Succession is coming to an end. My feelings on it are mixed because when it comes to a rich, privileged white family who I want to dedicate my Sundays to, there is no one I love more than the Roy family. They’re my favorite trashy rich people who make everyone else suffer for their family squabbles. But it makes sense that the show is coming to an end while it is still at the top of its game and at the time when Kendall (Jeremy Strong) and Logan (Brian Cox) should end their battle for who can lead Waystar Royco.
In a new final trailer for the fourth season, we got a lot more information about what everyone is fighting about. Cousin Greg (Nicholas Braun) and Tom (Matthew Macfadyen) are both still with Royco and working under Logan but Kendall, Shiv (Sarah Snook), and Roman (Kieran Culkin) were all pushed out by Logan at the end of season 3.
The trailer does make it seem as if Logan is struggling with everyone being against him even if that’s the last thing he’d admit to the world. But it reminds us of what this show has always been about: Who will take over Waystar Royco? It’s been a fight because of Logan’s desire to keep running things and all of his children fighting for what they think is rightfully “theirs” but in the end, who is going to take charge?
Looking at all three seasons and this trailer, let’s talk about where we think the show is heading because really, do we think that Logan is going to give up his company willingly?
Will Logan remain supreme?
Throughout the entire run of Succession, Logan Roy has found ways of screwing over his children and those around him for his own personal gain. Whenever he was making a deal, he’d make sure that it benefitted him the most and even when it looked like Kendall had royally destroyed Logan, it ended up tearing Kendall apart. Not his father.
Can that remain though? Can Logan Roy still hold that power when he has gone out of his way to destroy the lives of his children and all those around him? In the trailer, we get to see him a bit lost with Greg, talking about how he’s just wandering the floor to Tom but it’s still Logan. Whether or not he’ll keep his winning game up throughout the rest of the season (and the commentary that comes with that) is going to be fascinating.
Is this a win for the Roy kids?
Throughout the seasons, Kendall and his siblings were at odds for daddy’s love and affection. Now, the only one who seems to care about it anymore is Connor Roy (Alan Ruck). In the trailer for season 4, we get a bit more about where Roman’s loyalties lie when he seems swayed by his father’s proposition. But it is important to remember that Logan was always incredibly hard and cold towards Roman and I think that they’re both aware of it. So Logan using warmth to get Roman on his side isn’t surprising but if Roman fell for it, that would be a shock.
Still, I’ve held out hope that Kendall would win in this great war between him and his father. The two have always been at odds and even when they were working together and showed they cared, it still backfired royally. The “Number one boy” moment was only short-lived because Logan has never known how to put his family or kids above his own desires and Kendall was tired of striving for his father’s affection.
Which is what Kendall told himself. We watched as he fought to get back into the good graces of Logan and we watched as Shiv, Roman, and Connor all ousted him for it—until Roman and Shiv were there alongside him in the dark coldness of Logan’s betrayal. So a win for the Roy kids wouldn’t necessarily be the best thing in society (the show is about a family who is rich, powerful, and horrible people. We know this but we love them). But it would be a perfect “f**k you” to Logan in the end. And they got the team over at Pierce on their side (according to the final trailer), so I’d love to see that victory.
Cousin Greg and Tom could take it all
Do we laugh at Tom and Greg? Yes. Do the two of them still have the power of Waystar Royco on their side and Logan seeing them as non-threats? Yes and that could be used to their advantage. For all the sweet nothings that Greg says, he also isn’t going to just get in trouble for something without a fight. We saw it when Tom forced him into doing something illegal and Greg refused to take the fall for it on his own. (He’s fine though but still, good for Greg.)
We could have a twist in the battle to become the leader of Waystar Royco and it could be Tom Wambsgans and Cousin Greg, swooping in for their place after all the Roys have fought each other to proverbial death. It’d be pretty brilliant, to be honest, if these two came out on top because they’d been “nothing” in the eyes of Logan and his company for most of the series. So seeing them take charge of Waystar Royco and usurp Logan and his children? That’d be iconic.
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What do you think the fourth season will bring for the team over at Waystar Royco? Personally, I’ve always been Team Kendall Roy just because I love his mess but hey, it is still anyone’s game.
(featured image: HBO)
