Television Succession

Epic show. You can't make a Tomelette without breaking some Greggs.

Sky's latest promo for their 2021 TV exclusives features Succession, so it looks like S3 ain't too far away. Hallelujah.
 
Lebowski said:
The theme song absolutely slaps and the show itself is pretty perfect - a few more seasons at this level of quality and it might climb above Mad Men and approach Sopranos and The Wire in terms of brilliance.
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Whoa, whoa, let’s pump the brakes here. It was good enough to be interesting despite it being just another rich people’s problems show, but Mad Men was next level in that regard. And deeper on a grander scale as well in terms of a social commentary.
 
Organic Potatoes said:
Whoa, whoa, let’s pump the brakes here. It was good enough to be interesting despite it being just another rich people’s problems show, but Mad Men was next level in that regard. And deeper on a grander scale as well in terms of a social commentary.
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Have to agree , Mad Men was something else. Especially the ending, pure brilliance. This show still has room to grow though.
 
Organic Potatoes said:
Whoa, whoa, let’s pump the brakes here. It was good enough to be interesting despite it being just another rich people’s problems show, but Mad Men was next level in that regard. And deeper on a grander scale as well in terms of a social commentary.
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Maybe. It's been years since I watched Mad Med so it might be recency bias.

Depending on where Succession goes I think it may match Mad Men in terms of social commentary though. It may not be the Gramscian critique of media and wealth that I think I want but would likely hate, but I mean... it essentially has versions of Bernie Sanders and Rupert Murdoch as major characters so it's definitely beyond rich people problems!
 
Organic Potatoes said:
Whoa, whoa, let’s pump the brakes here. It was good enough to be interesting despite it being just another rich people’s problems show, but Mad Men was next level in that regard. And deeper on a grander scale as well in terms of a social commentary.
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ABS engaged. Succession is right up there with Mad Men.
 
Don’t want to read this thread because even on page 1, everyone seems to be at least halfway through season 2. I’m a couple of episodes in to season 2. I think it’s great TV. So many really good characters. Brian Cox is really great
 
"........................................................................... But."
 
There’s a 3 part documentary exploring Rupert Murdoch on BBC iPlayer called ‘The Rise of the Murdoch Dynasty’. Episode one details Murdoch’s origins, episode two focuses on the phone hacking scandal and episode three shows his influence in Brexit and the rise of Trump.

Each part is really interesting and brilliantly made. I was too young to really appreciate the extent of the phone hacking scandal at the time but I was also blind to just how much media Murdoch controls and how much influence he has politically. Really eye-opening show for those in a similar place of unknowing.

Anyone who likes Succession will also like this I feel. Really highlights where the framework for the show came from.
 
Ok. I’ve binged this in 2 week.

Absolutely brilliant show. Loved the ending. I don’t think that was orchestrated with Logan.

I love how funny it is at times. Like, there aren’t many shows of this kind where there are so many laugh out loud moments.

Conor running for president is a highlight. He’s hilarious. Tom and Greg too.
 
Solius said:


:drool:
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What a teaser.

Absolute hype.

Genuinely could go down as one of my favourite ever shows if they can keep the quality up over 2-3 more seasons.
 
Alock1 said:
What a teaser.

Absolute hype.

Genuinely could go down as one of my favourite ever shows if they can keep the quality up over 2-3 more seasons.
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It’s easily the best show currently in production
 
The chicken scene is still the funniest thing I have ever seen
 
Pexbo said:
It’s easily the best show currently in production
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Feels so underrated still and goes under the radar. Put it on Netflix and it blows up but I guess that'll never happen with it being HBO.
 
Massive Spanner said:
Ha? Some of the biggest shows ever have been on HBO.
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True but it doesn't have as broad a reach as Netflix does in fairness. Haven't a lot of HBO shows blown up a couple series in? Obviously The Wire did for example but I'm sure stuff like GOT and The Sopranos weren't huge straight away compared to something like Stranger Things on Netflix for example...I could be wrong though
 
Oggmonster said:
True but it doesn't have as broad a reach as Netflix does in fairness. Haven't a lot of HBO shows blown up a couple series in? Obviously The Wire did for example but I'm sure stuff like GOT and The Sopranos weren't huge straight away compared to something like Stranger Things on Netflix for example...I could be wrong though
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HBO are massive, they don't actually fall that far short of Netflix in worldwide subscribers and that's discounting the fact that they distribute a lot of their shows to other networks worldwide e.g. their deal with Sky in the UK.

