Warning: mild spoilers for the penultimate episode of Succession
Succession is a legendary TV show for many reasons, not least for its writing. The series’ clever witticisms shone through in the penultimate ever episode 'Dearly Departed', as an English romantic poem is used in a tongue-in-cheek manner to honour the late Logan Roy (Brian Cox), patriarch of the infamous Waystar media empire and the Roy family.
The episode focuses on Logan's funeral. While Roman (Kieran Culkin) is meant to deliver his father’s eulogy, he ends up being unable to go through with it, instead Logan ends up with three unplanned tributes, delivered by his brother Ewan (James Cromwell), son Kendall (Jeremy Strong) and, finally, his only daughter Shiv (Sarah Snook).
Later, the family head to Logan's mausoleum, where Shiv refers to her late dad as 'cat food Ozymandias' - which left many viewers wondering exactly what she meant.
Poetry lovers and the literary among us may have clocked the reference, but for those still scratching their head - here's what it means.
What does Ozymandias mean?
Ozymandias is a sonnet written by English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley in the 1880s. The 'moral' of the sonnet is that even the greatest of men and their achievements will fade into oblivion with time, which perhaps is an accurate appraisal of Logan Roy’s legacy. The sonnet points out that whatever success we aim for in life, it won’t last forever, and certainly won’t live forever after we’re gone.
The poem looks at the pride of leaders, referring to the pointlessness and arrogance of hoping your work will live on, describing the following line bearing a leader’s grave: ‘Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!’
Shiv uses the phrase 'cat food Ozymandias' because Logan sourced his predictably over-the-top mausoleum from a pet supply business man, or 'petfood.com guy'.
Have we heard of Ozymandias on a TV series before?
We have, in fact. It’s the name of one of Breaking Bad’s most famous and final episodes. It, once again, refers to the inevitable downfall of an empire – in this case Walter White’s meth business. Genius.