SkimIt
NBC's new sci-fi drama chronicles the tale of a world transplanted back to the dark ages after a blackout and the power struggle between the militia and the citizens of this new world.
While the pilot episode contains a lot of sci-fi elements and action sequences, the main draw of the show is its characters. Tracy Spiridakos plays Charlie, daughter of the man who seemingly knows the cause behind the blackout and the show's main heroine. Charlie and her brother Danny (Graham Rogers) were raised in relative seclusion post-blackout and are therefore very naïve when it comes to the true dangers of the world around them.
When Danny is kidnapped by the militia, Charlie sets out to find their uncle in the hopes that he can bring Danny home. Accompanying Charlie on this trek are village doctor Maggie (Anna Lise Phillips) and school teacher Aaron (Zak Orth), both friends of Charlie's father. The dynamic between these three is excellent and even after just the first episode, one can easily see the formation of a new-found family among these travelers.
Charlie's uncle, Miles (Billy Burke), on the other hand, does not seem to play well with others. The reclusive loner seems an odd choice of a rescuer, until you see his skills in a fight. It's too soon to tell if Burke will succeed in making Miles an anti-hero worth rooting for but if anyone can make the guy more likeable, it's Spiridakos' genuine-but-tough Charlie. With excellent turns from David Lyons and Giancarlo Esposito as the show's main villains and plenty of screen-time via flashbacks for Tim Guinee and Elizabeth Mitchell as Charlie and Danny's parents, this is one ensemble that is not lacking in talent.
Over the past few years, viewers have shown a lot of hesitance in giving serialized dramas a chance, as is obvious by the failures of shows like ABC's FlashForward, NBC's The Event and FOX's Terra Nova. But though those shows were canceled after just one season, ABC and ABC Family have found success with serialized dramas Revenge and Pretty Little Liars, respectively, meaning that there is an audience out there that craves long-running arcs and unfolding mysteries.
But Revolution also has another major problem stacked against it: the show will air on floundering network NBC. The only true success on NBC at the moment is reality series, The Voice. Luckily for Revolution, The Voice will be its lead-in on Monday nights, meaning the series snagged the best possible time-slot on the struggling network. While it is impossible to say how the series will stack up in future episodes, the pilot is very strong and there is a lot of potential here to generate a truly compelling series.
NBC's Revolution airs Monday nights at 10/9c, starting Sept. 17
