obsessed with this. The tying of Eric and the mirroring of his emptiness- the way we see that the wins don't even matter to him, the money is meaningless, everything is sort of the same flavor of bland- with Harper's in the finale, the moment where she sits on the bed and is like... now what? Her first thought is to call Eric, thematically tying them together. the money is the money is the money but these characters don't even care about it, it's the pursuit of it that drives them and the hollow victories don't mean anything bc they can't escape the loop of the pursuit!!!! praying that Harper is slowly changing but last night's moment of "are you done?" felt so poignant.
YES! The “are you done” moment felt very much like a video game saying “are you still playing?” It’s such an interesting and contemporary choice for Mickey and Konrad to have Eric / Harper’s careerist pursuits be rooted out empty ambition. Many millennials fall into this trap. It’s in stark opposition to Don Draper of “Mad Men” whose career in advertising, and his success, felt almost (sorry) spiritual and tied to an operating ethos that was rooted in integrity for the work, brand storytelling and belief in what ads (lol) could do. What’s interesting is that Don is undisputedly excellent at his job — the carousel episode is inspiring — while Eric and Harper have been caught slipping many times and kind of just grind and get lucky. When you contrast the two shows, there’s an interesting moral, one that purports that having an intention behind your ambition actually makes you better at your job and respected for it. This is maybe unsurprising but it is honest.
This was a really refreshing and validating read because I wrote a review of Marty Supreme a few weeks ago that touched on very similar themes (also calling out Timmy’s ambition and the parallels with his character). Ambition is the necessary executor of purpose or self-belief, without which our passions are toothless, no matter how strong; but ambition without purpose is reckless, hollow, and ultimately self-destructive. It’s a delicate balance.
Industry has been on my list for a while, this might be what I needed to put me over the edge!
was essentially as excited to finish the season as i was to read this immediately after!! loved this and this season...i too wonder if Harper will/can change at her core and fill up the emptiness - she hedgingly claims as much in the final scene, says she was able to rely on a team she cares about. but in contrast, she maintains that there's just not a cost too high for her "self-protection." it's so obviously tied to her trauma from the start, as you point out, but honestly also a relief to see in action, in a way, as she is the person with clarity, and dare i say principles, at That Dinner with Yas entertaining Those People...it's very both/and indeed. and what to make of Yas's empty ambition (being necessary but "to what end?"), and where we leave her at the end of this season? where can their relationship go from here, really??...Yas is a fascinating character to me and i'm praying for her fr!!
That Kriss article is wild. Sperm racing? I had to read it twice the other day, both times with light dread at where all this desperate self-optimisation and tech-enabled trickstering will leave humanity. Very interesting that you've connected it to Industry and the theme of empty ambition. What keeps me fascinated by Harper's arc – a character I find it tricky to sympathise with – is that I don't know what she wants … probably because she doesn't know what she wants. That's a good engine for a story that plays out over multiple series.
obsessed with this. The tying of Eric and the mirroring of his emptiness- the way we see that the wins don't even matter to him, the money is meaningless, everything is sort of the same flavor of bland- with Harper's in the finale, the moment where she sits on the bed and is like... now what? Her first thought is to call Eric, thematically tying them together. the money is the money is the money but these characters don't even care about it, it's the pursuit of it that drives them and the hollow victories don't mean anything bc they can't escape the loop of the pursuit!!!! praying that Harper is slowly changing but last night's moment of "are you done?" felt so poignant.
YES! The “are you done” moment felt very much like a video game saying “are you still playing?” It’s such an interesting and contemporary choice for Mickey and Konrad to have Eric / Harper’s careerist pursuits be rooted out empty ambition. Many millennials fall into this trap. It’s in stark opposition to Don Draper of “Mad Men” whose career in advertising, and his success, felt almost (sorry) spiritual and tied to an operating ethos that was rooted in integrity for the work, brand storytelling and belief in what ads (lol) could do. What’s interesting is that Don is undisputedly excellent at his job — the carousel episode is inspiring — while Eric and Harper have been caught slipping many times and kind of just grind and get lucky. When you contrast the two shows, there’s an interesting moral, one that purports that having an intention behind your ambition actually makes you better at your job and respected for it. This is maybe unsurprising but it is honest.
This was a really refreshing and validating read because I wrote a review of Marty Supreme a few weeks ago that touched on very similar themes (also calling out Timmy’s ambition and the parallels with his character). Ambition is the necessary executor of purpose or self-belief, without which our passions are toothless, no matter how strong; but ambition without purpose is reckless, hollow, and ultimately self-destructive. It’s a delicate balance.
Industry has been on my list for a while, this might be what I needed to put me over the edge!
oooo I’ll have to check out your piece on Marty supreme. I highly recommend Industry :) thanks for reading, Ollie!
"The philosophy of betting on a business to fail" is truly the biggest critique power players tried to levy at Harper this season.
HARPER HIVE <3
ALWAYS AND FOREVER
was essentially as excited to finish the season as i was to read this immediately after!! loved this and this season...i too wonder if Harper will/can change at her core and fill up the emptiness - she hedgingly claims as much in the final scene, says she was able to rely on a team she cares about. but in contrast, she maintains that there's just not a cost too high for her "self-protection." it's so obviously tied to her trauma from the start, as you point out, but honestly also a relief to see in action, in a way, as she is the person with clarity, and dare i say principles, at That Dinner with Yas entertaining Those People...it's very both/and indeed. and what to make of Yas's empty ambition (being necessary but "to what end?"), and where we leave her at the end of this season? where can their relationship go from here, really??...Yas is a fascinating character to me and i'm praying for her fr!!
Great note. I wrote a short piece on how Industry is really about addiction to risk: https://kobykarp.substack.com/p/addiction-is-worse-than-greed
That Kriss article is wild. Sperm racing? I had to read it twice the other day, both times with light dread at where all this desperate self-optimisation and tech-enabled trickstering will leave humanity. Very interesting that you've connected it to Industry and the theme of empty ambition. What keeps me fascinated by Harper's arc – a character I find it tricky to sympathise with – is that I don't know what she wants … probably because she doesn't know what she wants. That's a good engine for a story that plays out over multiple series.