All language subtitles for 60 VEED-subtitles_BILLIONS

[man]\NPreviously on Billions...

[Chuck] Mr. Andolov,

My first act as attorney\Ngeneral

was to freeze your funds\Nin the United States.

My second act is inviting you\Nto leave our sunny shores.

I, of course, picked up\Nthe scent of the Axelrod

behind this.

Charles Rhodes, Jr.\Nis hereby removed

as attorney general\Nof the state of New York.

[Chuck] Everywhere\Nhe goes, we are watching.

It’s hard to march\Ntoward the presidency

when you’re always\Nlooking over your shoulder.

The beginnings of a plan.

Secrecy and deception.

I’m starting to get misty.

Jesus.\NYou like shaking people up.

Like it? I don’t know.

It just happens.

I love that you’re loyal

until I help\Nget you elected to Congress.

[Chuck]\NYou’ve accumulated so much,

you think laws\Ndon’t apply to you?

Who appointed you the keeper\Nof these cosmic rules

in the first place?

The fucking arrogance!

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[sighs]\NOh, I’ve always wanted

to see\NVestmannaeyjar in the dark.

Best way for a newly installed\NU.S. Attorney not to be tracked.

And for an international\Nfugitive not to be extradited.

Something for everyone.

Lay it out for me.

I’ve been told\NI needed to see you.

When Wendy wants something,\Nshe’s very persuasive.

Eh, that’s why I called her.

I need safe passage to America.

- For you?\N- No, not for me.

I’ll need a name, Robert.

Yeah, Charles,\NI’m working up to it.

Is that because\NI’m going to hate it?

Well, you ain’t gonna love it.

[speaking Ukranian]

[man speaking Ukranian]

[tense music playing]

Vasily Melnikov, stabbed.

Vladislav Avayev, shot.

Sergey Protosenya, hanged.

Alexander Tyulyakov,\Nalso hanged.

And the list goes on.

All friends and colleagues\Nof mine. All dead.

[Axe] My condolences.

Dangerous time\Nto be an oligarch.

[Grigor]\NYet when you called and asked,

even though we had agreed

you would stay out\Nof my part of the world,

I helped you anyway.

Helped me?

No, we both worked together

to help the man\Nin the olive drab t-shirt.

Because both he\Nand his country needed it.

- Yours, too.\N- Hmm.

Not how the Kremlin sees it.

[Axe]\NThat’s how you see it.

You know, it’s no good being\Na citizen, even a rich one,

from a country\Nthat’s isolated, bled dry.

Well, like how I felt\Nwhen you chased me

out of the United States.

Ah, that’s semi-ancient\Nhistory.

Now you have freedom here\Nin Europe. We both do.

To walk the streets.\NTo wet our beaks.

Thanks to the arms\Nthat I financed,

and you sourced.

And you think this\Nwipes our ledger clean?

Oh, did I forget to send you\Na fucking fruit basket?

Oh, a few kumquats is not\Ngoing to change anything.

But our ledger is not clean.

It is like a windshield\Nthat was tended to

by your... [squeaking sounds]

....squeegee men that thrived\Nunder your Mayor Dinkins.

All the showy effort\Nand noise,

and still, windshield\Ncovered in grime and dirt.

Until I am rehabilitated\Nin the United States,

we are not square.

I’m not even rehabilitated\Nthere.

And I’m not a foreign national.\NYou are.

And I am the one\Ndefying my government

during a purge\Nthat makes Joe Stalin

look like Joan fucking Baez.

If my loyalty\Nis even questioned

by the leaders of my country--

I get it. You go on\Nthe dead oligarch list.

Hm. So now...

to what I need.

And what you will\Ndeliver on a platter.

I need to return to America.

On a deeply personal mission.

You do know that\Nall your funds are frozen?

Down to the last kopek.

Plus, you’re on\Na sanctions list.

No matter what the mission,

I suggest you conduct it\Nsomewhere else.

[Grigor] No, Axe.

You will arrange it\Nso I can walk back in,

do my business freely,

and in return,\NI will grant something to you.

Could be tickets to the\NBolshoi,

could be to allow you

to keep walking around here,

breathing freely.

Threats? Really?

What in my history makes you\Nthink I respond well to threats?

What in my history\Nmakes you think

it’s merely a threat?

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[Chuck]\NGrigor Andolov.

It’s within your authority,

within your ability\Nto figure it out anyway.

[Chuck] To give\Nan exiled criminal a visa?

So he can, what,

muscle in on the Brighton Beach\Nheroin trade?

Fuck with our next election?

[Axe]\NHis wife’s still in New York.

She’s suing for divorce\Non grounds of abandonment.

Well, maybe he can\Ncountersue for irony.

And if he can’t even show up...

she gets a default judgment\Nworth billions.

Oh! Now we’re talking\Nyour love language.

This is important to me.

Important to you.

To the man who defied me

on that heliport\Nnot so long ago?

[scoffs] I would consider it\Na personal favor.

When Ali was broke,\Ncould no longer fight,

couldn’t even\Npick up his dinner tab,

Smoking Joe\Nhauled him into his limo,

counted out a thousand bucks,\Ncash.

Sure, the old combatants code.

But based on the shiny new\NG800,

plenty of purses\Nrolling your way.

Yeah, I’m flush.

So I’ll make you an offer.

You get Grigor to the U.S.,

I’ll owe you a debt.

You do remember when I kicked\Nhim out of there, that, too,

was a favor to you?

Yeah, it’s all more perplexing

than the betrayal\Nof Johnny Caspar.

But I need it done.

