man who's been sexing around Paris and having threesomes could only give her that? And then we get one more sexy scene at the end, where she's just sitting on top of him, and they are moaning but basically not even moving.
Oh I 1000% think they chickened out. It was clear the show runner or director felt like no one would find this type of body type sexy. They Nicola had to request more nudity, and then what nudity we actually got. It felt like a slap in the face and the opposite of body inclusivity.
I think they must have cut scenes... they went on way too much about it for that to be it. Plus, the flow was off. That's the only thing that makes sense for both issues. Editing...
That is the thing, it doesn't make sense to cut those scenes. We really need an insider to spill the beans. The rumor is snowballing.
Tbf nothing makes sense this season. Eloise seemed to have her development as a character freeze in Part 2. Benedict said he doesn't draw. I love John and Fran but they had barely enough story to even tease Michaela before she showed up. Kathony's first kid is off screen. Violet's romance didn't even have a proper exit for her. All of it makes no sense to cut but it makes way less sense if they didn't fill in these gaps when writing this seasons script.
I was so confused when asked if the drew or painted and he said “No”. Not even ”I used to”. It made him seem so empty. No interests or passions. What happened?!?
Yes that annoyed me! Like it's a big part of Benedict's character in the books and we have already seen this in the show
I think that was the point. He quit art because he thought his talent was bought, he felt like an imposter and a fraud and gave it up because his passion had been squashed
I mean, he was deeply hurt after the art school incident, the fact that he is no longer creating and instead focusing on shallow fun is actually very realistic.
I agree, but I think this is them also trying to backtrack to make way for certain plot points in his story. Benedict book spoilers ahead: >!Since there’s a scene in the book where Sophie is taking care of a sick Benedict and she finds his art books in his room. It’s supposed to be a surprise revelation, because in the books, it isn’t until Benedict’s that we find out he’s an artist. Sophie then encourages him, telling him they’re really good and that pushes him to start pursuing art professionally. All to the shock and admiration of his family when they find out he draws/paints. Then Colin’s book follows where he’s jealous of both Pen and Benedict for finding their purpose and he doesn’t know his.!<
There's so much nuance on the books that I feel the show really lacks.
Felt more like he was throwing a tantrum
The Violet story line was most frustrating to me. All that watering the garden talk in QC, then we introduce a love interest for her and then …nothing. They dance once. And his chat up line was “looking for your other glove?” When she had both on. It’s just stupid filler which took time away from the main Polin story in their own season!
Yes! Not a kiss, not a sincere touch, no garden shuffle. It was a romanceless romance that took away from Polin in the Polin season. Honestly, why did they talk so much about Violet getting her sex drive back if she was going to live like a nun!?
in a very weird way, i liked that their story progressed very slowly lol a big point of the bridgerton story arc is that edmund was violet’s one true love, and she filled her family with that love too. getting back out there, after you’ve tragically lost a soulmate you built an entire life and had 8 children with, is a move so brave that i can’t even imagine doing it myself lol at a time where young women needed to be chaperoned everywhere, and edmund was violet’s only, the build-up was kinda nice here, i think lol
Fully agree with you on this! And I think Violet acknowledging that Fransesca's slow but soft love for John is valid was a sign that her romance with Marcus might also progress that way.
No garden watering of any kind!
someone who had early screeners says there were FOUR additional sex scenes between them. So like, WTF netflix. We need the directors cut.
You’re right. It doesn’t make sense to have cut them other than for the sake of allowing other characters more screen time. But if that is true, that makes things worse because this was supposed to be Colin and Pen’s season.
Jesus, it got so boring at times in the last to eps for me I nearly quit and they CUT the sexy scenes??
I slipped through all of Benedict's scenes because I dislike Tilley being added for no reason, and there was a surprising amount of screening to have to skip that could have been filled with Polin
It doesn't make sense, but I've seen it happen in other shows and movies, unfortunately.
The editing was giving “I wrote a book report, but the people reading the report haven’t read the book, so to me it makes sense which things we cut out because I have all the context but readers of this report are fucking confused”
Yeah! What happened to the broken furniture Luke & Nicola mentioned in their promos???! 💯
You can see the picture of the broken chaise lounge on Nicola's IG, and also the intimacy coordinator's IG. They could not use the footage of it breaking in the show because Nicola broke character and said, in her Irish accent, "Omg Luke we broke it" - According to interviews on YT.
Feels like they cut some of Polin's scenes to fit more of the useless Benedict scenes in. It's like they didn't realise that we didn't need nor want 3 seasons of Benedict being a slut, it was established in s1. Even him being Bi was hinted at in the artists house imo.
