by If you love Succession and Jeremy Strong’s iconic “It made sense dramaturgically” after Logan’s death, be sure to watch it again with the rest of the cast’s opinion on S4E3 here.
When in doubt… WATCH SUCCESSION. The more shows are released, the more screenwriting is outstanding, and this show is truly a masterpiece. Jesse Armstrong’s ability to depict the capitalist’s narcissism and psychopathy is genius, and I am all for it. Watching this show has been mesmerizing and writing about how captivating it is makes me enjoy it even more. In Part 1 of this article, I want to share my thoughts and analysis on Ewan, Greg, Gerri, and Tom. Be sure to read Part 2 for Connor, Rome, Shiv, and Logan.
Ewan
This story is from the villains’ perspective and how they unravel their very well-hidden deepest, darkest, narcissistic intentions. When the time is right, they expose it unapologetically and get away with what they want. The interesting part of this show is how our antagonist, Ewan, is quote-unquote, a good guy.
He’s aware of Logan’s bloody hands, especially with everything that happened with Mo and the silenced victims from the cruises. He might not be aware of everything, but he has seen enough. For example, if he found out about the exploded rocket in Japan due to Roman’s pressure to accelerate the process, he wouldn’t be surprised. The Roys follow a pattern of irresponsible decision-making based on their egotistical desires. They are so powerful they can get away with anything, and Ewan is here to remind us, we shouldn’t admire these people.
He is also a key character for the audience; not only is he an antagonist for our main characters, but he’s the woke fairy godmother who takes the audience out of this playful illusion where the characters are cool for their money and their power. In the end, in S4E10, he shows us these people are real in his speech at the funeral. The fictional characters in this story are based on a real, capitalist, corrupt, and abusive system that profits from others. That’s one of the reasons why the series finale is so devastating.
I think he’s not judging from a moralistic position, but rather from a realistic perspective of the world being led by corrupt, Machiavellian men. That’s why he says “It is not for me to judge my brother. History will tell that story”. He goes on and tells the keys of Logan’s story, making us understand he was a deeply perturbed person who lived in a violent household in a time of war. That is what happened with boomers; they have crazy and radical ideals, and sometimes they’re very tone-deaf and insensitive. However, all those ideals stem from growing up in a war-centered world with no place for empathy or a kind heart. Ewan did more than judge him, he saw through him and finally revealed how Logan had been feeling guilty for Rosie’s death because he brought the Polio with him home, and his aunt and uncle never helped him think otherwise.
Ewan’s speech seems rude, but it’s fair because most of the time when someone we disliked or disapproved of their actions passes, we try to remember them with outstanding traits, but it might be a lie, an illusion, and an intention to deceive ourselves of what was truly there. We need to remember that Logan was more than just “The man, the myth, the legend”. I think the writers use Ewan as that character who brings us down to earth and enlighten reality, while also reminding us even if someone was cruel and harsh, he or she still deserve a goodbye.
Then he says, “I love him. I loved him, I suppose”. I think that´s one of the purest forms of love: when we can see someone for who they are and avoid trying to change them, even if we don’t approve of their Modus Vivendi. Finally, he says “maybe that’s me too”, showing us he is not talking from a condescending point, but a very realistic and observant one.
Greg
Greg seems to be very dumb, but is he as dumb as he portrays himself to be? I believe he’s rather insecure and dorky. He tries too hard to fit in and seem posh. Even though Greg and the Roys are family, he is not entirely part of them. In S1E1 we can see a dumb, young, high Greg who gets fired from his job and hears his mother say, “don’t they know who you are?” This is Jesse Armstrong’s genius way of portraying how nepotism also works with proximity to wealth. Someone might not be wealthy by him or herself, but once they are close to that wealth it is easier to climb the ladder. Greg visits Logan and asks for a job, Logan then said he would do anything for his brother and accepts Greg into Waystar as Tom’s assistant. This also shows how Logan values bloodline as part of Waystar’s payroll, which is later confirmed in S4E10 when Roman said Kendall’s children weren’t bloodline because “one is a buy-in” and “the other half Rava, half cabinet guy”.