So if you do it,

I promise that I will come\Nthrough for you when you ask.

And I think you know,\Nwhen I make a promise,

I don’t come up short.

[dry chuckle]

[sighs] Well, I’ll say it.

We aren’t breaking through.

Yet you remain undefined

beyond rich, smart, nice guy.

The party primaries are sucking\Nup all the media attention.

Do I have to fly\Nthe National damn Guard

every time\NI want some political ink?

Can you?

I’m not laughing.

What else has had\Nthat type of impact,

historically,\Nfor an outsider candidate?

The only independent to ever\Nreally get traction was--

Yes. Perot.

I saw it as a kid.

I buy a--a half hour\Non every major network.

- Live speech.\N- Hm. It’ll play like you’re

making an acceptance speech\Nat your own national convention.

Yeah, we call that\Nthe primetime roadblock.

No way around us, we’ll\Nreframe the entire race.

How do you win\Noutside the system?

You run as the antidote\Nto the system.

The theme will be\Ntaking inventory,

looking inside ourselves

to see how\Nwe let things get this bad.

Yes. Asking the hard,\Nhonest questions

no politician dares ask...

to remake ourselves\Nin order to remake the country.

Before it’s too late.

[Wags] The full Lincoln.\NDo it the right way,

the other candidates\Nwill look like

lawn jockeys\Nat the Belmont Stakes.

[Wendy] Tell the story...

of how you ask your people

how you can do better,

be better, as you\Nwill also ask the country.

I like that.

Then you have to really do it.

Solicit honest feedback\Nfrom your employees.

Use it as fuel for the speech.

Use it as an example.

[Luke] Yeah, great.

I’ll run focus groups with\Nyour people to get that info.

[Prince] Hm.

Boil it down to a lean\NPowerPoint to present to you.

I’m not sure inserting a layer

between Mike and his guys\Nis the way to success.

Happens to be the only way

the political research\Nprocess works.

Filters,\Nfunnels, all of it.

No, no, no.\NI want the full fire hose.

That’s the point.\NAs Wendy says.

Okay, how about this?

I run the process\Nwith Mike in the room.

We make it authentic,\Nsubstantial.

Full fat, full flavor.

So Mike can eat it up\Nand then spit it out.

We’d spend all week\NHeimliching the guy.

This has to be a battle cry.

No, no, no time for\Nself-recrimination or anything

that blunts\Nthe tip of the sword.

Like actual self-knowledge?

I have to run this process.

So you can baby-proof\Nthe credenza.

So I can keep out the noise.\NSame process I used

to elect a third of the Senate.

Oh, the same guys\Nthat are so out of touch,

Mike had to step in\Nand run ’em out of town?

I don’t need my candidate\Npicking pepper out of fly shit

- on the eve of a major speech.\N- [Prince] I’ve heard enough.

Brad, you can run the process\Nwith me in the room.

Wendy’ll be there, too.\NTeam of rivals.

Make the buy,\Nset the meeting.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[door opens]

[sighs]

We are gonna do something\Nextremely hard.

[Ira] Um, great?

[sighs] Yeah, everyone’s\Ngonna be angry about it.

It’ll cause enormous tension\Nwith Washington,

with Albany, too.

Sounds horrible.\NWhat’s it entail?

Getting a previously\Nejected oligarch

back into the country.

- A Russian oligarch?\N- [Chuck] Mm-hmm.

One with a big red\Ntarget on his back.

From DOJ, from DHS,\Nfrom Interpol, too.

Grigor Andolov.

And you want to do this now,

during the second coming\Nof the Red Menace.

Like I said, extremely hard.

If it’s doable at all.

Why would you even consider it?

As a favor to Bobby Axelrod.

Those words just\Ntumbled out of your mouth

like a meth addict’s teeth...

- [sighs]\N- ...and just as fucked up.

[stammers] How do you\Nfigure you’ll pull this off?

I have to talk\Nto a special advisor.

- Big man in certain circles.\N- [door opens]

Bunky Stevens\Nis going to be a father

with his third wife, Candy.

Neat trick,\Nconsidering he died

- a few months back.\N- [Swerdlow] Mm-mm.

Post-mortem\Njizz retrieval, you dig?

Not sure I do.

[Swerdlow] Well, you get\Nthe stiff on the table,

even though\Nhe ain’t so stiff no more.

Get my drift?

And then you\Ndrain those berries.

You do it soon enough, you\Nend up with viable swimmers,

Jizz. Stuff of life.

[Chuck Sr.]\NStuff of fraud.

There’s a new fertility start-up\Nout there doing this.

Candy is just beefing up\Nher claim on the estate.

The first and second wives\Nwill get nothing...

now that there’s\Ngoing to be an heir.

No respect for the starter\Nwives in our culture,

chicks who break the seal.

In Thailand,\Neven the minor wives

get one hell of\Na birthday bunfight.

Uh-huh.

You’re going to want\Nto think global

but act local on this one.

[Chuck] Mm.

It’s your worst nightmare,\Nisn’t it?

A paternity suit that\Ncan’t be settled out of court.

Oh, it’s a question of\Nbasic fairness, don’t you see?

Never your concern.

And I don’t recall you\Nthinking much of

Bunky or his wives, either.

So the fact that you’re\Nsuddenly the guardian

of the product\Nof his vas deferens,

I know there’s more\Nto the story.

That mean that\Nyou’re not gonna

club this company\Ninto oblivion

and seize the embryos that\Nresult from this unholy process?

It means I’ll look into it,

and decide what\NI’ll do as usual.

Bye, Dad.

