This month, the fourth (and final) season of HBO's ace series Succession is back.
The recently announced trailer already foreshadows that this will still be a season of ups and downs: Logan and his children will make a last-ditch effort to face the transfer of control of the company...
In fact, as a drama with the theme of a wealthy business war, the popularity of "War of Succession" is surprising. After winning 2 Golden Globes and 5 Emmy Awards in the second season, the third season won all the "Best Drama Awards" at the Emmys, Golden Globes, Union Awards, and Critics' Choice Awards.
This is mainly due to the excellent screenwriting ability of the main creator Jesse Armstrong, who also won the Emmy Award for Best Screenplay "triple crown" for this show.
On the one hand, Armstrong adds drama to the drama by alluding to the rise and fall of the two major media empires, Murdoch and Leishidong. The third season introduces the role of tech visionary Lukas Matsson (alluding to Musk), further sparking real-world speculation.
On the other hand, he pays attention to the illogic and contingency of reality itself, and through repeatedly depicting the fragile, arrogant and unpredictable side of key characters, he always grasps the emotions of the audience and attracts people to watch.
In addition to the wonderful plot, this drama is also known as the "High Society Life Guide", showing us all the time the lives of the super-rich at the top of the pyramid.
From the very beginning, the series is very much about the daily life of the super-rich family: there are luxury cars to pick you up and drop you off when you go out, you can take a private jet to any part of the world for meetings and vacations at any time, and there are housekeepers and servants everywhere to take care of everything.
Corresponding to luxury travel is their luxury properties all over the world. From an old mansion on Fifth Avenue to a gorgeous and elegant holiday estate, the space is constantly changing, highlighting the extraordinary family of the super-wealthy.
Take Kendall, who has the most hope of inheritance, he has a lot of commercial scenes, all completed in his own multiple residences. For example, the high-rise tower he calls "Headquarters", and the ex-wife's apartment temporarily borrowed by the team of lawyers in order to return to the "card table".
In Kendall's opinion, these residences are plain, simple, modern and in keeping with his usual tastes, decorated with master furniture and works of art. In the eyes of ordinary people, it is very extravagant, which is expressed through the reaction of his cousin Greg.
As the only daughter, Shiv did not join the family succession war in the early stage, and lived in an open-plan apartment in the heart of New York City, relaxed and comfortable. The second season moves with her husband to a larger apartment, with open spaces and simple interiors, hinting at her changing status in the family.
Even the eldest son, who was excluded from inheritance early, had his own secluded farm and could have a rich and luxurious life without working.
But no matter how they change their residence, they will not show off and shout. Because for them, these are ordinary things, and there is no need to prove anything to the outside world.
This is also reflected in the Roy family's dress.
As "The War of Succession" continues to become popular, the fashion circle has also blown a "old money wind". Everyone wants to spy on the fashionable code of the super-rich family through this drama.
Michelle Matland, a costume consultant, pointed out the truth in an interview: "The way they dress is contrary to the Kardashians. Because they don't need to express themselves through clothing and accessories. ”
Indeed, the super-rich family does not have to pursue the so-called luxury brands and fashion, but has its own set of dress codes that belong to that circle.
For example, their daily suits are not as serious and dull as we imagine, often black, navy blue and gray, with casual matching, reflecting low-key class taste, but also with a certain commercial atmosphere.
But most of these seemingly "ordinary" suits and jackets are exquisite private customization. The suit of the eldest parent Logan was specially made by the crew with Leonard Logsdail, a well-known British tailor, not for external expression, but for comfortable wear.
His negative teaching material is Tom, who always wears a ready-to-wear suit, meticulously matched from ties to shoes and socks, and is ridiculed by the Shiv siblings as "frugal and tasteless".
But Shiv also said that she had asked her father's tailor to modify Tom's suit, and it still felt wrong to wear it. In the end, it was Tom who crossed the class to become a son-in-law, and he was not confident enough but pretended to be pretentious, which made him look very ridiculous.
The more "old" Pierce family is more "bleak" in the choice of clothing: old to white Pulan, warm brown, off-white, a kind of softness after time grinding. It also shows that they don't care what others think of for a long time.
For this group of old money, the most extravagant thing is their identity. What can represent identity is not the outside, but the conversation cultivation, vision and knowledge, and network resources inherited from ancestors that money cannot buy.
On the contrary, the hit dramas "Penthouse" and "Thirty Only" in previous years also describe the lives of rich people, but they will specifically emphasize what bags they use and what mansions they live in.
The American writer Paul Fossel referred to this "rich and visible class" in his book "Style". He cites economist Veblen as arguing that the "invisible top" has moved away from the stage of extravagance and is left to the upper class to play its former role.
"War of Succession" shows the dazzling high life, but it can't hide the precarious family relationship of the Roy family.
The series points to the root of the problem from the beginning of the film: the lack of parental roles.
The four sons and daughters grew up in the company of servants, learning horsemanship, tennis, and art, but they never saw their parents; Fathers only show up at dinner or leave in a hurry after a family photo, which leaves young children at a loss.
The mother is "absent" from the entire upbringing, so that the relationship between mother and child is estranged, and they will only meet on important occasions or when they need her share support.
In the later period, in order to raise children who can inherit the family business, Logan has been teaching his children in a hypocritical + violent way, making them both afraid and obedient to themselves, but causing them to have defects in ability and character.
The ERG theory proposed by Yale University professor Clayton Aldver in 1969 divided people's hierarchical needs into survival needs, mutual relationship needs and growth needs. From this point of view, Roy's children are not satisfied in terms of mutual relationships and upbringing, resulting in them growing up to deal with personal emotions very poorly.
However, after a series of struggles, several children also realized their problems to varying degrees.
Kendall, in particular, the screenwriter spent a lot of ink describing his growth line, and his seemingly absurd behavior was actually working towards his goal - replacing his father. Although from the third season, he still failed in the end, he did not give up and pushed forward a little bit each time.
At the end of the third season, Kendall, Shiv and Roman finally reached a brief agreement and decided to deal with Logan together, I wonder if it will make the plot reverse again?
Let's look forward to the start of the fourth season!
Edited by Sugar
Design: Bingbing