Smother review: Ireland’s feistiest family off to an entertaining start
Gemma-Leah Devereux and Dervla Kirwan in Smother.
Ireland’s feistiest family has returned to RTÉ’s Sunday night schedule. Season two of Smother brings us back to the shorelines of Ireland’s west, where secrets, lies and skullduggery continue to surround the Ahern family.
The clan we first met following the discovery of patriarch Denis’s body near his home is adept at weaving a web of lies. And the implications of that provide for an entertaining opening to series two.
Now a new character - who many didn’t even know existed - has arrived at the Ahern’s door to add to the overall sense of impending chaos.
The first episode opens following the dramatic events of the first series as everyone struggles to come to terms with the death of Rory, who asked for his ashes to be scattered at the beach near their home.
“Rory was a good man. He loved his sons. Everything he did was for them,” says his grieving wife Anna (Gemma-Leah Devereaux). She is devastated by his death, and struggling with her own physical and mental fortitude as she grieves.
Matriarch Val (Dervla Kirwan) gathers her immediate clan and urges them to promise from now on to be truthful with each other. But it’s only a matter of moments before a knock on the door upends that pledge.
A young Mancunian introduces himself as Finn Ahern and claims he is Denis’s son, as his arrival on the day of Rory’s funeral comes as a shock to all involved. Val in particular seems stunned - did she know of his existence, or that her husband was unfaithful to her? A family member who knew about Finn wrote to him to tell him of his father’s death, but didn’t expect him to show up at the family home.
Finn is very like his father - formidable - and is not afraid to push buttons among the family as he tries to get a sense of who they are. The Aherns find it very strange that he turns up on the day of Rory’s funeral, when they were all there.
Meanwhile, Alanna (Hilary Rose) is keen to mend bridges with the family, in particular Grace (Seána Kerslake), who is fulfilling her dream of opening a café.
It can be a tricky feat, but episode one - aided and abetted by a bump in the night and some bright red lipstick - does a good job of weaving together the various story strands from the first series.
With the arrival of a major new character and the aftermath of family secrets to be revealed, it also draws viewers in for another round with the Aherns. Let the games begin.
