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Storyline Recap
How Screwed Are We? – Sweetpea, Eric, Harper, Yasmin, Bill
With no one paying her any mind, Sweetpea has done some digging and based on how she views PierPoint’s balance sheet, they are in deep trouble. I’m talking about a reckoning is coming and she expresses this to Yasmin, it is overheard by Harper, and she breaks down everything to Eric. He is the one who takes it the most seriously as he goes to Bill, and Bill makes it clear that the storm isn’t coming, it is here.
For one, there will be a new CEO and they are likely to clean up shop and to make things worst for Eric, Bill, who he perhaps sees as his champion, maybe closest friend, has a inoperable tumor. One that isn’t going to kill him tomorrow, despite it’s placement, but this doesn’t keep Eric from having to take note of the writing on the wall.
The Scapegoat – Robert, Henry, Caedi, Aurore, Lisa
The Lumi fallout continues, and now Robert is sent in for questioning, as is Henry and Aurore, with a investigator, Lisa, who is ready to help the public find a focal point to blame. Robert, as you can imagine, isn’t the best person for this. There is way too much pressure and Lisa has information Robert wasn’t prepped for and any misstep is used to setup a take down.
What doesn’t help is Henry, originally, was willing to speak as a businessman who had a great idea that didn’t work out, but then Lisa started to dig into him. With that, he gets thrown off, and then redirects her energy at Pierpoint. As all this happens, Caedi, who seems to be Henry’s now former assistant, sits there, and when Aurore steps up, as Secretary of State, and falls on the sword and saves Henry from inquires about his personal life, she leaves – seemingly upset.
The Oligarchy – Robert, Henry, Otto, Aurore, Alexander
From what it appears, it was a coordinated effort to get Henry off easy. Robert is made privy to this as he goes to Henry’s favorite club and listens to Otto and Alexander talk about how things will be done to make Aurore prime minister. Robert, now understanding how the world works, finds himself only really able to listen and be surprised by how even someone like Aurore, who came off like a good person, could be corrupted and nonchalant about having to let her staff go as she pursues higher office.
The Safe One After A Wild Night – Henry, Nicole, Robert, Yasmin
Henry is in love with Yasmin, but it is hard to say whether or not the feeling is mutual. For Yasmin, Henry is just another man in a long line of those who remind her of her father and while he is financially stable, mentally and emotionally? He is not.
Ideally, Robert would be the one but he has his own stuff going on, as shown through him doing ayuwaska with Henry and having visions of his mother, Nicole, and a few other things which deserve a raised eyebrow. Yet, even with him not being perfect, he is more stable than what Yasmin is used to and a safe enough place for her to potentially confess she may have killed her father.
Collected Quote(s)
Other Noteworthy Information
- I feel like Ali’s family, or his family’s connections, might bailout PierPoint, hence him being noted in the new characters.
New Characters
Check Out The Character Guide For More Information.
Fady Elsayed As Ali El Mansour
Ali, per Bill Adler, is a nepo hire whose family has ties with the Egyptian Government as well as the Al-Mi’raj Holding Company, who is a major asset management investor.
- The actor is also known for their role in “My Brother the Devil.”
Chloe Pirrie As Lisa Dearn
Lisa Dearn is a hawk as the shadow energy secretary, whose line of questioning is direct and not for the weak of heart.
Review
Highlights
Robert The Outlier
In many ways, Robert is a cleanse after the Rishi episode. While Rishi is someone who doesn’t learn from his mistakes, is a mad man, and seems to live for the reckless day to day of his life, Robert is nothing like that. Does he partake in some nose candy? Yes. However, it seems between seeing Clement burnout and die, his experience with Yasmin and Harper, and Eric, while he is welcomed in the worlds of Henry and the others, he is not of it.
Unlike Henry, he can have clarity and look himself in the mirror and not be afraid. Does he have trauma and issues he may not want to open up about? Yes. But, it hasn’t left him with secrets, hardened him, or made him incapable of loving someone else.
Robert, despite his education, despite his privilege of being a White man in finance, still seems pulled to being an outsider. It seems, despite how much money and access he has, he still holds onto that poor kid who wanted his mother’s approval, but also recognizes that he may never have it. Which is weird in ways that are hard to process since Robert has become such an anamoly.
Eric and Henry – Two Different Types Of Vulnerable
I’m starting to believe for shows like this, maybe anything which seeks to explore traditionally masculine industries and ask how masculinity is defined in 2024 (though it is likely an earlier year in “Industry”), there is the question of how does vulnerability play a role. Part of the reason this is noted is because of the lasting effects of the movie “The Duel,” starring Dyland Sprouse, and how it pursues showing two men left vulnerable because of the hot and cold romance of a woman.
