Review of Season 3 of “Industry”: HBO’s financial drama has never been better

industryThe cocktail of business, sex and drugs has brought him comparisons with ConsequenceBillions, euphoriaAnd SkinBut in the third season it was never so clear that industry does his own thing.

This is because season 3 of industry the show is in experimental mode. Flashbacks are now on the table, supporting characters get more attention and the scope has never been bigger. Co-creators Mickey Down and Konrad Kay draw references from everywhere, from Raw gemstones and the films of Michael Mann Barry Lyndon And A room with a viewcreating episodes that vary in tone but never lose the hectic energy that industry The risk of constantly playing with a show’s formula may not always pay off (I’m looking at you, The bear Season 3), but for industrywhose characters live from risky decisions and changing alliances, this approach proves to be absolutely perfect.

what is industry What is season 3 about?

Myha’la, Harry Lawtey and Marisa Abela in “Industry”.
Photo credit: Nick Strasburg / HBO

Of course, the risks industry Characters often get them into trouble. Take Harper Stern (Myha’la, Leave the world behind you), whose fake college diploma in Season 1 led to her being fired from the fictional investment bank Pierpoint & Co. at the end of Season 2. Eager to stay in the business by any means necessary, Harper has now accepted an assistant position at the investment fund FutureDawn. And while she finds the job – and FutureDawn’s focus on ethical investing – mind-numbing, she also discovers a potential new ally in ruthless portfolio manager Petra Koenig (Sarah Goldberg, Barry).

Harper may roll her eyes at ethical investing, but at Pierpoint it is all the rage. Yasmin Kara-Hanani (Marisa Abela, Back to Black), who takes over Harper’s old role, works alongside Eric Tao (Ken Leung, Lost) and Robert Spearing (Harry Lawtey, Joker: Foil A Deux) in the IPO of the up-and-coming green energy company Lumi, headed by the inexperienced (but very rich) Lumi CEO Sir Henry Muck (Kit Harington, game of Thrones). Whether anyone at Pierpoint actually believes in Lumi’s mission or the “ethical” aspect of ethical investing is something industry takes razor-sharp pleasure in targeting people, just as the show targeted those profiting from Covid-19 in Season 2.

This being industryIt doesn’t take long for a spectacular collision between private and professional life to occur. Lumi’s IPO comes at a difficult time for almost all members of Pierpoint. Yasmin is in a difficult situation after the death of her father Charles (Adam Levy, The Sorcerer) embezzlement scandal; Robert is devastated after an unexpected loss; and Eric’s recent breakup has led him down a path of sex, drugs, and poor management decisions. Frankly, Harper should thank her lucky stars that she’s no longer at Pierpoint – although that certainly won’t stop her from getting back into the fray in an unexpected way.

industry takes on the chaos in Season 3, with exciting results.

Sagar Radia and Ken Leung in “Industry”.
Photo credit: Nick Strasburg / HBO

industryThe new focus on ethical investing and the addition of characters like Petra and Henry prove that the series is expanding from season to season. This commitment is evident on a formal level as well. Yes, you will still experience juicy personal dramas and fast-paced stock market talk. But you will often get these served industry staple in a new way. Flashbacks to Yasmin’s time on a boat with her father add an intriguing mystery element to the season, and an episode focusing solely on Rishi Ramdani (Sagar Radia) adds much-needed depth to an often marginalized character while also raising the bar on how stressful industry can be. (Seriously, you haven’t seen anything yet.)

As industry kicks up a gear, and so does the cast. Myha’la, Abela and Lawtey remain three solid leads, playing the complicated feelings of friendship and competition between this trio with as much pathos as ruthless instinct. Goldberg and Harington are also entertaining additions: Goldberg’s sharpness as Petra perfectly complements Myha’las as Harper, while Harington’s muck hides layers of dirt and manipulation under the guise of “vulnerability.”

But it is Leung’s Eric who feels most like industry‘s depraved core in season 3. Separated from his wife but recently partnered, Eric’s whole identity is Pierpoint, Pierpoint, Pierpoint — with a dash of midlife crisis thrown in. When he starts using drugs again — “I haven’t done coke since 9/11,” he reveals in the premiere — and having casual sex, it’s almost as if we’re seeing him return to his early days at the bank. He would have fit in perfectly with the hard-partying graduates in season 1, with the small caveat that he’s still their boss. It’s fascinating to see Eric try to recapture that youth and the “relentlessness” he associates with his masculinity, with Leung often playing him like a barely controlled explosion.

But although Eric and all other members of the industryWhen the actors throw themselves into their work with all their might, there is always the danger that the slightest wrong move will get them chewed up and spat out again. Of course, there is also the possibility that they will be rewarded and become richer than rich. This atmosphere of high-risk, high-reward decisions, complemented by high-risk, high-reward television making, makes it a real joy to watch. industry a high all its own. It’s brutal, it’s intoxicating and it’s never been better.

industry Season 3 premieres August 11 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and Max, with new episodes released weekly.