Category: Billions
Previously on Billions: Naming Rights
Previously on Billions…
Pete Decker is on the phone and apparently trying to make a ‘gold play’ to Bobby. If you have been paying attention you know Gold is not currently a good investment. It is quite interesting that Danny Margolis made contact with Bobby in the Pilot and here we have Decker with a play which is utterly ludicrous to even think Bobby would get involved. Hmmm…I make that two out of three.
Wags tries admirably to keep transport low key because some investors have had their feathers ruffled by Bobby and his beach house being all over the Post, but the King isn’t having it.
Over at Chuck’s office, Bryan is lecturing on noodles while they discuss how to bag Axe. Pete Decker’s name comes up again as the ‘in’ to getting at Axe. Chuck orders that all of Decker’s Analysts and Traders should be tracked and they jump on the first one to make a mistake.
“That Ponzi thing” is mentioned. We have no indication of what that is, but as Kate was just discussing “spraying shit all around” maybe we should take note of it.
Speculation Redux: Billions – Guns in a Pool
A slice of pizza here, a perfectly coiffed pompadour there, and badda bing badda boom Damian Lewis has transformed himself into a born and bred New Yorker. Let’s visit the ways and means by which he’s achieved the transformation. This post originally came about as speculation fueled by some tantalizing previews we got late last year, before Billions first aired in the States. Now that we have our friends across the pond tuning in every week, speculation has gotten a new lease on life. Some gems from Brit Twitter so far:
#Billions looks like it's going to be a show!
— Liam Pennington (@LiamPennington4) May 15, 2016
Have binge watched my first ever series whilst feeling poorly – #Billions – a masterclass in acting, writing and performance. Slick stuff.
— Luke Phillips (@BlackBeastBooks) May 24, 2016
Billions is a bit bloody good #Billions
— Camilla (@Cilly247) May 14, 2016
And my personal favorite:
They're shagging. #Wendy&Bobby #billions
— Squigly (@sfdm80s) May 12, 2016
So here we are, a revisit to my post “Billions: Guns in a Pool and the False Bravado of a New Yorker” with some notes added here and there without being too spoiler-y for those who didn’t splurge on the Sky Atlantic box set.
Continue reading “Speculation Redux: Billions – Guns in a Pool”
How Loyalty Rules Bobby Axelrod’s Billions *UPDATED*
Regardless of the context it is set in, a good TV show is ultimately about human relations. It is the complex characters with exciting and compelling relationships in their personal and professional life that MAKE it great. And we can’t have enough of them in Billions.
I live and work in a world, academia, that cannot be farther away from the world of Axe Capital. Thus, I am fascinated by this world that is ALL NEW to me, and, in particular, by how Axe runs his business. Here’s my take on what it takes to be king with many thanks to Lady Trader who kindly read the post and gave me the thumbs up earlier.
Bobby “Axe” Axelrod is running a 15 billion dollar worth hedge fund. He is, in Chuck’s words, “an icon of the wealth of our age.” Thanks to his power and influence on the markets, Axe is the king that he is. Revered. Respected. Envied. However, as Pete Decker points out it is a zero-sum game and “these guys are like kings. There is always someone coming to assassinate them.” So… how do you run a business in a setting where there is always someone, say it is the US attorney, the SEC or another hedgie, trying to mess with you? Yes, exactly like a king, you have your close circle, you have your fixers. But one keyword stands out in Axe’s tight network: Loyalty. Continue reading “How Loyalty Rules Bobby Axelrod’s Billions *UPDATED*”
Billions on Sky Atlantic, Episode 2: Naming Rights
Great fun hearing the excitement from across the pond as folks have started watching Billions! I was happily following along on Twitter to the live tweets for The Pilot. Much easier to simply read and not think of cleverness to write at the same time.:) How lucky you are to be able to get the Sky Atlantic box set now and binge the entire series in one go. We Yanks had to wait for our weekly fix!
Continue reading “Billions on Sky Atlantic, Episode 2: Naming Rights”