As the headline says…

You are cordially invited to return to the finest seaside resort…
#Sanditon WILL RETURN for a second AND third series on @masterpiecepbs, @BritBox_UK & @ITV!

Find out more here: https://t.co/FpVX8dk5rx pic.twitter.com/aF1UASIjmO

— Sanditon (@Sanditon) May 6, 2021

There are a lot of members of a certain campaigning sorority congratulating themselves all over Twitter because “WE BROUGHT IT BACK” but it is our considered opinion that they would do better to thank Shonda Rhimes, for it is much more likely that the success of Bridgerton revived this series than the fan campaign. The people who greenlight these things are not well acquainted with the concept of original ideas, and most of the work is done already for this one. Maybe it will be marketed as being Bridgerton-adjacent rather than Austen-adjacent, which would be a relief.

One piece of good news we noted, from Crystal Clarke, who plays Miss Lambe on the series:

We’re returning with black writers onboard, and tht makes this my proudest day. @masterpiecepbs isn’t just listening to concerns, they are taking action around them. We’ll continue to do our best in moving the genre forward. We love you all! Thank you so much for fighting!!❤️

— Crystal Clarke (@crystaljclarke) May 6, 2021

We beg the new writers to re-read Jane Austen and pray try to avoid nonsensical melodrama, which had no part in her work.

We are on record as not being terribly excited about this series, but we must admit we are very curious about it. It is for all intents and purposes fan fiction, and we like fan fiction as a concept; however, we do not like all works of fan fiction, judging each upon its merits. So it remains to be seen whether or not we will enjoy this particular work of fan fiction. We swear we are keeping an open mind.

After all, it is always a reason for celebration when Herself is made prominent in popular culture. And we are truly interested to hear what our Gentle Readers think of it. So we invite you to take this post as a place to share your opinions and comments on Episode One. Dorothy has made strong green tea (for those unafraid it will take away the use of their right side), weak cocoa, and toast, and has determined to look away if anyone adds a little extra butter to their slice.

(Title edited as it was actually two episodes.)

So we’re sure most of our Gentle Readers have seen the beginnings of publicity for the upcoming series Sanditon, sort of an adaptation of Jane Austen’s last, unfinished work. So, first things first: the trailer!

We have previously expressed our opinion on this upcoming work: that it is not so much an adaptation of Jane Austen’s work, or even an adaptation of Jane Austen’s work with a fleshed-out ending, one story with a plot with a definite beginning and ending, but ITV/Masterpiece’s new Sunday-night series, using Jane Austen’s settings and characters but otherwise completely made up by Andrew Davies and company, meant to extend over several seasons.

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