Mare of Easttown was probably the most talked about show of this year so far, or close to it.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/539290/hbo-now-subscribers/
 
Massive Spanner said:
HBO are massive, they don't actually fall that far short of Netflix in worldwide subscribers and that's discounting the fact that they distribute a lot of their shows to other networks worldwide e.g. their deal with Sky in the UK.

Mare of Easttown was probably the most talked about show of this year so far, or close to it.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/539290/hbo-now-subscribers/
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Oh yeah I agree they're big shows especially more recently as they have the history with Sopranos, GOT, the wire, Oz, boardwalk empire etc but it does seem that when something goes on Netflix in particular it gets talked about a lot and goes viral...maybe cos they tend to release everything in 1 big go.

Mare of Easttown was great but wasn't that Bridgerton out this year? That was surely more talked about??
 
Massive Spanner said:
Ha? Some of the biggest shows ever have been on HBO.
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Just talking about in the UK to be honest. It's on Sky but not what it would be on Netflix.

No idea about the numbers or reception in the US, but I imagine it's not what it would have been 10 years ago for what is HBO's biggest (I expect?) show.
 
Oggmonster said:
Oh yeah I agree they're big shows especially more recently as they have the history with Sopranos, GOT, the wire, Oz, boardwalk empire etc but it does seem that when something goes on Netflix in particular it gets talked about a lot and goes viral...maybe cos they tend to release everything in 1 big go.

Mare of Easttown was great but wasn't that Bridgerton out this year? That was surely more talked about??
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The problem with Netflix is there is so much content and a lot of it is just bad, as well as the fact that they release every episode at once meaning good shows can still go under the radar. They do have a wide ranging user base and when a show takes off it really takes off but it's still far from guaranteed that a show like Succession would've been massive on their platform.
Alock1 said:
Just talking about in the UK to be honest. It's on Sky but not what it would be on Netflix.

No idea about the numbers or reception in the US, but I imagine it's not what it would have been 10 years ago for what is HBO's biggest (I expect?) show.
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Why not? They have 41m subscribers and loads more through HBO max.

I don't get your point tbh, loads of HBO shows get massive attention and viewership figures worldwide. Succession isn't remotely hindered by virtue of being a HBO show. I mean season two completely swept up all the awards last year.
 
Massive Spanner said:
The problem with Netflix is there is so much content and a lot of it is just bad, as well as the fact that they release every episode at once meaning good shows can still go under the radar. They do have a wide ranging user base and when a show takes off it really takes off but it's still far from guaranteed that a show like Succession would've been massive on their platform.

Why not? They have 41m subscribers and loads more through HBO max.

I don't get your point tbh, loads of HBO shows get massive attention and viewership figures worldwide. Succession isn't remotely hindered by virtue of being a HBO show. I mean season two completely swept up all the awards last year.
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41m subscribers? Are you talking about Sky because its more like 15m and not all will have Sky Atlantic. If you're talking about HBO - as I said, I'm talking about the UK.

I was just saying it feels like it goes under the radar and is underrated. It's an anecdotal thing. Working in media its the sort of show I'd expect to be huge in the office but nobody has seen it. Maybe it's the age group, and that so many of those people don't bother with Sky and just have subscriptions.

Never said it was being held back or should be concerned. Just that, for a show with such high production values and quality, I'd expect to hear a lot more of it. It should be up there as one of the shows most talked about (and maybe (probably) elsewhere it is).
 
Alock1 said:
41m subscribers? Are you talking about Sky because its more like 15m and not all will have Sky Atlantic. If you're talking about HBO - as I said, I'm talking about the UK.

I was just saying it feels like it goes under the radar and is underrated. It's an anecdotal thing. Working in media its the sort of show I'd expect to be huge in the office but nobody has seen it. Maybe it's the age group, and that so many of those people don't bother with Sky and just have subscriptions.

Never said it was being held back or should be concerned. Just that, for a show with such high production values and quality, I'd expect to hear a lot more of it. It should be up there as one of the shows most talked about (and maybe (probably) elsewhere it is).
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You said if it was on Netflix it'd blow up. I'm just proving that to be incorrect as both HBO and Sky (in the UK, as you say) have huge viewer figures and plenty of shows that have exploded in popularity, quite recently too, like Mare of Easttown. There's nothing to suggest that it would be different on Netflix. Lots of really good shows have gone under the radar on Netflix too. Most of what gets really popular on Netflix is actually shite liKe Bridgerton designed to appeal to the masses rather than tell a great story.

I know loads of people who've seen Succession, I actually watched it because a friend recommended it to me. I wouldn't call it underrated or low profile, it's not the biggest show on TV or anything but it's still popular and has swept up awards and gotten massive critical acclaim.
 
