Mike Judge's "Silicon Valley" (HBO Show)

you know i was kind of souring on the show for a minute but Adam Bruneau's posts itt make me like it more

OTM

Meh finale, but enjoyed it.

Longer T.J. Miller interview:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/tj-miller-says-leaving-silicon-valley-was-like-a-breakup-1016573

Meh finale, but enjoyed it.

Longer T.J. Miller interview:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/tj-miller-says-leaving-silicon-valley-was-like-a-breakup-1016573

well, that's over

I saw Bighead (well, the actor who plays him) in the next row over at the Seu Jorge concert at the Hollywood Bowl tonight.

my username is password, and the password is password

I don't give a shit about the technical implausibility because the hilarity of being saved by smart fridges is good

oof this was so bad. RIP this show.

Richard is in a race to the bottom, i get that. i still think it undermines the credibility of the other characters, who will work for someone who berates them to their faces and does not respect their input, yet pretend to be in control of their destiny w some choice "Satanic" phrases here and there. Jared quitting was a peak into an interesting plot development that of course got reset to status quo within 5 minutes because none of these characters stand for anything.

the smart fridges thing was funny. classic Mike Judge devo humor. password is password. great stuff. i hope they really lean on Big Head he is the only redeeming thing about this show (well Gavin is interesting in a McAfee kind of way.

i still ride for jared but that's in part because he reminds me of my therapist

which is probably weird

I could see that and I would love to have Jared as my therapist. He's pretty much an ad hoc therapist for half of the episodes, anyway.

I recently watched Riverdale and was cracking up because their Kevin character reminded me of a gay high school version of Jared for some reason.

Jack Barker thinking he's going to try his magic of managerial excellent horseshit on an already overworked factory floor came to the necessary conclusion, imo

the very brief catharsis of asshole Richard getting pummeled was some prime physical comedy, but wasn't enough

binged the whole show over the weekend, it wasn't very good.

gotta say, the chinese was handled better this episode than the other ep

tj miller comes off as a real "fun guy" here
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/tj-miller-says-leaving-silicon-valley-was-like-a-breakup-1016573

Will you watch the show going forward?

Oh, I don’t watch the show now because I don’t have time. I’m making comedy for people to laugh because their life is essentially tragic. I mean, I’m a fan of the show. I will be forever. If I have a terrible day, I’ll probably tune in to see what Zach Woods said on an episode because — you know — he’s a winner.

In a world where the culture is fractured, and there is no real zeitgeist, everybody has to work on different platforms — multiple, or in my case, all of them. And I can’t devote enough time to stand-up. The people from the show and the fans that get it, they’re like, “We understand. You need to have a slower schedule and divert your focus.” Like The Gorburger Show, stand-up, Deadpool and is there a Weasel spinoff that’s funny and ironic other than being a sidekick? I have a movie at DreamWorks. And then the people that don’t are like stupid f—king websites like TV Over Mind or something, and they’re putting forth very reasonable, well written logic for why this is so dumb and the only thing I’ll ever be good at was this part in Silicon Valley.” Yet none of them have seen Yogi Bear 3D, so they’re all talking and chit-chattering and squawk, squawk, squawk — but none of them have seen Yogi Bear 3D. So they don’t know that I’ve already done the best thing that I’ll ever do. And because of that, there is no fear about any move in Hollywood for me. I’m just on the downslope. This is all a downward spiral, career-wise.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

I think he's kind of a dickbag but I think a fair number of actors never watch the finished work, or only do so briefly

Oof, for an improv guy he is pretty inarticulate

The bad news is that TJ Miller won't be fully appreciated as a comedic genius until he's dead. The good news is 5...4...3...2...

— Anthony Jeselnik (@anthonyjeselnik) June 26, 2017

shots fired!

i rewatched the season 1 finale and laughed almost as hard as I did the first time i saw it.

