Did ‘Emily in Paris’ Just Drop the Saddest Christmas Episode Ever? My Honest Review of the Season 4, Part 2 Premiere

It’s Christmas-themed (yay) which marks a bit of a time jump from where we left off in part one. It also brings back one of the core reasons that I started watching Emily in Paris to begin with: Every establishing shot, every scene showcases the City of Light with its makeup on. (Episode one brings Gabriel, Camille and, ultimately, Emily—played by Lucas Bravo, Camille Razat and Lily Collins respectively—to the French Alps and, dear lord, it will have you scanning for plane tickets tout de suite in order to embark on your own stylish ski holiday.)

Still, brace yourself: The stunning backdrop—not just in the French Alps, but in Paris, too—is juxtaposed with more scheming and heartbreak than I was prepared for in the first episode, which clocks in at a lengthy 39 minutes. First, it’s Camille’s mother, Louise—played by French actress Camille Japy—who is back to her old ways. With Emily Chicago-bound for Christmas and Gabriel eager to honor his former tradition of spending the holiday with Camille’s fam (especially given her pregnancy), Louise sees it as the perfect opportunity to meddle and try to reunite Camille and Gabriel. (Of course, neither Gabriel nor Louise have yet been made aware of Camille’s pregnancy loss.)

There’s more: When Emily’s flight to Chicago is canceled due to weather, she does find herself awkwardly in the French Alps, too—and quickly realizes that a relationship with Gabriel means playing second fiddle to Camille, given she’s carrying his baby and he’s on the lookout for her well-being. (Again, Camille has yet to share the truth, which is wreaking havoc on future planning for everyone, it seems.) The trio hits the ski slopes, a fight between Gabriel and Emily ensues, which has Emily—who, to add insult to injury, loses her phone and with it the ability to post to Instagram—on a train back to Paris. (I’ll admit it’s boring once the will-they, won’t-they relationship between the lead characters gets resolved, but it also feels like the effort to break up Gabriel and Emily happened at warp speed following the conclusion of part one?)

After all that, there’s one final blow: Emily is finally back in Paris to regroup—phew—when she runs smack dab into Alfie, her ex, played by Lucien Laviscount, who is not only on his way to meet his new girlfriend’s family for the first time, but says out loud to her face that he now understands and appreciates the beauty that is Paris. (Come on, that feels like the ultimate slap in the face to Emily, who tried so hard throughout their relationship to make him see it. Quel dommage.)

All this is to say that you shouldn’t let the Christmas theme of the season four premiere fool you: This is not a feel-good episode. Instead, I watched with my mouth agape and felt pretty taken aback by the emotional roller coaster set against holiday lights.

We’ll always have Paris? Truly, the backdrop is the only bright spot of the kick-off to part two. (OK, that and what seems to be the new will-they, won’t-they romance of the season: Mindy and Benoit.) To be clear, this doesn’t mean I won’t be watching—it’s more that I was quite surprised at how many plotlines were blown up again in the opener. Frilly, frivolous viewing? This was not.