# Halt and Catch Fire 166 Hacker News commenters recommended Halt and Catch Fire and 20 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 7 of 13 months. It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule. **Verdict:** A drama about the 1980s–90s computer industry, praised for capturing the era and its people, though some found it weaker after season one and technically unrealistic. ## Why people recommend it - Captures early computing industry era (9 comments): "What HACF got right, imho, was the collection of the various personalities that were attracted to the rising computer technology" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48167881)) "Probably the best example of what life is like as a technical person mostly working in startups and bleeding edge technology" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47061763)) "the show itself had a very well researched yet very nostalgic sense of "oh yes. I'd forgotten about that"" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48164789)) - Complex characters and strong acting (5 comments): "Everyone gets treated even handedly, no 2 dimensional heroes and villains, just a load of people trying to build something while their egos get in the way." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47059661)) "What HACF got right, imho, was the collection of the various personalities that were attracted to the rising computer technology" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48167881)) "The actor really gave that character life, and impact when the death happened, great talent." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48173779)) - Later seasons and finale shine (5 comments): "My all-time favorite. Compaq had a compelling story, and I liked where the writers went after the first season." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47057369)) "one of the few shows that advanced the storyline quite a bit threw the seasons without jumping the shark" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48165424)) "reviews are good (so it's not just this guy who liked it) and they got better as the show went on" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47057513)) - Rewatchable all-time favorite (3 comments): "Literally this is the best show I’ve ever seen. If I’m ever burnt out at work I rewatch it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47059612)) "The series is a memorable instance of what any self-respecting geek ought to have watched." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47059789)) "I've watched that series 3 times. It is very good..one of my all time faves, actually." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47062451)) ## What people warn about - Drops off after first season (6 comments): "Season 1 was absolutely killer. I like that they tried to capture different eras per season, but subsequent seasons got progressively weaker." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47056979)) "I loved the first season, but after that it felt silly making the same people invent basically everything in the computer world." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47062322)) "I made it through the first season which was okay, but I couldn't get myself to finish the second one, it was just bad." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47058909)) - Noticeable technical inaccuracies (5 comments): "It's quite good, but it gets very Six Feet Under by the end, and you have to suspend a lot of disbelief about technology" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47056852)) "World class hacker that literally types one finger at a time, like she had never used a keyboard before." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48164227)) "It also annoyed me that the Commodore 64s used for their online service were shown with DOS prompts." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47062104)) - Unrealistic, corny tech premise (3 comments): "The show felt like it was written by people who imagined what it must have been like rather than people who had any experience of it." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47057106)) "I loved the first season, but after that it felt silly making the same people invent basically everything in the computer world." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47062322)) "very good if you're into the whole fantasy of tech entrepreneurship of the 80's/90's, but kinda corny when you think about it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47067255)) - Unlikeable characters, soapy drama (3 comments): "It's quite good, but it gets very Six Feet Under by the end, and you have to suspend a lot of disbelief about technology" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47056852)) "It was engrossing as all hell, but it's one of the only shows I ever finished while really not liking it." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47063559)) "the character you're describing as so convincing and charismatic is so dramatically unlikeable" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47070722)) ## Alternatives hackers recommend - [Babylon 5](https://hackerapproved.com/p/babylon-5.md): 86 recommend - [Silicon Valley (TV series)](https://hackerapproved.com/p/silicon-valley.md): 52 recommend - [Andor](https://hackerapproved.com/p/andor.md): 52 recommend - [The Wire](https://hackerapproved.com/p/wire.md): 39 recommend - [Star Trek: Strange New Worlds](https://hackerapproved.com/p/star-trek-strange-new-worlds.md): 34 recommend ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Halt and Catch Fire", https://hackerapproved.com/p/halt-and-catch-fire/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).