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**Major Spoiler for Succession **
Has anyone seen the most recent, penultimate episode of Succession? I've been looking at the discussion around the internet, both reddit and site summaries, and I feel like I watched a completely different episode. Ignoring the terrible and ham-fisted writing this entire season, I feel like the internet is utterly ignoring or misreading key scenes in this particular episode. First the Roman Roy eulogy. He utterly chokes, and clearly gets the bright idea to blame it over suddenly becoming overcome with grief for his father. Upon glancing at the coffin, his face clearly slackens as the idea hits him, and he very clearly beacons his sibling to rush the stage and cover for him. The camera shot of the tv recording clearly picks up his exasperated moan of "man" as in 'I fucked up and embarrassed himself'. The Old Guard even look on in embarrassment at the pathetic display and fake tears. Looking back at the opening scene of Roy practicing his eulogy, he is clearly winging it and speaking nonsensically. Quote "His demise was carried, written in fire. Pulsed electric, in a flash, over seven continents, into newspapers he started, networks he launched through fiber he laid, satellites we built. A great man indeed. Something, something, something, something."[sic] Complete nonsense. Jeryd even mocks Roman later with "Tiny Tears". Yet the entire internet seems to believe that Roy was genuinely and suddenly overcome with grief.
The second misunderstanding the internet has is with Shiv's pregnancy. Half seems to believe she had an abortion, the other half believes she plans to drink alcohol through her pregnancy and raise retarded babies. Earlier in the episode, she announces to her brothers that she is pregnant, and is clearly intending to keep the baby. Who announces a pregnancy that they intend to abort? They are literally congratulating her. Her mother also later congratulates her. Later, in a heated conversation with Tom, who she is divorcing, she very pettily begins to drink a glass of champagne. Clearly implying she is no longer pregnant with his baby. Tom follows up saying "It's fine", but asking when she was planning to tell him she was no longer pregnant and what might have happened. She looks taken aback at the suddenly realization of what she has done and implied, with a "What, now!? I wasn't expecting to." Then after stumbling over her words a bit, she relies "it was sudden, and I wasn't sure I wanted to keep it." Clearly implying she had an abortion. Then Tom responds "So why didn't you tell me". She replies, "Because it seems so sad". When Tom walks away, the director holds the shot on her face for a full 10 seconds as she comes to terms with what's she done, as he even accused her a couple episodes ago of not really being pregnant, to emotionally abuse him.
The last and perhaps biggest misreading/downplaying/whathaveyou, is the revelations that Logan Roy sexually abused Roman Roy. As the three children grieve together before the gaudy mausoleum, Shiv stares at Roy as he breaks down as their father enters his final resting place and the shot lingers on her sudden realization that Roy was sexually abused by their dad. That is why Roy is impotent, unable to form proper relationships with women, and generally sexually inappropriate at all times. He jokes about being the father of his sister's child and jerking off to her breastfeeding. The camera then does a frontal follow along shot as she goes to confront The Old Guard about "just how bad was dad, really?". "He was a salty dog, but a good egg" they reply. Salty dog meaning an ornery sailor. She nods, while holding back tears, and the music is incredible tense. Not ten seconds later, Kendall Roy again literally says "Life isn't fair. People who say they love you also fuck you" with a shot of him looking at his fathers mausoleum while describing a crafty business plan to fuck over his conniving sister and become CEO, and become like his father.
I feel like I'm in crazy town, because these are all MAJOR plot developments and revelations and ABSOUTELY no one is talking about it. All discussion being about who will succeed, shitty jokes, and awful takes, and none of the massive character development or revelations that happened this episode.
He's clearly not winging it imo. That shit is way too on point for Roman's extemporaneous style of speaking (which would be more perverse). It actually sounds like Kendall's corporate-speak freestyling but even then is too polished.
Yes, it sounds like nonsense corpo speak providing platitudes about a man many see as absolutely awful. But that doesn't mean it isn't planned nonsense.
I think Roman is clearly meant to have actually been grieving. Even in that opening scene I think he repeats his common refrain that he "pre-grieved" which does make it sound like the lady doth protest too much. A few episodes ago he also told Gerri he felt awful (he was also the sibling most in denial about Logan's death), but he wrapped it in standard Roman irony because he - none of them really - like being authentically vulnerable.
He also said incoherent things in his breakdown (like asking if he dad is in the coffin. Like...yes? lol) that fit more with grief than the pretense of grief, which I think would be more dignified.
Don't take Roman at his word.
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