Why you should watch ‘Succession’ right now

Michael Clark Staff Reporter

This is a public service announcement urging any and all readers to watch HBO’s “Succession” right this instant. You will catch the swan song of one of the greatest shows of the decade. 2023 has been a smash hit for television. “The Last of Us,” “Barry,” “Succession” and “The Mandalorian” have pulled no punches for the past few months. In such a stacked year, the clear winner has to be “Succession,” a show Jesse Armstrong wrote with a deceptively simple premise: Logan Roy, an esteemed yet hateful billionaire, is dying and must choose one of his children to succeed him.

The problem is, he hates all of his kids. This is the format the show followed for most of its four-season run. The show can best be described as a tragicomedy, equal parts depressing and hilarious.

“Succession” is incredible because it has some of the most complex characters ever put to screen. There are characters like Kendal Roy, who struggles with his mental health in engaging and heartbreaking ways. Roman Roy, who hides his trauma and pain under a deep layer of sarcasm. Then there is Greg Hirsch, who may be the funniest character ever conceived in a TV show. These characters and their ridiculous antics provide some of the funniest scenarios in a TV show in a long time. Almost every single episode is downright hilarious.

However, what makes “Succession” truly shine isn’t just its farcical mockery of the upper class, but the way it masterfully balances its satire of the rich while also telling human stories about these laughing stocks.

Every character on “Succession” is an objectively awful person, but they are all so easy to sympathize with. Logan Roy can feel like a monster in one scene and a broken human in others. This is because “Succession” knows that everyone is broken in their own way, even the top of the top.

The reason “Succession” is worth watching now is because of its newer episodes, “Connor’s Wedding.” Without spoilers, it makes one of the boldest story choices that a show made in a long time. An idea that sounds awful on paper, yet the execution is so good it has earned its rank among some of the best episodes of television ever conceived. It has become exceedingly obvious that the rest of the season will only be better from here. The magic is clear when a show about rich, privileged adults yelling at each other over meaningless financial choices can be more engaging than a high budget action-packed fantasy show such as “Rings of Power.”

Because of that, I must urge you to watch this show before it ends. Watching reactions online, engaging with the community and seeing each twist and turn play out in real time has been one of the most fulfilling television experiences since “Breaking Bad” and “Game of Thrones.” entertainment.ed@ocolly.com