Unpopular Opinion Suggests Wedding Day Disaster Was on Edwina After All
In Bridgerton's second season episode The Choice, Edwina Sharma realizes while standing at the altar that her fiancé and her sister have feelings for each other. It's not an ideal situation.
After some time to reflect, shout, and talk down the King of England from a dementia-driven breakdown (you know, an average Tuesday), Edwina confronts her sister and Anthony. She tells her erstwhile fiancé that she can't marry him because he will never look at her the way he looks at her sister and can never give her what she needs and deserves. To agree to marry him is to betray herself, and Edwina does not want to do that.
This is meant to be a mic-drop moment – yeah, Edwina, you tell 'em girlfriend! – but it doesn't quite land. And that's because everything that Edwina is saying has been said before, over and over, both by her sister and by Anthony himself.
Anthony is quite clear to Edwina from the start that he isn't able to offer her the displays of passion that she wants. He says so, in exactly those words, at the poetry reading during episode two, Off to the Races. He tells her that he can't offer her passion, but that she will never find him lacking in duty. Later, Kate tells Edwina "See? He cannot give you the love you deserve!" and Edwina responds by asking, "does that make him a bad man or an honest one?" So she knows that Anthony isn't going to fall in love with her – she just doesn't, at that point, care.
"Kate said a hundred times that Anthony wasn't looking for love, but to fulfill his duty. Edwina chose not to listen, even though he never showed any affection or sign of love," as an unpopular opinion on Reddit puts it.
Edwina's anger at Kate and Anthony for having an emotional affair behind her back is fair enough. But after six episodes of being told repeatedly that Anthony isn't passionate about her, and wants a marriage only out of duty, it's a little ridiculous for her to be angry about it. She claims that she stops the wedding because Anthony can never give her the love she deserves, as though this is a big revelation. Girl, didn't you hear everyone telling you that? They've been saying it for 5 hours of television at this point!
Luckily Kate's accident shakes Edwina out of her anger and reminds her of what is really important. Hopefully, we'll get to see more of her in the upcoming season, perhaps with a new and more fitting suitor.