David Bianculli

And so is the daughter, Anne, because, well, because it's the 1860s and she's the daughter.

But immediately, all four siblings start scheming for ways to improve their individual fortunes.

Meanwhile, outside the family, other troubles are brewing.

There's Ireland's recently won independence from England and its ongoing rebellion against English rules.

Those play out in Dublin, but also in New York, as the narrative and the imported Guinness beer find their way to America.

And in both places, there are those who seek to bring down or manipulate the Guinness family.

In Dublin, one of those is Ellen Cochran, played by Niamh McCormick, who explains to her less crafty brother her plans to blackmail the Guinness family.

Ellen is a great character, completely outside Irish high society, but completely unafraid of it as well.

The Guinness Sister Anne, played by Emily Fern, is another wonderful character to watch.

And so is Lady Olivia, played by Danielle Galligan, who finds a pragmatic way to enter into the Guinness family orbit.

Three juicy roles, three extremely delightful performances.

And the brothers.

Anthony Boyle as Arthur, Louis Partridge as Edward, Theon O'Shea as Ben.

As in the stars of Peaky Blinders, every one of these players gets so many moments to shine.

Stephen Knight knows exactly how to bring period dramas and period characters to life.

The House of Guinness is full of intense confrontations and unexpected complications.

And anyone who enjoyed Peaky Blinders or Succession or The Gilded Age should find The House of Guinness very satisfying to watch.

But to be honest, you might find it a bit difficult to hear.

Some of these Irish accents can be tough to parse.

I recommend using the subtitle setting provided by Netflix so you can translate their English into ours.