#not quite an atn prediction

[fortjester]

hmm. banquet for thought....

[safflowerseason]

Late to the party, but I just finished Succession. Holy shit, what an ending. Anyway, I enjoyed going back and reading your takes from when it was still airing. Do you have any other morsels or headcanons to share?

Hey! Thank you so much for writing in with a Succession question!! I love it! And I'm glad you enjoyed my little takes and recaps...I didn't have the time to do full-on recaps for S4 like I did for S3, unfortunately, but I had such a great time watching in real time. I'll truly never forget watching 4.03 with the rest of the internet. I literally thought Logan's death was being faked until they told Shiv.

As for morsels/head-canons, oooh...compared to other viewers I don't have a ton of very specific headcanons about the upbringing/adolescence/early adult-hood of the Roys, beyond the few hints the show dropped. Apparently there was some debate early on about how far apart in age Kendall, Roman, and Shiv are (as well as whether Shiv or Roman was older, before the show confirmed Shiv as the youngest in S3)...I always assumed they were supposed to be quite close in age, five years max between Kendall and Shiv. The show itself is a bit blurry on the specifics of the backstory/everyone's timeline, though. I also wished we got more of the relationship between Logan and Caroline...we actually never (or barely) see them interact directly, and yet they seem to loom so large in each other's lives.

As for interpretative morsels...I actually haven't gone back and watched the finale again (if you can believe it) because it was soo good and devastating I literally haven't been able to work up the emotional fortitude. There was a great take here I saw that the finale didn't leave you with the same SHEER ADRENALINE RUSH of the other finales, which I will agree with but ultimately I think it fits with the show's overarching thesis that "everything is bullshit, especially billionaires." There's nothing about the finale I feel that will keep being re-litigated by fans (à la Veep)...there seemed to be some discourse about Shiv's ending and whether or not it fit with her character's arc (I think it does, but would love to hear your take!)

I will say that I was always interested in the decision to have Logan take up with Kerry in S3...I love the character of Marcia so much that the rise of Kerry was like a personal affront to me, lol, but I was also intrigued by how Marcia didn't seem threatened by Kerry the way she was by Rhea (or even Shiv). And it's also a relationship that Logan seems very passive about, and we never really hear his own take on it (except when he chickens out re: Kerry's audition tape for ATN). All the "facts" about what they do come from Kerry (or from other people, like Connor with the smoothie revelation). Like obviously, he seems fond of Kerry and is attracted to her (although I don't believe he was actually considering divorcing Marcia, not when he has literally just had to pay her a ridiculous amount of money to stick around in S3), but we don't see anything to indicate why he's okay letting her take on such an outsized role in the management of the business. (I also thought Brian Cox adopted an almost...fatherly air around the actress, which I guess would make sense due to the age difference...it wasn't like they had blazing sexual chemistry!) Is Kerry a symptom of Logan's growing passivity as he ages? A sign that he's getting old and predictable? Are we supposed to take away something about Kerry's naivëté, that she pins all her professional and personal hopes on an aging billionaire in ill health? Is she a parable in that sense? It's fitting for Succession, though, that a lot of the "intimacy" of the "romantic" relationships on the show take place offscreen, so in that sense I think the mystery is a bit purposeful. And the writers were always interested in "inverting" clichés to a certain degree (ie, the CEO having an affair with his much younger assistant)...but I guess I'm not sure how they inverted it in this instance, other than the incredibly ruthless way Kerry gets excised from the inner circle (a scene which will live in infamy!) as opposed to continuing the drama of their relationship after Logan's death.

That's one of the first things that comes to mind when I think about S4, but I'm sure there are many others, and would love to hear your specific thoughts about the season! My favorite episodes were, personally, 4.03 (Connor's Wedding), 4.04 (Honeymoon States--my pick for funniest episode of the season), and 4.09 (Church and State). My favorite season finale is probably S3, All the Bells Say...I think S2 is probably a tighter episode narratively, but my god, the emotional devastation of the S3 finale. You simply can't beat it!

[oreganosbaby]

@myplasticadversary​

ok yeah like there is that part, of course because she values her own autonomy highly. her two major points that seemed to make actual sense were about abortion and rape (as opposed to her just name dropping far right politicians from the past 15 years) so, mencken would pose a threat on that front. though, her money could buy her a way out of the abortion issue but whatever; not the point because she doesn’t really value/understand money on a material front or in relation to hierarchy bc then they’d have to confront the extent to which she benefits from her family which would mean she’s not gaining through her own merit.

anyway, i still do think that she doesn’t get mencken’s appeal because of how she frames roman in relation to her. roman is a “dirty little pixie whispering swastikas in dad’s ear.” thinking roman is seducing their father into promoting fascism is a very funny thought because like, how is this not the natural choice for ATN? ridiculous. frankly, mencken’s not that different from a lot of republicans from the past like 30ish years except he’s just more frank about their beliefs. more significant should be that he’s just less predictable in how he skates around policy questions but, that only matters if you’re uncharismatic. shiv’s kind of a wonk, though and likes other wonks because it appears smarter and more secure. she doesn’t like to be taken by surprise and that’s quite conservative of her. i think she and a lot of other liberals (as well as certain republicans) take comfort in a kind of decorum because it gives an air of civility to something that’s rather nasty. the aesthetics of policy wonkery are nearly, if not just as shallow as mencken’s fascist theatrics.

