Chapter 5

**Chapter 5** is the fifth episode of the Netflix romantic comedy-drama series *Uncoupled*. It aired on July 29, 2022.

## Premise

*Michael discovers how much dating has changed in the years since he was last single and attends a seminar with Suzanne to change his outlook on life.*

## Plot summary

Late at night in New York City, Michael accidently bumps into handsome man, and promptly apologizes to him, and asks the other man if he is alright. He says he is, but once the two make eye contact, it leads to Michael taking to handsome stranger back to his apartment. The two continue to make-out, but Michael pulls the breaks on it, as he asks about condoms. To which the other man laughs, and tells Michael that nobody wears condoms now. The other man looks at him quizzically and asks Michael where he has been. Which leads him to admit that he had been in a long term relationship for the past seventeen years. He then explains that the last time he had sex with a stranger, he was gloved up and layered. Michael then turns down the other guy for sex because said stranger doesn't want to wear a condom.

The next day, Michael is having brunch with his friends Billy and Stanley, where he tells them about the guy from the night before, and how he got called a bitter old queen. Not long after he gets a text from his dad, and Michael leaves to get back to work. On his way there, his dad informs him that he wants to fix Michael up with Dr. Gibson, his dermatologist. However, he hangs up as he arrives in his office, and tells his dad he has to go.

Meanwhile, Suzanne is doing some online shopping for Kai and tells Michael, how she is buying underwear for her son, since he doesn't like to be confined. But before they can discuss it further, Michael and Suzanne's boss comes in, and mentions how in looking over the Claire Lewis file, he realized that the escrow is 45 days. Which pushes their commission into the next quarter as a result. Suzanne explains that they had to do a two week extension because their buyers needed a little extra time to finesse the co-op board. Eventually, Michael admits that he is so angry at Colin for dumping him into a dating pool he hates, and it is just not going away. Suzanne then suggests that Michael go with her to a spiritual event with her, and he begrudgingly agrees.

At the spiritual retreat, Michael is called up front by the guru, and is asked why he sought help. To which he answers that his boyfriend left him, and he is feeling very angry about it. He snaps his fingers in Michael's face out of nowhere, and then proceeds to say that the journey takes time. The guru manages to supposedly get Michael to level 16, but Michael doesn't feel any different. When the retreat is over, Suzanne is angry that she wasted $1,200 for the guru to tell her that in order to have a meaningful relationship, she needs to get the man out of her bed. To which she points out that there is no man in her life.

They did not think it worked until the next day when Michael wakes up feeling better than ever, and as he looks outside his window, he spots a rainbow over the New York City skyline. His good mood doesn't sour, even when he spots mail for Colin. At Stanley's art gallery, his good mood, weirds Stanley out. However, Michael calmly explains that as of today, he woke up, and all that he feels is compassion for Colin, and no more anger. Later, Michael decides to meet a hot dermatologist that his dad set him up with, and the two of them hit it off.

Meanwhile, Suzanne realized that the man on her bed that the spiritual guru referred to was her own son.

All seems to be going well for Michael and his dermatologist date until he finds out the dermatologist was more than what he was open for. As it turns out, when Josh has sex, he uses an anal paralytic. The next morning, Michael explains to his dad, that while the dermatologist was a good guy, and it started out great, he just wasn't a good fit.

Later, Jack stops Michael outside of their building, and he goes onto say that he can't take the New York winters anymore, and is moving to Miami. Thus, he wanted Michael to take him up as a client. Michael thanks him, and admits that it has been a hard couple of weeks. Jack explains that he thought he would never get over his partner's death twenty three years earlier. But he states that, eventually with some time, one does get over it. Jack continues by saying how it is a journey, and that there are no shortcuts.

## Cast and characters

### Starring:

* Neil Patrick Harris as Michael Lawson
* Tisha Campbell as Suzanne Prentiss
* Emerson Brooks as Billy Burns
* Brooks Ashmanskas as Stanley James

### Guest-starring:

* André De Shields as Jack
* Byron Jennings as Ben Lawson
* Peter Porte as Josh Gibson
* Ajay Naidu as Raffi
* Jonah Hoʻokano as Marshall

### Co-starring:

* Jasai Chase Owens as Kai Prentiss
* William Ryall as Wilhelm Munsch
* Jamal Thomas as Paul
* Tyler Bunch as Keith
* Chandra Michaels as Female Art Buyer
* Robert Harrington as Patron
* Mark Torres as Stossel
* Phyllis Johnson as Nia
* Glenn Alterman as Male Art Buyer
* Kyle Dunn as Friedrich

## External links

* Chapter 5 on the Internet Movie Database
* Uncoupled (@uncouplednetflix) on Instagram
* Uncoupled on Wikipedia
* Watch Uncoupled on Netflix