The line between potential heirs to WayStar Royco is lightly penciled and paper thin.

Following the dramatic wreckage of Logan Roy’s (Brian Cox) abrupt exit, “Succession” returns to its more understated, morbidly humorous form in its fourth episode. Much like the previous installment, “Honeymoon States” takes place mostly in one location, this time in Logan’s mansion for his wake the day after his death. But the wake is not a day of mourning, rather, it is a “coronation demolition derby” with a board meeting to appoint Waystar’s interim CEO on the agenda.

The episode begins and ends with Kendall (Jeremy Strong) and establishes his central perspective in the opening shot. In it, a visibly disheveled Kendall stares blankly out his window from a dejected seated position. After showing Roman (Kieran Culkin) brushing his teeth in a slice of normalcy, Shiv (Sarah Snook) receives a phone call that subtly reveals her pregnancy, a secret that creates an unspoken tension for the remainder of the episode in her every verbal and nonverbal expression.

[Related: ‘Succession’ season 4 recap — episode 3: ‘Connor’s Wedding’]

After trudging past a mysteriously reappeared Marcia (Hiam Abbass) and faceless condolences, Kendall reconvenes with his siblings at the wake, their truce lasting for the time being. Tom (Matthew Macfadyen) walks past the Roy children toward “old guard” Frank (Peter Friedman), Karl (David Rasche), Gerri (J. Smith-Cameron) and Karolina (Dagmara Dominczyk), symbolizing the side he took that he will soon come to regret.

Logan’s longtime allies hold an impromptu discussion on the current state of leadership, considering that the kids are not “constitutionally well-equipped” to take the helm of the ship at the current juncture. That is where the consensus ends, devolving into a war of passive-aggressive insults veiled as considerate advice, with Gerri and Karl both advocating for their own candidacy. Comically dismantling Tom’s CEO dreams, Karl casually describes how the board will view him as a “clumsy interloper” who is “fair and squarely fucked” given Logan was the only one who supported him.

But everything changes in the blink of an eye when Frank discovers a “rather worrying piece of paper” in Logan’s personal safe. The pivotal page outlining Logan’s wishes after his death, although not legally binding, includes an undated, penciled addendum in the third paragraph. Kendall Logan Roy is named the designated CEO – with a hotly contested underline.

It is all Kendall needs to reignite his quest to take over the company, a sign of his father’s faith in him, when even in his death, Kendall is followed by a shadow of denied love and disappointment. Seeking support in the board meeting, he pleads with Roman and Shiv, who eventually agree to sign on but with Roman as co-CEO and an unhappy Shiv without any role in an official capacity. And with that and support from Stewy (Arian Moayed), Kendall and Roman are officially voted co-CEOs.

Entering their father’s office with Hugo (Fisher Stevens) and Karolina, the newly crowned pair are given two communications strategies: sell their closeness with their father or undermine his credibility to boost their own. Popping a couple of nondescript pills from his father’s desk in an action that shouldn’t go unnoticed, Roman quickly vetoes “operation shit on dad,” which Kendall seems to agree with.

[Related: ‘The White Lotus’ season 2 recap — episode 7: ‘Arrivederci’]

However, Kendall undermines their new partnership in a matter of minutes, approaching Hugo to go ahead with an under-the-radar smear campaign. With the words, “It’s what he would do. He’d want this,” Kendall invokes his dad’s memory to close the conversation, coupled with the threat of insider trading dirt he has on Hugo, of course. As a sign of his apparent transformation, Kendall’s triumphant smile is particularly Logan-esque.

Even in the first episode without Logan, his memory occupies every corner of his haunted house. His children mock his eulogies, finding humor in the portrait of a man they never knew while a virtual stranger gives a speech about his greatness. Connor (Alan Ruck) pays an exorbitant price to purchase Logan’s mansion. All the while, the “Succession” theme follows them in every corner, and his penciled ruminations decide their fate.

Kendall won the “coronation demolition derby” for the time being, but with 24 hours to close the GoJo deal, this victory may be short-lived.