---
title: "Industry: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/industry/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/tv/industry"
critics_score: 64
critics_reviews: 7
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Industry (2020): what the critics said

Critics' score 64 from 7 reviews: 4 positive, 2 mixed, 1 negative.

Most critics lean positive. The praise gathers around the ensemble and the writing of the young traders: several reviews find the characters complex and the series compelling even when the people in it are hard to like. Its handling of office politics and the power games of a London trading floor draws the most consistent approval, and more than one critic reaches for Skins as a comparison for its mix of work pressure and after-hours excess.

The reservations are about familiarity and pace. The AV Club and Vulture both find the show borrowing from other workplace dramas, and Vulture thinks Harper too reserved a lead to carry it. The Ringer finds the interpersonal drama crowds out the sharper social critique. The one outright dissent is IndieWire, which finds the series dull and slow to pay off, even with Lena Dunham directing. The spread is wide, though most reviews sit in the middle or above.

## The AV Club — Danette Chavez

Rating B-. 9 November 2020. 

The critic likens the series to Working Girl with Harper as the scrappy lead navigating finance, noting its ensemble nature and Gen Z take on ambition and culture shock. It meets the brief in parts but feels derivative of other shows like Suits and Grey's Anatomy.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/there-s-a-gen-z-working-girl-at-the-heart-of-hbo-s-indu-1845589446)

## Vulture

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 12 November 2020. 

The series trades in familiar elements from other shows but mostly delivers on its compelling premise of young bankers in a high-pressure London firm. Harper's reserved characterization keeps it from fully sparking, though later episodes show promise.

[Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/industry-review-hbo.html)

## IndieWire — Ben Travers

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 9 November 2020. 

The HBO series about young bankers is surprisingly ho-hum and slow to pay off. Even Lena Dunham's direction fails to spice up the drama about working and hooking up.

[Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/shows/industry-hbo-review-tv-series-1234597325/)

## Den of Geek

Rating 4/5. 9 November 2020. 

The review praises the empathetic, non-judgmental approach to ambitious young traders and their high-stakes world, highlighting the strong ensemble and relatable themes of youth and ambition. It wins viewers over despite the jargon-heavy start.

[Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/industry-review-hbo-finance-drama-is-softer-hearted-than-youd-expect/)

## NME — Olly Richards

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 6 November 2020. 

The critic finds the series compelling despite unlikeable characters, praising the well-written complex characters and its potential to be a classic like Mad Men with elements of Skins.

[Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/tv-reviews/industry-review-2810791)

## Paste — Katherine Smith

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 10 December 2020. 

The series excels at depicting the power dynamics and office politics in the finance world, with strong performances and writing that blends identity issues with ambition, though it questions the broader implications of the industry.

[Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/industry/industry-review)

## The Ringer — Alison Herman

Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 10 November 2020. 

The critic views the series as a soapy but engaging mix of high-finance drama and youthful hedonism, likening it to Skins set in the banking world. She praises the realistic grounding of characters' excesses in their professional lives but notes the interpersonal drama often overshadows subtler social critique.

[Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2020/11/10/tv/industry-hbo-series-review)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/tv/industry.md