S06.E05: Rock of Eye

[PrincessPurrsALot]

Quote

With a new player at Prince Cap, the trading floor scrambles to stake out their turf. Meanwhile, Taylor makes a huge bet on a risky play and Chuck tries to bring home a worthy case but encounters an unexpected challenge

Original air date 2022.02.20

[aghst]

Prince recruits Scooter's wunderkind nephew who was teaching at a charter school.  Scooter doesn't want him to sell out for money like he has.  From the start, the kid is outperforming all of Axe's old traders but nobody gets fired.  Bonnie does quit though, guess they wanted a young black guy as a regular cast member than an older white woman.

Taylor has a scheme to pump and dump a fake meats company by using a fake Jim Kramer type to tout the stock and get day traders to bid up the price.  Kate decides to help Taylor concoct a fake legal justification for why they invested in the stock and then dumped it.

Sacker getting used to the new office quickly.

At her old office, Chuck decides to have his staff work on some cases that actual state AGs work on, like a fish processor making false labels. In fact decides to try the case himself where he's stomped by Davy, a former PD who represents the fish processor.  How obvious that Davy discredits Chuck's expert witness by pointing out that he's being paid by the state for his expert opinion in the case.

How did Chuck not foresee this problem and why was it so easy to discredit the guy, who's got a track record of helping prosecutors win cases over and over again?

Instead of figuring out why he lost a case which should have been a slam dunk, he decides to hire Davy to replace Sacker.  He gaslights Davy about how working for him is work 200 times more than the millions she would make representing big companies, or the ski and beach cabins she'd be able to buy.

OK, Chuck was able to gaslight Wendy for awhile, then Sacker.  How long before Davy gets fed up with Chuck's BS?  He's telling her there are more important things than money.  Well he has this big mansion in NYC big enough for his kids and for his father to go around and pick his guest room.

 

Prince has to make peace with his bratty, spoiled daughters, who didn't like being used for the cannabis company pitch in season 5.  So he does that with biscuits and gravy?  Yeah they're salt of the earth folks from Indiana, even though none of them look like salt of the earth, with all the fancy clothes and trainer-molded bodies.  

So instead of having his daughter apologize to the governor for saying mean things, Prince bribes him by naming the Olympics stadium after him.  Yeah when have we ever had a politician who brought the Olympics get his name on the facilities at the same time?  The naming rights are worth tens or hundreds of millions so Prince could have bribed him for a couple of million.

 

Wendy is trying to be spiritual.  On her first session with a yogi, she tries to bribe him with home-made yogurt or something, like a teacher's pet.

Yogi or whatever his title tells her to try to go 4 days without being transactional.

Yeah how do you not be transactional and keep the expensive Manhattan apartment, fancy clothes and sports car?  Momma needs a new pair of shoes!  (though she's never seen spending time with the kids).

Wendy doesn't need to become a Buddhist, she needs a man!  You now there will be a love interest before the end of the season.

Then again, she supposedly liked that painter, but got over him real quick for Axe, then decided not to go with him to Switzerland.  Maybe she needs to go through some more men to get the taint of Chuck completely out of her.

 

 

 

[SnapHappy]

Is that why Wendy was making the vegan ice cream in an earlier episode?  To bribe a Buddhist?  Too strange. 

I must be more than physically old, because I know without a shred of a doubt that I never, in my 50 years, EVER said the word fuck in front of my parents.  I must be the last generation that just didn't do that.  Because it's just as casual as fuck these days for post-teens to drop it into convos with their parents, like, ya know, like all the time?  And jeez, that vocal fry with both daughters is just like nails on a chalkboard.  

I would love to think we've seen the last of Bonnie, but I don't think she's Chick-Fil-A's problem and not ours anymore.  She'll be back, like a particularly irritating infection.  

Taylor must be back on at least semi-friendly terms with Mafee.  I hope so, I think their friendship was represented as being a pretty normal & healthy one for both of them.  

And as a Southerner, I cannot wrap my head around "Indiana Biscuits and Gravy".  WTF is that?  Do they actually have some type of regional dishes?  

Edited February 20, 2022 by SnapHappy

[aghst]

You know instead of getting that woman lawyer, Chuck should have gotten Connerty out of prison and had him shame Sacker and Taylor.

Bryan has a history with both of them.  Of course a big past with Chuck as well.

But I don't know if the producers just decided to write off his character or maybe the actor didn't want to do the show any more.

BTW, we get it, Prince is a former college basketball star and is really into basketball coaches being a guiding force in his career.  Why didn't they have the price tags on those Air Jordans?

 

[paigow]

Bonnie will join Dollar Bill and Mafee.

