While I stand behind my words that Axe and Chuck have so much in common that they could be BFFs in another life, this episode finds them at opposite ends of the generosity scale. While Axe does not even want to hear the word accommodation when it comes to people helping him make money, Chuck goes out of his way to accommodate his old pal Ira.
The opening of Kompenso makes me smile and laugh for different reasons. It makes me smile because the opening song “Wicked Game” brings back sweet prom memories. It makes me laugh because it features Nusret Gokce, a Turkish chef and restaurateur, whose Instagram videos of slicing and salting steak went viral and made him an international star overnight! Nusret now owns several restaurants, including one in New York, called Nusr-Et because Et means meat in Turkish! And while his dramatic serving skills seem to turn Kate Sacker of all people on, Kate prefers to look at the eclipse through the cereal box when Chuck offers to order the Tomahawk and have Nusret perform at the table š
While the food at Nusr-Et does not disappoint, the fact that Allerd is back from Texas with nothing but a cowboy hat for Chuck is. While anyone that knows a thing or two about Jeffcoat’s brother and the cable company is not willing to go on record, anyone that is willing to go on record does not know a thing. Chuck reminds the team that they will either get to the other side and dance over Jock’s grave or it will be Jock doing the Tush Push on theirs. Since the only witness they have is a confessed liar, they should dig deeper and crack someone at the cable company. Preferably someone at the lower level who would not give Jock a call.
Guess who else is having the “Salt Bea Tomahawk” at Nusr-Et tonight? Chuck is surprised to find out Ira is now married and disappointed the best man at the wedding was Shapiro. Seriously, Chuck? We find out Ira is here for a business dinner where he is trying to make a good impression because Taiga is expensive! She wants to build a Yoga empire and Ira has already gone as deep as he could into his pockets for her…Well, we all figured out what Taiga was after in her relationship with Ira when she went for the truffles Season 3 Episode 3 A Generation Too Late, didn’t we? And, Chuck, who seems to think along the same lines, goes and finds Pete Decker, with whom he played Prisonersā Dilemma in Season 1, who is now running a fitness center.
Chuck offers to have Decker’s record cleaned so he could go public with his new fitness center business should he give Chuck a hand to follow Taiga’s money trail. Decker delivers for Chuck with a quote fromĀ House of Games:
“The bitch is a booster. The bitch is a born thief.”
Firstly, there is no business and Taiga has transferred everything Ira gave to her into her “business partner” Anthony Radaelli’s account, and secondly, the two of them are about to close on a very expensive apartment! It turns out Ira is not as love blind as I thought he was, and has suspected some of this, but since there is no prenup he would be halved financially should he get a divorce. Chuck is now keen to make things right for the brother he chose and then betrayed.
Well, who knew Wags was into Esperanto? It is āKompensoā Day at Axe CapitalĀ and Axe kicks off the festivities with an annual ritual of his.
Axe finds Bill McGann of McGann Commodities, who did not give him the bonus he deserved years ago, at Regency Bar and Grill. Axe is here to thank him for not bonusing him right but also to remind him that McGann could have owned the hotel they are in right now should he have bonused him right. While he has had a good run, McGann thinks, Axe cannot stay clear of switchblades forever: He is not a “Greaser anymore” but a “Soc” now. Well, if you are Generation X, you know all about The Outsiders. Feel free to take the quiz and find out whether you are a Greaser or a Soc!
Now that he does not have the outside money he used to have and is paying out of his own pocket, Axe is not at his most generous about the comps which reminds me of Mr. McGann and reminds Wags of his childhood prayer that goes…
“… and if I did before I wake, I pray that all my toys should break. So my fuckin’ brother and sister can’t play with them!”
And when Taylor suggests Axe delay comps until the capital raise, Wags brings his wisdom about things you cannot delay in life:
“Calling a doctor when gutshot. Finding a toilet when traveling in India. Paying your people.”
Taylor’s earlier promise to the employees to keep them at the company while Axe was indicted that no one would make less than what they made last year stands, but Axe wants to know there is anyone deserving to make more. Wendy believes Ben Kim deserves promotion to PM and Taylor thinks promotion should be Ben’s bonus since more could overwhelm him only to have Axe get sarcastic with them.
