I rarely post TV news, but HBO’s “Succession” should be one of the few exceptions.
If this upcoming fourth season turns out to be great, and there’s no reason for it not to be, then creator Jesse Armstrong’s series could be seen as one of the greatest ever made. Yes, right up there with “The Sopranos,” “Breaking Bad,” and “The Wire.”
Armstrong told the New Yorker that this upcoming season will be the final one:
“I got together with a few of my fellow writers before we started the writing of season four, in about November, December, 2021, and I sort of said, ‘Look, I think this maybe should be it. But what do you think?’ And we played out various scenarios: We could do a couple of short seasons, or two more seasons. Or we could go on for ages and turn the show into something rather different, and be a more rangy, freewheeling kind of fun show, where there would be good weeks and bad weeks. Or we could do something a bit more muscular and complete, and go out sort of strong. And that was definitely always my preference.”
Curiously, Armstrong decided to make the announcement and not HBO. “Succession” is their biggest and most critically-acclaimed drama since “The Sopranos.” In fact, it’s probably the current best show on TV, a comedic and dramatic amalgam of 21st-century truth serum.
So, what will happen to Shiv, Tom, Kendall, Roman, Connor, and Cousin Greg? How about reigning king Logan Roy (Brian Cox)?
The last season 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” in this country, 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.
The ten-episode season finale begins on March 26th. The final episode is set for June.