Succession Recap: The Roy Family's Power Struggle Takes a Very Dark Turn in the Most Intense Episode Yet

It’s safe to say that after this week, Succession will never be the same again.

We thought Sunday’s episode would center around Connor and Willa’s wedding, and indeed, it starts with Roman heading there when he receives a call from Logan, who’s getting on a plane with Tom to meet Matsson. Logan wants to fire Gerri… and he wants Roman to give her the bad news. It’s clearly a loyalty test, and Roman swallows hard and says he’ll do it. At the wedding, a brass band plays as Willa explains to her mom they’ll take a boat to Ellis Island for the ceremony. (So Connor is getting the “hoopla” he asked for.) Connor bristles when he overhears some guests griping about the ultra-rich — “Mr. Scrooge just happened to be a huge wealth creator. They don’t mention that in Mr. Dickens’ books” — while Roman works up the nerve to pull Gerri aside.

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Right away, Gerri can sense he’s being weird (because he isn’t talking about dicks for once), and after he hems and haws for a bit, he blurts out that’s she’s fired. Logan blames her for what happened with the Department of Justice and the large fine they had to pay, he says, but she says she worked her ass off for him. “You just lost his confidence,” Roman concludes, assuring her she’ll be well compensated and trying to say he’s sorry. But an angry Gerri just storms off, leaving Roman to leave his dad a voicemail: “Are you kind of just being s–tty to me?… That’s the question: Are you a cunt?”

Kendall arrives as Connor is complaining about the “inadequate” wedding cake — it reminds him of the “loony cake” he was given when his mom was sent away to an institution — and Shiv ignores several phone calls from Tom. Connor is still hoping Logan will stop by, not knowing that he’s on a flight overseas, and Kendall and Roman volunteer Shiv to break the news to him. But then Tom calls Roman from the flight and urgently tells him there’s something wrong with Logan: “He’s very sick.” They found him unresponsive in the bathroom, and they’re doing chest compressions. The airplane staff is doing their best to revive him, but Frank puts his phone to Logan’s ear so Kendall and Roman can talk to their dad, “in case it’s the last chance.” A shellshocked Roman tells Logan, “You’re a monster. You’re gonna win,” and Kendall chokes out: “I love you. I do… I can’t forgive you. But yeah, it’s OK, and I love you.” Kendall runs and tells Shiv, and she runs to the phone crying, telling Logan, “I love you… don’t go, please not now.” But Tom tells her, “He’s not OK, no.” Logan’s heart has stopped, and his breathing has stopped, Tom reports.

The jet is turning back, and Kendall barks into the phone that he wants Logan’s doctor and “the best f–king heart doctor in the world,” and he wants them in the next minute. He also insists on talking to the pilot, but Frank softly tells him, “He’s flying the plane, son.” Kendall asks if Logan is dead, and Frank isn’t sure, but “I think he went.” Kendall gets choked up and hangs up, and Shiv is upset that no one told her sooner. Roman is dazed and can’t even remember what he said to Logan (“Did I say I loved him?”), and they realize they need to tell Connor. They pull him aside and tell him they think Logan may be dead. “Well, is he?” Connor coldly responds, working through a lot of complicated feelings about his father before declaring he can’t handle this right now and walking away. Roman still wants to get some proper doctors to look at Logan; he’s not officially been declared dead yet, he says, “so f—king stop!”

On the plane, Karolina starts to make preparations for the worst, and Kerri is shaking and clearly in shock, saying, “That was so f—king weird.” Tom calls Greg and tells him he needs to leave the wedding and go into the office “because Logan is dead.” They need to keep this quiet for now because Waystar’s stock could tank, Tom warns, adding, “I’m not OK. I’m sad… I lost my protector.” (He does want it known, though, that he was with Logan when he died.) Hugo offers his condolences, but Roman still won’t accept he’s dead: “What if it’s a big f—king test?” The lawyers are starting to draft a statement, but the Roy siblings aren’t ready to talk about that yet. They start to fight among themselves — Shiv wonders if they can circle the plane for a bit while they figure out how to handle this, while Roman wants them to land immediately so a doctor can see Logan — as Kendall reminds them that “what we do today will always be what we did the day our father died.”

Connor and Willa talk about postponing the wedding, but Connor’s afraid it’ll give her a chance to rethink things. She’s so young and full of life, and “my father’s dead, and I feel old.” He asks her point blank if she’s just with him for his money, and she admits there’s something to be said for “money and safety… but I’m happy. I am.” She vows not to leave him… “not today, anyway.” Kendall starts talking funeral plans (“We could do Reagan’s, with tweaks”), and he confers with Roman and Shiv about the GoJo sale. Do they go through with it, or “keep our options open”? They insist on drafting the company statement themselves and maintaining control until the board meets, and Shiv and Kendall nominate Roman to tell Matsson what happened.

The three of them take a helicopter to the airport where Logan’s plane is arriving and a press conference awaits. (Roman asks if they’re going to be OK, and Kendall replies they will, before they joke that they’re actually screwed.) Shiv takes the lead, announcing to the press that Logan was pronounced dead on arrival and paying tribute to him before adding that the board will meet to determine the next steps. When a reporter asks what their role will be, Shiv says, “We intend to be there.” As Waystar’s stock price is nose-diving, Kendall, Roman and Shiv wonder if they should go see Logan’s body before sharing a tender three-way hug. Connor and Willa end up getting married after all in front of just a few guests, while Shiv and Tom take a car home together and Kendall stays back to watch his father’s body get loaded into an ambulance.

Whoa… once you’re done processing that intense hour of television, join us in the comments below to share your thoughts on Logan’s death and what it means for the future of the Roys and Waystar.

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