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Speaking of Erlich, episode writer Adam Countee reminds us that, for all his follies and foibles, Mr. Bachman can still be quite observant. Erlich attends Laurie’s baby shower as Jian-Yang’s plus-one. “My invitation must have been lost in the email,” Erlich tells Monica. “This isn’t my doing,” she says. Ed Chen has thrown this tequila-shot-filled soiree, and the fact that Laurie and Monica are the only women at what is normally a female-centric event makes Erlich suspicious. Amid all the tech-bro attendees is the co-founder of Raviga, a man who usually appears at the office once a year, if at all.

“This isn’t a party,” Erlich tells Monica. “It’s a coup!” Laurie’s pregnancy will be used against her, and Ed Chen will usurp her power and her role while she’s on maternity leave. Monica will also be ousted, unless she pals up with Ed Chen and his misogynistic tech bros. “You either bro down or you go down,” Erlich tells her. Taking his advice, Monica does shots of tequila and feigns delight as she sits through 40 minutes of snowboarding video set to Diplo remixes. For her trouble, she learns that Erlich was right: This is a takeover attempt. Ed sends Monica on a weed run. Of course, she scores it from Erlich.

“You may have bet on the wrong horse,” Erlich tells Monica after she explains all the details of the takeover. Ed told Monica that she’s in if she keeps her mouth closed, which means he doesn’t yet have the votes to oust Laurie. So the deal isn’t set in stone. Changing her bet, Monica rats out Ed, only to discover that Laurie is one step ahead of her.

“This is my fourth child, Monica,” Laurie says. “I’m no stranger to these types of machinations.” In fact, Laurie plans to use Ed’s attempted coup to start her own company. Half of Raviga’s customers have already agreed to go with her, and she invites Monica to join as well

Keywords:
Silicon Valley S4E5
Amanda Crew
Monica
Raviga
Erlich
Ed Chen
Laurie
snowboarding
New Raviga