The Escape Room overall being Michelle’s idea
Season One - 3/6 (plus later seasons for context)
“Love Story - Final Scene”, “Just The Two Of Us”, “Video Killed The Radio Star”, “Can You Keep It A Secret”, “Keep It Together”, “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart”, “Sabotage”
“Look Michelle, he doesn’t wanna be your partner - get over it!" “If he didn’t wanna be my partner then why did he say yes?" “Obviously he just felt bad for you.” “Why would he feel bad for me? What’s wrong with me?” “I mean the shirt.” -- Emily and Michelle in their first couple fight trying to reason the dichotomy between the respect she feels for Michelle based on past professional interactions (we know this was foreshadowing), and their relationship as it stands at this point in time (near-abysmal).
The final scene of
“Love Story”
can be looked at as the beginning of this arc because it provides the first moment
Emily starts to do what she’s been promising to do all along (try and make Michelle miserable) and Michelle becomes more vocal about Emily’s leadership as a result.
This leads to their first direct face-to-face confrontation the following episode: “Leave Eldon out of our feud! ...I’ve been rehearsing with him and he keeps on coming back here and rehearsing with you?" “Well, maybe that’s cause he’s my duet partner." “You rejected him. Don’t you remember?” “Yeah. And now I’m saying yes. You know, just cause you now have a crush on someone doesn’t mean you can just take a duet partner.” “You think I have a crush on Eldon?" “...Yes!” “Maybe you do!” “Why would I like a little, dweeby dork?” “Yeah but he’s also the best dancer in the studio?” “Yeah. And I’m the Dance Captain. That’s why I deserve to have the best dancer.”
Worth noting: Michelle is (somewhat) aware of the friction caused by her arrival at The Next Step, as she says to Riley “I mean I’m not surprised but I’m really offended!”
Which... let’s be real, points to a whole lot of issues that have arisen because Emily is *bullying* Michelle at this point in time, and their relationship is not great.
However... back to it: their dance duet/battle can be looked at in a lot of ways, especially in light of later seasons:
It provides a nice contrast to the more friendly-competitiveness of other dancers (see Jacquie and Richelle)
It provided a key part of Emily learning to swallow her pride and therefore becoming a better dancer and Dance Captain (see Emily pairing Richelle with Summer)
Their emotions were running really high considering the fact that they barely pay any attention to him despite arguing over him *and he is sat right there*
There’s a nice parallel between their argument before their unexpected duet (which Emily initially resists because dancing without rehearsing first is disrespectful to the team--she’s a jerk, but her heart’s occasionally in the right place)... and Brighter Brightest seeing James and Riley doing the same thing and immediately calling them out for having chemistry in the next episode
That weird moment, where despite Michelle’s claims to the contrary--they seem to be on exactly the same page (ie., compare Emily’s reaction to Michelle mimicking pulling Emily to her with Hunter pretending to reel Emily in *cough* it’s the moment he realises something’s wrong *cough*)
After all this drama, Michelle initally resists the offer to become dance captain, as Emily already hates her--and she’s afraid of what she might do to her.
However, when Chloe is verbally berated, and visibly pushed past her breaking point--coupled with how Michelle has watched her treat nearly all of the other dancers--she goes to Riley and James to tell them she’s ready to take charge.
While planning for the coup d’etat (lol) there are moments where she’s visibly uncomfortable with the idea of taking over as Dance Captain--her initial reluctance to create choreography (but she goes ahead and does it anyway--and recruits new dancers); and the moment she almost looks relieved that Chloe might have told Emily (this could hark back to what Michelle said in episode 4 “I’m not--comfortable--to come between Emily and Riley, that’s not my position to take”) off the top of my head.
Despite her doubts, she persists with what the majority agree is best for the team, she persuades Chloe to keep their secret, dedicates all her spare time to rehearsal of the secret routine, and--in what is their first moment of playful face-to-face banter--lies to Emily about Riley’s whereabouts.
(Might I go off-topic here to point out that Emily’s method of getting Michelle to tell her what happened looked--not just a lot like flirtation (which... there was a lot)--but genuine connection; especially taking the Talking Head segments into account, in direct contrast to their duet, they were both on the same page--from beginning to end. Hence, imo, the reason Emily was so unsettled to see Michelle walk away)
Sabotage is... a weird episode, considering this was supposed to be the resentful moment their feud blows in everyone’s faces (which it does, and I’ll get to that). But first we get...
Emily all but giving up on kicking Michelle out of the studio (she tried twice--kinda, and let Michelle tag along to Elite, lmao--good effort... as a reminder, this is the same person that always has a ‘back-up plan!’)
When her best friend starts to take over, and comes up with a plausible way to get Michelle kicked out of the studio... the only thing Emily has to say is ‘that’s so mean’?
She doesn’t even end up sending the message, she just looks at her own phone shocked--then regretful??
Michelle appealing *directly* to Emily, despite the fact that she knows she’s being set up... by Emily???
Michelle genuinely being hurt (she even emphasises this) that Emily would do this????
Oh, also! You know convincing-every-other-dancer-in-the-studio-actor Emily?... Shockingly poor performance when Michelle’s in the room?? (and she fixes her hair before Michelle comes in like--you idiot, this is neither an interview nor a date?????? and I’m done)
Then the blow-up which just...
For all everyone hypes up Michelle and Emily’s relationships with Eldon, nothing even close to that comes up. A review--Emily is:
Bossy
Rude
Stubborn to a fault (’don’t include anyone’s ideas!’)
Oblivious, mean, and controlling ('You make us not even wanna dance!’ There is an implication in her saying this statement that Michelle is aware Emily doesn’t have the self-awareness to realise this)
Divisive ('A good Dance Captain doesn’t tear the team apart.’)
And Michelle is:
Hypocritical and divisive (Oh, and I suppose your routine didn’t do that?)
Rescinded (Michelle looks at her and she doesn’t speak again until it’s to respond to Miss Kate)
Then there’s the whole angstiness of everyone performing the dance (’seeing everyone having a good time and just--doing the hardest they can to take everything I’ve ever worked for away from me? That’s hard. That’s, that’s really hard.’)
Michelle is, aside from Stephanie, Miss Kate, and Chris, the only person who appears to value Emily’s contribution admitting it could go either way (’I know Emily’s worked really hard to become Dance Captain... and I know she’s worked really hard to create her routine...’).
Basically, you know what Emily said in episode two? "I’m the Dance Captain because... honestly, I don’t see anyone else in the studio being able to handle it other than myself.” Another of her foreshadowing-in-an-ironic-manner utterances. She *couldn’t* do it herself, she just thought she could, trying to do it herself as she thinks she has to ("Rules are rules, and I don’t believe in the saying rules are made to be broken”) has caused her to snap--hurting not only her, but everyone else. And that’s not okay.