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industry 1.6.2
Photo: Amanda Searle/HBO

Television

‘Industry’ episode 6 recap: ‘Nutcracker’

The new grads make questionable decisions at the annual holiday party and will Harper turn on Eric?

Industry So Far

Eric has Harper reach out to Felim Bichan, for one last attempt to bring him back to Pierpoint. She proves unsuccessful and in the process alerts Daria to the real reason why the former client left. That’s one more thing the higher ups can hold over Eric as they try to force him out of the company. Elsewhere, Robert is finally impressing his supervisor, Clement, and Yasmin works her contacts to land a lucrative account for the Foreign Exchange Sales group but Kenny’s behavior at the dinner meeting jeopardizes the deal.

Mentor Problems

Harper’s in a private meeting with Daria and Sara discussing her scarry and panic inducing encounter with Eric where he locked the conference room door. Her two superiors are trying to encourage her to roll on her mentor but she’s apprehensive to turn on the man that gave her a once in a lifetime opportunity. But how did we get here?

Flashback to the day of the company holiday party. Eric calls Harper for another meeting in the conference room but this time it’s a more pleasant experience. She receives a generous bonus for all her hard work so far but questions the timing and if she is really deserving.

When it’s time for the celebration, Daria has Harper work the desk instead of partaking in the festivities. Although she does manage to pop her head in a few times to say hello to Nicole, who bailed her out in “Sesh”, and meet Eric’s wife, who is an executive at Google. At least Harper has Daria to keep her company in the office and the pair bond as they share more personal stories about themselves.

The conversation turns to Eric and Harper confides in her manager about the ugly conference room incident. Concerned, Daria informs upper management leading to the meeting with Sara the next day. After some prodding, Harper finally admits how uncomfortable and concerned Eric had made her which is all they need for his separation. The company had already been in negotiations with his representatives and have Harper sign an NDA to make the matter less messy.

Mentor Problems Pt. 2

Contact with Yasmin’s colleagues have gone cold since the dinner meeting and her department is worried the deal has gone south. Feeling responsible, Kenny is extra nice to his intern even sticking up for her during the party when Yasmin is asked inappropriate questions by a coworker.

Things turn hopeful when Maxim arrives but are quickly dashed when he speaks with Yasmin. He’s not there to talk business and reiterates how out of line Kenny’s conduct was. Maxim is there to check on his friend, who doesn’t act like herself when conducting Pierpoint business. The two have a falling out and an observant Kenny can tell how bad it went through the body language. The loss of business causes Kenny and Yasmin to have an argument where he lays the hard truth that she can’t separate the personal and professional out of doing business.

industry 1.6.1
Photo: Amanda Searle/HBO

Tripping Out

Greg turns up at the office really late and is admonished by Eric for his tardiness and lackluster film script. Later, he tells his friends he was arrested the previous night for being too intoxicated. Not wanting a repeat, Harper tasks Robert with taking it easy during the party to make sure Greg behaves himself.

All that goes out the window when Usman attends and brings with him some recreational drugs. After some cajoling, Robert relents and indulges with his colleague and Greg and they spend the evening tripping out and acting the fools. Later, Yasmin is looking to decompress after the night she’s had and entices Robert to join her somewhere more private where they advance their flirtations to something more physical.

During Robert’s absence, Greg makes a scene by purposely running into a glass window in front of the whole company until he knocks himself out. When the scandalous couple return to the party and learn what happened, Harper scolds Robert for not doing what she asked.

One Last Hook Up

Gus is not only surprised to find Theo speaking with him but that he offers the new graduate a chance to transfer to his department. What makes matters more awkward is Theo’s fiancé joining them and commenting on how close they are.

Gus receives a reprieve when he’s introduced to a prominent author he admires. It’s a pleasurable encounter but he feels he’s being set up when the writer inquires about his future plans post Pierpoint. He also genuinely asks how Gus is holding up after Hari’s death. Before he can answer, Sara interrupts the two of them for a photo op.

Afterwards, Theo approaches him for a rendezvous in the men’s bathroom while his fiancé grabs more drinks. They share a quick love session in a stall but appear too affectionate when they return to the party and the fiancé notices.

industry1.6.3
Photo: Amanda Searle/HBO

The Verdict

After watching my wife conduct her annual holiday party via zoom, I can appreciate the Industry holiday party regardless of how messy it is. The most interesting development is the departure of Eric from the company and the role that Harper plays. On one side, he provided her with opportunities and the support to push her into following her instincts but he can be overbearing and manipulative to work under.

With him leaving, she rids herself of the one person that knows her secret but her personal development might suffer since she might not be challenged as much by her next supervisor. Keep an eye on Daria and Sara since you know they’re up to something following their shared glance and subtle grins as Harper signs the NDA.

All season, Eric has been an enigmatic character. The bonus he engineers for Harper initially is seen as hush money to keep her quiet but after learning that he’d been in negotiations to leave for a few days, it could have been the only way he could show his appreciation before he left. In addition, the introduction of his wife makes you reassess his relationship with his protégé. If he can be that foul mouthed and biting towards someone he loves, maybe that’s how he expresses his affection. Or is it all charade to make Harper second guess the nasty incident.

The holiday party serves up some cringeworthy scenes. The pure stupidity exhibited by Robert, Greg, and Usman while they’re in the stall is the most hysterical moment of the season. They try so hard to hide while someone else is in the bathroom to only reveal themselves minutes later while acting nonchalantly. Industry tries to push the envelope but the love scene between Robert and Yasmin went too far for me. It exhibits the type of control Yasmin has in their relationship, however that sort of action is difficult to pull off in a raunchy teen comedy let alone an HBO drama.

“Nutcracker” has some comical and gross out moments but more importantly serves as a significant point in Eric and Harper’s relationship. With Eric leaving Pierpoint, the series may have lost its most engaging character.

Industry airs Monday nights on HBO.

'Industry' episode 6 recap: 'Nutcracker'
Industry E 6: 'Nutcracker'
“Nutcracker” has some comical and gross out moments but more importantly serves as a significant point in Eric and Harper’s relationship. With Eric leaving Pierpoint, the series may have lost its most engaging character.
Reader Rating0 Votes
0
The bathroom stall scene with Robert, Greg, and Usman is hysterical.
Eric is ever the fascinating enigmatic character but...
We might be seeing less of him now that he's left Pierpoint.
That one scene with Robert and Yasmin is a rough watch.
6.5
Good

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