This week’s Doctor Who is one that fans have been waiting for. The Rogue (Jonathan Groff) would be introduced to our beloved Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa), and we needed to know whether our theories about him were correct. Instead, we got an episode of Bridgerton in the best of ways.
Fans of the Netflix series Bridgerton know it as the series that slowly brings us into relationships through the social etiquette of the Regency era. There is nothing quite as intoxicating as a hand touch when society tells you that it is forbidden. In the latest episode of Doctor Who, the Doctor and Ruby (Millie Gibson) show up to a ball in the same time period as Bridgerton and make plenty of jokes about Netflix’s hit show.
What is hilarious and perfect is the fact that the episode uses covers like “Bad Guy” by Billie Eilish as the “dance” music, just like Bridgerton does. There is dancing, ball gowns, conversations backdropped by beautiful flower arches, and more. So many nods to the series, but it still felt like an episode of Doctor Who, even with all the trappings of a Shonda Rhimes production. What works about this particular episode, though, is that the Doctor and Ruby are in on the joke.
It is one thing to go to a historical place and live out your fantasy on Doctor Who. Often, companions get to go and meet their favorite people from history or just go to a different era. But this? The jokes about a show we all know and watch? That was funny. And it even came with a romance just like the Netflix series.
The Doctor and the Rogue
While Bridgerton is known for the romances of the Bridgerton children, Doctor Who took that and gave us a bit of a fling between the Doctor and the Rogue. For once, the Doctor wasn’t the one trying to sweep someone off their feet. He was the one being romanced, and he was mesmerized by what the Rogue could give him.
We constantly see him giving the world to his companions, but no one really offers the Doctor that same opportunity. The Rogue, while someone who is just as mysterious as our favorite Time Lord, saw a chance to have his own Regency dream. The two share romantic tension, the Rogue tells the Doctor to “run” as he has done so many times before, and the two share a kiss before they say “See you later” (because that wasn’t their real goodbye).
That is the romance of this episode of Doctor Who, and what is so fascinating about it is it felt like the kind of adventure his companions normally get to go on. Traditionally, Ruby would be the one finding love and getting whisked away. Instead, we got to see the Doctor have his time, and it was really lovely to watch.
I loved every moment of this episode full of Bridgerton jokes and saving people, and yeah, it was pretty cool hearing an instrumental cover of “Bad Guy” in Doctor Who.
