I just finished Succession, a show carried by it’s characters. Through thirty nine episodes of a show as good as this, you see the development, growth, decline, and even death of some of these characters, they are the drivers of the show more so than the constant plot point of ‘who’s taking over next‘.
These rankings are a blend of how much I liked the character vs. how interested I was in their story.
7. Roman Roy
I imagine this will be an unpopular bottom spot, but by the end, I found Roman insufferable. This seemed kind of intentional, but once the initial shock of his schtick wore off, it was pretty boring and trended downhill. Don’t get me wrong, did he have some hilarious one liners? Of course! That was the entire character! But he didn’t click for me.
I was never sure if he was meant to be a laughing stock (like Greg) or someone to be taken seriously. They blended the line towards the end when he actually got involved in the business and it felt a bit unrealistic. The Gerri plotline was moderately interesting but it died on the vine and never really resurged. His sexuality in general was… sort of interesting? But similar to Gerri (and Logan), it died by the end. Is this the same show without Roman? No. He’s worth having, but hey, someone had to be last, and he’s it.
6. Logan Roy
This will also be a controversial spot for the patriarch of the show. There is no Succession without Logan Roy. He is necessary for the show, and he plays the part well. But Logan is a pretty one dimensional character to me which is why I never liked him that much. He dangled the promise of next CEO whenever it benefitted him, which pushed the show forward plot-wise as it moved from child to child. But by the end, the whole ‘I always win!‘, ‘You’re all fucking idiots!‘, while sometimes funny, felt tired. The funniest thing he did is call Roman “Romulus”, that always got a laugh out of me. I thought him dying was one of the best parts of the show (I cried when I saw it!). Not because it was necessarily better without him, but the following episodes were wholly unpredictable and exciting.
Realistically, Logan being the CEO for that long and NOT having a real successor in place is an indictment on him as a leader, and kind of ridiculous. I know some things happened, but it had to be Kendall, he would never have entertained Shiv or Roman. That said, what’s currently happening with Murdoch and Fox shows how complicated this stuff can be, so maybe I’m wrong.
5. Shiv Roy
Shiv is not intended to be a likable character. Shiv is not a likable character. But her relationship with Tom is the single most fascinating thing on this show for me. She was a necessary balance to the lunacy of Roman, the single-mindedness of Kendall, and the head-in-the-clouds of Connor. Although I’m instinctively annoyed when I see her on the screen, she’s actually involved in a lot of the most interesting parts.
Her lack of experience makes the whole ‘you could be CEO!‘ thing seem entirely unrealistic, but aside from that, the behind-the-scenes wheeling and dealing made for a lot of good entertainment.
4. Connor Roy
Connor is probably the least consequential character on this list, but I found him surprisingly likable and deep. Like Tom, he’s an outsider to the core three siblings and his father, but it’s clear he’d come to terms with that long ago whereas Tom is constantly grappling with it – having hundreds of millions will do that.
Though kind of a nitwit, Connor is more self-aware than he seems – he knows Willa is with him for the comfort and money – and is one of the few genuinely human-humans on the show. While he’s certainly self-interested, it’s not in the cut-throat way his family is. He’s compassionate, he feels his feelings. His birthday dinner in season 4 where he insisted that his super power is living without love was heart breaking given that he had a wife, three siblings, and parents who all neglected to notice that. The presidential campaign was funny, fit him perfectly, and never really felt overdone. It actually felt like it made sense. Conheads unite.
3. Greg Hirsh
Forget how impractical it is that a nobody-cousin who’s never met the Roy’s would somehow end up at all the most important family gatherings within days. Greg was treated like shit because he kind of was shit. He never demonstrated any practical skill other than thinking for himself and blackmailing which he learned from the family, and more often than not he was actually a detriment to whomever he was with.
But all that aside, Greg was an absolute pleasure to have on the show. A stammering, bumbling, relatable idiot who felt like he deserved a spot just because of who he was, just like everyone else. The Greg and Tom dynamic was undoubtedly the most entertaining part of the show. Greg standing up for himself and Tom putting him in his place over and over never got old. Unrealistic as it may be, Greg earned his spot.
2. Kendall Roy
Throughout the series I went through phases with Kendall, and it seemed like he did too. In one moment he’s fully inspired, beaming with confidence, ready to take over the world, and in the next moment he’s embarrassed at his ideas and himself, and fighting some strong demons from him past and present. The constant back and forth did feel like that of a recovering drug addict (and his drug benders were pretty entertaining).
I imagine all people feel differently about Kendall, but I always found myself rooting for him, even until the bitter end when he was going a overboard to take over Waystar. That was honestly my biggest gripe with the show, Kendall was the obvious choice, and they act like he’s the kind-of-obvious choice. In no world would Roman or Shiv make sense over him (unless the ‘murder’ got out). The Rava and the kids backstory wasn’t the ‘strongest’, but overall I thought Strong played the part excellently.
1. Tom Wambsgans
A Wambsgans topping the Roy power ranking! Tom was not only the character I liked the most, but also the one I was most compelled by. Throughout all four seasons, Tom was constantly navigating not being in the family, whether Shiv really loved him, potentially going to jail for this family that he’s not even part of, and eating all sorts of other shit for these people. This was the greatest on-screen struggle of the series. The conversation with Shiv on the beach at the end of Season 2 (which was the best episode of the series) was what fully drew me in, and from there, he was #1.
Beyond that though, Tom felt like the most real character. Despite being a total ass-kisser to anyone with power, I found him endearing. Bombing in front of Congress was awesome, the Tom-Greg dynamic was all-time great, and the “we here for you“ marketing plan will be remembered forever. I didn’t really expect Tom to be CEO, but in the end, he did what any member of the Roy family would do – only worry about yourself and deal with the rest later.
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