Emily in Paris Recap: Heartbreak Hotel

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Okay, the episode title, “Bonjour Paris!” is… underwhelming. We’re back in Paris, and Emily’s French is getting good enough to really tell off some obnoxious American tourists. Mindy’s back performing and sending Alfie pictures of her stage outfits. Emily insists she’s moved on from Marcello, and it’s supposed to be exciting that she and Mindy are both single in Paris. But honestly, I don’t believe it – Mindy’s still seeing someone, and this show never lets Emily stay single for long.

Sylvie unexpectedly goes back to her husband, despite previously seeming ready to leave him (which doesn’t make much sense – it’s as if her character had a memory wiped between scenes!). She’s shocked to find another woman in their house, wearing Sylvie’s robe – yikes! Sylvie immediately sets boundaries with her husband, Laurent, telling him that his other partners aren’t allowed to wear her clothes or sleep in their bed. That seems perfectly fair!

Mindy had Game Boy-shaped earrings, and Julien was wearing a shirt covered in giant flip phones. It’s completely random—there’s no reason these characters would be dressing this way on purpose, and it doesn’t add anything to the story. It’s just a really noticeable and distracting detail!

The office is a mess because Gen isn’t a very effective assistant. While her bosses were gone, she spent her time gossiping and designing really unattractive baseball hats with a bizarre slogan – it’s strange, because when she started, she was brought on to be a stylish contrast to Emily, especially considering her father is Laurent! She’s now pushing her hat line, “Bonjour Bitch,” as a top priority for the agency, but it feels like a shallow imitation of the fun, edgy pillows Tricia created on Somebody Somewhere. The frustrating part is she can’t even handle simple tasks like scheduling Zoom meetings.

Sylvie joins the video call looking a bit outlandish, but she’s clearly stressed. The call is with Thomas Heatherton, a wealthy British hotel owner, who quickly dismisses a silly idea for his launch event – building a giant Eiffel Tower in the lobby. (“Would you also put it on a tour bus?” he asks.) The event is just three days away, and predictably, Emily jumps into the meeting with an unplanned suggestion: recreating the shops from her neighborhood so guests can try local products. Thomas actually likes this idea. Then, Gen starts pitching her questionable hats, which should be enough to get her fired, but Sylvie points out the situation is more complex. Emily offers to mentor Gen, which is ironic considering she previously sabotaged her. It makes you wonder if everyone has forgotten that!

Sylvie asked Emily to help resolve the conflict between Alfie, Antoine, and Gabriel. Gabriel had a single meal at a vegan restaurant in Rome and now wants to completely revamp his menu, which is surprising considering it just received a Michelin star and was based on his grandmother’s cherished recipes! Apparently, these adults need someone to help them find a middle ground. Antoine insists Gabriel either stick to the original menu or find a new job, and Gabriel, who receives job offers frequently, seems unconcerned. But isn’t this restaurant Gabriel’s lifelong dream? It’s hard to believe everything we’ve seen in the previous seasons of the show if he’s willing to walk away!

As soon as Antoine walked away, Emily told Gabriel, with a pointed tone, that their time in Rome was finished. They were standing right next to each other, and honestly, I was drained. I’ve had enough of this couple that was never meant to be!

I’m curious to hear from anyone who’s been to the Crazy Horse nightclub in Paris – am I overreacting to Mindy singing a slow, jazzy version of Britney Spears’ “Oops!… I Did It Again”? It just seems really out of place, but I’m open to being told I’m off base. I am certain Gabriel is awful, but I could be wrong about the Crazy Horse. And generally, trying to improve on a Britney Spears song actually makes it worse – you can’t really top the original!

Alfie and Mindy ditched their plans with Emily to share a romantic moment in the street. I expected them to get caught, but they didn’t. They’ve decided they want a proper relationship, meaning they’ll stop keeping it a secret and tell Emily together. I think Mindy should talk to Emily privately, maybe at her apartment, but nobody ever asks for my opinion! Still, it’s nice to see them acting so mature, even if it probably won’t last.

