Critical response The review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 78% based on 95 reviews, with an average rating of 7.1/10. The website's critics consensus states, "The risqué thrill may have faded, but
Bridgerton remains a compulsive episode-turner in this delightful sophomore season." Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 70 out of 100 based on 32 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". 's performance of Anthony received praise from critics Kristen Baldwin of
Entertainment Weekly gave the series an A− writing, "With a second season that's more clever, moving, and emotionally complex than the first, this period drama... proves that it's not just a titillating trifle."
The Hollywood Reporter Angie Hahn echoed the sentiment describing the season as "older and wiser" than its predecessor's "rampant horniness" with an effective central romance that prioritized "a meeting of minds, played out over quick-witted arguments outside
ballrooms and vicious competition during a friendly family game of
pall-mall."
Peter Travers of
ABC praised the season writing, "Kudos to season two for digging deeper into the emotional lives of its characters and continuing the
colorblind casting that creates a
utopia in which diversity is so ingrained it's hardly worth a mention." Alison Herman of
The Ringer commented that Season 1 is "sexy without quite being erotic" while "Season 2 is the reverse. There's not a lot of sex, but in the crackling chemistry and relentless self-denial that defines Anthony and Kate's dynamic, there's plenty of
eroticism." Emma Clarke of
The Independent argued that, "it is precisely the lack of
physicality that makes this season (of the show and of
courtship) so... well, sexy." Scott Bryan of the
BBC wrote that the season serves as antidote to the "always static, laboured and slow" period dramas, adding that it comes with "real energy, it feels so modern (even though it is set in the past) and even though it feels extravagant, it doesn't feel too
highbrow. It is refreshingly accessible." Kevin Fallon of
The Daily Beast elaborating on Bailey's "exquisite lead performance," wrote that "he has an exceptional ability to carry his angst, pain, and guilt with him without bogging down things into a somber drag."
The Telegraph Anita Singh wrote that Bailey "brings more soul to the role of Lord Bridgerton than Page ever did with the Duke," with Randy Myers of
Mercury News adding that Bailey "has a gift at
comedic timing." Proma Khosla of
Mashable concluded that with "Bailey and Ashley,
Bridgerton Season 2 strikes gold" as they deliver "heaping, smoldering helpings of
sexual tension" for "their chemistry is nothing short of explosive."
Audience viewership The series premiered on March 25, 2022, and debuted number one in 92 countries on the platform. It was also the most viewed show on United States
television screens for three weeks per
Nielsen Media Research. Season 2 amassed 193 million viewing hours in its opening weekend, the highest opening for any English-language Netflix series at the time. It also broke the record for most viewed English-language series in a single week at that time, with 251.74 million viewing hours from March 28 to April 3. The first season also re-entered Netflix's top ten in second place. By April 19,
Bridgertons second season had overtaken its predecessor as the
most watched English-language television series on Netflix at the time with 627.11 million hours viewed since its March 25, 2022, launch. This viewing numbers went up to 656.16 million by the 28-day mark.
Nielsen Media Research, analyzing the 2.55 billion minutes viewed on United States television screens in the first three days of season 2's availability (double all others across streamers for the week of March 21), characterized
Bridgerton audience as "diverse and broad". The firm found one third of viewers to be Hispanic or African American and an even split in popularity across the 18–34, 35–49, and 50–64 age groups at 25% each. The only exception was gender parity, with 76% of the audience reported to be female. It added 3.2 billion minutes viewed in its second week on top of the chart. It topped the chart for a third week with 1.6 billion minutes viewed.
Cultural impact features as a
pastime for the Bridgerton siblings in Season 2 An official "Queen's Ball" was held in
Washington DC, Chicago,
Montréal, and Los Angeles, with similar events and experiences taking place in London and
Johannesburg.
Bloomingdale's put together a
Bridgerton-themed pop-up collection and tea bar, displaying real costumes from the series in the U.S. for the first time in its 59th Street windows. After the season featured the main characters playing
pall-mall, a lawn game considered to be the precursor to
croquet, retailer
John Lewis reported a 90% rise in sales for croquet sets. There was also a notable increase in internet searches and purchases of
tiaras and corsets after season two's premiere. Stately homes around England saw an uptick in interest and visitors. Regarding Ranger's House, Chris Small of
English Heritage said, "Since the launch of
Bridgerton in 2020 we have seen many people who were previously unaware of the site inspired to visit."
Walking tours of the filming locations of the series have also been created, including an official one by Netflix.
Castle Howard opened an exhibition titled
Castle Howard on Screen: From Brideshead to Bridgerton in May 2022. The
33rd season finale episode of
The Simpsons on May 22, 2022, featured
Marge and her friends watching a period drama called "Tunnelton" with a Lady Whistledown-sounding narrator, and a character emerging drenched from a lake, like Anthony in the fifth episode of the second season. The writers of the
Doctor Who episode "
Rogue" took great inspiration from
Bridgerton as the episode revolves around intrigue and romance at an English country party in 1813, with the show being directly referenced by main character
Ruby Sunday. == Notes ==