Episode three of Succession's fourth and final season has cemented itself as one of the greatest hours of television.
In a show literally called Succession, the creators managed to make something so inevitable still feel so shocking.
It's Succession! Someone has to fall in order for someone to succeed. And there were plenty of moments throughout the show when we thought (and hoped) Logan might kick the bucket.
And it finally happened. Logan Roy, L to the OG, Loganus Maximus, slayer of Vikings, is officially dead.
We need to talk about how it all unfolded
For most of the episode, the background noise is loud, whether it's the sound of the plane where Logan is dying, or the churn of the sea surrounding the boat the Roy kids are on.
It's as drowning and deafening as the grief the characters are about to experience.
Everything is business as usual as Logan and his entourage step onto the plane on the way to Sweden to speak to Matsson, with Tom quipping: "You push Cyd, Roman knifes Gerri, all in a day's work."
But things quickly change.
It seemed like a joke at first, Tom's gentle yet firm voice telling Roman that Logan is "very, very sick".
Things spiral, with Kendall and Roman grappling with the thought of losing their Dad while trying to figure out if anyone is "medically competent".
Kendall and Roman rush into different corners of the room to say their final words to Logan, unsure if he can even hear them. Roman forgets to tell Logan he loves him; Kendall says he loves him, but he can't forgive him.
Finally, Shiv learns.
It's one of the most devastating moments in the episode. She has the least amount of time to process, with Roman shoving the phone in her hand as he tells her Dad is basically gone.
Meanwhile, Connor's wedding is about to get underway. When Kendall and Shiv tell him the news, he immediately says Logan was never proud of him, which comes out so effortlessly it feels freeing.
If, like Roman, you were in denial about Logan's death, that was for a reason.
Director Mark Mylod told HBO's Succession Podcast he deliberately didn't film Brian Cox's character because: "I felt oddly squeamish. It felt oddly disrespectful."
He added that it was a joint decision with creator and writer Jesse Armstrong to strip all the classic TV tropes away when there's a big death, like the clutching of chests or the news being broken by a solemn doctor, because "big events don't happen in a perfect way".
Succession has long been a show where its characters are continuously trapped in uncomfortable positions, whether it's in the back of cars, on planes or in karaoke bars.
Season four, episode three was no different, with Armstrong telling the podcast all the different modes of transportation were "deliberately claustrophobic".
That entire phone call scene was also shot in one continuous take which took 30 minutes. It worked by using multiple cameras to capture different angles, with rolls of film being replaced throughout the take as each roll can only hold about 10 minutes of footage.
Armstrong added he always wanted the show to capture what life would be like once Logan was gone, which the bulk of season four will now explore.
We can't not talk about Connor and Willa's wedding
"Should we cancel?"
It's the question Connor and Willa mull over as they float in the sea with their wedding guests on board, en route to Ellis Island where they'll say their vows.
They go through with it after an honest conversation where Willa admits Connor's money does provide a security blanket, and Connor admits he feels old now that his father has died, and that he feels he's stolen Willa from the world.
But damn it, he's not going to let his old man, or his "looney cake", ruin his big day.
If he wanted his wedding to give him more publicity to help boost his one per cent in the polls, Logan's death will contribute greatly to that, with Connor heard saying in the mid-season trailer: "In Alaska, I'm exploding."
Let's chat power rankings
The board has been well and truly flipped. Here's how everyone fared after episode three.
Connor
Our boy broke the curse! He didn't let Logan literally dying ruin his big day. And that heartfelt conversation with Willa? They're closer than ever and got the wedding they didn't plan for but ultimately deserved.
Matsson
I said last week this is Lukas Matsson's world and we're all just living in it (except for Logan). The Swede is sitting pretty across the world eating Cheetos on the couch and still has more options and power moves available to him compared to all the Roys, so watch this space.
Kendall
It feels cruel to rank the siblings against each other when their father has just died but that's television, baby! Ultimately, Kendall was simultaneously the most level-headed and ruthless once the initial shock passed, and immediately began thinking about optics and moving to control the narrative. Now that Logan's not breathing down his neck, Kendall could flourish as a future leader of Waystar … if it's still standing in the end.
Roman
Sweet Romulus. Out of every sibling, Roman was perhaps the most relatable in his absolute denial. He loved his Dad, and yet he couldn't even get the words out because there was so much he wanted to say. He ranks just above Shiv because he was on Logan's side in his final days. But this puts him in an awkward, unique position where he has one foot in each camp but no direction.
Shiv
The way Shiv found out about Logan's situation was one of the worst because she had the least amount of time to process. "I can't have that," she says, her voice breaking, immediately reverting into a little girl when she cups the phone to talk to "Daddy". What's worse is she would have been the first to know if she didn't ignore Tom's multiple calls. Shiv might have experienced the worst day of her life, but Sarah Snook just cemented herself as an Emmys frontrunner.
Gerri
This week we learnt that if you try and mess with Gerri, you will literally die. She stood up for herself against Roman and went full business mode in a time of crisis. Does she still have her job? Only Roman and Tom (and Kerry, but she doesn't count) knew that Logan wanted her gone, and it won't do them any favours to shut her out.
Tom
Tom told Greg he lost his "protector" and he's absolutely right. Where does Logan's death leave him? As Karl exquisitely puts it in the mid-season trailer: "The negative case would go, 'you're a clumsy interloper and no one trusts you. The only guy pulling for you is dead. You're just married to the ex-bosses daughter and she doesn't even like you.'"
Greg
Do we all agree that Greg leaked Logan's death to the press? He was talking to a journalist the entire time at Connor's wedding. He said in this season's first episode it's important to be in the conversation and Greg was definitely out of it this week, but that's only because he's not important enough to notice. Maybe that will be his strength.
Logan
Even in death, Logan's actions still have a massive impact on his family, the company and the market ("someone think of the market!). There's no doubt the ghost of Logan Roy will continue to haunt his children and freak them out enough to make some whack decisions, as they always do.
Kerry
Chuckles the Clown! A lot of people's power status depended on Logan Roy, but none more so than Kerry. Were they lovers? It doesn't matter, because she's lost everything now. We can only hope she hangs around for comedic effect because her response to his death was a highlight in a heavy episode.
Notes and observations
- Jesse Armstrong has previously said the show is not a "super Easter egg-y operation", but check out this plane in the season four promo poster. Foreshadowing, much?
- In case you missed it and want your heart ripped out again, did you notice this brief moment where Colin (Logan's bodyguard and "best bud" who had dinner with him in season four's first episode) watches them deplane and puts the pieces together?
- Do we just not care about spoilers anymore? The LA Times published a literal obituary as soon as the episode finished airing. Yikes.