[janeta]

As they used to say in the first firm I worked for, “If you can’t beat ‘em, buy 'em.” Glad to see Chuck embracing the concept.

 

hee! Veggie burgers ftw. 🍔

Edited February 21, 2022 by janeta

[paigow]

9 hours ago, aghst said:

He gaslights Davy about how working for him is work 200 times more than the millions she would make representing big companies, or the ski and beach cabins she'd be able to buy.

Yeah when have we ever had a politician who brought the Olympics get his name on the facilities at the same time?  The naming rights are worth tens or hundreds of millions so Prince could have bribed him for a couple of million.

Davy has no Congressional career plans... so she will stick around for awhile... unless / until Chuck foolishly betrays her

Prince has an enormous double standard about bribery...

[Starchild]

Sneakers? Really? Why do I keep watching this nonsense? 

The dialogue sounds like a stage play where one actor just keeps using different interchangeable masks. They all sound like the same person. Who does not talk anything like a real human being.

And everyone always has this supremely smug look on their face, I just want to punch each and every one of them. Every single character is just so punchable. I hate them all.

Well not all. Dillon is keeping their character grounded and real through sheer force of will, it's actually kind of amazing how they're managing to keep swimming against all that garbage. Taylor is the only thing I'm still here for. And Mafee is still kind of tolerable, through association. 

[janeta]

Genuine question: how are some people seeing these eps half a day before they air?

[l star]

The episodes are posted on the Showtime app at midnight Sunday. 

I just can’t with Prince’s weekly lessons. I feel like he infantilizes the traders. I’m not surprised Bonnie was the first to break. I did enjoy Rian’s skepticism of the pyramid. The end was ridiculous.

So this week Prince hired Scooter’s nephew, knowing Scooter was deliberately keeping him out, then tried to pretend he didn’t know it was his résumé. Then he completely disregarded Scooter’s feelings about it. He ordered his ex home for the family summit. At the end, he okayed Mason Carbon doing their own thing as long as it never interfered with his. I’m guessing being soft with his daughter was supposed to soften it, but he came off really controlling this ep and very inconsiderate of other people. 

They never said if the ex was the kids’ mother but it was certainly implied. I don’t know if I buy that. 

I enjoyed the new characters, especially Dave. Chuck let his ego go crazy. He really thought that just the idea of him in court would be intimidating enough to force a settlement. I’m glad he lost. He is ridiculous. “The rest of us?” They are really pushing Chuck as a man of the people, and I don’t buy it. He’s a Yale legacy, trust fund baby. He got the house and $25 million in his divorce. He bought a farm as a lark. He’s a shining example of the problem he’s trying to fight. 

So Wendy is still trying to find her identity now without Chuck and Axe. That’s realistic but it’s not the most compelling of plots so far. If it actually goes somewhere it could be. I think her concern for Kate is real, but their talk backfired. It encouraged her to follow her new sense of daring and lack of boundaries. 

Wendy’s hair was better! So much more flattering this week. I’m curious about her wardrobe change. Not only is she exclusively wearing pants, they are looser pants with blousy shirts. She was also wearing a thick heel this ep. It’s a long way from her tight dresses and bondage gear. Is this the show’s way of showing us she’s no longer the love interest? I don’t see the character’s motivation for the change.

Taylor did not appreciate Kate reading her play. The shine is definitely coming off for Rian. I’m curious where that goes. If Taylor continues to court trouble, Rian could be a major spoiler. Is Wendy completely out of Mason Carbon now? I remember her selling her shares to Axe, but I thought somehow she was still involved. 

Edited February 21, 2022 by l star

[Marley]

Ugh more of Prince’s daughters. No thanks. I don’t care to see more of those 2 bitchy brats.

What do those snotty bitches even do? I wish he would cut them off. I kind of hate Prince and his whole stupid annoying pretentious family who only really know how to speak in stilted speeches.

This show is such trash now. I wish they would’ve just ended it last season when Axe left.

I don’t remember Dollar Bill and Mafee being such morons. I mean they weren’t geniuses before but not like how they are being portrayed now. Unless I’m not remembering properly.

Is Taylor not doing what Axe used to always do? Why is Sacker helping her?

Still not liking Scooter. Or his nephew so far.

Chuck finally goes after some other crime but loses pretty bad. He rants about money not mattering but he’s loaded and does not have to every worry about money. Like shut up Chuck lol.

The governor getting a stadium named after him? Pls lol. Also I think I missed it but how are they going for games that would’ve already been decided.

The shoe thing at the end was pretty lame.

