The Box Set: "Succession."

S4, Ep. 2: "Rehearsal."

A lot of the initial resistance to “Succession” from people who had only heard about the premise was that the world was tiring of 1 percenters. For people who watched and immediately didn’t like the show, the resistance came from the fact that the Roy clan, as hilariously awful as they are, were in the end too unwatchable-awful as people to support the comedy.

I think anyone who has watched all of “Succession,” either getting over those issues, or maybe never having them or (probably more accurately) deciding to set them aside until that time when the issues couldn’t be ignored, are in essence all of us here, riding out the final season.

I think what “Rehearsal” offered up was a glimpse of what “Succession” looks like — at least for one episode and hopefully not too many more — when it’s past its sell-by date.

I do think this is a byproduct of its construction, its whole point, it’s raison d’être. “Succession” is the TV series embodiment of “this tape will self-destruct in five seconds” precisely because getting viewers to sustain their interest in loathsome rich vipers turning on each other is a nearly impossible mission.

“Like Santa Claus. If Santa Claus was a hit man.”