Succession (Season 3)

⭐ 9.0/10

(Originally written by Tim)

After a long absence the best show on TV is back and as strong as ever. Everything you know and love about the first 2 seasons is here, but by the end of the season things really begin to boil over. Longstanding plot points really climax, and the character reactions are all perfect.

I will say I didn't love this season the same way as the first 2. The first 3 episodes are very plot heavy, kind of cleaning up the fallout from season 2. It makes sense that they had to be a bit more serial, but I like when an indeterminate amount of time passes between episodes and we pick up with the family under some crazy circumstances. At the same time, while I don't want complex plot, sometimes things happen at the end of episodes and are kind of swept under the rug at the beginning of the next. I understand that they are mega rich and consequences mean nothing, just felt like some unfinished threads.

Episode 8 was the standout here, and I think one of the best episodes the show has ever done. That doesn't mean that there weren't any fireworks left for the finale, and the alliance twists at the end has opened up many exciting doors for the next season.

These characters are terrible, and there is a sick delight in hoping they all fail. This season delivers a bit more of that, where it is clearer that the are all broken and not good at what they do. Everything they have was given to them, and the man who gave it to them is still a sociopath and still holds all the power.

The hilarious moments are still here. The vicious dialogue is still here. Everything that makes the show great has been perfected, and now they are twisting the knives. Great stuff, 10/10 if not for the slower start.