During my last few years at UCF and my first few years teaching, I lived with one of my all-time best friends Erik. This 3ish year stretch was some of the most fun I’ve ever had in my life and a lot of what we enjoyed, besides the typical early 20’s debauchery, revolved around movies, TV, fantasy football, and your Orlando Magic.

Whether it was tagging along as the 3rd wheel with Erik and his way too good for him girlfriend for a movie night that he fell asleep during, or watching Netflix at home, we always would suggest shows or movies to each other. “Dude have you seen Killing Eve?” I’d ask. “You’ve gotta watch Gone Girl, it’s the only movie I couldn’t predict” he’d say. From The Wire and The Killing, to Cabin in the Woods and It’s a Disaster, we watched everything.

Now we live on our own as semi-adults, but the more things change the more they stay the same, as we still do this with movies and prestige television. If something piques our interest we shoot each other an obligatory, “dude you gotta check out ______” text. Which brings us to the most divisive debate we’ve had since our “Mario Hezonja is going to be a superstar” that I was on the wrong side of.

Our new debate of 2019 is Billions vs Succession. Billions is a fast paced dramedy that at times seems half new-money/rich-guy lifestyle porn and half creator Brian Koppelman’s stream of consciousness. Succession, Adam McKay’s follow-up to his Oscar-Nominated “The Big Short”, is much more of a slow burn, about a family struggle over control over a media goliath that revolves around generational wealth in a Shakespearean style. These shows are two extremely different sides of the same coin, and because of that they are perfect to wax poetic about.

6 Big Money Questions That Don’t Make Cents

1. Which universe would you rather be in?

Josh: I wish the real world was like the Billions Universe. I’ll admit, I have no idea what shorting a company means, and I’m horrified that there are people willing to decimate the chicken population of the United States to get a better return, but I love the way everyone interacts with each other. Everyone makes references to everything. Between Wags, Axe, Chuck, and Connerty, a reference to anything is possible at any given time. This paired with the seemingly robust economy and the pro-kink messaging of prominent public figures like District Attorney Chuck Rhodes, the Billions-verse is where I want to be.

Erik: Give me the Billions universe. Love the back door deals and constant urge to one up and get ahead. I have a degree in finance, but have never really worked in the field. Yet, I feel like this is the fictional world many finance majors dream of going into the profession. Fast-paced, cutthroat, and huge pay days $$$.

2. Which pair is a better hang: Tom and Greg or Dollar Bill and Wags?

Erik: Can’t break the “Fly Guys” code and leave my boy Tom behind so this is an easy decision. The dynamic between Tom and Greg the Egg is my favorite part of the show. Simply being in their presence and witnessing their interactions would be entertaining enough. Dollar Bill and Wags are more wild cards. Love them both, but Dollar Bill is just as likely to punch me as hug me and pinky ring wearing Wags goes from coolest guy in the room to most psychotic real quick. Nuff said.

Josh: Logan Roy may say Kendall is his “number one boy”, but my number one boys will forever be Tom and Greg. Their toxic, bullying, bromance is unlike anything else I have ever seen on TV. Tom is an absolute chameleon who can shift from being a sycophantic follower to both Kendall and Logan, to a spineless jellyfish supporter of his wife to be Shiv, to an absolute sociopath in his treatment of Greg the Egg. This paired with Greg’s innocence and the comedic way he is somehow climbing the ladder at Royco, is the most entertaining part of anything on TV right now, and I would gladly be their third heat.

3. Where would you rather work Waystar Royco or Axe Cap?

Josh: This is a tough one. At WayStar Royco the instability in the CEO position could lead to both unease and falling stock security, because I’d obviously be high enough in the company to be offered stock options, while Axe Cap would be much more unethical. There’s something that just seems to be an underlying evil that would be inherit in working for a Hedgefund that profited off of 9/11 and is willing to poison an entire line of fruit drinks to screw over a political rival. Both seem like they’d be investigated by the FCC or some branch of the government at any given time. I’d probably go Royco just because it seems like I’d end up with an NDA and a million bucks from Roman when my employment ends.

