If you would like to read my review of the last episode, click here.
Synopsis: Richard finds himself in a web of lies; Jared plans his exit; Jack bets big; Gavin plots a comeback. (HBO)
Writer: Dan O’Keefe
Director: Mike Judge
Rating: TV-MA
Running Time: 29mins
This episode started with the guys dealing with the aftermath of the exploding phones. Everyone seemed to think that it wasn’t a big deal except for Jared whose relationship with Richard was contentious in the last episode. This latest incident was his breaking point so he offered Richard his letter of resignation but he had to give two weeks notice so Jared decided to stay until then.
Since Jared was leaving, he found a Japanese woman to interview for his position which led to a funny scene where they happen to eavesdrop on a heated conversation between the guys followed by Jared pretty much telling her the truth about what was going on. They were a casually racist criminal organization and in disarray so of course she turned them down.
Their problem could be solved if Hooli decided to issue a software update for the affected phones but Barker chose to do otherwise. He didn’t want to claim responsibility for what happened so he wanted to change the narrative. Instead, he wanted to replace all the affected phones, however, the board thought otherwise so he decided to go around the board which meant he had to go to China. In using his so called negotiation skills and his triangles of success with the Chinese factory workers, he was then taken hostage by them in exchange for better wages and working conditions.
Barker’s decision was not good for the guys since they needed the phones for their network. Their plan was to move all the data to Anton which would also leave them with no backup and at risk of overheating. Richard called Big Head for help seeing that they can use the Stanford servers but he was already on thin ice after he was exposed for who he was.
Their problems soon got worse when no one payed their internet bill, leaving them without the internet and thus rendering Melcher’s data offline. Richard then doubled down on his earlier plan by bringing Anton to Stanford without telling anybody. Jared had to be nosy so Richard let him go early.
Once they got there, Richard’s lie caught up to them, forcing Gilfoyle and Dinesh to quit and causing an outburst out of Richard. They then had a hard time getting the truck started initially so when they got batteries to jump start the truck, they left the back door open so almost all their server parts came out. Feeling defeated, he apologized to Jared who was with female company. On his way to Melcher, Jared caught up with him and offered to rejoin the company.
The last episode ended with Erlich joining Belson in Tibet and now we see that they were not exactly getting along. Erlich told him about the exploding Hooli phones and he became interested and decided to leave the monastery. With Barker taken hostage, Belson saw this as an opportunity to get back in with the Hooli board. Once he saved Barker, Belson took the opportunity to get back at him one last time.
At Melcher’s office, they learned that their network was saved by a network of smart fridges thanks to Gilfoyle’s earlier hack. The reason Melcher wanted them there was that he learned about his wife cheating on him with Richard.
The episode ended with a meeting between Richard and Belson. Belson got his position back at Hooli and wanted to work with Richard again so he offered to buy their company. Belson also told Richard that he hadn’t seen Erlich although he had left him in Tibet. Richard refused and was convinced that he would devour Belson in the future instead of Belson devouring him for not taking the offer.
Overall, this was an excellent episode full of ups and downs which inevitably ended on a high note. It looked like they were down and out but they still found a way. The relationship between Richard and Jared was a highlight and had a few funny moments including Gilfoyle’s contact lenses, Barker’s abduction, and a montage of Gilfoyle’s suck it videos on a barrage of smart fridges. Erlich is gone and his departure seemed like a fitting way for him to go but it’s too early to tell.
Score: 9.5/10
If you liked this, please read my other reviews here and don’t forget to follow me on Twitter, follow me on Instagram, and also like me on Facebook.
The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.