Thoughts: Succession (Season 4)

HBO has had a string of prestige drama dating back to Oz in the late 90’s to The Last of Us from earlier this year, but before the title can be passed, the previous chapter needs to be closed. Thus the finale of Succession has finally arrived. The show has always been about sibling squabbles and a fight for power. Even in the first episodes when the boy who would be CEO was denied a place at the top, the bickering about who should rule emanated across every episode for four seasons. The proverbial game for the throne would continue for three seasons as chess moves and back stabbings occurred in both private and public settings.

Succession is ultimately a tragedy on how a child could never live up to the great expectations of their father, while also providing an insight into corporate takeovers and the world of billionaires. The series centers on the Roy family, the owners of Waystar RoyCo, a global media and entertainment conglomerate based in New York City, who are fighting for control of the company amid uncertainty about the health of the family's patriarch, Logan Roy. The three children in question, Kendall, Roman, and Siobhan (Shiv), have vastly different opinions as to the direction the company should take and thus why the struggle for power is so tantalizing. In the end, if they could all come together as a unit, they would have been able to save the company. Ultimately, that was their biggest undoing and the cause for their downfall.

The series ends right where it began, with the company on the verge of changing hands and only the Roy family with the power to stave off elimination. The sibling rivalry, and how much you can stomach all the fighting, is where the line between annoyance and intrigue lies. It’s a timely piece of media that may not ultimately be looked at with the same prestige fondness of The Sopranos or The Wire with its finale, but has filled its duty with two Emmy wins for Outstanding Drama Series in 2020 and 2022.