Post: #26

I think Rhodes is modeled after Elliot Spitzer: father is a multimillionaire but Wall St hated him and vice-versa.

Post: #27

@Jariel: Definitely agree that Narcos Season 1 was far too rushed. It is hard to see how they go beyond Season 2 given how much ground they have already covered. I was under the impression that the DEA agent was, in fact, running around Colombia like Dirty Harry despite knowing no Spanish and nothing about Colombian culture (because the whole thing is based on true story). But perhaps they are embellishing it. I don't know.

I agree with your criticisms about these shows. But I wouldn't quite go so far as to say they failed or are failing. I think that's where we differ.

What are the shows currently out there that are better than Billions and Narcos? (genuinely asking, not trying to be a dick). I'd watch them in a heartbeat.

@Emancipator: Yeah, Birch and Decker are just the warm-ups. If you want to be governor or president, you've got to take down the biggest fish. At least that's what the show wants you to believe.

At some level, Billions feels like one giant fuck-you to the average guy. Sort of like: "This is a game that is played strictly by the 0.01%, with a little assistance from the 1% (the investment banks). Everyone else is a non-entity."

Post: #28

(02-09-2016 01:09 AM)Emancipator Wrote:  Don't forget Rhodes has gubernatorial/political aspirations. Bagging Axe would be the big catch that propels him to such a position. Birch and Decker aren't as big

Your explanation doesn't work given that he traded a case his office had been working on for two years which involved a bombing attempt on the Statue of Liberty.

Why would a guy with political ambitions trade a high profile national security case for an insider trading case that he doesn't yet have?

That's my issue, there is no real case on Axelrod, it's a fishing expedition at best.

Post: #29

Can't say that dogshit clip is encouraging. It's unrealistic, and clearly set up to make the character look like hot shit.

Noticing a lot of "fanfictiony" screenwriting these days.

More and more characters are twitchy, wise-cracking nerds with no chin and a 5 o'clock shadow, a set speech that shows how righteous they are, and I guess a dead daughter or something to wring their hands about.

I'm describing a stereotype that doesn't completely fit here, but that short clip has that kind of "smell" to it, strong and unmistakable.

Post: #30

(02-09-2016 10:37 AM)jariel Wrote:  

(02-09-2016 01:09 AM)Emancipator Wrote:  Don't forget Rhodes has gubernatorial/political aspirations. Bagging Axe would be the big catch that propels him to such a position. Birch and Decker aren't as big

Your explanation doesn't work given that he traded a case his office had been working on for two years which involved a bombing attempt on the Statue of Liberty.

Why would a guy with political ambitions trade a high profile national security case for an insider trading case that he doesn't yet have?

We're only 3 episodes in. I think if the real dirt were divulged so early we wouldn't have a reason to watch the rest of the season, would we?

Post: #31

(02-09-2016 04:22 PM)monster Wrote:  We're only 3 episodes in. I think if the real dirt were divulged so early we wouldn't have a reason to watch the rest of the season, would we?

Still doesn't answer the question.

That's like trading the 9/11 case for Mark Cuban's insider trading case.

This isn't directed at you, but I've noticed when people like a television show, they tend to like it so much that they can't accept the fact that the show still has flaws.

The above statement can't possibly be explained away, at the end of the day even though it defies reality, it's fantasy, and dramatic license is being used, that's the best that can be said.

Post: #32

Wow - Chuck Rhoades (Giamatti) has some real weird shit.

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!







I thought he was going to get caught at the club. That shit if it ever came out would end a political career.

Post: #33

I'm not surprised that Bobby's fixer does not know about this. But yeah man, if that shit ever got out, he would be blackmailed the fuck out of it.

That dude is almost textbook definition of a cuck. LOL, he was going hamster when his wife was alone with Bobby.

The track at the end of the episode is pretty cool. I thought bobby was actually going to close down the fund.

The series does portray Axelrod in a realistic way, the hedge fund manager I know dresses casual whenever he is doing normal things. Pretty chill dude, not some baby eating poverty-planner monster that leftists want to portray.

Post: #34

Why didn't he short the markets and make a payday?

Would that put too big of a target on his back?

Post: #35

Tonight was an episode that gave the show some teeth. The plot lines seemed to slow down and avoided the schizophrenic jumpiness of the first few episodes. They also toned down the god mode on axelrod a bit which was a good move.

