Industry season four

Kicking into its fourth season, Industry wastes no time in exposing the cutthroat corporate world. There’s more backstabbing, more scheming and more sex. Lots of sex. On that note, we begin on a topical front: the spectre of the Online Safety Bill.

The prospect of adult content being blocked threatens Harper’s (Myha’la Herrold) new role as an investment fund manager, emphasising just how ruthless she has become since soaring the corporate ladder. The bill is also bad news for new addition Whitney (Max Minghella), the CEO of payment processor Tender, with whom Harper has an encounter that will no doubt live on in television infamy.

Meanwhile, Yasmin (Marisa Abela) is also adjusting to a new period in her life. When Yasmin started out at Pierpoint, she was objectified in the androcentric boardroom, but she, like Harper, subverted this hypersexualised role by using it to her advantage. However, while Harper became “one of the boys”, Yasmin wed media mogul Henry (Kit Harington) as her own way of traversing the shark tank.

The series harks back to the yuppie era, complete with an 80s synth soundtrack, hedonistic raves and expletive-ridden language (you don’t even want to know how newcomer Hayley, played by Kiernan Shipka, describes her nether regions). Seemingly liberated through their sexual escapades and lavish expenditure, the characters illustrate how parochial the world of big business ultimately is. All of this is brilliantly executed by the cast, with each of the actors throwing themselves into their new character arcs with gusto. Herrold is a joy to watch, bringing her theatrical chops to the small screen (the role of girlboss-turned-up-to-11 is arguably best suited to a musical theatre grad).

But for all its overt commentary on late-stage capitalism and office chauvinism, the show borders on glorifying the very thing it’s ostensibly opposing. The frequent sex scenes feel a tad exploitative, sometimes veering towards racialised fetishism. Moreover, one can’t help but feel as though the showrunners have packed too much in, and the frantic jumps from arc to arc may leave viewers feeling a little dazed. However, such a densely packed show offers plenty to chew on and debate.

Part throwback, part contemporary critique, the show is this generation’s Wall Street. Thanks to a sharp, topical script and the youthful enthusiasm of its talented cast, Industry is an entertaining Gen-Z take on the prison of corporatism.