After months of fanfare and excitement, RTE's new gangster drama Kin kicked off last night as viewers were introduced to the Kinsella family and their explosive blood feud with a rival drug cartel, led by Ciaran Hinds.
Given its genre and Irish setting, the new eight-part series will inevitably be compared to Love/Hate and in terms of acting, those comparisons definitely stand up.
Aidan Gillen is more than capable of playing the gangland boss Frank Kinsella, while Ciarán Hinds’s performance as his rival, Eamon Cunningham, was definitely convincing.
However, it's Michael and Jimmy Kinsella (played by Charlie Cox and Emmett J Scanlan) that get the bulk of the major scenes and the cinematography is excellent.
After an explosive ending to the first episode, the majority of viewers were very impressed with the opening episode, however, with so many new characters introduced, some viewers were curious about the family tree.
"Ok I really enjoyed that but if someone would please post a family tree and tell me how all these people are related that’d be great" is what one viewer said while another echoed this sentiment by saying: "Can somebody explain the family tree to me, please??"
For those that are curious, RTE has the answer to that query here.
If anyone missed the first episode, the show is available to watch on the RTE Player and the synopsis for last night's episode is as follows: "The Kinsella family are delighted that Mikey has been released from jail and gather to celebrate. But how long will this happy reunion last?"
As for the next episode, RTE has released some plot details and Sunday's episode will see the Kinsellas deal with the fallout of the Cunninghams' retaliation, while Frank attempts to avoid an all-out war. Meanwhile, Mikey is torn between wanting to help Jimmy seek his revenge, and staying above the fray so he can see Anna again.
Episode 2 of Kin airs at 9.30pm on Sunday, September 19.
