Audiences eager for Succession's obscenely wealthy jerks to return

You've probably heard of Succession by now: HBO's fiery, ruthless tragicomedy about the Roys, a family fighting amongst themselves for control of Waystar Royco, the multi-billion dollar media empire that their cruel, aging patriarch refuses to surrender.

The show premiered in 2018, and after a slow storm of positive critical reception gave way to its rampant, mostly word-of-mouth spread, the Emmy-winning series is back for a third and much-anticipated season on Sunday.

As Succession creator Jesse Armstrong tells it, the show is partly based on the Murdoch family, a group of people with whom most of us have little in common. So why are audiences so wild about this series that, at first glance, is just another about an obscenely wealthy family?

Critics and fans think we have an appetite for shows about rich people on their worst behaviour and familial power struggles that border on "medieval" — but remain strangely relatable.

Succession is "cutthroat" in a way that is unusual for family dramas, said Allison Keene, TV editor for Paste Magazine. 

"There's something very medieval about it," Keene said. "I think that Succession is — for lack of a better word — the true successor to Game of Thrones."

Indeed, the show's tenuous family dynamic makes for a captivating power struggle, and its character's insecurities and hangups are part of the appeal. Kendall, the pathetic son, is desperate for validation from a withholding father; his sister Siobhan fancies herself a morally virtuous progressive, but it's just not in her blood. Their two brothers, Roman and Connor, are no less craven.