Fortitude

Rebekah and Adam are discussing how they’re going to handle the aftermath of the party when they hear a knock on the door. They get up to answer it, and find themselves in the company of a man they’ve never seen before. He’s wearing a suit, and he has a gun in his hand.

After much deliberation, the two founders of WeWork decide to leave the company and head off to California to “work”. Unfortunately, this leaves Miguel behind to try and appease the board at HQ. That’s obviously easier said than done given the current state of the finances. ..

Rebekah has been having thoughts about expanding her business beyond WeWork. After a long pause, Adam decides to take her up on the offer and starts working on a plan to revolutionize flying. He does a big TV interview announcing this, and the two of them are excited about what the future holds. ..

Bruce arrives at the office to find that the board is turning against Adam. Bruce promises that he’s on the eccentric owner’s side and has given him millions from the beginning. Bruce promises to support Adam while he’s in charge, but for how long will that be? ..

Rebekah and Adam pull their daughter out of school to give her an exceptional education. However, Rebekah selfishly spins this into a business venture and comes up with the idea for “WeGrow.” ..

However, this happy news is completely thwarted by additional revelations that the Uber CEO has resigned with immediate effect. A lovely bit of foreshadowing; Adam starts to worry. ..

Adam and Rebekah show up at work to find Bruce there with Cameron, the British banker we’ve been seeing bits and pieces of across the season. ..

Adam is moving into his new office and this means that Cameron, the CEO, will have a formidable opponent. In fact, Cameron wants the company’s 10-year balance sheets. So Adam gives him everything; a mountain of paperwork to try and dissuade him. ..

Cameron brings in a large group of assistants into his office to help him sift through the paperwork.

Cameron begins his questioning of the company’s financial records by looking at Adam’s Wavegarden shares. He questions why Adam has taken these shares and whether he is in charge of the company’s shared workspace.

Given the company’s recent history and the lying by Adam, it’s clear that the company is in trouble.

Rebekah is still looking to press ahead with her plans, so we head to Mexico City where Adam opens yet another branch. As he screams freedom up on the rooftop, Adam turns to Masa and decides not to listen to the banks, investors or IPOs and just do what they want. A wry smile crosses Masa’s face as he tells the guy he has fortitude. ..

Adam returns to the main office after starting his own business, WeGrow. Masa, one of the other investors, offers to buy out Adam and the other investors for 20 million dollars. Adam is not privy to this information and rejects the offer. Elsewhere, Cameron decides to go back through the documents again. ..

Adam is neglecting his responsibilities as CEO of the company, and this is causing tension with Rebekah. Masa has also learned that Adam is refusing to relinquish control of the company, which could have serious consequences. ..

Cameron brings the board in as they all question Adam’s motives. After laying out all of Adam’s grand schemes and future ventures, Cameron tries to pass a motion to have Adam removed as the CEO. Adam bites back and actually encourages everyone to vote on it with immediately effect. The vote goes in Adam’s favour. Just.

Adam’s party and oversleeping have caused him to miss his scheduled meeting with the Abu Dhabi bank. Amu Bharat, his contact at the bank, is not amused.

Adam finally arrives 45 minutes late, and Bharat is furious. Masa decides to pull out of investing, which only makes Adam more angry. It’s difficult to feel any empathy for Adam when everything comes tumbling down around him.

The Episode Review

This week’s episode was a lot of fun, with a lot of tension and some great moments. Cameron’s charismatic and scathing analysis of Adam’s business was exactly what he needed but unfortunately the eccentric CEO just doesn’t see that at all and everything eventually pays the price for it.

The couple’s narcissism and lack of likability is what makes it hard to feel sorry for them. They got away with this for a long time because they are self-centered and don’t care about others. ..

Apple’s latest biographical drama has been overlong but this chapter is at least a big improvement.