Review: Industry, “The Commander and the Grey Lady” | Season 4, Episode 2

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Time is ticking away for Sir Henry Muck.

“When I started having similar thoughts in my last year of school, they called it suicide ideation. . . the only way I could get rid of those thoughts was by building something of mine. And I would do anything, anything to avoid feeling that kind of helplessness again.”

That conversation he had with Yasmin back in season three felt like a ticking time bomb. As Lumi continued to fall out of Henry’s grasp, he went searching for salvation in something else, numbing it with ayahuasca and smack before finding some version of peace by getting engaged to Yasmin.

But happy endings don’t make for good drama. And so Henry finds himself back in the muck of it all. Last week’s premiere hinted at Henry’s current state of affairs, but “The Commander and the Grey Lady” nicely fills in the gaps of post-marriage life for Industry’s poshest couple. To wit: Henry’s attempt at a political career goes south when he ends up losing to Labour MP Jennifer Bevan, whom we met last week, sending him into a downward spiral. To make matters worse, Henry’s 40th birthday* is approaching alongside the Christmas season. On its face, that doesn’t sound that bad. A milestone birthday such as this is high time to consider one’s mortality—doubly so if that same anniversary happens to dovetail with the acknowledgement that Henry’s own father committed suicide on his own 40th. 

*Choosing to believe that Herny is a Sagittarius, btw. The timeline on Industry is a little spotty, but I think we’re still far enough away from the actual holiday to put him in Sag territory. Plus, his behavior leans Sag—takes one to know one. If not, he’s probably right on the cusp of being a Capicorn. If there are any astrology lovers reading this, let me know.

Thus, we arrive at a point where Henry is on a razor’s edge, and everyone knows it. No attempts from the outside world are capable of saving him from walking towards oblivion. Given how season three concluded and how keen Mickey Down & Konrad Kay (once again writing and directing this installment) are about writing off characters, the whole episode constantly teeters back and forth about whether or not they’ll actually go through with it. Your mileage may vary on whether or not this edging works, but I found it tremendously effective.