Emily in Paris: Season 5 and the Issue of Romance

Emily in Paris: Season 5 and the Issue of Romance

This post contains spoilers for Emily in Paris season four. Watching the latest season of Emily in Paris, it became evident that this Netflix romantic comedy has made the opposite error: uniting its own on-and-off couple way too late. After three seasons of watching Lily Collins’s dubiously-dressed American advertiser Emily pine over Lucas Bravo’s hot French chef Gabriel, the characters finally gave their simmering romance a shot in season 4. But only six episodes later, the flame had been snuffed out once more, never to be reignited by the season finale’s end.

The Slow-Build Love Affair

Series creator Darren Star is no stranger to a slow-build love affair. The triangle between Younger's Liza and her competing love interests, Charles and Josh, persisted until the series finale, and Sex and the City was famously able to drag out Carrie and Big’s nonsense from New York to Paris to the big screen. But the TV mogul has hit a snag with his latest series, which wasn’t helped by Netflix’s decision to split the season in two. Unsuprisingly, Emily in Paris does not possess the story heft of Stranger Things or even Bridgerton to merit such a gap.

Conflicts and Unwanted Characters

• Although the show’s writers had three previous seasons to decipher what an Emily and Gabriel relationship would entail, it feels like the show still hasn’t quite figured out how to script them as a full-fledged couple.
• Camille Razat’s character complicates their relationship too early, dragging down Emily in Paris’s escapist operation.
• Camille, who initially offered amusing dynamics, has overstayed her welcome, complicating the narrative unnecessarily.

New Directions for Season 5

In the season finale, Emily leaves the Gabriel drama in Paris and goes on a Roman holiday. This change indicates a potential for new stories in season five. With a fresh love interest like Marcello, Emily's journey could evolve into exciting new avenues.

As expectation builds for a fifth season, it remains to be seen if Emily in Paris can pivot to engage viewers with meaningful narratives and romance that avoids the pitfalls seen in season four.