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Movies & TV

07th Jan 2019

There was a mixed reaction to RTÉ’s new War of Independence drama, Resistance

Paul Moore

Resistance

If you watched it, you might agree.

Much like its predecessor Rebellion, maintaining a standard of 100% historical accuracy isn’t the raison d’être for RTÉ’s brand new show about the War of Independence, Resistance.

The audience is reintroduced to Jimmy Mahon (Brian Gleeson), who has now been promoted within the ranks of the IRA and given a secret identity. On the other side of things, Mahon’s brother Patrick (David Wilmot) is an officer for the Royal Irish Constabulary. You can see where that arc is going.

This time around, we’re introduced to Michael Collins (Gavin Drea), who is is now a central figure in political events in Ireland and we also learn that there may be a rat in his ranks.

Elsewhere, Ursula Sweeney is a code-breaker at Dublin Castle who turns to the IRA for help after we learn that the nuns have taken her baby away for adoption and given the child to rich American parents – a plotline that’s arguably the strongest one from the first episode.

Aside from this, we were treated to the ominous presence of the Black and Tans throughout the opening episode and some nefarious bankers playing a high stakes game of chance with Ireland’s future.

Here’s what viewers made of the opening episode.

The scene with the nun and Ursula touched a nerve.

The portrayal of Michael Collins is clearly something that’s vital to the show and audiences alike.

While some people couldn’t shake Liam Neeson’s beloved take on ‘The Big Fellow’, others were on board.

There was also praise for the creators for not shying away from the contribution of Irish women to the national cause.

The overall impression has been somewhat mixed, but there is also an early feeling that the show is better than Rebellion still has room to improve.

In case you missed it, the first episode of Resistance can be seen on the RTÉ Player here.

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