Massive Spanner said:
You said if it was on Netflix it'd blow up. I'm just proving that to be incorrect as both HBO and Sky (in the UK, as you say) have huge viewer figures and plenty of shows that have exploded in popularity, quite recently too, like Mare of Easttown. There's nothing to suggest that it would be different on Netflix. Lots of really good shows have gone under the radar on Netflix too. Most of what gets really popular on Netflix is actually shite liKe Bridgerton designed to appeal to the masses rather than tell a great story.

I know loads of people who've seen Succession, I actually watched it because a friend recommended it to me. I wouldn't call it underrated or low profile, it's not the biggest show on TV or anything but it's still popular and has swept up awards and gotten massive critical acclaim.
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Succession got 1m viewers for the live finale and apparently is averaging 4m across all platforms / channels.

Shadow & Bone on Netflix had 55 million subscribers view it in the first 28 days. Many, many others like it too. Yes not every Netflix show goes huge and obviously there's exceptions but when there's high production and a decent marketing budget? The numbers are ridiculous generally.

Succession numbers are US only but I wouldn't expect the increase elsewhere to be huge. Its hard to compare because they don't report the same metrics.

Anyway, so long as HBO continues to make a great show that's all I care about. Was just a comment. I continue to tell everybody to watch it, just frustrating that 9 times out of 10 the response is, 'is it on Netflix?' :smirk:
 
Massive Spanner said:
You said if it was on Netflix it'd blow up. I'm just proving that to be incorrect as both HBO and Sky (in the UK, as you say) have huge viewer figures and plenty of shows that have exploded in popularity, quite recently too, like Mare of Easttown. There's nothing to suggest that it would be different on Netflix. Lots of really good shows have gone under the radar on Netflix too. Most of what gets really popular on Netflix is actually shite liKe Bridgerton designed to appeal to the masses rather than tell a great story.

I know loads of people who've seen Succession, I actually watched it because a friend recommended it to me. I wouldn't call it underrated or low profile, it's not the biggest show on TV or anything but it's still popular and has swept up awards and gotten massive critical acclaim.
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Yeah, if anything it’d go under the radar in the wash of Netflix’s giant library. Like, say, Black Summer which is the best zombie thing going and it was 2 seasons in before I’d even heard of it. Similar to Castelvania which is the best animated series.

For Succession to be just another show about rich white people it’s doing surprisingly well. Like, it’s almost overrated now.
 
The thing about is HBO is that they have such a high hit %. Not everything they make is gold, but many, many orders of magnitude above Netflix. The fact that HBO Nordic has a vastly smaller library than Netflix doesn't bother me, and Netflix is actually the one I'm seriously considering dropping.

Of course it helps that HBO Nordic has loads of great non-HBO stuff too, but even the yanks have that now with HBO Max.

What @Organic Potatoes says about "under the radar" at Netflix is also a very good point.
 
Go look at the numbers. Shows you've barely heard gets 10s of millions viewing them within a month of launching, further accelerated in the pandemic of course. Succession is a very bingeable show and would have a constantly growing audience.

Netflix makes it more accessible to a larger audience, who are use to discovering and trying new shows, and can be targeted and marketed in a data-informed way that Sky just isn't capable of. I've no doubt it'd have a much bigger audience in the UK if it was on Netflix. The only challenge would be that it's first few episodes it's really finding it's feet and with intentionally unlikeable characters, can take a little longer to get into.

Mind.. whether Netflix would make it in the first place and it would be the show it is.. I'm less convinced.
 
Alock1 said:
Go look at the numbers. Shows you've barely heard gets 10s of millions viewing them within a month of launching, further accelerated in the pandemic of course. Succession is a very bingeable show and would have a constantly growing audience.

Netflix makes it more accessible to a larger audience, who are use to discovering and trying new shows, and can be targeted and marketed in a data-informed way that Sky just isn't capable of. I've no doubt it'd have a much bigger audience in the UK if it was on Netflix. The only challenge would be that it's first few episodes it's really finding it's feet and with intentionally unlikeable characters, can take a little longer to get into.

Mind.. whether Netflix would make it in the first place and it would be the show it is.. I'm less convinced.
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That's the most important thing here. Netflix does have a massive audience, but I don't think there's any chance Succession would get made at or for Netflix. And certainly nothing like The Wire, or The Leftovers, or Band of Brothers, etc. A world where HBO doesn't exist because it can't sustain the mega numbers of Netflix would be a world without some incredible TV.

It's like if the success of Marvel movies meant that other, less profitable movies weren't getting made.
 
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