Hey, sugar, you be getting\Nthat shit I’ve been sending you?

I have. And I thank you.

[scoffs] It’s, uh, uh,

I guess it’s what\Nyou’d call PEDs,

but in lozenge form.

So, put it under your tongue.

It hits the bloodstream\Ninstantly.

Like a ball-peen\Nfucking hammer.

Turns any man into\Na world-class sheet-athlete.

Wonderful.

[Chuck Sr.]\NAnd I’m left wondering why

none of this sublingual supreme\Nhas been sent my way.

For the simple reason it may\Nkill you, big papa,

like Dirty Harry in ’71.

[door closes]

He goes\Ninto this speech confident,

he comes out sailing.

Zooming up the fucking polls.

And we’re just supposed\Nto stand there clapping

like extras\Nin a Riefenstahl film.

With Bradford running point,

the feedbacks gonna be jet\Nfuel.

[utensils clink]

Uh, there is a potential\Nequal time issue.

It’s been dealt with.

I spread some more\Nad dollars around

and if any candidate\Ntries to buy equal time

within a week of Prince, they\Nwon’t find any left for sale.

Nicely solved.

Power of\Nthe motherfucking purse.

All over but the shouting.

She’s too effective.\NWe need her out of here.

Isn’t she supposed\Nto be running for Congress,

instead of doing\Nhenchman duty for Prince?

She needs to understand\Nthe hazards of staying.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

In my experience,\Nrich, powerful men

think they want to hear\Nthe unvarnished truth

but don’t actually\Nwant to hear it.

Yeah, is this really\Njust a loyalty test?

If it is, let’s pass it,\Nget back to our desks.

It’s earning season, people.

I don’t know, best just\Ncall it the way you see it.

You mean as long as\Nit’s what he wants to hear?

I mean, tell him\Nwhat he wants to hear

no matter how you see it.

What if that comes across\Nas inauthentic?

Does your comp\Ncome across as inauthentic?

[Rian]\NGuys, easy peasy.

Like seeing your dorm-mate\Nin an off-off-Broadway play.

You say something vague,\Nadjective free,

"That was all you up there."

And then let the ego\Nfill in the blanks.

[chair sliding]

I’m calling bullshit\Non this whole exercise,

and I sure as fuck\Nwon’t suck up.

[chair rattles]

Mike, you are like\Na combination of Benjamin Graham

and fucking Hal\Nfrom Space Odyssey,

everywhere, all at once,

processing, prodding me\Nto make better trades.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

Why is there anything you’ve\Nbeen wanting to say to Mike,

but thought you couldn’t?

I don’t deserve you.

The guilt, it’s crushing me.

That’s something I think\Nwe should work on.

And the challenges\Ntrading with him, day to day?

I have this recurring dream\Nin which you make bank.

I’m talking 10X

while doing\Nan ungodly amount of push ups.

But is it really a dream?

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

I’m just saying it ain’t easy.

When you set a standard that’s\Nthrough the freaking roof.

[clears throat]

Mike, this is you and me.

Criticism? Who are we kidding?

Uh, would you--\NWould you like to, uh...?

[door closes]

- Jesus.\N- Let’s move on.

Yep.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[elevator dings]

[elevator whirrs]

I love that you’re ditching\Nyour race for Congress.

- I am?\N- As much as we need you there,

we need you here.

Besides, not enough hand\Nsanitizer in the world

- to make me do that job.\N- [chuckles]

You should go long Purell,\NI’m not ditching a thing.

But you’re still here?

My filing deadline’s\Nmonths away.

But we’re days away\Nfrom Prince’s campaign

becoming a black hole.

Everything in its vicinity\Nsucked right in.

You’ll just be part of\Nthe fabric of the thing,

unable to assert yourself\Nas anything other than

"Prince’s fill-in-the-blank".

[chuckles] All because he’s\Nabout to throw down a gauntlet?

More of a grenade.

At the parties you’ll\Nneed to nominate you.

So I just establish a little\Ndistance when I leave is all.

With your family dough?

With the whitest collar\Nbackground

of anyone at the firm?

Ask Chang and Eng.

Not a lot of distance\Nwhen you’re joined at the hip.

[chuckles]

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[Chuck] Must feel different\Nto walk this hall

as an impresario.

No longer the guy\Nin the squared circle.

Eh, still feel every bump.

Whether you’re giving ’em\Nwhether you’re taking ’em,

whether you’re scripting ’em.

I’ve always wondered\Nif I could do it.

Fall down for a living.

[chuckles] You don’t have\Nthat far to fall.

[chuckles]\NLook, you could do it.

When this\Ncrowd comes alive,

you’d come alive.

There is nothing else...

- like this.\N- [Chuck] Yeah.

Well, no one knows\Nthe game like you do, Hunter.

And that’s why\NI need your advice.

You got a game that\Nneeds to be played?

Yes, exactly.

I need to turn one guy heel,

and another guy\Nbabyface. In one move.

[Hunter] Oof.

Double turn. Tough to pull off.

But when it’s done right,

one of my personal favorites.

How do I pull it off?

You need to let the heel come\Nin

and get the heat from the\Ncrowd.

Then your babyface comes\Nand gets the pop.

[soft chuckle]

The heat and the pop, huh?

Oh, yeah.

Tell me more about these guys.\NWhat do you got on ’em?

Well, they both think\Nthey’re babyfaces.

That’s for damn sure.\NBut neither one of them is.

Every sitting senator\Nwould give their gavel arm

for a survey result like this.

Did any of it feel real to you?

I can read between the lines.

I picked up that\NI can be intimidating.

