Industry

Industry can't escape being compared to Billions which - with all its shortcomings - is probably considered the best finance tv-series around. Yet Industry is my new favourite (and a close second for all those lured by the crazy plot-twists of Billions): indeed a more realistic and better written one in a lot of departments.

I don't have the time nor the background to feel like dissecting the storylines, the cliffhangers, the characters, the overall writing style, the acting. Let's simplify by saying that overall Billions is better produced and hits harder with a lot of climaxes, surprises and... billions. Industry on the other end is more consistent, less pretentious and more realistically focused on the daily experiences of new-hires in a wealth management firm. Unfortunately some plot holes, puzzling characters and overindulgent coverage of sex-drug related behaviours drag the production down quite a bit.

Industry is now on its 3rd season and I just now started watching it. I'm not sure why I put it off for so long because I heard good things about it but I just put other shows in front of it. Now I'm actually mad at myself for putting it off this long because it's that good of a show. I started watching early last week and binged through all 3 seasons in that time. I just couldn't stop watching it. I know it gets compared to Succession a lot and I guess I can see why and even though I really liked this show, it's not nearly as good as Succession was. The one thing they have in common are a lot of spoiled rich people where every character on the show is unlikable. The other thing is how great the acting and writing is. It's one of the rare shows where each season gets better than the previous one. I'm looking forward to more seasons of this in the future.

This show is very intriguing and frustrating at the same time. It's a good story and with a talented cast but my struggle is with the characters. There is absolutely nothing to like about these characters. Even the "bad" guy in a film can exhibit some human emotions that the audience can identify with but the characters in Industry have no redeeming qualities. They're arrogant, rude, self centered, morally depraved people.

The most annoying character is Harper. There's nothing sympathetic about her. She is so ill mannered, manipulative, expresses poor judgement, and a pathological liar. She always looks like a deer in the headlights. She's a deeply sad and depressing character. Yet I'm still watching and holding out hope that someone in the show will emerge as decent person or at least redeemable.

I'm currently watching Industry with my brother as I write this review and the first thing that comes to mind when watching this show is...addicting. HBO is known for having great shows and Industry is no different. It really is a good show that feels fresh and thrilling. It shows the cutthroat world that is banking. It's a fascinating look inside their world of greed, sex, drugs, back stabbing and every other bad thing these people do to each other. You don't have to know much about this world to enjoy the show, I think most people watching don't and that's a testament to how good the writing is. You really do get pulled into that world and can't wait to see what happens next. I'm fully invested in this show and I think you will be to if you give it a chance.

Started slow but got better and better and better. Compulsively horrible characters, but always empathetic. Genuinely surprising ending.