‘Industry’ Season 3 Review: HBO Critical Darling Returns Bigger, Better and More Ambitious Than Ever

The spectacular third season of “Industry” starts not on the crowded, bustling trading floor of the London-based banking institution Pierpoint & Company, but on a boat amidst the sea. Over the last two seasons, the financial drama, co-produced by HBO and the BBC, has steadily grown in scope and ambition, much like the protagonist at its center, but the decision to start in literal open waters can’t help but feel like a deliberate metaphor: “Industry” is now a sea of endlessly exciting possibilities.

Season 3 graduates “Industry” from Max binge premiere in Season 1 and the Monday night slot in Season 2 to HBO’s biggest provider of cultural relevance with the Sunday night slot. As such, the show feels like a bigger deal that’s reflected in its scope. When we last saw series lead Harper Stern (the mononymous Myha’la), she was in the midst of what could be described as a mercy killing. Having flown too close to the proverbial and ethical sun, her mentor, Eric Tao (Ken Leung), jettisons Harper from Pierpoint before her ambitious reach could exceed her legal grasp by revealing she’d faked her college transcript.

When this installment picks up, both Harper and Eric, ever entwined, are unmoored without the presence of the other. Harper lands a new gig as a desk assistant at an eco-conscious fund, where she tries to catch the eye of a possible new mentor, Petra (“Barry” star Sarah Goldberg). Eric, on the other hand, is in the midst of a divorce and seeks to replicate and replace the relationship he once fostered with Harper in both Yasmin (Marisa Abela) and Robert (Harry Lawtey). Looming behind it all is Pierpoint’s ambitious decision to go all-in on ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) investments by helping to bring Lumi, a green-energy startup founded by Sir Henry Muck (Kit Harington, having the time of his life), to market.

From a sheer mechanics standpoint, Harper’s absence from the show’s previously established MO allows co-creators Mickey Down and Konrad Kay to widen the series’ aperture. “Industry” has never suffered when it comes to compellingly drawn characters, but hasn’t always had the most consistent or cohesive seasonal arc. That’s no longer the case in eight-episode Season 3 (all of which were sent to critics for review), as Pierpoint’s ESG pivot provides a natural and logical extension for the series to tell a more directly interlinked narrative, one that spans far behind the reaches of the trading floor into political backchanneling, British tabloids and more.

The larger focus also has the added benefit of morphing “Industry” into a true ensemble series, with virtually every cast member receiving an episode to call their own. Abela now finds herself as a more than capable co-lead alongside Myha’la. The show spends most of the season unfurling a scandal Yas is involved in, providing plenty of juicy moments for Abela, one of our finest purveyors of emotion. The already complex relationship between Robert and Yas gets even more complicated as Pierpoint and Lumi become closer bedfellows, with both getting drawn further and further into Muck’s orbit. Lawtey, in particular, gets a lot of great mileage out of his arc alongside Harington, as the contrasting societal differences between the pair become a rich text for both actors. That’s to say nothing of the eventual reunion between Harper and Eric, which is well worth the wait, delivering career-best work from both Myha’la and Leung in a scene that is as tense and explosive as you’d hope.

Down, Kay, and the rest of the writing team have done such an incredible job building out the characters of this world that you won’t even blink an eye when scene-stealer Rishi (Sagar Radia) lands a (already much-publicized) solo installment in the form of an“Uncut Gems”-esque escapade that’s a series highlight. Or when viewers realize that actors like Harington and Goldberg, easily the splashiest stars to join the series, or relative newcomer Miriam Petche, whose character of Sweetpea makes such an indelible impression that she’ll become a newfound favorite, are immediately additive to the sterling “Industry” roster.

Despite going bigger and getting much better, “Industry” doesn’t lose sight of what makes it unique. The show trusts its audience enough to keep up with what’s happening through firecracker dialogue, which continues to make it the most lived-in and well-written series on the air. Installments jet forward with an engaging propulsiveness; the easiest comparison is that the series feels like watching eight episodes of the bank heist sequence from Michael Mann’s “Heat.” It’s not uncommon for an episode to burn through narrative that other series would take a whole season to unfold, only for there to be another dozen brilliantly engaging plots behind it. That’s not to say the show cannot have quieter moments, either. To wit, an out-of-town sojourn late in the season by Yas and Rob to the countryside is as impactful as the financial plots happening inside the bank. Throughout all of this is the continuation of all the weighty themes that have become calling cards for “Industry,” like class, masculinity, identity, capitalism, greed and ambition — just to name a few.

Fairly or unfairly, “Industry” initially drew comparisons to other splashy and recent HBO series like “Succession” or “Euphoria.” By nature of when and where the show is airing in the US— HBO is betting big on the show by handing it the highly coveted post-”House of the Dragon” 9 pm Sunday night slot. Season 3 will likely find a larger audience than before, many of whom will compare them to these past shows. But a series-best outing that also doubles as one of the year’s best shows reinforces what’s been true all along: There’s no need to compare “Industry” to anything but its continued superlative self.

“Industry” premieres 9 p.m. ET/PT Sunday, Aug. 11, on HBO and streams on Max.

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