With Lukas Matsson's secret about GoJo leaking out, Shiv and Tom's relationship reaching its breaking point, and Roman finally facing Gerri's resignation last episode, things are slowly getting out of hand for the Roy kids. This week, though, the elections are upon us, and the stakes have never been higher for the future of Waystar Royco. We take a look at this Succession season 4 episode 8 ending explained to see what went down.
Succession season 4 episode 8 ending explained
In this Succession season 4 episode 8 recap, we see Tom lash out at Greg saying he's got to deliver the best ratings for the elections or else he'll lose his job. As he's presiding over ATN's news staff, Greg tells him it got weird when he spent the night partying with Lukas and his entourage, along with the fact that Shiv has been in a secret alliance with the GoJo founder.
After learning that Daniel Jimenez is leading the exit polls, Shiv calls Matsson and tells him he can release his numbers soon. She then calls Nate and promises to keep her line open for Matsson and ATN once the polls are done. For their part, Roman tells Kendall that if Jimenez wins, they might have to go through the board to make sure the deal doesn't push through.
Once Roman leaves, Rava calls and asks Kendall if they can stay at the office due to a suspicious SUV following her and Sophie around. Kendall then admits that he sanctioned the vehicle to follow them around, much to his ex-wife's and daughter's annoyance. He calls Nate shortly after and asks to speak to Jimenez, the candidate leading in the exit polls. Kendall congratulates him and leaves the implication that he wants to talk about Matsson's deal to buy the company, just as Shiv enters the room.
Over in another part of the city, Roman visits Jeryd Mencken‘s election headquarters and gets admonished for not delivering Connor's numbers to him. Mencken then asks Roman to help him improve the narrative in the event he loses the elections. Meanwhile, Tom and Greg sniff cocaine to get a dose of energy for the long night ahead. Just as Greg leaves to get some food, Connor calls and asks Tom why ATN isn't airing anything about him.
With the polls closing, Tom goes ballistic as one of ATN's anchors makes a report using a defective touchscreen display showing incomplete information about the candidates' numbers. This mishap, and the lack of coverage of a firebombing incident in Milwaukee, prompts Kendall to call on Tom and order him to immediately fix these problems. As this is happening, Mencken's camp calls Roman to see if they can use the said incident to help improve their narrative.
The worsening of the situation leads Shiv, Roman, and Kendall to proceed to the newsroom to learn more about the incident. For her part, Shiv talks to Tom alone and apologizes for the things she said during the previous episode. After being told that she somehow caused his father's death, Shiv admits that she's pregnant. Tom questions her honesty and wonders if it's a new tactic she's using to gain leverage over him.
While the siblings are being escorted to a secluded room in ATN, Connor calls Roman and asks whether Mencken is still okay with his offer to him. Roman replies that he'll see what he can do. He then convenes with Shiv and Kendall as the three learn that votes in Wisconsin can't be certified because of the need to account for the ballots in Milwaukee. Due to the incident in that area, it appears that the Wisconsin votes will stay uncounted for the time being, giving Mencken the lead as the night drags on.
Thanks to a new update in Milwaukee, the Roy siblings, and the ATN election team learn that Mencken is currently enjoying a significant lead over Jimenez. Just as Shiv and Roman argue with one another on which narrative to prop up – that of Jimenez or Mencken, Tom mentions that his ex-wife appears to be unhinged. This comment makes Kendall mad, leading Roman to leave the room shortly after. As this is happening, ATN's Mark Ravenhead is on air speaking on behalf of Roman and Mencken's narrative, leading Shiv to storm the newsroom and admonish his brother.
Shiv then takes a call from a worried Matsson, as a Mencken win can derail his acquisition of Waystar Royco. After learning that the Swede has been communicating with Greg. Shiv talks to his cousin alone and threatens him if he goes behind her back with Matsson.
After ATN's coverage siding with Mencken, Roman informs Kendall that he has obtained his commitment to block the deal with Matsson in exchange for their support. He then goes to Tom and directs him to have ATN declare Mencken as the leading candidate. With the initial hesitation out of the way, Tom and the ATN team come up with a way to prop up Mencken's narrative without getting in trouble for declaring too early. But just as they're starting to work, Darwin, the individual responsible for presenting the new data, gets Wasabi into his eyes. This incident delays a presentation that would help Mencken gain more positive coverage from the network. Meanwhile, Connor arrives and proposes to Roman that he'll concede in Mencken's favor.
Thanks to the new update, ATN has come out with an update that Mencken has won Wisconsin. After Connor announced his withdrawal from the race, another update comes out which puts the two candidates in a tie over the counted electoral votes. Kendall then speaks to Roman alone once they learned that there's a chance for their previous decision to prematurely call Wisconsin for Mencken to backfire. He implores Roman not to call it for Mencken for personal reasons while the younger brother is pushing it to protect the company their father built.
Kendall speaks to Shiv alone and confides in her how he feels about a Mencken victory. Shiv speaks her piece and says that they can stop him from becoming president. Kendall then asks his sister if she can call Nate and get their camp's commitment to block the GoJo deal in exchange for their support. Shiv lies and pretends to call Nate in another room with Kendall watching.
With Shiv, Kendall, and Roman back in a single room, the Roy siblings talk about whether to call for Mencken or not. Kendall decides to call Nate and learns that Shiv lied about calling him. He also learns from Greg that Shiv has been secretly siding with Matsson all this time, leading him to call for Mencken. Roman echoes the order to Tom, and he tells the team to call for the candidate. Once the call has been made, Mencken comes out in a press conference and thanks Roman in a call shortly after.
Over in ATN's newsroom, several other stations report that the network's decision to call for Mencken falls solely on Tom's shoulders. This leads him to worry about the possible legal actions he'll face in the coming months. The episode ends with Shiv promising Matsson she'll fix the problem and Kendall showing signs of regret for supporting Mencken.
What just happened? A Succession season 4 episode 8 recap
In this week's Succession season 4 episode 8 recap, we see past storylines about the election culminate here as Jeryd Mencken is declared the next president by ATN. With Roman advocating him and Shiv his opponent, Daniel Jimenez, the decision to call it falls upon Kendall. After learning of Shiv's betrayal, Kendall decides to go with Mencken, even with his family vehemently against the Republican candidate.
Also, we see the fallout of ATN's decision to call for Mencken about to drop down on Tom after the media has painted him as the individual responsible for the action. With the lines clearly drawn between Shiv and Matsson against his brothers and Tom, the following episodes will certainly deal with this fight as the future of Waystar Royco and the United States of America hang in the balance.
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