Succession is one of those shows that when I read the synopsis, I couldn't think of anything more unlikeable as entertainment - a media mogul and his family loosely based on the Murdoch establishment. But upon recommendation from my sister, excellent ratings on IMDB and the fact that I have watched everything else, we decided to give it a go.

And it was superb.

You know it's a good show when scenes and characters linger long after the credits roll, and you spend time reading reviews and interviews to suck the last bit of pleasure out of a stellar series. Including going to the effort of writing this rather long praise of it.

^{The siblings and their father}

Succession is a tale of trauma above all else. The king of the company and family, manipulative, powerful and ruthless, is Logan Roy, eighty years old and due to name his successor - hence the name of the show. His second eldest son thinks he is in line to lead, and even though his father suffers a stroke in the opening episode, Logan puts him in his place. Logan doesn't think any of his children are capable of taking over the family business, and pride and power prevent him from allowing them to do so anyway. He's a businessman first and foremost - his children are often only pawns in his plays.

This, of course, is terribly toxic and awfully tragic. The four of them don't trust in each other because that's the way they've been raised. No real plot spoiler, but in the third season, Roman (Kieran Culkin), the youngest son, reminds his siblings that at a family dinner, he was left aiming a water pistol at his father when the others were too scared to go through with it. That's just it - the four of them are terrified of their parent, loathing him as well as desperately seeking his approval. This tension drives the entire narrative, particularly for Kendall (Jeremy Strong) who believes it is his right, as well as his leadership being best for the company as he understand that technology is the way forward. Logan Roy is far more old school, although he does have the capacity to juggle billions and sink other media companies faster than you can shout 'news!', making his company Waystar the most powerful media company in America with branches all over the world.

^{Even the art in Succession - here, Peter Paul Rubens’s The Tiger Art - paints a picture of power}

This, of course, explores other themes such as the influence of media over politics, how the rich can buy their way out of any controversy, and how out of touch they can be with the rest of us. The more the series progresses, the more our jaws dropped with incredulity - the lobster scraped into bins because of a smell in the dining room, the private jets, the huge black yacht with a helipad. Money stinks on this show. If you had no idea of how the .1 percent live, this show will make you see it.

However much you want to hate them for their despicable tactics and horrendous behaviour, the Roy children are still very likeable in their pathos. It is not their fault - it is the deplorable way in which they were raised. There's a scene where Logan pulls himself out of the pool, the scars on his back visible. What kind of childhood did he have in order to treat his children in this way? Some make you want to cry. The end of season one is one of the best finales I have ever seen - without giving anything away it's brutal, harrowing, and brilliant. Whilst Jeremy Strong's character does something awful, the audience is positioned to empathise with him whilst at the same time wanting to turn away in anger and horror. Is this how the uber rich get away with things?

^{Image Source}

Whilst the third season seemed to bounce from the same problem of succession as the first two - some reviews accuse the show of going in circles - it's worth bearing with, as the last two episodes are no less explosive or edge of couch brilliant as the last seasons, leaving me eagerly waiting Season 4. This pathetic moment was where we were leading all along - there is no doubt, in retrospect, the writers and director knew exactly where it was leading, and how to get there.

^{The opening montage is tweaked every season, giving us character and thematic clues}

The literature and historical-political references in Succession give the series a complexity that is deeper that face value - there's references to art, to Shakespeare (some say it's King Lear, where the aging king of Britain decides to step down and divide the throne on to his three daughters, firstly putting them all to a test) and to political events such as the media's influence over elections and the Chappaquiddick incident whereSenator Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy caused the death of his passenger, the incident following him for the rest of his career. There's a richness to the show that makes the 9.7 ratings on IMDB warranted.

It's the poem that lends a line to the title of each season's finale. I had to do a little dive into it as I wanted to know how it fit - and fit it did, poignantly and hauntingly. This may be of more interest to those who have actually seen the show, but if you're familiar with this poet I'd love to hear from you in the comments below.

There sat down, once, a thing on Henry's heart só heavy, if he had a hundred years & more, & weeping, sleepless, in all them time Henry could not make good. Starts again always in Henry's ears the little cough somewhere, an odour, a chime.

And there is another thing he has in mind like a grave Sienese face a thousand years would fail to blur the still profiled reproach of. Ghastly, with open eyes, he attends, blind. All the bells say: too late. This is not for tears; thinking.

But never did Henry, as he thought he did, end anyone and hacks her body up and hide the pieces, where they may be found. He knows: he went over everyone, & nobody's missing. Often he reckons, in the dawn, them up. Nobody is ever missing.

^{From Dream Song 29 by John Berryman}

The poem is from a anthology that won the Pulitzer Prize, The main character, Henry, struggles to deal with his depression, and whatever he does doesn't work - he's still terribly sad, and it distorts his entire perception of the world, worrying he has killed someone he knows. Whether it's with a 'cough', 'an odour, a chime', depression doesn't leave him, and forms a terrible weight upon his chest no matter what he does. He can't get to the heart of it, even though he tries - he 'attends, blind'. The bells tell Henry it's too late to change. The fractured lines give it a dream like reality - Henry doesn't know if he has or hasn't killed someone, and nor does the reader. It's confusing but that's the state of Henry's mind - confused, sad, depressed, paranoid.

Now go watch Succession and tell me that's not Kendall Roy. Haunted by the ghosts of his past, deeply depressed, manic, battling with addiction and believing himself a killer, 'all the bells say: too late' for either redemption, clarity or acceptance.

^{Roman Roy - check the headline in the background}

One last thing, given the weight of this dark poetry - Succession is blackly comic. It's bitingly, brutally and disgustingly funny. Kieran Culkin's character has some of the best lines. With a fetish for older woman and a sprinkling of necrophilia and perhaps wanting to fuck his mother (Oedipus Rex, anyone?), his banter is whip sharp, cruel and brilliant. It definitely isn't a laugh a minute due to to some of the tragic narrative arcs and relationships between the characters, but still, we found ourselves laughing aloud often and texting the best ones to my sister to share the moments. Just wait til you see who Roman sends a dick pic to.

Even the headlines in the background of some scenes are hilarious - I realised I missed alot of them until I read this Vulture article. My favourites:

• “Wait, Is Every Taylor Swift Lyric Secretly Marxist?” • “This Tinder for Pedophiles App Sounds Like a Really Bad Idea” • “Meet the World’s Richest People Trafficker (He’s a Surprisingly Nice Guy)” • “5 Reasons Why Drinking Milk on the Toilet Is Kind of a Game-Changer” • “Meet the Guys Who Want to Turn Justin Bieber Into a Viking Longship” • “Someone Is Making Soap Shaped Like Jerry Seinfeld’s Face, Because White People”

I tell you what though - I'll be glad to get that theme tune out of my head, if not the characters.