I’ll work on that.

[scoffs]

This is how Vietnams happen.

How politicians lose touch\Nwith reality.

Hard questions stop being asked

and they believe\Ntheir own hype.

So you want us to go back\Naround

and troll for negative\Nfeedback?

So that’s written down\Nsomewhere,

so it fucks with Mike’s head?

[Wendy]\NI wouldn’t frame it like that.

But if he’s going to ask\Nthe rest of us,

the country, to take inventory,

then he should\Nreally fucking do it.

Otherwise, he’s as fake

as the politicians\Nhe’s running against,

and the voters are going\Nto smell it on him

and send him packing.

She’s right.

You want a samurai sword\Nand Hattori Hanz blade?

Those only come\Nfrom the hottest flames.

Find me a master swordsmith\Nwithout some serious burns.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[Wags] He’s letting you

run a second round\Nof honesty sessions?

[Wendy] Without Prince\Nin the room this time.

No Luke either.

I’m not comfortable with this.

We don’t know where\Nactual honesty will lead.

[Wags]\NFuck yeah, we do.

The greatest\Ntelevised meltdown

since Howard Beale.

Prince’s narcissism\Nis a mile-wide

and a micron thick.

Watch the movie.\NBeale stays on air,

Schumacher gets\Nkicked to the curb.

I want to keep having\Na firm to run.

Watch it to the end.

Beale gets his brains blown\Nout.

Schumacher gets\Nto schtup a young,

luscious-as-a-plum\NFaye Dunaway.

[Wendy]\NTaylor isn’t wrong.

This could implode MPC,

as well as the campaign\Nand all of our places in it.

I wanna slam Prince’s ego\Nwith a battering ram.

No telling where\Nthe fragments will land.

If it hurts business.

If it blows us up, too...

price we gotta pay.

[sighs]

One question, related\Nto the files we discussed

a few weeks back.

Yep.

If I stay on board here,\Nam I killing

my chances\Nwith the mainstream party?

Can’t expect either party\Nto bear hug you

after he shoots ’em\Nin the vitals.

What if I wall myself off\Nfrom the campaign?

Restrict myself to firm\Nbusiness until I leave?

The firm is the campaign.

No wall to be built

unless you wanna drywall\Nyour own office door.

[exhales]

I was hoping we could,\Nuh, I don’t know...

think outside the box.

Mmm, not so easy\Nwhen you’re in one.

[sighs]

Got the case for ya.

Commodities fraud.

Uh, market manipulation\Nin the oil industry.

That’ll do. [sighs]

Sure you want\Nto go down this road?

We list Andolov\Nas an expert witness,

then asked DOJ and DHS

to parole him\Ninto the country.

Get ready for\Nsome hairpin turns.

The guy’s a sanctioned oligarch\Nwho you chased out.

I mean, there’s impossible,

then there’s climbing\Nthe Dawn Wall

with a pair of Havaianas\Nand a bag of chalk.

I think I can sell it.

I also learned that\NGrigor’s wife is not alone

in her divorce action--\Nshe’s got a backer,

a hedge fund,\Nhe’s bankrolling her,

no doubt for a big piece\Nof the settlement.

- Who?\N- Our very own Todd Krakow.

And knowing him,\Nthat’s not the only reason

he’s lurking around.

[chuckles] Because\Nwhat we need here

are some more obstacles.

[sighs]

Damn the torpedoes,\Nfile the parole request.

[Ira] I’ve got\Nsomething else for you.

- Can it wait till morning?\N- Uh...

you’re going to want\Nto see this today.

[Chuck sighs]

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

Dad.

Uh, your pal Bunky\Nsigned a consent form.

Well, hold the fucking roll.\NIf your boy signed off on it,

how come he didn’t\Nget the missus

to do the extraction pre-mortem?

I mean, that’s lots more fun.

You know what I’m sayin’,\Nbaby girl?

He didn’t want to raise a kid.

He wanted a posthumous tot\Nto live on after him.

That’s like that fucking movie\Nabout the octopus.

She popped some eggs\Nfrom her cooch,

and then she slides\Ninto an undersea death spiral.

Hm.

This isn’t about Bunky at all.\NWhat is it?

Okay, fine.

I’ll tell you.

It’s Roxanne and Willow.

[indistinct chatter]

[Chuck Sr.]\NI saw them praying...

to Jesus.

When we agreed\Nwe wouldn’t raise Willow

with religion at all.

Beware, Sonny Boy,\Nlegacy is a lie!

There is no control\Nin the hereafter.

Oh, shit. It’s true.

You know, once they get\Nthe Jesus fever,

it’s rarely treatable.

Just like the fucking\NOrthodox in my tribe.

Yeah, a Rhoades\Nspouting the Lord’s Prayer,

I know what a disaster\Nthat is for you.

You need to talk to Roxanne.

Just rein it in\Nbefore it takes root.

Not in a talking mood.

I’m drawing up my demands

for the upbringing\Nof my progeny.

Schooling, vacations,\Nearthly pursuits.

This-- This God shit?

Strictly off the list.

Because ultimatums\Nwork so well in a marriage?

If she won’t heed mine,\Nthen we are headed for divorce.

And I’m going for custody.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[door slides shut]

I knew you’d come.\NI’ve been expecting you.

I saw in the papers\Nyou’re back in your old job.

Indeed.

But I figured\Nyou’d make an appointment.

I’m not actually here for that.

It’s about my father.

Oh. Well. Usually is.

[Chuck scoffs]\NNo, I need some information.

About the nature of control.

Dominance.

Why some seem\Nunable to give it up.

