Bridgerton’s Chris Van Dusen teases the second season’s first episode title and it’s one fans of the book series understand all too well. As it’s been made clear multiple times by now, the second season of Netflix’s explosive romance genre will follow eldest Bridgerton, Anthony’s love story as he meets his match–the unbeatable, Kate Sharma.
In Julia Quinn’s second novel in the series, The Viscount Who Loved Me, regency gossip columnist Lady Whistledown explicitly states: “Anthony Bridgerton is a Rake. A rake (lower-case) is youthful and immature. He flaunts his exploits, behaves with utmost idiocy, and thinks himself dangerous to women. A Rake (upper-case) knows he is dangerous to women.” And in the sneak peek of the script title released on Twitter, Bridgerton’s Chris Van Dusen teases that the title will be “Capital R Rake.” Color us already even more jazzed than we were before knowing they’ll be exploring the viscount’s roguish ways in the second season.
As Violet Bridgerton believes, reformed rakes the best husbands and this all must mean that the worst of them all will truly make for the best. Here is some tea: would I ever date a rake in real life? Absolutely not. Keep them far, far away from me. In historical romance, however? Yes please. It takes a while for her to warm up to the viscount and it’s only after she’s seen the sides of him not many people are fortunate to—the vulnerability, the kindness, and the sincerity.
There’s a lot we still don’t know about the second season. Will it hopefully air early 2022? But what we do know with utmost certainty is that it’s going to be emotionally moving and beautiful. Van Dusen has done such a riveting job taking on The Duke and I, which as we’ve vocalized multiple times isn’t a personal favorite, and thus, if he could make the season as amazing as it was, we have full faith in the fact that season two will be even more wondrous.
However, with the specific title reveal, and the way we left off in “After the Rain” with the viscount swearing off love, it’s going to be an enamoring joy ride to watch him clown around by denying the fact that he is absolutely, 110%, definitely, head over heels in love with his wife.
Part of what makes The Viscount Who Loved Me such a treasure of a romance novel is because one, it follows the esteemed “enemies-to-lovers” trope, but also, in the midst of the chaos and rivalry, it is the story of two people facing their traumas together while inspiring the other to grow into the absolute best version of themselves. (There’s a reason this is the best book in the series. I mean, what? We didn’t say that.)
And if this only is the first episode title, then we can count on the fact that the last one, whatever it may be, will downright make us emotional wrecks in the best way. Anthony Bridgerton is a remarkable work in progress, and he’s the kind of character whose growth will be talked about for years to come.
Jonathan Bailey has already layered the character so exquisitely in the first season that I’m certain none of us are prepared for what he’ll bring to the table when Anthony’s demons are all laid bare to be dealt with. From the capital R Rake to the nicest man in all of London (Kate’s words, not ours). Bring it. We’re ready. And so is the be