Yet Another Bridgerton Love Triangle: Will Lord Debling Act As Polin's Third Wheel?

Summary

• Bridgerton fans know how obsessed the show's creators are with love triangles and have been wondering if this trope would make an appearance in Season 3.
• Their speculation was confirmed during the recent promo event, when the Bridgerton cast and crew introduced a new character, Lord Debling, who is set to become Pen's main suitor.
• Now the big question is whether the writers will drag out Debling's arc Edwina-style or end it on a perfect note.

The big question about the upcoming Bridgerton Season 3 has always been whether the Shondaland creators will be able to help themselves and refrain from introducing yet another love triangle.

Fans know how much the showrunners adore this trope. In the previous two seasons, there were three major love triangles. Daphne had to choose between Simon and Prince Friedrich. Season 2 was all about Anthony's relationship with the Sharma sisters. More than that, the Season 3 leads were already involved in one of them. Remember Marina?

Well, judging by the latest promo releases, Marina's shenanigans were not Colin and Penelope's last love triangle. Looks like it is now Pen's time to make the third Bridgerton jealous.

Lord Debling Enters the Picture

We know from the official synopsis and teasers that the upcoming social season will be special for Miss Featherington. Devastated by the feud with her beloved Bridgertons, Pen is determined to find a worthy husband who will allow her at least some level of independence.

Fans have been speculating for months about who exactly Pen's suitors might be. And now we know for sure. During the Valentine's Day event, Netflix released a first-look still of the new character, Sam Phillips' Lord Debling, and the cast confirmed that he is set to be Pen's main admirer.

'Lord Debling is seen as an outsider,' Sam Phillips described his character. '[He] is interested in other things outside of the norms of society. For instance, he loves wildlife, he's a conservationist, and he is a vegetarian.'

This man sounds sweet, doesn't he? More than that, he seems like a perfect match for our Pen and someone who can make Colin really jealous.

'He lives on the fringes of society, and he is after a love match this season,' Phillips added. 'He's after someone who goes against the grain, someone who is a little bit of an outsider like him. And he spots Penelope. He thinks she's special because she's sort of seen as an outsider too.'

However, we all know that Pen is destined to end up with Colin, so is it fair for the Bridgerton writers to hurt another genuinely nice character just to get the leads together?

Third Wheel vs. Brief Arc

When it comes to Lord Debling, almost every Bridgerverse fan on social media agrees: it would be really sad and repetitive if the writers dragged out the Penelope Debling courtship any longer than necessary. God forbid, a proposal.

Prince Friedrich and Edwina were both done dirty by their love triangle storylines. We never saw them get their happy endings. And viewers really hope the same will not happen to Debling. When he realizes that Pen's heart belongs to someone else, the writers better have another match lined up for him. Or the fans might revolt.

There are other ways to create drama than a love triangle. Pen and Colin's romance wasn't originally built on that trope, and there are plenty of other, better stories that could be told. So ideally, Lord Debling's arc should last just long enough for both leads to realize that Penelope has options, but not leave the new sympathetic character's life in ruins.

Fingers crossed.

Source: Shondaland.