By trying to fit in Greg, uses academic terminology in his sentences to appear intellectual, but he doesn’t have a full domain of it, just like Tom does. Ultimately, they sound odd and that is how they are depicted as the outsiders who weren’t born to billionaire parents. For example, in S1E9 when Greg meets Caroline, he greets her by “Your Excellency”.
A way to whisper wealth is through fancy words, but Greg and Tom fail to recognize that the Roys are not old money, so they don’t have this pretentious speech pattern, in fact, they speak confidently with vulgar expressions. And no matter how hard Greg tries, he always looks like his favorite book is Dog Day’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Probably he just hears random expressions that come across as posh, and tries to replicate it, for instance in S4E10 when Kendall says, “let’s Carpe the Diem out of this”. Greg is also very observant, we can see that through his outfits. In season one, he starts very dorkily with Sperries, an oversize jacket, his long hair down, and slowly evolves into a more formal tux outfit. Nonetheless, the designers still portray him as an outsider who is not part of the squad, or “Quad Squad”, with the use of his necktie. If we look at Roman and Kendall, they do not wear ties. They don’t need to try hard enough or look too formal because they already belong to the elite and their position is unquestionable.
It’s hard to talk about Greg without mentioning Tom. In other words, “you can’t make some Tomelettes without some Greggs”. Tom and Greg have a fantastic platonic relationship, a pure friendship. One of the purest relationships in the show, if not the only one. Even though everyone is prioritizing their interest, including Tom and Greg, and backstabs each other. Tom and Greg continue their comradery because they see themselves in one another.
Tom and Greg have a dynamic of mutual empathy. They are the same person, but from different generations. I think that’s why Tom’s first approach to Greg was intimidating, because he was testing Greg to see how inappropriate and how far he could go before Greg responded with boundaries. Greg keeps following Tom because he offers an open space and invitation to get closer where Greg can be himself.
Tom does this because he projects himself into Greg. He looks at this kid who is not part of the nuclear family and wants to grow the social ladder in an environment where he can do so. Even though Tom is described as a corn-fed peasant, he was most likely near wealth, his mom is a lawyer, so we can infer he didn’t grow up poor.
Greg might be heir to future millions, but he does not carry a lavish lifestyle the way the Roy kids do. Tom projects himself in Greg because they both have the privilege of proximity to wealth, and they can juice it out to reach opulence in the social structure. Tom tries to help him out and an appreciative Greg reciprocates those actions. For example, in S1E9 when Greg finds out Shiv is cheating on Tom, he tries to warn him, creating this relationship where they both have each other’s backs. This platonic relationship is born as soon as the win-win is about an emotional, supportive transaction rather than a direct strategy to become the next successor.
No matter how much Tom and Greg seem Dumb and Dumber, they are mainly insecure men who observe everyone until they feel assured enough to strike. For example, Greg has a keen eye for Kendall’s game plan just as much as Tom’s, and he was the only one smart enough to translate Masson’s conversations. He’s just not sure of himself to navigate this realm, he’s also very young; and whilst he may never be a killer, he comprehends this backstabbing industry. Probably, by the time he becomes a middle-aged man, he’ll be like Tom, or even worse because he will have experienced events Tom never did until later in life, such as firing hundreds of people through a video call.
Greg’s evolution goes from being self-conscious and hesitating to standing up for himself and slapping Tom back after getting busted for betraying him. But let’s not forget the hilarious and iconic self-doubting, foolish Greg in front of the Senate. His character arc is very clear if we think of him in court in S2, as opposed to him ignoring Shiv’s intimidation and the betrayal to Tom in S4.
In the end, Greg asked Tom what will happen to him, while accepting he might get fired. Tom then said he will fire Hugo, Frank, and Karl, but stay with Gerri because “she’s not afraid of the dark”. Then he called Greg a “fucking piece of shit”, reminding us of their platonic relationship where they stand for one another. Tom even respects Greg’s backstabbing because he finally viewed that cruelty and fierceness everyone needs to survive the corporate world. Maybe he even felt proud.
Greg showed us all that corporations as big as Waystar are based in You either step on others or you get stepped on. Greg did what he needed to do to secure his high salary with a low amount of work and Tom saw that. In the end, they both did that.
