In 2015, The Guardian proclaimed 'basic' as the insult of the year. The decision followed a particularly infamous incident involving Kate Moss, a budget airline and a dispute on a flight which saw the supermodel allegedly call the pilot a 'basic bitch.' A legendary slur was born, and it has lingered ever since.
Now, it has reared its head on Netflix, used against the plucky heroine of Darren Star's new series Emily In Paris. Played beautifully by Lily Collins, Emily is daring, charming and, well, yes: a bit basic. Careful: stop reading and come back later if you haven't made it to episode six yet.
Emily is a marketing and social media expert flown to Paris to bring an American perspective to a French agency. They are not fans of her positive attitude and against-the-grain ideas. Indeed, when they take her to meet with an esteemed male fashion designer, he does not take to her either. Spying a bag charm of his own design, clipped to her handbag, he screams 'ringarde', and storms out of the meeting. Confused, Emily seeks a translation from her colleague. The answer? Traditionally, it would be interpreted as 'old hat'. Now? It's considered synonymous with the fatal 'basic.' She is crushed.
So crushed is she that, later, she tracks the designer down at the opera in an effort to salvage his relationship with her agency. What follows is the perfect retort to snobbery, a new mantra for the basics.
'You're right: I am a basic bitch with a bag charm', she confesses after ambushing him in his private box.
'In fact, do you want to know why I got that bag charm? Because my friends and I were obsessed with Gossip Girl. We all wanted to be Serena van der Woodsen, in her gorgeous, crazy expensive couture. But the only thing we could afford from any of those designers was a clip-on bag charm from an outlet mall in Winetka.
So yeah, I guess that made us pretty ringarde. You think ringardes don't respect designers. We worship designers so much that we spend all we've saved on a dumb accessory, just to feel like we're somehow on your runway. You may mock us, but the truth is you need us. Without basic bitches like me, you wouldn't be fashionable.'
Of course, the delivery wins him over, as it should. Emily's refusal to be shamed for loving fashion, for lacking innate class, for being, well, basic, is a valuable reminder that we should never apologise for participating in trends or following fashion if that is what makes us happy.
It is something of a spiritual antidote to the monologue of Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada, where she tells an embarrassed Andy that she, whether she likes it or not, is participating in a capitalist industry. Emily is proud to do so, proud of why and how she plays the game, and will not be told that her methods make her worthy of disdain.
Be more Emily. Be who you are, buy what you want with your hard-earned money, do what it takes to envision your best self. Be a basic bitch, and proud.
Emily In Paris is streaming now on Netflix
READ MORE: We Can't Wait To See Jodie Comer And Matt Damon In The Last Duel, But What About That Age Gap?
READ MORE: The Internet Is Obsessed With These Viral Sex And The City Videos