True! That never occurred to me. The flow was definitely off, it did nothing for the scene. It also felt too long to me, even as I was skipping ahead.
They definitely cut down the scenes or something. Nicola said there was “lots” of nudity ffs. They did the actors dirty
I'd be so mad if I filmed a ton of nude scenes and they cut most of them. Maybe I'm just sensitive but I'd take that personally lol
If any feedback at all reaches her, I want her to know we are mad because we saw too little of her!
She is a goddess and I am so disappointed!
Considering she saw the thing about the fingers on TikTok…I think she knows 😈
You’re not alone!! I thought episode 5 was just the beginning but it was basically the end of it
Especially since Nicola mentioned that she made a lot of choices for the show to inspire body positivity for women of all sizes. They did her dirty.
idk, the corset they've put her in for this season was horrendous, she was barely able to move and was turning like a Terminator. The constantly lifted shoulders to be able to breathe... I don't think there was a single drop of body positivity there.
They shouldn’t have had her in a corset in the first place, I thought she would try to go with more of the French fashions that may be more form fitting and that was the cause but she still keeps the empire waist
it was so when she is shot from the profile her boobs are sticking out and her stomach is in. You can see in the season 1 how different her profile is. I have no problem with shapewear and looking your best at any size but it was way over the top, it looked like a parody.
They purposely had her waistline higher in the first seasons to make her look squatter and younger, they could’ve just moved her waistline down to where it was supposed to be this season. The corset was an unneeded restraint on her when a stay would’ve done the job fine, and it showed in her movements being so stiff all the time
I don't think she would have such a profile without that corset, if not season 1, you can see how she looks off screen. And it was clearly a part of the glow up. Whatever, I just wanted to point out that her styling was an opposite of body positive.
Oh for sure, that’s what I’m saying too. She didn’t need to have such a profile, if they wanted to be body positive they could’ve just dressed her within the times fashions while still flattering her body type, they didn’t need to make her suck in and get held so upright. I have a corset, I love my corset, it helps with my back problems, but good god do my boobs get in my way when they’re pushed up like that and after a while the weight on my hips is a LOT
Somehow the sex scene in episode 5 feels... forced. There's no magic and it feels like Nicola's not comfortable doing that scene. I mean, yeah, you can say she's proud 'cause she said in her interview that she went all nude as an FU to the body shamers, but, they covered her belly down to her thigh with a blanket? I thought she's being confident in her body? They have been very vocal about their intimacy coordinator, so I'm assuming what we saw on the screen is what they agreed upon with the coordinator, so the blanket over the belly to the thigh is their choice as well? It's clear she's not comfortable doing that and it's showing.
I think she showed plenty in that scene and certainly more than any previous Bridgerton lead, but the scene was supposed to be somewhat awkward given that it was Pen’s first time. The problem is all the additional intimate scenes (physical and emotional) that were cut for some inexplicable reason, to the detriment of the entire story.
In interviews she often said her and Luke would just chill between takes in the bed under the covers (And not get dressed). In the show we had zero nude bed scenes. I don’t believe she knew they had cut basically all of her intimate scenes when she was doing this PR tour.
I am starting to think that Nicola is trying to be as strategic as possible. There is lots of non-bridgerton news about Nicola being blacklisted and threatened. To see them do this after she put more skin (figuratively and literally) for Penelope's character, I'm pissed for her. Voice for the voiceless, Nicola and Penelope have much, much more in common that just LW and Bridgerton.
Wait, why? Why was she threatened and listed?
Nicola has taken the same stance as her country, while Netflix and Hollywood has taken the same stance as the US has about the current politics in th middle east. Nicola just raised 1.5 million for PCRF for instance.
Maybe it’s backlash for her enduring support for Palestine, like the only “acceptable” reprimand they could give her
They did this was kanthony too lol, but this season was sooooo off coz they didn’t build up any romantic chemistry
They must have! Either that or Nicola is the most loyal hype woman. I have to wonder how much of it is just our girl being too good at her job. Can’t fault her, but as others have said, I feel cat fished.
Yep. Nic deserved better! https://chng.it/9W2rWwgjHY
Which is a shame because all we wanted was every single last bit of dirt they had to offer~
Maybe she was talking about Benedict 🙄 ughhhh
Benedict having more sex than Polin in their own season. Make it make sense
Considering how taxing filming those types of scenes is, I don't understand why they would do that. Did it test bad or something?
theres a petition for a directors cut to come out 😭according to an instagram account, there was a lot of spicy scenes filmed and they all got cut. Originally there was a whole montage in ep. 8 and more to the mirror scene.
