So, Who Won That Brutal Industry Fight?

As a mental health professional, I must say that this episode is a stark reminder of the destructive power of unresolved trauma and untreated mental health issues. The characters’ words and actions are a reflection of their inner turmoil and pain.

Spoilers follow for Industry season three, episode six, “Nikki Beach, or: So Many Ways to Lose”

As a passionate movie critic, I must admit that “Industry” doesn’t shy away from scenes where suppressed conflicts escalate into dramatic confrontations. Among all episodes, “Nikki Beach, or: So Many Ways to Lose” stands out as one of the most intense. The episode commences with a flashback to Yasmin Hanani and her father, Charles Hanani, arguing bitterly on their yacht’s deck, which ultimately leads to Charles’s untimely drowning incident. The tension continues with Harper Stern confronting her ex-boss Eric Tao in her office after he discovers she manipulated Pierpoint’s stocks as retaliation for being fired. The episode concludes with a bitter spat between Harper and Yasmin, where Harper takes advantage of Yasmin’s vulnerability to obtain crucial information to back up her Pierpoint short position, leading to Yasmin’s termination.

Yasmin and Harper have a long history marked by their tumultuous friendship, which has seen ups and downs, shared living and work experiences, involvement in a complex romantic situation with colleague Robert Spearing, a missing person hunt for Harper’s twin brother, and the concealment of potential criminal negligence regarding Yasmin’s father’s demise. When they argue, their deep-seated grudges provide plenty of ammunition for attacks. Consequently, their arguments often escalate into intense exchanges filled with emotional blows that are too numerous and intertwined to untangle in the moment. To determine the winner of these heated confrontations, we’ve compiled a list of the top five most damaging blows in this particular altercation.

5. Harper: “I truly made every effort to prevent Petra, and I did. However, this is the nature of our business. Unfortunately, it seems the world isn’t shielded as much as you’re accustomed to. I sincerely regret if you perceive me as enjoying your misery.

Before Yasmin discovered at the end of season two that she had been hired due to nepotism, she was already struggling with insecurity at work. She would bring coffee and lunch, endure abusive management to appear as a team player, and switch between departments hoping to find where she could shine, but nothing seemed to work. After realizing her position wasn’t based on merit, Yasmin became even more determined to make a professional impact in season three. However, when Harper criticizes Yasmin for being too sheltered, not understanding “the business,” on the same day she was fired for poor performance, it stings all the more. This criticism, regardless of its accuracy, is undermined by the fact that Harper is using it to shift blame from her own actions in exploiting their friendship.

4. Yasmin: “I can’t stand you. My suffering seems to benefit you, even today. And it seems, despite everything, that it does. The more I reflect on it, the clearer it becomes. Yes, yes. That nagging thought in my mind was correct. You find joy in my downfall. You feed off other people’s pain. It’s repulsive.

Under normal circumstances, Harper wouldn’t be pleased to be called a heartless sadist by her only friend. But receiving such harsh criticism shortly after her ex-mentor Eric had hurled similar insults at her would certainly hurt. Eric said something like, “I don’t know what your motive is, but it’s about causing the maximum amount of pain to as many people as you can physically manage.” And when he intruded on Harper’s office earlier in the episode, he added, “Everyone’s expendable, right? Even the only girl who foolishly considers you a friend.” Despite Harper’s unusual effort not to use Yasmin as leverage this time, Yasmin still seems to be catching on.

3. Yasmin: “Goodness gracious. You’re truly unbalanced. It seems you have a knack for manipulating people’s weaknesses. And all the intricate reasoning about genetics, upbringing, or ‘Oh my word, it’s my brother, he’s an addict,’ and so on, doesn’t exempt you from the choices you make today.

In this situation, Yasmin’s comments towards Harper mirror earlier remarks by Eric. Essentially, they believe Harper is a sociopath and her actions are driven by a self-image she holds as monstrous. Yasmin goes on to say that if Harper doesn’t feel empathy for others, then she shouldn’t expect any for herself either. However, Yasmin’s comment about Harper’s brother being an addict and her dismissive tone seems particularly vindictive, even more so than Eric’s words.

2. Yasmin: “Do you believe that if I weren’t here, Rob might want to be with you? He considers you as delusional. Having a narcissistic personality with an inferiority complex doesn’t make you a sympathetic character, Harper. It makes you utterly revolting. And let me tell you, I have experience with narcissists. My dad used to pity himself just like you do.

Irrespective of whether Harper continues to have unrequited feelings for Rob, she set herself up for this nasty barb by saying he “deserves better” than Yasmin’s treatment of him. But more damaging than the line itself is the condescending faux pity with which actress Marisa Abela delivers it: The way she cocks her head and shifts her register as if to facetiously say, “You poor little thing …” It’s not a tone that the prideful Harper can stomach. The line also happens to mirror a sentiment Yasmin hurled at Harper during an early season-two argument: “Good-bye, Harper. Good luck finding someone to love you.”

Harper: “Just like father, like daughter, isn’t it? Your arrogance is essentially an attempt to mask your ordinary nature. Regrettably, the world can only disguise your shortcomings for a limited time, Yas. You are devoid of talent, worthless, and worse still, a prostitute.” [Note: The original language contains strong and offensive words that may not be suitable for all audiences.]

It’s likely that Harper learned about Yasmin’s final argument with her father immediately after his attempted suicide, given that Harper is the only one who knows the truth of the situation and was pretending to be Yasmin’s therapist at the time. The insulting names Harper used towards Yasmin, such as “talentless” and “whore,” were also the same ones her father had called her before jumping overboard, which suggests that Harper is upset and struggling to make valid points. Instead, she resorts to attacking Yasmin in a desperate attempt to connect. This tactic proves effective as Yasmin loses control and slaps Harper in the face. Harper responds by slapping Yasmin back before leaving, but her reaction was unnecessary as simply provoking Yasmin into losing her temper had already given Harper an advantage in their argument.

2024-09-16 06:54

So, Who Won That Brutal Industry Fight?

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