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Shortcut to a great show (but not a real keyboard shortcut - don't try it).
Today’s show is underrated, which is pretty much on par with its story of underdogs. It came out somewhere near the end of Mad Men (which ended in 2015) but it never reached a wider audience or received the critical acclaim it deserved. Thankfully, AMC did right by the series and it got to tell the complete story over four planned seasons, and now it lives on as a cult favorite among those who manage to discover it. Today, I’m expanding this circle to you. It’s 1980-something in Texas and you’re witnessing the early days of a revolution in the computing industry that changes the world.
But it’s also not just about the computing industry - although it seems to get it right. I wasn’t around in the 1980s working on computers but those who did seem to call it the most accurate representation of what they did, so take it from them. It’s the setting to explore characters who feel so real they could be people you’ve spoken to and tell a story that feels so real you could be watching a documentary. To steal a line from the show, it’s the thing that gets you to the thing, and the thing happens to be a compelling narrative with great performances that engages you on an emotional level.
Halt and Catch Fire (2014-2017)
You wouldn’t think a show that starts with a character that runs over an armadillo and seems unfazed could make him likeable in any way. But it does. Honestly, all of the main characters aren’t exactly living their best life when we first meet them. Here’s another thing they pull off - you technically meet all of the main characters of the show in the pilot but they only seem like supporting characters in the beginning.
There’s Joe Macmillan (Lee Pace), the aforementioned armadillo killer, who seems like your typical anti-hero protagonist similar to Don Draper. A brilliant visionary you should keep at arm’s length because you have this sneaking suspicion he wouldn’t hesitate to fuck you over to get what he wants. But he can also charm and scheme and talk his way into anything - including getting Cardiff Electric, a mainframe software company that only sells its stuff, into opening up a new PC division to compete with giants of the time including IBM.
There’s Cameron Howe (Mackenzie Davis), a genius coder who seems to know everything but getting along with people. Being discovered at Austin Tech by Joe, she’s hired straight from college to work on their new project. The two of them also have something - but don’t expect a typical romance here. Attraction is just a fraction of what’s going on here. They’re two strong personalities who clash, constantly, but also drive each other to do better.
There’s Gordon Clark (Scoot McNairy), who had tried to build a PC that crashed and burned and now is stuck in his job at Cardiff as a middling sales engineer. Until Joe comes along and gets him fired up to discover his passion again. It’s just the start of all that he can do and all that he can be.
Also seen in the pilot is Donna Clarke (Kerry Bishé), Gordon’s wife, who, like Bos, you’d think would just be a supporting character to make up some of the B-plots as the show progresses since she’s the typical TV mom after all - underappreciated and unfulfilled as a mother, wife, and in her job. But soon into the show, you see there’s more to her and she goes on to join Cameron and they form a duo to be reckoned with.
We also meet John Bosworth, aka Bos (Toby Huss), the top dog at Cardiff Electric who’s a no-bullshit businessman who butts heads with Joe. At first glance, he seems to be an old-school Texan who would maybe serve a limited role as the antagonist to the anti-hero protagonist Joe and his ‘team’. But even he joins forces with them and becomes an integral part of the show all the way to the end.
So, what are they doing? Computers exist. But they’re clunky machines limited to geeky hobbyists with money to spend and time to learn how it works - there’s no GUI yet so working with a computer means being good with code and no visually-accessible graphics to help you along. They’re bringing it to everyday people - this is spearheaded by Joe’s vision, which, yeah, is something that Steve Jobs did in real life. Steve Jobs exists in this universe too - there’s an unforgettable scene near the end of the first season where Joe sees a sneak peek at the soon-to-release Apple Macintosh (I’d almost forgotten that’s where Mac comes from) in a hotel room during COMDEX, one of the largest computer trade shows in the world at the time.
And that’s just the first season. The show reinvents itself every time, going in unexpected directions, with a love for technology and making something new and better at its core. Which parallels the quality of the show too. It gets better and better as it goes, discovering what it is as its characters find who they are as they square up against challenges. It doesn’t hesitate to shift the story between characters, there’s no single lead here, everyone matters.
The set pieces are great, the music is great, the writing is great, and the performances are great. It takes you from the emerging computing boom in the 1980s all the way up to the 1990s - with everyone in a vastly different place from where we started (and also - by the way, they’ve got style throughout - no horrible 80s or 90s fashion to see here despite everyone’s fashion evolving throughout).
But what I truly love about Halt and Catch Fire is something that can’t be said in words - its energy. There’s something captivating about watching these builders, dreamers, and creators come together and try to succeed against all odds. They’re passionate, they’re good at what they do, and they believe in what they’re doing - despite everyone telling them that what they’re doing will never work. I can tell you all about it but you’ll only get it once you see it in action. And then, you’ll want to keep watching until you get to the end because you want to see what they’re capable of doing next.
P.S. It wouldn’t be an On the Screen edition without some random info. In case you’re curious about the title, it comes from these character posters:
Jonathan Wynn, the art director who worked on these, says this about his inspiration behind it:
AMC asked us to find a way to introduce the characters of the show. We found our concept in basic computer terminology: Joe is a control-freak; Gordon is a failed genius searching for an alternate reality where he finally earns recognition; Cameron has an edgy, cyber-punk attitude to escape becoming a corporate shill; Donna shifts from a businesswoman to an entrepreneur.
So, there you go.
Until next time,
V