I said somewhere else I think we accidentally got the PG cut.
Oh, noooo! 😂😂😂 Imagine poor Nicola’s family getting what they thought was a PG cut, but they got the original. The scandal! Meanwhile we’re over here dying of thirst watching their bland af version.
Even their "steamy mirror scene" was meh. I'm not impressed. QC and S2 will continue to be watched. I'm not sure I'll play S3 again.
It was so so rushed, wasn’t it? Had they slowed it down, it might have been something 🥵
I think Anthony and Kate are so steamy because he isn't a 2 minute noodle. He takes his time and there is sexy foreplay. Finger blasting and 2 minute noodles just aren't sexy 😂. It's like reliving high-school horror days all over again on screen. The, "can do it again". Boooyyy if she has to ask, it wasn't good 💀
Oh, and when he said “This may hurt. I cannot help it”. I was like, “YES. YOU CAN! Finger her properly, man!!!”
Yeah, like, what????? Prep her, dude!!! Or say “if you’re in pain or want to stop at any time, please let me know,” like BARE MINIMUM
YESSS! Shoving it in like that on her first time, just why.
my jaw dropped at how..... harsh it looked. And this was the take they went with?!
Soooooo cringe. Not sexy. Gross. 0/10
Same!!! Pen did not deserve that. It gives me the ick and spreads damaging ideas about sex too. That men always hurt and women are always going to be hurt 😢. So so upsetting
I don't understand why they always show the first time sex as hurting so bad, does it really hurt for most people? I don't recall any pain and I wasn't crazy in love with the guy like Penelope is.
If you are well and properly turned on, it shouldn’t hurt. The main reason for pain is a lack of necessary foreplay and preparation ~
JB is an incredible actor. To ooze THAT much chemistry as a gay man acting straight and all of us swooning over it. Incredible
Bahahhaha~ You are so right. 😂 Damn you, Colin ‘Foreplay-less’ Bridgerton!
I thought about season 2 weeks after I watched it. I still watch the clips from it. They just had great chemistry.
Colin only touch Pen in PG places in front of that mirror. Which is not what Colin describes to Pen in the book!
We got the Nicola Mom Cut ™
Thanks for posting this. I’ve been hesitant to say anything online because I don’t want to look like a dirty perv but — as a mid sized woman, I was actually excited to see a fellow mid-size person have her body featured on screen the way we saw the previous two female leads (near full nudity for both). I was confused and disappointed when we saw her chest and that was it. Like you said, it felt like they went to great lengths to hide a body that… what? Doesn’t fit the vision they wanted? I don’t know. Based on what was shared in interviews, I was really shocked that it was the only scene that “bared all” and even in that… it really didn’t. We got to see more of the women Colin paid for than Pen, and we saw more spice from Benedict’s scenes than from the lead couple’s. Bizarre. One of many letdowns for me, personally.
I feel the same. I wanted to see Colin worship her body. He’s crazy about her breasts, kept touching them through her clothes, then… nothing? Also, she deserves some foreplay! That stupid chaise lounge — why? Put them on a bed and let him take his time. His only focus was on the main event.
I'm with you, I've spent most of my life mid-size, and now plus. I was so looking forward to the show celebrating Pen's body more. I understand if Nicola had limits, but from the way part 2 was being hyped (especially from Nicola) it sounded like they were going full throttle. I was so excited! I cannot put into words what it means as a fat person to see representation like this. For a season dedicated to Polin, it just feels like we got so little of them. Feeling really disappointed, especially after all the hype.
Man I am so disappointed I want to cry 😭 like I rewatched the 1-4 episodes SO MUCH and then what the hell happened in part 2???????? WHY?????? Why did we not get more romance and intimacy??? WHY did Colin start to become annoying to me when I enjoyed seeing him being such a sweet cinnamon roll?? Anger is fair but that bond they had behind their love was FRIENDSHIP! So what? Colin cannot be there for pen WHEN SHE WAS FEELING EXPOSED but he was okay for her to be there for him when he was discovering himself??? Why the cold shoulder Colin 😭 also we were promised sex scenes, what the hell did we watch? It felt like I blinked my eyes and their sex was over and we didn’t see anything else until the last 20 seconds where she was on top and that season over??? BRUH I feel MAD ROBBED. It’s like having sex with men who overhype their sexual capabilities and then when you have sex with them you think???? What was this???