Uncertain if the show has longevity though. How long can a battle between investor and prosecutor be dragged out for?

Post: #36

(02-15-2016 01:27 AM)Suits Wrote:  Why didn't he short the markets at make a payday?

Would that put too big of a target on his back?

It would have been too obvious.

Axe Capital held many shares in the the company. Who shorts the company they own from one day to the next?

The internal controls that monitor the financial system are quite mind blowing, they can predict settings in which insider trading can occur and simply catch the moments. Not to mention most people are stupid and buy/sell/short 50K when doing insider trading, 50K out of all numbers. The controls they have nowadays is based off IA, where it learns patterns and develops a mind of it's own.

Edit: I don't get the BDSM scenes, they remind me of the Carrie Mathison sex scenes in homeland. They provided minimal value other than watching Claire Danes getting fucked by half the cast.

Post: #37

(02-15-2016 01:32 AM)Cattle Rustler Wrote:  ...the Carrie Mathison sex scenes in homeland. They provided minimal value other than watching Claire Danes getting fucked by half the cast.

I'm not complaining.

Post: #38

(02-15-2016 01:45 AM)Suits Wrote:  

(02-15-2016 01:32 AM)Cattle Rustler Wrote:  ...the Carrie Mathison sex scenes in homeland. They provided minimal value other than watching Claire Danes getting fucked by half the cast.

I'm not complaining.

I never saw the sex scenes. Claire Danes was looking pretty beat when I gave up watching in the second season.

Post: #39

(02-15-2016 04:46 AM)porscheguy Wrote:  

(02-15-2016 01:45 AM)Suits Wrote:  

(02-15-2016 01:32 AM)Cattle Rustler Wrote:  ...the Carrie Mathison sex scenes in homeland. They provided minimal value other than watching Claire Danes getting fucked by half the cast.

I'm not complaining.

I never saw the sex scenes. Claire Danes was looking pretty beat when I gave up watching in the second season.

The sex scenes in Homeland are not sexy. They are, dare I saw it, rather red pill. When Claire Danes gets fucked by yet another cast member, unlike most shows, Homeland doesn't depict her as in control.

With most TV and film, women are depicted as sexually open and liberated, aware of who they are and what they want.

We all know that there isn't a woman like that in the world who isn't a raging slut. Women like to be all coy ("OMG! I can't believe we had sex on the first date! LOLCatZ") and will usually only have sex in situations where they have an on-going sexual relationship or in circumstances where they can deny all responsibility for the act occurring (OMG! It, like, just happened!!!!).

When Carrie takes another dick on Homeland, she's depicted in a very realistic female manner and the subtle statement made is that she's making neurotic and dumb decisions. She can't resist the appeal of a terrorist badboy.

Compared to example like True Detective a la Season II, where one of the main female protagonists is depicted as far more sexual open and self-aware than the weakling men who can't keep up with her in this regard, Homeland comes as a breath of fresh air.

Post: #40

(02-15-2016 01:27 AM)Suits Wrote:  Why didn't he short the markets and make a payday?

Would that put too big of a target on his back?

He wanted to get out without making too much noise and have other fund managers/traders follow him out. That herd would have really out a hurt on his positions. To then short as you are selling would have leaked out and the herd would have followed.

Maybe people would say whatever he lost in his long positions because of the stampede would be made up by his shorts. But it would have created an extra layer of heat and he already has some.

He was smart to try and quietly get out. Sometimes it just isn't worth the extra squeeze of the lemon.

Edit: I guess he could have let the shorts run after he got out. But I still think it was too much to bother with. Plus, from a show perspective it wouldn't move the story along much and the average viewer may not grasp it all. The point was he loves to make money and he is a smart fucker. That point was made without having to short.

Post: #41

@jariel and a few others with issues concerning the plot:

It was apparent to me within the first few minutes of the pilot that this series might be at least loosely based on Steven Cohen and his firm SAC Capital. As such me talking about real events might be considered as spoilers, so keep that in mind.

The emphasis on dodgy trades in a pharma company combined with the fact that they portray Axelrod as THE big fish right off clued me in. Cohen has been the highest paid hedge fund manager in the world every year for most of the last decade, but he's been constantly been suspected of insider trading. He's basically the equivalent of Barry Bonds, posted all time great numbers, but with roids consistently hanging over his head.