Before they start their one-on-one with Axe, Wendy tells Taylor to be bold while Wags asks Axe if he has been able to talk to Lara… so we find out WHY Axe was waiting for Lara before going to Regency this morning… Lara has always been Axe’sĀ Catskill with Cus come the comp time and now he needs to do it on his own. While Axe believes he has his Kevin Rooney in Wags so he will be fine his comp talk with Taylor does say otherwise.
Axe is ready to give Taylor $20 million whereas they are pushing for $50 million. The net profits is about $700 million and Taylor believes, as the person who kept Axe Capital alive while Axe was away, got them through a natural disaster, closed on the Kansas City people before Ben Kimās elevator performance and paid a very high personal cost at the Peyton Breen play, it is fair they receive a bit less than 10% of the profits. Yet, Axe is not only giving them less than half of what they are asking, but also he does not want them at the raise meetings. And as if this is not enough, he provokes further.
āBut you donāt have your own shop. If you were ready for that we wouldn’t be having this conversation. I’d be looking at a Taylor-shaped hole in the wall.ā
Just you wait, Henry Higgins, ahem, Bobby Axelrod, just you waitā¦
It turns out the “sweet quants” have left the project thanks to the “arrogant quant”, who believes he is the Yngwie Malmsteen of coding, being a dick. Taylor does not care if the guy is a dick, they only want to know if he can add $20 billion to the algo and see if it can reliably generate more than 8% returns in a year. And while the arrogant quant knows Bridgewater may have 50 Phds working on this kind of algo, he is ready to go for it solo.
Axe is at his cheapest on one-on-ones. Bonnie is new so she will do with her job-signing bonus, Mafee does not want a pep talk and only wants to know how much he is being paid, while Ben Kim is over the moon to get promoted to PM with no raise. How about Spyros? Well, Spyros knows there is no comp for compliance but he believes his extracurricular in “Bill’s other garage” merits bonus. But when Axe makes the calculations for how much Spyros’ “Wendy play” cost him in fines, bonuses and the jet fuel to Nova Scotia, Spyros plays Signor Roberto to Axe’s Don Vito in Godfather Part II:
Wendy, in the meantime, has a series of meetings to make sure Axe does right by Taylor.
She meets Taylor atĀ Seaglass Carousel. Taylor does not know whether Axe is trying to punish them but they need forward momentum, above all things, even money. They can live with the bonus Axe is willing to give them but they cannot get over the fact that he took them off the raise team. While Axe has never changed his decision on comps before, Wendy will talk to him.
Wendy finds Axe, who feels like an Electrolux salesman, while meditating. She understands giving up trading, taking Andolov’s money and paying his people out of his own pocket should feel like death to Axe. But he chose Taylor for a reason and not only for their mathematical ability. Making them feel like a partner is not an accommodation, it may be the only thing that would make him stronger.
Finally, Wendy meets with Lara, the single biggest Axe Capital investor at Black Tail Bar over Casamigos. Even though Lara is not willing to help Axe to sort his business, she agrees to do so since the consequences will affect her financially. So she goes and tells Axe, who calls Wendyās move a good one, they need to keep Taylor happy and earning.
They share a bottle of wine and have a little moment where Lara, who has grown on me enormously this season even though she did not have much screen time, does not let things get sloppy. Way to go, girlfriend! And while Axe does not get what he wants, he is still grateful to Lara for coming in, and to Wendy for making it happen. He doubles Wendy’s profits in Ice Juice as a bonus.
Axe then removes the hierarchy, the desk, between them when he talks to Taylor about comp. His words about Taylor needing forward momentum, above all things, even money, brings a smile to Taylorās face since these are their own words which Wendy has fed Axe, and he is now repeating them as if they are his own. Taylor seems genuinely happy about being back on the raise team.
The only person whose comp has not been decided yet is in Axeās office uncorking a bottle of Don Julio with his mouth. Because he has served different masters and almost lost Axe this past year, Wags is getting a special gift, old issues of Oui ,and a bonus equal to the age at which he discovered the magazine! Well, I should say 9 should be true otherwise Wags could have said 14 to make it a larger bonus. But I mean, nine!?!?
While Axe tells Wags that he just came across the magazines, we find Axe where we left him at the end of Season 3 Episode 10 RedemptionĀ looking for them: In his motherās basement where she has stored his dad’s stuff for 34 years. His mom tells Axe his dad was his first great enemy. And while I cannot blame Axe for seeing the man who abandoned him at age 12 as an enemy, according to his mother, he did not like him before he left, either. And she also thinks she should have taught him not to talk like the way he does. Yeah maybe he could still have talked like that, but he would have that voice in the back of his head that would tell him not to. Does Axe have that voice at all?
