S01.E08: The 214s

[88Keys]

I feel like this is the episode I've been waiting for, and what I wanted the show to be all along.  Thank you, Halt and Catch Fire, for finally getting it together.

[Stinger97]

 

The team finalizes preparations for COMDEX; Bosworth makes a sacrifice for the good of the program.

 

[88Keys]

I see the two episode threads have been merged.  However, I got the number wrong.  It should be episode 8, and "Giant" should be episode 7.

[henripootel]

Thank you, Halt and Catch Fire, for finally getting it together.

 

Indeed, I'm actually looking forward to seeing where they go with this.  Took them long enough.

[Yolapukka]

Best episode so far. One of the most satisfying hours of TV I've watched in a long, long time.

[queenanne]

So, the deal about the "Symphonic" is that it... had a synthesizer keyboard attached to it?!

 

Yeah, I can see why that didn't fly... but it does have a nice tie-in to Donna's talents.

 

I feel guilty picking on what I found an otherwise exciting episode (was actually disappointed when it neared the 45-minute mark and I just then realized that we weren't going to COMDEX this week), but really... they programmed the Giant to ... tell an end-user they have nice manners?!?  With 1983 tech?  On the extremely realistic, I'm sure, chance that people were going to be thanking it?  Yeah right...

Edited July 21, 2014 by queenanne

[Yolapukka]

 

Wouldn't cracking the bat mean he was going to do something on his own? Running home to Daddy really annoyed me.

 

Breaking the bat meant he was ready to confront his father. So, no problem with him showing up at Dad's lonely mansion. I hated him giving up and caving into his influence so easily, especially since he started giving off that creepy vibe he has, like he's about to go out for a sandwich and kill someone for shits and giggles next to a dumpster while he waits for his order to be ready. 

 

 

Uh, what was Hunt *doing* in the bushes outside Donna's house?? It didn't seem like he was about to ring the doorbell. Was he just ringing his own doorbell, watching her through the window

 

*snorts* .... nearly dies laughing.

Edited July 21, 2014 by yuggapukka

[LJonEarth]

So, the roof story is true!

[Dowel Jones]

That was some weak bat, I think.  If I had done that, I would have shattered my femur.

[Yolapukka]

 

Embarrassed that I have to ask this, but will ask it anyway: Is that keyboard thing that Donna plays in the garage related somehow to "the Symphonic"?

 

 

The keyboard she plays? No. However, the keyboard thing Gordon smashed? That was the symphonic prototype.

[Peace 47]

I could understand why Donna felt that she couldn't give up on Gordon after finding the ring (and Gordon's lovely story to Cameron was touching), but last week's blood trail and yard-hole would have been my final straw. Sure, his enthusiasm and commitment are infectious (this week), but the man is unstable and cannot function when things start to go pear-shaped. And nothing that was wrong with their marriage is going to be solved by the Giant being a success, either. Red flags that Donna's parents, who are tech-savvy and business-savvy and no country bumpkins, still don't really trust Gordon, as gently conveyed by Donna's mother this week. And he destroyed his and Donna's joint creation, the Symphonic, in a moment of frustration: that's so sad.

There's actually quite a bit of property destruction on this show: the bat and the computer this week, everything Joe touches in weeks past, etc. At this point, I just sit back and wait for the next "Hulk Smash" moment.

I've never thought of this show being particularly funny, but there were some nice deadpan moments tonight: Gordon's comment that he knew nothing about Joe except that Joe liked glass, Cameron correcting Gordon that Joe hadn't cleared out, but just lived a tastefully minimalistic existence, Joe's mournful comment about the sold car. Good stuff.

Edited July 21, 2014 by Peace 47

[Yolapukka]

I was completely taken aback and thoroughly delighted that Gordon was the hero of the episode after being such a sour jerk for most of the show's run to date. He was the one who kept it together, thought on his feet and best of all, inspired everyone to try to save the Giant. I particularly liked that what he said was full of valid points, and genuine passion. It resonated on an emotional level entirely unlike Joe's grandstanding, hollow words and borrowed ideas. 

