Milo Ventimiglia’s ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’ Season 5 Cameo Is Everything

“The Handsome Man” is back on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and he’s finally earned himself a name.

Fans will recall that Midge (Rachel Brosnahan) fell for a striking gent, played by Milo Ventimiglia, during daily walks through Riverside Park in Season 4 of the Prime Video dramedy. He had a dog! He loved coffee and French films! He picked Midge flowers! So naturally, weeks of intense flirting and insightful chats led to a delightful one-morning stand. But as Midge was basking in the glow of spontaneity, the dude’s wife (!) walked in and all hell broke loose. Midge booked it, leaving one of her gorgeous dresses behind, and we never spoke of Mr. Handsome again — until now.

For Maisel‘s fifth and final season, which dropped its first three episodes on April 14, Amy Sherman-Palladino gave fans a treat by bringing Ventimiglia back for an encore performance. At the top of Season 5, Episode 2, “It’s a Man, Man, Man, Man World,” Midge is commuting on her first day of a new job, and there, in the window of the subway car directly across from hers, is that pretty adulterer. After the two lock eyes, he mouths a request to talk. She shuts him down hard, but when their respective trains simultaneously reach the station, Ventimiglia’s character rushes to join Midge. What follows, is a glorious, meticulously choreographed subway spectacle so fast-paced it almost feels like an action sequence.

Ventimiglia’s character trails behind Midge as she makes her way through various subway cars, weaving around bystanders while engaging in very public banter. The Handsome Man tells Midge he had no way to contact her after she fled his apartment, so he brought flowers to the park every day afterward in hopes he’d run into her again. When the doors open, Midge hops out of the car, then back inside at the last second to escape him. Her plan backfires, but she manages to evade him once more. After shouting, sprinting, and a run-in with a police officer, Ventimiglia’s character corners Midge on the street and apologizes for putting her in a position that was “every synonym for awful.”

He explains that the screaming woman who interrupted their magical morning together was his wife, but they were separated. He claims she was supposed to give notice before dropping the dog off, but didn’t. And even though the two were technically still married, he lived in the apartment alone while his ex had their old house.

“The marriage was over long before I met you. But look, Midge. Meeting you…the talks we had…it was a lifesaver for me. But I’m not here to get you to reconsider. I just want to apologize,” he said. After revealing he’s getting divorced and asking if he ruined Riverside Park for Midge in a ridiculously sexy tone, he said “Maybe we’ll run into each other there again some time” and said goodbye. Midge replied, “Goodbye, Sylvio.” And at long last, we know this man’s name.

As Sylvio The Handsome Man walked away, the cop who was keeping an eye on him softened to say, “I’m rooting for you, son.” You know what? So are we. Ventimiglia’s Season 5 cameo lasted all of four minutes and 15 seconds, but that’s all this man needs to make an impression. Were his two scenes largely useless in the grand scheme of the series? Absolutely. But Palladino knows her audience and was correct in assuming Gilmore Girls fans especially would never pass up a chance to watch The Marvelous Mr. Milo do his thing. His time on the show was brief, but straight out of a rom-com. The sets were spectacular, the dialogue was delightful as ever, and Ventimiglia’s charm was out in full force.

Thank you and goodnight, Sylvio.

The first three episodes of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Season 5 are now streaming on Prime Video. New episodes premiere weekly on Fridays.