The season 3 finale of “Succession” was a thrilling conclusion to the series. The Emmy-winning HBO series began the season with a lot of buzz, which inevitably led to debate about whether that reputation was still justified. However, the final two finales delivered the kind of tense moments that have earned the series so much critical acclaim and established it as one of television’s top dramas.
Logan Roy (Brian Cox, who was fantastic throughout the show’s run but especially here) switched from buyer to seller, negotiating a deal for control of his company, Waystar, with upstart software firm GoJo and its CEO Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgrd).
Logan concluded that protecting chief, company’s future was a high Skarsgrdty than handing it on to his not-entirely-worthy heirs, and the arrangement behind his grown children’s backs, deprived them of the baton pass they had sought from the start.
Logan and Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Shiv (Sarah Snook), and Roman (Kieran Culkin) faced off, realising that their father had outwitted, outplayed, and outflanked them once more. He did so by turning to his ex-wife and their mother (Harriet Walter) to removeoutplayed, leverage they might have had in the negotiations.
In retrospect, an opening scenario involving the Roys cheating at Monopoly looked like a touch of foreshadowing, unless Logan is used to doing so with real estate. His children, although being born into authority, just do not measure up, at least for the time being.
Thelast showdowncaught the youngest, Roman, in the middle, with the hazy offer of a job at the newly formed company and At least for now, his v’s warning that “you can’t trust him” in rega
Kendall, who had just just escaped the preceding episode’s cliffhanger, had a near meltdown in that sequence. He told his siblings about the death during the first season for which he was at least partly responsible and which his father had hushed up.
The xta-long hour also included some memorable lines, demonstrating that oneof”Succession’s” secret weapons is being laugh-out-loud humorous. Willa (Justine Lupe) finally agreed to marry the eldest Roy kid (Alan Ruck) by replying, “How horrible could it be?” rather than “yes” to his proposal.
Although series creator Jesse Armstrong has stated that Rupert Murdoch and his family aren’t the series’ main inspirations, it’s worth noting that Murdoch struck his own stunning deal with Disney in 2019 in which he sold big assets while keeping control of others. Given that Matsson mentioned leaving Logan a few crucial baubles, there’s no reason to believe he’ll remain idle in the seasons ahead, whatever many there may be.
The conclusion didn’t resolve all of the pressing questions, but in this type of serialised format, it didn’t have to. At the same time, it posed a significant new unknown: what will happen to “Succession” if the battle for Waystar’s stewardship is actually lost, and what will the Roys do without that prize to fuss and feud over?
The solution will most likely not be pretty, but if the first three seasons are any indication, it will be almost impossible to refuse.