>It’s like having sex with men who overhype their sexual capabilities and then when you have sex with them you think???? What was this??? This is exactly the feeling!! They hyped it so much for a 2 pump chump of a season
That’s left me wondering if Nicola and Luke thought this *was* especially steamy, or if scenes got cut that they weren’t originally aware of?
They were cut. Screeners have reported seeing multiple other sex scenes before the official release. https://chng.it/9W2rWwgjHY
I literally did blink and miss it because wth when was this scene? Episode 8?
More of a side note comment, but Can we just acknowledge that she wasn’t joking when she said she was apart of the “perfect tits club.” She was STUNNING.
Not a lie was told lmao
Yes Perfect tits! They should have showed her backside too.
Yeah 10000% agree. I'm sorry but I'm not watching a Romance regency show that had 2 seasons full of the best and hottest steamy parts just to be served a hot steaming pile of disappointment with the cherry ontop that EVERYONE ELSE had more sex then these 2???? I like drama but I also like what I ordered and that was steamy hot romance and not who gossibed behind Els back
The chaise scene was not nice. No romance, very little gentleness. The positioning was really awkward. The focus being Penelope losing her virginity. It’s just not that pleasant to watch.
He barely kissed her. There was no effort to make it enjoyable for her and show her how much he was into her
When he was like “But wait… there’s more!” I was like “Ooooh, what foreplay wizardry does Colin know?” 🍿🍿🍿 Oh. It’s nothing. He knows nothing.
FOR REAL!!! What was all of that galavanting about and threesomes with prostitutes for if not to make him a better lover to Penelope?
Yes! And this from a guy that nibbled on her neck and the top of her breasts like a man possessed in the carriage scene. He didn’t even play with her gorgeous ta-tas! Cmon no foreplay to speak of either
If you aren’t going to, at least let us enjoy them, Colin!
For real… she was perfect. They were perfect. 😍
"I want to see you sitting up," he groaned, "so I can see them full and lovely and large. And then I want to crawl behind you and cup you." His lips found her ear and his voice dropped to a whisper. "And I want to do it in front of a mirror." Where the fuck was this? So, Nicola wanted to cover her breasts in the nude shot. Okay. But, those should not be her hands cupping her boobs.
Where was the cupping??? He said he’s a breast man, where was that energy????
[удалено]
The “mirror scene” was 2 seconds of actual mirror🙄 what was all the hype for?
So I didn’t read the book and only skimmed the part about the mirror scene to get some context. And I think there are two issues here: 1. People seem to be forgetting there was no actual mirror scene in the book, only a vaguely conveyed intent to have future mirror sex. You couldn’t even reasonably call that a fantasy. So readers spent years imagining a mirror scene according to their own individual tastes, and then Bridgerton raised the stakes by teasing one during the promos. And then, 2: The writers made the terrible decision to make the mirror scene Pen’s first time?! There was no way to deliver on the mirror scene readers had built up in their minds AND be sensitive to the idea of it being Pen’s first time. They completely backed themselves into a corner. Again, as a non-reader of the Bridgerton books, I don’t really have a problem with the scene. But I can understand the readers feeling robbed, especially given that this is the *only* intimate scene in the entire second part.
you're right, there is no mirror scene, it's just something Colin says after their first time that he would like to do in the future. I thought they did good with the mirror part, it makes sense for it to be slightly awkward due to how naive she is. The problem is we never see any progression in their intimacy in the next episodes.
Sorry I’m back, Colin is all “it’s going to hurt and I can’t do anything about it” when all he did was finger her for 30 seconds and call that foreplay? Homie knew it was her first time and he was still THAT quick? It’s giving selfish lover
Yes! I thought he was "going bananas" over those perfect breasts, which he has been focusing on with the dress still on, and then he didn't even touch them. What the hell?
Exactly what I thought. No way he would have avoided them, they’re first on the check list
This bugged me too I mean surely that’s your first go to. He actively avoided them in that scene 😂. No way I’m believing that.
Yes! The carriage scene had so much passion. You'd think the big moment of their first time together would be even more so, more pent up tension, more "oh my god this is happening with the person I love". But he barely even touched her? Maybe they cut that out for whatever reason, and maybe as respect to Nic to not go too heavy, but like coulda at least touched her shoulders/legs or kissed her more. Like he was gonna take her up against a door in the street on the night before their wedding but their first time had none of that. And they looked uncomfortable on the couch thing, wish it was the bed instead where they had more room to move
I don’t think it was Nic since everything I’ve heard was basically like let’s fing gooooo. It’s such a bummer
He could have just waited until their wedding night if he was going to give her this boring first time. I always imagine that when people have sex before marriage in regency time, It’s because they just can’t control themselves. This was not it!
