Bridgerton Season 2 Episode 6 Recap – The Choice

A day before the wedding, the queen makes herself busy with wedding preparations. She specifically asks for the king’s wing to be closed for the day to avoid untoward incidents. She asks Brimsley if their plan to entrap Lady Whistledown is set, and Brimsley confirms it. She asks him to go as far as planting false rumors so they can easily trace the author once she publishes them.

Lady Mary, Kate, and Edwina perform pre-wedding rituals, and so does Anthony.

On the day of the much-awaited Bridgerton wedding, Portia arranges a scheme where Prudence wears a necklace that is supposed to be from Jack’s mines to attract investors. Jack admires her plan and her confidence, and he tells her that he enjoys a lady who seizes control.

Madame Delacroix comes into the Featherington house at Pen’s request. She tells Pen that if there is any trouble with their arrangement, she does not want to be involved because her business is far too important. Pen assures her that there is no trouble and that she only wants to know what she knows about Theo.

Kate lends a pair of bangles to Edwina for her to wear during the wedding. She says that her mama wore those on her wedding day and wants Edwina to wear them instead of her as she will not get married.

At the palace, people are starting to gather. The Bridgertons arrive, and Violet finds herself talking to Lady Danbury. She voices her disappointment in Lady Danbury’s choice to withhold the information she knew about Edwina’s trust.

Pen asks Eloise if she is still seeing Theo, and Eloise admits that she has just visited him the day before. She says she’s interested in his thoughts, and they are friends – nothing more.

Daphne expresses her doubts about whether the wedding will take place or not. Anthony tells her it is too late for him to back out because Edwina will be ruined, and their family will suffer a scandal. She asks him what he thinks their father would say if he was alive. Anthony tells her they can never know what their father would say, so she should stop insulting him with baseless conjectures. She says that she knows that from the day their father died, Anthony has become an entirely different person, consumed by the expectation of others. Anthony then rebuts and tells her that he did not have a choice and that she will never understand that because she was born to marry into another family. In contrast, he is responsible for carrying the Bridgerton name, so he cannot indulge himself with love like she did. He says it is easy to be selfish when there is no one else to whom she must answer. Hurt, Daphne tells him that she mourns for him because every time he takes a decision for their family and resents them for it, they do not respect him but pity him.

Edwina gives back the bangles to Kate a few minutes before the wedding. She says that she cannot wear them because she does not want to feel like she is taking what is rightfully Kate’s. “They are meant for you; you should be the one to wear them,” she says. Lady Mary smiles at the sweet exchange.

The wedding begins. Anthony marches into the aisle, followed by Kate as the Maid of Honor. They stare at each other for a brief moment. Edwina marches with Lady Mary, and both Kate and Anthony cannot help but smile. The Archbishop starts talking, and Anthony finds it hard to focus on Edwina when Kate is standing just behind her. He imagines that it is him and Kate being married. He gets so lost in that thought that he does not realize that he is already being asked to repeat after the Archbishop. Edwina sees the way he looks at Kate, but she merely reminds him of what the Archbishop is saying. Kate fidgets with her bangle as all these happen. She fidgets with it so much that it snaps from her wrist, falling to the ground. Anthony does not hesitate to pick it up for her, and in doing so, he looks at her and touches her hand so tenderly that Edwina realizes what is going on.

Edwina runs away from the altar, to everyone’s surprise. Lady Mary and Kate follow her, while the queen is visibly disgusted about what happened.

Lady Mary tells Edwina to calm down, but she declares that Kate has feelings for Anthony and that she wanted him for herself all along. Edwina asks Kate if she loves Anthony, and when Kate fails to answer, Lady Mary tells her to go anywhere else. Kate barges out of the room, and when she sees that Anthony is coming in her direction, she hides in a closet.

The Bridgertons come together in a separate room. They try to comfort Anthony with different explanations of what just happened. Seeing that Anthony is already overwhelmed, Benedict tells everyone to give him some space. Anthony looks at Daphne before he walks away. Violet sees this, and so after Anthony leaves, she asks Daphne about what she knows.

The queen tells Lady Danbury that Lady Whistledown will make what has happened to appear as if it is her fault and that her sound judgment will be called into question. She tells Lady Danbury that the situation should be salvaged because she vouched for the Sharmas after all. Lady Danbury tells her that she will talk to Edwina. The queen tells Brimsley to lead the guests to the gardens and ensure that no one leaves as the nuptials will resume shortly.

Portia sees the delay of the nuptials as the perfect opportunity for her plan with Jack. She asks Prudence to show off the necklace.

Eloise and Pen talk about Theo. Pen tells her to keep him out of her mind, but Eloise tells her that she thinks Theo might feel that what they have is more than friendship. Pen reminds Eloise of what happened to Lady Mary when she married beneath her station, but Eloise tells her that marriage is not yet on the table. It is just that if she is to know how Theo feels about her, then she will be ending the torment she is feeling.

