On Thursday, May 4th, 2023, Netflix released Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, a historical drama limited series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series is a prequel spin-off of the Netflix series Bridgerton.

Queen Charlotte: A Bridergton Story is a prequel and spinoff to the hit of the two previous seasons of Bridgerton, Netflix’s series full of intense romance, matchmaking, and carnal pursuits among England’s Regency-era aristocracy. The show, also from creator Shonda Rhimes, builds on the charm of season one of Bridgerton and compensates for season two lackluster performance with a terrific cast, a new storyline, and most significantly, additional complexity and depth.

True sacrifice and hardship are at the heart of Charlotte’s love story and rise to power in a narrative that still values fun. The prologue alternates between two timelines: one, in the past, follows the love story of a young Queen Charlotte and a young King George III. The second timeline shows the present-day Queen Charlotte consulting her friends Lady Danbury and Violet Bridgerton about problems occurring in society. The timeline in the past covers how Charlotte was matched with the youthful King George III (Corey Mylchreest). India Ria Amarteifio plays a younger version of the Queen, who is a 17  year old German princess.

The show discusses how their marriage was a political marriage, yet there were reservations about a mixed-race marriage in this volume of the Bridgerton tale. However, because the union was critical to Britain’s existence, they proceed with “The Great Experiment” (a racial merger). On the contrary, the story of George’s illness is an unusually hefty lift for the series itself, which is a blend of humor and melodrama.

Queen Charlotte ends up being more than just a story about an often terrible mental condition, but rather a story that acknowledges the cruel treatments that anyone in King George’s position would’ve expected at the time, in a commendable performance to take the subject matter seriously. It’s fair to call these scenes agony, which is challenging to combine with the voice of Julie Andrews and the heavenly passages that make up part of this world.

It is no surprise that fans’ feedback on this whimsical and romantic drama is all highly rated, with mostly positive things about how much they enjoyed watching the show, like Gospel Vibez, who said, “What a multi-dimensional love story. Queen Charlotte and King George also tell the Queen’s Man Brimsley and the Kings Man love story. I love this screenplay’s chapter addition. It gave an in-depth insight into what many women, whether rich or poor, endure to make a family successful.” Megan, another fan who had great things to say about the show, said, “I absolutely loved Bridgerton despite not really enjoying shows and movies from this time period. I’m so glad I ended up giving it a try. One of my favorite characters in the show is Queen Charlotte. So when I saw that she had her own show, I was so excited. It did not disappoint. The casting is impeccable. India Amarteifio is spot-on as the queen’s younger self. The mannerisms are on point. The same goes for young Violet, Agatha, and Brimsley.”