As evidenced by other characters occasionally calling her by her full name. The one that confuses me is Roman/Romulus. Is his full name really Romulus, or is that just kind of a fun play on the name Roman?
It could plausibly be either. My assumption (which could be wrong!) has been that because Rome was founded by Romulus and Remus, "Romulus" became a sort of nickname Logan uses for his son. I think this makes a bit more sense than Romulus being his full/real name, since Logan's character seems to call him Romulus mostly when he's happy with him, which would be more indicative of a nickname than a full name. I'm also assuming that the family name being "Roy" has to be because of that name's etymological link to the word "King." As for whether Roman's character is smart or not, I think it's become increasingly clear this season, as he seems to be gaining some business acumen and putting his obnoxious personality to use in ways that seem to be earning him favor from his father, that he's not especially intelligent but rather has cunning, the kind of smarts that are highly valued by his father - and financially rewarded in large segments of the business world. His sister seems pretty clearly more intelligent than he is, but she is unable or unwilling to be strategically cunning in the way he is, and at least so far it's costing her in terms of influence and such. Oh, and I really like the show. I don't generally enjoy shows where the point is to watch awful people behave terribly and/or self-destructively, but to me Succession is particularly well done and I am enjoying it.
That’s been my best guess, as well. I believe only Logan has ever called him “Romulus” and it has, indeed, been in situations where he might use a playful nickname. I think this is right about Roman’s intelligence/cunning.
Yeah, Roman is the best at “playing the game” that their dad has set out for them. Will backing a neo-fascist candidate boost TV ratings? If so, then do it. Will stalking Kendall’s children help? Do it.
And I'll bet dollars to donuts Logan is setting him up for the same kind of brutal takedowns that have become second nature to Kendall. Probably not in any conscious/conniving way, but just in his way. As I noted previously, I thought at first these brutal situations he presented to Kendall were tests to see if he could handle being the top dog. But I've come to realize he views his children as threats to his power more than less-experienced, potential leaders who need to be nurtured. Even when he relented on the beach in the previous episode and admitted he loved Kendall (which blew Kendall's mind), he later undermined his own declaration of love: "You'll say anything to get f***ed on a date." Logan dotes on Roman as the youngest, but he also has no problem backhanding him when annoyed by his antics. I don't picture Roman responding well to Logan's tactics should this represent the start of his ascendancy!
Greg's grandfather is continually adjusting the amount of Greg's inheritance, based on whatever his current state of disappointment with Greg happens to be. It was actually $5 million that Connor and Tom told Greg was "nothing":
Just a bunch of rich manipulative jerks. I guess the point I made above would apply to the $5 million, depending on Greg's salary. The job is potentially worth a lot more, especially if Greg can get stock options and work there a long time. Then the grandfather announces he's giving Greg's inheritance to Greenpeace.
NYC sidenote: it looks like Kendall's luxury apartment, and the site of his birthday party, was located around and far above The Vessel, the new tourist attraction in Hudson Yards. It's a beautiful piece of architecture, been there a few times to walk up it and look down. (I used to work in that part of town, back when it was Fedex warehouses, bodegas, and check-cashing emporiums with barred windows and pitbulls chained to gumball machines by the front window. I will always remember someone scrawling "Adios Celia" the day Celia Cruz died on a bedsheet and hanging it from a fire escape over the Irish bar on the corner of 33rd and 10th.) Unfortunately, The Vessel has also gained quick reputation as a place for despondent New Yorkers to commit suicide via jumping from the top! I suspect it was no accident choosing this location for Kendall's new apartment, especially as he gazes down at night after the party, and it looks like he's thinking about it.
Too Much Birthday started out as chilly as Carpenter's The Thing and then the monsters came out. Roman is like an animal using his cunning mainly to keep from getting another tooth knocked out. By the end he's devolved in to a yapping hyena. If he were truly intelligent he could strike out on his own. Shiv managed that once and her reasons to stay loyal are dwindling rapidly. It seems like Logan can't see that there are four ticking time bombs that could go off in his face at any time or all at once.
I agree with this testimony a fair amount. I LOVED Mad Men and love a good character driven, suit/business oriented drama series, but this one took 2-5 episodes to really get into. I'm enjoying the development and how things ebb and flow as I am now caught up with the 3rd season...but dang the whole team-writing/cast-writing aspect does make it feel a little more...casual? It was a style I had to put out for a bit to understand the genius of. Idk, has anyone else seen shows that were very open, if not predicated on, the cast-writing concept?
Mad Men was far superior in every way, and was set mostly in the '60s. Weiner is a more gifted writer and director than Jesse Armstrong. I wouldn't call Armstrong a genius, but yes the improv feel does work for him. Some scenes work very well but others probably require many takes and cuts. One thing that really bothers me about the show is the sheer number of f-bombs. I know it's to be expected in an HBO show, but Succession is overboard with the cursing. I think it's a mark of lackluster writing.
It's all on Tom. Greg would much rather be with pretty much anyone else--especially that gal he asked out.
I am a massive fan of this program. The writing is sublime. Parts of it and some of the characters remind me of 'The thick of it' which was a black comedy about British Politicians. Jesse Armstrong the main screenwriter worked on both. It's worth checking out. Veep was based on it.
That whole relationship is empathy and cringe all in one bucket. It's like the bully picks on the kid but the kid doesn't know how internally tormented the bully is....then the viewer is conflicted because they feel for the bully (Tom)m but don't like the way he has to take it out on Greg, the kid. I honestly don't know why he's stuck through all of Shiv's BS (Chiv? Shivan? Shioban? Can the cast even spell her name?).
Tom isn't quite right in the head, like the rest of them, but I've never felt much sympathy for the character. I can't say I feel much sympathy for anyone on this show. Kendall's wife & kids are pretty much it.
I feel some sympathy for the four siblings in that they are products of a very strange upbringing that almost couldn’t have resulted in moral, decent people. I feel sympathy most of the characters, including Tom, in moments, even if they are not overall sympathetic characters.
The characters range between unlikable to despicable. I think I dislike Tom and Roman the most. Tom is whatever the male version of a gold digger is. Would love to know why Greg wouldn't take the quarter of a billion dollars and walk away and be done with all of the BS. That isn't enough to live happily ever after on?