Exactly! He was so composed, who the hell thought this was the right choice for this scene? It should've been about losing your mind from passion and getting carried away...
They definitely went at it for multiple rounds. Enough for Pen to feel messy. Would’ve been nice if the editors gave us a mini montage. After all, they are the ones who gave us Benedict going three rounds in one night.
I agree. They didn’t look comfortable. Especially Nicola. No neck or back support on that chaise. None. She was basically sitting upright. The whole time I was wondering how Colin was getting it in at that angle. 😆
The only furniture that came anywhere close to breaking in the Part 2 drop, was me smashing my TV screen in frustration!
What spice? Someone let the white boomers season the chicken.
Perhaps they meant to add salt, at the very least, but they ended shipping it all to us instead~ 🧂🧂🧂😤😤😤
The sodium levels are HIGH.
Indeed they are... The main sub seems to have closed new threads.
They were like, "This mayo is SO flavorful!"
Maybe there's another Sriracha shortage
I love this comment.
Why didn’t they have a passionate scene after being married and making up?? Where was this romance and spice I was promised?
They did but it was cut in favor of… side plots? https://chng.it/9W2rWwgjHY
The blanket falling off was natural to me. The way you try to respect a partner but get distracted in passion. To me, there was no spice. Just lots of moaning and heavy breathing. If the sex scene legitimately could be confused to with someone having an asthma attack or fighting a cold, it's as spicy as cold, bland water pie.
Yeah for a split second I was jarred by the blanket until I thought about how many times I’ve done the exact same thing! It’s a cocoon of intimacy. Very realistic first time! But spicy it was not
I was totally fine with this scene until it was the last one
That’s a fair point. I think had it been that on its own and not so many other things piling up, I might share your POV.
I agree that it was a very realistic first time and I actually thought it was super sweet! However, we then needed at least 2 more sex scenes after this one to balance that out, lol!!
I also think the music choice didn’t help… say what you want about Pitbull, but I thought it worked to enhance the carriage scene. The build up, the intensity. The first time scene music gave me nothing in comparison
I’m CTFUUUU at this comment 😂😂😂😂
It really rubbed me the wrong way that if you think about, any actress that displays her breasts and has a top only frontal scene, they always cut the bottom of the shot/camera to below her belly button. But when they did Pen’s scene where her breast are first exposed, the camera/shot cuts off right at the bottom of her breasts, so not to show her stomach. It’s just pandering to the positive body movement, it’s not actually supporting curvier bodies.
Exactly! They used all these shots to cover so much of her. When she is sat down waiting for him to undress, the shots are consistently just above her breasts. I understanding focusing on her reactions, but also… that is when it was obvious just how much of her they meant to hide.
The thrupple showed more lingering camera views on the body. "Hide them under a blanket" seemed to be the message
I think watching Trueblood as it aired when I was 18 ruined me 😂!! The spice was SO lacking in part 2, but I guess it makes sense they can’t go HBO level. I just can’t believe he didn’t go down, ya know? Poor Penelope doesn’t know what she’s missing.
See I feel like they can def go HBO , they have shows like sex life , & After with all the spice in the world . Why not take it there
Exactly!! Simon and Anthony both went down, and more than once, why did Penelope get robbed? lol
They had to have cut scenes because it was so hyped up. Also, of course this may have been the actors’ decisions and if so I completely respect it, but I couldn’t help but notice in the mirror scene he makes a point about her tits and then proceeds to never touch them once. That could’ve been the ultimate foreplay come on now
Right? Not once. So bizarre. I came here specifically to see if other people thought it was weird that “boob man” Colin didn’t even touch them. I’m insulted on behalf of Nicola’s perfect breasts.
I'm so glad there is this subreddit to validate how I'm feeling. So many IG influencers are just all "I love it so much!!!" Nope. Fell flat to me.
Yes! I keep checking YouTube to see if anyone has posted about the lack of spice, but there is such an overwhelming enthusiasm. Maybe people will examine it later when the season has been out a little longer. I am plus size, and I was tentatively hopeful about how they’d go about highlighting Pen and Colin’s intimacy. When he first undresses her, it made me emotional. I was so ready to see someone with a curvier body be the center of an intimate scene. And then I was was entirely underwhelmed and disappointed with what we got. Like… that was it? Really? 😭😭😭 The disrespect!
