The Roman Senate existed for more than a century after the fall of Rome. What specifically did they do in these ~150 years?

by Cicada_lies_heavy

I realise the Senate had a mostly nominal role after the Republic fell, especially during the years of the Dominate. Even so, I have a hard time imagining what specifically the Senate did during the reign of Odoacer and his heirs. The empire was in shambles, the infrastructure barely (if at all) sustainabile, the cultural output of the old Roman intelligentsia was negligible compared to the previous centuries - and yet the Senate lasted till the early 7th century.

How would a senatorial 'meeting' take place under these circumstances? What were they discussing? What did old senatorial families think they were doing while these discussions took place on the ruins of the empire?

throwawayrandomvowel

More can always be said, but in the meantime see this series of answers by /u/anthemius_augustus. https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/9cudzv/comment/e5e9pse/

There is not a clear single answer as odoacer himself was deeply integrated into the fluid and changing institutional/governance bodies, so all these questions and answers are a bit endogenous, which is why the link above is a good overview.