Anthony comes to talk to Edwina. He asks her if what is happening is just a delay and nothing more. He declares that he is intent on marrying her, but this makes Edwina question whether it is truly her or just the marriage that he wants. He says they share the same places and their roles align – she is the diamond, and he is the viscount. He says that they both have roles they cannot escape, but if they are to marry, they can face their responsibilities together. She asks him if he loves her. “I understand you. I sympathize with you”, he answers. Edwina asks him what role Kate would play in their marriage, so Anthony tells her they will be free of her once she returns to India as she wishes.

Edwina tells Anthony that she knows what a scandal it would be for their families if they decide to continue with the wedding, but she cannot think it is reason enough to carry on.

Anthony finds Kate and asks her to do something so that Edwina will go on with the wedding, as she knows her better than he does. They find themselves in close proximity once again. Anthony holds her hand, but she decides to go.

Violet approaches Lady Danbury. Lady Danbury apologizes to Violet for not telling her about the trust fund issue. She states that it was not her place to tell. Violet says that Daphne has confirmed something she has feared for quite some time, and she thinks Lady Danbury has observed it too – Anthony and Kate are attracted to each other. Lady Danbury tells her that the queen wants her to repair the situation, but for the first time in her life, she does not know what to do. This brings her to laughter, and Violet too. They both laugh to their heart’s content.

Kate talks to Edwina. She explains that she did not want to wound her and admits that she once had feelings for Anthony. However, she says that whatever she feels for Anthony is no match for the love she feels for her sister. She says that Edwina was born to be a viscountess. “Why me and not you?” she asks Kate. She says that since their father died, she promised she would not consider herself until Edwina and Lady Mary were taken care of. Edwina says that she is a grown woman and that if she is to proceed with the wedding, it will not have anything to do with her. After all, she is just her half-sister, she emphasizes.

Brimsley gets to work and plants false rumors so people in the garden will overhear and spread them. Jack gets the attention of the ton’s gentlemen asking about his mines. Portia sees this and tells Jack to act faster because they must take advantage of the delay in the wedding. He reminds him not to attract too much attention by involving influential families like the Bridgertons because a scandal associated with them might outweigh any profit they are looking at. Jack charms Portia by telling her that he sees her as the capable woman that she is and that the late Lord Featherington was a fool to ever leave a brilliant woman like her alone in this world.

Lady Danbury and Lady Bridgerton tell the queen that they have decided to let Edwina decide whether she will still marry Anthony or not. Edwina comes before the queen. The queen asks her what her decision is, but the king barges into the room before Edwina can answer. He is not lucid as he thinks that it is his wedding day. As the guards come to take him away, the other people in the room look out so as not to embarrass him further. He gets hysterical and breaks free from the guards, and tries to get closer to the queen, who is embarrassed herself. Seeing this, Edwina steps up and interferes. She calms the king so much so that he takes his rest without causing a scene. This nearly brings the queen to tears and amazes everyone else in the room.

Colin tells Pen that Marina was right about her and that he is beginning to see that Pen cares for him and that she will not forsake him. This brings a smile to Pen’s lips. However, the smile quickly fades when she sees Eloise fidgeting from a distance. She approaches her. Eloise tells her that she is leaving to see Theo at that moment because she thinks no one else will notice her disappearance given that everyone is busy thinking about Anthony and Edwina. Pen feels it is not a good idea, but Eloise tells her not to say a word about it. This conversation gets heard by the nearby guard.

The queen tells Edwina that she chose her as the season’s diamond not only because of her beauty but because of the impression she has made. She reminds Edwina that she can still make an impression despite what happened with her wedding and despite what happened with the king. She lets Edwina know that the decision of what to do when faced with true love is entirely her choice, which is the hardest and greatest choice one can ever make.

Edwina arranges for Kate and Anthony to meet at the chapel. Edwina tells Anthony that she cannot marry him because he cannot give her what she wants and what she deserves. She says that he will never look at her the way he looked at Kate at the altar. She then tells Kate that she has made up her mind and that what she will leave behind with the choice she made that day is not her loss but Kate’s.

Eloise tells Theo that when she reads something interesting or provoking, he is the one she thinks about, and he is the one she likes to talk to about them. She asks him if he also thinks of her. Theo does not answer, but he brings out a handful of books and tells her that he has set them aside for her. She takes the books while a guard watches their exchange.

The queen sits at the king’s bedside when Brimsely tells her that their trap for Lady Whistledown has produced a result.

Anthony and Kate are still at the chapel, unable to move after Edwina has left them. Kate tells Anthony goodbye, but instead of walking away, she moves closer to him, and they kiss passionately.

Our Thoughts

Woah. So the first kiss happens, finally! Kate and Anthony give in to their feelings at last. They have to pay the price for what happened, but we know everything will be worth it. Portia taking advantage of the delay is something basic and expected of her. What is unexpected is how Jack seems to be attracted to her romantically. We cannot quite imagine them having an affair, but this is not impossible given Portia’s exceptional personality. What Edwina did with the king certainly brought our eyes tears, so it is not a surprise that the queen still favors her despite the failed wedding. This episode is undoubtedly eventful and is our favorite among what we’ve seen.