Normal People [BBC - RTE] - [**SPOILERS**]

Just the ending I expected. Uneventful, like pretty much the entire series. I can see how some people would be totes emosh at the finale, but it was sign-posted early on and ended abruptly then.

Now I know I will evoke the rage of the fans that can't see anyone else's opinion on the show, but to me it meandered along, crescendoed for the suicide episode and reverted back to type thereafter. As someone mentioned before, they sort of just dumped scenes here and there of the brother being nasty and abusive towards Marriane without any insight or development as to why. Same goes with the mammy-why was she giving them all a cold shoulder at the end there?

Genuinely think it wouldn't have the same high rating if it wasn't based in Ireland and on Netflix instead.

Shout out to RTE as well for pretty giving away the entire upcoming plot in every trailer they showed. As professional as always.

It was just brilliant. So much to love, but Paul Mescal’s performance is extraordinary throughout. I can see why it has been so successful and garner an international audience while being authentically Irish. Fair play to all involved.

I think a follow up would ruin it, but if someone wanted to make a movie on it I’d certainly give it a go!

Conal’s anxiety would be more problematic In NY with the virus and the race tensions and that’s before he has to buy fags.

Deleted User wrote:

Watching episode 7 at the moment. Connall may have been a little unreasonable when Jamie was trying to emphatise with him over his mugging. And he was right too, the guy who mugged him was going to shove the cash straight up his nose so to speak.

your not going to be to friendly with the lad who is currently intimate with the girl you love not to mention the fact that he was making moves on her while they were together

The closing scene was beautiful. The two of them were never as close as at that moment, even though they were talking about being apart.

Tork wrote: »

My take on it is that the brother took over the mantle of violent male in the house from his father. The mother was beaten by her husband and I wonder if she is intimidated by her son? Lorraine was being as tactful as she could when she described her as a bit odd.

Just out of interest, to those who've read the book, was this issue explored in more detail there?

I felt this part of the storyline was not portrayed very effectively in the series.
Brother was borderline psychotic at times with a seething and sometimes violent resentment toward this sister. We got very little background to his motivation.

On the whole, I felt this petered out after the first few episodes, which were very good. It didn't warrant 12 episodes imo. 8 would probably have covered it.
The depression/anxiety aspect felt overwrought to me.

A combination of lengthy sex scenes in an Irish locale combined with lockdown (and not many new big releases in the entertainment world) definitely helped to catch the public attention.

I enjoyed it overall. It did drag in some episodes. I could relate to a lot of parts of the story. For me, the way Connell struggled to connect his Dublin life with his Sligo life was very real.

I agree that it would have been better if we could see more of the brother and mother's viewpoint.
Favourite scenes included Connell's mother getting out of the car, the funeral scene where Connell shook hands with the Dad. Also, the dinner scene at the Italian holiday home. The tension in that scene was terrific.

Favourite characters were Karen and Niall. They seemed to be the coolest, nicest, kindest people of the lot.

ednwireland wrote: »

oh and if he was that good at gaa he would be at ucd not trinity

this program is wrong on so many levels !

Do people chose their colleges on what sport they play?

Maybe that's something relevant to those more Dublin centric but can't see it having the same sway for someone from rural Ireland anyway you are given the sense despite Connells academics he's gonna plump for putting options that aren't as financially taxing on his CAO, Maryanne steers him towards including Trinity as an option.

In the book he actually played football, the GAA alteration was made by Lenny Abrahamson.

pickarooney wrote: »

My interpretation was that the father battered the mother and the son but never laid a hand on Marianne, leading to this perennial resentment Alan has of her as the untouchable golden child and Marianne's survivor's guilt making her feel she deserved punishment and her penchant for physically abusive lovers. It's just missing the older-man angle.

In the book Marrianne states that the father did indeed hit her.

Mad_maxx wrote: »

the only truly likeable character in the series was connells mother

connell is himself hard work , speaking in riddles , push - pull language towards marianne

his mother was as sound as a pound

Was about Niall? And Karen? I thought they were very likeable. But peripheral.

I ended up watching most of it on Monday nights on BBC. I mean it's not much of a story really but I have to say it's by far the best produced and acted and most believable Irish series, or even film, that I've ever seen. People lauded love/hate but I could only get through one episode as I thought the acting was so bad. I think I'm just extra harsh on film/TV when it's in my own vernacular and the acting has the potential to be so wrong. But I think Lenny A and the producers knocked it out of the park with this one.
It would be nice to see more dramas produced like this set in Ireland, I can't think of anything that comes close.

Mad_maxx wrote: »

Likeable gob****e I suppose

Who, Niall? Niall was lovely. Not in anyway a gobschite. I'm a big fan of Niall and his bandana. Reminds me of a lad I knew in college. He had a bandana too. Maybe that's a way of recognising seriously sound fellas. The sound lad will be the one with the bandana that he is wearing without a shred of irony.

Thelonious Monk wrote: »

I ended up watching most of it on Monday nights on BBC. I mean it's not much of a story really but I have to say it's by far the best produced and acted and most believable Irish series, or even film, that I've ever seen. People lauded love/hate but I could only get through one episode as I thought the acting was so bad. I think I'm just extra harsh on film/TV when it's in my own vernacular and the acting has the potential to be so wrong. But I think Lenny A and the producers knocked it out of the park with this one.
It would be nice to see more dramas produced like this set in Ireland, I can't think of anything that comes close.

I'd have it as one of the best ever Irish TV series, a masterpiece. The cinematography, music and acting were stunning. The funny thing is that not very much actually happens in the storyline and yet it totally draws you in in terms of atmosphere and emotions.

I liked both the TV show and the novel. It's interesting though to note the differences between them. In an article in the Irish Times (here), Hugh Linehan says that "much of what has made the series so successful – its languorous narrative, sensuous cinematography, dreamily downbeat soundtrack and evocative locations – is many miles removed from the emotional tone of Rooney’s novel".

What struck me is that social class is a much more explicit issue in the novel than in the TV show. In the book, a number of references are made to the the fact that Connell is working class and Marianne middle class. It's mentioned that Connell's family would be considered somewhat dodgy, with a relative in prison. Marianne's mother says that Connell has turned out well despite his background. When they go to a house in the ghost estate, Connell comments that the house is much bigger than his own and wonders why it's left empty. Something to do with capitalism, Marianne ventures. When their relationship hits the rocks in college, Connell wonders if Marianne would be better off dating a professional, like a solicitor or a lawyer. When he's at the counselling session in the aftermath of Rob's suicide, Connell says that one of the reasons he hates Trinity is because students talk about how much money their fathers' earn.

These lines either don't appear in the TV show or don't appear as often. Of course, TV being a visual medium, we do see some class differences: Marianne lives in a big house, Connell in a small one; Marianne's family has a villa, etc. Still, it feels that the class element has been downplayed. I think lots of Connell's awkwardness in college arises from feeling inferior because of his class. Although he's very intelligent, he's very self-conscious around people from moneyed backgrounds, doesn't show off like they do. The TV show, while inferring some of this, seems to ascribe his troubles more to mental health issues, anxiety, etc.

There's a good article in Jacobin (here) about the politics of the show and novel.

Anyway, I still enjoyed both the novel and the show.