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Succession -- HBO


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Anyone gonna give this a whirl?  Getting good, not great, reviews.  Has the original Hannibal Lector as an old media tycoon who doesn't want to give up the baton just yet to his 4 scheming kids, I think.  Has Cameron from Ferris Bueller.  The less famous Culkin.  The less famous guy with the last name Strong.  No idea if this will be any good.  By the guy behind The Big Short, so that's good, I guess.... Who's gonna give it a shot?  Bueller?  Bueller?

 

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Yeah I watched last night.  Enjoyed it.

Kieran Culkin is definitely great in the loose cannon role.  Creepy son-in-law guy is super creepy.

I think the nephew who puked out of the eye holes in the mascot costume (which was goddamn hilarious) might be sneaky good.

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Caught up on the first two episodes last night.  I'm not sure what to think -- too many breaks into yuk yuk marginal humor.  A few of the characters are tremendously unlikeable, like the soon-to-be-son-in-law.

The daughter worked best, along with Culkin.  Frank the corporate fixer was good, I expect him to resurface.  I'll probably try to get through the season, but I don't have much hope.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I seem to be alone, but I’m loving this show. It’s incredibly watchable and the hours fly by. Some shows stay on my DVR a while, but we’re happy to be caught up with this one.

The oddballs are nuanced and funny. Despite being a top executive in a worldwide conglomerate,Tom is insecure, happy to have a punching bag in Greg, who is also his only confidant. Meanwhile, Zelig-like Greg rockets from vomitous fired amusement park mascot to an insider to all the dirty secrets in the span of a couple weeks. No, it doesn’t necessarily ring true, but it’s funny.

Alan Ruck as the oldest son/from a different mother has been a side character, happy to remain out of the fray (except when he not-so-subtly enters his name as a potential CEO). He finally shows what he’s passionate about: frozen butter.

I’m not familiar with Jeremy Strong’s previous work, but he’s doing well capturing the role of a son trying navigate the darkness of the enormous shadow cast by Logan Roy. He and Giovanni Ribisi need to play brothers in something.

Culkin’s Roman might be the character I care about the least, only because he’s written as a bit too fucked up. But he seems well suited to play a creep. 

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12 hours ago, Vito Andolini said:

I seem to be alone, but I’m loving this show. It’s incredibly watchable and the hours fly by. Some shows stay on my DVR a while, but we’re happy to be caught up with this one.

The oddballs are nuanced and funny. Despite being a top executive in a worldwide conglomerate,Tom is insecure, happy to have a punching bag in Greg, who is also his only confidant. Meanwhile, Zelig-like Greg rockets from vomitous fired amusement park mascot to an insider to all the dirty secrets in the span of a couple weeks. No, it doesn’t necessarily ring true, but it’s funny.

 Alan Ruck as the oldest son/from a different mother has been a side character, happy to remain out of the fray (except when he not-so-subtly enters his name as a potential CEO). He finally shows what he’s passionate about: frozen butter.

I’m not familiar with Jeremy Strong’s previous work, but he’s doing well capturing the role of a son trying navigate the darkness of the enormous shadow cast by Logan Roy. He and Giovanni Ribisi need to play brothers in something.

Culkin’s Roman might be the character I care about the least, only because he’s written as a bit too fucked up. But he seems well suited to play a creep. 

I'm with you, dude. This show is awesome. I figured I'd like it, but it has exceeded my expectations. It's irritating that it's not being talked about much, but maybe it turns a corner with folks or something. 

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Loved the first episode, almost quit after a terribad second episode and then decided to stick with it after a better-than-average third.  I’m one or two episodes behind but it’s good enough to keep me interested.  

I do get the feeling this will end up being one of those shows which (assuming there is one) HBO dials back some characters and makes some much needed changes between S1 and S2.  

The premise is solid, but there are a few off the wall characters right now who need some major adjustments by the writing staff.  

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Daughter is the best character. Culkin absolutely owns his character.but I would still watch if he wasn’t in the show because it’s just creepy. Without the daughter, I’m not sure I’m still watching.

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On 6/29/2018 at 12:02 AM, Vito Andolini said:

I seem to be alone, but I’m loving this show. It’s incredibly watchable and the hours fly by. Some shows stay on my DVR a while, but we’re happy to be caught up with this one.

The oddballs are nuanced and funny. Despite being a top executive in a worldwide conglomerate,Tom is insecure, happy to have a punching bag in Greg, who is also his only confidant. Meanwhile, Zelig-like Greg rockets from vomitous fired amusement park mascot to an insider to all the dirty secrets in the span of a couple weeks. No, it doesn’t necessarily ring true, but it’s funny.

Alan Ruck as the oldest son/from a different mother has been a side character, happy to remain out of the fray (except when he not-so-subtly enters his name as a potential CEO). He finally shows what he’s passionate about: frozen butter.

I’m not familiar with Jeremy Strong’s previous work, but he’s doing well capturing the role of a son trying navigate the darkness of the enormous shadow cast by Logan Roy. He and Giovanni Ribisi need to play brothers in something.

Culkin’s Roman might be the character I care about the least, only because he’s written as a bit too fucked up. But he seems well suited to play a creep. 

The only thing I remembered seeing Jeremy Strong in was the Big Short, in which every single character was fantastic, of course.

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4 minutes ago, Augustus said:

The only thing I remembered seeing Jeremy Strong in was the Big Short, in which every single character was fantastic, of course.

