Editor’s Note: The following review contains major spoilers for the “Succession” series finale.
() — Logan Roy’s kids took a nice swim together in the “Succession” finale, which turned out to be a perfect prelude to the series’ farewell demonstration of the dangers of swimming with sharks, and the fact that their overbearing father left shoes, ultimately, that they could not fill. In the process, fans were treated to laughter, tears, and two of the most unfortunate fights in television history.
All of the key relationships were played out in ways that felt perfectly in tune with where the series had been building to throughout this extraordinary season, right up to the haunting final shot of Kendall (Jeremy Strong) alone and with his back turned, an echo of his father without the status and family that surround him. If that meant skipping a few things—like explaining the fate of the presidential election—the series has always focused on the family dynasty, with politics and democracy one of the valuable resources it traffics in.
The ending was partly prepared by the realization that spouses Shiv (Sarah Snook) and Tom (Matthew Macfadyen) were willing to throw each other under the bus in order to obtain the title of CEO of Waystar Royco in the US. by Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård), with Shiv dismissively referring to her husband and the father of her unborn child as “a highly interchangeable modular part”.
For his part, Tom had an awkward (okay, regrettable) exchange with Matsson regarding Shiv before willingly agreeing to be his “front man,” the smiling face of the company who would act as front man to get the deal approved.
Matsson’s betrayal ultimately helped align the three Roy brothers in an effort to block the GoJo takeover, paving the way for a scene in which they laughed and joked together in their mother’s kitchen that was reminiscent of the bond they shared. , fleetingly, after the death of his father. Those interactions represented one of those occasional moments when you realize you are brothers with bonds for life, despite having grown up in the most dysfunctional and ruthless of families.
Then there was Greg (Nicholas Braun), using his translation app to learn that Matsson was intent on betraying Shiv, selling that information in hopes of saving himself, and sparking the first of two hilarious slapping contests in the company. night with tom
Ultimately, it all led to the board meeting to approve or reject the GoJo deal, which saw a very shocking sequence that went way beyond tepid fights between Kendall and Roman (Kieran Culkin): Shiv resists anointing Kendall as CEO, flatly telling her, “I don’t think you’re any good at this,” before reminding her that he was responsible for the young waiter’s death in season one.
Realizing that victory—and his “birthright,” as he put it earlier—was being taken away from him, Kendall blurted out, almost childishly, “I’m the [hermano] elderly!”.
If “Succession” proved anything, though, throughout its four seasons, it’s that the Roy last name only goes so far, and that children can never fully escape their father’s enormous shadow.
That left Shiv and Tom in what appeared to be an alliance of declared convenience—with all the affection of a corporate merger—and Kendall a broken man, rich, surely, but never to rule his father’s kingdom or anything else. it seemed to him As he had said, in a rare case of self-awareness: “I am like a cog built to fit into a single machine.”
Unlike other big TV shows, “Succession” didn’t have to hit the nail on the head to cement its legacy. But she did.
That didn’t mean answering every question that was asked, but rather offering a level of drama and humor that ranks among the best series ever. And as Tom noted earlier regarding Shiv, it’s clear series creator Jesse Armstrong doesn’t like failing a test.