 

I just love Bosworth and especially his interactions with Cameron. I hope this episode doesn't mark him being deleted from the company and eventually the cast, but it seems entirely possible. 

[Peace 47]

I just love Bosworth and especially his interactions with Cameron.

I have some very mixed feelings about him. I know that we were meant to see the embezzlement as a noble sacrifice (especially his keeping Cameron out of the fallout), and I know that the Giant would have probably died on the table without it, but it was embezzlement, you know? It wasn't his money to gamble and was such a massive violation of his duties to the company. It was just so unethical that I again lost a lot of the respect I had regained subsequent to his arranged beatdown of Joe.

The actor is great, though. I didn't know that he was Cotton and Khan until reading it here! Would love to see him in some more live-action stuff.

[Snowprince]

This is the show I've been waiting for. Easily the best episode of the lot so far. I couldn't help thinking a few times while watching, "THIS should have been the pilot".

[green]

...  but really... they programmed the Giant to ... tell an end-user they have nice manners?!?  With 1983 tech?  On the extremely realistic, I'm sure, chance that people were going to be thanking it?  Yeah right...

 

They programmed it to run down a very simple check list for certain terms including "please" and "thank you" so yeah it was quite possible to do that back then.  And yes, people did say please and thank you to human like prompts back then cause it was just such a relief NOT so see the fraking C Prompt blinking at you with menace and evil intent.

 

So to sum up this episode:

 

Gordon:  "I'm getting the band back together and we are going to Comicon ... errr, that other thing."

[HunterHunted]

One of the things that bugs me the most about this show is that there is so much plot happening off screen. Apparently Bosworth and Cameron bonded enough that he would confide in her about the company's money problems and convince her to hack their bank. Why couldn't they have shown us that? Or even Bosworth being troubled by money?

[thuganomics85]

Well, well, Halt and Catch Fire.  You finally are getting intriguing.

 

Don't get me totally wrong: these characters can still be jerks.  In fact, the scene when Joe, Cameron, and Gordon were all arguing in the garage, I remember thinking that all three of them are just different kinds of a-holes, but I'm finally finding them interesting, and seeing their good sides, as well.  Gordon still has plenty of issues and didn't realize just how close he was to losing Donna, but I liked that he took the leadership role, and was the one to get them on the road, instead of Joe.  When the shit went down, Joe fell apart and was prepared to run back to daddy.  Gordon stepped up to the plate, big time.  Well done, Gordon, you big jerk.

 

Meanwhile, I actually enjoyed the Gordon/Cameron bonding and scenes.  Yeah, they'll never be friends, but they were actually acknowledging each other as colleagues, and, gasp!  Gordon even praised Cameron for her intelligence!  I knew he had it in him! They can be well-behaved!  I'm definitely down with them being more "snarky, but on the same page", compared to just being at each others' throats.

 

Glad Donna is finally playing a part in the big story.  Looking forward to her going to the conference; not just for my sake (since I love her), but for her own sake, since I'm starting to think something is up with Hunt.  He was creeping me out tonight.  What was he doing at her house?

 

John embezzling money was clearly wrong, but I guess it's nice that he's taking the blame for all of it, when it sounds like Cameron actually did it for him.  I wish they actually spent more time on John/Cameron; we've got a scene or two, but it wasn't enough.

 

Who knows?  Two episodes left; they might actually pull this off.

[renatae]

Yes! to this episode! Good on the scene in which Joe's dad confirmed the truth of his story about his injuries, and that his dad was acting in his best interests vis-a-vis Joe's mother. Finally getting some insight into what makes Joe tick, and he is finally opening up to others without all the b.s. first.

 

Even Gordon partially redeems himself by treating Cameron like a person and buying Donna a special engagement ring, not to mention that he practically single-handedly saved the project. I love that Donna decided to become part of the team after such a close call with her boss.

 

I think the boss went to her house just to tell her goodbye, but chickened out. I don't think he was stalking her.

