Platonic Season-Finale Recap: Clinically Proven to Function

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During its first season, Platonic was a pleasant, though forgettable, sitcom. However, season two felt different right away, and I’m still trying to pinpoint why. This time, everything just seems to work better-the characters and their relationships feel more realistic and well-developed, and the stories are more interesting and meaningful without changing the show’s overall feel. It’s a subtle improvement, but it makes a big difference.

That’s especially true in “Brett Coyote’s Last Stand,” which skillfully ties up multiple storylines from the season in its slightly longer, 40-minute runtime. The episode starts with both central couples (Will-Sylvia and Sylvia-Charlie) experiencing relatable, subtle conflicts. There’s no real worry that Sylvia and Charlie will get divorced – that didn’t seem to be a concern for them, or for Platonic, this season. However, there is a noticeable tension in their marriage due to accumulated frustrations and poor communication. This creates dramatic tension while still keeping the show light and easy to watch.

The episode starts by carefully showing us how things have settled into a new routine. Sylvia is getting a lot of work that involves constant travel. As Katie mentions on her podcast, she’s now the main source of income for the family, and it feels good for her to be employed again. However, she’s noticeably lonely and feels the absence of her family. Meanwhile, Charlie isn’t thrilled either, despite having more time to focus on Brett Coyote. He’s struggling with writer’s block, and being home so much gives him too many distractions, including excessive self-pleasure.

Charlie’s lunch with Stewart is a really important moment. First, spending time with a friend who has a job helps Charlie see that he doesn’t enjoy being at home constantly; he might actually want to go back to work full-time and make writing something he does in his free time. It also lets Stewart talk about how strange it was when Charlie suddenly announced he was retiring. When Charlie explains that Sylvia was upset he didn’t talk to her before quitting, he begins to realize he made a mistake.

Sylvia and Charlie reconcile in a heartwarming moment as they turn in their 2012 Honda minivan at the dealership. They both share their feelings and truly listen to each other for once: Charlie admits his writing feels self-indulgent, but Sylvia encourages him to continue, now that she’s finally read his book. It’s good to see her sincerely support his unusual choices, offering to be his support system after he’s spent years supporting her. However, it’s even better to hear him explain that she has always been his rock.

I had a hard time connecting with Charlie at times this season, but his storyline ends well. It’s heartwarming to see his friends and family treat him like a famous author, even though his self-published book, Mediation Season, looks simple and inexpensive. It makes you think that maybe writing doesn’t have to be his lifelong profession. Just one child calling him “a real author” nearly moves him to tears.

A key part of Charlie’s journey involves accepting his current situation and perhaps becoming more realistic about his goals. It’s typical for someone like him to begin reevaluating his career, not necessarily because he’s dissatisfied, but simply because time passes quickly and it’s difficult not to reflect on the time spent working. Will is also considering his life goals, but he’s pursuing a different path – fully committing to opening his own bar.

To be honest, Will is just Will, and he’ll always have a tendency to be a bit lazy. Besides the event he’s organizing, he doesn’t have much else going on, so he’s constantly around Katie. She only gets him to leave by sleeping with him, and then talking about how dependent she is and her problems with her father. I wasn’t sure if the show would develop a romantic relationship between them, but I appreciate how the finale handles it, using their likely one-time encounter mostly as a single joke.

Following that, Will lives with Reggie, but only if he consistently buys several packs of Celsius each day. The repeated mentions of Celsius in this episode could have become irritatingly like an advertisement if the show hadn’t also playfully highlighted the drink’s strange marketing claims about being “clinically proven to function.” Will jokes, “What drink on Earth tells you *not* to drink it?” Soon after, he finds himself addicted.

When Will goes to Sylvia’s to pick up his beer-making equipment, they start to reconnect and talk about the temporary bar. Things are going smoothly until Sylvia is unexpectedly sprayed with beer from the still, covering her entire yard. Although Will isn’t directly responsible, this incident resurfaces her unresolved feelings about him-she’s still upset about how he influenced Charlie’s career-and soon they’re arguing again, both blaming each other for their misfortunes.

And so, Will and Sylvia’s latest breakup begins, though it doesn’t linger for very long. They reconcile when Will visits Sylvia’s apartment to pick up mail and discovers that Johnny 66 has sent him a noncompete agreement. Shitty Little Bar is completely prepared to open, but unfortunately, he’s unable to do so. Will genuinely asks Sylvia for advice, confessing that his life is improved by her straightforwardness, and she urges him to at least attempt to change Jenna’s mind. She also acknowledges Will’s positive influence on her career, returning the compliment.

Will’s visit to Jenna’s office results in a final, brief encounter and a harsh dismissal, but the story finds a potential solution at Charlie’s book party: Sylvia could become the public face of Shitty Little Bar, circumventing the noncompete agreement. I’m really looking forward to a possible season three where Will and Sylvia are officially collaborating – similar to Ian and Poppy from Mythic Quest (another example of platonic soulmates on Apple TV+), and especially with Sylvia in a position of authority over Will. What challenges could arise from that dynamic?

However, I’m not thrilled about waiting for the next season to come out, or even for the show to be renewed. While The Studio has received a lot of recognition, Platonic is the truly exceptional Seth Rogen sitcom on Apple TV+ – it’s a funny and heartwarming show that reminds me of the best work from Judd Apatow. (Considering that co-creator Nicholas Stoller learned from Apatow, that makes sense!) Platonic doesn’t have a huge audience yet, but those who’ve discovered it really love it. Let’s get season three!

Inside Jokes

It was a pleasant surprise to see Bobby Cannavale, Rose Byrne’s husband, appear as Charlie’s imagined version of Brett Coyote. It was a nice cameo.

This episode had some great moments with Katie, like the funny way she changes her voice – a sort of vocal fry – when she’s feeling particularly girlboss.

After making Will help her with the difficult task of dropping her mom off at assisted living, Katie says, “I was worried about that, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought. Hey, do you want to go to Panda Express?”

• A good touch to show that Will misses Sylvia’s influence: He moves Reggie’s can onto a coaster.

• Will lands one last kick on a delivery robot. If there were a theoretical third season, what else might he kick over?

• Sylvia gets into a car accident-she rear-ends someone-right when Will tells her he slept with Katie. I had been wondering how she would react after the events of “Road Trip,” so it was interesting to finally see it happen on screen.

I might be overlooking something, but the order of events gets a bit unclear near the end of the episode with the quick jump forward in time. Sylvia gets covered in beer before the pop-up event, then she’s cleaned up and goes with Charlie to the Honda dealership. After that, she sees a newspaper article about the pop-up’s success while at the airport. It seems like the airport scene happens a couple of weeks later, but she says she’s catching a flight at the end of the scene at the Honda dealership, which makes it sound like everything happens on the same day? I’m just a little confused about the timeline.

Perhaps the most humorous moment in the episode happens when a young girl, whose mother compiled her stories into a book, says: “We’re both writers. We are the same.”

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2025-10-01 11:58