Rating: 5/5

Three-Word Summary: Tech start-up farce

On the surface, Silicon Valley is a funny show about an unfunny subject.

The HBO program is all about a start-up company with an unprecedented data compression algorithm.

This concept is developed into an irresistible show because of the unrelenting characters.

• There’s Richard, the inventor of Pied Piper and the show’s anxiety-ridden straight man.
• Erlich Bachman is the repugnant owner of the start-up ‘Incubator’ where the characters live.
• Dinesh is the token diversity, a coder from Pakistan, and may be the funniest character in the entire show.
• Then, Bertram Gilfoyle, the surly Satanic Canadian who used to be Bill on Freaks and Geeks.
• And finally, Donald “Jared” Dunn, who serves as their pitiful business manager/punching bag. Plays a similar milquetoast character as Gabe on The Office.

These individuals make up Pied Piper, a small technology company trying to make their way in the complicated world of Silicon Valley.

They argue and bumble their way into a phenomenal product, but face plenty of struggles while trying to keep the company afloat.

It’s no surprise that the show was created by Mike Judge, who also brought us Office Space. It has a very similar sense of humor, only the technology has been updated by two decades.

The first two seasons have already been released by HBO with a third on the way next year. With less than eight episodes in these two seasons, the show can (and should) be binge watched over a long weekend.

The only issue then is the need for the next season.

It’s well written, well acted and well received. Silicon Valley has to be one of the best current television shows about modern technology and the people who create it.