You trying to save yourself?

[Chuck]\NNo. Not this time, no.

My dad needs some peace.

But his daughter...

she needs to be spared\Nthe kind of upbringing I had.

That relentless,\Ncontrolling instinct which--

Which led you here\Nin the first place.

Which led me to mirror him\Nin 98% of my interactions.

And then to have to completely\Nrepudiate it here.

Sometimes there’s\Na certain comfort

in jumping\Nat others’ command.

Control is all\Nan illusion anyway.

Huh. Tell that to the guy

in the business end\Nof the truncheon.

But if you’re\Npaying someone to wield it,

who’s really in control?

End of the day,\Nclient gets the meal.

I just plate the food.

You think my dad\Nis fooling himself?

[Troy] Raging against\Nhis own impotence, maybe.

His mortality.

Control is often\Nan expression of fear.

People who truly believe\Nthey’re in control?

More likely to escalate\Ntheir actions till they fail.

Leads to poor decision making.

- Magical thinking.\N- Hm.

Problem is...

telling a controller\Nnot to doesn’t work.

I’ve noticed.

Your hope lies in convincing\Nhim

that his true power\Nis best displayed

in not having to use it.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

I promised them anonymity.

Then work to get them past\Ntheir instinct for flattery,

for base self-interest.

I’m ready for\Nthe unplugged version.

"Self-satisfied."\N"Loves himself."

"Mother Teresa of Wall Street."

"Loves the smell\Nof his own farts,

like the "Smug Alert"\Nepisode of South Park"?

- Never saw that one.\N- I have.

It’s a top-tier episode.\NHeh. Who said that?

You can’t think\NI’m gonna name names.

I just-- I want to do\Nsome relationship repair.

[stammers]\NOf course, no.

Uh, "Entitled, thinks he can\Nbuy us off with private planes.

I mean, I’ll take the flights,\Nbut fuck that."

[sighs then scoffs]

"Forces you to come to his party\Nand act like you like it

while he slakes his appetite--"

[Luke]\NStop right there.

There’s no reason for Mike

to be subject to\Nthe petty staff jealousies

and--and character sniping.

I mean, we all\Nsat through your round.

I didn’t take you\Nfor the squeamish type.

And this is when\Nwe bring it back around,

put it in a context?

[scoffs]

Here’s the context.\NYou have to decide

what taking inventory\Nactually means.

Whether you can push through\Nthe friction

as commander in chief,\Na lot fucking worse

than what you heard just now.

And do what must be done.

What only you can do\Nfor the country.

Even if it turns you\Ninto a dartboard.

I think you can,\Nor I’d be lying to your face

like everyone else on that floor\Ninstead of, you know...

giving you what you asked for.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

That’ll be all.

[door closes]

[clears throat]

These are all A-list attorneys.

Serious political chops, too.

You think\Nwe need more firepower?

[Sacker] No.

But I don’t want to leave\Nwithout replacing myself.

But it’s time. Past time.

The speech is tomorrow.

I need to get with the party\Nthat can nominate me.

Terms of my hire, remember?

What do you want?

What will it take

to stick around longer\Ntill we can right the ship?

If I stay\Nand help you right it,

it’ll be pretty hard\Nto get off it.

If your departure\Nis made public,

this of all weeks...

Maybe we all go quiet on this

until the hand-off’s complete.

It has to be public.\NIt has to be now.

A couple of days at the most.

I need to establish\Na little distance to him.

Scrub your name off mine\Nwhile I still can.

- It’s just politics, Mike.\N- [sighs]

I hope you understand.

Don’t walk away\Nfrom Prince Capital

or Prince himself.

I don’t quit now,

both parties will freeze me\Nout.

Nothing on the plus side\Nof the ledger

competes with that.

"Love To Love You, Baby."

Come again?

It’s the song that took\Ndance music from the club floor

to the top of the charts.

Broke me as a music manager.

Made Donna Summer into\Nthe queen of a whole new genre.

You said it ended badly.

Always does.

But before that, she was\Nmy double platinum ticket.

No bigger pop star\Nin the ’70s.

No Black woman, beside Diana\Nwith her cultural power,

her crossover cachet.

And she knew it.

Came to me to cut my\Npercentage.

Once, then again and again.

Natural progression\Nwith most stars.

But I hung in,\Nchoked down every indignity.

And do you know why?

Because everyone\Nanswered my call.

Just hoping it’d be about\NDonna.

It would’ve been worth it\Nto do the job for free

for that alone.

No indignities\Nat Prince Capital.

But unlike Donna,\Nthe name is about to be

a liability for me.

You don’t want to be frozen\Nout.

I get it.

But how cold are you going\Nto feel in the wilderness?

In the dead of winter?\NWhen your calls go unanswered?

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

Surprise, surprise.\NWe’ve got a Russia problem.

Hmm. Oh!

[Chuck] Apparently,\Nit’s going around.

Chuck. My friends in DC

tell me you’re trying\Nto bring Grigor Andolov

in as some bullshit witness.

Are you fucking crazy?

How’s the country better off\Nwith that droog in it?

Uh, let’s reframe that.

How many tens of millions of\Ndollars do you stand to lose

if he can contest\Nhis divorce action?

Mm. You should know better\Nthan to mock the crime

- of spousal abandonment.\N- [chuckles]

Or the stigma and isolation?

The inability\Nto plan one’s future?

A woman’s emotions\Ntorn fucking asunder.

[Chuck] Ohh...

You’re not just\Nbankrolling her.

You’re sleeping with her.

