When Succession leaves the country, as it did in its first season to Scotland, its second to the Mediterranean, and in its third to Tuscany, things always become a little loose: Kendall kills a waiter, Kendall betrays his father, Kendall has a breakdown. In Season 4, Episode 5, “Kill List”, which takes place in Norway, we go the other way. After Logan’s death, and with the upcoming GoJo deal, everyone is on their best behaviour. The Americans don’t want to lose their jobs in the acquisition (the document that confirms those names gives this episode its title), and the Swedes? Well, actually, they just want to fuck with their stateside friends.
Kendall (Jeremy Strong) spends his first day as CEO like anyone with a 9-5: listening to Jay-Z on his commute (okay, he has a chauffeur), and attending pointless meetings. Kendall’s volte-face last episode was so screeching that when he issues his first “fuck off” to the new staff, it’s a groaning inevitability rather than a shock. But if his lingering stare at Logan’s empty office is a little heavy-handed, Kendall’s surprise at his colleagues’ applause is perfect: he just can’t believe anyone really likes him.
The main order of the day – apart from a pesky film with a troubled production – is once again, the GoJo acquisition: Kendall and co. have agreed to squeeze a few extra dollars per share out of Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård). This deal is interminable, for the characters and audience alike, but handily enough, Matsson has called them all out to Norway for a little “cultural compatibility” test. The Waystar lot are briefly rattled by this – perhaps anyone who has had been required to go on a team-building exercise can relate – but they quickly determine to “bleed the Swede”.
On the flight over, the usual power dynamics are delineated; everyone is rude to Greg (Nicholas Braun), though the other disgusting brother, Tom (Matthew Macfadyen), is feeling pretty chill because ATN is carved out of the deal. Shiv (Sarah Snook), in a rare moment of lucidity, is suspicious of the many, many articles attacking Logan’s legacy and claiming that Kendall and Roman (Kieran Culkin) had been covering for him. The elder Roy denies any wrongdoing, and immediately changes the subject: does Shiv want them to cut Tom out of the Waystar picture? She has no immediate answer (though the following moment, when she bumps into Tom, with his feet up in white trainers, provides the biggest laugh of the season so far). Elsewhere on the place, the board are getting chills about GoJo’s young, illustrious team, but Gerri (J. Smith Cameron) has some words of wisdom about Europeans: “They may think they’re Vikings, but we’ve been raised by wolves, exposed to a pathogen that goes by the name of Logan Roy.” Her ability to end a conversation is simply unparalleled.
The company retreat is expertly depicted. The breakfast buffet, which Frank piles high (he metabolises fast); the awkwardly casual corporate meetings; the Americans dressed in Ralph Lauren hunting gear. It’s excruciating, and a well-trodden concept for Succession. What does feel fresh is Matsson: Skarsgard’s inscrutable self-assuredness has never been put to better use. He is smarmy, irresistible, happy to let silences hang. The back-and-forth over the acquisition provides a good tension, even if the details are a little boring. In short, Matsson wants ATN back in the deal, something that Logan had previously excluded, for the increased price of $1.87 per share. The boys private decide, after a couple more showdowns with the Swede, that they should tank the deal. Kendall is the driving force; Roman has some allegiance to his late father’s deal.
Shiv, carving out a separate lane to her brothers, meets Matsson on different terms. “Am I going to get a lawsuit if I hug you?” he asks, setting the tone for their delightful, awkward chemistry. When everyone else is partying, she joins Matsson in his lair, while he snorts cocaine. Their vibe is undeniable and unreadable, making for the most compelling dialogue in Episode 5. Matsson, who admits he has no boundaries, tells her a story so specifically weird it has to be lifted from a real-life billionaire: after he broke up with his communications director, Ebba, he repeatedly sent her half a litre of frozen blood. (Skarsgård sells this startling moment perfectly.) He can’t keep acting this way if he takes over Waystar, Shiv warns, and also breaks it to him that deniability will be hard should Ebba speak out: “She has so much of your blood.” Everyone has so much dirt on each other at this point, that it’s impossible some of it won’t leak before the show’s over.
Skarsgård truly blazes through this episode, making way for the best, and weirdest scene. Atop a mountain, he accuses Roman and Kendall of “Scooby-Dooing” him (the actor’s pronunciation of “Hanna Barbera fucking business school” will surely prove immortal). The Roys insist they’re not, though they might need to slow down the deal. The hesitation is too much for the Swede (and us!). He says that Logan would be embarrassed to see them both now, which prompts an old-school Roman outburst, in which he accuses Matsson of being inhumane and dragging the deal out so long it killed Logan. Finally, Roman tells him that they won’t sell. It is uncool to admit that you are rooting for characters, but I am rooting for Romulus and his emergent backbone.
The emotional outburst works as a negotiation tactic, too: while the Waystar crew are flying home, Matsson calls with a revised offer of $1.92 per share. The greys are overjoyed; the boys are a little defeated. Shiv, on Mattson’s request, takes a photo of them. And finally, Gerri has managed to acquire the kill list: on the “surplus” list are Hugo, Frank, Karl, a man called Ray, another man called Mark. Gerri and Karolina survive, and somehow, so does Tom. Ineptitude finds a way.
Succession side-notes:
- Connor remains in New York, organising Logan’s funeral casket and wresting control from Marcia (who wants him in a kilt). The eldest Roy sibling demands carte blanche for funeral arrangements, and his sibling seem happy to keep him occupied. Willa, at his side, remains the most care-free woman in New York.
- There’s a lot to love about the conversations at this retreat, including whether France is fucked or not (Greg read an Economist article about it), and Frank’s dressing down of a GoJo employee who almost won a bronze medal at Sochi.
- Shiv and Tom’s relationship continues to be one of the richer storylines, with a fight this episode in which Tom slaps Shiv’s ear (her earlobes are “thick and chewy like barnacle meat”). This frisson is going to lead either to a blow-out or a reunion.
- Another slippery episode for Greg, who tried to establish a “quad” with the Roy siblings. Though he may just be a nepo-baby vaping on a dancefloor, he is somehow going to find a way through all of this.
‘Succession’ airs weekly on Sky Atlantic and SKY
Henry Wong is a senior culture writer at Esquire, working across digital and print. He covers film, television, books, and art for the magazine, and also writes profiles.
