Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story

Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story delivers a beautiful, self-contained love story that champions relationships both romantic and platonic built on a foundation of trust and connection, while never forgetting to keep the central romance — the diamond of this standalone season — at the heart where it belongs.

A rare gem among the prequel set. ... Queen Charlotte is not just superficially delightful, but indeed, notably attentive to the logic of its narrative world. It is, one nearly quails to suggest, quite thoughtful about its position as the wellspring of this imaginative yarn. So far from empty nothingness, Queen Charlotte makes an effort to embrace precisely those qualities its fatuous forebears so fervently sought to avoid.

Without giving too much away, this “Bridgerton” chapter mines richer, riskier material, a direction that series creator Shonda Rimes navigates with skill, particularly her writing on the final episode.

Whether “Queen Charlotte” is trafficking in frothy gossip or heavy dramatics, it’s never less than enthralling.

It feels strange to root for a brand extension, but young Queen Charlotte's is a universe worth exploring further.

There’s a distinct Shonda-ness to the dialogue, which recalls “Scandal” ’s snippy banter and florid, time-stopping monologues, as well as that series’ obsession with optics. Who needs the glowing fairy lights of “Bridgerton” when this more world-weary spectacle boasts so many confident fingerprints? ... Pull up a chair.

The prequel is the best “Bridgerton” yet.

It is so well acted and directed. In fact, and this may not be a popular view, I preferred the prequel to the original show.

This sexy, sumptuous prequel to the Regency hit blends Shondaland fantasy with the fact-based story of how young, mixed-race Charlotte (a stellar India Amarteifio) meets and marries hottie King George III (Corey Mylchreest) only to learn his shocking secrets.

Obviously, if you’re not a fan of “Bridgerton,” you have no business here. “Queen Charlotte” has the same gorgeous gardens, the same string covers of pop songs, the same buoyant tone, and the same central theme: the search for love. It’s a spinoff, yes, but it’s a good one.

The series is a rare exception to the rule of prequels (generally substantially worse than the originals and undermining all previous endeavours) and will hopefully set many of its younger stars on the road to success. Amarteifio does especially well.

With classical renditions of pop hits aplenty and no shortage of steamy bedroom romps, Queen Charlotte delivers everything a Bridgerton fan could want, with touches of social commentary that feel refreshing, rather than preachy.

"Queen Charlotte" is fun and bawdy, offering more than the sometimes-questionable pleasures of “Bridgerton” seasons past. It gives us more than gossip (the Lady Whistledown voiceover is there still, courtesy of Julie Andrews) and delivers on the “great love story” it promised between Queen Charlotte and King Charles.

Inquiring minds will be appeased by the chemistry between Amarteifio and Mylchreest, built through a more interesting conflict than the typical will-they-won’t-they. ... In its clear understanding of what makes “Bridgerton” work, and where it can improve, “Queen Charlotte” feels organic rather than cynical.

Toss in the requisite jewel-encrusted silks, Vitamin String Quartet pop covers and a healthy sense of humor about the sillier extravagances of the ruling class, and Queen Charlotte manages to replicate the same giddy pleasures of its predecessor. And it does all this without leaning on the illusion of everlasting matrimonial bliss.

It's taken its time to be more thoughtful, considered, relatable and topical, delivering a delightful series in the process.

Much of it is frivolous fun with a Beyoncé soundtrack, but the show has an unexpected emotional pull. This monarch is “Mad” King George, and his mental illness is explored in sympathetic terms. The final scene had me in tears.

The results improve on the original.

"Charlotte" more than rises to the occasion. It's got the glitz, the gorgeous people and the gleefully seductive looks.

She [Shonda Rhimes] has written a story that uncannily echoes the current-day cruelties and outrages of the British Royals, a subtext valentine to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. She writes libidinous episodes that manage to make monogamy seem adorable. She makes us cry in the end.

I’m pleased and surprised to report that while “Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story” isn’t perfect, the limited spinoff premiering Thursday on Netflix is more interesting — and less derivative — than I expected.

Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story finds room to tell more complex tales of courtship, marriage, and forbidden love than the core series does. It’s the soapier aspect of Queen Charlotte that I found the most interesting, even if it took a while for all the pieces of the drama to fall into place.

A cleverly constructed prequel to producer Shonda Rhimes’ media darling. Reaching back to the origins of supporting players, the limited series offers additional insight to how this sumptuous society came to be, while showcasing its more mature denizens.

It’s an improvement on the second series: Bridgerton reaching out a bejewelled, entitled hand to grasp its mojo back. Still, what next?

The fate of Charlotte and George, as most know, has its poignant qualities, but if the protracted scenes of eating, dressing, staring at the moon and rutting in the bedrooms had been rendered a bit more concisely, "Queen Charlotte" would not seem quite as overlong as its six episodes do.

If you watched Bridgerton for the steamy scenes, Queen Charlotte will likely satisfy that desire, if only in its first three episodes. But those yearning for a more sweeping romance will be disappointed by this spinoff. Queen Charlotte’s most impressive feat is giving a stronger definition to an eccentric character from the main series.

Bridgerton fans will likely find Queen Charlotte breezy, sexy fun, but any attempt to go deeper sadly comes up short.

The issues of race and inheritance only bog the series down with every mention — giving few answers and leaving in their wake massive questions about Bridgerton’s world. With only six episodes, there’s still plenty of glitz and glam that longtime Bridgerton fans will cling to. But by centering serious issues without handling any of them deftly, Queen Charlotte’s final result paints a pretty picture, just not one you want to look at for too long.