Who Is Mr. Robot's Landlord?

What happens when someone "in the know" (kind of) confirms your theories?

So, yesterday I wrote a big thing about the possible connection between Elliot's use of Ray's computer, and his ability to only use Ray's computer, with the function of the Blue Box that divides the two sections of the David Lynch classic movie Mulholland Drive.

You can read that post by clicking HERE.

Just prior to posting, I sent a tweet to Sam Esmail (you will see it in a second). So, he responded, which I will freely admit shocked the shit out of me.  Here was his response:

Hmmmm

Okay, part of me thinks that is a confirmation of sorts and part of me wonders why he would ever confirm anything that would compromise the surprise of the plot.

I am just going to take that at face value and see what happens. But, I am pretty flattered to hear from the creator, writer, director of one of my favorite shows! Maybe, just maybe, he was admitting we were all on to something.

One thing is for sure, I guarantee you that Ray's computer is a tell.

Anyway, on to the other Easter Eggs in Eps 2.2 as promised (busy week).

Mr. Robot, Coup Are You? 

I did not catch this, two other people have exposed it:

1. A Reddit user named  tekn04 mentioned, in a discussion of the Confictura Industries website Easter Egg from episode 2.1, that the security code that E-Corps general counsel Susan Jacobs (Sandrine Holt) uses on her malfunctioning smart home control panel was 22381 which corresponds to 2/23/81 the date of an attempted coup in Spain (known as the 23-F Coup).

Just to catch people up. If you scan the QR Code from the "Red Wheelbarrow" notebook in the premier you are taken to a 90's style "Under Construction" website for Confictura Industries. People were discussing what the site meant in the larger context of the show when tekn04 raised the security code issue. 

2. Jefferson Grubbs,  a writer at Bustle, wrote a treatment suggesting that this could portend the direction that Season 2 will be taking. You can read his treatment by clicking HERE. 

Grubbs suggests that E-Corps CEO Phillip Price (Michael Cristofer) would be analogous to King Juan Carlos and fsociety would be playing the part of the failed revolutionaries. He goes on to mention that the Spanish rebels tried instigating a second coup (hack) and failed spectacularly and that this might bode ill for fsociety. 

One thing we are learning through the show is that Governments are becoming increasingly obsolete and out of touch with what is going on at the higher level of technology. Players like Evil-Corps and groups like the Dark Army play both sides constantly and link themselves to revolutionaries and governments fluidly whenever, and however, the need arises. 

In other words, I am not sure I agree with the analogy Grubbs is drawing here.

I think what might be intended by the inclusion of this 23-F Easter Egg is actually much simpler the writers are suggesting that:

People should stop investing in the idea of governments, security codes, or revolutions protecting them. Governments, corporations, and revolutionaries are just as impotent as this smart home security gateway at protecting us from the high-level players and threats that we face.

The security threats we face today are nimble and the faces and motives of the culprits are fluid. Security systems and government reactions are usually, at best, reactive and plodding.

By the time you call your security service, it is probably already too late. And by the time you find a culprit, they are most likely a sacrificial lamb.

Obviously, I could be wrong, but I suspect that the security code was a clever commentary on the whole idea of protecting your house with this kind of interface rather than a commentary on the future direction of Season 2.

"We Have A Way In"

Yup, yet another cool Easter Egg was hidden in Episode 2.2.

When Elliot (Rami Malek) finally decided to get back in the game and access Ray's computer so that he could engage in an internet relay chat with Darlene (Carly Chaikin) he exposed the IRC IP address.

Stephanie Dube Dwilson, who writes for a site called Heavy, also looked into what happens when you investigate this IP Address. You can read her very cool work by clicking HERE. 

A Redditor named js3kgt was responsible for the actual solution she details (she credits him too) and the thread for the Reddit conversation can be accessed by clicking HERE. 

As of right now, this is just a cool game where it seems like Elliot is responding to your query. Elliot will respond that "they have changed their standard issue" and "we have a way in."

I am assuming this is in reference to the last scene in Eps 2.2 when he states that he is hacking the FBI.

Looking forward to what he finds out from hacking the FBI and what learning what Ray (Craig Robinson) is really up to. 

Plus I still think that it is possible that Ray's computer is the blue box (Mulholland Drive). Not sure what Sam Esmail was suggesting :). Here's hoping he responds again (I have now talked with both Kor Adana and Sam Esmail this year which is very cool).

As always I could be wrong. 

It is pretty cool that they broaden the viewing experience so far beyond the screen on Mr. Robot. If you have not yet seen the other Eps 2.2 Easter Egg, the mini-movie "The Careful Massacre of the Bourgeoisie" you can see it and read my commentary HERE.

What do you think of what Sam told me, of the 23-F Coup, and about the IRC IP address? Let me know, leave a comment!