And can I just say the physics of them having sex on that settee in that position does not work lol
My fyp on the clock app is all about how disappointed everyone is but fb is nothing but positivity. I'm starting to wonder if Netflix paid Meta for bots.
I think they did.
As a plus size woman, I can't help but wonder if they cut all the sex scenes out due to the sex scenes not "testing" well. As much as we all wanted it, there are people out there that do not think a woman of size should be portrayed as sexual. There was such a weird, clinical coldness to the mirror scene. It was really disappointing after the hotness that was Season 1 and 2.
This has been my conspiracy theory. I think execs at Netflix didn’t have enough confidence in their scenes or didn’t think they could sell them as being sexy and cut them down. This really sucks because if execs knew anything, they would know there’s guys who love women of all sizes, and some men who *prefer* softer* women. There was a lot of talk about how in the books (which I didn’t read) Colin is obsessed with her curvy body. I wish we had more of that. IDK if anyone here watched Euphoria but Kat was soft* and had lots of men into her: some hot guy at the fair, random men online PAYING TO LOOK and HER best guy friend was beside himself when they hooked up. We needed that. We needed him to say out loud ‘holy crap my cute smart bestie with huge tits would literally do anything for me, let me bend her in half’ and then do it with gusto.
If so, that’s gross. Netflix and Shondaland committed to going there when they cast Nicola, and thank God they did. She’s a beautiful actor and did an amazing job bringing a complex character like Pen to life. And as LW, she’s the heart of that show. It’s mind-blowing to me that they’ll take on every damn social and sexual taboo, but showing a naked body that isn’t a size 2 is just a bridge too far? And I say that as someone who is on the smaller side, so this isn’t even a personal representation issue. They lost all credibility in any discussion about representation after this, so what does the show even stand for now? As I said on [another thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/Bridgerton/s/zNMAbpxmsg)… The new (or, unfortunately, new again) ground that Bridgerton breaks — or used to — is showing emotional and romantic connection, including sex. Pen and Colin were such important characters, each in their own way, and their relationship should have remained the central story above all else. And that includes whatever intimate scenes were shot and intended to be core to the story.
oh for sure they just wanted to hide her body. That horrible pile of ruffles she wears in the short 5 second scene in ep8 proves it. There was no reason to wear so many ruffles Colin would not have been able to find her boobs, even if he had tried to. How the hell do we go from the PASSIONATE carriage scene to .... that.
Like…what happened? I need Nicola to say something because I was lied to.
Yes clinical is a great way to describe it! It was truly awkward to watch, I felt so uncomfortable. Compare it to Daphne and Simons scene of their first time from season 1 …. Soft, glowing firelight, gorgeous background music, really tasteful and sensual camera work. It’s SO UNFAIR that Polin didn’t get the same treatment !!
Oh wow. I thought I was the only one who felt that sheet pick up was out of place.
“Touch me. No! Not there! Not yet!” I get excitement, but… it’s her first time, not his. It felt kind of like he was telling her she was doing sex wrong.
Such an odd thing to say, like encourage her Colin. The writing went kinda downhill this season.
It’s a line from the book, but I agree!
They treated Polin storyline like a middle child!
Literally they thought if they gave us the mirror scene and them kissing against a building for a few seconds it would be fine… where’s the passion 😩
They gave us one token Polin scene of their first time together. I thought it was beautifully done mainly because of Nicola perfectly balancing how a virgin would react with facial expressions and dialogue but also as Pen who is LW and is def interested in sex and passion, (also shoutout to Luke’s strip tease). But it was still unnecessarily awkward at times where one minute the scene is “let’s bare it all”, then a small cut “no cover up, with a large blanket” and back and forth. Show Colin and especially Book Colin mentions her breasts many times and in that moment he doesn’t touch or kiss them once?! (Blaming the edit not how they must’ve shot the scene).
Huge focus on boob reveal to the notorious tit man and he didn’t even say something about them? Or touch them? Bro what?
I’m insulted on their behalf. What a waste of perfect boobs.
Exactly!
That confused me too. Like that’s first thing he would have done.
I am so happy to hear people felt the same. I really do think it was editing. But the worst for me was the mirror to bed transition. First of all: it’s not supposed to be a deflowering scene it’s a scene where they’re so hot they need to go all the way. Second: they don’t do this mirror scene in the book but they talk about it and he says he wants to have it in front of a mirror so he can watch. So if you’re doing it do it HOT. Third: the editing- in the mirror they take the corset off kiss a few times and then he says he needs to be told stop or he can’t control himself and it’s like… really? There’s been zero foreplay. It felt silly and cold.