second, framing it as seduction or a kind of magic means she sees this as irrational and even mysterious. she just doesn’t understand why they would choose this except for the fact that roman’s a sex pervert who gets horny for fascism and can seduce their dad into endorsing it. to some extent, it is true that roman does get horny for fascism but, it’s also just a rational decision if you have no other agenda but to serve waystar’s interests. this obviously wasn’t the case for shiv but, it’s kind of wild of her to even try to do this at all. like, did she really think she could get it because she was a political consultant and roman’s... himself? that logan would bend the knee for her? c’mon shiv...

[ace-and-spade]

And He’ll Watch the World Burn || Alastair || Trial 3.3 || Re: Blanche, Meifen || ATN: Everyone

Alastair had come to terms with the fact that time was simply an illusion.

It had been, what, a month since they first woke up in the hotel? Three weeks since the K-Pop Idol’s trial and execution? Not even a week since Jinan’s death? Not even a day since the fall of the illustrious Chief Executive Officer? The days and nights passed by over one another so quickly, yet they dragged on for what seemed to be an absolute eternity. It felt like the cold and harsh winter was actually coming to life, with the scenery of the mountains being displayed in the trial room on this very day. He thought it was all going to come to what seemed to be an end. This could finally have been over. They could have found the killer, got them executed, and walked away satisfied. It could have all been over. But then the tables turned...and his friend- no.

Meifen Jiāng had accused him of murder.

What was happening? Was the Speedrunner really doing something like this? The short, sheepish girl of 4’9 was nearly on the verge of tears as she was at first cryptic with her words. Not many people would pick up on this at first glance...But as she said so eloquently, the Negotiator was excellent at reading the room, and in between the lines. Of course he would pick up on the accusation, and that’s why his face flashed from calm to horror for the duration of a blink. This...She wasn’t really doing this, was she? She wasn’t really accusing him of murdering Wisteria, was she?

His chest felt heavy, as if someone had shot through it with a metal bullet. What was this? Why was he feeling something like this? Was it because he felt particularly close to the girl with the mouse ears? Or was it because of something entirely different? His gaze was broken from the rest of the crowd, as he shut his eyes slowly. Of course, at that cursed moment, the Violinist finally took the time to step in and, as he would have put it, attempted to get her false alibis and force the case onto him. It was all because he thought he could have trusted someone with his secrets. If that was how things were going to play out, then may the odds ever be in his favor.

“...I will not take the time to say that you are, as you put it, ‘stupid’ for your accusations, Miss Jiāng.” His voice came out hesitantly, almost as if it pained him to even speak to her like this. “I understand that you want to find the culprit behind this case, and that it’s hard to accept the truth at points in time. That’s usually how cases and tragedies like these go - they are usually hard to face, and accept. It’s a very frightening thing, and I understand your point of view.”

“However, I had told you all of this information in private because I wanted to keep it between us. I wanted it to remain confidential, but I had trusted you enough to tell you what my thoughts were. What I wanted to eventually show to everyone on my own terms. Quite frankly? This does pain me. Because...Regardless of whether or not you were accusing me of murdering Miss Fujiwara, you were not required to spill information that I had trusted you to keep a secret. It hurts, doesn’t it? It hurts having your trust betrayed by someone. I don’t think of you any less of a friend now as I did, but please know that this will hurt for what will be a very long time. I hope you understand.”

“Now with that said, I suppose I need to defend these accusations for a third time. Let’s run things through one more time, shall we?”

He stood up straight once more, and tapped his fingers against the glowing podium beneath him. “Wisteria Fujiwara has passed away in the hall due to poisoning at the ballroom event. That’s attributed with the blood coming from her mouth, the plants missing from the greenhouse, and the little vial found in the kitchen. We’re assuming that the poison was ingested through the means of the peach tea that she had drank throughout the evening, yes? The mint could have also been a possibility, but that would have been acting too quickly for what we had discussed beforehand. Mister Mikage had mentioned that he had obtained a rash when touching the poisonous plants in the greenhouse as well, so there must have been some kind of cover for hands that may have been needed, if it was needed.”

“Now, we get to the main discussion: the seating arrangement, and how it matters. Mister Travere, as distasteful of Miss Fujiwara as he was, was and is currently intoxicated to no end. Anyone who was planning out an articulated murder such as this wouldn’t want to get drunk to mess up their plan potentially. Not to mention, wouldn’t it be unwise for someone that had already survived a trial case to murder again, not too long after? Not to mention, he had no rash against his hands, as mentioned before hand. Thus, it’s safe to say that Mister Travere is innocent according to this case.”

