Emily in Paris

Well, I am partly enjoying it..but then realized it is basically a drawn out version of devil wears Prada- same fashions, same mean boss woman, same bitchy office politics, and if you listen closely enough- also the same background music they used in the original movie.

The main high point is Gabriel (obvious reasons really ; ) but the series lacks realism- the main character is dripping in designer outfits yet rents a very average apartment. She somehow manages to befriend her narcissistic boss and invites her to parties. She's allowed to speak English at work when everyone else is talking in french. Literally every guy she meets seems to want her. Who actually buys this?

Also, I dont know French people but they are not represented in the nicest way- made to look philandering and full of secret agendas, whilst Emily is made to look like the sweet little innocent amongst them.

The actress, Lily Collins, is amazing..but the story is so cliche and feels just like another Andy sachs adventure .

An intellectual Emily is not. She is a ditzy and immature girl. Her life is a series of disasters in both her personal life and work. Common sense is not in her equation. She makes a succession of poor decisions, hoping to keep her boyfriends in the air, until it all crashes. Emily seems unable to show any sort of decision making ability. How she manages to get the daily changing fabulous clothes she wears is a mystery. Particularly the size of her flat and a free standing rack that is for her clothes. Where the clothes all live is beyond me and how she manages to acquire them. Mindy, her singing friend makes a nice distraction. Overall, although visually appealing, the story is like Groundhog Day in that it keeps going over the same ground with slightly different variations, rinse and repeat.

The Emily In Paris show is basic. It's a show that I really enjoyed (by the way, I just finished the first part of season 4 in one day), but it's a show that cruelly lacks depth. The characters are far too superficial, the problems they face are not at all "relatable" and especially their life in Paris does not symbolize life there at all. The show is full of clichés, croissants, bars, restaurants, streets with Haussmann buildings, this is so false and it's an extremely superficial side of the show. The characters seriously lack depth, Emily who is in a love triangle and the problems she lives at work are nonsense and very shiny and cute romance. It's much more of a show that you can chill to and watch without really paying attention and more enjoying the city (which is simply wonderful knowing that Paris is not really like that). I advise if you like to watch a light and normal show but not really if you appreciate something deep and strong.

I'm French and yes there is lot of clichés in the show, it may be a bit annoying when this is overplayed but to be fair, even if in numbers the cliché are mostly on French, the authors do not avoid to put some on Americans too (shouting instead of talking, not able to dress up without a lack of taste, etc.). Moreover what I found interesting in this show (and apparently my fellow country mans didn't noticed it) is the fact that when there is a cultural difference to settle, this is not a " Merica is always right so think as we do". Both are giving their point of view and explain it.

Overall, the show is quite nice even if lot of things are not credible, and I would put a 8 stars if clichés were a bit more nuanced (ex: yes we know that there is less working hours/per week than in US but come on, nobody starts a 10:30 AM and take a 2h lunch break at restaurant every day).

To conclude, this is not the tv show of the year, but still nice to watch. If you're not French, keep in mind that this is not a true reflection of France, if you say "bonjour" we're not that rude ;), and if your French, chill-out a bit, i know we are a proud of being French and very chauvinist but come on, what is showed is somewhat halfway true and keep in mind that authors try to do it in both ways with superficiality on US social media etc...

Is it the most well written, eloquent, well acted series ever? No. Is it a light watch that is easy to check in and out of with fantastic colours and set design/ costumes? Yes. I enjoyed this in a time where I don't want to be reminded of the Covid Global Crisis, politics, the crap weather and other depressing things going on across the globe.

The characters are quite fun. The storyline is easy to navigate. The set and colours are beautiful. A lot of criticism around the wardrobe on Vogue Instagram but I thought they were fun and pretty.

It's mindless and distracting from reality. Perfect. What more could one want from a series right now?