Does anybody want to talk about Succession? I have been rewatching the twenty episodes essentially on a loop for the past month-ish, and I can't stop talking about it. I really like thinking about it as a descendant of Dynasty and Dallas and the family empire melodrama. I have not watched much of these shows, but from what I have seen the similarities seem striking. Normally, I focus on the non-performance formal elements of what I watch, usually privileging mise en scene/editing/sound over character development. The characters in Succession, however, seem to drive the narrative forward (this is not to discount the other formal elements though - this whole show is so good). Maybe the complete lack of ethics or morality in any of the characters - and, significantly, the indifference of the characters to this lack - is what makes this show so watchable. But most of the characters have at least one moment of vulnerability. The most impactful one for me was (spoilers) the conversation on the beach in final episode of the second season between Tom and Shiv. In an ensemble of cruel and evil characters, Tom stands out to me as especially unlikable. He is such a social climber concerned only with increasing his personal and professional status. But it is this dislikability that makes the sequence with Shiv so impactful. He does have real feelings about something. Tom is not the only character to have moments of vulnerability, and I think this adds to the complexity of the characters and the narrative. Also, since I know everyone is curious to hear, these are the three characters I find most entertaining: Shiv, Greg (all the time but especially with Tom), and Connor. However, according to this Buzzfeed quiz (https://www.buzzfeed.com/jamiejirak1/quiz-succession-character-roy-family), I am most similar to Roman.
Dang I'm so mad. I wrote my whole supplemental response post in this lil comment box and then thought, oh I'll find out which Roy family member I am, clicked the link and lost my post. I'm Shiv. But I feel dumb enough right now to be Greg. I'll write this again later I guess... :(
ReplyDeleteSiiiiigh, okay here we go.
ReplyDeleteYes I want to talk about Succession! I've been struggling to figure out why I like this show that is so character driven but the characters are such amoral jerks. That doesn't even account for all the wealth which is not generally the kind of media that I like to follow. But I think you hit on something in this post when you talk about the characters' indifference to their own amorality. There's something so enticing about a character that's completely messed up and knows it, but just doesn't care much to change it. I think that's why (as of midway through season one) Roman is my favorite character. He's such an arrogant ass with such obvious insecurities, but he just skates over the surface of his shortcomings with humor and flare. (A little peek behind the curtain, I originally described Roman as a "cocky prick," then realized those are just two words that mean "penis" and thought, "That's a bit Freudian for a supplemental post," even though I think Freud would have loved succession.)