Super Pumped

Billions reformatted. Same writers. Same quote laden dialogue in a way that no one actually talks. It gets old. I'm sick of billions and hesitant on this one. I'll watch because I drove for Uber for 5 years, but not sure how long I can take it.

You just wanna see this cocky a-hole fail.

And the history of Uber is interesting in itself.

Pretty good characters and environments.

Mark Cuban from Shark Tank makes a cameo.

The show is so in your face you want to binge it!

Super Pumped is a limited series on Showtime based on the true events for the battle for Uber. The story centers around the cofounder Travis Kalenick who is played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt thru all the ups and downs the start up withstood against the public, their employees, politically and to their drivers. The story was intriguing from the start with narration from Quentin Tarantino. I never knew Ariana Huffington was on the board for Uber and she was played by Uma Thurman. Kyle Chandler acted as Bill Gurley who was initially invested in the company and tried to control Travis and his egocentric management style. Half the time I am rooting for him and there are times I was expecting the company to fail. Bill Howe and Elizabeth Shue played Travis's parents. Travis was such a momma's boy, every time he was battling and losing he would cry to either his mom or to Huffington. Damon Gupton (David Drummond) and Chelcie Ross (David Borderman) we're also added to the board of directors and all the members eventually ousted Travis from his own company. Ben Feldman acted as Larry Page along with David Krumholtz as Sergei Brin the co-creator of Google. There were plenty of good actors with small roles from Fred Armisen, Bill Harper as Eric Holder, John Michael Higgins, and Hank Azaria as Tim Cook. Mark Cuban had a cameo playing himself. Overall great series that is better than Billions and definitely learned a few things along the way. Definitely check it out, very entertaining and never boring.

This review will be in the minority here - and I get it. The characters in the show are over-the-top, one-dimensional and almost cartoon-like in the way they're portrayed.

So why the "10"? Because ... that's what it's really like with some founders and their corporate entourage / enablers. If you've lived through that experience, like many of us who've been involved in high-growth Silicon Valley startups, it's scary real.

There are brilliant founders out there with god-complexes and a reality-bubble surrounding them. It's like a distortion field. You get close enough and you start buying into the warped reality they have. The more successful company becomes - the stronger the bubble gets.

Anyway - while this won't be great viewing for everyone, to those who've lived through stuff like this, it can be captivating. To be on the outside and look into the crazy, fevered frenzy that sucks people in like a cult is quite an opportunity for reflection and learning.

So - that's why for me, it has to be a "10".

I see a lot of people comparing this to The Social Network & Wolf of Wall Street...you know, 2 of the best movies of the 21st century, directed by one of the best directors (Fincher/Scorsese) alive, written by one of the most accomplished screenwriters of our time (Sorkin/Winter), with one of the best scores/soundtracks (Reznor & Ross/standard Scorsese), and great actors in pretty much every role in the movie. Besides maybe Succession & Better Call Saul, what else currently on TV can even be mentioned in the same sentence as The Social Network or Wolf of Wall Street? I guess maybe Atlanta but even that isn't to the same level.

Super Pumped is a fun show about the pretty crazy story of Uber's genesis. I thought they were taking a lot of liberties with the story but besides JGL's portrayal of Travis, it shocked me how much of this actually happened, even scene for scene recreations of certain events. Unlike The Dropout & WeCrashed, which are slightly better shows, this one seems to be sticking to the facts a little more closely when it comes to plot.

I can see why this show isn't for everyone, it's not supposed to be some serious meditation on Kalanick or some cinematic masterpiece like TSN or an Oscar winner packed drama-comedy like WofWS...it's a very specific look at what things were like at Uber, testosterone fueled fast paced corrupt etc and the show reflects that. The pacing is excellent as is the analog synth score. There's a really great cast involved (JGL interestingly is probably the worst part since he's nothing like Kalanick but even he grew on me) and the show is undeniably fun. The show is narrated by an uncensored Quinten Tarantino which I think also tells you more than I could with further description. Those are actually some of my least fav parts of the show but they set the tone perfectly.

I would recommend this show for anyone who is interested in Uber's history and likes a fun fast paced show. This is by the "Billions" guys and the tone is exactly the same. Just like Billions once you get used to the style there's some great stuff in there. Who this isn't for is anyone looking for a more documentary take or even a serious dramatic take on Uber (although the irony is that this is more accurate than TSN or WofWS was by far) but rather a fun retelling of a wild story. I have pretty discerning taste when it comes to TV and I thoroughly enjoy watching this show so I would say at least give it a try...especially since the first episode was the least interesting imo.