 

Cameron continues to develop as a character and I loved how Boz protected her and they shared the hug. Boz turning out to be such a "rootable" character continues to surprise me.

 

I enjoyed the story rolling out the answers to many questions in a rather syncopated fashion. When the arrest of Boz occurred, I was sure I missed something until the explanation came out a few scenes later, and similarly, learned the significance of the ring.

 

The team deciding to stick it out together in the end was inevitable, but still rewarding.

Edited July 21, 2014 by renatae

[renatae]

And yes, people did say please and thank you to human like prompts back then cause it was just such a relief NOT so see the fraking C Prompt blinking at you with menace and evil intent.

LOL - I identify with that feeling!

[DrSpaceman]

Agree with others, this episode finally had me interested and caring about the characters and the project.  This is the type of show I think we were all hoping for since the beginning. 

 

I still don't care much about Joe though and his backstory with his mom/dad issues still just is not that interesting to me.  And seriously, anyone could figure out IBM was going to try and make a portable/laptop computer, did he honestly believe it was solely his idea and the entire staff of IBM put together, in short time no less, this idea just to screw him? 

[bosawks]

I was kind of disappointed that Donna and Gordon didn't make a model of Devils Tower out of mashed potatoes.

[dubbel zout]

This was the best episode of the season by a mile and the first one where everyone was likeable for about 90 percent of the episode.

 

I think the boss went to her house just to tell her goodbye, but chickened out. I don't think he was stalking her.

 

That's what I thought, too.

 

Joe is such a baby to scuttle back to Daddy. Loved Gordon pointing out his cowardice.

 

I would have liked to have seen what finally made Gordon pull it together. It couldn't just have been finding the Serenity Now! (hee) tapes. But it was great to see him groomed and standing up for himself.

 

My favorite scene was Gordon and Cameron talking in Joe's apartment over beers and pizza. I also liked Gordon earlier apologizing for being such a jerk and admitting that he respected her talents.

 

What did Donna do with the pieces of the Symphonic prototype? Did she connect them to the Giant or something? I didn't quite get that.

 

LOL at everyone roaring off to COMDEX in a station wagon.

Edited July 21, 2014 by dubbel zout

[annlaw78]

I feel like this is the episode I've been waiting for, and what I wanted the show to be all along.  Thank you, Halt and Catch Fire, for finally getting it together.

Ditto, ditto, ditto.  Why couldn't we have seen the growth in these characters -- specifically Gordon and Cameron -- earlier?  To have 7 eps with Gordon being an unrelenting sad-sack, screw-up, jerk to pretty much everyone was unnecessary.  To have Cameron continuing to be a petulant Manic Pixie/Punk Dream Girl who acts like the office is junior high was unnecessary. I would have liked to have seen THIS team -- Cameron, Joe, and Gordon, with an awesome assist by Bosworth -- earlier. 

 

 

Running home to Daddy really annoyed me.

Agreed.  That was disappointing.  So, Joe, all your hype and talk was just about making a portable computer, at any old place, including going back to working for Daddy?  I get that the show needed to put Gordon in the driver's seat, and give him agency after being so passive, but just have Joe sitting home drunk in his apartment or something -- don't have him getting back into bed with IBM. 

 

 

One of the things that bugs me the most about this show is that there is so much plot happening off screen. Apparently Bosworth and Cameron bonded enough that he would confide in her about the company's money problems and convince her to hack their bank. Why couldn't they have shown us that? Or even Bosworth being troubled by money?

I liked the surprise, which explained the otherwise baffling flip-out Bosworth had on Cameron at the beginning of the ep: he was trying to pretend he didn't know her.  But we've seen a couple of scenes of them talking/bonding.  We've seen Bosworth trying to learn code.  Last ep the "Chekov's gun" of the hacking cover was introduced, and now we know why Cameron was so interested in that.  The money troubles were laid out in several episodes.  Nathan Cardiff was just going to let the PC department tank, rather than put any more funding into it. 

