10 years later, Halt and Catch Fire made video games better than other series

Despite the many advances made in the field, video games remain largely a (usually solitary) frivolity, at least when it comes to on-screen depictions. Even when a show is ostensibly about games – your Playersyour Mythic Quests — it's all about the interactions that happen outside of games, or the process of creating them.

Stop and catch fire would seem to correspond to this. AMC's highly rated show has made no secret of the fact that it's never really been about technology being covered over the course of a season; in the words of Joe MacMillan (Lee Pace), the computer has always been “the thing that gets us to the thing,” a vehicle for connection, expression, or any other deeper human need. In this way, Stop and catch fire understands the appeal of video games better than any show that came before it.

This will be first demonstrated in its second season when, following a scandal and corporate liquidation, Cameron Howe (Mackenzie Davis) leaves computer company Cardiff Electric to found Mutiny, a primitive attempt at online game. The seed for the rest of the season comes when Donna Clark (Kerry Bishé) notices two players still connected after finishing a game, which spurs the creation of a discussion forum. Even with the limitations of dial-up and 1-bit graphics, people still found ways to communicate.

Many shows set in the 80s would feature Super Mario Bros. on the NES. But few people would follow two adults for several days trying to defeat him, giving advice on how to overcome a tricky area, and swapping when one of them gets tired so they don't have to start the long ordeal again, all of that . ending with a coming closer to each other as well as a deeper understanding of the people in their orbits. It's less about nostalgia and more about proving how technology – no matter how rudimentary – can lead to moments of insight and catharsis.

Season 4 takes this idea and pushes the distance: Cam released a new Mystery–like a game called Pilgrim that no one seems to understand. No one except Donna, who solves the problem on her own. At this point in the series, Cam and Donna had a falling out, whatever bond they had shared that made them such great co-owners destroyed by hubris and backstabbing. It's a beautiful scene, one that taps into Cam's desire to create some kind of higher art form through his games, and Donna remembers the days when she used to do just that. TO DO something, solving problems rather than financing projects. This encourages them to reconnect quickly, and one of the Stop and catch fireOne of the many strengths of is the willingness to let each part of the ensemble be the villain for a season or so. Donna's betrayal still stings; she pushes people to become a competitor to her friends' new business. But there's always an understanding of where someone is coming from, and in this case, it's a desire – subconscious or otherwise – to apologize and repair a relationship that might be broken beyond repair. Pilgrim is a perfect symbol for their relationship and the idea that there can be 100 people playing your game, but you just need one person who understands it.

Stop and catch fire excels in these small moments of beauty, sometimes as simple as the way of reading this or that line. Video games aren't always the main plot, but he understands their inherent appeal, both in their community aspects and in their artistic perspectives. After all, what does a game look like? Animal well Or Outer Wildlands but an attempt to draw you into the minds of the creators while simultaneously relying on the support of others? The characters may have failed and failed over the course of the series, but they will never stop searching for that sliver of connection, no matter where it is.

Stop and catch fire airs on The Roku Channel and AMC Plus.