The Show That Made Awful People Unmissable

HBO's Succession, which ran from 2018 to 2023, is a rare thing: a prestige drama that is simultaneously Shakespearean tragedy, savage black comedy, and the most incisive portrait of obscene wealth ever committed to television. Created by Jesse Armstrong, it follows the Roy family — the dysfunctional, venomous, brilliant heirs to a global media empire — as they scheme, betray, and destroy each other for control of the company their patriarch, Logan Roy, built.

Nobody in this show is a good person. And yet you cannot look away.

Season-by-Season Overview

Season 1 (2018): The Setup

The first season establishes the Roys and their world with precision and wit. Logan Roy suffers a stroke, triggering a succession crisis. His children — Kendall, Siobhan, Roman, and Connor — begin their manoeuvring. The writing is sharp, the performances immediately striking. Many viewers bounce off the first few episodes; those who persist discover one of TV's great slow burns.

Season 2 (2019): The Elevation

Season 2 is where Succession became a cultural phenomenon. The Roys are entangled in a congressional investigation. Relationships curdle. The comedy darkens. The finale — "This Is Not for Tears" — is a stunning, devastating hour of television that left the show's reputation cemented.

Season 3 (2021): The Warfare

Kendall's rebellion against Logan drives the third season into openly Shakespearean territory. The family war is now public, the stakes existential. Some critics found this season uneven; in retrospect, it reads as necessary escalation. The finale delivers one of the most winded-gut punches in recent TV history.

Season 4 (2023): The Conclusion

The final season begins with Logan Roy's sudden death — a decision that reorients the entire show. What follows is a prolonged, exquisite examination of grief, power, and the void a monstrous patriarch leaves behind. The finale, "With Open Eyes," is genuinely perfect television: funny, heartbreaking, and ruthlessly honest about who these people are.

What Sets Succession Apart

  • The Writing — Jesse Armstrong's scripts are dense, funny, and tragic simultaneously. The dialogue is unlike anything else on television.
  • Brian Cox as Logan Roy — A performance of volcanic, terrifying authority. Logan is irredeemable and utterly magnetic.
  • The Ensemble — Jeremy Strong, Sarah Snook, Kieran Culkin, and Matthew Macfadyen all deliver career-best work. The 2023 Emmy race for this cast was extraordinary.
  • The Tone — The show never tips too far into comedy or tragedy. It lives in the uncomfortable middle, exactly where real life tends to be.
  • Nicholas Britell's Score — The opening theme is instantly iconic; the score throughout is a masterwork of melancholy grandeur.

Is Succession for Everyone?

Honestly? No. If you need likeable protagonists, a story of triumph, or a moral resolution, look elsewhere. Succession is for viewers who want television that treats them as adults: that refuses easy comfort, that finds humanity in monstrous people without excusing them, and that is willing to end on a note of profound, ambiguous silence.

Final Verdict

Succession is the defining television drama of the 2020s. It will be studied, rewatched, and quoted for decades. Essential viewing.

Overall Series Rating: 10/10