Succession Season 4, Episode 5: Power Rankings

losing never looked so good

This week on Succession, we see Matsson absolutely demolish Rome and Kendall by…*checks notes* vastly overpaying for their company. Elsewhere, Greg immerses himself in the murky world of French politics, Connor cancels on a group of working class whites, and Shiv builds (brick by blood brick) an alliance with Matsson  – but who’s controlling whom?

#7: GREG

• Greg’s a little bit out of his league in this episode. At this point in the series, I’m confused as to what exactly his job function is at Waystar and why he’s always considered so essential that he needs to come on these trips. 

  • Siri, add “convenient punching bag” to a resume

• But honestly, it seems a little strange that Greg is blatantly trying to muscle his way into the sibling group, seemingly oblivious to how ridiculous he looks. He was a lot more careful in previous seasons, which served him well.

• Similarly, how do his cousins feel about him? They seem to keep Greg around and even passively protect him (for example, when Kendall vouched for him in front of Matsson in this episode) but don’t seem to enjoy his company or respect him in any way whatsoever.

#6: THE OLD GUARD (+ Karolina + Hugo)

• These guys are all lumped in together for the week because all of them traveled to Norway with their heads placed firmly on the chopping block. 

• They’re hanging in there though. So far it seems like their position really hasn’t changed too much relative to what they used to be under Logan. They still get pushed around and told to fuck off a lot. It’s quite surprising to see the oldies assume a quieter, more reverent tone toward the siblings. I honestly thought that in the wake of Logan’s death, they would be out for BLOOD.

• I caught a little bit of shade from Gerri when Kendall asks if they should cede to Matsson by bringing everyone to Norway and she responds with “in the interest…of doing the deal…that we all want.” Spelling it out for him like a baby lmao.  

• Karl and Frank with the compression socks in the wake of Logan’s death is killing me. Not a pulmonary embolism in SIGHT!

• I feel like the writers leaned into the “old guard is old” jokes a little too much. Surely, having experience is actually valuable? Like when they freak out over someone on Matsson’s team being an Olympian. What does THAT have to do with anything?

• I would hate to be in a position of meeting your Norwegian counterparts and wondering if it will be you or them who gets to stay after the merger.

#5: TOM

• The one-two punch of Logan’s death and the impending (maybe) divorce has not been great for Tom, and he struggles to find his footing since neither the Roy siblings nor the old guard want much to do with him. Having said that, things are looking decent for Tom by the end of this episode: he’s not on the kill list, Cyd is on the outs, and his estranged wife is asking him out to dinner.

• My heart did break a little when Shiv started throwing grovel on Tom’s white leather Tod’s sneakers (retailing at a mere $795). She’s happy to point out that he doesn’t “get it” and NEVER will. His shoes are too shiny and new and his Cucinelli vest is too tight.

• It’s not great that Tom smacks Shiv’s ear and ten seconds later she’s running back to him, but it does make sense given that she and her siblings were raised by a man whose love language is treating his kids like dirt.

•  I wonder why Shiv is suddenly warming up to Tom. Is it the pregnancy that’s pushing her toward him? There were surely other moments when Shiv has been more destabilized and would conceivably need Tom’s support more. 

• The episode ends with Shiv and Tom kind of going back to their old selves: strategizing together (bye, Cyd) as foreplay.