(Warning: Spoilers for the Season 3 of Industry.)
Anyone who has ever been to a panel discussion knows that anything can happen when the moderator hands the microphone over for audience questions. When Industry’s Eric Tao (Ken Leung) attends an international climate conference in Switzerland, this scenario quickly becomes a nightmare when former protégé Harper Stern (Myha’la) chooses this public forum to announce several business bombshells.
Suddenly, the lack of Swiss snow (no, I don’t mean cocaine) is the least of Eric’s concerns. Throughout the episode, he racks up a series of Ls, denting his professional and personal confidence. Some people thrive in new environments, but the recently promoted Pierpoint partner is far from a big deal away from ruling over the London trading floor. Eric thinks he is a “bit of a VIP,” but on this working trip, he is just another person on a panel.
Coming into this season, Eric is no longer the stable family man. Firing Harper at the end of Season 2 could be seen as the catalyst for this unmooring, which includes getting wasted with Yasmin (Marisa Abela) the night before the disastrous Lumi IPO launch. With Harper on his team, Eric was typically unflustered; now, he gives classes in Midlife Crisis 101 by making puppy dog eyes at the uninterested Yasmin.
When he is asked at the last minute to appear on the Lumi panel, what seems like a fun reason to travel on Sir Henry Muck’s (Kit Harington) private jet to score some easy wins becomes one embarrassing encounter after another. Before flying to Switzerland, for example, Eric’s casual hook-up with Yasmin’s lawyer, Denise (Fiona Button), ends on a sour note with her telling him that he is both a “f---boy” and an old man. “I don’t f--- like one, though, right?” is his main takeaway from this argument.
Nothing can kill Eric’s buzz going into the trip (including being told that his promotion puts him at the bottom of another ladder), and what makes Leung so great to watch is he is convincing when dishing out DGAF energy before revealing flashes of deep insecurity in his posture and expressions. His salesman instincts push away doubt, so the climate conference COP should be a playground. “The highest concentration of financial heavyweights in the smallest square footage. Looking for investment there would be like using sticks of TNT to fish,” says Eric. Maybe wasn’t not the best idea to use explosives as part of an analogy; Eric is setting himself up to bomb.
On the plane, Sir Henry quickly relegates Eric and Robert (Harry Lawtey) to the other cabin “for our bankers.” Further putting the two Pierpoint men in their place, Yas gets to “hang up top” with Sir Henry and his obnoxious pals.
Eric is out of rhythm with everyone he interacts with, ordering a scotch on the plane and met with stares from Robert and Yas due to the early hour—you know it must be extreme if those two are giving the “really?” eyes. The fully booked hotel cannot do anything about Robert’s lack of room, and Eric’s ‘I’m a big deal’ card has zero value here. Pairing the “I’m a man and I’m relentless” duo together underscores how much they are both going through it. In Eric’s company, Robert looks like a winner—or not as much of a loser.
At least Robert’s sauna introduction to Pierpoint’s analyst and energy sector tastemaker Frank (Joel Kim Booster, baring all) gives the banker an ego boost: “I know who you are. We have a WhatsApp where we share the directory photos of all the hottest and straightest Pierpoint employees.” Frank doesn’t divulge how his Lumi stock recommendation will swing, but Robert gets a good vibe.
Later, while Eric and Robert watch Taylor Swift fave and silent screen legend Clara Bow’s It in bed (the episode title shares its name with this 1927 movie), Eric says at least Frank is a company man and won’t jeopardize the panel by saying investors should sell Lumi stock. But not everything is how it might appear, as the weather is also proving.
“Shame about the snow,” Eric mutters, not realizing it is actually snowing as he says this. Missing the tiny sprinkle indicates his inability to see clearly, which he will discover when Harper reveals her new business plan and Lumi’s further slide into disaster the following day.
Petra (Sarah Goldberg) refers to Lumi stock as a “disease-riddled dog,” a prevailing opinion that goes against the image Pierpoint projects at the panel. Onstage, Eric is relaxed and charming, but this is no weapon against what is playing out via app notifications. Pierpoint’s Frank has published his stock recommendation for Lumi, which is to hold—this is tantamount to telling investors to sell.
When the audience questions begin, the first person asks if this is a panel or a funeral. But this is a softball in comparison to Harper’s mic drop. Harper breezily announces her new fund with Petra before referring to Eric as a “random salesman from an American investment bank.” (Ouch!) Harper uses her time to reveal to the shocked panel that Frank has “published a hold on Lumi.” Twisting the knife further, Harper agrees it is more of a funeral. Eric tries to salvage it, but no matter what he says, Lumi is a disease-riddled dog without a cure.
Myha'la, Sarah Goldberg and Marisa Abela
HBOPost-panel, Eric is told over the phone what happens next is an executive issue above his level. You can forgive him, then, for seeking solace in an expensive night of sex, ballooning from $2,000 to $20,000 due to the extras. “Do I f--- like a young man?” he pitifully asks. Eric cannot hide the fact he is a hot, insecure mess, but the following interaction is even more humbling.
Yas has organized a breakfast meeting with none other than Petra and Harper because they want Pierpoint as their broker. Eric has proved he can work with a hangover, but he cannot even look Harper in the eye until she effectively makes it a term of their signing. It is an exercise in humiliation made even worse by Harper’s observation that Eric’s face is literally shimmering. Unshowered, wearing the glittery remnants from the night before is not a sign of having it together, and Leung uses this moment to shine.
Back on the PJ, Yas and Sir Henry hook up in the main cabin while Robert contemplates how pointless the whole endeavor has been. Eric is stuck on one particular loss: “Can’t believe there wasn’t any snow.” Eric cannot control the weather and has little say in who he must conduct business with, but can he handle the Harper storm? The forecast doesn’t look good.
