Why “Bridgerton” opted for Colin's rippling forearms as his 'moment of thirst'

"We thought that was the only way to one-up a wet t-shirt," quips showrunner Jess Brownell.

WARNING: This article contains spoilers for Bridgerton season 3, part 1.

Caution: Bridgerton leading men may cause severe dehydration.

In addition to plenty of swoony dialogue, empowering moments, and incredible costumes, Bridgerton never fails to deliver when it comes to giving their leads what showrunner Jess Brownell dubs a "thirst moment."

For Simon (Regé-Jean Page), it was the spoon lick that broke the internet. In season 2, Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) got his own Mr. Darcy moment when he climbed out of a lake in a soaking wet white shirt.

Season 3 is all about the love story between Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan), which means that it's Colin's turn to set hearts aflutter. His big moment comes in episode 3, when he and much of the ton attend an aeronautical exposition (that's a fancy way of saying a presentation about a hot air balloon).

Related: How Bridgerton transformed Luke Newton into hunky 'pirate Colin' for season 3

When the balloon comes unmoored from its ties, it nearly collides with Penelope (who is rescued by Lord Debling). But Colin rolls up his sleeves, lets his forearms glisten in the sunlight, and recruits a bunch of other strapping young men to pull the balloon back into submission.

"We were in the writer's room and we knew we needed a moment of thirst between Colin and Penelope," Brownell tells Entertainment Weekly. "We were thinking about the thirst that was created by Anthony falling into the water and coming out with the wet shirt in season 2. Once you've done that, you have to find a way to top yourself."

"Daniel Robinson, who is one of my upper-level writers, pitched the idea of Colin hoisting an entire hot air balloon with his sleeves rolled up and his forearms rippling," Brownell continues. "We thought that was the only way to one-up a wet t-shirt."

For those wondering about the balloon itself, writer and former research advisor Annabelle Hood pitched that idea, given that aeronautical innovation was quite popular in the Regency era.

While Newton acknowledges his thirst moment "could be the balloon," he's also happy to leave it up to the fans. "I can't ever predict," he says. "I actually wouldn't even want to say to put a mark on it because it might be something that I've watched maybe four or five times and not even clocked."

Sign up for  Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.

Related: From spoon licks to wet shirts, the cast of Bridgerton recaps the first 2 seasons

Though Brownell admits the balloon moment was designed specifically to give Colin a particularly dashing sequence, she actually finds other moments even sexier. "Luke Newton did such a fantastic job imbuing Colin with depth this season," she reflects. "There are a few moments where he stands up for Penelope that I actually think are the most swoon-worthy moments this season, some of which are to come in the back half."

Consider this author intrigued...

Part 1 of Bridgerton season 3 is now streaming on Netflix and Part 2 drops June 13.

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.