Edited February 21, 2022 by Marley

[dmc]

18 hours ago, SnapHappy said:

Is that why Wendy was making the vegan ice cream in an earlier episode?  To bribe a Buddhist?  Too strange. 

I must be more than physically old, because I know without a shred of a doubt that I never, in my 50 years, EVER said the word fuck in front of my parents.  I must be the last generation that just didn't do that.  Because it's just as casual as fuck these days for post-teens to drop it into convos with their parents, like, ya know, like all the time?  And jeez, that vocal fry with both daughters is just like nails on a chalkboard.  

I would love to think we've seen the last of Bonnie, but I don't think she's Chick-Fil-A's problem and not ours anymore.  She'll be back, like a particularly irritating infection.  

Taylor must be back on at least semi-friendly terms with Mafee.  I hope so, I think their friendship was represented as being a pretty normal & healthy one for both of them.  

And as a Southerner, I cannot wrap my head around "Indiana Biscuits and Gravy".  WTF is that?  Do they actually have some type of regional dishes?  

Thank you Indiana biscuits and gravy, they stole our dish.  And he’s eating with a knife and fork like an idiot.  You use the biscuit to sop up the gravy.  
 

I agree with everyone Wendy is aimless at this point.  Her clothes and hair did look better.  My guess is that it will lead her to another love interest too.  I hope he’s not like Tanner, shudder. 
 

This show’s definition of feminism is women having the right to say something stupid and blow up a major deal enacting no real change politically. 
 

 

Edited February 21, 2022 by dmc

[Joimiaroxeu]

"...Aaron Burr's gun permit..." People are still making Hamilton jokes?

The expert witness takedown was ridiculous to me. Who wouldn't know to put a lot more distance between themselves and bribery payments? Having the money sent to a spouse or a child would certainly not be far enough.

What if Gov. Sweeny gets caught in a horrific scandal after Prince has put the guy's name on the Olympics stadium?

Wendy using simple reverse psychology on Chuck Sr. Seriously?

Wonder how much Nike paid for that product placement? One would think self-designated Good Guy Prince would have a problem with that company, on principle. Anyhoo, Nike's getting around because they were part of the main storyline on Black-ish last week.

Interesting that three Black characters were suddenly front and center in this episode. But this show isn't known for subtlety I guess, not even during Black History Month. 😉

[dmc]

6 minutes ago, Joimiaroxeu said:

"...Aaron Burr's gun permit..." People are still making Hamilton jokes?

The expert witness takedown was ridiculous to me. Who wouldn't know to put a lot more distance between themselves and bribery payments? Having the money sent to a spouse or a child would certainly not be far enough.

What if Gov. Sweeny gets caught in a horrific scandal after Prince has put the guy's name on the Olympics stadium?

Wendy using simple reverse psychology on Chuck Sr. Seriously?

Wonder how much Nike paid for that product placement? One would think self-designated Good Guy Prince would have a problem with that company, on principle. Anyhoo, Nike's getting around because they were part of the main storyline on Black-ish last week.

Interesting that three Black characters were suddenly front and center in this episode. But this show isn't known for subtlety I guess, not even during Black History Month. 😉

Of the three of them, I only like Kate who they actually fleshed out.  
 

Scooter’s dream of being a conductor is OKKKAAYYYY….

 

And the other guy legit just showed up 

 

[Lone Wolf]

22 hours ago, paigow said:

Bonnie will join Dollar Bill and Mafee.

Exactly what I thought.  After "Good for you." and just before "Hmm, she missed out on getting a cool pair of kicks."

We haven't seen the last of Bonnie.

14 hours ago, l star said:

I enjoyed the new characters, especially Dave. 

14 hours ago, l star said:

 She was also wearing a thick heel this ep. It’s a long way from her tight dresses and bondage gear. 

As soon as she sat down in Chuck's office, I knew Dave was going to be around for a while.  Antagonism with an undercurrent of flirtation, that meeting was.  I predict that there will be romance afoot.

Sacker's taking up the slack with the tight dresses and heels, though.  Big 180 for her.

It's funny that you mention bondage gear - at one point I was wondering what ever happened with the B&D plot line.  Did they actually close that out somehow, or did it just fade away? I remember Chuck finding a new mistress, but not how it got to the point that he stopped going to her.

2 hours ago, Joimiaroxeu said:

"...Aaron Burr's gun permit..." People are still making Hamilton jokes?

Wendy using simple reverse psychology on Chuck Sr. Seriously?

I didn't pick up on the Hamilton connection.  I thought it was just a historical reference; he could have said due diligence for Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation and it would have been the same difference to me.  And they'd have still scored another point for Black History Month.