So, he went back to using the Ringleader’s last name…

“That would leave two suspects - Miss Higasa and myself. Is that correct?” The man let a soft hum pass his lips, as he took another glance towards the woman in question. “The both of us have currently been accused, and have accused one another in turn. Miss Higasa waited until after Miss Jiang’s accusation, however, to defend herself and accuse me.” His gaze turned to the smaller girl. “Isn’t that odd? She had to wait until someone came to her defense and accuse someone else, making them do all the work for her. It only proves my point, does it not? Ah, but I’m getting ahead of myself, my apologies. Regardless, it’s within my right to go ahead and defend myself in turn, so the truth can be found.”

“Thus, let me address you in particular, Miss Higasa.” His gaze turns towards her once more, his eyes equally narrowed. “Do you really believe that your reasoning adds up? I’ll go based off of physical evidence first. If I had used any article of clothing of mine, wouldn’t there have been evidence against me due to that reason? Wouldn’t my clothing have been found hidden somewhere, or stuck in the washing machine to wash any substance that I may have grabbed the clothing with? It just wouldn’t make sense, now, would it? It simply would be tedious for me to do something like that. Not to mention, wouldn’t have someone noticed if I were to reach diagonally over the table towards her drink? Miss Fujiwara is capable of peripheral vision, after all.”

“Now would be the point that I move on to the theoretical side of things, but before I do, I believe there is something that does need to be discussed. It was mentioned by Miss Jiang that I had been keeping a journal with me, discussing events and keeping tabs on what’s been going on at the Crescent Moon Hotel. That is correct; I will not deny that. It’s also correct that my thoughts on Miss Higasa in particular are mentioned throughout, and how I had believed that she was dangerous and detrimental to everyone else. However, there’s one thing in particular that she had missed, something that I didn’t mention to even her. I don’t think she’s simply dangerous. If I had believed such a thing, I would have simply minded my own business. Miss Avila-Kim and Mister Travere could be argued as dangerous due to various reasons in particular.”

“No...I think Miss Blanche Higasa is worse than dangerous. I believe that she is fooling you all into believing that she is the hero of this story, and not the mastermind behind our kidnapping.”

What? Did he seriously go that far into believing such a thing? There wasn’t much time to think about that, however, due to Alastair continuing his monologue with a haunting smile, his eyes narrowed into thin slits. “Miss Higasa is a fake, that’s what I perceive to be the truth. She’s manipulating all of you into her coy little trap, similar to a venomous snake in the night. It’s rather fitting, is it not? I would say to not succumb to her allurances, but I see that some of you already have. And due to this, I was simply too late in warning Miss Fujiwara about her. Now, let me explain how this all correlates to the murder at hand.”

His eyes dart towards hers once more, staring into her rose irises. “Perhaps the reason you killed Miss Fujiwara, Miss Higasa, is because she was starting to suspect you and your actions. Let me make another thing clear for you - I have no reason to commit a murder. I wasn’t in danger of being killed by the motive until already halfway through the party, after the poisoning must have been planned in. So, riddle me this: why would I commit a murder? It’s true that I did suspect you, as I do now, which is exactly why I wouldn’t risk murdering another. If I had died, I would no longer be able to investigate you. Interrogate you, even.”

“However, if Miss Fujiwara had suspected you, she would be an obstacle, would she not? Not to mention, you and Mister Travere were near the top of the voting list, and your name turned up with the most votes as the pattern beforehand predicted. You were afraid of the week running out with you dying, as you should be. So, you had to think of a plan to divert yourself away from death. You had to think of something that wouldn’t point you as too suspicious, so you couldn’t kill me, who is another obstacle of yours, yes? You had to kill someone that you were close to. You had to kill someone who thought you were their friend.”

He pulls out the hardback journal that was inside his suitcase, and opens it up. The man quietly flipped through the pages, until he found himself grasping at quite the amount of paper. How much did he invest himself into this, exactly? Was he really this devoted into this project of his? “So, those are my thoughts, my theory, and my words. If you would wish to take them into heed, then by all means, you are more than free to do so. If you wish not to listen to my warnings, I also understand. I have been known to not be trustworthy to you all. This is why you all would wish to trust someone you’ve perceived to be well liked before today, opposed to someone that had supposedly been secretive and two-faced to all of you. However, let me close with this. I find the answers that are needed.” At that moment, he tears the pages, with one hard pull.

“Allow me to educate you all.”

Before everyone knew it, his arm had flung up in the air, and the many pages that were written inside his journal flew up into the air. They all separated from each other, and gently fluttered down towards the floors below, potentially into some of the students’ hands. Red ink covered the stationary in neat handwriting, and the winds of the harsh winter before them had grown stronger by the minute. Alastair’s gaze was stone cold, as intense as everything else around him came to be. If they were going to ridicule him for his beliefs, and try to take physical harm to his body, then so be it. They could do their own thing, and he could do his. For now, he was on his own in the matter.

Let the games begin.