Platonic (Season 1) Episode 4: “Platonic,” on Apple TV+, has its fourth episode streamed today and continues on its remarkably set premise. Building on last week’s three-episode debut, the show continues to rely heavily on the ‘platonic’ chemistry between leads Rose Byrne and Seth Rogen.
Created by Francesca Delbanco and Nicholas Stoller, the show continues to flaunt its witty and wry humor through the fast quips between Rogen and Byrne. All signs point towards a comedy that would provide a chuckle every Wednesday. Sometimes, that is all we need.
Platonic (Season 1) Episode 4 Recap:
Charlie’s Offer
Will (Seth Rogen) and Sylvia’s (Rose Byrne) re-blossomed friendship is slowly becoming a source of change for the duo, as well as a (possible) source of nuisance for Sylvia’s husband, Charlie (Luke Macfarlane). In the last episode, the drunken Sylvia ate Charlie’s boss’ speech after he could not remember Sylvia’s name despite meeting her numerous times. This prompts a talk between Charlie and one of his colleagues, Stewart (Guy Branum).
Stewart suggests that Charlie should get Sylvia a job since she is having a mid-life crisis. But he also suggests that Charlie needs to do it tactfully so as not to look like he is pitying her. A thing Charlie does not succeed at, eventually. Nevertheless, Charlie does give the number of Kirk Friedkin to Sylvia. Kirk is a friend of Charlie and is part of another law firm. Kirk, apparently, is in the market to hire someone suitable. A position Charlie would like Sylvia to fill. Sylvia, however, after much dilly-dallying, does not call Kirk. Instead, she calls Will.
Divorce Party
The eponymous divorce party idea comes to Sylvia when she attends one such event. One of her girlfriends got divorced, and all her friends gathered to provide words of comfort to her. Sylvia’s prepared words, however, get plagiarised. Sylvia’s friend, Katie (a hilarious Carla Gallo), blurts out the speech that Sylvia has prepared and passes it off as her own. Leaving Sylvia to tell a story that is not all inspiring for her recently-divorced friend.
This, however, inspires Sylvia to throw one divorce party for Will, who does not seem to truly get over his ex-wife, Audrey (Alisha Wainwright). Will’s date does not go as smoothly as he might have hoped, leaving him to desolately stalk Audrey’s Instagram profile. A divorce party seems to be the right kind of medicine for such a condition. But, it does not go as smoothly as they hoped for or as Sylvia hoped for.
Firstly, Sylvia meets one of her lady friends from the kids’ school. Someone who would probably snicker at the barely-mature party of Will and his male friends. Sylvia would not want her two worlds colliding, especially with her school social circle being so rife with gossip. To make matters worse, one of Will’s best friends, Andy (Tre Hale), pops up a packet of cocaine. And a reluctant Sylvia eventually gives in and does partake. This results in Sylvia getting uncontrollably high.
Platonic (Season 1) Episode 4 Ending, Explained:
Why does Sylvia not call Kirk?
Rose Byrne and Carla Gallo in “Platonic,” now streaming on Apple TV+.During the episode, Sylvia struggles with her confidence. It is not without any reason. A prolonged break from work can do that to a person. Sylvia has not been inside an office for more than a couple of hours in over a decade. The last office party of Charlie’s did not boost her confidence. She sees the camaraderie, the office quips, and the working process of a law firm; and could not help but feel out of the loop.
Apart from the confidence, Sylvia also feels unintended pity from her husband. Although Charlie does not present it that way, the job seems to be tailor-made for Sylvia, which makes her wonder whether she truly deserves that job or not. It does not help when Charlie mentions that Kirk owes him a favor. It is no wonder Sylvia thinks the job offer is more of a ‘charity case’ than a real job. Add to that the constant barrage of the question, “What’s a charity case?” from one of the kids. That does not help.
Despite that, Sylvia tries to call Kirk but could not due to a lack of confidence. This, however, gets treated once she snorts some cocaine. The high and knackered Sylvia, after taking a nap on Will’s sofa, calls Kirk out of a sudden burst of confidence. Only to be told by Will that it is 2 a.m. Sylvia drops the call, but Kirk (understandably worried) calls back on the number. Will concedes that Sylvia has no option but to change that number now.
Does Charlie get angry at the end?
It was already shown that one spouse of the main leads, Audrey, was not a fan of this friendship. The show, with its tantalizing name and frequent callbacks to “When Harry Met Sally,” clearly tries to explore the male-female ‘platonic’ friendship, with sex perhaps peeping over the horizon. So far, the friendship between Will and Sylvia has been nothing but platonic, true to its name. And the other spouse, Sylvia’s husband, Charlie, has been shown as encouraging in this regard.
However, it seems Charlie also has his concerns. The reignited friendship has come with certain aspects of Sylvia that make Charlie a little uncomfortable. One of the first few indications of Charlie’s indignation was when Sylvia mentioned Will’s influence in making her not go for the house that she and Charlie previously had agreed upon.
Additionally, and this has nothing to with Will, Sylvia not calling Kirk possibly irks Charlie too. Presumably, he starts to think Will’s influence on Sylvia is making her more of a risk-taker than she previously was. At their age, with three children, this is not something that Charlie would be too keen on. That is understandable.
When the wasted Sylvia returns to her home and slips into the bed beside Charlie, it is shown that Charlie is awake. He glances at the clock, which shows 3 A.M. The steely-eyed expression tells us that Charlie is positively miffed, at the very least. Needless to say, the hitherto supportive husband has started to question the friendship. It does not seem that Charlie is questioning the ‘platonic’ nature of the friendship, at least not yet.
It is more the impact this renewed friendship is having on their marital life, seemingly drawing Sylvia away from her life with Charlie and the kids. The way Charlie looked at the clock, it would not be surprising if he starts to question the ‘platonic’ nature as well. That would be something we could expect in the upcoming episodes.
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Platonic (Season 1) Episodes 4 Links: IMDb, Wikipedia, Rotten Tomatoes
Platonic (Season 1) Episodes 4 Cast: Rose Byrne, Seth Rogen, Tre Hale
Where to watch Platonic
