Review of “Emily in Paris” 4×04: “The Grey Zone”

The sign of a good character is that they are constantly evolving and changing. You can look at their history and know that they have become more over time than they were when you first met them. It can be big things or small things. But it’s just a wealth of moments that have transformed them from the person you knew to the person you want them to be.

Emily in Paris has these characters.

Well, I’d like to think that Emily has grown the way this episode was trying to convey, but we find that she just hasn’t. She’s not a person with big swings and no inhibitions. She needs boundaries and structure in her life and in her relationships.

And that’s one of the reasons I believe one thing after this episode: Gabriel is not forever. He’s for now. That’s good news for me because watching their relationship is painful. I’m just not into any part of it and I personally think Gabriel is acting like a selfish jerk.

But here we are and these two are trying to take things out of the car.

TAIL BLOCK

Gabriel and Emily want sex – which, hey, hormones, attraction and all. We get it. But when they go to Emily’s, thinking they have the place to themselves, Mindy is there. She was supposed to be with Nicolas, but they were fighting.

For the first time this season, I see a hint that Gabriel may still be salvageable when he apologizes and lets the two best friends talk. I’m not saying Gabriel is a bad person – he’s not. But what I think keeps happening is that he behaves in a completely selfish way.

But best friends, let’s talk about best friends. The way Mindy and Emily are on screen makes me believe in their friendship even more. It’s like you can’t fake that kind of friendship and so Ashley Park And Lily CollinsThe true relationship is conveyed on screen.

Nicolas is mad at Mindy. They were arguing. I understand that we’re dealing with his father here, but if your father is wrong – THEN HE IS WRONG. He wanted Mindy to be photographed at a charity event with his family, and she doesn’t want that. She doesn’t want to be complacent. And so he asked her if she felt like he was doing that by taking a photo with his father. She told him that it wouldn’t do any good.

And that’s not true. She was honest.

Mindy is not a “cock-blocker,” even though she calls herself that. If we’re being honest, I think one of the best things about this season is that the show makes sure we know more about everyone else’s lives. Yes, it’s been like that before, but not to the level it is this season. It was touching to see.

THREE PEOPLE

Sofia and Emily – I don’t know how they do it. They both walk a fine line when it comes to Gabriel and Camile. Camile keeps proving that she’s not over Gabriel and I get the feeling she thinks she made a mistake at the altar.

But I don’t think that’s it. I think Camile doesn’t like not having everything she wants. Emily is threatening her.

You see, Sofia and Camile are looking for apartments, but Camile has problems with every single apartment. It’s clear to every viewer that the apartment isn’t the problem. The problem is that she has to be away from Gabriel. As long as she lives with him, she can keep him and Emily apart.

I said what I said and I stand by it.

But when Emily hears that they’re staying longer, she breaks down and tells the caretaker that there are three people in the apartment. You really can’t blame her. I would have done it a long time ago.

What we find out later is that Gabriel snitched too. And that’s one of those moments where I can find some redemption in him, so I’m not even mad about it. I think he and Emily should have talked about it before either of them did it – but that’s the way it is.

I know it will make me angry when we find out that the caretaker showed Camile and Sofia an apartment right across the street and that they end up taking it.

You’ll never convince me that Camile isn’t trying to keep Gabriel so she doesn’t lose to Emily. I don’t think it’s because she really loves him. I think she loves herself the most and everyone else is just collateral damage.

SYLVIE & LAURENT

I keep saying it – Sylvie is the heroine of this season so far. She is the character who changes the most and we love that about her. But with change comes the character who doesn’t want to change. That line is very difficult and hard to cross.

As Sylvie deals with the consequences of her decision to speak to the newspaper, I can see her getting upset. I think she did the right thing, but the amount of people acting like it’s OK to mistreat her or stop working with the agency – that’s not OK.

JVMA is of course cutting the club’s funding. That’s no surprise. Laurent isn’t mad because Sylvie is talking or because the funding has been cut. But he’s completely wrong in some way when he says I’d better go back to St. Tropez.

I think Sylvie is happy to have him around. She loves being with her husband. She wants him around. Of course, she won’t show it in the way the rest of us might. When I see Sylvie putting up walls, but at the same time wanting to be there for her husband and keep him close, I have to admit that I just feel sorry for her.

I’m also a little angry at him for treating her like an alternative to his wife. Yes, she never told him everything about her time at JVMA, but I’m starting to understand why. I also hate that I look at her and feel like she feels bad about it.

And that is simply wrong.

MOM SAYS

Sylvie doesn’t want to disappoint Laurent. And to be honest, I loved that. I love the side of her that slowly realizes that she doesn’t have to do everything on her own. And hey, she does. The thing she maybe doesn’t want to do – she calls her mom.

Heloise was once the Queen of the Night in Paris. She was famous for her affairs, heroic deeds and just for her fun all around. However, she is not very nice, not even to her daughter. She did not like that her daughter was at the The World Interview and seemed to have a lot to say about it.

But when it comes down to it, Heloise lets her daughter use the building she has for the club. She sets conditions, and while we’re not sure what they are, I’m pretty sure they won’t be easy.

I do think it’s sweet that Sylvie, who pretends she doesn’t need anyone, actually does need someone. But even better – we learn why she is the way she is, AND we learn that she’s willing to sacrifice a lot for the people she loves.

FIND ME IN THE CLUB

I’ve said one thing before and I’ll say it again – I love that Sylvie is damn loyal. She knows that the people she works with are her family and she loves them. I think that’s why it hurt her so much when Julien left for JVMA. He’s been through a lot with her and even when he’s gone, his loyalty is important to him.

So much so that when Louis asks for information about Sylvie, he quits. There’s a line he won’t cross and I love him even more for it. I loved it when he shows up and tells Sylvie she’s putting him right back to work.

Preparing the club for opening night is something that everyone has to pitch in to. And it works. It works because Sylvie and her team are a family who make sure everything runs smoothly. OK, there are a lot of complications, but that’s okay.

We love drama.

MINDY, MINDY… THIS IS COMPLICATED

Mindy and her group are performing at the club opening – I’m glad to see them back on stage. I was a little frustrated and wondered when we would see more of them and if we would hear more about the Eurovision Song Contest. What’s going on? Not that we’ve heard anything about it here.

What we got to see was the chemistry between Mindy and Benoit. MAN, that was amazing. There was a connection between those two, but I’m not sure it translated from the stage.

BUT, I have to say, I don’t want them together. I don’t want them together because I like her and Nicolas together. I like that they get along and that even though they fight, they end up together. I believe in them.

Nicolas apparently told the JVMA board that he didn’t want to work there if his father was in charge. I have to admit, at that moment, I thought this wasn’t going to end well. Although I feel he did the right thing, I’m not sure he did it for the right reasons.

And the show has set up a moment where we think Benoit and Mindy might get together, so do we see Nicolas resent Mindy?

With all these storylines, only time will tell.

OTHER THOUGHTS

• Gregory Dupree for Pierre Cadault – when I watched Nicolas and Julien perform, I had to laugh. The look on Nicolas’ face was priceless and I think if we can’t laugh, we’re missing out on something good
• Laurent – ​​I hate that you took that personally
• Sylvie’s mother is priceless. Especially when she is in the office
• I welcome Emily’s admission that she is not someone who can live in the “grey area”
• You can take the girl out of the Midwest, but you can’t take the Midwest out of the girl
• The shampoo line – I can not
• Emily’s promotion of the shampoo – I applaud
• Julien – I love you

The first half of the fourth season of Emily in Paris is currently streaming on : Netflix.