In terms of “Industry,” what is of interest is Henry using vulnerability almost like a drug or kink, while Eric’s is a source of non-sexual intimacy. To explain, Henry likes when someone urinates on him, and there seems to be as much as a rush as him doing aywascka. It’s the feeling of being powerless, maybe temporarily less than, that gets his jollies and even if we don’t see him do anything lewd, you get this sense that vulnerability for him doesn’t mean truly being open but temporarily giving himself the guise of not being in control.
Eric, on the other hand, seems to want to be vulnerable and have intimacy, but doesn’t know how to pursue it and make it consistent, while still having the kind of respect he needs. With the way he talks about his kids, and connects with some of the women around him, you can tell he does have respect for women and what they are capable of. However, he wants to be an equal and seemingly doesn’t know how unless he is in a power position.
In my mind, that is what troubled his marriage, and the relationships, or other situations, we’ve seen him in sense. With a good portion of the women having some kind of power he feels he doesn’t, mainly sexual agency, he feels inadequate. Yet, formerly with Harper, and now with Yasmin, he is their boss, they look up to him, and so with the power dynamics in his favor, he is at peace and can engage with them like a human being.
It’s all very weird, the displays we see of power, masculinity, and vulnerability, yet the exploration, there is no sense of grandeur or exaggeration. All we get is the struggle of how to redefine masculinity in a world that has made so much of the way men used to feel and identify as men into something toxic.
What PierPoint’s Collapse Could Mean
While it seems unlike PierPoint would fall, imagine if it did. More impactful than killing off a character is killing off the money flow a character needs and as shown by Rishi and others, being a company man isn’t so much a badge of honor as it is a safety blanket. Many don’t have viable options and the options they could have would mean them having to change – which most have no desire to do.
Yet, with Eric potentially losing his longtime home and his champion, and others their source of income, it would be interesting to see how that would change many characters if they had to start over again.
The Oligarchy
Democracy, whether direct or in a republic form, is ultimately controlled by the few, often the rich, but usually when there are moves to replace heads of state, it is treated as something sinister. To see the media and the rich so casually prep to appoint someone feels as jarring as it does normal.
In a way, to see Aurore go from a Black woman expected to fall on the sword for the wrong doing of men, mostly White men, to seeing her rewarded with being setup to be a prime minister, it feels subtle sinister. Especially considering how Aurore talks about having to fire her staff as she drinks to new friends and what she believes her new friends will do for her since she played ball.
On The Fence
What Might Be Done With Lisa Dearn
When it comes to certain characters, it feels like they are introduced to be impactful, meaningful, notable characters who could shift things, but then they disappear. Nicole’s daughter popped up, and you’d think Robert would end up having to deal with her, since Nicole likely left him something, but no sign of her. Venetia, who I thought meant something to Robert, has barely had much in the way of lines, quit her job in the last episode, and wasn’t seen at all in this one.
Candice, despite all Eric says about her, is only heard about not seen, Jackie has pretty much disappeared and despite Wilhelmina being pushed to be a power player between Eric and Bill, where was she? Now, this isn’t to say “Industry” doesn’t handle women in power well, because Harper remains the main selling point and even when she is a underdog, she will snatch power from people. However, it is getting frustrating how characters are given notable introductions only to eventually fade to out and be referred to, but rarely seen.
The Gist
The TLDR Recap/ Review
- From what it seems, nearly everyone we have been introduced to is on a sinking ship one way or another.
- PierPoint, based on SweetPea asking questions to the right people, seemingly is bound to go under and this alarms Eric, Yasmin, and to the detriment of all, Harper overhears this in the toilet.
- To make things worse, Lisa Dearn, the Shadow Energy Secretary, takes Robert to task when he is sent out to ask questions, Henry throws PierPoint to the wolves, and if it wasn’t for Aurore being paid to fall on the sword now, so the oligarchy could make her prime minister later, Robert likely would have been a sacrificial lamb.
- It’s all so dramatic, and to add onto all this, Yasmin says she killed her dad Charles, Bill Adler reveals he has an inoperable cancer, and Henry talks about marrying Yasmin.
- It would be easy to imagine Rishi’s episode being the peak of the eight episode season, since it is the halfway point. However, Robert presenting his own unique abilities when he was the primary focus.
- Unlike Yasmin, or Harper, while Robert both possesses a level of privilege and sense he is an outsider, he never got the hang of being amongst the elite or the rich and their debauchery.
- Arguably, he has taken to the partying, but as shown by Nicole, even Yasmin to a point, they see who he truly is and that this world is not meant for him.
- Yet, for those like Henry and Eric, to a point, he is a scapegoat, a fun pet to play with, and while they struggle to look at themselves, Robert can continue to do so for while he plays in the mud with the filthiest of people, it seems he somehow stays clean.
General Information
Additional Information
- Previous Episode: Season 3/ Episode 4
- Series Page
Episode Title
Company Man
Release Date
September 8, 2024
Network
How To Watch
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Director(s)
Isabella Eklof
Writer(s)
Mickey Down, Konrad Kay
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