‘Succession’ Delivered A Brutally Operatic Finale [Review]

“Succession” climaxed last night in a fitting way — how else could Jesse Armstrong’s HBO series end than with a final backstabbing?

This last season, much like the prior ones, was an immaculate display of Shakespearean chutzpah on the part of Armstrong. An air of deception loomed vast and wide during the season, as the Roy family, a clan of clandestine one-percenters, had to maneuver around issues that managed to feel both relatable and completely distanced from a country slowly losing its grip on reality.

The series delivered individualized episodes, heavily relying on confined spaces, each building upon the show’s myth-making of greed and deceit. And yet, like the very best of The Bard’s genius, every character was given his and her time to shine.

As offended as we seem to be about the “one percent”, what “Succession” proved, once again, was our unadorned obsession with the wealthy. The inevitable Shakespearean duel between father and son, family, associates, bigwigs gathered as they point the finger at each other’s weaknesses and make the case for betrayal.

In the “Succession” series finale, the Roy siblings have a half-assed unison before the board vote swings against Kendall and in favor of Matsson’s tech takeover.

Was Kendall capable of running the company? Maybe. Just don’t tell Shiv who had the last word, even if it meant having to ultimately play second fiddle to now-CEO husband Tom. Earlier in the week, there was a fascinating theory about Tom that went viral, it was proved to be correct.

In the end, Shiv did Kendall in, went with Tom, the father of her baby, although, I suspect, she doesn’t really love him. Then again, did anybody actually love anybody in this series? I don’t think so.

I was wondering where this fourth season was going. The first nine episodes were highly entertaining, but you weren’t entirely sure how it would end and, more importantly, if the ending would be worth it. It turns out, it most definitely was.

Kendall, much like Michael Corleone in the second ‘Godfather,’ wound up alone. It was an operatic way for the show to go out on. Now, some very dark days await Kendall, he’ll maybe go back into his druggie habits, and have a major downward spiral.

The writing in this episode was top-notch. It was still unpredictable to see Shiv backing out at the last second, fleeing from the conference room, and stunning us all.

Despite being betrayed by Mattsson, Shiv couldn’t care less about her family’s legacy. “You can’t be in charge,” she tells Kendall. “You killed someone.” Ouch. It didn’t help that Roman then tells Kendall that his children aren’t even his.

I know there are some struggling with what they perceive as the ambiguity, or lack of any strong conclusions, in this final episode, but it seems pretty clear to me what the future holds for Kendall, Roy and Shiv. They have all the money in the world, but, as Roman says late in this episode, they are absolutely “nothing.”

And just like that, this toxic family has been disemboweled. We will likely not see more of them again.