I dont know if I should thank you or blame you for everything this year, but it wouldnt have been the same without you, Sylvie (Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu) tells Emily (Lily Collins) at Agence Grateaus staff Christmas party.

Thats right, the second part of Emily in Paris Season 4 kicks off with a holiday-themed episode, and Emily has apparently only been in Paris for less than a year, a fact that is easy to forget because of the nebulous passage of time in the show. (Also, without the visible cue of Kate Walshs very pregnant Madeline this season, its especially easy to forget how little time Emily has actually lived in the City of Light.)

Sylvies words and the red and green flashing Emily in Paris intro left me feeling so off-kilter that I was convinced Id accidentally missed something. So I went back to Episode 5 and rewatched the final scene where Gabriel (Lucas Bravo) celebrates his restaurant, girlfriend Emily, and the baby on the way that he still thinks ex-girlfriend Camille (Camille Razat) is going to have (remember, shes not actually pregnant).

Somehow, I didnt miss anything. The show suddenly speeds away from fall to a winter that necessitates the most spectacular and impractical array of furry and feathered outerwear and accessories that Ive ever seen.

Simultaneously, there is also a change in the characters who drive the show. While Part 1 spends more time on Alfie (Lucien Laviscount), Luc (Bruno Gouery) and Laurent (Arnaud Binard), Part 2 introduces three entirely new characters who dramatically change the direction of the show. Between the new dramatic winter wardrobes and the new faces who shake up everything in Emilys world, Part 2 feels like its an entirely new season, not the continuation of one. This jarring jump is also further proof that Netflix releasing new seasons in two parts isnt working.

For some shows, such as Bridgerton , the two-part model is annoying and detracts from the viewing experience, but the show still feels cohesive. However, for Emily in Paris, it changes the viewing experience entirely.

Already in a few Part 1 subplots, such as Mindy (Ashley Park) singing in Eurovision and Sylvies Me Too moment, the stories dont have enough space. When you combine arcs that already arent fully developed with multiple new characters and force everything into two chunks of episodes, the result is an incongruity that left me feeling whiplashed as Part 2 progressed.