Need to catch up? Check out the previous Halt and Catch Fire recap here.
Halt and Catch Fire‘s fifth-to-last episode celebrates Haley’s 14th birthday — and reveals something previously unknown about Gordon and Donna’s youngest daughter.
To mark the occasion, Gordon ditches work, and takes Haley out to launch remote-control rockets at a nearby park. Katie, Joe and Cameron tag along, but Haley doesn’t invite any friends from school. During the outing, she helps design Gordon’s rocket, painting on it a unique illustration that becomes important at the end of the episode.
The following afternoon, Joe treats Haley to lunch at her favorite fast-food joint, Hound Dogs. It’s there that he discovers that Haley has a crush on a girl: a cashier named Vanessa, who shares her love of indie rock.
Afterward, Joe learns that Haley will not be allowed to work at Comet until she gets her grades up at school. He asks Gordon to reconsider, explaining that Comet is the only place where Haley feels like she belongs. He doesn’t ever reveal to Gordon that Haley might be gay, but acknowledges that he was similar to Haley when he was her age. He also knows what it feels like to have a father who doesn’t understand you. Gordon, already upset about Haley, lashes out at Joe for attempting to give him parenting advice without having any kids of his own. In a moment of anger, he also tells Joe that he’ll never know what it’s like to be a parent.
Joe, of course, is thinking about having kids. All the time he has spent with Haley has made him realize that he wants a family of his own. But after Gordon’s comment, he begins to second-guess himself. Is he still the same a-hole we met in Season 1? And if so, is that guy capable of being someone’s father? Bosworth assures him that he’ll be up for the task when and if Cameron is ready to have children: Just acknowledging that he was once a jerk means he’s a changed man.
The next day, Gordon makes a pit stop at Hound Dogs to pick up breakfast, and Vanessa is behind the register. After he orders, he notices the exposed tattoos above her chest. It’s the same design that Haley drew on his rocket. He doesn’t say anything, but he’s clearly connected the dots.
