Logan Roy's nemesis Sandy Furness doesn't look too good in Succession season 3, episode 5, but does he actually have syphilis?

Succession season 3, episode 5 showed a deteriorating Sandy Furness amidst a tense shareholders meeting, but despite rumors of syphilis, the actual medical condition of Logan Roy's arch-rival is still a mystery. It's possible that Sandy did, in fact, contract the sexually transmitted disease, but that seems like just the type of disparaging gossip that the catty Roys would stir up to create ill-will towards one of their enemies. Suffice it to say that Sandy is suffering in his old age, but the symptoms are too vague to make a definitive conclusion.

Audiences first got word of Sandy's condition back in Succession season 2, episode 6, when resident sycophant Tom Wambsgans remarked that syphilis "is like the MySpace of STDs." That was when Sandy was looking weak, but still able to converse and walk around, plotting his carnivorous takeover plans with his younger collaborator Stewy Hosseini. A whole season later and Sandy is the "angriest f*cking vegetable," in the words of Stewy, bound to a wheelchair and inaudible to everyone except his identically-named daughter Sandi but still harboring the same red-hot malice towards Logan.

Roman seems genuinely taken aback by Sandy's state, wondering if his father's adversary does actually have syphilis and accusing him of being his daughter's "meat puppet." He also wonders if Sandy is covered in genital sores, the most recognizable symptom of syphilis. If Sandy is suffering from this bacterial infection, though, he probably contracted it years ago when he was still virile. The condition is most likely not the typical sore-and-rash-ridden manifestation that Roman is thinking of, but the dreaded tertiary syphilis that corrupts the organs and brain.

This particularly nasty form of the disease occurs years after the initial stage, mostly if the infection is left completely untreated and allowed to spread to other parts of the body. That would explain Sandy's dementia-like symptoms as well as his sudden loss of coordination that ruined his mobility and speech. Then again, the man is old, and his unidentified condition serves to parallel Logan's own bout of psychosis due to a urinary tract infection. Logan's secretary Kerry explains that the Roy patriarch didn't want anyone to know about his health issues, which explains why Waystar Royco tried to sully Sandy's reputation with rumors of an STD. It seems as if embarrassing medical diagnoses can bruise the egos of both these ruthless rival kings.

Of course, Sandy and Logan are still formidable forces even in their decaying states, ordering their minions around while not even definitively cognizant of their surroundings. That's the real takeaway from the episode "Retired Janitors from Idaho," which demonstrates just how shackled the show's heirs are to their baron parents' whims. Syphilis or not, Sandy still poses a threat to the Roys. If anything, public news of his condition has made him even more vindictive towards his enemies and is fueling his twilight years with pure hate. Succession is showing how these two rival magnates continue to wage war even if they're not mentally and physically capable. That's what children are for.

Next: Succession Season 3, Episode 3 Has No Winners, Only Losers