Gen continues to demonstrate a remarkable lack of professionalism, this time by being unaware of Brexit and therefore not realizing Thomas Heatheron’s chef would need a visa to enter the country. This is yet another perfect opportunity to fire her, but as usual, no one here will act decisively. Emily suggests Gabriel could help, hoping his exceptional cooking will impress Antoine enough to keep him on staff, forcing the two men to learn to collaborate. Sylvie, and frankly I, find this plan overly complicated and unlikely to succeed.

Emily is waiting outside when Nico unexpectedly shows up, much to her dismay. She’s clearly moved on and wants him out of her life, but he persists. While Emily firmly rejects his attempt to contact Mindy through her, she accidentally reveals where Mindy is working. Nico immediately goes to the Crazy Horse, where Mindy bluntly tells him she’s blocked him – she’s not interested in hearing his apologies or promises of change. This leaves Mindy in a difficult position, as she then has to tell her best friend that she’s now dating her ex, Nico.

It’s frustrating that Alfie and Mindy didn’t plan how they’d handle this difficult conversation. Instead of talking it through, Mindy avoids the issue, and Alfie abruptly ends things after she briefly explains she’s not ready. A major issue with the show is how male characters often act inconsistently just to drive the plot. For example, Alfie, who seemed genuinely interested in Mindy just the night before, wouldn’t realistically abandon her because of a rude encounter with her ex – someone she’d already blocked. Good storytelling should build the plot from the characters’ personalities, not force events onto them. It’s hard to care about the characters or the story when they don’t act like believable people within this world.

Laurent surprised Sylvie by telling her his girlfriend wanted to join them on a date – and was playfully interested in being close to both of them. Sylvie, unimpressed, told him he needed to get his own place. Laurent had moved to Paris hoping to strengthen their relationship, but things clearly aren’t going well. He seems hurt that his girlfriend wore Sylvie’s clothes and had intimacy in their bed, a move that’s understandably upsetting to Sylvie.

Emily somehow managed to organize the Heatherton Hotel event in just three days. It’s very similar to the iconic ‘Bonjour!’ scene from Beauty and the Beast – perhaps a little too on-the-nose, but the client is thrilled. He’s particularly impressed with Gabriel’s plant-based menu and is a big advocate for sustainability. (A billionaire who cares about the environment? That’s a bit unexpected, honestly.)

Julien tells Mindy that Nico has left the family company. Apparently, he wasn’t even guaranteed to inherit it – it sounds like he was competing with others and didn’t win. Mindy then unblocks Nico, and she immediately receives a flood of messages from him apologizing and saying he misses her.

Gen is secretly putting cheap hats into the gift bags, and Luc warns her that Sylvie will be upset if she does that without permission. Sylvie quickly finds the hats and jokingly appoints Emily to fire Gen, giving her the new title of “Vice-President in Charge of Firing Useless Stepchildren.” Gen is slow to realize what’s happening – she even asks if she’s being fired! – and predictably protests. Gen then uses the situation to reveal to Emily that Mindy and Alfie have been secretly dating for a long time, something everyone else already knew. Julien, put on the spot, admits it’s true.

Just then, Mindy rushes over and excitedly shares what she found out about Nico and JVMA, declaring, “I think he did it because of me!” Emily immediately responds, “That depends. Are you and Alfie in a relationship, or is it just casual?”

The following day, Emily visited Gigi and learned that Gabriel was quitting his job at the restaurant to work on a billionaire’s yacht – a decision Emily strongly disagreed with. She felt that no billionaire could be truly reasonable, pointing to their extravagant behavior, like taking short trips to space to celebrate wins, as a clear warning sign. Emily, like Olivia Rodrigo and Brooke Dubekon, found the whole situation concerning, and admitted her aversion was also fueled by watching the show Industry, which made her wary of being stuck at sea with someone so wealthy.

Gabriel, despite recently earning a Michelin star at the restaurant he designed and built as a tribute to his grandmother, declares he’ll never be happy there. My response? Fine, leave – good riddance!

However, the show likely doesn’t want viewers to feel that way, as it ends with a particularly melancholic rendition of Dido’s “White Flag.” This season featured a lot of compelling music choices, didn’t it?

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2025-12-19 01:57