- [Krakow] Okay, look...\N- [chuckles]

[Krakow]\NIt started off all business,

but Oksana is\Na very soulful woman.

She’s been through a lot.\N[inhales]

The heart wants\Nwhat the heart wants.

So does the DOJ,\Nand we need the guy here.

Then I may need\Nto align with forces

whose interests run\Ncounter to yours.

- In a big fucking way.\N- [Chuck snickers]

And I never do my enemies\Nminor boo-boos, Chuck.

Keep up that watered-down\NMachiavelli shit with me,

the feds will be\Na far more pressing problem

than some foreign actor.

You better not mess\Nwith that divorce proceeding.

Oh, that one’s all yours.

[scoffs]

[Chuck snickers]

[Ira]\NHe’s not the only grouser.

I just heard from DeGiulio.

He got the request to parole\NGrigor back into the States?

Wants to discuss it in person.

Along with your old pals\NGovernor Sweeney

and Attorney General Mahar.

The three of them together.

[Ira] When they come at you\Nas a three man,

think chair shot,\Nnot rubber stamp.

My ink pad’s at the ready.

Chuck, is it really worth\Nchoosing Grigor over Krakow

and not one,\Nbut two levels of government?

To please this guy\Nof all people.

I mean, what’s he ever\Ndone for you...

Hm.

...except wear you out\Nand haunt your days?

No, this is\Nthe vaunted Bobby Axelrod,

mover of markets,

puller of levers.

And he needed me.\N[scoffs]

Called me. Had to ask me\Nfor a personal favor.

Offered to be in my debt.

Sure, I wanted to say no,\Nalmost did. But...

Well, that’s too rare\Nand valuable

a commodity these days.

Especially from one\Nwho knows what it means.

Well, that is more old school\Nthan Sammy Davis Jr.

tapping with\Nthe Will Mastin Trio.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

I lead from the front.

I do everything I ask\Nof those under my command

and not from\Na goddamn swivel chair.

The difference between you\Nand General Patton?

He didn’t ask for\Nhis employee’s criticism.

He just slapped them\Nin the face.

Criticism informs, elucidates.

This was insubordination.

Maybe Luke was right--\Nmaybe you weren’t ready

for the full fire hose.

My own people think\Nthat they can lie to me,

mock me.

Plus, Sacker’s leaving,

planning on\N"distancing herself"?

We were cruising along

at flank speed before all this.

Mm. The presidential.

When did I become Lex Luthor?

Anytime somebody\Nruns for office,

they either become Superman\Nor that other thing.

I didn’t change.

Everybody looks at you\Nthrough different eyes now,

but that doesn’t matter.\NWhat matters is this:

There’s nothing wrong\Nwith deciding you want

the unvarnished,\Nunquestioned love.

In fact, that may be\Nthe most healthy choice.

Sometimes quitting\Nisn’t capitulation.

Sometimes it shows grit\Nand wisdom.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[net swishes]

Scooter called you?

[Andy]\NHe told me what happened.

I know this is\Nwhere you’d go.

Well, it used to actually work.

Now I feel the chill\Nin this room, too.

Well, too warm\Nand you slip on the court.

[scoffs]

I used to feel the warmth\Nin every room I entered.

Especially\NMichael Prince Capital.

Now it just seems like a lie.

Those rooms were warm\Nbecause you paid them.

I told myself I didn’t care.

But I thought the warmth\Nwas real. Or I wanted to.

[Andy] Then let’s\Ntalk court conditions.

[sighs]\NI was at Indiana A&M, too.

My teammates loved me there.

If we’re really\Ntaking inventory,

some of them hated your guts.

Until they got to know me,\Nmaybe.

No.

Until you lead them\Nto some wins.

Then they loved you.

I just had to show them\NI was all about the team.

The team was all about you.\NAlways.

You always had the ball.

You always made your shots\Nor dished it.

They had to learn that\Nthe path to glory

ran through you.

So I shouldn’t worry about\Nseeking real love?

I’m saying, the way to get it\Nis to be a winner.

That’s as real\Nas it fucking gets.

Is that cold or superficial\Nor hollow?

Well, that’s the world\Nwe’re living in.

And it’s the one\Nyou say you want to lead.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[indistinct chatter]

And he’s fucking late.

Quite the assemblage\Nfor a pro forma parole request.

Pro fucking forma?\NCoddling a Russian criminal

on the dawn of\Na second Cold War.

Last I saw you, Governor,\Nyou were forcing me from office

in a bloodless coup.

I’d say cold wars\Nare your métier.

Uh, Mr. Andolov has agreed

to cooperate\Nin a critical case.

His safe passage\Nwill be strictly limited--

To rat-fucking me and my\Nbiggest donor, Todd Krakow.

[Daevisha] Chuck,\Nmy office, your old office,

you personally ran Grigor\Nout of this country.

Surely, whatever grudge you hold\Nagainst the governor--

Me? I’m all about\Nmoving forward.

This has to stop\Nat the water’s edge.

Let this fucker in and we’re\Ngoing to look ridiculous.

Like patsies. Like...

Putin’s got pee tapes\Non the lot of us.

I know better\Nthan to try to stop you, Chuck.

You will find a way over,

you will find a way through.

Used to be my modus, sure.

I am appealing\Nto you, though.

Don’t alienate us.

And don’t burn Todd Krakow

and 50 other\Npolitical powerhouses

in your first months back\Nat Southern.

Don’t make them your last.

I used to believe in\Nzero-sum...

in choosing a side,\Ngenerally my own,

and alienating all others.

But this go-around, I see\Nthat we can all be winners,

all be friends.

