Now we know what gives Massimo his single-minded drive.
Massimo reluctantly went home to his Italian hometown, which he wished never to have seen again on Devils Season 1 Episode 8.
He even dragged along Sofia, likely so that he would see one friendly face during his return to the fishing town of Cetara.
That opening nightmare proved that Massimo had failed to put behind him what had happened to him during his youth despite his success after reinventing himself as a titan of banking.
Then that dream became a reality when Massimo was startled awake by a phone call from his father, summoning him home so that his dying papa could put his affairs in order.
Traveling to the sunny Amalfi Coast with a hot chica would seem like a fantastic getaway from all his troubles at NYL for Massimo.
If only that were so.
Not only did Massimo have to confront the demons from his past, but also he had to rely on the too-often self-interested Eleanor to monitor the Italian bonds sale that was part of Dominic’s master plan to ruin the Euro and likewise strengthen the still-recovering dollar.
Unfortunately, neither storyline worked out particularly well for him.
And that doesn’t even take into account Duval’s machinations, which is bound to bite Massimo in the ass since his electronic signature is all over the documents Duval now has in his possession.
Massimo was wrong not to warn Sofia, for whom he appears to care, about what they were heading into.
Having been away for years, likely he didn’t know about how bad things had gotten in Cetara. Dominic’s scheme to crash Italy surely wasn’t helping.
But Massimo did remember that he was a pariah among those with whom he grew up. Especially Stefano.
Sofia, who (like most viewers) didn’t speak Italian, was rightfully confused by Massimo’s hostile reception from the protesting fisherman.
She couldn’t know that not only was Massimo a banker, which was bad enough, but also that many in town still viewed him as a murderer because of a tragic accident in his youth.
He filled her in way too late about that. Likely the rock flying through the window clued in Sofia that Massimo wasn’t popular among the locals.
So Massimo told her his sad story: A youthful joyride with his best friend Vicenzo in Stefano’s father’s boat turned deadly when the father drowned.
In a fishing village, stealing the boat might have been a bigger crime. But in any event, Massimo’s childhood was over.
No wonder Massimo seemed to hate his dad. His father traded him for a boat.
Vicenzo’s father paid him for Massimo taking the fall, and Massimo spent two years in a juvie facility. Little surprise he left Cetera to attend college after he got out.
Vicenzo skated, and now he was with whom Massimo had to deal to get his father’s boats out of hock. Karma’s a bitch.
Massimo’s good heart shined through when he tried to make amends with Cetera’s fishermen. And all he got for his troubles was a beatdown from Stefano.
At least Vicenzo’s role in the tragedy finally came to light. And Stefano grudgingly accepted one of Massimo’s father’s boats as the penalty for that long-ago accident. That only seemed appropriate.
Massimo made peace of a sort with his father before he died. He took his anger out on the boat instead, which also seemed right.
Massimo appeared to have everything sewn up in Cetara and everything to lose back in London. So why is he sticking around town?
Especially since Hell is about to break loose back at NYL.
Massimo made the mistake of telling Eleanor and Kalim to keep an eye on things while he was gone.
Eleanor took this as permission to insert herself right into the middle of the bond auction, dislodging the trader who had been designated to be in charge.
Being on the inside seemed like a good idea, up until the time that Dominic promised their Italian client Jannone one thing then told Eleanor to undercut the sale.
Eleanor found herself facing the impossible task of keeping both happy.
She used every bit of her considerable sex appeal to convince clients to place middling bids. And that almost worked, until she met a stubborn client immune to her charms.
Surprisingly, her biggest supporter in this challenge was Oliver, who she had been treating like crap lately. Oliver threatens her.
After listening to her woes over drinks, he came up with the brilliant idea of bribing the investor with a post at the IMF.
It was great to see the look on Eleanor’s face when Dominic congratulated her for sidelining Sarti with that bribe.
What was surprising was the rough way Oliver and Eleanor celebrated afterward. What would LaToya think about that?
Another threat to IRL and probably Massimo is Subterranea, now that Duval has the dossier that Sofia had hidden in her apartment.
Will Duval use those documents to turn Massimo? Can Sofia do anything to help him, now that Duval is suspect of her?
What did you think about Massimo’s sad childhood?
Did Eleanor overstep Massimo’s directive?
What Dominic’s next step?
Comment below and watch Devils online for more.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.