And it worked; Wendy still has her mojo.  I don't think the writers know what to do with these two anymore, especially Senior.  

I'm pretty sure the Governor was spooning down a Haagen-Dazs Dazzler when he was on the phone with Chuck.

Edited February 21, 2022 by Lone Wolf

[aghst]

Bonnie was never a major character.  She got a couple of lines every other episode or so.  Never in any of the major plots.

Yeah she sounded like a female and foul-mouthed Bart Simpson at times.

Other than that, maybe they didn't think she contributed much.

Rian and that nerd in Mason Capital was getting more regular lines than her.

 

We shall see if Davy gets involved in some good story lines.  Still think Connerty would be more interesting given his history with Chuck, Sacker and Taylor.

Maybe they realized that would be too many feuds, maybe detract from Chuck vs. Prince.

[Joimiaroxeu]

Quote

I didn't pick up on the Hamilton connection. 

There wasn't an obvious one. I think however when Burr is mentioned these days most people's thoughts immediately go to Hamilton because it's the relatively current cultural reference that isn't tied to a particular time of year.

Quote

And it worked; Wendy still has her mojo. 

Meh, I don't think much mojo is required to deploy reverse psychology. And it wasn't believable to me that Chuck Sr. didn't see through what she was doing; he wasn't born yesterday. But I guess Wendy correctly assessed the situation and found an effective solution which required minimal effort on her part.

[Starchild]

Forgot to mention how out of the blue Sacker's sudden evil is. There has never been any indication that she was someone who would commit a crime so quickly and easily once unshackled from Chuck. She always presented as ruthless but not amoral.

It's one thing to leave public service for the private sector in search of an eventual congressional run. It's quite another for that same ex-public servant to commit securities fraud in their first week on the job.

Talk about character whiplash.

[dmc]

2 hours ago, Joimiaroxeu said:

There wasn't an obvious one. I think however when Burr is mentioned these days most people's thoughts immediately go to Hamilton because it's the relatively current cultural reference that isn't tied to a particular time of year.

Meh, I don't think much mojo is required to deploy reverse psychology. And it wasn't believable to me that Chuck Sr. didn't see through what she was doing; he wasn't born yesterday. But I guess Wendy correctly assessed the situation and found an effective solution which required minimal effort on her part.

This she needs to either give Wendy a plot or write her out.  

[Marley]

6 hours ago, Starchild said:

Forgot to mention how out of the blue Sacker's sudden evil is. There has never been any indication that she was someone who would commit a crime so quickly and easily once unshackled from Chuck. She always presented as ruthless but not amoral.

It's one thing to leave public service for the private sector in search of an eventual congressional run. It's quite another for that same ex-public servant to commit securities fraud in their first week on the job.

Talk about character whiplash.

Yes I don’t get this either. Why was she so quick to help Taylor. What’s in it for her? Seems like a stupid risk to take. I don’t really get what Taylor is doing either. I guess it’s the whole being really rich thing that stupid Prince said but I thought Taylor was really smart and didn’t need to rely on tricks like this.

Edited February 22, 2022 by Marley

[l star]

Sacker told Wendy she was having issues with the lack of clear boundaries and her opinion not being followed. Taylor was the first person to not just listen to her but to work with her.

What she did was pushing for a boundary. What Taylor did was intended to be securities fraud. But with Sacker’s actions, it’s not. So did Sacker do something wrong or just her job? It’s not like she faked paperwork. The records were real. She just figured out how to use them. I think she’s going to have to find the line between doing something sketchy but overall legal to help and doing something illegal to keep the firm out of trouble. How far will her ethics let her go? I’m guessing a lot farther than they did this ep considering all the illegal and unethical stuff Chuck did which she supported and hid. 

[Starchild]

Eh, maybe. I just don't see this show having that kind of nuance.

[Marley]

What Taylor did was illegal I think. They made up the whole story about Taylor and the vegan stuff. She has been a vegan for 6 years but wasn’t researching this kind of play for that long. The only reason it worked out is she got Dollar Bill and Mafee to get the review guy to go crazy for it. Pretty sure that’s illegal. I don’t know for sure obviously but Google makes it seem illegal lol and when Axe was doing stuff like this they made it seem pretty illegal.

[Pop Tart]

I get that Taylor's deal was shady but Rian's reaction seemed like a complete 180 from a couple episodes ago. In that one Prince had given a directive and Taylor was trying to make sure her team was doing what Prince wanted and Rian was all about how they were losing money and when there was money to be made, then ethics be damned. Or words to that effect. She/they even were on the verge of being fired by Taylor for disobeying a direct order. Granted, that deal, whatever it was, was not shady, I think. But it was clear that Rain was there for the money first and foremost. So I thought her/their reaction in this episode didn't fit at all with how they behaved a couple episodes ago.

