‘Bridgerton’ Season 4 Episode 6 Recap: Birth, School, Work, Death

Well this episode of Bridgerton sure ran the gamut of emotions, huh? In the words of the British band The Godfathers, the ep covered the four big topics: Birth, school, work, and death. Birth: Baby Edmund Bridgerton, the newest heir, has arrived to London with his parents Anthony and Kate eliciting joy from nearly everyone. School: This one is more metaphorical, but oh, how delightful it was to watch Cressida Cowper (now Lady Penwood), newly returned to London, totally got schooled by a vengeful Penelope Bridgerton at her own ball. Work: Sophie Baek knows she can’t stay at Bridgerton House even though Benedict has mapped out their future together, so she realizes she has no choice but to leave the best job she’s ever had at Bridgerton House, which is upsetting and, as my therapist might say, traumatic with a lowercase T. Death: Welp, that’s a series wrap on Lord Kilmartin. That situation is a classic case of Trauma with a capital T. Let’s break it down, via the circle of life.

Birth

We’ve known that Anthony and Kate (Jonathan Bailey and Simone Ashley) would return to Bridgerton at some point this season, and now here they are, back from India where Kate gave birth to baby Edmund. Edmund, son of the eldest boy, is the new heir to the Bridgerton name, which means Benedict (Luke Thompson) is no longer the “spare,” i.e. the second in line for the throne. The fact that a baby has usurped him is freeing, as he sees that as his way out of many of his society obligations and customs, which is why he’s comfortable drawing up an elaborate plan for him and Sophie (Yerin Ha) to retreat to My Cottage (nay, Our Cottage) and live together. Benedict is hastily pushing said plans through in part because he loves Sophie, and in part because there’s a good chance she’s pregnant, having missed her period after they had sex.

When Anthony, the dutiful firstborn, learns about Benedict’s infatuation with a maid, he is, frankly, disgusted. He fears for the family name and how this could affect the marriage prospects of Hyacinth and Eloise, but he also just thinks Benedict is being foolish and threatens to disown him from the family if he seriously pursues Sophie. After Sophie does get her period, she tells Benedict and, while it’s a relief that they don’t have to plan for an illegitimate baby now, Sophie explains that this situation simply can’t work. To quote yet another long-forgotten song, this one by Patty Smyth featuring Don Henley, “sometimes love just ain’t enough.” Sophie knows Benedict would be shunned from society and his family if he committed himself to her, and she’s just not willing to be the cause of that.

School

From the moment everyone in the ton started gossiping about a new Lady Penwood (admittedly, it is confusing having two Lady Penwoods around), there was no doubt in my mind that it would be Cressida Cowper (Jessica Madsen), who had been exiled from society after her antics last season, first by claiming to be Whistledown and writing a scandalous newsletter implying that the Bridgerton children were illegitimate, then by bribing Penelope when she learned Penelope was Whistledown. Cressida, broke and without prospects, was shuttled off to Wales to live with her Aunt Joanna, and it was there that she met Lord Penwood, whom she married and he brought her back to the ton where no one is happy to see her. When she calls on Penelope to reveal that she’s back in town, Pen is annoyed because it’s clear Cressida only wants a relationship with her so that Whistledown will mention Cressida in her next column. Cressida knows she’s fallen out of favor with the Queen and she needs any assistance she can get to be welcomed back into society.

Work

So let’s rewind to the opening scene of the episode when a post-coital Benedict and Sophie wake up and she realizes that not only has her whole world changed after sleeping with this man, but also, she’s got “I’m ovulating” Spidey senses telling her that there’s a great chance that a new Bridgerton grandchild might have just been conjured. Sophie declares their hookup a mistake, but Benedict is out to prove to her that it wasn’t, and that he is serious about giving her a life together. (So serious, he even admits to her all about his past indiscretions and relationships with women and men, that’s how much he flaunts society’s rules. But Sophie, the daughter of a nobleman and a maid, has reservations about trusting this nobleman to give her the life she deserves since she has seen this all before.)