Why draw lines in the sand

when we can build a castle?

[scoffs]\NCastles made of sand?

You know, it’s happened, Chuck.\NYou’ve lost your fucking mind.

Maybe I just found it, Bob.

Chuck,\Nin a known language, please.

I’m talking about\Ntelling our own story.

A story in which we work\Nthe emotional levers

to all get\Nwhat we actually want.

And how exactly do we reach\Nthis promised land?

My special advisor on this\Nwill answer all your questions.

You might say\Nhe does it for a living.

♪ Time to play the game ♪

[heavy metal music\Nplaying over phone speaker]

[crowd cheering\Nover phone speaker]

[singer cackles]

[music ends]

So, you found\Na good lawyer yet?

Excuse me?

[Chuck]\NYour custody case.

Oh, I know your prenup’s\Na fortress of steel,

and that you’re ready to crush.

I’m short-listing litigators

and still building out\Nmy list of demands.

Uh-huh.

[Chuck Sr.]\NGo ahead, son.

I’ve known you\Nlong enough to know

when you’ve got a point to\Nmake.

[chuckles]\NWell...

probably not one\Nthat’s welcome here, so--

Out with it.

No, it’s just that I’ve noticed\Nthat power is the ability

to influence others,

not dictate to them.

True power is\Nnot having to use it.

Are you gonna flash\Nyour history chops now

and hold forth\Non how the great emperors

and cons were such\Nbecause they showed mercy?

I’m not.

We both know I’m talking\Nabout your daughter.

[Chuck Sr.] That’s right.

Now, she ought not be beholden

to some made-up deity.

When you’d rather have her\Nbe beholden to you.

Your way.

You’ll have her obedience

and you’ll have moments\Nof her affection...

Uh, she’s human, after all.

And won’t be able to escape\Nher inclination to love you,

but she’ll try.

Oh, boy, how she’ll try,

if you run power games\Non her and her mother.

Domination...

is an all-or-nothing\Nproposition.

It does not work\Nif you carve out exemptions.

What is it that\Nyou’re suggesting?

Go on dominating\Neveryone else in your life.

Put your stamp on things\Nand mark your turf.

Yes, and go ahead\Nand show her that,

when she’s old enough\Nto apprehend it.

But when it comes to her now...

give her a sense of\Nstability...

and self worth.

Because that’s where\Ntrue power comes from.

Ease up.

As a means of achieving\Nthe same result.

Actually, control them more\Nby seeming to cede it.

Wouldn’t have worked with you.

Who’s to say

I may have needed the firm\Nhand,

but neither of these\Nwomen are me.

Oh, that’s for damn sure.

[Chuck] It could spare\Nyou a custody fight.

You might even get\Nwhat’s on that list of yours,

and they’ll never know

they played right\Ninto what you wanted.

I like this plan.

Hm.

Some sense must have been

whipped into you after all.

That firm hand. Yep.

Okay, sonny...

I will try it your way.

[Chuck] Good.

[Chuck clears throat]

Continental style in this\Nhouse,

left hand, tines downward.

This look like\NRuby fucking Tuesday to you?

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[Luke] Speech of his life.

I cannot believe\Nhe missed the run-through.

[Scooter] Mike doesn’t\Nneed run-throughs.

He’s Africa/Brass-era Coltrane.

- He finds it as he goes.\N- Can you find it if it went?

We’re live on eight channels\Nin five minutes

and he’s not even here.

[Bradford Luke]\NThere he is.

[Prince] Who’s ready\Nto turn this upside down?

Didn’t need a run-through.

Any more than Jay-Z\Nneeds to write down his lyrics.

Just roll tape and let me go.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

Thank you.

For not keeping me safe.

In my bubble.

The idea that I would\Nreassess my campaign,

quit, because of a few grumblers\Nin the company...

Well, I needed to hear that.

I was a professional\Nboot in the ass.

Finally saw what you were doing.

The destiny, it’s in me.

I knew you’d put yourself\Nback together.

Glad you did.

[woman] Ready?

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

I put him back together

after you kicked the pieces\Nacross the floor.

[footsteps receding]

I thought you were out the\Ndoor.

I’d like to stay at MPC\Nuntil my filing deadline.

Then run as an independent\Non Mike’s ticket.

Stay close to the resources,\Nthe juice.

If you’re sure, I can get you\Non a cutaway shot.

I know it’s a risk\Ntaking on the party machinery.

I’m not just going to be some\Nschmo out in the wilderness...

in a run for Congress.

We’re live.

In five, four, three...

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

I’m Mike Prince.

If you only follow\Nthe primaries,

you don’t know me.

That’s by design.

So the status quo can keep\Na hold of your futures.

I bought this time\Nand it didn’t come cheap

because I’m my own man.

And because we need\Nto have a hard conversation

about why both parties,\Nand our system, are broken.

This is about the inventory\Nwe all need to take

in order to get\Nwhere we’re going,

even if we don’t\Nalways like what we see.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[door closes]

[Krakow] Grigor.

Buddy, you’re back.

You are surprised\Nto see me here?

I’m surprised\Nto see you here as well,

since four of\Nthe last five nights,

you’ve been spotted outside\NOksana’s penthouse.

My penthouse, not your own.

She’s been distraught\Nin your absence.

I’ve tried to counsel her.

Tell her to, you know, hang in.

This is why I brought you\Na special gift.

You should open it now.

Might come in handy\Nin case you need to "hang in."

My friend Christian\Ndesigned them personally.

Gossamer wings.

Now, I cannot tell you\Nif they support flights,

since I didn’t test them\Nmyself, but...

