‘Emily in Paris’ is clearly not flaunting its biggest asset enough

Emily in Paris season 4 is finally fully here, and part 2 is a vast improvement over part 1. But as Emily Cooper flirts with a new city (Rome), and a bellissimo new love interest (Marcello!), can we please get more of the show’s best asset in season 5? Mindy Chen singing, anyone?

Singer/actress Ashley Park instantly endeared us to her character, Chinese-zipper-heiress-turned-Parisienne-working-girl and Emily’s first BFF in Paris, Mindy Chen. Her character has been such a devoted BFF and now roommate to Emily, always speaking her mind, supporting her girl friend, and listening to Emily’s boy drama while managing her own. 

But one of the best things about Mindy as a character is that she is not just another lead’s best friend supporting character. If there was one thing Emily in Paris got right (at least in the beginning), it was the female characters, like Mindy, Emily’s boss Sylvie Grateau and Emily’s other friend, Camille. They are strong, assertive women, with financial and sexual freedom and an impeccable fashion sense, and I love how they rarely let a man walk all over them. You could almost say that at times, it is elusive to like Emily as a character but much easier to want one of these ladies’ lives to take the lead because they are fascinating characters indeed!

Mindy Chen, in particular, is a favorite because of her backstory. She’s run away from her rich father and a life of comfort that would come with strings attached to make something of herself in Paris. She’s a working girl, taking up jobs—from nanny to busking to being Le Dame Pipi—to support herself. As for her real talent, singing and performing, she’s a star! Remember the first time we heard her sing “La Vie En Rose” in the middle of that park? Chills, literal chills! Even Park’s original song, “Mon Soleil,” is a sexy romantic number about longing, where she has excellent chemistry with Kevin Dias, who plays Benoit, Mindy’s former boyfriend!

So then, here’s a fact: Any scene that involves Ashely Park’s Mindy Chen performing becomes an instant highlight of the series for me, often even more than the pivotal moments of Emily’s dramatic love life that are usually the climax of the season. Alas, we do have a problem here. For the past two seasons, Mindy Chen is stuck in a loop that feels all too familiar.

In Emily in Paris season 4, Mindy is dating JVMA scion Nicolas de Léon and the song that her ex-boyfriend Benoit wrote for her, “Mon Soleil” is selected as France’s official entry for Eurovision, which means Benoit is still in her life. With JVMA still deciding on its future head, Nicolas is under scrutiny, and Mindy’s risqué style and closeness with Benoit often does not bode well for him when featured in the tabloids. What’s more, it’s evident that there are still some unresolved feelings between Benoit and Mindy that everyone else can see. And in season 4 part 2, it all crescendos to a point where Nicolas and Mindy end up breaking up!

I, for one, love how Mindy never backs down from doing what is right for her, and doesn’t cater to the whims of misogynistic men and tabloids. However, if Mindy next season goes back to Benoit, or Nicolas and she somehow get back together, it would again have Mindy stuck in a loop, like her bestie Emily. And we don’t want that for her because Mindy deserves a man who lets her be the bold, flamboyant, glorious performer she is and take centre stage every change she gets! As per season 4 finale, Mindy could be headed for Chinese Popstar as judge, to the same reality show that made her a national embarrassment. And I look forward to seeing more of Mindy’s relationship with her father, that was hinted at in earlier seasons but not properly explored.

Love interests and family drama aside, the one thing I truly want for Mindy Chen is more singing. The scene where Park is dressed in a flirtatious and flow red gown from Indian designer Gaurav Gupta, and singing “Beautiful Ruins” in a piazza in Rome is permanently etched in mind as one of the definitive images from season 4!

We need to have Ashley Park singing a few more original songs before Emily in Paris decides to wrap up, or I would consider us fans severely deprived! This season, she sang Britney Spears’ “Oops I Did It Again” and the performance was incredibly sensuous, more of that please! Park’s Mindy is clearly one of the best assets of Emily In Paris and we need the show to flaunt her more often!