Not only does Anthony’s non-blessing hang over them, though, so too does Araminta Gun’s presence. Lady Penwood, the new Bridgerton neighbor, has been repeatedly calling on Violet Bridgerton since moving in, under the guise of having tea, but really, she and her daughters Rosamund and Posy are trying to see if Sophie is really working at the Bridgertons. It’s unpleasant for everyone; Violet realizes how awful Lady Penwood is, and Hyacinth and Eloise are forced to make smalltalk with her miserable daughters.

Lady Penwood even asks Violet if she knows Sophie, telling her that she was her former maid but that she stole diamond shoe clips from her. When Sophie unexpectedly walks into the tea, she immediately turns to leave when she realizes Lady Penwood is there, but not before making eye contact with Posy.

Violet witnesses all of this and immediately realizes what’s happening and how uncomfortable it is for Sophie to work next door to these horrible people. Later, when Sophie asks Violet to write her a letter of introduction so she can find employment elsewhere, Violet realizes that with Sophie being tracked down by Lady Penwood and being drawn to Benedict, it’s in everyone’s best interests if she write that letter.

Also working hard this episode is Alice Mondrich, the Queen’s newest Lady In Waiting. Alice is still trying to find her place in Charlotte’s court, and she’s one of the only people who knows that Benedict and Sophie are having their affair but she refuses to divulge that information because she’s decent and kind and Sophie’s never done anything wrong. However, Alice realizes that there’s one way she can get into the Queen’s good graces without spilling gossip.

When Queen Charlotte receives her invitation to Cressida’s ball, she is annoyed that Cressida has returned to society, especially after she lied to the Queen last season. So Alice suggests that the Queen accept the invitation but then not show up, a sign of disrespect that will send a real message to Cressida and the ton about where she stands. The Queen has been keeping Alice at arm’s length thus far but this little deception endears Alice to her.

Penelope appeals once again to the Queen to allow her to retire as Whistledown, this time explaining that her ability to procure good gossip is tough now that people avoid her so they won’t be written about. Just as the Queen has a plan to upend Cressida’s ball, this also gives Pen the opportunity to plot her own deception at Cressida’s party –– once everyone is there, she distributes her latest Whistledown newsletter which reveals that it’s also the final one she’ll be writing, and it’s a major shock to the ton. And while it steals all the focus away from Cressida’s return to society, it’s also Penelope’s peace offering to Cressida, because it means that Whistledown won’t be reporting on her humiliation at the hands of the Queen who stood her up.

Death

John Stirling (Victor Alli) has been a devoted husband to Francesca for the few months they’ve been married, but the one friction in their marriage is his close relationship with his cousin Michaela. At the end of the previous episode, Francesca and Michaela finally overcame their differences to become friends, a surprise to John, and everything’s going so well they’re doing puzzles as a family. Francesca has clearly noticed that something’s been off about John, but at Cressida’s ball, they share a tender moment where he professes his love for her. The next day, after he retires to their room to rest citing a headache, it’s clear that… well… he might not wake from that rest.

When Francesca goes to wake him, he’s unresponsive, and she lets out a bloodcurdling scream of grief that startles Michaela and confirms the worst. It certainly makes everything that her siblings have been dealing with seem trivial by comparison.

Bonus Bridgertons:

Hyacinth, who has been desperate to enter into society functions all season long, is invited to crash Cressida’s ball by her older sister Eloise, but the catch is that Hyacinth must dress like a maid (hiding in plain sight). The two sisters have been at odds all season and this is Eloise’s olive branch to make things right with the sister who is her polar opposite when it comes to marriage and following society’s rules.

Violet Bridgerton was cruelly chastised by Benedict in the last episode for being an unmarried woman and carrying on with Lord Anderson under her children’s noses. That has made Violet especially cautious and self-conscious about her relationship, but Lord Anderson solves that when he asks her to marry him.

The Queen is feeling especially charitable this week, not only does she let Penelope retire hr column, but she also finally gives in and lets Lady Danbury leave the ton in a touching, wordless moment that spoke volumes about how much they mean to each other.

Liz Kocan is a pop culture writer living in Massachusetts. Her biggest claim to fame is the time she won on the game show Chain Reaction.