'Billions: Golden Frog Time' *SPOILERS*

[yallerdawg]

This battle between the two prime adversaries just took an M. Night Shyamalan turn.

Now, THAT was a twist!

Just a quick comment from NYT's Scott Tobias' review:

It’s a wonderful feeling to be hoodwinked by masterly plotting, and this episode is the long-term play that creators Brian Koppelman and David Levien, who wrote it, have been cooking up all season long. Our assumption that Chuck’s winning streak will have to end figures into it, along with the succession of losers Paul Giamatti has played throughout his career. (The triumphant reprise of Tom Petty’s “Even the Losers” is a laugh-out-loud moment.) But what really sells the twist is the way Koppelman and Levien have already gone to astonishing lengths to reveal the sophistication of Axe’s effort to sabotage the Ice Juice initial public offering. There’s no reasonable expectation that any counterplotting by Chuck would or could be in the offing. There was plenty to admire in Axe’s handiwork, to say nothing of the script’s expert machinations.

Dare I say - brilliant?

[WhiteTara]

1. Another twist was when Wendy put

money on the short. It should be interesting to see what happens there.

[yallerdawg]

2. That is another curious twist.

If she dropped her millions from Axe into it, she had a huge short - and probably at least got back the 'trust' loss for her husband.

IF that's the way she wanted to play it. She does like to 'punish' him.

On the other hand, if this 'windfall' is revealed, it sure looks like 'insider' activity benefiting a candidate for governor!

The Season Finale is next Sunday - we can expect more cliffhangers!

[WhiteTara]

3. That sure seems like a short season!

The finale? The whole thing is a cliff hanger. I don't like either of them, but they are both compelling figures.

[stopbush]

4. I think she went for the money in a "fuck Chuck" way.

Problem is, she went short. Expectations are that once Axe's manipulations are made public, the stock will rebound, leaving Chuck Jr and Sr and Ira filthy rich, while Wendy is forced to shell out big bucks covering the short as the stock price skyrockets. There will be no windfall if Wendy holds the stock for too long...which means she has until the manipulation bombshell hits.

Axe will be up to his eyes in lawsuits brought by the government, Ice Juice, investors, etc., not to mention the millions he will lose when the stock recovers.

Armageddon, for sure.

Might be time to hop on that private plane and flee the country. The only question will be whether he bothers to take Lara with him, considering their marital problems.

[LessAspin]

5. Succession

Billions is about to embark on it's final season..

Link to tweet

It's interesting looking back because the show created a lot of buzz when it first came out.

Since then Succession sort of replaced it as the trendy appointment viewing show. It kind of appears in the trailer above that Billions might be playing to the success of Succession.

[Xavier Breath]

6. Been a fan since Billions first premiered

and I'm sorry to see it go. But, seven seasons is a good run, and ample time to tell a story completely.

I came to Succession two years after it first aired, and after binging seasons one and two I was able to watch seasons three and four in real time. I'd call it more of an obsession than Billions, but the latter has been around twice as long, and I'd wait for the months to pass until it would return again, so its ending resonates a bit more for me.