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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Billions on Showtime, Season 4 Episode 7: Infinite Game – April 28, 2019
Standard Problems – Nonstandard Solutions
by Damianista | Fan Fun with Damian Lewis | April 28, 2019
I could not be happier that a game theory term makes it to the title of this week’s episode: Infinite Game.
In finite games, like a tennis match, the players are known and the rules are fixed. The players obey the rules and play to win the game. In finite games, there is a clear endpoint. In infinite games such as politics or business, or life itself, players and rules may change. There is no definite endpoint. The goal for all players involved is to keep the game going.
And this fantastic episode is a deep dive into life, an infinite game, where human beings try to find the balance between their rational and emotional sides and keep it going. Hats off to everyone behind and in front of the camera!
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on From the Trader’s Desk: Billions S4E6 Maximum Recreational Depth – April 26, 2019
Trust No One
by Lady Trader | Fan Fun with Damian Lewis | April 26, 2019
Yes I know the secret that’s within your mind You think all the people who worship you are blind You’re just like Big Brother, giving us your trust And when you have played enough you’ll cast our souls into the dust Who Are You? – Black Sabbath
Trust: firm belief in the reliability, truth or strength of someone or something
Happy Friday and it’s time for another view From the Trader’s Desk, and what this trader would short this week is trust. There is a lot of talk from this group of loyalty and trust – but that is all that it is, talk. And we all know that talk is cheap.
A little housekeeping before I get into my trust meter:
I have never heard of this organization Wags gets rejected from, Kappa Beta Phi so I have not a thing to add. It’s a secret society, so that explains it. However, I would love to see these titans of the financial world dressed in drag, because anyone who knows me knows that I love RuPaul’s Drag Race! I am anxious to see just how Wags gets his revenge! It will be one for the ages!
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on The Unbeatable, Unstoppable, Unparalleled MVPs from Billions Season 4 Episode 6 – April 24, 2019
Billions MVP Fanbook
by Gingersnap | Fan Fun with Damian Lewis | April 24, 2019
Welcome back to our ‘Billions MVP Fanbook,’ a compilation post commemorating all those in honor of achievement for the utmost brazen, uber shameless, ultra scheming, unmatched badasses to date – from sports references, music, and tasty food to pop culture remarks, shocking twists and ultimate paybacks.
In case you missed our previous awards, you can catch up with season four episode one, episode two, episode three, episode four and episode five. Now, let us continue with that tradition as we award our Most Valuable Players (MVPs) this week.
Here are our Billions awards for Season 4, Episode 6, “Maximum Recreational Depth.”
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Billions Season 4 Episode 6 Recap: Forbes – April 22, 2019
Only the Fittest Survive
by Dana Feldman | Forbes | April 22, 2019
We’re at the halfway point in the fourth season of Showtime’s hit series Billions. In this survival-of-the-fittest landscape, only the truly ruthless will make it out alive, or in this case, with their billions intact. Fortunately for some, the pain is not only worth it, it’s also something they rather enjoy.
Chuck Thrives On The Pain:
In the latest episode, “Maximum Recreational Depth,” Chuck’s (Paul Giamatti) requirement for BDSM is escalating. His need for punishment and physical pain just can’t be denied or ignored. This is exemplified by the safety pin he put through his nipple. Unfortunately for him, Wendy (Maggie Siff), is no longer willing to participate in satiating his appetites. He has a solution. Doesn’t he always?
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Next Time on Billions Season 4 Episode 7 – April 22, 2019
Season 4, Episode 7: “Infinite Game”
by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com | April 22, 2019
On the next episode of Billions season 4 episode 7, Axe and Wendy plan a new attack against Taylor. A favor Chuck did turns out to be a liability. Taylor makes a difficult choice for the good of their company. Episode airs on Sunday, April 28, 2019 on Showtime.