Edited July 21, 2014 by annlaw78

[88Keys]

After seeing the Gordon of last night- confident, inspired, in-control- and the Gordon of the last couple of weeks- depressed, morose, unable to function- something occured to me.  Anyone else think he is bi-polar? 

[henrie]

Yes, 88Keys, I was thinking the same thing.

[ffg]

Really excellent episode -- dare I say one of the best episodes of any show I've seen this season? I just hope this was the show truly finding its legs, and not a temporary aberration.  It makes me hope they get a second season.

[Yolapukka]

 

After seeing the Gordon of last night- confident, inspired, in-control- and the Gordon of the last couple of weeks- depressed, morose, unable to function- something occured to me.  Anyone else think he is bi-polar?

 

 

The phases Gordon went through that that resembled mania seemed awfully short but I suppose the show could intend to go there. I've known people with monopolar depression that have those brief "up" spells, especially when they self medicate with various substances, so bipolar isn't necessarily the only possibility. I think they've done an excellent job of establishing him as being a problem drinker, possibly an alcoholic. We saw him frequently nusring a drink and his judgement and personal skills would completely go into the dumper when he drank until he spun out of control. We saw him being picked up from the drunk tank in the first episode, we saw him drink when he had a bad day, drink when things were going well and drink when he was working hard or when he needed a break or was making a big pot of grandma's stew and supposedly watching his kids in the guise of a reponsible adult. In this episode he was drinking beer early on.  When he and Cameron were sharing pizza and root beer, he pointedly turned down her offer of a bitof booze into the can. Once he had a workable, though somewhat unethical plan to save the Giant, he stopped tippling, became a lot more decisive, expressed himself with clarity, not only refused to let Joe bully him but also manipulated Joe into losing it and trying to intimidate him so he could get under his skin.

Edited July 21, 2014 by yuggapukka

[bentley]

 

I think the boss went to her house just to tell her goodbye, but chickened out. I don't think he was stalking her.

 

I wonder if he was coming to apologize to Donna because he's parlayed the information he's been able to glean about the Giant from her into a new job at IBM. Who knows, she may even run into him at Comdex at the IBM booth, and it will all become clear. He chickened out of confessing when he was face to face and she totally misread the signs as something more lovelorn-y. That's my current theory anyway.

 

For once Gordon took Joe's insults and negativity and instead of being reactive, stalking off angry or sulking as usual, he reasoned with him, and made good sense. He was even able to laugh at all their troubles. I'd like to see more of this Gordon, please.

 

Maybe Joe and Donna can bond next week over their mutually disappointed parents.

[scout1207]

Much better episode - thought it was about time Gordon got it together,

 

What I'm hoping gets revealed to the other two is that about half of the Giant's hardware design came from Donna. She hasn't gotten credit for anything yet.

[88Keys]

Gordon's story about how he and Donna spent the last COMDEX going from floor to floor drinking makes me nervous.  Anyone think he's going to tank the whole thing?  Maybe with Donna there to help keep him in line, things will go better this time.

[annlaw78]

 

Gordon's story about how he and Donna spent the last COMDEX going from floor to floor drinking makes me nervous.  Anyone think he's going to tank the whole thing?  Maybe with Donna there to help keep him in line, things will go better this time.

It was hard for me to envision the Donna of two years ago (right, it was 1981 when the Symphonic debuted?) being a party animal. 

[Grammaeryn]

After seeing the Gordon of last night- confident, inspired, in-control- and the Gordon of the last couple of weeks- depressed, morose, unable to function- something occured to me.  Anyone else think he is bi-polar? 

 

Which is probably why Joe decided to work with him - if you believe Freud that we just attract new people in our lives to play the roles of Mommy and Daddy.

[88Keys]

It was hard for me to envision the Donna of two years ago (right, it was 1981 when the Symphonic debuted?) being a party animal. 

Oh yeah; I totally think Gordon was the one doing the hard partying there. 

[GaT]

I agree with everyone about this being a much better episode, but for me, it's too late. I'll watch through the end of the season & then I'm done.