Erik: Axe Cap to learn first hand the art of securing the bag. Yeah the company may not be the most ethical, but the concept of rewarding employees for a job well done is appealing. Waystar Royco seems like a sinking ship with outdated products and concepts. Not to mention the unstable leadership on center stage in the show. Using a reference from the Waystar-owned gossip website Vaulter, Waystar seems to always have a new “s**t show at the f**k factory.” My last name isn’t Roy, nor am I married to a Roy, so I’m sure I’d be no more than an underpaid pawn until I dipped out for bigger and better things.

4. Better campaign ads: Gil Eavis or Jock Jeffcoat?

Erik: Giving this matchup a real life comp, seems to be a Bernie Sanders vs Trump like situation. When imagining their campaign ads, Jeffcoat would probably put out some inconceivable ridiculousness with a “win at all costs” motive. On the basis of must-see-TV he would probably be the easy winner. Don’t sleep on Gil “Mr. Champagne-For-All” Eavis though. He’s dropped a few clever dimes in his limited time on the show, which could allude to an ability to put out some noteworthy ads.

Josh: This is my favorite nerdy hypothetical question. Gil, a socialist widower in the style of Bernie Sanders is campaigning for President. He represents everything Logan Roy hates, yet has his campaign managed by Logan’s daughter Shiv. His commercials would be straightforward and positive, which means one thing as far as political ads go: BORING! Jock Jeffcoat, a conservative Texan who loves nothing more than his farmland and taking opportunities to condescend about everything New York and North related. His commercials would be hilarious and shocking. I’m sure they’d use a montage of cringey MAGA messages with a Texan twist for the least subtle Southern Strategy of all time. Though I hate what he’d represent, I’d watch his ads on a loop.

5. Who’s the more badass woman: Shiv or Wendy?

Josh: So I got to go with Shiv here. She’s a much cooler archetype than Wendy. Neither are particularly original creations. Shiv is forgoing the family business, while making a name for herself in a man’s world. Wendy is caught between two worlds in a quasi-love triangle. She is foil to one protagonist, and the shoulder to cry on or the open ear for other men in the workplace. Shiv seems to be getting a lot more done on her own, and her archetype seems naturally more badass to me.

Erik: Dr. Wendy Rhodes. She controls the psyche of egocentric Axe Capital.  She is the voice of reason and someone whose opinion is respected by everyone on the show. Though by far the least pathetic of the Roy siblings, Shiv is still spoiled and seems to be trying too hard to revolt against her dad, founder and CEO of Waystar Royco, Logan Roy. Her step mom might be taking it to far saying “He made you a playground and you think it’s a whole world,” but it’s not entirely disagreeable.

6. Better show?

Erik: I have to admit, I dropped Succession after 6 episodes and didn’t pick it back up until recently. I enjoyed individual characters like Tom and Greg, but I was unimpressed with the overall story line. However, after finishing season 1, my opinion has come around. The second half of season 1 had me hooked and left me excited for season 2. That being said, Billions is one of the best shows in recent years and has sustained greatness over 4 seasons, something that Succession has yet to do. And just because the Magic are life and need to be referenced: Billions = T-Mac, and Succession = Markelle Fultz.

Josh: Both shows are highly bingeable, entertaining, and unique, but I have to go with Succession. It’s more layered, the acting is better, and it does both comedy and drama better than its counterpart. The family drama part is just so much more interesting than it is in Billions. I mean, Lara and Axe’s kids disappeared as do Wendy and Chuck’s. The well-roundedness of Adam McKay’s Emmy nominated series just has a bit of everything I look for in a TV series.

And the winner is:

As much as I want to say Succession is the winner here, I think the real winner is all of us for getting to watch these two shows…just kidding, its Succession, watch the season 2 premiere this Sunday on HBO.