Chuck invites Taiga’s “business partner” Anthony Radaelli to the SDNY.Ā It turns out he is an old boyfriend who pops up whenever things are going well for Taiga,Ā like the James Woods character in Casino.Ā As Chuck effectively tells him why he does not want to get involved in a federal case, Allerd believes Radaelli will now disappear like a fart in the wind on theĀ Ponderosa.
The last step in Chuck’s very personal operation is to use Chuck Sr’s apartment to meet Taiga and have her sign a postnuptial agreement that would entitle her to $50K every year she stays in the marriage.Ā While Chuck saves Ira financially, Chuck Senior saves his marriage.
Senior, who believes monogamy is a form of socialism, shines as a family values advocate! Taiga should give her marriage at least 7 years before thinking about divorce. She should get rid of her birth control pills and make a baby. If Ira does not how to fuck her, she can teach him. Oh, and, she should take the lime test not to bring any STD to her husband because it is uncivil.
As Chuck and Ira have the Porterhouse at Peter Luger, arguably the best steakhouse in New York, we find out Taiga is back home and Ira, who has always lost sleep over the possibility that his young wife could leave him for some other man, is now thinking maybe the worst thing happening is not that badā¦ We see the look on Chuckās face and know he is already plotting.
Chuck has Kate arrange a meeting with NY State Attorney General Alvin Epstein. While he has so far been thinking that the worst thing that could happen is for Jeffcoat to find about their investigation, Chuck is now thinking it may be a good idea for the NY State to open an investigation against Jeffcoatās brother Zeb and Texas South Cable. Yes, their witness is weak but the existence of the case alone would make Jeffcoat move behind the scenes to stop the investigation. And once Chuck & Co can prove obstruction of justice, Jeffcoat is done and Epstein is THE man. Chuck and Epstein shake hands.
What Chuck does not know is the FBI New York office has received a visit from the AG asking the director to track emails, text messages and what have you in the bureau to figure out who is loyal and who is not. The director thinks a court order may be a good idea to kick this off, but Bryan jumps in to direct the operation on his own which is the “Si, se puede” approach Jeffcoat has been looking for š While director Lynch thinks Bryan may be doing this to get a letter from the AG in his file, Bryanās only goal is to have access to the āChuck Rhoades Specialā he heard about in Season 3 Episode 10 Redemption. But he needs someone to convince him that he should go after Chuck. Bryan travels to Charlottesville to visit Dake who is now teaching at UVA with his perfectly professiorial look.
Bryan wants to know why Dake accommodated Chuck in the Axelrod investigation which the AG likened to cleaning the intestines before eating them, a complete total waste of time, earlier in the episode. We find out Bryan believed in Chuck while Dake did not believe in himself. But they both believe Chuck has to be stopped. Given what Bryan will find in the “Chuck Rhoades Special” I cannot wait to see if the former “Eastern boys” will end up joining forces with their former boss to take down Jeffcoat.
When the algo is ready, the arrogant quant is beyond excited that Axe, once he has the algo, will be able to take human decision out of the game and move in micro-seconds. What he does not know is the algo is not Axe’s to use. The closing scene is what I have been living for the last couple of weeks! But, hey, what is Andolov’s guy doing here?
“It looks like you’re ready to get into business.”
“I need a meeting with your boss, Grigor Andolov.”
WHOA. Is Taylor seriously parting ways with Axe? Or are they only trying to demonstrate they have the capacity to get Andolov’s money and do better than Axe if they wanted to? But then again Taylor never wanted Andolov’s money. I am confused. Taylor going against Axe is theoretically the worst thing,Ā a switchblade if you will, that could happen to Axe in business, but who knows, it may be a wake up call helping him put everything in perspective.
Good morning and thank you for another great post! I loved this episode so much! But then I read your post, and now I appreciate it so much more. I got the Godfather references and the Yngwie reference (of course!!), but miss a lot more. And I always love the dining guide!
With all that went down in the episode (and it looks like Taylor is going off on their own ā yay!) the thing that intrigued me the most was the peek into Axeās childhood. Now we know for sure his Dad left (neither he or his Mom mentioned if the Dad died, so could we see Mr. Axelrod pop up in the future?), and that Axe was fighting him even before he left. We see Axe has been the God of War for so many years!