 

At least we know what Joe's problem is, but if I thought he was an ass before, running back to IBM because they're making a portable too & dumping everyone at Cardiff because he's having a hissy fit makes him an even bigger ass in my book. 

 

I don't get John suddenly becoming so obsessed with this computer that he OKs hacking a bank & stealing money. He character change is too big.

 

Why have Cameron & Gordon both suddenly gotten new hairstyles? 

[Jeebus Cripes]

Also, I thought Gordon was pretty awesome. And I LOVED the "meditation" tapes he was trying so hard to employ to tame his inner demons. And how unsuccessful he was. It reminded me of a Seinfeld episode when Mr. Constanza kept screaming "Serenity now!" to tame his anger.

 

Heh. I was thinking about serenity now as well. Man, I pretty much took this for the episode where Gordon comes completely unglued, and he ends up being the glue that holds Cardiff together. Did not see that coming at all. I like this Gordon. I like this Cameron. I like this Joe. About time.

 

That scene where Joe grabbed Gordon by the neck, did he actually lift him off his feet as he was throwing him against the wall? Lee Pace's size can be scary in a physical situation.

[vibeology]

Why have Cameron & Gordon both suddenly gotten new hairstyles? 

 

I think a fair bit of time was supposed to have gone by between last week's episode and this one. We went from hiring a guy to design the case to a fully completed Giant and a week to COMDEX. It also explains Gordon's mellow. It's been a while since his backyard freakout and things have been going his way ever since. The computer is working and they named it the Giant.

 

The only problem with the time jumps (and there have been a few this season) is that they don't do a great job letting us know how much time has passed. Hurricane Alicia from Landfall was in August and COMDEX used to happen each November but I'm struggling to place the last episode by date; probably closer to August since Gordon was still having nightmares about the dead body in the storm.  I think through plot and styling they're trying to hint at time jumps but I wish they were more clear about it. I feel like nearly a whole year has probably gone by since the pilot. 

[Glory]

I feel like nearly a whole year has probably gone by since the pilot. 

I'm pretty sure Gordon made a comment like, "I have been working my ass off these last 8 months." 

[attica]

Gordon was pretty damn together tonight!

 

See what all good happens when you get a new haircut?

[Aprilshowers]

This episode was such an improvement from the last oh say 3 or so. Plot moved, characters acted normal. Gordon was rootable again as was his family. Loved that Donna packed her bags and instead of "leaving" she was going with them all. This is the episode why I have stayed with this show. It can be capable of greatness.

 

Other random thoughts 

 

Cam/Gord convos was probably one of my fav from the whole series so far. No awkward tension of any kind just to people who know each other that have had differences getting along and opening up about their lives.

Cam not being annoying at any point in the episode

Joe coming home to see Cam and Gordon there, priceless!

 

Thought the acting was really improved as well, not sure why? Maybe a better script to work with?

[annlaw78]

 

Thought the acting was really improved as well, not sure why? Maybe a better script to work with?

Yes, I think that's it.  It's hard for a grown woman (Mackenzie Davis) to make the immature, 8th-grader-mouthing-off-to-the-homeroom-teacher hissy fits the scripts have demanded of her look natural and real.  Likewise, Scoot McNairy had something more to do than mope and screw things up.  Getting the three leads in a room to work off each other really helped.  Having Cameron and Gordon stop the unexplained, unprofessional hostility toward each other was an improvement -- I never understood, other than just basic "I feel threatened" why Gordon had such vitriol against Cameron.  Sure, she and Joe are sleeping together but 1) Gordon doesn't want to sleep with Joe, and 2) Cameron is actually quite gifted at what she does -- it's not like Joe's sleeping with Debbie, and put Debbie in charge of the BIOS.  Sometimes EEs feel a bit superior to the computer science/software folks, but Gordon's animosity toward Cameron has always been way over the top, for no apparent reason.  That it's taken them this long to have a civil conversation when they are two essential cogs in this machine is goofy. 

