Bridgerton season 3 changed much of the book story it adapted, and some of the changes about one key Romancing Mr. Bridgerton villain make me hope for their return and redemption arc considering their extent and impact on the story. Focusing on the third eldest Bridgerton sibling and Penelope Featherington’s romance, Bridgerton season 3 included various shifts from its original book story in Romancing Mr. Bridgerton. Many of its changes directly impacted how Colin and Penelope fell for each other, their ambitions in life, and even their future, considering how Penelope wasn’t forced to abandon her role as Lady Whistledown.

However, many of Bridgerton season 3’s biggest book changes had little to do with Colin and Penelope. From the focus on Violet Bridgerton’s romantic life as her flirtation with Marcus Anderson highlighted to the great problem of Penelope and Eloise’s fight souring their every interaction, plenty of developments introduced a different order of things for Bridgerton season 3, and none could be more impactful than Eloise and Cressida Cowper’s unlikely friendship. Indeed, their friendship had bigger implications because of Cressida’s role in Romancing Mr. Bridgerton, making how Bridgerton season 3’s ending treated Cressida after the changes to her story sadder.

Bridgerton Season 3 Forsakes Cressida Cowper After Making Her Story Interesting

How Eloise Shuts Her Out Makes Everything Worse

Eloise’s interest in Cressida after her offer of friendship following almost being ruined by Whistedown’s reports showed a side of her life that inevitably made Penelope’s bully more interesting. Not only did Eloise’s influence help make Cressida less cruel, but a spotlight on her life also showed Cressida’s urgent problems like her need to find a husband soon, or her father would have effectively given her away to the first suitable one among his friends. Even when Cressida resorted to blackmailing Penelope in Bridgerton season 3’s finale, she did so after her choices had been limited by her father’s actions.

Cressida’s villainous actions guaranteed she would have to be stopped by Bridgerton season 3’s ending, making her trip to Aunt Joanna’s house away from the ton the only possible ending for her at the moment. However, Bridgerton season 3 needlessly made Cressida even more alone after putting her in a tight spot gave her a reason to impersonate Whistledown first and try to blackmail Penelope later. Despite knowing Cressida could not have been Lady Whistledown and about her very time-sensitive situation, Eloise forsook Cressida even before her new friend resorted to blackmailing Penelope.

Between Lady Cowper not taking her side after she prompted her to make a vicious column about the Bridgertons and Eloise shunning her, Cressida was at her lowest as she joined Aunt Joanna in the countryside. Bridgerton season 3 also made a point to highlight how lucky Colin, Eloise and the other Bridgertons were to have such a supportive family when Cressida’s doubled down on her choices even when she was doomed to be sent away, which was what she always knew, making her story’s ending way harsher.

Eloise forsaking Cressida before her turn to blackmailing lets Bridgerton season 3 betray her after giving Cressida a backstory much more compelling than the book.

Bridgerton Season 3’s Crime Against Cressida Is Even Worse Based On Her Book Story

Cressida Does Not Have A Good Reason To Be Despicable In Romancing Mr Bridgerton

Colin and Penelope’s book, Romancing Mr. Bridgerton, introduced Cressida early on as its main villain because of her relentless bullying of Penelope. Their feud and Penelope’s knee-jerk reaction to publish after Cressida had announced she was Whistledown to claim Danbury’s prize money that would have gone to whoever would have unveiled the writer was what led her to discover Penelope’s secret. However, Cressida’s situation wasn’t as dire in Romancing Mr. Bridgerton as it was in Bridgerton season 3, as she was already married and didn’t really need the money.

While Cressida’s actions are terrible in Bridgerton season 3, she has good reasons for them, and Penelope’s story even mirrors Cressida’s plight. After all, Bridgerton season 3 radically changes what happens to Lady Whistledown because Penelope wants to make something of her life that isn’t just supporting her husband, even while having a husband she loves. Cressida doesn’t have the same luck, she is unmarried, without a dowry and about to be sent away – what she tries to achieve by getting Queen Charlotte’s prize money or Penelope’s is to set herself free from her father’s control, something Penelope could understand.

Book Title
Bridgerton Sibling Protagonist
Publication Date

The Duke and I
Daphne Bridgerton
January 5, 2000

The Viscount Who Loved Me
Anthony Bridgerton
December 5, 2000

An Offer from a Gentleman
Benedict Bridgerton
July 3, 2001

Romancing Mr. Bridgerton
Colin Bridgerton
July 1, 2002

To Sir Phillip, With Love
Eloise Bridgerton
July 1, 2003

When He Was Wicked
Francesca Bridgerton
June 29, 2004

It’s In His Kiss
Hyacinth Bridgerton
June 28, 2005

On the Way to the Wedding
Gregory Bridgerton
June 27, 2006

I Hope Bridgerton Season 4 Makes Up For Its Cressida Betrayal

The Show Could Still Give Her A Redemption Arc In The Future

Image via Netflix

The way Cressida is abandoned by everyone in her life, those who showed her kindness and those who didn’t, makes her fate much sadder than the books, where Cressida was painted just as a cruel character and not like one forced into that role by society’s constraints. I nonetheless believe Bridgerton season 4 or future seasons can still redeem Cressida because her evil actions were motivated by her lack of options. Bridgerton season 3 offered great insight into Cressida and made her a character Eloise and viewers alike could sympathize with, thus hinting her story cannot end with season 3.

I do not believe such choices nor Cressida’s centrality in Bridgerton season 3 could lead to her story ending sadly, or the glimpses into her character development would have been a waste of time. Bringing Cressida back and redeeming her could continue shining a bigger spotlight on the difficulties of female characters on the marriage mart, even potentially setting up a reconciliation with Eloise or even Penelope. This could espouse Bridgerton’s positive themes while also letting Cressida work toward earning her forgiveness, delivering the real ending to her season 3 story, making all insights into her make sense at last.