The Irish Version (in French La Version irlandaise) is the eighteenth album of the comic book series XIII. It was published in 2007, together with the next album, The Last Round. It is the first album of the series that was not drawn by William Vance and the only album of the series that was drawn by Jean Giraud.
This episode is set years before the events of the other episodes. It reveals what happened when Jason Fly and Kelly Brian went on a hiking trip in the mountain and only one of them came back. It also reveals the Backstory of Kelly Brian.
The Irish Version provides examples of:
- Backstory: This episode details the backstory of Seamus O'Neil: his years as a teenager in Northern Ireland, his flight to the US, and his meeting with Jason Fly.
- Black-and-Gray Morality: The Brits and the IRA. The British rule in Northern Ireland is presented as brutal and unfair: the trials of the Irish activists are unfair, their detention conditions are terrible, the security forces shoot at the suspects, people can be arrested for no reason... The IRA is said to fight for a just cause, but its means are cruel and merciless: it carries out a terrorist attack where civilians get killed (even if the civilian casualties are caused by a malfunction of the bomb), summary executions of traitors and embarrassing witnesses are commonplace.
- Buxom Beauty Standard: Seamus O'Neil tells explicitly that he was attracted to Mairead because of her large breasts. Her cleavage also distracts the soldiers at the checkpoints.
- Convenient Escape Boat: Seamus, Mairead and Terence Parnell use a small boat to escape from the British forces when they attack the abandoned house.
- Conveniently Timed Attack from Behind: Parnell is going to shoot Jason Fly down when Jessica, who was secretly watching the scene, shoots him down.
- Dead Person Impersonation: The CIA forces Jason Fly to impersonate Seamus O'Neil (after the latter was murdered by Terence Parnell) to infiltrate a Cuban guerilla training camp.
- Defector from Decadence: After witnessing the bomb attack at the supermarket, Seamus O'Neil realises that the means used by the Provisional IRA are wrong. Therefore, he eventually refuses to obey when he is ordered to kill Jason.
- Everyone Is Related: This episode reveals that Jessica Martin met Seamus O'Neil and Jason Fly when they were students, became Seamus's girlfriend, witnessed the murder of Seamus and played an active role when the CIA forced Jason Fly to impersonate Seamus O'Neil.
- Evil Uncle:
- Terence Parnell turns out to be one. He forces his nephew Seamus to execute O'Shea. Then he orders Seamus to murder Jason Fly and he plans to kill Jessica. Since Seamus refuses to obey, he tries to kill Jason Fly and murders Seamus in the process.
- This episode also confirms that Giordino, one of the main villains of the series, is XIII's uncle.
- Flashback Within a Flashback: The whole episode is a flashback in the series: it is set at the time when XIII studied at the University of Colorado Boulder, years before the events of The Day of the Black Sun. Inside this flashback, there is a flashback that tells the life of Seamus O'Neil, starting when he was 13.
- Framing Device: Throughout the episode, Seamus O'Neil tells his life to Jason Fly during a hiking trip. Most of the episode consists of Flashbacks that follows O'Neil's account. Nevertheless, some flashbacks describe events that O'Neil was unaware of (the role of Giordino and Jessica).
- Glad-to-Be-Alive Sex: After witnessing the explosion of a car bomb in front of a supermarket, Seamus and Mairead have sex in a barn.
- Go Out with a Smile: Mairead smiles at Seamus for the first time when she is dying.
- He Knows Too Much: Terence Parnell orders Seamus to kill Jason Fly because he knows too much about Seamus. He also plans to kill Jessica for the same reason.
- Honey Trap: Giordino asks Jessica to seduce Kelly Brian to get more information about him.
- If You're So Evil, Eat This Kitten!: Terence Parnell asks Seamus to execute O'Shea to prove that he is a capable IRA fighter and to make amends for introducing O'Shea to the Provisional IRA.
- The Mole:
- O'Shea is a member of the Sinn Féin, but he secretly works for the Brits.
- In the end, the CIA orders Jason Fly to infiltrate the Cuban regime and the IRA.
- An Offer You Can't Refuse:
- When he hears that Kelly Brian will murder Jason Fly, Giordino devises a plan to force Brian to work for him: either Fly will accept Giordino's offer or he will be sentenced to death for the murder of Jason Fly.
- Since Kelly Brian is accidentally murdered and Jason Fly survives, Giordino gives Jason Fly the same choice: if Fly does not accept to work for the CIA, he will frame Fly for Kelly's murder.
- Out of Focus: XIII has a minor role in this episode, that is focused on the life of Seamus O'Neil.
- Perpetual Frowner: Seamus tells that Mairead never smiles. She only smiles when she gets killed.
- The Quiet One: Seamus tells that Mairead talks very little.
- La Résistance: Seamus O'Neil is part of the Provisional IRA, that fights against the presence of the British in Northern Ireland.
- Retcon: In Release the Hounds, Jessica tells XIII that she knows his story because she read a file about him after killing Warren Glass. She also tells that she thinks that XIII is Seamus O'Neil (and not Jason Fly) and that she knows about Seamus O'Neil just because she typed a report about him when she worked at the CIA. (She tells it after betraying Irina and Giordino and just before saving XIII's life, so there is no reason for her to lie at that point.) This album establishes the fact that she did much more than typing a report, since she meets Seamus O'Neil and Jason Fly when they are students, she becomes Seamus's girlfriend, she witnesses the murder of Seamus and she plays an active role when the CIA forces Jason Fly to impersonate Seamus O'Neil.
- Roll in the Hay: Seamus and Mairead make love in the barn of a farm.
- Sexy Secretary: Jessica Martin, Giordino's secretary, is very attractive. When he meets her, the Deputy Director of the FBI immediately notes that she is sexy and asks Giordino if he sleeps with her (actually, she is his mistress).
- Shout-Out: When Jason objects that Jessica is too beautiful, too clever and too rich for him, Seamus asks Jason if he saw Love Story.
- Show Some Leg: Mairead can easily smuggle weapons because the British soldiers at the checkpoints are more interested in looking at her cleavage than at the load of her van.
- Stress Vomit: After executing O'Shea, Seamus is under shock and he vomits.
- Taking the Bullet: Seamus intervenes and takes the bullet when Terence Parnell shoots at Jason.
- Uptown Girl: Invoked. Jessica pretends to be the daughter of the owner of a hotel chain to seduce Kelly Brian, a penniless student.
- Vomit Indiscretion Shot: Seamus is shown vomiting after executing O'Shea.
- Western Terrorists: The Provisional IRA carries out a terrorist attack near a supermarket and civilians get killed. They summarily execute a prisoner.
- Whole Episode Flashback: This episode tells events that happened years before the series began.
