In silence, adding fans bit by bit, “succession” comes to an end this sunday 28 may, The four seasons that catapulted the series HBO Go to the television Olympus and make it one of the best in history. Is it really that good? Yes. (I could end the review here, but let’s think about it some more.)
created by Jesse Armstrong and released in 2019, “succession” tells the story of Roy family, the controller of one of the world’s largest media conglomerates. When the family patriarch leaves the company, an internal battle ensues in the search for a replacement.
A family drama of millionaires fighting for power at the highest level that world politics and economics will allow them. It was built around the power struggles of “game of Thrones” and associating them with the detestable characters of “The White Lotus”, And therein lies its greatest strength: It’s a master class in acting.
There is superb casting work right from the start. Brian Cox He is the head of the family and plays a ruthless and angry character who feels that he owns the world. jeremy strong He plays the son who has always been subservient to his father, until he overdoes it with drugs. sarah snook She is the daughter, discriminated against for being a woman and thrown out of her father’s business. keiran culkin He is the youngest son, the most loyal to his father but also the most immature. is added to alan ruckthe eldest son of the family, who dreams of becoming president of the United States, and Matthew McFaddenSarah’s partner, who will make every effort to climb the company.
And it’s that acting is more than reciting dialogues, and Armstrong understands this all too well and makes the most of passive performances. Each gesture, each grin, each movement is designed in such a way that it allows for growth to be built into the characters. They, the characters, are the biggest asset of the show, around whom and their emotions everything moves.
The staging is in charge of letting the actors shine, and the decision to use documentary-type shots with violent zooms implied there were times we were joining this dysfunctional family. Each approach to a face hides an expression that would go unnoticed in another series or movie.
It is not strange, that we are experiencing an unbeatable progression of characters in these four seasons. The protagonists and secondary characters are complex characters, with many layers created by a master craftsman. Scenes that seem to have little weight become relevant in later chapters like a tangled gear.
It was in the fourth season, in chapter 3, where “succession” Rise to the Top of Television “Connor’s Wedding” Receives a 10/10 Rating on IMDb, a Milestone That Was Reserved for Chapter Only “Ozymandias” Of “Breaking Bad”, Several other series fell short of perfection, receiving 9.9/10: “Six Feet Under”, “BoJack Horseman”, “Game of Thrones”, “Better Call Saul”, “The Sopranos”. At that table sits “Succession”.
Waiting for time to do its job, the series about spoiled millionaires with serious absentee parenthood problems enters the television canon, not only as one of the best-acted and best-produced series ever, but positioned as a clear example That’s how quality television is made, a simmering feast of betrayals, riches and tears.