Gerri
Gerri is a very smart woman; she knows how to pick her battles. She’s loyal to Logan because she knows how he works, and she’s been working for him for decades and she knows the kids are young. They have recently incorporated Waystar and while Gerri has been there for more than two decades, the kids have probably been around for one, without counting their training.
No matter how many times Kendall tries to take over the company, she won’t go with him. She believed in Rome and genuinely thought he could be successor. She’s supportive of Rome, but when the kids tried to take over the company in S3E9 and Logan changed the divorce terms, she stuck to Logan’s side, which makes sense because “you don’t bite the hand that feeds you”.
When Logan was hospitalized in S1, she was considered to become Interim CEO, but she refused. However, after Logan passed away, in S4E4 when Tom, Karl, Frank, and she are in the China Pantry, she offers to be a possible CEO. She’s not going against Logan because he is not around anymore. She is also elegantly astute, for example when she tried to dismiss Karl by saying I think you are a core legend, what you did in the nineties… with cable… (this shows how Karl’s ideas are obsolete and old, whereas Waystar needs to modernize itself with up-to-date competencies). This is very characteristic of Gerri; she charmingly shows to people’s faces her disapproval and they can’t hit back because she does it smoothly. She avoids conflict by putting a stop to it straightforwardly and respectfully.
Contrary to her coworkers, she respects Roman and genuinely believes in him. When Logan offered Roman the job and to Shiv and Kendall as well, he was playing chess with them and they were his pawns, but Gerri truly believed Roman could improve and grow. Even after they betrayed one another, she tells him in S4E7 “I could have gotten you there”.
The first time she got fired was because Roman accidentally sent his dick pic to his dad, which led to him finding out about their intimate relationship. They never kissed, touched, or slept with each other; Gerri avoided Roman’s harassment but never fully stopped it nor got further involved. I think she did so because she slightly liked him back, but never engaged in direct flirtation because she had more of a motherly love for him than an erotic one. She also doesn’t fool around or play games, even though she might enjoy occasional intimacy with Rome, like in S2E5 when he masturbated in her bathroom. She also likes supporting Rome, for example, when she suggested he should take the Manager Training.
That’s why she got very upset after Roman fired her at Connor’s wedding because she knew it was Logan’s call, but her disappointment stemmed from Roman’s lack of initiative and self-respect. At that moment, she probably realized Roman was and will forever be his father’s puppet, who couldn’t stand up for himself or for Gerri.
Her disappointment was so deep, she cut communication with him, even after the intimacy they’d explored previously. For example, after Logan died Roman opened up to Gerri, something he can only do with her, nonetheless, Gerri had enough by then, so she sat down, fixed her shoes, and left.
She didn’t get fired because she received Roman’s pictures, she got fired because Logan couldn’t risk anyone else manipulating Roman, who is the easiest to control out of the three. More importantly, Logan couldn’t allow Gerri to use Roman to get closer to the CEO position, but she was foreseeing Matsson’s change in the dynamic, and was working on staying in her position without losing her million-dollar salary.
We hardly ever see her lose her temper, and while everyone else speaks with metaphors, she’s very honest and plain sailing. She understands the game and navigates it well, consciously, and strategically. That’s also why Tom decided to keep her on the team, because she keeps herself updated, hence the irony of her reminiscing Karl’s huge success in the nineties. She is also successful because she is level-headed, she is not keen on abusing her power or wealth, she doesn’t lie to herself, and she makes decisions based on reality.
We could say she won the game compared to the rest of the characters. She kept her position, her millions, and her status. Most importantly, she was rewarded for her hard work whilst being a woman. Especially because one of the constant themes in the show is how women have to work twice as hard as men, only to earn half the recognition.
Tom
Tom is intelligent, he understands being useful is what it takes to climb the ladder, not only in the sense of doing the required work but in becoming indispensable for others, being easily controlled, and satisfying his superiors’ ego. He approached Shiv to be close to Logan and he desperately tried to be liked by Logan, for example, in S1E1 he buys Logan a watch, which in the end he didn’t care for. Throughout the show, he grows into Logan by being servile and volunteering to go to jail, but none of that was enough until he betrayed Shiv. After doing so, he proved he could be a killer too, evolved from prey to predator, and demonstrated narcissism and malice.
