I break down Halt and Catch Fire again this week and again am joined with the very talented Margaux Poupard.
Trevor: The soundtrack to this show is so goddamn good. I thought “Adventure” was much better than last week’s “Close to the Metal.” How did you feel about it?
Margaux: I’ve gotten so into the soundtrack for Halt and Catch Fire, I tried looking up whatever Spotify has to offer. Good news, they have playlists.
Anyway, “Adventure” continued in the HaCF trend of literally throwing you in the story, which I enjoyed. I didn’t get that Joe had sent Cameron away (to hire new software engineers behind her back), I thought she was still living in a hotel room. That being said, really glad that “Adventure” gave Cameron a more hefty plot line.
Trevor: Yeah, I knew putting Cameron in a cubicle wasn’t going to work out long term. That’s one thing that made this episode better than last week’s: more conflict, which engendered more narrative momentum. HaCF was a little more confident in its story, which means we didn’t get bogged down in computer lingo.
I liked the subplot with Gordon and his father in law Gary. For one, I loved the golf course location (for some reason I have a big ol’ boner for whenever this show switches up locales), and for another, it really tied into the theme of fathers and sons.
Margaux: Totally, last night’s episode was full of Daddy Issues for the men of the show. I was hoping we’d get some sort of McMillan Sr. vs Junior showdown, especially after Joe stands his father up for drinks, choosing to lurk outside instead. But I appreciated getting to see the Joe’s through the perspective of Cameron. I found it interesting to find a bit more about the baseball bat that Joe Jr keeps in his apartment and why he’s so gung ho to “swing for the fences.”
As for Gordon’s father-in-law, I loved his line on the golf course, it’s perfectly Texas: “the Japs love me.” What a businessman.
Trevor: And Gordon fucked up in a major way, so both fathers got to be disappointed in their sons tonight (granted, one is a father in law, but you get my meaning).
I liked the scenes with Cameron and Joe Sr. a lot. At first I thought Joe Sr. was trying to get in her pants, but it turned out he was trying something more insidious: he was trying to manipulate her. Cameron caught on pretty quickly, and I like this version of her much more than last week’s petulant child.
Especially at the end, when she fires the Halt and Catch Fire version of Lou Avery and keeps all the good coders. It was nice to see her taking charge, and to Joe’s credit he actually respects and stands by her decisions.
Margaux: That’s exactly what I meant by Cameron getting a plot line this week, whether her kicking ass and taking names was inspired by Joe Sr and his similar tactics of motivation, who cares. It was so nice to see her stand up for herself after she’d been pushed around and frustrated for a lot of the show so far.
This turn in Cameron’s character, I think, will also lead to more interactions between her and Bosworth. I have a feel he’ll respect her more in the process as well, especially for standing up to Joe without having to hiring someone to beat him up.
Trevor: I did like Bosworth’s line last night: “How the hell do I get out of this cave?”
Margaux: Even though the game Adventure was a little over my head, I really liked that scene with Bosworth and the engineers too. It was an unexpected but welcome break from that cringe-worthy business dinner with Gordon, Joe and the Japanese businessmen.
Everytime Gordon touched one of them, I had to look away. So painful. Gordon is such a socially awkward but good-hearted dude. He doesn’t know any better, he tried to take them to sushi. IN FUCKING TEXAS.
Trevor: It’s funny, when the dinner started, and he made a point of showing the watch, I chuckled and smiled and thought “Maybe he’s getting better at this.” Then he started drunkenly intoning “schlock” over and over and I thought “Oh never mind, he’s much worse.” But I can’t think of him as pathetic.
One thing Gordon definitely has going for him is his willingness to admit fault. He went right to Gary’s house after the dinner, and when Joe pushed him, he admitted that he essentially went to his father in law, hat in hand, to apologize. He’s markedly different than Joe, in that his pride and ego don’t get in his way all the time.
Margaux: When Joe stormed into the Kill Room, basically demanding Gordon say “Thank You” to him for “saving” the LED screen contract, it was interesting to see how Gordon dismissed him. He didn’t want to rub it in Joe’s face or even have to go into the embarrassing story about begging his Father-in-law to call them back but, he did. And Joe is so self-important, it still takes him a minute to realize his save the say bullshit does solidify his worse fears, he’s some carpetbagger from New York, Gordon isn’t the slub he comes off to be.
Trevor: One thing that HaCF is making clear is that Joe is not afraid to cause a scene. To wit, him smashing that car at the end of the episode. Which, by the way, looks like the best company party ever. There’s a lot of rage in Joe, and I am consistently impressed by Lee Pace’s performance.
Margaux: I wrote in my notes about the company car smashing party that Joe is, “the dude at the party that takes it too far, makes it sort of un-fun.” I almost had to laugh when Joe pauses before his final, rageful smash to stare Cameron in the eyes, full of dick swagger. Like, what is this?
Trevor: Yeah, it was weird. Joe’s a weird guy, underneath the Porsche and the swagger. I’m looking forward to seeing more of that.
What are you thinking in terms of star count? I was leaning towards four. “Adventure” improved on “Close to the Metal,” but not drastically enough to warrant four and a half stars, at least in my opinion.
Margaux: Wait, I have one more thing I wanna bring up. That weird phone call between Donna and her boss – is he trying to neg her into an affair? Two, three episodes straight – he’s telling her how much she sucks. Then, suddenly, he’s placing an affectionate call to her about good she is at her job – he looooves peach pie.
Trevor: Oh yeah, that slipped my mind! Somehow. Yeah, that’s totally Hunt’s angle. And there’s something inherently sexual about pie. I can’t explain it, but it’s not something you talk to a married woman about, especially in those tones. And Donna seemed perplexed but not uninterested. Wonder where that’s going, especially with Gordon working so much.
Margaux: Okay, so I’m not the only one who is forever ruined by American Pie and thinking pie is now a constantly sexualized thing to talk about. Especially with your married employee.
Star count, to shift gears dramatically, I’d agree with four stars. A marked improvement from last week, now let’s see if they can keep it up. We will see how Halt and Catch Fire holds up next week. See you all then.
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