Succession - The Tragedy of Kendall Roy

There's a really dark and subtle moment in one of the episodes in the first or second season where Kendall is on top of the company skyscraper and considers jumping off. The next time he goes up there it is surrounded by high glass panels so he can no longer jump off or escape. It's incredibly ominous.

Jeremy Strong is a hell of an actor. It's amazing how complex and deep his character is. He embodies every emotion perfectly.

The one scene where I genuinely felt sad for him was when he was frantically digging through the massive pile of gifts at his party, trying to find the present from his children, and he ultimately collapses in defeat.

Kendall is the character I have the most sympathy for. But he is truly flawed. Watching him is like watching a car accident in slow motion.

I’m not sure if it’s intended but every season I find myself rooting for Kendall and yet every time he disappoints and you can just feel his agony. Kendall is the most accurate depiction of depression, insecurity, and yet somehow narcissism I’ve ever seen. He’s an emotional wreck that just wants to be loved and everytime he tries to do the right thing he fails. I really hope he doesn’t wind up changing for the worst, he’s much better than the rest despite his douche persona

I think a really telling scene is Kendall’s phone call with the banker about company debt in season 1. He’s rude and uses bad language because he wants to be perceived to be the tough businessman that his father is rather than giving thought as how to best navigate the situation to get the outcome he wants, which is what Logan would have done. It shows his poor judgment and how is all about image rather than outcome.

Another sign that Logan was an abusive dad is when Logan hits Roman when he tells a harmless joke and Kendall yells at Logan and checks to see if Roman is okay. The siblings aren't usually very protective of each other, so this stood out.

I think it's important to note that Kendall's 'flaw' of being emotional and needing validation is only a flaw in this particular world. In the 'normal' one, it's perfectly natural human behavior. The real problem for Kendall is who he needs validation from - his father, which is also natural human behavior, but in this case is someone who will never ever give him what he needs.

Raising kids the way Logan did is the most malevolent way of child abuse. Overshower them with material comforts to indebt them to your generosity "I cleaned up your shit", meanwhile make sure they can't form genuine human connections by making every social interaction a battle of dominance.

Anyone else feel a strong connection to Kendall because of your own personal struggles on life that mirror some of his ?

Dude, I wish a camera crew followed me around 24/7 so you could analyze me and tell me whats wrong with me 😂😂😂

Kendall has to potential to be better than his dad but is so affected by the trauma that he can only express himself when on drugs. The idea of overthrowing Logan is always floating in his head but he can never bring himself to do it because he doesn't want to be as bad as Logan and still hope for him to have some good in him.

I read that first scene with Kendall differently. He didn't reward being disrespected by offering a better deal. He just saw through the bs and decided to ignore it, because in the end it was all posturing and everyone has a price. Which is very in character given how he grew up. Everything is a transaction and insults don't really mean anything to them, because the Roy family constantly hazes each other with twisted cruelties ranging in sizes from poisoned needle to sausage. A pig doesn't care if you fling mud at it. Kendall just brushed all those insults away, because he knew he would win, and therefore the tantrum meant nothing to him.

I only disagree on one point. Kendall avoiding conflict. I'd argue that he is, repeatedly, the only one who dares to confront his father and take over. But his low self-esteem and personal issues always fail him at the end. His siblings are much bigger cowards than him, barely taking any risks and conforming to everything. Shiv tried a bit in S1 and that was it

I think another major tragedy is really Shiv and Roman realizing too late, that they should've backed Kendall all along. Shiv and Roman both know Kendall is the only one qualified to succeed his father, but because of his massive insecurities and his weaknesses, they believe they can take his place. If however, they actually just help him with his problems and support him, they can give him what he needs to protect them all...something HE ALWAYS WANTED TO DO. It's not until when they realize that they're going to lose and that it's no longer a game, that they stop screwing around and they actually help him, and you can see how quickly he maneuvers and comes up with a brilliant strategy that none of them could ever come to on their own.

This hits so much harder after the season finale 😓😓

Kendal was born into failure Logan, his father, is such a force of nature that anyone trying to fill his shoes wouldn't be able to measure up. Ken's own posh upbringing was the opposite of Logan's disparate childhood. Logan had the NEED to succeed, but his son's motivation is more of an OBLIGATION to succeed. The question still remains however, will Logan find a more worthy successor, or will Kendal rise to the occasion and become better than his father?

I feel the worst for Kendall. He’s always the one who gets ganged up on by Roman and Shiv, he incurs his father’s wrath the most, and he does at least try to be a better father than his own dad and shield his children from his personal pain rather than taking it out on them the way that Logan does.

Many viewers have complained that season three was more of the same—Kendall trying and failing. I wish they could all see this very insightful breakdown to understand how the show has deepened the character study and given Kendall an arc that is not often portrayed in the media. This is why the show is so often compared with the first few seasons of Game of Thrones—the focus on dialogue and internal struggles, the slow development, the study of power—and I’m here for it all! I really hope these writers are not swayed by popular opinion and end up ruining what we love about the show in order to pander to a larger audience who desires more plot-driven forward movement and “big” moments

"Our company is a declining empire in a declining empire" He starts off strong. But then... "People are killing themselves with guns, or dope, so fast that we're losing pace" Kendall's problem isn't that he is stupid or wrong, it's that he doesn't have any kind of follow-through. He doesn't believe in himself. He has the pitch, but he needs others to validate it. When they don't, he falls apart. If he were more confident, he could develop a real plan and actually make things happen, but he's stuck in a constant reactive state because he's so insecure.