User Reviews

Halt and Catch Fire hit some minor roadblocks in "High Plains Hardware." The writing left some to be desired, but its characters, while mostly set in individual settings, continue to entertain us and grow as characters. Joe does lose some of his mysterious ways, but I am still intrigued by his character. Mackenzie Davis continues to brightly shine and give the show a taste of her punk attitude. Jean Smart costars as a rather nasty potential investor who demands 80% of proceeds if the PC turns out well. Yeah, I'm sure Joe is not gonna like that.

Cardiff Electric has to fire a majority of their employees because of Joe's PC project. Gordon is forced to let go many of his engineers but is struggling to do so. A talk with his friend finally gives him motivation, but his friend's career is now jeopardized. The friend also has something with Gordon's wife, Donna. Hmmmmm. Joe realizes that portability is the key to making this PC, so Gordon has to put together a device that weighs less than 15 pounds. In order to avoid jail, Cameron has to create the BIOS from scratch which leaves her frustrated. Finally, Bosworth and Joe need to find investors to keep the company afloat in order for the PC to hit stores.

Overall, solid episode! I felt like the writing could have been better, but the show is still trying to get its feet wet. This episode was directed by Karyn Kusama, and she directed the episode with ease. I loved the montage that depicted Cameron's frustration. Her pacing, her use of the electric pencil sharpener, her hard scribbling with lipstick, etc. Her punk attitude remains a great watch! And hey, it may help her discover some revelations!

My Grade: B

It appears for the time that Joe is all talk. Things are collapsing around him and the company. Now the new computer has to be the salvation. Numerous employees are let go with great bitterness abounding. Gordon and Cameron are out there trying to figure out what to do. As Joe wanders the streets in his sociopathic way, he goes into a stereo store that is going out of business. It dawns on him that portability is what needs to be broached. He needs to have his people invent a laptop computer. The problem is that the motherboard must be way too big. Gordon comes up with the idea of stacking two halves of a motherboard on top of each other, but he is shot down by his friend and co-worker who seems to always be telling him what he can't do (we also get a little shot of his attraction to Gordon's wife and family). There's also a nasty meeting with a potential investor who demands 80 percent of the profits if things work out. Meanwhile, Cameron goes out partying with some Gothy characters and while drunk, comes to some kind of realization. One little bit of criticism of the science is that people seem to have a lot of serendipitous moments.