To view more sneak peek photos, please visit our Gallery
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Billions Season 4 Episode 6 Recap: New York Times – April 21, 2019
Beat or Be Beaten
by Sean T. Collins | New York Times | April 21, 2019
Season 4, Episode 6: ‘Maximum Recreational Depth’
Chuck Rhoades wants to be beaten. Needs it, in fact. He even asks his wife to take their kids out for the night so a professional dominatrix can come over and do what she is no longer willing to do herself. And when the domme does it, she does it hard. Bruises, welts, cuts, a shiner around the left eye: It’s bad enough that even though he has come out of the kink closet, he still has to pretend he has taken up jujitsu just to avoid further embarrassment.
He’ll need the excuse, too, because he plans on doing this again and again and again.
“Wendy,” he says, as she looks at his battered body in shock, “what I did tonight I cannot live without.”
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Billions Season 4 Episode 6 Recap: Entertainment Weekly – April 21, 2019
Vengeance Comes In Many Forms
by Kyle Fowle | Entertainment Weekly | April 21, 2019
Navigating tricky and ever-changing relationships is a big key to success in the world of Billions. You can have all the brains and money in the world, but if you’re misreading a relationship you might end up with your pockets turned inside out. It’s not just that everyone has their own motivations and that they’re often trying to hide them in some way, but that the landscape is always changing. Axe may preach the Tao of Loyalty like it’s especially sacred, but he’s more than aware that loyalty is as limited a resource as Victor Matteo.
Tonight’s episode, “Maximum Recreational Depth,” kicks off with a renewed relationship of sorts. Wendy finally takes up Taylor (Asia Kate Dillon) on their offer to meet and chat about Chuck’s public admission. She takes Taylor to a speakeasy that serves “vegan mango rice ice cream”—Taylor, despite their attempts to keep straight-faced, can’t help but smile when taking the first bite—and pleads her case, saying she’s ready to talk now, and that she just needs someone to listen. She seems genuine and open…but nobody would know how to put on that front quite like Wendy Rhoades.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Billions Season 4 Episode 6 Recap: Vulture – April 21, 2019
Side Mission
by Sarene Leeds | Vulture | April 21, 2019
Well played, Billions. I bow down to your expert manipulation tactics and admit to being completely suckered into that red herring of a friendship between Taylor and Wendy.
Tonight’s episode has reopened the discussion of whether Wendy is the most nefarious character on the show, and as of this moment, all signs point to yes. She possesses weapons that are far more destructive than Axe’s arsenal of money-draining methods or Chuck’s talent for trading favors. As a psychiatrist, Wendy knows how to earn Taylor’s trust by getting into their head and using all of their weak spots to her advantage.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Billions on Showtime, Season 4 Episode 6: Maximum Recreational Depth – April 21, 2019
Everyone Needs a Listening Ear
by Damianista | Fan Fun with Damian Lewis | April 21, 2019
Billions picks up the characters exactly where we left them last Sunday, takes them to places they have never been before and leaves me with several billion dollar questions. HATS OFF!
Wendy meets Taylor at Morgenstern’s – synonym of YUM. She seems to be friends with Nicholas Morgenstern who makes a cameo and turns the ice cream shop into a speakeasy for his friend! 🙂 Well, Mr. Morgenstern is definitely a good friend. Did you know he named his peanut butter ice cream cake after his friend Brian Koppelman? Meet The Koppelman!
While neither trusts the other one, they talk. At least Wendy does: Many at Axe Capital tried to get into her mind, but only Taylor did. Because they listen and they deeply care. And that is why they were the only one who reached out when Chuck made their sex life public.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on From the Trader’s Desk: Billions S4E5 A Proper Sendoff – April 19, 2019
Category is: Anger! So, bring it to the runway!
by Lady Trader | Fan Fun with Damian Lewis | April 19, 2019
Those who try to burn him pay You don’t do that to Johnny Blade He’s the meanest guy around his town One look and he will cut you down Johnny Blade – Black Sabbath
Happy Friday, and welcome to the Trader’s Desk!