[Yolapukka]

 

Joe crying we we we all the way home to New York to ask Daddy for a job. Wouldn't cracking the bat mean he was going to do something on his own? Running home to Daddy really annoyed me.

 

if I thought he was an ass before, running back to IBM because they're making a portable too & dumping everyone at Cardiff because he's having a hissy fit makes him an even bigger ass in my book.

 

 

 The PC division at Cardiff electronics is dead for all intents and purposes. Nathan Cardiff was clear that when the money ran out, they were done. The money has not only run out, but  it has also been propped up with funds illegally transferred from his personal accounts, which has resulted in the company being shuttered while an investigation goes on. The only thing Joe needed to stay in Dallas for was to clear out his desk when the FBI unsealed the offices and pick up a pink slip along with everyone else. The only reason there is anything left to save is because of Gordon's quick thinking and illegal acts.

 

Joe needed to have that conversation with his father at some point. I felt from his actions in "Adventutre" that he wanted to approach his father when he was in a position of strength with a genuine accomplishment behind him once the Giant was finished. Instead they spoke when the Giant appeared to be finished in an entirely different way and he was in a position of weakness and failure.  He wasn't there to ask for a job. He didn't ask for one in fact, his father offered and he accepted. The reason he accepted was there was going to be no product launch for the Giant, no more PC division at Cardiff, no comparable prospects elsewhere, he's pretty close to broke because he doesn't know how to live cheaply, nothing came out of his meeting with his two key players except recriminations and a punch in the face and the window of opportunity for getting a portable to market and claiming a major share of that market is about to close with IBM having it's own in the works. (Though everything I've read indicated that the real life "luggable" PC that IBM came out with was no great shakes.) He was a pushover instead of his own man. There was no hissy fit. He gave up.

[attica]

I need to type out loud how awesome Toby Huss was reciting that tech-speak. I got a little flushed, I don't mind saying.

[qtpye]

Why have Cameron & Gordon both suddenly gotten new hairstyles?

 

 

I don't know about Cameron, but one reviewer said that Gordon has cleaned himself up for the convention.  I think Gordon looks at presenting the Giant there as redemption and he is phoenix rising from the ashes with a nicely trimmed beard.

[Hanahope]

I agree with the rest that this was the best episode to date.

 

I completely understood why Joe didn't want Gordon at Comdex.  It was, at least at that time, pretty much just for salesmen, and Gordon has demonstrated twice now that he totally sucks at client development and social contact with clients.  Why on earth would Joe risk Gordon messing things up again?   And yeah, Gordon totally seems bi-polar.

 

That said, it would be understandable for someone to be there from tech, in case something technical went wrong.  Good think Donna is with them too. :)  Maybe she'll be able to keep Gordon from drinking and blowing things.

 

Gordon did completely (and finally) look  competent in quickly taking the Giant apart to fool the feds into thinking it wasn't a working computer, but just 'random pieces' that weren't important.  I did notice that rather than the Giant being in a "beige box" it was in a "dark grey box", ooooo, so different.

 

I was wondering where all of a sudden John got the money for all those checks  he was writing.  He did sound great at the tech speak so he could try and take the blame.  Its nice that he really got behind the PC, even if he did so illegally.

 

One problem with the time jump is that we have no idea why Hunt suddenly resigned. 

[dubbel zout]

need to type out loud how awesome Toby Huss was reciting that tech-speak.

I love how, when Cameron looked at him in surprise, he said, "I had a good teacher." I really want to see the mentorship.

 

I was wondering where all of a sudden John got the money for all those checks  he was writing.

 

I don't think it was all of a sudden. John has worked at Cardiff for a while; he might even have some equity. As head of sales, it's possible he made a salary plus commission, and we know he's been successful.

[Yolapukka]

 

Why have Cameron & Gordon both suddenly gotten new hairstyles?

 

 

Gordon got a shorter cut and it was probably  scripted to make him seem more pulled together and less of a sad sack. Cameron's has been gradually growing out since the first episode. Hers is not so much a different style as the same one left untrimmed.

