There is nothing new or original about the storyline but loyalists may continue to be swept away by Emily’s high-fashion escapades against the sun-drenched backdrops of Rome and postcard-perfect Venice, notes Divya Nair.
If there is one lesson Emily hasn’t learned from the previous four seasons, it is not to mix business with her personal life.
But what’s Emily without chaos?
And when there’s chaos, there is ALWAYS (and ONLY) Emily to the rescue.
Welcome to Season 5 of Emily in Paris, where Emily (Lily Collins), a young American professional, continues to build her life and marketing career in a French city.
Over the past few seasons, we have seen Emily dump or get dumped by her boyfriends, Gabriel (Lucas Bravo), Alfie (Luciene Laviscount), and Mathieu Cadault (Charles Martins).
Things got hopeful by the end of Season 4, when Emily chose to turn over a new leaf and move to Rome to spend time with Marcello Muratori (Eugenio Franceschini) and head the agency’s office in Rome.
But Season 5, which is set in Rome has more surprises waiting for Emily.
Unlike her previous marketing campaigns that clicked instantly, Emily struggles to find her footing in Rome.
One bad decision leads to another, and Emily is left heartbroken.
And yes, Emily does bump into Gabrielle, but there’s a twist.
What’s new? Honestly nothing.
Everything that went wrong in the previous four seasons in Paris — be it misunderstandings in friendship, challenges at work, betrayals and troubled clients — repeats itself in Season 5.
In a Roman setting, though.
By now, Emily has become the poster girl for outlandish fashion. Every event and person in Emily’s life is an inspiration for the next big marketing campaign. I mean, how vain or innovative is that?
And the flings never end.
Particularly, the exes, who have an uncanny habit of showing up unexpectedly.
The marketing intern in Sylvie’s firm bluntly sums up the five seasons: You cannot tell who’s the client, or who’s dating whom.
And that’s exactly what makes the show so hackneyed.
There is nothing new or original about the storyline, the campaigns or the personalities.
But loyalists may continue to be swept away by Emily’s high-fashion escapades against the sun-drenched backdrops of Rome and postcard-perfect Venice.
For those of you looking for long-lasting love, the series also serves up plenty of steamy, passionate romance with cheeky nudity and irresistible men.
To be honest, Sylvie seems to lead a more thrilling and colourful life than Emily.
The makers could have experimented with other characters, but end up focusing rather too much on Emily, which also makes it too formulaic.
As always, Emily is portrayed as the emotional core of the series, reminding us to embrace our mistakes and imperfections. Messy but loyal in her relationships, she’s the kind of friend and colleague you’d bookmark for life.
And each time she falls in love, Emily makes you believe it’s perfect and final, even though we can see through how superficial it really is.
Imagine it’s season 5, and we are still secretly rooting for Gabriel!
I’d say it’s time to get married, you two, because this slow burn has burned us out.
And we don’t want to go through an entire season of 10 episodes to discover what we all knew and wanted way back in season 1.
Emily In Paris 5 streams on Netflix.