It seems this week’s episode, the category is anger, lots and lots of anger! Let’s explore why everyone is so damn pissed, so everybody, Bring It To The Runway!
Also, there was some new “fin-speak” in this week’s episode. I have updated the Glossary with new definitions. Most are not integral to the story lines, so I won’t be going into too much detail about them here. As always, if there is something you would like me to explain, please comment below!
A brief comment about the Chuck/Axe bromance: Does Chuck know who he has gotten into bed with? Axe wants to put Taylor in a “fucking cell” now! Chuck has names higher on his hit list, but Axe does not care: “I did earn your seat as much as you did.” Axe will be friends with Chuck as long as he does what Axe tells him to do, and Chuck has been known to thrown anyone under the bus as long as it advances his interests. Is this the first signs of this buddy movie coming to an end?
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Damian Lewis Gets His Movie Star Moment – Apr 17, 2019
The Billions Star Tells Playboy About Wealth, Mixed Morals and Playing Steve McQueen For Tarantino
by Daniel Barna | Playboy | April 16, 2019
Damian Lewis is not American, but he plays one on TV. In fact, he’s played many. Since breaking out as the gutsy U.S. soldier Dick Winters in Steven Spielberg’s sprawling World War II miniseries Band of Brothers, the London native has almost exclusively built his career on exploring this country’s rich history of heroes and villains. After the singularly heroic Winters, Lewis muddied the moral waters with Homeland’s Nicholas Brody, another Army man whose allegiances were tested after returning home from an extended stint as a prisoner of al-Qaeda.
Showtime had originally planned to kill Sgt. Brody off in season one, but Lewis’ role as the POW-turned-terrorist became so integral to the show’s DNA that the network decided to keep him around until season three, no matter how many rules of logic they needed to bend along the way. The performance earned Lewis an Emmy and a Golden Globe, and made him one of television’s biggest stars. It also showcased Lewis’ preternatural ability to play men steeped in moral ambiguity.
So when it came time to cast the lead for its glossy new prestige drama set in the high-stakes world of hedge funds, the network didn’t flinch. Now in its fourth season, Billions stars Lewis as Bobby “Axe” Axelrod, a self-made Wall St. billionaire with the hubris of Kanye West and the ruthlessness of Vladimir Putin. The show, which pits Axelrod against Paul Giamatti’s U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades, has become an obsession for Wall Streeters and wealthy athletes like Kevin Durant (who made a cameo in season three), who identify with its depiction of the luxurious kind of lifestyle that comes with being obscenely rich.
But as Lewis tells Playboy, Billions is about more than very fast cars and really big boats. Lewis believes that at its core, Billions is a story about the intersection of money and power, which is especially timely given that the wealth gap in America is wider than it’s ever been before. “There’s no question that some of these billionaires operate like nation states. They have the ears of prime ministers and presidents around the world, and they influence policy,” he says. “It’s a problem that the gap between the wealthy and the poor has increased, when the political project for the last 20 to 30 years has been to reduce that gap. I’ve got no problem with individuals amassing enormous amounts of wealth. The critical questions are, How did they make it, and how do they use it?”
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on The Unbeatable, Unstoppable, Unparalleled MVPs from Billions Season 4 Episode 5 – April 17, 2019
Billions MVP Fanbook
by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com | April 17, 2019
Welcome back to our ‘Billions MVP Fanbook,’ a compilation post commemorating all those in honor of achievement for the utmost brazen, uber shameless, ultra scheming, unmatched badasses to date – from sports references, music, and tasty food to pop culture remarks, shocking twists and ultimate paybacks.
In case you missed our previous awards, you can catch up with season four episode one, episode two, episode three and episode four. Now, let us continue with that tradition as we award our Most Valuable Players (MVPs) this week.
Here are our Billions awards for Season 4, Episode 5, “A Proper Sendoff.”