 

 

One problem with the time jump is that we have no idea why Hunt suddenly resigned.

 

 

It may be he felt too uncomfortable working with Donna after the incident in Lubbock, not just becausehe feels a bit of guilt over it and realizes he had been flirting pretty heavily himself, but also due to there being some office gossip. We could see little details in the background of other staff acting watchful and disapproving when he and Donna were intereacting and that secretary of his was throwing some awfully nasty shade at Donna when she told her the news, bless her heart.

 

I've read a theory that he wasn't waiting to speak to Donna outside her home at all but instead going to his car from creepy neighbor Brian's when she saw him and that they are up to something underhanded of their own. I guess we'll see.

[ganesh]

I've never thought of this show being particularly funny, but there were some nice deadpan moments tonight: Gordon's comment that he knew nothing about Joe except that Joe liked glass, Cameron correcting Gordon that Joe hadn't cleared out, but just lived a tastefully minimalistic existence, Joe's mournful comment about the sold car. Good stuff.

 

Joe, "no, this and the car is all I have." Heh 

 

I liked the surprise, which explained the otherwise baffling flip-out Bosworth had on Cameron at the beginning of the ep:

 

Yeah, I didn't have a problem with how they set up the story either. I bought it. Bosworth has had a slooooooowww character development, but I think it's earned. 

 

Gordon's story about how he and Donna spent the last COMDEX going from floor to floor drinking makes me nervous.  Anyone think he's going to tank the whole thing?  Maybe with Donna there to help keep him in line, things will go better this time.

 

Gordon's more driven now too. And with Joe and Donna there, Joe knowing how he fucked up with the Japanese, and Donna will believe him, I think they can keep him in line. 

 

Getting the three leads in a room to work off each other really helped.

 

Probably the biggest error in the series. Cameron was isolated for way too long in the beginning as well. 

 

They probably should have got more to the "payoff" episode earlier in the series than E8, but hey, this was fun!  I though the show was good, but with legit problems, but worth sticking with. I'm excited to see how it goes at the con.

[annlaw78]

Probably the biggest error in the series. Cameron was isolated for way too long in the beginning as well. 

 

They probably should have got more to the "payoff" episode earlier in the series than E8, but hey, this was fun!  I though the show was good, but with legit problems, but worth sticking with. I'm excited to see how it goes at the con.

I think they were probably going for the "prestige cable shows slow-build to the penultimate episode" thing, but they should have had better material for the first seven eps, then.  Watching Gordon, Cameron, and Joe take turns self-destructing, repeating bad habits, not growing, and pecking at each other for that long wasn't exactly riveting or compelling.  I also think too much time was spent hinting at Deep Dark Secrets the leads have, rather than just allowing their backgrounds and backstories to flesh themselves out naturally.  Setting up the "secret" that Cameron's father died when she was young, and she treasures the sock monkey he made her and it inspires her idea of a "friendly" OS by having Gordon psychotically rooting around her bags was not necessary.  Joe's Bat of Symbolism also was too much. 

Edited July 23, 2014 by annlaw78

[ganesh]

Yeah, I meant by maybe E5,6 at the latest a show needs to be cruising along at a good pace and we should know the characters fairly well. I don't have a problem with them getting to the con in E8, but stuff like getting the three together should have happened sooner, more often.

[LJonEarth]

I don't have any problem with the lead characters not being together. If that's how the show is set up and the storytelling had been good and consistently good, I'm fine with it. That description doesn't describe this show. It's all been so disjointed; and not in a fun mysterious way.

 

My main problem is that the characters seem to be drawn so unevenly. I don't know if its the time jump or if something got cut. The Joe at the beginning of this series, the one we were convinced was Patrick Bateman Part II doesn't seem like the same Joe who would turn to Cameron with seemingly genuine puppy dog eyes and say "I'll miss you." And the issues with Cameron and Gordon have been beaten to death since the start.

 

I hope the last two live up to this one though.