Season two of Succession starts this Sunday, August 18 on HBO.
At first, Succession didn’t look especially promising. The HBO series stumbled out of the gate with its first couple of episodes, which were mired in an uncomfortable blend of drama, commentary, and cruelty. Succession embedded us within the obscenely wealthy Roy family, whose patriarch, Logan Roy (Brian Cox), is head of a massive media conglomerate, Waystar Royco, and whose four children jockey for the position of Logan’s successor. The parallels to the Fox Corporation and Rupert Murdoch were inescapable, but they also clouded the issue: Was this meant to be satire? Was it a social-commentary-laden drama? Why are we spending time with these awful people anyway?
Despite plenty of experienced hands—Succession was created by Jesse Armstrong (of the magnificent Britcom Peep Show), and its executive producers include Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, and the New York Times’ Frank Rich—the show didn’t arrive fully formed. But, good god, when Succession hit its stride mid-season, it became something gloriously, savagely hilarious.