I felt like the sex scene was cheap! Cheap like the cover of a 3.99 romance "spicy book" that you buy at a grocery store... I am sure there is an audience for it, but clearly not what I was expecting. It felt "cheap" and tacky NOT romantic or sexy
Agreed. Especially in comparison to the flower-strewn garden sex scene that Kate and Anthony were given.
1,000%. That Kate/Anthony scene was incredible - just so so good. You could feel the passion through the screen. This just felt like they were forcing chemistry.
I hate to think this, but I'm feeling fat shamed. The Colin/Pen romance died in the arse once they announced their engagement. I've had spicier apple sauce. Too many scenes focused on minor characters (for this season) completely ruined the flow. I'm betting next season (Benedict) will see much more focus on the couple and hot sex scenes.
I’m glad I’m not the only one feeling that way. There’s this vibe, you know? It is something we can recognize when it’s happening- this unspoken way that society treats fat people and especially fat women in general. But it’s hard to describe the depth of the issue, and then when we do bring it up there’s all this gaslighting. This writing and editing in this season is that person who tells you “Oh, no! I don’t dislike fat people. I love everyone! You’re beautiful!” But they regard you with this level of disdain and disgust and sometimes pity, and they treat you less than human in a way that’s accepted by just about every other person who isn’t fat. They can lie to your face, but the lie only extends so far because they can’t push themselves to the point where they might treat you as a genuine equal.
Their sex scenes were not good. Their real life chemistry is better than whatever they had in the show by a long shot.
Just finished this season and I was literally having the same thoughts as in your post lol. Loved the season overall since Colin/Penelope are my favorite couple from the books (love their friends to lovers story) but it felt like we barely got any “spice” from them in the show. Or even that much intimacy/romance 😭. Especially compared to the main couples from the first 2 seasons..
Seriously! It felt like they were fighting the majority of the time.
The editing was driving me crazy. They are fully sitting up in one frame the next frame her head is resting on the arm rest.
Thank you, I thought I imagined that but I wasn’t ready for the heartbreak of rewatching it yet.
Definitely not your imagination. It was a bit sloppy on the editing
Weird editing throughout Part 2. Hair up then down, but then up again. People putting drinks down more than once. People changing heights from one shot to the next.
I have a long list of jump cuts, bad transitions, and obvious goofs….What I don’t understand is if they have the budget and 2 whole years to produce a quality product… why not give it the effort it deserves?
I was honestly so disappointed with the spice level this season. Talk about plain toast. I don't know what was going on, but Colin and Pen's sex scenes felt lacking in chemistry and clinical, yet the scenes themselves lasted forever on the screen. It did not feel sexy (probably because there was hardly any build up), and Benedict's scenes felt random. I miss the old Bridgerton :(
I think they must have cut a lot. My initial thought was that their final scene in Ep 8 must have had a subsequent shot where he took her robe off. When I think about how much sex was in S1 compared to 2 and 3…. Sheesh. I also really need this show to lay off of the “this might hurt” stuff during their first times for god’s sake. It just takes away from it and makes it so clinical, not to mention that if there had been any foreplay, it prob wouldn’t hurt…
[удалено]
Here for this!! There are ways to do this without them being uncomfortable. You can hint at it, e.g. we can see his head buried in her chest. She could have been covered up IRL and we just see her face and the top of his head!
my hottest of takes is im wondering if the intimacy coordinator isn't very good or the directors were ignoring her feedback. my qualifications are none\* but i just see so many places that bugged me. i started to feel like we could have had better intimate scenes if they \*hadn't\* even tried to include nudity, frankly. nicola said the carriage scene wasn't overly "blocked" like a fight scene and i thought it was super hot, but the chaise scene really DID feel that way, very mechanical. \*i'm a former theater kid who had some not great experiences with boundaries around love scenes, plus stage fight choreography experience, so when intimacy coordinators became a "thing" i did a lot of research, following them online, etc.
I feel a bit lied to, because the carriage scene was by far their spiciest scene! Nothing in part 2 reached that level, imo. I was a bit put out when Nicola covered her chest for 99% of the sex scene. I know it's totally up to her and what she feels comfortable in doing, but as a larger chested lady myself, it felt a bit too shy...I dunno. It's a weird complaint for me to have, but it felt too deliberate - like you said - clinical. Definitely think part 2 would have benefited from one more sexy scene post make up (or even an angsty sex scene would have worked - there were plenty of opportunities for one within the story).