Iāll be starting my write up this afternoon (re-watch starts as soon as the market closes!!). Anything you want me to explain?
Iām so excited we are going to see the finale on Thursday!
Thank you for reading, partner!
I thought you would ENJOY this episode especially with respect to what’s going on with Taylor! I have to say, given that Taylor never wanted Axe Capital to take Andolovās money in the first place, I am not 100% sure about their motivation at this point. And they seemed really happy when Axe put them on the raise team. So I am confused. Cannot wait for season finale to find out what they are really up to! I feel like a real big bomb is coming!
Yes, it seems like Axe has had an enemy since the day he was born!
For Friday: I would really love it if you could add your personal experience about comp meetings. Do they really take place like at Axe Capital or differently?
Finale on Thursday? Is that a premiere? Promo says on Sunday.
There is a super fan finale event on Thursday in New York. Billions season finale will be aired at 9pm ET Sunday.
So where is Susan fan finale event being held?
Neuehouse. A venue I have never been.
Wendy by making Lara talked to Axe get the best bonus,smart woman but not as smart as Taylor. They out smart all of them. Wags, Axe and even Wendy !! Booom !! ahah can’t wait for next episode. Ah no damn I have to wait almost 2 weeks noo !
Great recap as usual <3
Briefly — This was a very good episode. It opened up many new directions the show can go. Taylor showed she can be colder to Bobby than he was to him/her, by asking for crazy 50 million dollar bonuses while plotting and getting financed by Andoluv to go independent with her algorithm quant genius.
Thank you for reading! Given that Taylor has never wanted Axe Capital to take Andolov’s money in the first place, I am not 100% sure about their motivation at this point. Cannot wait for season finale to find out what they are really up to!
A question and a thought. First, what was that scene with Axe in the car watching Lara before he went to the Regency? Was he stalking her? Did he plan to meet her and change his mind? Did she see him and walk right by? (Okay, that’s 4 questions.) Also, when she turned down his invitation to stay at his apartment, the use of the word “sloppy” was a bit strange. “Dumb”, “unpleasant” or a host of other words could have been appropriate..but sloppy? Now the thought. It was nice seeing the tiny glimpse into Axe’s childhood. However, the implication in last week’s epi was that he went to visit because he was affected by his meeting with Grigor and his mother. This week’s scene did not indicate any sentiment and seemed like he went to his mother’s only to find the books for Wags.
Thanks for reading, Connie!
We understand about Axe staying in the car watching Lara later in the episode when Wags asks him if he has been able to talk to Lara before the comp talks. It turns out Lara, as Wendy also says later in the episode, was always his secret weapon in making the right decisions about who should get what in terms of compensation. So Axe was planning to talk to Lara that morning but I believe he could not swallow his pride and go ask her about her recommendations about comps. It took Wendy to go talk to her. And Axe was grateful to both in the end!
I thought “getting sloppy” should be some kind of slang. Can anyone shed more light on this? But I am proud of Lara that she did not give him what he wanted. Way to go, girlfriend!
I agree with you about Axe’s time at his mom’s. The mom showing up in Season 3, after only one mention in Season 1, tells me, they have been estranged. Besides, Axe did not tell Wags that he found the magazines at his mom’s, either. I am not sure if Wags knows about Axe’s mom at all! Regarding their time at mom’s houseL we do not know what happens between the moment he gets through the door and the conversation they have in the basement. So even though I agree with you that it seemed he went there to find the magazines, I would say one conversation may lead to another and mother and son find themselves at some point in the basement sorting through the old stuff… and Axe remembers the old magazines and starts looking for them… Hope to have THAT story fold out a bit more in Season 4!
By sloppy I heard Lara saying letting emotions and history interfering with what must, in her mind, remain a business relationship. āMustā because she doesnāt believe in him anymore.
Bobbyās relationship with his mother does not feel estranged to me. Not warm either. He was there to find the Oui magazines imo. Doesnāt he say āhere they areā?
Has anyone on here know anything about the pictures/portraits or whatever on the wall behind couch in Axe’s office? Not recognizing them really irks me. Last thoughts on epi 11. Glad to see Dake and Ira again, but the more I see of Chuck Sr. the more I dislike him.
