Well, the second half of Emily in Paris’ season 4 was released last week and the reactions have me laughing out loud!
First of all, I must explain that I have a special affinity to this show because my name is Emily and hearing how many loaded ways there are to shout the name is hilarious. Whether she’s getting in trouble, or being summoned for relationship drama rants, it always reminds me that whatever embarrassing thing I did today is no competition for what’s about to follow for Emily in Paris. And the internet seems to agree.
I always enjoy reading news headlines about new shows and movies because of how absurd they make television sound. (Except for House of the Dragon headlines, those just straight up spoil.) An overly exaggerated headline, plus the perfect picture to pair it with can do wonders to get me to watch something.
After the release of part 1, I had to take a little peak at what people were saying and this single headline summed it up for me perfectly: Say Oui, Oui to Emily in Paris’ Beautiful Stupidity. Netflix’s most embarrassing series is back for its fourth season. I’m absolutely thrilled. It answered exactly what I wanted to know — Emily was still in Paris doing absurd things. I didn’t need to read the rest of the article, or risk looking further online only to stumble upon accidental spoilers; I needed to grab some popcorn and start watching. And I think that Emily would be so proud of how efficiently they’re advertising her…brand.
One major point of contention about this season has been the split into two parts. Something that may shock you is that I believe Emily would approve of the two-part season. It is a marketing strategy afterall, andLily Collins (who plays Emily) isn’t totally against it. Besides, the potential of either one of their approval makes me accept the split season format a bit better. I can see Emily herself sitting at the Agence Grateau table listening to people from Netflix talk about expanding engagement. She would clasp her fingers together, lean forward in her chair, and suggest “Why don’t you release the season in two parts?” You know how the rest of the story goes. And even if she didn’t approve of the current strategy, she would most certainly find a way to leverage the debates about it because that’s what Emily does! So, yes, I not only believe that Emily would love this debate, but embrace it just as she urges her many marketing clients to do.
The most serious discussion from this season has been about the inclusion of a #MeToo storyline involving the characters influential in the fashion industry. This was a major plot point of the first part of the season which was received with great success. Its inclusion through Sylvie’s story allowed the gravity of the storyline to make sense. As Emily’s role model, and a powerful individual herself, Sylvie’s influence and impact is very strong indeed. It also opposes the common criticisms of Emily’s complete lack of budget awareness and unrealistic, blissful lifestyle of idol rich activities, and instead turns the tables to reflect potential realities of her job working with luxury clients who hold great wealth and power. While I appreciated the (perhaps uncharacteristically) undramatized, direct communication between Mindy, Emily and Sylvie that led to a quick exposure of the situation, it seemingly led to the storyline’s quicker conclusion. The #MeToo plotline practically disappeared in the most recently released episodes. Online people are asking for a better conclusion and a bigger discussion of this topic. Being such a major plot point for Sylvie and Mindy, as well as a topic which must be handled well, it’s negligent of the show to reduce this storyline and replace it with shots of Italy. However, I personally believe that the headlines asking for a bigger continuation and focus are a good thing. The audience is not only open to this, but they are responding and interacting with how it has been portrayed. And will hopefully have a voice in how the show handles this topic in the future.
On a less serious level, the characters of Luc and Julien were seemingly placed in the background as well in the season’s second half. For those of you who are fans of theirs, I am happy to provide you with an alternate reason as to what these two goofs were doing. While it may seem like they were toiling away in Paris the whole time before popping into Italy out of the blue, that’s not where they actually were. They were enjoying some poutine a province over from us! Well, okay, it was really the actors, but the photos they posted are filled with such Emily in Paris vibes that it would be easy to believe it was part of the show. I actually think it should be part of the show (how fun would it be for Emily to finally travel to Canada after all these years?). And I can definitely say that Emily would most certainly approve of their foodie posts from their mini Québec getaway! (Maybe Chicago-style deep dish pizza next??)
One final surprise that has been abuzz is the cameo from France’s First Lady, Brigitte Macron. According to Lily Collins, not only was she thrilled to make the cameo, but Madame Macron herself asked to be in the show! Many questions are circulating about whether this means that the First Lady officially gives her approval of the show particularly the stereotypes portrayed by its characters. As explained by one of its creators, Emily in Paris is meant to highlight the very touristy and most “classic” aspects of France that outsiders are drawn to and love. I mean, that’s what her Instagram account is all about! And I think it’s safe to say that Emily would be thrilled that the First Lady’s second appearance on her Insta (the first being a repost from the Vaga-Jeune campaign) is making headlines in real life.
Now that season 5 has officially been confirmed on the @emilyinparis Instagram, I can’t wait to see what headlines pop up on my feed next! As one article points out, Emily Is Really Gonna Have to Start Using Duolingo After That Season 4 Finale (Duolingo sponsorship collab anyone?? I think Luc could really rock the mascot suit!) And I’m curious to know if she’ll remain so ‘Delightfully delulu’ or if her talk with Sylvie at the end of episode 10 signified her full adoption of French culture (minus the language) which will allow her to remain culturally out of her depth in a new way next season. Whatever it turns out to be, wherever Emily is and whoever she’s falling in love with, I simply can’t wait — but I’ll have to because Netflix truly works at a snail’s pace. We all will, but that just gives us time to brush up on our Italian…
Emily in Paris seasons 1-4 are on Netflix now.
P.S. If you want to start your Italian lessons right now, search up “Emily in Paris” on Google and see if you can spot the little message!