Finale to this season was great imo. I don't get what kind of "evolution" ppl are expecting, that things always go back where they start is a lifelike eternal struggle imo trynna push the boulder up the mountain of economic success in a capitalist economy, v resonant shit & consistently amusing

where the fuck did Asshole Richard come from? It's yet another moment (out of many many many of them) where they write something really improbable or incongruent to like conveniently shuffle the plot along but it just doesn't make a whole lot of sense

Asshole Dinesh > Asshole Richard

Imagine if the season ended with that whole Dinesh as CEO storyline kicking in and not ending.

TJ Miller sounds like A POS

Well that was... something. Almost hated the ep but the return of Gavin was nice and the silly final scene did make me laugh.
Not looking forward to the next season....
(Veep's finale was great!)

Well that was... something. Almost hated the ep but the return of Gavin was nice and the silly final scene did make me laugh.
Not looking forward to the next season....
(Veep's finale was great!)

veep's finale was a good reset but kind of bad as tv, about 948028348 things happened to the plot....it felt like a really long 'what you missed last episode' clip

where the fuck did Asshole Richard come from? It's yet another moment (out of many many many of them) where they write something really improbable or incongruent to like conveniently shuffle the plot along but it just doesn't make a whole lot of sense

― he not like the banana (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, June 26, 2017 9:59 PM (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i thought this was pretty well developed throughout the series, as he explains to dinesh & gilfoyle in the finale ... the entire plot was sparked by him wanting to create a new kind of company which isn't run by a hypocritical sociopath & as the company grows & runs into more & more issues everyone puts pressure on him to do exactly that and he refuses, & finally when he gives in & compromises his values for the good of the company it backfires & everyone dislikes him

binged the whole show over the weekend, it wasn't very good.

― Chocolate-covered gummy bears? Not ruling those lil' guys out. (ulysses), Monday, June 26, 2017 12:49 PM (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

"The food here is terrible...." "...I know, and such small portions!"

yeah, i've given up on shows that WERE good, just not good enough to compel me to see them through.

i'm not complaining that i knocked it out fast! I'm glad it was short! I loved prior seasons a lot; this one was lacking in ways that have been extrapolated to death upthread. i finally burnt out on television i guess.

there was a couple eps this season i thought weren't funny or were boring but i don't think the show fell off like that ... ive been back watching king of the hill & it could have the same issues

the entire plot was sparked by him wanting to create a new kind of company which isn't run by a hypocritical sociopath & as the company grows & runs into more & more issues everyone puts pressure on him to do exactly that and he refuses, & finally when he gives in & compromises his values for the good of the company it backfires & everyone dislikes him

it feels like yes this is the narrative arc of the show but they just did a shitty job connecting dots or gave up 3/4 of the way through entirely. does Richard have any values past doing only what he wants at any given moment? there is this vague stuff about a new internet, that's about it. we as an audience are cut off from the day to day. we just get clued in for the dramatic moments. we don't know anything about this new thing they are working on unless it directly relates to the current episode's plot upheavals. in the first few seasons we learned about the technology, we saw different ways in which it could be implemented, we saw the UI disaster, we saw the thing at work. ever since he first left PP it turned into a need to know basis.

also i think there is a difference between compromising your values re: selling your work and straight up just being a belligerent jerk maybe the writers leaning too much on the latter to cover the former

I need the condescending, useless doctor to show up and say more negative shit

it feels like yes this is the narrative arc of the show but they just did a shitty job connecting dots or gave up 3/4 of the way through entirely. does Richard have any values past doing only what he wants at any given moment? there is this vague stuff about a new internet, that's about it. we as an audience are cut off from the day to day. we just get clued in for the dramatic moments. we don't know anything about this new thing they are working on unless it directly relates to the current episode's plot upheavals. in the first few seasons we learned about the technology, we saw different ways in which it could be implemented, we saw the UI disaster, we saw the thing at work. ever since he first left PP it turned into a need to know basis.