Is this the picture you’re asking about, Connie? https://www.mfah.org/art/detail/58700
Exactly! Well done Damianista. It must have some meaning for Axe, but I wouldn’t give it house room. But then my tastes run to outdoor scenes. While I’m thinking of it. We still see Axe wearing the item around his neck. Part of his persona I guess. But then I’ve often wondered about the bracelet I’ve noticed on Damian’s right wrist in may photos as well. BTW, I CANNOT watch episode 11 anymore! Just watching all that steak makes me run to the kitchen for something…anything, It may even be possible to gain weight just by watching Billions!
Thanks, Damianista! This time I read your recap before I watched. Much less to look up. Iām beginning to see the pattern: wrestling, sports generally, Trading Places, Godfather 1, 2, 3 and random references no one could be expect to know entirely. It occurs to me this is similar to Mamet-speak; it is itās own language. The reality of speech is irrelevant. Billions-speak like Mamet sets a territory all itās own.
I loved the Axe and Lara scene. It moved me to see them close again, relaxed.
Taylorsā move to Andolov seems highly suspect to me. Do I smell a ploy? Is Axe involved? Is this move to independence real; could be in partnership with Bobby.
Some questions: what is the race they kept referring to?
What IS Wagsā job?
Random observations: Dakeās glasses are back!
Ask Lewisto if nine is young to look at nekkid ladies. (You know I think youāre too sweet for this world š )
Here comes obstruction of justice! Whatās next, process crimes?
I was about to ask who this Shem character was – then I realized it was a typo. <3 <3
Thank you, Notlinda!
You are spot on about the language! Because guess which writer inspires Billions creators Koppelman and Levien the most: David Mamet! YES! Billions has its own language exactly like a Mamet play.
As I say in my recap, I cannot figure out Taylor’s motivation at the moment. Their eyes were brightened when Axe put them back again on the raise team, but then they did this — even though I was expecting Taylor to part ways with Axe for a while, I never thought they would go to Andolov. That is why it looks fishy to me. You may absolutely be right that Axe may be involved in this. Maybe the two of them have made a plan to get rid of Andolov.
Wags’ job: He is the Chief Operating Officer – COO https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/coo.asp
“Shem character”? Could you please tell me the typo so I can correct it?
And maybe I should not ask Lewisto and just stay too sweet for this world š
Shem meets Taylor at Seaglass Carousel.
Who? š
Thank you!
“Here comes obstruction of justice! Whatās next, process crimes?” You know what’s going on!!! with Robert Mueller and before that Patrick Fitzgerald, special prosecutor in the ginned up Valerie Plame affair. I see an obvious pattern. Now we have ginned up Russian collusion and process crimes because this collusion is vaporware, it will never be proven. It was just a convenient excuse to get a Special Prosecutor in to wreak havoc.
This Billions season there are many cute allusions to what is going with Donald Trump who is worth Billions! ….so it all fits in. Jock Jeffcote is an allusion to Trump. Lots of laughs and lots of fun with hard charging Jeffcoat. I mean prosecuting “project” dwellers on Federal drug charges? For nickle-dime drug offenses? What an absurd howler.
I liked when Chuck (to Jeffcoat) called them “under privileged”, more laughs.
I bet they have a writer from Texas on the staff, who told the producers that Texas is full of people who can out quip Wags any day of the week. This is how we got “blessed” with Jeffcoat and when is his preacher brother going to show?
In the coming Sunday’s preview clips I saw Hall being brought in to spin his unique magic.
All of that build up last week in introducing his mother only to give us a little 2 minute glimpse of her? They didn’t even flesh out or touch on why they are estranged. Maybe they are saving that for next season. I think I’m the only one rooting for an Axe and Lara reunion. I liked them together. I’m glad they showed how important she was to him and how he actually misses her. He’s been indifferent and detached from her all season. I also liked how Wendy still thinks Axe would hurt someone if they messed with her. I notice she included herself in that list too but whatever. I guess it’s true. I also like how Lara and Wendy are civil and respectful to one another. Time for them to go back to their weird non-sexual threesome. Lol It was a winning combination.
