Audiences Have Spoken: The Sexual Tension In 'Bridgerton' Season 2 Is Better Than The Literal Sex In Season 1

The critics were right: Apparently, people DON'T want to see gratuitous sex on television.

No, what they want is to see two characters who know they definitely CANNOT have gratiuitous sex on television try desperately to fight the urge not to do it anyway.

Ladies, gentlemen, and esteemed members of the 'Ton; Bridgerton season 2 has dropped, and there's been enough time that most of the die-hard fans have watched the whole thing - and despite an alarm that went up a few weeks ago about the comparative lack of sex scenes from this season, many fans online are saying they found this show even more intensely sexy this time around than the first.

Yes, apparently that old adage of 'less is more' really isn't just something our mothers told us to try to get us to cover up - ok, sometimes it was, but you know what we mean. Because the thing is, it's not really the sexual actions that VEX you when you're watching a show like this...it's the sexual tension leading up to them that makes all the difference.

And if there's one thing that the whole enemies-to-lovers trope we see unfold between Anthony Bridgerton and Kate Sharma is always good for, it's loads and loads of sexual tension.

We all know the pattern: You can love a couple after they initially get together all you want, but ever single show loses a little bit of steam when it happens. The eternally burning question of will-they-won't they can be agonizing for an audience member, it's true, but it's an enjoyable kind of agony - one that keeps you coming back as fast as you can, over and over, because it draws you forward and begs for resolution by nature.

As soon as those two characters touch, though, you let so much of that steam out - because THEY'RE not feeling the tension anymore. Once the characters relax, unfortunately, so can you - so no longer do you have to read a million little things off of one single touch of the hand.

The less two characters touch, the more power it has when they finally do - no matter how small the touch may be.

And that, in a nutshell, is the power of Bridgerton.

If you want more Bridgerton discussion, have we got good news for you - we've got a whole podcast of it. Join my coworker Carly Polistina and I for Whistledown, Pinkies Up, a little discussion show in which we break down all the episodes of Bridgerton Season 2, making sure to go over all the most agonizing details. If you've found that for some reason the people in your life have a limit to how much they can talk about Bridgerton (insane), then this is the show for you.