Hello June. We’re entering summer in a mourning period, with 4 popular TV shows airing series finales in under one week: Succession, Barry, Ted Lasso, and Maisel. Fortunately, new TV and sunnier days are here to lessen the blow.
If you want to hear more about our Succession finale thoughts than what you see below, check out the newest episode of the Double Take podcast: Spotify / Apple.
In today’s edition:
Weekly Watchlist
Succession
— Jess Spoll and Jenni Cullen
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We keep an eye on all of the new streaming content that is set to premiere. Here’s a list of new shows and movies to watch this week.
With Love (Season 2) — This soapy romantic dramedy about siblings trying to find romance returns for a second season.
Watch on Prime Video: June 2 (all 6 episodes)Shooting Stars (Movie) — This biopic follows a young LeBron James and his friends as their high school basketball team becomes the best in the country.
Watch on Peacock: June 2The Idol (Season 1) — After a nervous breakdown, an aspiring pop star (Lily-Rose Depp) begins a complicated relationship with a self-help guru and the head of a contemporary cult (Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye).
Watch on Max: June 4 (1 of 6 episodes, then weekly)The Lazarus Project (Season 1) — In this British sci-fi thriller, a man discovers that the calendar has been rewound six months, but no one else seems to have noticed.
Watch on TNT: June 4 (1 of 8 episodes, then weekly)Cruel Summer (Season 2) — This thriller anthology series produced by Jessica Biel returns to follow the rise and fall of an intense teen friendship between two girls in the early 2000s and the mystery wrapped up in it all.
Watch on Freeform/Hulu: June 5 on Freeform, the next day on Hulu (2 of 10 episodes, then weekly)
A popular and beloved show has come to an end. Here’s what we thought about its final bow.
Succession - Series Finale
Keywords: drama, dark comedy, satire
Watch if you like: The White Lotus, Veep, Billions
Finale Length: 90-min runtime
Overall show length: 60-min runtime, 4 seasons / 40 episodes
Watch on: Max
Receiving 48 Emmy nominations across its first 3 seasons, Succession has been the prestige drama to watch since its premiere in 2018. The series follows the wealthy Roy family, owners of global media and entertainment conglomerate Waystar RoyCo, in a period of tumult. With the company’s CEO and family’s patriarch, Logan Roy, in failing health, there is no clear successor amongst his 4 children. The series finale aired this past Sunday.
🚨 MILD SPOILERS FOR THE FINALE AHEAD 🚨
Succession is near-Shakespearean in its construction, weaving motifs across seasons, combining biting dialogue and comedic one-liners with undercurrents of tragedy and moral depravity. The show finds success in these layers that you could analyze like a piece of literature, but even more so in its thoughtful focus on character. I don’t care about the outcomes of boardroom votes, about who buys what company, or who gets crowned CEO. Forget about the plot. Thanks in equal parts to the acting and the writing, I just want to keep watching these characters. Don’t get me wrong, the Roys are incredibly unlikeable, but somehow, over the course of four seasons, creator Jesse Armstrong makes privileged billionaires a little bit relatable. He finds ways to help us empathize with the Roys such that we frequently forget how childish, spoiled, and unserious they really are.
The series’ final farewell on Sunday, however, brought into clear focus every sibling shortcoming I’d chosen to overlook in the last 39 episodes. Is there anything redeemable about the Roys? In an incredible full-circle moment, the finale returns to a question that has plagued me since season one: Will any choice allow these people to escape their purgatory of wealth and existential rot?
Jenni’s Rating: A+
This series strove for excellence in every aspect — the acting, the writing, the cinematography, the score — and it succeeded. One of the most underrated and brilliant aspects of Succession is how it keeps the plot engaging without trying to fabricate big twists and turns. Because of that, I was never concerned that the finale would disappoint me; it could have ended with anyone in the top spot, and I trusted it to believably lead us there.
This last season has seen the siblings regress into their most manipulative and immature states, and this episode gave us touching scenes of childlike innocence recaptured, alongside moments of unadulterated fury aimed at each other. While I could have watched another 3 seasons following the Roys, I appreciate the way it ends: nothing has changed or will ever change for this bunch. Even with all the money in the world, they will always be burdened by their trauma.
Jess’s Rating: A+
Your shows, returned:
iCarly, Season 3: Premieres June 1 on Paramount+
Manifest, Season 4 Part 2: Premieres June 1 on Netflix
With Love, Season 2: Premieres June 2 on Prime Video
American Ninja Warrior, Season 15: Premieres June 5 on NBC
Cruel Summer, Season 2: Premieres June 5 on Freeform/ the next day on Hulu
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Season 16: Premieres June 7 on FXX/ the next day on Hulu
The Real Housewives of Orange County, Season 17: Premieres June 7 on Bravo
Never Have I Ever, Season 4: Premieres June 8 on Netflix
Upcoming new releases:
Deadloch: Premieres June 2 on Prime Video
The Idol: Premieres June 4 on HBO/Max
The Lazarus Project: Premieres June 4 on TNT
Stars on Mars: Premieres June 5 on Fox
Burden of Proof: Premieres June 6 on HBO/Max
Arnold: Premieres June 7 on Netflix
Based on a True Story: Premieres June 8 on Peacock