These dynamics are Logan’s psychopathic language; he rather respects those who impose. For example, in S2E10, when Tom ate his chicken, Logan was not reactionary or aggressive, he just stared at Tom’s odd behavior. In this same episode, we can see Tom is starting to change and he finally confronts Shiv, compared to when he didn’t defend himself in S2E3 when Shiv, Roman, and Tabitha made fun of him or in S2E3 when Shiv wants him to talk with Logan about Pierce and as soon as he refuses, she jokingly says “My meat puppet has stopped working”.
Tom’s arc is truly graceful; as an audience, we can enjoy his way of showing enough is enough at the end of season two, especially after being abused by Logan in Hungary with Boar on the Floor. Tom also seems madly in love, so much to the point he proposed to Shiv when Logan was hospitalized. However, I believe he was a slick snake. He thought that was his last resource to secure his position at the company before Logan died. I don’t doubt he fell in love with Shiv, but he cautiously approached power with the mask of an innocent imbecile. For example, when he tracked Shiv’s menstrual cycle because he loved her so much, he apparently wanted to grow a family, and he found a better way of locking his role in Waystar by providing another heir.
Everyone gets blindsided by Tom’s final backstab, e.g., in S4E4 Karl roasts him by saying he’s a “clumsy interloper, and no one trusts you, the only guy pulling for you is dead and now you’re just married to the ex-boss’s daughter, and she doesn’t even like you, and you are fair and squarely fucked”. However, no matter how much he wants to come across as dorky and cute, he will always look for access to dominion and influence; particularly when he betrayed Shiv for the second time by negotiating his position as CEO with Matsson. He knows Logan is out of the picture and now he must be servile to the new captain.
Matsson is another misogynistic man in this industry (shocker). He doesn’t respect women enough to have one at the highest position and he also needs someone easy to manipulate. Whilst Shiv is no puppet, Tom is great at putting others first when it comes to improving his social mobility. For instance, in S4E9 we see an article with the cartoon of a puppeteer Shiv controlling Matsson. He cleverly said he didn’t mind, but later went to Tom, who accepted the job.
Then in S4E7, Tom gifted Shiv a scorpion. Regardless of how much he jokes about Shiv being a scorpion, he is secretly one too. I believe it’s a way of saying “You could sting me, but I could sting you too”; which reminds me of the fable, The Scorpion and the Frog. At first, Shiv used Tom to get involved in Waystar because, as a woman, she needed a man who could keep her updated and provide her with some sort of control. Hence, Shiv uses Tom as the frog to “cross the river”, but she failed to realize Tom could never be a puppet forever, especially if he wanted to grow and become CEO. The dynamic changed and Tom started playing like the scorpion too. Wickedly he gave Shiv the scorpion and said “I love you, but you kill me. And I kill you”.
Shiv and Tom were using one another and accidentally fell in love, although it was never a deep, romantic, platonic marriage. Their relationship was and will continue to be based on a pragmatic kind of love where both lovers want to find value in their partners, and ultimately work together to reach a common goal. At first, their common goal was Tom becoming CEO, and once Logan offered it to Shiv, Tom said “I thought this is what we wanted for me”. Interestingly, what disrupted the relationship’s dynamic was not the cheating, disrespect, or lack of communication, but the pursuit of different goals.
I think during the engagement, they lost a grasp of reality. They were trying so hard to prove their “I’m with you for love” narrative, they forgot they were using one another. Nonetheless, when they got married, we were quickly enlightened by Caroline, who kept asking the guests how long they gave them and maybe she tried telling Shiv to stop fooling herself. Ironically, they got married in a very cold place, for such a cold-hearted bond.
At the Tailgate Party, when they finally confront each other, we can see how they’re both the scorpion and the frog. They are trying to sting one another and get to the other side, which becomes a competition for who survives. Shiv said “are you sure you’re not projecting? Because that is actually you”. And we can observe how they both project on one another as they play the game with the same cards.
If you liked this article, make sure you read the upcoming Part 2 for a detailed perspective on Logan’s manipulation and the kids’ daddy issues.
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