I like how Chuck is trying to make it up to Ira. However, that part where the gold-digger agrees to leave with a $50,000 pay out and sign the pre-nup was totally unbelievable. A woman like that is going to squeeze every penny out of Ira. Besides being young and hot, I don’t know what Ira sees in her. He could have at least bought at faithful sugar baby. Congrats to Chuck Sr. for saving Ira’s marriage. Don’t let a little thing like cheating break up a happy home. He would know. Lol
I think this season will end with Chuck being fired. I see him going back into private practice. There’s no way his plan works now that Dake and Connerty are after him. I predict Kate will turn on Chuck too and so will Allerd, if he hasn’t already. Both of them are politically fluid and now how to tell when it’s time to change positions to their advantage.
Poor Taylor. It’s like Axe is trying to make them miserable and run them off. He may get his wish. I think Taylor is ready to break free and I don’t blame her.
I wish we could see more of Bonnie. She seems awesome. I hate how Spyros has become comedic fodder. He’s a rapist and should have been fired already. I can’t believe Axe would stiff his lawyer. Rich people are the cheapest people on Earth. I guess that’s how they get so rich.
Thank you for reading!
I hope that the mother and son story continues into the next season. But, hey, you are not the only one rooting for Axe and Lara to come together. I want that, too. But Axe should not get his way when he wants to have it. He must WORK on it and gain back Lara’s love and trust. I also liked the way they portrayed how important Lara has been in some business decisions. We already knew she was not a trophy wife but Wendy calling Lara Axe’s “secret weapon” at comp time is pretty impressive!
I think Chuck has A LOT on Taiga and her “business partner” that made Taiga sign the post-nuptial agreement rather than getting involved with a “federal case” “D Chuck Senior shone as a marriage counselor!
It may well be that Chuck gets fired. That said, given what Bryan will find in “Chuck Rhoades Special” would he really side with the AG who is responsible for Jose Lugo’s death? Given that Allerd and Kate could be fluid, it could be that the proteges go against their mentors! On both legal and hedge-fund side! Or… they cooperate with them. Taylor never really wanted to have Andolov’s money. So I am not 100% sure if they are really going on their own, or it is just to demonstrate to Axe that they could do better, or if there is a ploy there with Taylor and Axe playing Andolov. It will be a really interesting season finale!
SMT – I also want the Axelrods back together! Heās a more interesting character when he has her and his kids by his side. I like Lara. We bitches have to hang together š
I’m on Lara’s side as well. There wasn’t a clear cut reason given for their split, other than the prospect of Axe in jail. I never felt that would be enough to send Lara packing. Or rather, have her send him packing. Surely she has known all these years that he was sometimes on the shady side of the law and stayed any way. But then some of my pro Lara feeling is due to the fact that I never cared for Wendy from the very beginning of the first season.
Brian Koppelman has said in an interview that the last straw for Lara was that Axe told her he would come home to give her and the kids a hug before his arrest, but then sent Ben Kim home in a car, and he went to see Wendy at the 9/11 Memorial in Season 2 Finale. So it was not about shady business but him not being totally honest with her.
I do want the two of them get back together, too! But, honestly, I don’t want Axe to get it back when he wants to get it back. He needs to work on it.
In my review I saw some telling subtext in the son mother scene, even though it was only a few minutes long. The mother seems very tired and defeated, and interested in Bobby, but not necessarily willing to kill herself trying to reach him anymore. They said that once the father left, Bobby’s anger was directed at his mother. The scene relayed that energy between them. Bobby always pushing, wanting more from his mother than she was able to give. And finally leaving to find what he needed elsewhere, mostly thru his job.
Bobby’s indifference and detachment is, I think, the crux of who he is. He’s that way with every one. He’s never been close to anyone. Here’s hoping they explore the “why” of it all more next season.
I figured at the time (last season) that Axe knew if he went home before being arrested, the arrest would happen there, in front of the kids. Neither he nor Lara could have wanted that and Lara should have realized that. So, while the writers know what they intended, what they intended does not necessarily come across that way to all viewers. Besides, it was obvious Axe would be out on bail (or whatever), and it is doubtful he was always home every night for his kids. A weak part of the story line for this viewer.
I just love love Billions. While I was watching, just last night, I wanted your review to come up right after the credits.
One of my favorite scenes was Nusr-ET. That was my version of Wags’ comp center-folds. D. can you get us a reservation there?
The Axe, Taylor, Wendy, Lara cycle was so fascinating. Touching to see Axe and Lara comfortable (almost) again.
Can’t wait to read your review of the finale. You may be in the midst of it now.