Stromae and Pomme’s “Ma Meilleure Ennemie”, at first glance, is a hauntingly beautiful track about a toxic relationship, but when you lean into the lyrics, it starts to reveal something deeper about the way love and hate can become impossible to untangle. For me, with my background in English literature and creative writing, this song is a perfect excuse to stretch some literary muscles and ask, “What can stories, poetry, and even modern fantasy teach us about the emotional tug-of-war this song captures?”

The fact that this track exploded alongside its appearance in Netflix’s Arcane only adds another layer. The song doesn’t just stand on its own—it’s tied to the story of Ekko and Jinx, a pair of characters locked in their own love-hate dynamic.

Whether you’re here because the song caught your ear, the show hooked your heart, or you’re just trying to figure out why this all feels so timeless, my hope is that we can pull these threads together. Let’s dig into the lyrics and see what they—and maybe a few classic literary ideas—have to tell us about the ways love can be both the thing that saves you and the thing that breaks you.

Love and hate aren’t opposites: The lyrics reveal how these emotions can coexist, shaping relationships that are both magnetic and destructive.