The Tragic Brilliance of ‘Succession’

Jeremy Strong, Sarah Snook, and Kieran Culkin in Succession | Credit HBO

Succession is the hit HBO series that follows the Roy family as siblings fight over who will succeed their father, who built a media and entertainment empire.

This outstanding show ended recently, and I have been reflecting on its incredible run. From the jump, I was obsessed with this family. I binged the first season in a weekend — I couldn’t get enough of this entirely dysfunctional and highly entertaining family. And remained hooked through all four seasons.

Despite its popularity and its praise from critics, the team decided that it was time to end the show. While I didn’t want it to end, I was impressed by their bold decision, which ultimately ended up being the absolute right thing to do.

I love this quote from Jesse Armstrong, the creator of the show, who said about the characters, “They don’t end. They will carry on. But it’s where this show loses interest for them.” To me, this shows immense wisdom. Instead of trying to keep the show going and going, they knew the scope of the show and stayed within those boundaries. Though Succession was incredibly successful, they knew that it was time for our journey with this entertaining family to end.

So, let’s get into some of the details about the last season of Succession, especially the final episode. If you haven’t seen the last season of Succession, please don’t read any further… I don’t want to spoil anything.

Kieran Culkin, Alan Ruck, Sarah Snook, and Jeremy Strong in Succession | HBO

Going into the final season of Succession, all I knew was that I didn’t think that any of the siblings could succeed Logan (Brian Cox). Everything else seemed like a blank canvas for the writers to take the show wherever they wanted to go, and they took us on quite a journey!

The first big shocker of the season was Logan’s death. It happened so early in the season that it took me by surprise. Because it didn’t come when I expected it to, I was able to feel a small fraction of what these characters felt at this news. For half of the episode, I thought that Logan was alive and doing this to mess with his kids or as some sort of tactic. It wasn’t until I saw Logan that I believed what was being said.

This monolith of a man we had watched over these seasons was suddenly gone. The position that the siblings had been jockeying for over the course of three seasons was now up for grabs. And we got to see all of the complexities of these characters as they navigated those rocky waters of grief.

As the final season of Succession progressed, I kept wondering if one child was going to rise as the clear successor to Logan, but none of them seemed able to fill his giant shoes. Each one displayed traits of Logan, as we’ve seen throughout the entire show, but despite their best efforts, no child was able to measure up to the monolithic leader. Instead, we see Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård), an outsider and rival, rise to fill that immense void.

In Episode 5, “Kill List,” just after Logan’s death, Matsson manages to get the three siblings to meet him in Norway to discuss their deal. While watching that episode, I was struck by how Matsson was more like Logan than any of the three siblings. In that episode, he manages to see exactly what the siblings want and ruthlessly takes it, just like Logan had done throughout his career. Matsson has people orbiting around him, doing his bidding, and creating an environment of both distrust and loyalty. He is a magnetic personality and a ruthless business mind. In that episode, I thought that Matsson would make the most sense to be Logan’s successor.

For the rest of the season, we see the siblings continue to fight each other and outsiders for control of the company. We see all of the classic betrayals and power shifts that we’ve grown accustomed to. There is both witty, cutting dialogue and incredibly heartfelt human moments, sometimes contained within one conversation. Each episode is an absolute roller coaster ride because we’re watching characters we’ve grown to know and even love go through turmoil, some of their own making.

I am particularly impressed by the final episode of the series. So many shows have been strong throughout, only to fumble at the very end. But not Succession.

Justine Lupe, Alan Ruck, Kieran Culkin, Jeremy Strong, and Sarah Snook in Succession | HBO

In the final episode, we see each sibling meet their own tragic ending.

Kendall (Jeremy Strong) unsuccessfully tries to tank the deal with Matsson. His bid to be his father’s successor fails. He has built his entire life around leading this company and knows that he doesn’t fit anywhere else but Waystar. His dreams are dashed, and he no longer knows who he is.

Shiv (Sarah Snook) has become her mother, which is possibly her worst nightmare. This witty, intelligent, and shrewd woman faces becoming a mother in the middle of a loveless marriage. She is still connected to Waystar and ATN because Tom (Matthew Macfadyen) is the CEO, but she is not the one in charge. She has been once again shut out by the men in her life, forced to sit on the sidelines.

Roman (Kieran Culkin) is probably in the best position of the three siblings. Honestly, he shows some moments of really emotional health in the final episode. He knows when to walk away, he knows when they’ve lost, and he is willing to accept that reality. The final shot, however, is Roman drinking a martini, which was Gerri’s (J. Smith-Cameron) drink. He still clearly feels strongly for her, but that relationship has been marred, likely beyond repair.

Once again, in this final episode, we see that Matsson is the successor who is cut from the same cloth as Logan. He plays the three siblings and Tom in order to get what he wants. Matsson ends up being the king-maker who crowns Tom, which was very similar to Logan, who had chosen Tom over Shiv earlier in the show.

Sarah Snook, Jeremy Strong, and Kieran Culkin in Succession | HBO

While I am sad that Succession is over, I am very glad that Jesse Armstrong and the whole team were wise enough to know that this story needed to end here. It’s a satisfying conclusion to this portion of the Roy children’s lives, and we know that they will go on to do whatever they were going to do. But we don’t need to see that.

We can imagine them growing into more healthy humans or continuing to operate in dysfunction. We can imagine what type of parents Shiv and Tom will be and what other hijinks Greg (Nicholas Braun) will get into along the way.

These characters are so brilliantly written that they feel like real people existing in the world. Thankfully, we can revisit them any time we want. And I’m really looking forward to rewatching Succession all over again.