Silicon Valley 4.04: "The Blood Boy" - Review:
Directed by Tim Roche & Written by Adam Countee
Richard and Gavin's partnership was never going to be easy, and there were always going to be differences between how the two operated. Very rarely did they find the middle ground, and it seems like Bryce was used as a catalyst to bring out the differences between the two. Bryce is operating as Gavin's blood bank, a jock who according to Gavin improves his health by transfusing his blood, increasing his lifespan in the process and keeping him fit. Bryce is also very discreet about the whole operation, something that Gavin values him for. However, Gavin decides to bring Bryce in during the meeting where Richard is pitching a quiet, under-the-radar rollout for the new incarnation of the Pied Piper app, and as he wants to go for a big announcement, he seems to be taking Bryce's opinions more seriously than Richard, something that Richard is seriously annoyed about. To make matters worse, it turns out that Bryce and Jared knew each other - obviously not very well for Bryce to mistake Jared's name, but Jared decides to unleash his anger at Bryce after he suggests that sticking with Gavin might be the best possible approach. Jared called Bryce a dick multiple times to his face, in one of the best scenes of the episode. It seems that the more unhinged Jared becomes, the better the show is.
Jian Yang meanwhile is attending Laurie's baby shower having brought Erlich along as his plus one as he didn't get an invite. It becomes apparent that not only has Jian Yang mistaken who is actually pregnant, believing it to be Monica, but also this baby shower hosted by Ed Chen is actually part of a coup in order to show how vulnerable and a calamity to the project Laurie will be according to Erlich. Erlich advises Monica that it's best to suck up to Ed Chen while she can, so that when the takeover does come she'll be on the right side. This is something that Monica actually goes ahead and does, only to later find out from Erlich that because Ed Chen is keeping his bid for a takeover a secret, it's likely that he doesn't have all the votes that he needs yet so he decides that Monica staying with Laurie could very well be an option if she lets her know. Monica decides to tell Laurie about what she has learned, and earns Laurie's trust for her honesty. However, Laurie herself is leaving everything behind in the attempt to start her own business venture, and recognising Monica's loyalty, declares Monica her best friend and wants her to come with her on a new VC fund as leaving Raviga was always part of her plan. If Monica ends up going with Laurie does this mean more screentime for Monica and Laurie working together in future episodes? because I sure hope so. Both Suzanne Rossell Cryer and Amanda Crew are consistently fantastic, and seeing them work together in a potentially closer capacity than before is always awesome news to hear.
A big theme about this episode was secrets or rather, lack thereof, with multiple revelations happening over the course of the episode. As well as Monica's revelation to Laurie, you also Dinesh and his Mia problem. He's wondering how to let his hacker girlfriend down without ending in a breakup that will leave her out for revenge, and to make matters worse, he's been invited to attend her sister's wedding which means there would be photos taken of him and a lasting impression on her family. To make matters worse for Dinesh, Mia doesn't care about the fact that he lied to her and he's not just the great "Gavin-killer," having purely lucked into destroying Gavin on accident. Mia is understandably less than pleased to find out that most of Dinesh' flat actually sold out to Gavin, but the team presumably won't have to worry about her for the foreseeable future as Dinesh takes drastic measures into play to get rid of Mia, calling the FBI on her at her sister's wedding. He does his best to act discreet about not being the one who provided the anonymous tip, going so far as to be punched by the FBI Agent when he tries to see if everything's okay. So that's one problem solved for Dinesh at least for now, even if he went to spectacularly cruel means to do so, and I wouldn't be surprised, this being Silicon Valley of course, if Dinesh's actions didn't come back to haunt him at some point further down the line. Given how much stuff has happened to the characters in the past, it starts to get suspicious when something goes right for them. But at least Dinesh now has an excuse to quit his job at periscope, throwing in his lot with Richard, and you can pretty much guarantee that if Mia doesn't come back to haunt him, this decision most certainly will.
Meanwhile Richard finds out that Bryce isn't all he says he is, he's been eating unhealthy food and taking drugs which is something that messes with Gavin's system. Richard goes to tell Gavin about this when Bryce reveals that he hates working as Gavin's blood bank because nobody takes him seriously for looking like a jock. It turns out that Bryce already told Gavin however and is planning on revealing an exclusive tell-all book about working with Gavin which would further ruin him, and Gavin's so worried that he's now going to live until he's "only" 120 years old. Gavin freaks out at this destroying the place again, and decides that he's finished for good and not even Richard's new internet idea can tempt him back into the picture. Richard, looking to cheer Gavin up, decides to go public with the launch and host an interview for him, telling Gavin that he'd do the same for Richard if positions were reversed. However, Gavin wouldn't, and instead, decides to leave, heading off on a plane to find himself, giving complete ownership of the pattern to Richard, as well as a large framed and signed photograph of Gavin's head. Gilfoyle breaks the news to an over-excited Dinesh who has just quit his job at looking at dick pics, calling it "The Biggest Dick Pick of all."
What did you think of The Blood Boy? Let me know in the comments section below and check out the next episode of Silicon Valley at 9pm on HBO this Sunday.