Since you live\Non the 29th floor,

maybe you would\Nlike to be the test pilot.

You could have sent this\Nmessage in so many ways,

without coming to New York.

What fucking fun would there be\Nin letting someone else

throw you out the window?

I swear, Oksana and I\Nare just friends.

W-we’re not even friends.

It was just a--a mere\Nbusiness arrangement--

But you spent so many months\Nin her company.

I’ll never see her again.

I’ll stop funding\Nthe divorce action.

In fact, I’ll end it\Nwith one fucking phone call.

It’s hard to argue\Nabandonment now anyway.

This is good news.

It clears the way\Nfor my own divorce suit...

on grounds of adultery.

Thank you.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[sighs]

My business is concluded.\NNow, yours can begin.

It’s quite a favor\NAxe granted you.

And that you granted him.

[dry chuckle]

How the hell did you two\Nbecome friends again,

after what he did to you?

Well, one has\Nthe greatest respect

for one’s fiercest adversary.

Who else believes so strongly\Nin your abilities?

Well, it’s time.\NYou ready to do the turn?

Like Andre in ’87.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[engine starts]

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[police sirens chirp]

[sirens blaring]

[sirens stop]

[indistinct chatter]

Let’s go. Out of the car.

You have no authority over me.

I am a sovereign citizen.

I reject the right of the\NUnited States to detain me,

or to compel my testimony.

I am a citizen\Nof the greatest nation

in the history of the world,\Nled by the greatest leader.

So fuck you and fuck America.

[crowd murmuring]

[Sweeney clears throat]

Mr. Andolov\Nwas here to testify

in a federal case,\Nto work with us.

However, he took that\Nopportunity to try and steal

sensitive military technology\Nfor his country.

Now, upon receiving\Nthis intel, I handed it off

to federal law enforcement\Nfor coordinated action.

Chuck.

[sighs]

As U.S. Attorney,

I realized that this was

a complex federal matter,

so I contacted Solicitor General\NDeGiulio and the DOJ.

[camera shutters clicking]

Main Justice saw the critical\Nnature of this case

on New York\Nand included the state AG.

Using state police\Nand undercover operatives,

we conducted a sting operation\Nand interdicted Mr. Andolov

before any secrets\Ncould be stolen.

As you can see in the video,

his true sentiments\Ncame to light.

He will be deported\Nimmediately.

It is a bad day for the\NKremlin,

a good day for justice\Naround the world.

Questions?

[reporters clamoring]

[woman] What about the risk\Nof rolling an old criminal

like Mr. Andolov into the U.S.\Nin the first place?

[Daevisha]\NHe was poised to have...

Wow...

He swoops in, kills my play,

does a heel turn here.

He’s rehabbed in Russia,\Na hero to the Kremlin,

quashing those rumors\Nthat he helped Ukraine.

Mm.

You guys are all\Nchampions of the city.

- Ah.\N- It’s quite a work you put on.

Mm-hmm.\NExcept for the part with you.

- That was a shoot.\N- Hm.

Fuck. You weren’t in on that?

No, real.

Only way I see it,\Neverything he said stands.

He’ll now have Moscow’s full\Nbacking to do whatever he wants,

wherever he wants.

- [reporters clamoring]\N- Long arms.

One warning was enough.

That and those fucking wings.

[Daevisha] We cooperate...

[door closes]

The dial groups\Nwe ran during the speech--

spiked the whole time.

I’ve never seen\Nanything like it.

Mike is trending\Non every platform.

Pundits on both sides\Nare calling it a major victory.

Calling me for jobs, too.\NMy phone’s blowing up.

All this coverage,

- you couldn’t buy it.\N- But he did.

[Scooter]\N"Rising above the smallness

and negativity\Nof the primaries."

"Owning primetime,\Nbecause he can. Literally."

Mike wants to do\None of these every month.

Draw up a check,\NI’ll draw up a plan.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

I owe you an apology.

We both had our points of view.

I had my own agenda.

Keeping control of the\Ncampaign.

You just served Mike.

No wonder\Nhe trusts you so much.

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

[reporter over video]\NIt’s the kind of speech

no politician ever gives.

Because they can’t afford to.\NIn more ways than one.

That alone gives Michael Prince\Nthe edge tonight,

a true independent,\Nstorming the gates...

[clicks video off]

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

["Rid of Me"\Nby PJ Harvey playing]

It’s done.

I saw. Thanks.

No, I should be thanking you.

For making me better. Sharper.

For raising the level of play,\Nas you always have.

I can’t say I wish\NI was back there

- slugging it out with you.\N- Mm-hmm.

- We went enough rounds.\N- Yeah.

Took me some time to realize,\Nthat was reason enough

to help you from the start.

Old combatants’ code.

That’s the other reason.

Someday, and that day\Nwill definitely come,

I will call upon you\Nto repay this debt.

And I know\Nyou won’t come up short.

♪ I’m going to twist\NYour head off, see ♪

[phone clatters]

♪ Till you say don’t you wish ♪

♪ You never\NNever met her? ♪

♪ Don’t you don’t you\NWish you ♪

♪ Never, never met her? ♪

♪ Don’t you, don’t you\NWish you ♪

♪ Never, never met her? ♪

♪ Don’t you, don’t you\NWish you ♪

♪ Never, never met her? ♪

♪ I beg you ♪

♪ My darling ♪

♪ Don’t leave me ♪

♪ I’m hurting ♪

♪ I’ve been lonely ♪

♪ Above everything ♪

♪ Above every day ♪

♪ I’m hurting ♪

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