Succession is Ted Lasso through a dark mirror... and Logan Roy is the AntiTed
Musings about two of my currently favorite TV shows
My two favorite shows on TV right now are Succession and Ted Lasso - thinking a little about why that is, and I think it's because they actually have a lot in common. Almost like different sides of the same coin.
Let me explain...
What we've got in each show is a collection of characters who are glorious messes, just bundles of trauma, failings, and imperfections.
For the Roys, ruthless ambition is the way they cope, and survive. In Ted Lasso, at the beginning, many characters are in the same place.
Rebecca, for example, wants nothing more than to ruin Rupert. Jamie wants off the loser team he's stuck in. Roy is a bundle of anger and resentment because he's lost a step.
And the Roy kids, each of them has tried, and tried, and tried to win their father's affection, and failed.
So in the midst of these big messes, we've got a central character with a strong personality - Ted Lasso, Logan Roy. Each one a big mess themselves, but much better at hiding it than anyone else. And they both hide it in kind of the same way - by putting the focus on the people around them.
Logan does it in a negative, manipulative way, playing everyone close to him like a game of chess, pitting them against each other. Ted does it in a more positive way, focusing on helping everyone with their problems, selflessly giving of himself for them. The result is the same.
Everyone around them being focused on their own problems, means neither Logan nor Ted have to actually deal with theirs. And it works, for a bit.Over time, each character gets some major pushback, and in the end, they both get back exactly what they give out.
Logan gets scheme after scheme to take him down, while Ted gets empathy, and people pushing HIM to work on his own problems, trying to help him as he's helped them.
Over, and over, and over in each show, we see the same dynamic playing out in different ways - the Roy children could accomplish so much if they could truly support each other - but Logan's influence means they can't.
On TL, the individual players and people around them could get so much by screwing over the team and going out for themselves - but Ted's influence keeps them focused on each other.
They're both stories about families - one biological, one found, but its the family dynamics in both shows that make them so good. Tragic in Succession's case, uplifting in Ted Lasso's.
The tragedy in Succession is that none of the characters has the capacity help each other, and thus help themselves - and each time they try, they get smacked down. The glory in Ted Lasso is that when they reach out, they're rewarded with support, and empathy.
As each show barrels toward an end, what strikes me over and over is how HUMAN all the characters are.
There's just enough of an archetype in each to be recognizable, but each of them burning with the very human trait of making bad, messy choices informed by their traumas. And that's what I try to take from each show, and apply to my own work.
That's what I'm always shooting for. Whether I'm writing horror, sci-fi, or superheroes. Characters that are struggling, with themselves, and with those around them. Lost in the dark and trying to find a way through, just like we all are. Doing their best, but often failing.
I think Jimmy from Breath of Shadows comes closest, so far. He is, I think, a pretty glorious mess.
We'll see what I can come up with next. But anyway, thanks for reading, and go watch those shows!
Rich
Brilliant! Love both shows too and you are so “awakeningly” on point! Good excuse for rewatching, too, methinks! 🤔