I'm going to be incredibly controversial for a second. I quite liked Emily In Paris. I did not by any means think it was a well done show, and some of the French stereotypes are absolutely outrageous, but sometimes that's what you need. Mindless, over-the-top garbage, just so you don't have to come up with any sort of intelligent thought for twenty minutes. And in that aspect, this shows succeeds incredibly.
As someone studying A-Level French, in order to do a combined honours containing French, in order to do a year abroad somewhere in France; the original premise of this show really called out to me. That's my dream! I thought; and in a way, she's experiencing everything I would want to. Good wine, good food (although as a vegetarian who hates cheese, I'm not sure how well I'd fare with French food), and a gorgeous view from her apartment. And almost all of the cast are ridiculously gorgeous, so aside from Emily's god-awful fashion, this show was never unpleasant to look at.
So on the surface, this show is quite good. It's fun, it's fresh, and most of the characters are enjoyably witty. It's just once you actually start paying attention to the plot that you realise that this show is pretty bad.
First of all, can we discuss the episode where Emily (who's presumably 25, since she has a Masters degree) had sex with her friend's 17 year old brother? Because oh my god, that was so unnecessary. There was not a single advancement to any plot points, or anyone's character arc that came out of that scenario. I assume that it was thrown in there for comedic purposes, but it just made me cringe so hard. As a sixteen year old girl, I can absolutely confirm that no seventeen year old boy would ever be able to pass as a twenty-something year old. Even if he is French.
And now, for possibly the most absurd part of the entire show. Emily's Instagram. No matter how witty (or just plain annoying) her hashtags might have been, there's no way she'd get from 0-20K followers that fast, with just random photos captioned with nothing but a silly joke. I understand it's fiction, but again- this whole 'influencer' thing doesn't really influence (see what I did there?) the plot in any way; so what was the point?
The way she's right about absolutely everything is simultaneously quite exciting to live vicariously through (because who wouldn't want to be the one with all the answers?), and utterly irritating. No wonder all of her French colleagues absolutely despise her.
And finally, let's discuss Mindy. By far the most exciting character on the show, she was the one I was really invested in. When she got her job at the jazz club (is that what it was? I don't recall) I was overjoyed for this fictional character. But oh my god, the way they just used her as a mouthpiece to spout awkward, distasteful jokes about Chinese people? Very strange and, once again, incredibly unnecessary.
So let's review. It's essentially trash TV, which most people 'hate watch' rather than enjoy (see for example: me for some reason forcing myself to watch all seven seasons of Pretty Little Liars twice), but it is entertaining. Would I watch season 1 again? No. Would I watch season 2 when it comes out? Yes. Hopefully by then one of the characters will see how hideous (and not even in a high fashion way) Pierre Cadault's new designs actually were.
[PS. What was with all of the affairs? I could hardly keep up, it was exhausting.]
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