The Unbeatable, Unstoppable, Unparalleled MVPs from Billions Season 4 Episode 5

Welcome back to our ‘Billions MVP Fanbook,’ a compilation post commemorating all those in honor of achievement for the utmost brazen, uber shameless, ultra scheming, unmatched bad asses to date – from sports references, music, and tasty food to pop culture remarks, shocking twists and ultimate paybacks.

In case you missed our previous awards, you can catch up with season four episode one, episode two, episode three and episode four. Now, let us continue with that tradition as we award our Most Valuable Players (MVPs) this week.

Here are our Billions awards for Season 4, Episode 5, “A Proper Sendoff.”

Gingersnap

Brilliant Hangover Tip – Pickle juice. I’ve actually heard about this.

Best Line – Karl Allard when he told Chuck, “Well, apparently he woke up with morning wood and decided to jam it right up our hind quarters.”

All the Feels, and Then Some – When Axe is trying to figure out “some sensation” he is having as he grabs his mid-section, confused as to why hot anger and the need to destroy is not the “top note” he’s experiencing – trying to flesh out those feelings he doesn’t normally “traffic” in as he come to terms with an $102 million emotional wound.

Hook, Line, and Sinker – I knew Axe was up to something when those cell phones were thrown in the trunk, even knew Axe killed the boat’s ignition switch before it was revealed, but I didn’t know exactly why. Kudos to Axe and his minions for flipping the narrative on the streets – tweaking the story from fact (Axe being pushed out of the fund) to rumor (Axe pulling his investment from said fund) – and thus, shoving other investors off of Humpty Dumpty’s wall while watching it all crumble. John Rice has got to learn how to swim with the big fishies…or is that sharks? 😉

Fishing Expedition 101: The Strategy
Fishing Expedition 101: The Celebration
Fishing Expedition 101: The King Fish

Billions showrunner and co-creator Brian Koppelman tweeted some background information regarding Axe’s plan of attack that I’ve aptly named, “The Fishing Expedition 101”:

The Best of Wagsy – That would have to be the Spyros Summons and the Benjamin Button Project:

The Spyros Summons
The Benjamin Button Project

Honorable Mention: I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention a couple of Writers Awards: 1) Showcasing full circle one of the kids Axe helped and, 2) that fade out scene at the end of the episode of Chuck and Senior scoping out the landscape of their future to the sound of James Brown’s The Payback as the FBI surveillance truck watches. Simply genius.

Lady Trader

Best Don Draper Impersonation –  Axe needs the Street to think he is pulling out of Rice’s fund instead of the other way round, so as Don Draper said, “if you don’t like what they are saying, change the conversation!”

Best “I loved you as so and so” Appearance – I loved seeing Seth Gabel on Billions this week. Anytime I can see someone from one of my all time favorite shows, “Fringe, I’m happy! (Honorable Mention: Hello Jade Eshete from “Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency“!)

Best Fashion Choice – Yeah, maybe it’s because the men in my family are Navy men, but is there anything better than a pea coat?

Best “He’s not going to do what I think he’s going to do” Moment – I did think that Axe was going to throw Rice off the boat. It was only for a second, but it did cross my mind!

Damianista

Most Outrageously Adolescent Conversation – Axe and Chuck talking about how much they care about the consequences of their actions

Seriously?!?! Now, I still believe Chuck did the right thing when he revealed his sex life to the world because it was the only thing that would work under the circumstances. That said, the list of cases where the two men did not give a shit about the consequences of their actions is quite long! For starters: If Axe had not treated Taylor like shit, he would still have them as their CIO at Axe Capital. If Chuck had not treated Bryan like shit, he would still have had his seat as the US Attorney of the SDNY. And above all: Ice Juice. If it had not been for Wendy, I doubt Axe and Chuck would have been able to dig themselves out of their own graves. So, guys, grow up!

Saddest Password – Cory Chase.

Nicole Aniston? No. Blair Williams? No. Cory Chase? Bingo. As much as Cory Chase could be national treasure, what a sad state someone should be in to make a porn star’s name his social media password? And aren’t Rudy and his wife having a baby?!?! Seriously?!?!

