MovieChat Forums > Big Love (2006) Discussion > Bill is the one that provoked Roman

Bill is the one that provoked Roman

posted 10 years ago by polomontana
4 replies | jump to latest

This isn't a defense of Roman but the truth is Bill pushed Roman. Bill married Nicki and got a loan fro Roman to open Home Plus then he wanted to cut Roman out of the business when he expanded. Bill started it and like in most cases he doesn't want to be held responsible for it.

Bill also knew about Roman and his Grandfather and Roman kicked him off of the compound but Bill still borrowed money from him and he knew marrying Nicki was the way to get it.

[–] crockett_john 10 years ago

The way it unfolded in the show, Bill had borrowed the money from Roman and repaid the loan and then some. Roman acted like he was a partner of some kind. I think the finances of the business on the show are kind of a plot convenience and at any time in the show, someone could pop up with something else to lay claim to any business. This kind of irks me on the show. Sometimes, it's well-written. Other times, it's like a soap opera where anything can happen at any time. At some point in Season 3, we find out Nikki was married before. At a later point, she has a daughter we've never heard of before. I'm at the beginning of Season 4, but I'm wondering if someone is going to end up with an evil twin or a dead spouse comes back to life or something else you'd find in a soap opera.

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My bio isn't blank.

[–] johnston.scot 10 years ago

Actually, it was fairly clear:

Roman lent Bill the money he needed to open Home Plus. Part of the deal was an equity kicker that gave Roman (or the UEB) some percentage (I think 15%?) of Home Plus. A feature like that is common in the financing (in the real world) for a start-up company (often in the form of warrants). Because the downside risk of losing the entire amount you lent is so significant, investors generally don't want to lend money to a startup if the only upside is just getting paid interest. Bill agreed to essentially the same deal when he borrowed money from Eddie to buy Weber gaming. I think the percentage he promised there was 8% ... pretty huge compensation for a 30-day loan to buy an existing reasonably established company.

The problem between Bill and Roman arose because:
- Bill believed (or at least said) that the deal was that Roman got 15% of the first store ONLY.
- Roman believed (" ") that it was 15% of the Home Plus business as a whole, including future stores.

It's not really possible for us, the viewers, to say with certainty who has the stronger position, without seeing whatever documented the agreement (if anything), or knowing what they said to each other. If they had a written agreement that was prepared by somebody competent, the answer would be obvious from reading it. If their agreement was just verbal, or some sort of outline or term sheet, it's harder to determine. Without knowing more, I'd lean toward Roman's interpretation: the second store is just an expansion of the existing Home Plus business to an additional location.

Bill's "I've paid you back in full" argument is irrelevant, because that wasn't the deal. The fact Bill raises it - apparently actually believing it's persuasive - is revealing as to Bill's position and his character. He comes very quickly, with no reflection, to positions that are in his interest. When he does, he understands that that those who disagree don't just have a different view, but are corrupt. Bill (like Roman and some other characters) is a monster.

[–] SweetD19 10 years ago

Bill paid back the loan many times over. Juniper creek is a cult not the mafia

[–] cinsmith1 9 years ago

He didn't cut him out, he paid back the loan as well as interest rates worthy of a loan shark. He just got tired of being squeezed. Usury is scripturally prohibited, btw.