Silicon Valley season 4 episode 9 review: Richard’s necessary downfall
Who would’ve expected security guy Hoover to be the hero of the story? This was both random and appropriate the more that we learned the truth about what was going on at Hooli-Con. It just so turned out that Hoover was the guy responsible for sparing Richard, Jared, Dinesh, and Gilfoyle humiliation over a stunt that they were plotting in order to decimate Jack Barker and his entire presentation. It was a savvy idea, but one that didn’t go off without a hitch … all thanks to Richard.
This episode was a wonderful exploration into what this story was really all about: Richard becoming an unlikable prick in so many ways. Remember his ex-girlfriend Winnie? Well, he found her new boyfriend so irritating that he decided to sabotage his computer for no reason beyond immaturity. Add to this lying to the guys about the deal he made with Keenan, and you’ve got two instances of him being dishonest and selfish at the same time. It made sense for this to be the episode that broke Jared. He didn’t want to see Richard become Gavin, and that is exactly what he did, with the big difference being that Gavin at least has money to throw around. Richard has nothing other than ideas.
Also, Richard has completely ruined himself further now thanks to his idea of installing updates into everyone’s Hooli-Con apps without their knowledge. As it turns out, this has a side effect: Short-circuiting phones … at least that’s what we think for now.
The end of Erlich?
After he decided that he wanted to go to Tibet to meet up with Gavin and meditate over life (he’d been a failure in the tech industry far too many times), Jian Yang couldn’t wait to throw him off at the airport. This is a somewhat appropriate to a guy like Erlich, who wants to think some grand adventure could fix him. It’s also indicative that TJ Miller is leaving at the right time, as the show hasn’t had much of a use for him this entire season and it seems right for him to move on.
Final verdict
This wasn’t a funny episode so much as a necessary one. This season’s been a little short on the character development, so for them to shine a light on what a tool Richard’s become was important at this time. Hopefully, this will set the stage for a redemption story later. Grade: B.
Preview the finale
If you want some other insight into how Silicon Valley season 4 will end, we recommend that you do head over to the link here right now! (Photo: HBO.)