Pettiest Power Move – Axe destroying John’s career

And for what? To make an example of John so all his “kids” know they could leave Axe only if he asks them to or if he gives his blessing.

Axe put this kid through business school, he gave him seed money for his own fund, and now that the kid has grown up, he now betrays Axe. Unacceptable in Axe’s book even when he finds out why.

John always knew his dad did not respect Axe. He also knew about Axe’s situation on 9/11 way before the press broke it. He worked hard for years so he would not need Axe’s money anymore. And now that he is financially able, he wants no association with Axe.

Axe, who is used to not taking the responsibility for his own actions, but very much used to putting the blame on others, plays a wicked trick on John and ruins the young man’s career. Pettiest power move in my book!

Jules Winnfield (aka Smartest Person in the Room) Award – Taylor Mason

Exactly like they came, saw and conquered the “Idea Dinner” in Season 3 Premiere, Taylor now appears in front of the New York Firefighters Fund Board and wins them over with their personal story. Taylor knows what firefighters do are their contribution and value and if the board is not careful, someone can steal it. Taylor understands it perfectly since their own boss tried to steal their contribution and value. Taylor did not let him do it, and they will not let anything like this happen to the Firefighters Fund, either. Cheers!

Most Shakespearesque Scene – Foley’s Funeral

Chuck “Mark Antony” Rhoades is here to make his “Friends, Romans, and Countrymen” speech calling out the criminals and conspirators that have infested New York politics for decades. I cannot think of a more proper send off for Black Jack Foley. Bravo!

TheTailThatWagsTheDog

Kick a Guy When He’s Down Award – Rudy. It’s bad enough they introduced us to him as a weak-kneed, mostly incompetent, “why is he there” worker, then they exposed his self-appreciation fetish with the flashlight, then exposed him as a thief and a lame one at that when he steal’s Dollar Bill’s dollar bill, then he gets emasculated by the newcomer Bonnie and subsequently fired. Now, they pick on his corpse by making his password a slew of porn stars?

Hottest Transition – From the cremation of Black Jack Foley to the flames of the brick oven pizza – absolutely brilliant. Not too many writers could come up with that smooth and that ingenious an opening. They make it look so easy.

Analogy Overkill Award – Mafee. It seems that every other sentence from him these days starts off with one of those ‘cultural reference’ analogies that many of us feel are overdone. I’m pretty sure he didn’t talk like this in season 1 – but he has jumped on the Analogy Bandwagon. And Sarah seems to be trying to jump on board as well.

Is This For Real? – Investor Relations? Is this a real thing? I guess we’ll find out Friday. Assuming it is, how likely is it that an IR person would be “super young, early 20’s, too hip for this business?” How could a super young person get that kind of access she seems to get? Seems like an awfully convenient willingful suspension of disbelief going on here.

Author: Gingersnap

Management Analyst, part-time Adjunct Professor and Computer Software Consultant by day and Damian Lewis aficionado by night.

12 thoughts on “The Unbeatable, Unstoppable, Unparalleled MVPs from Billions Season 4 Episode 5”

  1. Another week, and another great list. We all see (and love) different things! Yay!
    Ginger: I too have heard of the pickle juice cure for hangovers, but damn if I’d try it!
    Damianista: I am with you 100% on that Axe/Chuck convo. Acting like not caring about others feelings is something to be proud of! These guys are two sides of the same coin! And I had no idea about those passwords. I thought they were maybe models. But yes, yuck!
    Paul: I don’t go into it too much on Friday so here it is: yes, funds do have and need IR people. The Portfolio Managers and analysts don’t deal on a day to day basis with clients, or investors, so there is a department that does it. Now, Lauren does seem a bit young for the job, but at my age everyone seems young! She is probably late 20’s so it is within the age range for someone to be the lead IR person for a shop just starting out as TMC is. The advantage of her being “super young, early 20’s, too hip for this business?” is that most of the IR business is wining and dining clients and potential clients. As is seem by how she got the Firefighter meeting: her and her friends probably drank and flirted with the decision makers of the FF Fund at Johnny Utah’s bar. I’m not saying it’s the right way to go about getting investments, but whether it’s on the golf course, strip club, or bar, that is how things are done on Wall Street. So yes, this is for real.

