A short break from the doomscrolling

We're talking stories, costumes and just the right amount of sex

I finally turned off the TV.

The horrific scenes from Ukraine seem to go on and on. NBC News anchor Lester Holt called it an “unspeakable trail of horror.” To see it happening and know there’s little we can do — and that if we did something, like send it troops, it would be worse — left me frustrated and depressed. I couldn’t keep watching.

So I change the channel and it’s the Sacramento mass shooting. California Assemblyman Kevin McCarty said “75 rounds were shot within 54 seconds.” How can we continue to make it easy for the most unstable, violent and ruthless people to acquire rapid-fire, death-dealing weapons?

And I thought, what could I possibly write this week?

So I’m doing “Bridgerton,” the Netflix TV sensation.

There are two reasons. First, this is my own damn newsletter and I can write what I want.

And second, it turns out there’s more going on beneath the Bridgerton surface than you might know.

For starters, if you aren’t watching Bridgerton, begin immediately. It’s been wildly successful for Netflix, easily becoming the most-watched streaming series in the media-verse.

Season one drew 82 million views and season two is equally buzz-worthy. It’s a vindication for Netflix, which reportedly paid creative TV superstar Shonda Rhimes $100 million to develop shows.

The show is a costume, period drama-ty, with a dash of sex. There are heaving bosoms, breakneck horseback rides in the rain and over-heated encounters with those-who-must-not-be-together.

The smoldering looks between forbidden lovers are just this side of parody. When debutant Edwina Sharma catches hunky Anthony Bridgerton and her gorgeous sister, Kate, looking deep into each other’s eyes, it gets a laugh when she says, “How could I have missed this?”

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But the subtle, subversive part of the show isn’t the hookups, it’s the cast. Bridgerton is conspicuously diverse. There is a person of color in virtually every shot.

But the interesting point is the roles they play. They are not “loyal companion.” Or “valued servant.” Or, a particular sore point for those of Indian descent, “the goofy nerd.”

For starters, Charlotte, the Queen of England, is black. (There’s actually some history that says that might have been true. In the 1800’s, Queen Charlotte was linked to North African heritage.) As played by Golda Rosheuvel, she’s every inch a queen too, right down to — or up to — her towering, Beach Blanket Babylon wigs.

Lady Danbury, the wily, well-connected arranger of marriages in court society, is played by Adjoa Andoh, a black British-born actress. Lady Danbury is a fully-realized character who drives the plot. She’s smart, strategic and a little sneaky. I like to think of her as the Bridgerton version of Willie Brown.

But it is in the area of romance where Bridgerton has made waves. Season one featured one of the hunkiest characters in recent TV drama, the Duke of Hastings, played by Rege-Jean Page, a black actor who was born in London.

The Duke’s steamy relationship with blonde and naive Daphne Bridgerton, was a Netflix sensation. “The Duke” was the talk of the internet. Page even hosted “Saturday Night Live.”

This season Page isn’t in the cast. Instead we are introduced to the Sharma sisters, Kate and Edwina, who have come to court from India to marry into society. The hot couple this season is the stunning Kate and brooding blue-blood Anthony.

Supposedly, the buzz is about Jonathan Bailey, the white English actor who plays Anthony. But I’d suggest that Kate has actually taken the Duke’s place. Like the Duke she’s ethnic, incredibly attractive and insists she’s not interested. You can figure out what happens from there.

But there is never that moment when everything stops and someone has to deliver “the talk,” about interracial relationships. No “But you come from such different backgrounds” coding.

(There is a subplot about an interracial marriage that embittered a family, but it only takes up a few minutes of one episode.)

The relationships just are. Couples may bicker about horseback rides, but race isn’t a part of it.

It reminded me of an interview in The New York Times Magazine last week with Quinta Brunson, a black writer and actor whose network show “Abbott Elementary,” also takes a matter-of-fact approach to racially diverse characters.

“We’re not talking about being black all day,” she said. “There have been recent sitcoms — “Black-ish,” “Fresh off the Boat” — really good sitcoms, but my generation was starting to get tired of race as the only focal point. The white shows got to be white, but a lot of the shows with people of color were about the color of the people and not about the stories of the people.”

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I like that. And it seems like Bridgerton might actually be pushing that narrative a little. So maybe when a person of color becomes the boss, it won’t be such a big deal. That we will be more inclined to judge a co-worker by her skills and ability, and not factor in racial stereotypes.

But of course, that’s always the problem with an older white guy discussing racial culture. There’s a good chance I’m clueless.

And in New York Magazine, a case was made that Bridgerton still has a diversity problem. In fact, it was argued, the characters are still getting stereotyped, just a little less than before. And, as others have pointed out, this is a pretty generous view of the way the the British ruled over India and how they treated the people of that country.

Fair enough. Those are good points and well stated.

But I’d still say it is a relief from time to time to turn on the TV and have someone tell you a story from long ago . . . filled with romance, intrigue and just a little sex.

Contact C.W. Nevius at cwnevius@gmail.com. Twitter: @cwnevius