Friends are the people who will selflessly criticize your exes, steal anything for you from anyone, overcome any difficulties just to make you happy, and at the end of the day, they'll be ready to climb onto the bar and dance a shameful dance if you...

Who doesn't love watching a movie that evokes a sense of nostalgia or sudden empathy for characters you've never met in real life? When a character is relatable, we see ourselves in their actions, and it resonates in our souls. Watching a film or series turns into a conversation with a close friend (or a visit to a therapist, depending on your luck).

The new dramedy ‘Platonic’ from Apple TV+ is almost a mirror of our lives, where everyone can see something of themselves. Here, cinema imitates life so much that you want to point at the screen like Leonardo DiCaprio in that meme and shout that you were there too, and you did that crazy stuff. So I decided to compile a list of the most (in my opinion) heartfelt antics that the characters Sylvia (Rose Byrne) and Will (Seth Rogen) get up to. And these antics might be familiar to all of us, even if we haven't hit 40 yet, like the bosom buddies in the series.

Not everyone will likely agree with this take on ‘Platonic’. For some, the series might seem, for example, too exaggerated, childish, or not funny at all. If you disagree with the author's opinion, you can stop reading. These situations probably won't resonate with you.

Episode 1 — ‘Pilot’

Awkward Hugs

You arrange to meet at a café, you haven't seen each other in years, and the thought even crosses your mind: should I check what they look like now, in case they've changed a lot... If this sounds familiar, then you'll also know the terrible awkwardness of Will and Sylvia's first meeting after years apart. When you look at each other and your mind goes blank: you don't know what to ask, so you frantically start telling and showing photos of your kids/dogs/cats/friends/selfies with Keanu Reeves/leg casts/escapes from wild cows... and the list can go on forever.

We bombard each other with dry facts, strange events, talk about family and go down the list of relatives, because if we stop talking, the ensuing pause will make us feel even more awkward, with a dry mouth and sweaty palms.

And within 15 minutes, you'll find yourselves at the café door saying goodbye, because those 15 minutes felt like an eternity. And you simultaneously don't know what to do with this awkwardness and are just tired of the feigned exaggerated friendliness and sincerity.

Episode 2 — ‘Gandalf the Lizard’ (2 scenes)

Choosing a House

If you're going to make important decisions, do it with a close person, like a friend. After all, they can tell you at the right moment that you're crazy in your desire and don't even realize how far gone you are.

Perhaps a risky investment of money could be buying a house, especially if it's a former nursing home that still has that certain smell and walkers are left in the hallways. It's funny and sad, but that's the reality of Sylvia's choice, and Will comes to her aid.

But on the other hand, having your own kitchen in each child's room, a toilet with grab bars for support, and a duck under the bed are useful things. If only the plaster weren't falling from the ceiling and it didn't smell of mold, you could live like in paradise.

In such a situation, you definitely need a sensible friend's advice, someone who can assess the scale of the disaster. First, they'll have a good laugh at you, and then they'll save your budget and your desperate soul at the same time.

Exes to the Fire

Breakups are always unpleasant and painful, and divorce even more so. In such moments, a friend's shoulder is needed and important as never before. And if a friend also performs a circus somersault for you and crawls through a dog door to illegally enter someone else's house, then they are priceless.

Will and Sylvia, like two teenagers, sneak into his ex-wife's house to supposedly pick up the remaining belongings that he hasn't been able to retrieve for weeks. And they accidentally run into his ex-wife. After a heated argument, the heroes sidle out of the house, and Sylvia secretly grabs a trophy for her friend — his beloved lizard Gandalf. And of course, along the way, they sincerely trash-talk Will's ex, because true friends always support each other, even if they are the ones to blame.

Episode 3 — ‘Partner Party’

Joyrides with the Wind

If you want to unwind, feel young and carefree (especially at 40), you can just grab an electric scooter and cruise through the city streets. Even better if you do it with a friend. You go get burgers together, kick other scooters, trash dumpsters, get angry, speed up, crash into something, and then sit on the asphalt tired but happy. An electric scooter will take you anywhere, and what matters is not where, but who you're with.

Episode 5 — ‘My Wife's Boyfriend’

Two Rams Are a Force

If you're married but have a best friend who is a guy, awkward situations can sometimes arise. To prevent them, it's a good idea for the husband and the friend to become friends. So Sylvia's husband decides to get to know Will better and invites him to a baseball game with colleagues. There, they have to embarrass themselves a little to take a joint photo for Sylvia. The awkwardness is so overwhelming that it all ends with drunken dancing on the bar, opera arias, and strange robot-style dances.

But actually, you don't have to be married to feel the full embarrassment of such situations: when strangers try to become friends for the sake of a mutual close person. And if it all ends with dancing on the bar, then you've probably tried hard and managed to build at least some bridges to avoid killing each other in the future.

Episode 6 — ‘26 Is Serious’

Starships in My Head

The older we get, the more we hear jokes about older guys who like younger women (though it's still inappropriate to tell children such things). They even came up with a special proverb for this: ‘gray hair in the beard, the devil in the ribs’ — that's how bad it is.

So it's no surprise that 40-year-old Will decided to find solace in the arms of a student who appreciated his desire to act young, as well as his love for childishness and flashy, strange outfits. Youth went to Seth Rogen's character's head so much that even Sylvia's convincing speeches didn't bring him back to reality. After all, he had a deep spiritual connection with his young flame.

And only a fiery performance of Nicki Minaj's ‘Starships’ suddenly brought Will back down to earth. He realized that his lower back already hurts, partying all night without a break is tough, and wild fun tires him out more than it energizes him. He mistook a deep connection for the brightness and novelty of a whirlwind relationship. Of course, youth is a state of mind, but at 40 it's harder not to notice the creaking in your knees and the bags under your eyes.