“Emily in Paris” season three helped me waste my last day of winter break

Spoilers for “Emily in Paris” below. Tread at your own risk.

Did I binge-watch season three of “Emily in Paris”? Yes. Do I remember half of what happened? I don’t think it was necessary.

Emily Cooper was assigned a job at the French brand Champère in Paris because her manager couldn’t move to a new country. After being thrown into French culture, Emily tries her best to succeed at bringing American business to French luxury, with a few stumbles.

For those of you who have been here since the beginning, you know that the show has gotten better overall. The characters have developed into realistic people, besides Emily of course. The scenery is immaculate, showing me all the places I would want to visit in France. And the plot has actually taken into account the ruthless nature of the business world.

But for a show based around an American woman making her way in the French luxury market, it devotes maybe a third of the time to Emily’s struggles.

This season used one of my least favorite tropes in media: miscommunication. Emily has to decide between staying with her old boss from Chicago to run Champère or joining a new company with the French manager who boycotted the company. Instead of making an adult decision, Emily waits until the two women realize she’s deceiving them.

I know this isn’t a show to take seriously, but can’t the writers think of something better than this trope?

Part of the problem is Emily’s character, which has hardly grown since season one.

Alfie, Emily’s British boyfriend from season two, has more character growth than Emily (need I remind you of the title of this show?). He becomes friends with Gabriel, helps him bond with his girlfriend, and treats Emily as an adult. This confuses her since her communication skills are that of a middle schooler at best.

A few of his actions irritated me, like when he stayed in Paris for a month after separating from Emily. But he acknowledges his faults.

We know Emily, though, and she cannot resist going back to Gabriel. They form an adorable friendship bond by supporting each other’s careers and relationships. The problem comes when their partners only see their previous romantic connection, leaving them no choice but to pick up the pieces of their fractured lives yet again.

For a moment, I thought the writers would keep Gabriel and Emily in this platonic friendship. They visit a ball pit with colorful lights and drinks for a few hours, enjoying each other’s company without forced romantic or sexual tension. I got my hopes up.

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My mistake.

I appreciated the multitude of relationships explored in this season. The show developed on that front, but in terms of quality, it’s just another Netflix original for people to binge in one sitting.

Are you still watching? Next season, I’ll have to press no.

Rating: 4/10

@earlgreyincense

elizonar@miamioh.edu