Silicon Valley: Runaway Devaluation

April 20, 2015 9:54 AM - Season 2, Episode 2

Hooli’s lawsuit scares Laurie off (despite Monica's protests), leaving Pied Piper without funding. Erlich and Richard slink back to the VCs whose offers they had turned down, but all they get is the aftermath of their disturbingly profane "negging" thrown in their faces. Jared provides a twinkle of hope by setting up a meeting with a VC he "bro'd" with on Dinesh's cousin's app, but the team quickly finds themselves victims of a "brain rape." Richard covertly meets with Gavin Belson, who offers to acquire Pied Piper. As Richard is about to respond, they're interrupted by a mariachi band and the episode ends with a hilariously awkward cliffhanger.
posted by radioamy (11 comments total)

So many funny scenes and lines, but I have to say that Jared really stood out with his embracing of Bro.

Jared: “I’ll go find some hos to prioritize behind you.”
Erlich: “Are you trying to say bros before hos?”’
Jared: “It’s sexist, but it’s about friendship.”
posted by radioamy at 9:55 AM on April 20, 2015 [6 favorites]

Ginsberg is here! With nipples!
posted by tracicle at 1:30 PM on April 20, 2015 [3 favorites]

Gavin Belson's statement at the end where he says that Hooli is basically what Pied Piper will inevitably become if they were to become successful really depressed me because it's completely true to Silicon Valley life and I can't think of an instance where that hasn't happened in the corporate world.
posted by Apocryphon at 3:06 PM on April 20, 2015 [3 favorites]

I laughed pretty hard a few times during this episode but was sad it felt over so fast.

Can't figure out where this might go next...selling to Gavin Belson seems like it would cut out a lot of potential startup-building plot points to be done. I assume the team will still be tied to Monica and the rest of Raviga and I'm not sure the 5% stake is enough to drive that. Maybe Laurie will make a lower counter-offer now that the lawsuit affects their valuation?

Gavin Belson's statement at the end where he says that Hooli is basically what Pied Piper will inevitably become if they were to become successful really depressed me because it's completely true to Silicon Valley life and I can't think of an instance where that hasn't happened in the corporate world.

You either die, get bought out, or live long enough to become the villain.
posted by JauntyFedora at 3:55 PM on April 20, 2015 [1 favorite]

Yeah, it really makes Gavin Belson a better character when you realize that he's completely correct in that scene.
posted by Pope Guilty at 5:24 PM on April 20, 2015 [1 favorite]

I agree, Gavin Belson's comment did both ring true and make me uncomfortable.

I highly doubt they're going to get bought out, but it will be interesting to see what happens next.
posted by radioamy at 6:47 PM on April 20, 2015

The cast is so strong, but it was nice to have a spotlight on Dinesh. Even though it was completely obvious how his cousin's Kickstarter was going to turn out, those scenes were fun.

I have to admit, I can't see Gavin Belson as anyone but Albie from Big Love, and I only watched that show for two seasons. Maybe a haircut.
posted by gladly at 7:27 PM on April 20, 2015 [1 favorite]

I'd dearly love to see Richard actually manage to salvage something different than the usual company out of this situation, as he protests he wants. Too many people can't see past the usual S-corp.
posted by ob1quixote at 2:00 AM on April 21, 2015

"I was the one bringing gifts for my teachers cause they worked so hard, you know, cool stuff"
*Jared nods appreciatively*

Oh Jared!
posted by bleep at 12:55 AM on May 25, 2015 [3 favorites]

Glad to see Ginsburg doing better.
posted by bleep at 1:14 AM on May 25, 2015 [1 favorite]

I was just about to google his character's name because he was driving me crazy.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 9:07 PM on July 25, 2019 [1 favorite]