Last Wednesday we were surprised by Netflix UK dropping a short clip of a scene with Kate and Anthony, as opposed to the expected Polin content. The clip they dropped was a scene at a Ball, which I believe to be Lady Danbury's Ball. As this scene is a ball, and contains interactions outside of Kate and Anthony there is a lot to unpack, so for this short breakdown I won't go into detail about the looks of each of the characters.
Setting:
Beginning with the setting, as I said above I believe this is Lady Danbury's ball based on the wall colours, and Penelope's dress, placing this scene in the first episode, most likely around the middle of the episode.
The ball's theme appears to be that of the four seasons, this works well in this scene with where we see the positioning of some of the characters. And whilst we see representations for winter and summer in the ball's decorations, this clip does appear to be overwhelmingly focused on Autumn, and many of the costumes appear to have a more autumnal theme, especially Kate's, which I think really works if this social season has been postponed to Autumn as I discussed here.
Francesca:
Beyond a couple of stills, this is the first real look we get of Francesca, and whilst it is short it does give us some insight into who she is. We know, from interviews with Hannah Dodd that that Francesca is the most introverted of the Bridgerton children and will find the social season difficult, but despite this introversion we have seen in previous seasons, that she is open with her family, if quieter than her siblings. This is highlighted in her interaction with Anthony, where she speaks to him in a determined and confident tone, even if the volume is quiet. Her introverted nature is not rooted in timidity.
Francesca has walked from a group of gentlemen towards Anthony, and it is telling she went to Anthony rather than her mother who was also present, as this indicates a closeness between them, but also Francesca's acceptance of his authority within the family. As Francesca makes her way to Anthony she looks upset and a little dejected. This contrasts with her tone (as discussed above) when talking with Anthony where she has a strong, determined and confident tone. Whilst Francesca may not be naturally confident in the social setting, she is confident in who she is within her family, and in dealing with her siblings.
After the interaction with Anthony we see Francesca move away to sit on her own on the side of the ballroom, and as she sits she turns away from the dance floor and looks down, physically (and mentally) removing herself from what is happening at the ball. This will be her first ball, and unlike Daphne and Eloise, she appears to be overwhelmed with the social side of the ball, and perhaps unsure how to proceed.
Anthony:
This scene gives us the culmination of two seasons of growth for Anthony. We see that he has been working on his relationships with his siblings to be less controlling and less remote, but we still see his desire to protect his sister as he appears to physically and mentally restrain himself from going to the gentlemen who appear to have upset Francesca. We also see that Anthony, in contrast to season 1, is letting Francesca set her boundaries and make her decisions, he lets her take a moment, and he doesn't hover or stay with her. This shows growth within Anthony as a character that has come from making those mistakes in season 1 and season 2, but having learned from them to adjust his behaviour.
We also see Anthony happy in his marriage, the way he continues to be drawn to her and when she looks at him he goes to her, this keeps in with the themes in season 2 of Kate and Anthony being magnets who are drawn to each other naturally.
Kate:
The first look at Kate in this clip shows her in a private moment with Violet, we see her and Violet holding hands, and talking, indicating a close relationship between the two Viscountesses, however, we see that Kate, like Anthony, is happy in her marriage, as she smiles with happiness and joy when she catches Anthony's eye. We see that Kate looks happy with her husband, and in her place in the family that she is now part of, she is loved as part of a loving family, and she is thriving in that environment.
Whilst I won't go into detail about Kate's look, I will note that we do not see her wearing a wedding ring, but rather gold bracelets that look to be the ones seen under her sleeve in the leaked filming pictures from August 2022. I like that the show have Kate wearing the gold bracelets, and I have seen many young South Asian women online expressing pleasure at seeing Kate's jewellery leaning into her South Asian background.
Kate and Anthony:
I am going to very quickly look at the dynamic between these two as a unit, because even though they are separate characters we know from interviews that they will also be a team and working together.
The first thing to notice, is that we are seeing Kate and Anthony still being drawn to each other, finding each other from across the room, though, unlike in season 2, this time they look to each other with happiness and love. The second thing to notice is the way Anthony so easily and happily compliments Kate (calling her 'my beautiful wife'), and in this interaction I think we get two very lovely reactions from Kate, the first is an almost loving exasperation as if this is something he says a lot and she is playfully pretending to be exasperated with him, and the second is how she accepts the compliment as if (again) it is something that is normal, and this really contrasts with season 2 when she was not on the receiving end of many compliments.
The dance they share is definitely tonally different to their two ball dances in season 2, however, what we see is the happiness and joy we saw a hint of in the dance at the Harmony ball in season 2, though this time they don't need to hide their happiness in each other's company, contrasting with season 2. Previously they have had to hide their feelings, and their affection, most noticeably in their last dance in season 2, where we saw their longing as they leaned towards each other as if to steal a kiss. Here they are open and public with their love, and their PDA (public displays of affection), which they have taken from out of the family circle in the season 2 epilogue, and are displaying it for all of the Ton, demonstrated with their quick kiss during the dance. Finally, what we see with this dance is a call back to their final dance in season 2 when Anthony said to Kate "nobody else matters", here we see that nobody else does matter to them, they are not concerned about appearances, just with each other in that moment.
The seasons theme:
That season 3 is beginning with a ball themed for the four seasons is interesting, and fitting. There has been a lot of discussion around season 3 having the theme of transformation and growth, and of characters finding their roles in society, and the seasons show this a bit. Each of the seasons have symbolism beyond the most superficial meaning most people associate with the seasons and life cycles, and this symbolism has meanings within the different characters highlighted in this clip.
We see both Francesca and Kate framed within the Autumn theme. Autumn symbolises change, but is also associated with abundance, prosperity and wealth, something that ties in with Kate's choice of gold jewellery that within the Indian tradition symbolises prosperity and wealth. As I said, Autumn symbolises change, and both Kate and Francesca have major changes in their life during this season, with Kate becoming the Viscountess, and Francesca in society having to change and adapt to an unfamiliar environment. Expanding on this, Autumn also symbolises learning and seeking, which again is something that we will see Kate and Francesca do, as they both learn about their new roles, and seek to find their place in the family, the Ton and the world.
In contrast we see Penelope framed within the Summer theme, which symbolises coming of age, falling in love, and adulthood. These are all the themes that can relate to Penelope in season 3 as she becomes an adult, which relates to what Nicola has mentioned in interviews about Polin being adults this season when previously they have been children.
Final Thoughts:
I have seen some criticise this clip saying it doesn't give any information about season 3, however, I would disagree with this assessment, I think from this one minute clip we get a lot of information about the characters. We see Anthony as being more relaxed, and the difference in his interactions with his siblings in how he deals with Francesca in contrast to how we saw him with Daphne, we see Kate's interaction with Violet and get a glimpse as to how she is fitting in with the Bridgerton family as the new Viscountess, we see how open and loving Kate and Anthony are after last season being closed off and hiding their feelings, we see Francesca as the quietest and most introverted of the Bridgerton siblings as she removes herself from the social situation.
Finally, with regards to Penelope, we see her contrast with Francesca. Both are on the sidelines at this ball, essentially 'wallflowers', however, what we see is Francesca making the choice to put herself in that position, she removed herself, and further she turns from what is happening in her own contemplation. Penelope on the other hand is on the sidelines by force so to speak, she didn't choose to be there, and she is wanting to be a part of it but has been invited in to take part, she is watching what is happening and we can see that she wishes she was part of society, something that Penelope has expressed in both season 1 and season 2.
What did you think of the clip? Are you excited to see Kate and Anthony in season 3?
