Succession (Season 4)
Available on Now TV and Sky Atlantic
It’s not immediately easy to understand why Succession has evolved into a global phenomenon over its four-series run. At first glance, it is a quick-witted and uber-detailed boardroom drama that unsubtly throws shade at the Machiavellian families that have gradually moulded American politics to reflect their own image.
Though that in itself is an interesting and timely premise, it does not account for what makes Jesse Armstrong’s magnum opus the rare beast that it is. No, that would be the discordant Roy family that lie at the epicentre of the show. For four seasons, we have witnessed how the machinations of patriarch Logan (Brian Cox) have impacted Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Roman (Kieran Culkin), and Shiv (Sarah Snook).
Shockingly, this final series allowed us to see how Logan’s demise (which shockingly came as early as episode three) would be treated by his offspring. And, true to form, it was an ugly spectacle. Despite all of the abuse their father made them endure, the Roy children never managed to truly step out of his shadow, with the final episodes seeing them engaged in a bitter power struggle that ultimately wrought them nothing other than a hollow cash prize.
By the final refrains of Succession’s final episode, scored impeccably for the last time by Nicholas Britell, we were made to contemplate a depressing conclusion in which no character was redeemed. Kendall’s life was in tatters as he contemplated a future beyond the legacy he had always expected, albeit in vain, to inherit. Roman’s own personal tragicomedy ended as badly as we always expected it would, with the show’s malicious court jester looking every bit the stilted man-child he always was.
Perhaps the bleakest fate, however, belonged to Shiv, who seemingly opted for a life spent on the arm of the improbably triumphant Tom (Matthew Macfadyen), whose own arc concluded with him being unexpectedly anointed as the newly minted CEO of the Logan empire.
Though such a joyless finale may initially come as a surprise, it doesn’t require deep consideration to realise that this was always how Succession was destined to end. After all, this is fundamentally a show about the consequences of people’s actions, be it a father’s rejection or the illegal crowning of a new POTUS. Indeed, the despair felt by the show’s three main characters could even be viewed as just desert for the litany of sins we have seen them commit over the show’s glorious five-year run.
Prestige dramas of this ilk come along once in a blue moon, but Succession really ought to be considered amongst the very best of them. You only need to look as far as episodes three, seven, eight and nine of this final series to appreciate the intricacy of the world Armstrong has created, and to feel the depth of emotions that lie beneath the surface of its biting, infinitely quotable dialogue.
Truly, this is a televisual triumph that ought to be treasured for the ages.