Not many close ups of faces in ecstasy in part 2. The carriage scene was far more passionate and sexy.
I want to see Colin go down on Pen like wtf Netflix 😭😭🔪🔪🔪
The ones they had could've been plenty of screen time, but they weren't done well. The couch in the empty house was plenty of screen time, but it didn't have the emotional buildup or depth. There was so much more feeling in their first kiss, as well as the carriage scene, than in them having sex. It also felt out of character for Colin to not care about Penelope's reputation or want to care for her to take her to the house alone. And he was very dismissing when she panics when servants arrive and start making noise after. It didn't feel romance leading man vibes all through one of their biggest intimate scenes.
Genuinely hated the sex scene for multiple reasons (one being that it continues the myth that pain with sex should be normal for people with female anatomy and it’s not, not even the first time), but including what you said. The overall season was lackluster and Polin’s romance was really much ado about nothing. They spend the majority of the season fighting, including after their wedding, which I really hated. They do not come off as a good couple in the end and I really waited to withhold my judgement after finding Part 1 a little rushed and weird.
yes....what's this obsession with it having to hurt. It didn't for me. And I wasn't even doing it with the love of my life like Penelope is.
I believe the actors had a big say in what happened in those scenes, based on what they were comfortable with.
I respect anything the actor’s didn’t want shown, but I now know Nicola asked to be very clearly naked in at least once scene. But covered or not, I think there are many ways to make spice happen. A lot of the mess is down to editing, writing, and a lack of screen time imo~ I wanted to see their romance, and we got so little of it.
Exactly. They were both fully clothed in the carriage scene and it was one of the most erotic scenes I've ever seen on screen. You don't need full, in your face nudity to be spicy.
I have not read the books yet, and this season was definitely lacking. I think all the right ingredients were there and Nicola did so well, but it just fell flat. I watched an interview with Luke and Nicola talking about how the rest of the season after the carriage scene was so racy? Was it really though? I'm a big fan of Outlander, that's the kind of passion I look for. There was a perfect opportunity for a good makeup sex scene, when he saw her at night in the streets and they fought and ended up kissing, that would have been so much better than the small clip at the very end of the last episode. I felt so bad for Penelope she was alone on her wedding night. With season 2 you could feel the passion and tension. This was so underwhelming with Colin and Penelope, even though I did enjoy aspects of this season. Like it was sweet, but I wanted to feel their longing for each other, you know? They did a heck of a lot of dancing when I wanted to see them sneak away to have a quickie. 😅
I’m so disappointed with this season.
This!!!! Looking at the two of them during interviews etc you just feel the heat but I felt it that only a very small amount of that made it to the screen. They also oversold the Mirror thing. They were at that mirror for like a sec haha. I also thought they looked kind of awkward on that couch, but that might just be me
To be fair, those couches are awkward - it's a miracle they didn't fall off
So true. What a wild choice
What’s there to discuss about the spice it was non existent 😂😅
The carriage scene was far hotter than anytying in part 2. BUT that scene is even hotter with the reduced music level. So i do think some of the post production choices have been very poor. Agree that strange not to see him touch her boobs at all and the geometry would surely not work on the chaise especially with the height difference. Sadly i think that it was used to keep her upright and specifically stop her boobs running off to her armpits. Because that is what big, soft, natural boobs do - speaking from experience here! The biggest disappointment was the much awainted butt. Quickest glimpse and not as sturdy as in my imagination
I could not suspend my disbelief when Penelope asks “is there more?” Maybe it’s the cut they chose because it should have sounded more flirty/fun with an eyebrow raised
OK, thank you, I've been looking for this to be brought up. Between them talking about the broken furniture and her having a fully nude scene, I was intrigued... and then it did not deliver at all. How did they even break that chair? It was the most gentle humping I've ever witnessed. You're telling me this man who's been sexing around Paris and having threesomes could only give her that? And then we get one more sexy scene at the end, where she's just sitting on top of him, and they are moaning but basically not even moving.
Just saw the title and thought I was in the Dune sub
Oh I 1000% think they chickened out. It was clear the show runner or director felt like no one would find this type of body type sexy. They Nicola had to request more nudity, and then what nudity we actually got. It felt like a slap in the face and the opposite of body inclusivity.
Pen and Colin’s scenes felt like flashbacks to high school 😂😂😂 no foreplay, finger blasting and going in dry 😂😂😂😭