If you haven’t committed to watching Succession (9 p.m. Sundays, HBO), the buzzworthy prestige series in its second season, perhaps you are turned off by the idea of watching a power-hungry, over-privileged family bicker over control of their all-reaching global empire. Understandable. Most of us are trying to avoid those types of stories in the news every day, and savvy audiences are increasingly calling for stories either far removed from this realm (like Game of Thrones or Stranger Things) or very in touch with gritty, personal human emotion (like Euphoria or Fleabag).
Succession is often angled as an upper-crust drama, but in fact, coming from the likes of Will Ferrell and Adam McKay (among other producers), it succeeds as a dark comedy, a satire full of despicable characters that are inexplicably delightful to watch. And that’s thanks in part to a heavy-hitting ensemble cast that makes up the dysfunctional Roy family.
Logan Roy (Brian Cox) is the patriarch and founder of media and entertainment conglomerate Waystar Royco. He’s played a game of “will he or won’t he retire?,” while the truth is, no matter age or health, he’s probably not handing over the keys anytime soon. Logan pits his children and lackeys alike against one another, only to change the terms of the fight, keeping himself clean while the rest of the bunch wrestles in the mud.
Logan’s oldest son from his first marriage, Connor (Alan Ruck), mostly stayed out of the fray last season, living out an idyllic life on his New Mexico Ranch. But now, unqualified and technically unemployed, Connor announces his bid for president — not of the company, but the United States — with the promise to eliminate taxes, daring the government to sue him for not paying his.
Kendall (Jeremy Strong) is Logan’s oldest son from his second marriage. A recovering addict who feels most entitled to running Waystar, he got into some major trouble last season. But one dead cater waiter is nothing daddy can’t clean up — as long as you now do everything he says. Kendall’s now in a bad way, a puppet for his father, devoid of real connections or control.
With a background in politics, Siobhan “Shiv” (Sarah Snook) is easily the smartest and most capable Roy, but don’t let that trick you into thinking she’s not cold-blooded like the rest of her family. She walks all over her meek yet smarmy husband Tom (Matthew Macfadyen), while giving him just enough power to make him feel important.
Youngest is Roman (Kieran Culkin), who would normally be categorized as a ne’er-do-well playboy if he wasn’t such a sexual enigma. A cheeky fuckwit, his character might rub some the wrong way, but I think he’s great comic relief, and critics agree — Culkin’s the one Succession actor to be nominated for an Emmy at this month’s awards show. (The series is also nominated as an outstanding drama, for writing and directing, plus casting and its original title theme music — more on that later.)
And then there’s Greg (Nicholas Braun), Logan’s grandnephew who is completely foreign to the wealth and politics of the family. Essentially, Greg is us. After getting fired from one of the company’s amusement parks, he journeys to New York to meet his wealthy relatives for the first time, in hopes of a new job. And boy, does he land one. Under Tom’s wing (and what a fantastic duo they make), Greg becomes more and more ingrained in the company and all that it entails, for better and worse. And while Greg may seem like a bumbling fool, he just might stumble into success. Or bring the entire family down. Or both!
From the first notes of the intoxicating theme song (a total earworm that’s recently gotten the meme treatment), Succession is a safari ride through the lifestyles of the rich and infamous — you want to look but not touch. The subject matter is the stuff of dramas — mergers, backstabbing, corporate corruption — but it’s treated with a comedic approach, whether it be from the razor-sharp writing, fantastic actor delivery or the almost documentary-style cinematography with well-played quick zooms à la The Office. Jim Halpert could never.
CONTACT Jac Kern: @jacker
