Summary
The standard of the series continues to improve, with solid storytelling in each of the main four characters’ journeys. As a whole, there are laughs throughout, while the main focus remains on Camille’s will-they-won’t-they relationship with Ian.
This recap of Amazon’s Harlem season 1, episode 5, “Boundaries,” contains spoilers.
Episode 4 of Harlem ended just as Camille found something on Jameson’s laptop. But what did she find?
Harlem season 1, episode 5 recap
We learn straight away as Camille calls Jameson out for searching her on social media. She finds it extremely creepy, whilst he plays it down, even going as far as to state that if he were a murderer, he would have already killed her when he took her to a remote location. With no time to argue, Camille rushes to see Dr. Elise Pruitt. But as Dr. Pruitt doesn’t abide by lateness (or inappropriate cleavage) in the workplace, Camille has been demoted to the second assistant. The replacement? Camille’s student Nora. Ouch.
Quinn wakes up in bed with stripper Shawn (Robert Ri’chard), but is shortly afterward interrupted by his son, J.J (Tyler Williams), who walks in on them. Quinn tells Angie about the situation and states that whilst she enjoyed talking to Shawn, she can’t see him again because of “no kid mama drama”. Although, as Quinn left her necklace at his place, she’ll have to see him at least once more.
Keeping with the drama of Camille and Ian, Camille attends a party hosted by one of Ian’s relatives. And, of course, Ian is there. But at the very least, Quinn is by Camille’s side. Together, they rip into Mira. Quinn even starts to speculate whether Ian’s parents want Ian and Camille to get back together. But before Quinn can discuss it further, Shawn is there. As the night goes on, Quinn asks Shawn whether he is going to “stay all night”. Whilst he attempts to sweet-talk her, it appears that his attempts may be failing. However, before long Quinn unloads all of her problems onto him. Maybe there’s hope for Shawn.
During the party, Ian’s Aunt Tammy (Bevy Smith) berates Ian for his job at the bistro. As Camille overhears, she tries to persuade Tammy into viewing it more positively. Whilst she doesn’t, Camille tells Ian that what is happening in Harlem isn’t his fault, and she’s proud of him. Unbeknownst to Camille, Shawn introduces Quinn to Mira, and it’s not long before Quinn agrees to make a wedding dress (for 5 figures) for Mira. (I wonder how Camille will react to that). As for Camille, she’s not ok and struggles with how it appears that everyone has moved on and that she and Ian are in fact history. So, Camille leaves the party and asks Jameson for a rematch at the arcade.
The ending
As Tye and Anna walk down the street hand in hand, Tye notices a stare from a passerby. She tells Anna that after creating a dating app for people of color, she feels like a hypocrite for dating a white person; “It’s a sell-out”. To Anna, it doesn’t appear as if it’s too much of a problem — “But if you’re making decisions on what others think, you’re not a sell-out. You’re a coward”.
The fifth episode of Harlem concludes with Quinn, Tye, Angie, and Camille together. It’s all going well until it is accidentally let slip that Quinn will make Mira’s wedding dress for $25k. As a result, Camille tells Quinn that she should have said no, and with Tye in agreement, the four friends all begin to argue. After they all throw insults at each other, the episode finishes.
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