That's the problem with this whole season, almost no one is acting in character and not only are they different from earlier seasons but they seem to veer wildly back and forth from one episode to the next. And don't even get me started on Chuck's storyline - which makes absolutely no sense at all. Not only does it have nothing to do with his actual job as AG but it came out of nowhere and is not logically connected to anything else. Because Prince wants the Olympics, it's the oligarchs against the people? Again, it's true the Olympics can be a boondoggle, but not always and they can bring a lot of money/economic growth too. Taylor's plan to get free wifi for a lot of people (thought I didn't fully understand it) was scuttled because...??? by Chuck.

I get that they were trying to preserve the antagonistic vibe that Chuck had with Axe - but even that had gotten way old by the time Axe left. So to regurgitate it in this nonsensical way with Prince? So beyond aggravating. There are good actors here, but man the writing is bad. I am basically hate-watching at this point because I still like Taylor.

Edited February 22, 2022 by Pop Tart

[paigow]

Taylor was manipulating an influencer. Are influencers inherently innocent and honourable? Would this guy NEVER front run any of his own recommendations? That guy needs the SEC compliance protocols more than Taylor does....

[Bluesky]

On 2/20/2022 at 1:48 PM, SnapHappy said:

Is that why Wendy was making the vegan ice cream in an earlier episode?  To bribe a Buddhist?  Too strange. 

I must be more than physically old, because I know without a shred of a doubt that I never, in my 50 years, EVER said the word fuck in front of my parents.  I must be the last generation that just didn't do that.  Because it's just as casual as fuck these days for post-teens to drop it into convos with their parents, like, ya know, like all the time?  And jeez, that vocal fry with both daughters is just like nails on a chalkboard.  

I would love to think we've seen the last of Bonnie, but I don't think she's Chick-Fil-A's problem and not ours anymore.  She'll be back, like a particularly irritating infection.  

Taylor must be back on at least semi-friendly terms with Mafee.  I hope so, I think their friendship was represented as being a pretty normal & healthy one for both of them.  

And as a Southerner, I cannot wrap my head around "Indiana Biscuits and Gravy".  WTF is that?  Do they actually have some type of regional dishes?  

The word has been integrated into regular vocabulary in the Boston area for quite awhile now.   

[Ottis]

On 2/21/2022 at 5:31 PM, Starchild said:

Forgot to mention how out of the blue Sacker's sudden evil is. There has never been any indication that she was someone who would commit a crime so quickly and easily once unshackled from Chuck. She always presented as ruthless but not amoral.

I suspect Sacker is working for Chuck, somehow, even with Chuck's reactions and the fact he hired a sort of replacement. If she isn't, yeah, you are spot on.

On 2/20/2022 at 1:48 PM, SnapHappy said:

I must be more than physically old, because I know without a shred of a doubt that I never, in my 50 years, EVER said the word fuck in front of my parents.  I must be the last generation that just didn't do that.  Because it's just as casual as fuck these days for post-teens to drop it into convos with their parents, like, ya know, like all the time? 

LOL. I am a little older than you, and ditto. I don't swear in any way in front of my mom. I might have said "asshole" once. I blame Judd Apatow and his movies for today's youth and their cussing.

On 2/21/2022 at 12:01 AM, l star said:

They are really pushing Chuck as a man of the people, and I don’t buy it. He’s a Yale legacy, trust fund baby. He got the house and $25 million in his divorce. He bought a farm as a lark. He’s a shining example of the problem he’s trying to fight.

I couldn't agree more. I keep expecting the show to reveal it to be a long con. I mean, how can Chuck be a man of the people? As he wears his suit and tie and stands on cars? None of this makes sense, unless it is a long con. Please let it be a long con.

On 2/21/2022 at 4:23 AM, Marley said:

The governor getting a stadium named after him? Pls lol. Also I think I missed it but how are they going for games that would’ve already been decided.

On the one hand, I respect that they set up the gov as being vain. Hence the stadium name would appeal to him on some level. But that would also mean the gov is stupid, because that level won't matter if the Olympics are bad in all the ways he has said they will be bad. His name on a stadium will be a very visible joke. He can't be that stupid and gov, can he?

On 2/21/2022 at 11:52 AM, Joimiaroxeu said:

Wendy using simple reverse psychology on Chuck Sr. Seriously?

He is rapidly becoming the doddering old man, isn't he?

Edited August 9, 2023 by Ottis