Succession review, Episode 306: “What It Takes”

Succession has fun skewering the political process in “What It Takes.” Also, does Shiv have…principles? Didn’t see that coming.

Wait, Shiv has principles? That might have been the most surprising thing about this week’s episode of Succession for me. So much of the show is about how things like morality and decency break down once you get enough money, but apparently something from Shiv’s time rebelling against her dad as a Democratic political consultant actually stuck.

The turn happens at the Future Freedom Summit, a conservative gathering of mega-donors and politicians where the Republican party will basically pick the party’s next candidate for president, this after ATN bullied the last one out of office. Honestly, after Donald Trump surprised everyone during the 2016 Republican primaries this idea almost seems quaint.

The show doesn’t address that, but it does get in plenty of Trump jabs. Connor Roy is still pushing his candidacy, and we discovery that he has — horror of horrors — fans called “Con-heads.” But the biggest Trump analogue is Jeryd Mencken, a smooth-faced proto-fascist who has no problems borrowing ideas from “H.” He also has the balls to call Logan Roy irrelevant, although he’s happy to get the old man a Coke later.

You see, whoever wants the nomination needs to kowtow to Logan since he controls the propaganda machine. Roman thinks Mencken will boost ATN’s ratings, gain a lot of populist support and provide a sympathetic ear in the White House should he get in. Logan is convinced but Shiv is furious, pointing out that Mencken is potentially “dangerous” to no avail. She nearly bucks her dad’s direct order at the end when she refuses to take a family photo with Logan’s new horse.

And that brings me back to surprise. Who would have thought that Shiv had the backbone to stand up to her dad over her political ideals of all things, and in an episode that takes a dim view of the integrity of the American electoral process? (Naturally, Greg is mildly scandalized that Logan can essentially just pick the next president.) Might she consider jumping ship and helping Kendall, who can really need it now that he’s run his lawyer Lisa out on a rail for daring to give him sound legal advice?

She has an in, as Tom meets with Kendall partway through the episode (none of the Roys seem to care that he leaves the family strategy session). Kendall offers to help Tom avoid jail time if he switches sides, but Tom isn’t impressed, probably because Kendall is lying the whole time and, as Tom says, “My hunch is that you’re going to get fucked, cause I’ve seen you get fucked a lot and I’ve never seen Logan get fucked once.”

But if Shiv wants to join Kendall? The window is open. And Tom might be sympathetic to her concerns. Especially now that he’s convinced he’s going to jail, he seems to be doing more soul-searching, and this might be just the thing to bring him and Shiv back together.

Although the fact that they have to get back together in the first place is cause for alarm. There’s a scene where Tom is trying to connect with Shiv over their shared passion for wine, and then sharing his concerns about jail, and she basically brushes him off. He gets together with Greg that night while Shiv is sleeping just so he can have a sympathetic ear.

Tom is as complicit in ATN’s excesses as any of them but it’s still hard not to sympathize with the guy. Maybe joining with Shiv against her dad will make him happy? Do I even want him to be happy? Such is the experience of watching Succession.

Episode Grade: B

Roy Family Bullet Points

• Shiv and Roman trading barbs all night was great. “You just wanna give him a blowjob so stop projecting.” “Poor Rome, his dreams of porking mom slipping through his lubed-up fingers.” “Roman, you just love the boot cause you love to be kicked by it.” It’s part sibling ribbing and part serious business.
• Everyone calls the outgoing president “the Raisin.”
• Stephen Root, who is in every other TV show ever made, shows up as a donor who’s creeping towards Willa. “Maybe I don’t wanna donate my body to political science,” she tells Connor.
• “I just feel like because of my physical length I could be the target of all kinds of misadventure.” The word is “height,” Greg.
• Another great Greg line, when Logan asks him if he would vote for Connor as president: “I think I could see myself spoiling by ballot in his favor.”
• If Shiv does join Kendall, she’ll be taking a big risk, because he’s as unstable as ever. Firing Lisa after she actually stood up to him and told him a bit of what he needed to hear…it’s hard to see how he doesn’t flame out, even with new allies.

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