Normal People TV Series
Based on Sally Rooney’s best-selling novel, Normal People TV series follows Marianne (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Connell (Paul Mescal), from different backgrounds but the same small town in Ireland, as they weave in and out of each other’s romantic lives.
Normal People is an Irish drama TV series produced by Element Pictures for BBC Three and Hulu in association with Screen Ireland. Based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Sally Rooney, the series follows the relationship between Marianne Sheridan (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Connell Waldron (Paul Mescal), as they navigate adulthood from their final days in secondary school to their undergraduate years in Trinity College. The series was primarily written by Rooney and Alice Birch, and directed by Lenny Abrahamson and Hettie Macdonald.
The series was released on BBC Three in the United Kingdom on April 26, 2020, followed by weekly airings on BBC One. It premiered on RTÉ One in Ireland on April 28, 2020. In the United States, the series was released in its entirety on Hulu on April 29, 2020. The series has received critical acclaim, with praise for the performances, writing, and its portrayal of mature content. At the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards, the series was nominated for four awards: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series for Paul Mescal, Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series for Lenny Abrahamson, Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series for Sally Rooney and Alice Birch, and Outstanding Casting for a Limited Series for Louise Kiely.
The series followed Marianne and Connell through their time at secondary school in County Sligo on Ireland’s Atlantic coast, and later as undergraduates at Trinity College Dublin. The focus was primarily on a rather complicated and complex relationship between Connell and Marianne. Among her peers at secondary school, Marianne was always regarded as someone odd and completely anti-social. Despite her academic achievements, her home life was burdened by her dismissive passive mother and resentful aggressive brother. Her father was also a domestic abuser and was avoided to be mentioned after his death. Unlike Marianne, Connell was a popular and loved and respected by many student who lived with his single mother, Lorraine. He was generally not a bad person, although he did remain silent during the bullying of Marianne at school, which created complexity as their relationship developed.
For the most part, I absolutely loved the TV series. The cinematography was beautiful, the dialogue was well-thought-through and meaningful, and the soundtrack was an excellent mood-setter. What frustrated me the most, however, was the story itself. Both Marianne and Connell seemed to have a knack for the most idiotic decisions ever. Their annoying resistance to being together despite the obvious attraction and bond even made me pull my precious hair on a constant basis. And although I did appreciate their openness and willingness to explore and experiment with their sexuality, the ‘normalcy’ of the rather complicated relationship between the two ‘normal people’ frustrated me like nothing else.
Here is a beautiful fan-made MV, full of spoilers (plus the ending of the entire TV series):
I do hope we get to see the continuation of Marianne’s and Conne’l’s love story. Because WTF was that ending?