Convicting the biggest hedge fund manager in the world of criminal insider trading would make Rhodes' career, the same way Giuliani's career was made when he went after Mike Milken in the 80s. The SEC guy wants to come along for the ride for that reason. The SEC can only fine people and dish out penalties like banning you from trading, which happens frequently but it isn't big news.

The house purchase side plot in the pilot was a real thing, Cohen did make a record purchase in the Hamptons a few years back, it may have even been the same $63 million in the show. That, and a few other purchases like spending $100 million for a Picasso were all cited in articles at the time about how he was flaunting his money even though there were growing accusations over his insider trading. In the show they kind of jam it in there with little explanation, and I can see how one would not understand the relevance without prior knowledge of Cohen. They didn't do the best job fleshing that out.

The portfolio manager who got arrested in this last episode is seemingly Mat Martoma. The difference is that in the show inside info was from a farmer about a GMO whereas in real life it was doctors and an Alzheimer drug. Martoma didn't flip on Cohen and is now in jail. The firm ended up paying nearly $2 billion in fines and got banned from managing outside money as a result.



It's loosely based on Cohen so far, but they've taken a few liberties, most obvious using Damien Lewis and not some fat balding guy in his 60s. Also the 9/11 thing in the pilot actually happened, but to Cantor Fitzgerald. Their NY offices were right above where the planes hit and everyone there was killed. In the show they don't say why Axe wasn't in the building, but the CEO of CF would have been there but he was taking his kid to his first day of school. Rhodes' wife was a real person, Ari Kiev. He died a few years ago, but did a lot of psychological work with traders and pro athletes, also wrote a few books which I've read. He worked with Cohen.

From a plotline perspective, the Cohen story doesn't really have much to drag out, definitely not enough to sustain multiple seasons. They'll have to invent some stuff, and I wonder what they plan on doing. Like someone else said, a constant investigator vs high powered finance guy scenario could get old pretty quick.

Post: #42

Those motherfuckers are back...





Didn't like the first season as I didn't understand the obsession of the fat guy from Damian Lewis but hey... They make great trailers

Post: #43

Couldn't wait until this show came back, thoroughly enjoyed this last year. Axe was alpha as fuck!

Then I happened upon a short clip on showtime about the new character they're introducing. Some neutral non gender type of thing.

Hollywood ruins another amazing show with tons of potential.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bill...ebb78842cb

Post: #44

He/she/it was really gross. Has some kind of black mole right in its eyelid that was super distracting on top of the fact that its some gross shemale.

Other than that I enjoyed it. Still an entertaining hour of television and I enjoy the back and forth war between the two leads.

Post: #45

(01-07-2016 10:28 AM)Handsome Creepy Eel Wrote:  When have U.S. Attorneys ever been enemies of Wall Street? They get along just fine.

Sometimes the proles demand that a lamb be gored.

Post: #46

I have worked at a hedge fund. Margin Call reminded me of work. The Big Short, too, but less so. Billions seems utterly alien to me.

Post: #47

(02-22-2017 04:54 AM)etwsake Wrote:  He/she/it was really gross. Has some kind of black mole right in its eyelid that was super distracting on top of the fact that its some gross shemale.

Other than that I enjoyed it. Still an entertaining hour of television and I enjoy the back and forth war between the two leads.

I kind of like how they poked fun at it when that other dude gets it a vegan meal.

It - "What makes you think I'm vegan?"
Him - "Everything"

Post: #48

I just watched the first two of this season.

Its a shame, but this show is terrible now. Maybe these are made so that a whole season has to be watched at once?

Either way, adding the tranny is just stupid. They did this to Below Deck when they brought in the cross dresser and ruined the show, which was excellent TV.

Here's what happened when a fag wound up on the sopranos:





Phil popping out of the closet (im sure some type of metaphor) still gives me the chicken skin.

Aloha!

Post: #49

(02-28-2017 08:26 PM)Kona Wrote:  ...Below Deck ... was excellent TV.

Care to explain yourself on this one?

Post: #50

The tranny is really ruining this show for me. They keep pushing and pushing. Putting it in almost every scene. Its voice is repulsive.