― AdamVania (Adam Bruneau), Tuesday, June 27, 2017 3:23 PM (five hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

"does richard have any values past doing only what he wants at any given moment?"

why are you asking this question as if this isn't *what the show is about"—negotiating your values in a system that punishes ppl for sticking to their principles? Richard obviously has principles—he's stated them throughout the show...he's trying to create a new freer internet which levels current gatekeepers & has come to see this mission as an 'ends justifies the means' situation

there is this vague stuff about a new internet, that's about it. we as an audience are cut off from the day to day. we just get clued in for the dramatic moments. we don't know anything about this new thing they are working on unless it directly relates to the current episode's plot upheavals.

who on earth wants more details on the new internet? who wants the day to day of developing the new internet? i actually like that the show rotates around plot mechanisms instead of ... what, watching them program for hours at a time? i cant even understand what it is you're looking for them to do

hum. I'm not sure it's about seeing them program for hours but I agree that in the previous seasons you got to see more about their work, as a team, to build the company.
this season, not really. I think the only real team work was their "pineapple" operation at the hooli convention (and the final "moving Anton" maybe).
but it's very far from the fun of their collective work to get enough power to handle the traffic for the Condor livestream (including Erlich putting on his wrists braces... hair pin ! and the subsequent toast issue) for instance !

i don't really buy that Richard has values and these are driving the new company. i think the internet scheme is mostly a mostly ego boost for him. i think he's good about coming off as a brilliant visionary in speeches but it is obvious he wants total control over anything he creates. im not buying that he is going to create a new decentralized internet that nobody controls. it goes completely against the one principle he has stood buy, that he should have total control over everything.

i cant even understand what it is you're looking for them to do

plots beyond "(another) last ditch effort where Richard screws it up and magically it works anyways" every single episode would be good. the earlier seasons had a flow to them, you saw things develop, you saw people float in and out of their orbit. everyone is a walking a plot device now. these other characters are all shells of people. when Gilfoyle and Nidesh say "You lied to us!" i wanted to slap them. yes you idiots, the guy who has lied to you dozens of times now, has lied to you again, and yet you are still working here. for what? is he paying their salary? they didn't pay the internet bill because when Jared brought him the bill he said "Go away mom". which is funny, lol, what a great joke, but it also displays that the show itself is a joke.

i think he's good about coming off as a brilliant visionary in speeches but it is obvious he wants total control over anything he creates. im not buying that he is going to create a new decentralized internet that nobody controls. it goes completely against the one principle he has stood buy, that he should have total control over everything

this is both accurate to the character and to, ime, their real-life equivalents. personal rep and/or wealth overshadows any and all other hifalutin considerations.

who on earth wants more details on the new internet?

who wants details on a compression algorithm? yet we heard about that constantly. its detailed funtionality is even central to the final episode-long joke of the season 1-ending.

they can write good. they once did. they are writing poorly now.

personal rep and/or wealth overshadows any and all other hifalutin considerations

but this is not a VALUE. "I'm going to do what is good for me" is not a VALUE.

I could use a few more technical shenanigans (losing Anton out the back of the truck, their network somehow working on fridges, VR exposed as a technical failure) than venture capital shenanigans (the Jack/Gavin junk which seems a little too petty to be entertaining, the will-or-won't-they stuff with Laurie funding them, failing to really make Monica have any stake in what their doing but having her appear for balance).

*they're

my god I'm a monster

why make the writers play to their weaknesses when they can double down on
http://i.imgur.com/VTgM7VC.jpg?1

i don't really buy that Richard has values and these are driving the new company. i think the internet scheme is mostly a mostly ego boost for him. i think he's good about coming off as a brilliant visionary in speeches but it is obvious he wants total control over anything he creates. im not buying that he is going to create a new decentralized internet that nobody controls. it goes completely against the one principle he has stood buy, that he should have total control over everything.

This paragraph does not resonate as true to me whatsoever. i mean, of course its an 'ego boost' for him, so is you posting on this thread—that doesn't mean he doesn't have any values

flopson otm

in the TJ interview he kind of nails it with the "this guy is from Seinfeld and he's applying Seinfeld logic to the arc" except it this HBO context it just doesn't really work as a compelling thing

gilfoyle with the cat eye contacts was a great, obvious gag

of course he doesn't have normal contact lenses, just ones he got for halloween