Emily in Paris Season 1 Episode 1 Recap – Emily in Paris

Following the acquisition of Savoir, a French luxury marketing firm, the Chicago-based Gilbert Group plans to deploy Madeline Wheeler to Paris for a year to assist with the transition. But she learns she’s pregnant only days before she leaves and offers the job in Paris to Emily Cooper, with the promise of a promotion when she returns to Chicago.

Emily takes the position despite the fact she does not know how to speak French. She informs her boyfriend, Doug. He supports her.

Emily discovers language isn’t the only thing she doesn’t know about Paris when she arrives. A representative from the rental agency shows her an apartment in an old but charming building, where she discovers the ground floor and the first floor are two separate floors. He invites her out for coffee or dinner while they’re admiring the view from her apartment window, but she gently rejects, saying she needs to get to her office and has a boyfriend. Emily takes a selfie after he leaves and uploads it on Instagram, changing her handle from @emilycooper to @emilyinparis.

When she reports to her new office, her coworkers are disappointed she doesn’t speak French, and she wants to give an American twist to the way they conduct business. There, she meets Sylvie, her immediate supervisor, and Paul, the founder of Savoir, who are both skeptical of Emily’s ability to contribute to their operations. In addition, she meets with her team, which does not go well. Patricia, who does not speak English, immediately leaves. When she is merely speaking naturally, Luc thinks she is shouting. Sylvie is clearly annoyed by Emily’s presence and is determined to make her uncomfortable enough for her to leave.

While walking home, Emily receives a call from Doug, who shows her his passport and informs her he will be arriving in Paris soon. Emily meets Gabriel, who lives in the apartment below hers, later that night when she tries to enter his unit, believing she is already on the fifth floor.

On her second day at work, Emily tries hard to connect with her coworkers and asks them to lunch, but they all decline. She ends up having lunch alone in the park, where she meets Mindy, a woman from Shanghai who becomes her friend almost instantly. Back at work, her coworkers made fun of her and dubbed her “la plouc,” which translates to “The Hick.”

She goes to an outdoor café later that day. Luc passes by and joins her. He apologizes and says he didn’t want to call her la plouc. He also tells her they are terrified of her ideas and presence, and they think they’ll have to work harder now that she’s there. 

At 3:00 a.m. the next day, Emily is awakened by a phone call from Doug, who has just gotten home from work — it’s only 7:00 p.m. in Chicago. They agree to have cybersex, but Emily is left unsatisfied due to a poor internet connection. She plugs in a vibrator to help her get through with it. But as she turns it on, it sparks, leading to a power outage throughout the building.

Our Thoughts

As a pilot episode, this one sure is a great one. It makes us look forward to what is in store for Emily now that she’s already in Paris. It makes us want to know how she’ll deal with the challenges: a new apartment, a new office, new coworkers, and new friends. It definitely makes us wonder if her relationship with Doug will survive or if she’ll find new love with Gabriel, the guy downstairs. We loved how the episode seemed to transport us all to Paris with Emily, and those outfits, of course, never cease to amaze and inspire us.