The State

Reading some reviews of The State, it seems some have completely missed the point of this mini-series. Far from glamourising IS this excellent series lays bare the lie that is at the heart of the death cult of Daesh. That lie draws impressionable, idealistic young Muslims across the west into a situation way out of their depth. Some argue that all who join IS know exactly what they are doing, which seems to leave some viewers unable to find anything sympathetic about the four young Brits portrayed here. Frankly, being unable to experience empathy for these characters says more about the person reviewing than it does about the situation itself.

Far from idealising and glamourising IS this remarkable mini-series shows the brutality and evil at the heart of it in a way nothing else I've seen quite does. Several scenes are incredibly difficult to watch, clearly intentionally so, and I found the changes of focus from the young jihadis experiencing the terror of battle and the brutalisation of witnessing torture, to the stories of the women and children equally brutalised and adapting (or not) to an almost alien culture, incredibly compelling.

This was brave television and for the most part well done. I feel it would have benefited from more time given to the ending, as this felt rushed and uncertain, but otherwise an excellent and compelling story.

Great portrayal of the heinous nature of ISIS. And how regular British Muslims can get sucked in by the internet propaganda. And then are shocked when they actually arrive and see the true nature of these people supposedly called Muslims. When they are just extremists like every Religion has. It really put into perspective for me that Christians & Muslims are not that different. And both have radical extremists that use religion as an excuse for violent and offensive behavior. I don't know how anyone saw this as propaganda for ISIS. Who would want to live that way? It wasn't glorified at all. It showed the harsh reality of everyday life. And it didn't look fun to me.

The premise is simple so I will skip that. The Muslim Jihad is a call to arms for all Muslims regardless of one's life in the false world. Those who have been called are fed propaganda by the previous waves of fighters who answered the call to jihad.

We learn that each person truly wants and believes in their faith. They each want to believe in the struggle and participate in their own way. We also learn that the Mujahadeen or soldiers know this is a losing battle. For them it is a path to shaheed or martyrdom. This is the ultimate gift from God.

But what each person thought they were seeking in their faith or even their own personal lives cannot be had in the caliphe or Islamic State. Each person has a different challenge that defies the teachings of the hadith or prophet.

They each learn that it isn't the lies but the truth that scares them.

I am so amazed with this amount of details from a show portraying lives in ISIS. Personally I have been to the Middle East several times and spent months traveling along, I truly am impressed of the detail and some cultural differences displayed.

The ISIS has been marked as evil from all over the news worldwide, however, this show provides a fresh eye simply telling stories on each character's angle. People do need to understand, despite general impression ISIS is bad, every single person living the lives has their story to tell, I like how it is staying out of accusation but simply display some doubts ISIS caused on ppl. A show is a show, and it is a great show and the plots are so delicate and neatly illustrated. If all you want is political accusation, then you should only read what news is feeding you and write your comments on forums instead of a TV series review.

I am amazed at the scathing reviews of 'The State'.

Trust me, as a man who has been on the front lines against daesh in Iraq, this is worth the watch. I think this show did an amazing job of showing the realities of living under a daesh state of power. All while doing it without crossing the line and keeping it clean enough for a younger audience. As someone who has actually been there, it is mind-blowing to me that this show is portrayed by other reviewers as wishing to be sympathetic to the recruits. It shows the brutal reality which those in areas under daesh rule face.

This show does an amazing job of captivating while educating on the beliefs of daesh and their twisted views of Islam. I am very disappointed in seeing how the masses received this show and hope it doesn't lead to Nat Geo closing the books permanently on the mini-series.