    1. It’s incredible that we are in week 5 and we have had no overlap whatsoever! I loved the “Best Don Draper Impersonation.” Bobby has some qualities very similar to Don indeed.

      That conversation between Axe and Chuck definitely deserves a ridiculous award! Oh My God. They really believe they care about the consequences of their actions! These two are two of the lost boys and Wendy is their mom keeping them grounded when she can – HUGE Peter Pan fan here!

      Thank you for making the clarification about investor relations. I also thought they should be dining/wining potential clients so it makes sense they are hip and young and pretty and personable 🙂 Lauren seems really talented. And I loved how Taylor convinced the board. That should HURT Axe!

      Rudy’s password is sad. I didn’t know any of the names mentioned and I was like WHOA when I found out. Seriously?!?! No wonder Rudy got fired. He doesn’t even know to have a secure password – with capital letters, numericals and symbols. Plus a two-step authentication. My household is crazy about secure passwords. Hahaha.

  2. Of all the elements to induce incredulity this week, Lauren’s existence is what rises to the top? I see it differently. MasCap gets the best at what they do and Lauren seems well-suited to do what the brilliant Sarah hired her to do. Also I haven’t questioned any of Sarah’s moves yet, odd to start with this one. What about Lauren is hard to believe?

    1. Erica – I just didn’t know that such a position existed in the hedge fund world. Kind of like the Wendy role, which Lady Trader has said is basically a bogus position for a hedge fund, this sounded bogus to me too – but as I found out it is in fact a real thing. And apparently it also isn’t unusual for these be positions to be filled by younger people, so the fact that MasCap filled it with this young, hip, gorgeous person is not an apparent stretch. I had no idea. I stand corrected,

  3. This Sopranos fanatic notes we now have a pizza man, police commissioner and governor from that cast …

    Axe revenge on John, Yum Time and Naming Rights all nada compared to arranging the deportation of the wrong woman when Ice Juice went down.

    1. Well, show creators are also huge Sopranos fans!

      Thanks for reading! I actually thought Naming Rights was OKAY 🙂 Yum Time was total business against a really bad CEO so I think it was even better for the shareholders. What Axe did to Donnie was bad — not the agreement between them for Donnie to trick the SDNY, but Axe playing God and ending his life at a convenient time. I agree with you, and of course you are an immigration lawyer, what Axe did to Maria Gonzalez was extremely bad! He was saving his ass of course! And also what he did to Dr. Gilbert… not that the doctor was innocent, he basically helped him all the way with the Ice Juice project… But Axe did not even think twice about throwing him under the bus. And John did not commit any crime whatsoever, he just wanted to cut ties with him… OMG. I really think we need to do a 10 TEN Times and Crimes of Bobby Axelrod post by the end of the season!!!

      1. Isn’t it amazing how many inner Drs. Jykell and Hyde dark natures “pop” up or “exposed” in this show? And the way they all work together either and for the common and uncommon bad of each other? What an extraordinary paradoxical, parallax, algorithmic blending of “wishes” coming true by sheer……….. “Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalmystic” (Isaac Hayes……..Hot Buttered Soul) . I hope the writers will see fit to portray another Mathematical expression of “I see you seeing me”….wow. Oh one more thing……….Wendy and Hall working together……as PARTNERS!!!! Hmmmn…surely ’nuff said.

        1. Yes, I am not able to keep track of them anymore!

          It is interesting that Wendy is so much more involved in “the business” this season than ever before. We have never seen her in the same room with Hall before, she was actually intimidated by Hall when he took her to meet Axe in the spa in Season 1. And yeah they are now almost buddies and Hall is so impressed that he is ready to hire her if Axe lets her go hahaha

          1. Trust me “D” your “hahaha” is my “hahaha.” It is exactly how I feel. Like a nervous thought or strange pathology. Keep up the great thought work!

  4. Like Michael Corleone said it’s all personal … so goes Axe, and that kid is far from penniless. He left him a couple hundred mil IIRC.

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