August 21, 2024
Courtesy: HBO
"Industry" is easily the best show you're not watching. Episode 2 picks up with everyone predictably freaking out over the power outage in London as everyone is in chaotic panic mode to secure Lumi's stock and calm investor's nerves when Lumi starts trading lower than Pierpoint anticipated in "Smoke and Mirrors."
Having watched the entire season, this show is breathtaking in its chaos, twists, and turns. There's so much to unpack, but we are committed to not spoiling future episodes. Episode 2 beautifully sets the pace for the rest of the season. Who knew urine kink held so much power?
Rishi (Sagar Radia) is having a complete meltdown and screaming at everyone. When Eric (Ken Leung) of all people, gives a look and says you can't threaten violence on the floor while holding a baseball bat, you know it's bad. Rishi then screams that he is violence! Was anyone expecting Rishi to turn into the Incredible Hulk at any moment?
Courtesy: HBO
What "Industry" is absolutely good at are intense monologues and gripping scenes, especially on the trading floor. When they go into epic meltdowns or conversate about the evils of capitalism with unexpected comedy, it's even better.
Eric and Harper (My'hala) need to share scenes again because the dynamics of that relationship are the show's best. Petra (Sarah Goldberg) tells Harper that Eric called FutureDawn nine times (nine!) to dissuade them from hiring her. "Either he can't stand you or doesn't want anyone else to have you" she tells Harper astutely. Seriously, that line is everything, so when Harper calls Eric and, after a beat, hangs up after repeated hellos on his end, it heightens the anticipation for the next time they see each other, especially when Eric suspects it was her calling.
Robert (Harry Lawtey) is still reeling from the fact that Nicole is dead, and he is doing everything he can not to have the CEO of Lumi, Sir Henry Muck (Kit Harington), give interviews - including writing paper notes! - which Henry dismissively ignores. Of course, providing an impromptu video interview when your company is in a free fall is a bad idea. This leads to an intense argument between them about greed, failures, motivations, power, and capitalism, and neither side is wrong. A physical fight ensues, and I don't know if the writers were going for comedy, but it elicits a giggle. Seeing two grown men fight in a playroom, with one being smothered by an overstuffed plush doll is comic gold.
Courtesy: HBO
Stating the obvious that Robert is going through it is an understatement. He loses his girlfriend's necklace that she gifted him and knows he has to retrieve it by breaking into Nicole's home. He finds it (rather quickly), but the writers decide to pile on the drama when he's seen by Nicole's daughter Pip (Edie Lambden), and she immediately and aggressively starts coming on to him because she wants to be "touched." Oh, and she's 15 years old. Yikes!
The VP of the episode is "nepo baby" Yasmin (Marisa Abela), who quite literally saves the day when she finds out from the annoying Sweetpea (who turned out to be quite useful) that Henry has a urine kink and the wheels start turning on how she can use that to her advantage. She and Robert try to salvage Lumi and find him on the floor, locked in the bathroom of a gentleman's club. She uses his kink to her advantage and, coupled with her own sexual deviance, gets him to regain his confidence to have an important meeting with Otto Mostyn and British Electric's Gregory Clark since the shareholders were threatening to replace him earlier in the episode. Yasmin ups her game and contacts the paparazzi to capture the perfect photo op moment since she knows perception is everything to boost Henry's reputation by saving Lumi's stock.
This show does exceptionally well at using sex for gratification, punishment, and aphrodisiac, so of course, Henry is expecting to thank Yasmin by "seducing" her when he invites her to dinner. His first order of impression is to let her know that his uncle owns several newspapers, so he was able to make the notorious article about her party with her father disappear. Strangely enough, Yasmin cries, and we can't decipher her emotions. Still, she nods for him to follow her to the bathroom, and it seems like his seduction tactics worked. But then she pointedly tells him to look in the mirror first at her, then him, and tells him, "This is why it's never going to happen," then uses the stall and pees while he listens with smug satisfaction. This show continues to up the ante with weird, pervasive pleasure, but we're here for it. He gifts her with an extremely rare bottle of wine that the waiter refuses to serve because it's so rare (Really? That's grounds for termination) and ends up drinking it straight from the bottle on the bus where she's instantly photographed and it's a surprise to no one.
Courtesy: HBO
We finally find out some more about what happened to Yasmin and Charles on the boat, and while it's not rape, the encounter is still so very mentally and psychologically unsettling.
Just as unsettling is Harper, who we've seen is not above lying or manipulating and wants to prove her worth. Petra is still trying to figure Harper out, so when she wants to hedge FutureDawn's exposure on the Lumi IPO, Harper suggests she bets against Yasmin's IPO and reveals Pierpoint's system to secure lower prices using Anraj (Irfan Shamji) who's a junor level trader. Yasmin takes the bait, and when Anna (Elena Saurel) receives new trade confirmation, she's furious and calls it a betrayal. Anna needed to be told harsh truths by Petra because while they are friends (and the term is used loosely), Petra is right. Anna keeps pushing for friendship when Petra musters only civility, so the outrage Anna displays is over the top.
Courtesy: HBO
Petra is impressed with Harper's skill but balks at her willingness to deceive easily, telling Harper that they're smart enough people not to have to cheat and wants her to check her gleeful grievances against her former colleagues. Given her earlier tussle with Anna, her rebuke about not wanting to cheat sounds a bit hollow, but let's take her word for it. By the same token, Eric tells Yasmin she doesn't have to degrade herself to be an asset using market manipulation. While the advice is sound, Eric is not above using tactics of his own or making impulsive decisions that are less than honorable, especially with Bill Adler joining the team, who has unintentionally raised questions about Eric's ability to manage when in crisis. Let's see how those events play out in upcoming episodes.
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Watch the trailer for season 3 below:
Industry airs Sundays on HBO and streams on Max.
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