I've been watching The Rising for the last three days and I need to talk about this show because it is fantastic and my heart is both aching and overflowing right now. I wish I had the words to describe how incredibly compelling the storytelling is. Every character is flawed in their own way which makes them feel heart-breakingly real, even the side characters. Grief plays a prominent role, takes centre stage, really, and I love that it was shown in so many different facets.
The reason I came across this show in the first place is Matthew McNulty. I'm not the kind of person who works their way through an actor's entire catalogue of work just because they like him but he's done a couple of shows that sounded like they were right up my alley and The Rising absolutely did not disappoint. As much as I love Dudley in The Paradise, he gets so much more to work with as Tom Rees in this show and I loved his character's arc so much. Tom is such a mess in the beginning but he claws his ways out of that hole he's in all without help and it's incredible to watch. You cannot help but root for him (and ngl, in an alternate universe I hope he and Daniel got together because they had great chemistry and potential. I also hope Alex continues to visit Tom so they can bond over Neve and neither of them feels her loss too keenly).
Anyway, here's a shitty gif of Matthew McNulty as Tom Rees because I can't get over how hopeful he looked in this scene.