I haven’t seen it (need to), but Adam McKay is responsible for both, so it makes sense he uses people he knows and appreciates. 

Strong’s Kendall so wants to be The Man, but he can’t get there in his professional or personal life. Even the web content company owner in Ep 1 made him his bitch. I won’t be surprised if he succumbs to his addictions again.

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30 minutes ago, Vito Andolini said:

I haven’t seen it (need to), but Adam McKay is responsible for both, so it makes sense he uses people he knows and appreciates. 

Strong’s Kendall so wants to be The Man, but he can’t get there in his professional or personal life. Even the web content company owner in Ep 1 made him his bitch. I won’t be surprised if he succumbs to his addictions again.

Yeah, The Big Short is definitely worth your time.

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On 6/29/2018 at 3:36 PM, PokerFace said:

Culkin is basically playing a grown-up version of Igby from Igby Goes Down. And I don't think that's a bad thing.

Admittedly I don't know the children of billionaires so I mainly think is character is unbelievable or unrealistic.   If that kid had hit a HR, I have no doubt he would have ripped up the check because "obviously he was kidding the entire time.  no one would expect him to pay a million for a softball HR."   

 

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Tom is comedy gold. I can’t imagine a real-world equivalent of Shiv who would settle for such a wimp, unless she has consciously or subconsciously decided to pick a mate the exact opposite of dear old dad.

Greg also makes me laugh, and I loved it when he embarked on his painful, humorless, music-free drive with gramps... and the GPS said “12 Hours, 12 Minutes.”  The salvaged cruise documents will surely come into play later, and Greg gonna Gump his way to the CEO job.

The actress playing Willa the Whore was also in Mr. Mercedes, where she played a mousy maybe-autistic character. She looks almost six foot tall in this. And she had one of the best lines of the night to Tom, “At least he’s the only member of the family fucking me!”

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4 hours ago, yoladu said:

i thought the Thanksgiving episode was the best yet..

the dinner table "what are you thankful for" scene was cringeworthy in a good way.

Tom for some reason is growing on me.

Yes, it was very well written, and Tom is the comedy relief, and he’s been a favorite of mine since the second half of Ep 1, when he morphed from dickhead to pitiful shlub.

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Tom is that stereotypical bottom rung on the totem pole, who cherishes his chance at putting someone on the bottom rung, to take out his frustrations upon. Unfortunately for him, he will find out why he was on that bottom rng, once his newfound whipping boy leapfrogs him.

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Well, so much for sticking with character arcs.  I don't want to spoil anything, but Home Alone's brother just dropped to the bottom of the list.

Shiv, Logan, and Lawrence (the tech CEO who should never be trusted but they still do) are the only characters I'm still in this thing for.

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I’m trying to like this show.  It does have something.  However the characters of Kendall and Roman (and Stewy for that matter) are so unbelievable that it makes it hard watching. 

Nobody is going to let a sniveling pussy like Kendall anywhere near leadership of a big corporation.  Roman is a totally implausible character.  He’s funny, but again, he wouldn’t be permitted anywhere close to management.

 

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3 minutes ago, Rex Kramer said:

I’m trying to like this show.  It does have something.  However the characters of Kendall and Roman (and Stewy for that matter) are so unbelievable that it makes it hard watching. 

Nobody is going to let a sniveling pussy like Kendall anywhere near leadership of a big corporation.  Roman is a totally implausible character.  He’s funny, but again, he wouldn’t be permitted anywhere close to management.

 

Well, this might tread a little too close to CR territory, but . . . Don Jr. & Eric

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Not a Shiv fan. She’s irritating and her choice in men makes her more so. The only sibling I find tolerable is Cameron (who apparently is in Egyptland). 

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13 minutes ago, Mojo Hand said:

Great episode.  Kendall is too weak and Roman too much of a coward.  Shiv's gonna have to be the one to shiv the old man. 

Shiv and Cameron are too weak also. Everyone is scared of the old man. To the point that when they make their inevitable moves it won’t be plausible. 

I want to like this series. I just can’t fully invest because all of the kids are way too weak. Major, major hole. 

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6 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Yeah, I don't think they've played out the Shiv role yet.  The 3 brothers are all worthless, but I'm pretty sure it's going to be her to execute the takeover.  She'll probably land a board seat (and Tom?) next episode.

Godfather model. The ones who seem like they are in line to take over are too weak for various reasons, and it's the one who tried to do something different who has the necessary strength and, despite his/her intentions, ends up taking the reins.   They laid more groundwork for that this week with the ex-boyfriend talking about who she really is and how she's in denial by going for nice and bland with her fiancé and candidate.  That said, they can go a lot of interesting new ways with that. 

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24 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Any idea if the nickname "Shiv" has validity as a shortened version of the Irish "Siobhan", or is it just a blatant reference to a blade?

Yes, it is a shortened version. Someone even called her Siobhan once in the show.

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1 hour ago, Mojo Hand said:

What makes you think Shiv is too weak?  She seems pretty badass to me.  She's just not in the company mix yet because she's working in politics. 

That goof ball she’s dating and her odd mannerisms.  She’s not nearly as weak as Kendall or Roman.  But Roman is such a moron that I question her engaging him as a pal and confidant.  I don’t think to date she has been a particularly strong character, but she is the tallest midget and agree with jimmy that they ain’t done with her arc.  

This story highlights the issues of second generation wealth handling, which given the title I think is self-explanatory, but I think it goes WAY overboard. 

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