The Apple TV comedy series Platonic just ended, and one can admit that it has been one of the most engaging shows out there, if not the best. The story of two old friends who reconnect after many years seems like a done-and-dusted scenario. What makes the show different is the way it has been written and how it normalizes the fact that being an adult and living life a certain way is not wrong. Sometimes adulting brings a sense of balance, which is a good thing.
Will, who has just been through his divorce, comes across as someone sensitive about the fact that his marriage ended bitterly. He has only a few things to hang on to, and one of them happens to be a bar that he partly owns. Will is a skilled brewer, and he knows the value of his creativity and works in the bar. He is also an idealistic and traditionalist when it comes to his work. He does not entertain anyone questioning his skill, let alone his friends and other partners at the brewery. Lucky Penny is the name of the pub, and the place is very close to his heart.
His former best friend Sylvia got in touch with him because she learned about his divorce from the social media account of his ex-wife, Audrey. This made her want to be there for him as a friend. The two had a falling out over the same ex-wife when she was his girlfriend. Sylvia did not approve of their relationship because she saw through the woman and let him know that he deserved better in life. Ever since that and the divorce, he feels awkward being with Sylvia because his ego does not let him live with the fact that Sylvia was right, and he chose his wife over her.
Even with Sylvia trying to get through to him, Will is not keen on having a heartfelt conversation with her. Since the two have met after a long time, he does not see the point of getting into old fights because he does not think Sylvia is genuinely keen on being his best friend again. Even though they have had their tussles, they end up going back to what they were, only this time, Sylvia is still happily married with three kids.
They begin to spend time with each other and talk about all the turmoil they have faced all these years without each other in their lives. Sylvia learns about Will’s difficult times being married to Audrey, and he now feels he needs to dedicate most of his time to his brewery. While he is conversing with Sylvia, it is easy to gather that he is surprised that the woman who used to be so spontaneous has become a homemaker surrounded by timetables, schedules, and planners, all things he thought Sylvia considered boring at one point. Will comes across as someone who is easily judgmental, especially regarding Sylvia, because he is expecting things to magically be the way they were. The man, by the looks of it, has not matured and still feels it is okay to indulge in manic, immature behavior.
Sylvia, who has moved ahead with the times, but Will refuses to see the fact that it is okay to move on and not be bitter about how life should have turned out. He is upset about the divorce and only puts up a façade that things are good between him and his ex-wife. Internally, he is battling insecurities, such as wondering if he is good enough. Andy and Reggie, his partners at Lucky Penny, want to expand their business, but Will is afraid that he would lose touch with his art and control over the pub. He also feels his friends are becoming sellouts, as he does not understand that businesses must establish themselves and flourish. He is also insecure, wondering if he will ever be happy because he can see how quickly his ex-wife has moved on.
Will also dates Peyton, a woman half his age, and again, he feels people around him would judge him. By people, he means Sylvia. Even though he claims her words have no effect on him, it is easy to understand that he does care what Sylvia thinks of the person he is dating. Sylvia’s accurate assessment of Audrey has left a deep impact, which made him want to run to her for many things related to his dating life, but he could not come across as someone relying on her for his life decisions. His constant back and forth of emotions about how he feels about Peyton leads to him breaking up with her. He realizes he cannot be with a woman that young, and he will have to finally move on.
Will probably needs to speak to a counselor or therapist to understand what he is going through and help him with his many flaws that are surfacing in the form of meltdowns, mostly in front of Sylvia. At one point, he tries to guilt-trip her into believing that she needs to embrace the older version of herself and let go of the person she has become. He forgets the fact that she is herself with her husband, Charlie, and best friend, Katie. It is just his inability to come to terms with the fact that aging is a natural process, and one needs to embrace it to live peacefully, which Sylvia has done.
He argues that she backed off on admitting that they saw something odd in the night sky which he claims is a UFO. This seems his way of letting Sylvia know that she never backed him, which is untrue and seems a tad bit insensitive. It was she who approached him ever since she heard the news of the divorce, helping him get over his mourning period. Sylvia’s husband also chimed in by spending time with her. That’s why calling her a boring housewife was not right, and it was just his way of letting out his frustrations that life was not heading as he had planned.
Will does get a redeeming chapter; he stands up for Sylvia when she is harassed by Johnny Rev, and he refuses to take up the job offer given to him because of the same incident. Sylvia learns of Johnny leaving the company, and she pushes Will to take up the job as he will not have to deal with the man after all. He does take up the job because he finally feels he needs to start a new chapter and let go of the older one. The job in San Diego helped him become a better version of himself. He and Sylvia are in two different cities, but they are making their friendship work, and he is slowly letting go of his many insecurities now that things have fallen into place.
