First of all, if you haven’t seen the last episode of Succession, stop reading now as there will be a major spoiler ahead. Today, I’m going to talk about how Succession concludes after four seasons and why I find it to be an insincere ending.
After four seasons following the adventures, fights, betrayals, and (very few) loves of the Roy family and Waystar Royco, yesterday, on Monday, May 29, 2023, the story came to an end.
While the fourth season is truly magnificent, with an episode that will go down in television history (the one where Logan Roy’s death on the plane and how his children cope with the loss), the episode meant to wrap it all up has left me feeling cold because, from an outside perspective, it seems like a last-minute decision.
Waystar Royco vs GoJo
The fourth season of Succession is well structured, with two initial blocks focusing on Logan Roy and his loyal followers versus his three children. They all have common interests: to stay strong in the world of media once they sell the company.
However, with Logan Roy’s death after suffering a heart attack mid-flight, the situation changes: the Roy family versus GoJo. Initially, the idea of all the siblings and the board is to sell at a good price. But at a certain point, Kendall and Roman decide to blow up the deal.
Kendall wants to be his father and run a company that he believes is rightfully his. His father always told him that he would be the one to lead Waystar Royco when he grew up. But if you’ve seen the series, you know that Logan Roy didn’t trust anyone, except himself.
Kendall supports him, as his role would be as co-CEO alongside his brother. Additionally, Logan played with him in the last days of his life, selling him the idea that he trusted him to lead the company.
As you can see, everything was tainted, and everyone wanted to be the CEO of Waystar Royco. Even Shiv Roy, who was chosen during the second season to replace her father. As you already know, it was just a strategy by Logan. The divided siblings had less power than when they were together.
Shiv’s selection as the successor was a decision made under questionable circumstances
Once the factions are established, Shiv Roy switches sides and aligns herself with Lukas Mattson, as he promises her the CEO position of the U.S. branch of Waystar Royco once GoJo acquires the company. It’s a tempting deal.
That’s when the war begins. The Roy siblings try to garner political support to block the agreement with GoJo. When that avenue proves futile, they turn to rallying support within the board of shareholders.
In the final episode, everything comes down to the board’s vote. Each faction believes they have the necessary votes to achieve their goals… until Shiv is betrayed. Lukas doesn’t want her as the CEO; instead, he plans to install her husband, Tom Wambsgans, in that position.
This turn of events leads Shiv to join forces with her brothers. She won’t tolerate being betrayed in such a manner. The siblings decide that Kendall should become the CEO of the new Waystar Royco in order to sway the board of shareholders and gather the necessary votes.
When everything is clear, alliances are formed, and the plan is set… Shiv betrays her siblings and the family by voting in favor of selling the company to GoJo. And this is where everything falls apart with no further information provided.
Why would Shiv vote against her own family when GoJo had just betrayed her hours before? Voting for the sale allows Mattson to have his way and benefits her husband, with whom she has a tumultuous relationship. However, it’s not as if Tom gains much either. He is made aware that his role as CEO would be to become a puppet, a punching bag following Lukas’ orders.
This decision doesn’t give Shiv any real power. It simply turns her into another cog in the machine that will be discarded when no longer useful. Moreover, the fact that a character changes their opinion three times in half an hour is difficult to justify and make the audience believe.
Without any further information, except for some theories that arise from the words of Karolina, the communications executive at Waystar Royco, who speaks to Shiv in private and then Tom repeats her words… there isn’t much more we can say.
A movie, a spin-off or a fifth season
It seems that the idea was to crown Tom Wambsgans, the most punished and belittled character throughout the series (alongside his assistant, cousin Greg), regardless of the cost to the plot and its credibility.
Here we enter the realm of imagination and fantasy, but all of this could be addressed with an additional season, a movie, or a spin-off that tells the story of Tom as the CEO of the company in the future, giving meaning to the pact he made with Shiv to emerge victorious.
Will we see it? It’s hard to say if HBO Max will go back on their words, but it would be strange for them not to fully capitalize on their own intellectual property that has garnered so much success and awards in recent years.
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