The ‘Succession’ Characters Are Biting Each Other Now (And It’s Very Romantic)

Succession was kind enough to introduce us all to a brand-new game this week. How delightful! I’m always on the hunt for fun little amusements to bring out at parties, in crowded bars with friends, or at the Thanksgiving dinner table, and this one seems to work for all of the aforementioned occasions. It’s called “Bitey,” and it’s exactly what it sounds like—biting.

“You bite me, I bite you. See who can take it,” Shiv (Sarah Snook) explains to Tom (Matthew Macfadyen), at a glitzy party in Los Angeles. “First one to stop, loses.” The pair then link their arms together, lock their lips onto each other’s forearms, and bite down on their flesh.

OK, that sounds easy! But why has every person I’ve attempted to play Bitey with looked at me in horror? Is this not a normal game? Are the Roys abnormal people? (Kidding, of course.)

This twisted “game”—if one can call it that; perhaps “masochistic foreplay” is a better description—only illustrates how Tom and Shiv have become the most intriguing characters of the bunch, in the wake of Logan’s (Brian Cox) passing. The married-yet-separated-yet-together couple spend the majority of this episode, “Living+,” flirting with the level of charisma most contemporary rom-com stars would kill to have. Their chemistry cannot be harnessed; instead of banter and playful smooches, they resort to creepy games and emotional wars to take more power in Waystar. It may not sound that romantic, but dear lord, we’re all going to have to take a cold shower after this episode.

Tom apologizes for his betrayal of Shiv this week, a move that makes Shiv question her view of him. His pitch for forgiveness is pretty strong, too: Tom argues that he likes expensive things, and if he were to betray Logan, there would be a chance he’d be excommunicated and left to be poor again. He tells Shiv that, if she still didn’t forgive him, she should try throwing all her nice dresses, jewelry, and rich luxuries to the side—that’s what life without Logan would’ve looked like for Tom. It’s kind of a wicked statement to make—riches were better than love—but it’s exactly what Shiv needs to hear to fall back under Tom’s spell.

The liberation of Shiv has been marvelous to watch, as she now plays both sides of Waystar. She hasn’t formally departed from her Season 3 sibling alliance, but several (sexy?) phone calls to Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård) prove that she’s willing to team up with the opposition, to punish her brothers in whatever way she sees fit. Leaving Shiv out of the upper echelons of the company will likely cost Kendall (Jeremy Strong) and Roman (Kieran Culkin), as they continue to pull off this “two small boys dressed in an overcoat pretending to be the adult CEO” routine.

But Shiv struggles to keep up with her own freedom. She’s no longer under the influence of her father, but that fills her with dread—she has started forcing her assistant to book isolated rooms, where she can cry alone for an hour. Unlike her brothers, Shiv isn’t distracted by her new responsibilities of keeping the company afloat. She is left to mourn their father alone and attempt to live with the fact that his death may be her fault, considering that he wouldn’t have been on the plane to visit Matsson in Norway if she hadn’t fudged the deal.

Now, Shiv has become the character most reminiscent of Logan—extremely powerful, slightly humble (but also standoffish), and entirely unpredictable. What’s going on in her mind, unlike with her brothers, is left very unclear to the audience. Her romantic affairs are messy and mysterious. She has the most control of Waystar Royco, though no one else would deign to say the truth aloud and fall out of line with Kendall and Roman. Following Logan’s passing, Shiv has quickly become the most dynamic character—it’s thanks to things like the Bitey game, but also to the silent stares of disapproval she shoots at her brothers and the lackadaisical approach she takes to her relationship with Matsson.

Meanwhile, in accepting the co-CEO positions, Kendall and Roman have lost all the power they strived to attain when taking the reins. This episode is less Kendall-heavy than usual, though his fans will relish the final few minutes of the episode—a rare smile darts across the wistful character’s face. Kendall strings together a presentation a la Steve Jobs’ Apple events (minus the turtleneck) for Waystar’s latest creation: Living+. These Don’t Worry Darling communities will shelter all inhabitants from danger, allowing the wealthiest of the wealthy to sit back and relax in a community that will bring them warm dinners every night, allow them to see studio cuts of movies weeks early, and basically, live in Disney World. (Or a version of Disney World if it were owned by Rupert Murdoch, not Disney.)

Roman, who never really finished his mandatory business training after Season 2, struggles a lot more with the new co-CEO title. Instead of processing any actual business, he takes every meeting as if it were a threat. So, he eliminates all the threats by firing anyone who dares to speak back to him, which is, of course, everyone. Even the slightest conflict Roman faces is met with a resounding, “You’re fired.”

For the second time this season, Roman faces down Gerri (J. Smith Cameron) to banish her from Waystar Royco. It’s ironic, considering Gerri was the only one who spoke up for both brothers when Kendall’s name was found on a list of demands made by Logan before his death, deeming him CEO. While Gerri was about to be named the interim CEO of the company, she stepped down to allow Kendall and Roman to take over—a brutal decision that has now (maybe) led to her downfall. But Roman asks Kendall to clean up the mess, especially considering Gerri was one of the only people who didn’t make Matsson’s “kill list.”

Roman ends his sad string of power moves seeming to understand the damage (or lack thereof) he’s caused. How do you cope, knowing the strongest you’ve looked all day is no brawnier than a weasel in Ralph Lauren? He receives a message from someone (presumably Kendall) with a digitally altered video of Logan saying, “I’m convinced that Roman Roy has a microdick and always gets it wrong,” which he listens to on repeat, almost as if it were a bedtime lullaby. The sun is setting on the Roy brothers. But will it be Shiv, Tom, Matsson, or all of the above who end up on top?

Keeping Up With the Roys

Even though they may not be in the main plot, we still want to highlight the most blazing burns and spiciest moments of Succession. Here they are from this episode:

—Logan has one more brutal dig from the grave. In a pre-recorded video segment announcing Living+, Logan loses it with the crew. “Could you please stop buzzing around me?” he exclaims. “God, you’re fucking useless, the lot of you. You’re as bad as my fucking idiot kids.”

—Matsson walks across an airport’s tarmac barefoot—a la Elle Fanning, but at least she was still in the actual airport—which isn’t a particular roast of anyone but us, the poor viewers who have to watch this atrocity.

—“I need you to believe that I am as good as my Dad. Can you do that?” Roman asks Gerri minutes before he fires her. Gerri claps back: “Say it or believe it?”

—Shiv joins a call with Matsson to warn him about the horrors of Living+. “Hi Lukas! Hi sweetie,” Shiv croons. It’s only a roast because Tom is in the room—and considering the last scene was them kissing and making up, this is pretty brutal flirtation to clue him in on.