Revolution is a post-apocalyptic adventure story set 15 years after pretty much every invention and major discovery made since 1850 mysteriously stops working. In the intervening decade and a half, the governments of the world have collapsed and been replaced by the militia’s who were sensible enough to grab the guns before the food. Remember citizens, in a survival situation, always go for the guns first. The story follows Charlotte Matheson and her posse as she tries to rescue her imprisoned brother from their feudal overlords and discover the part her father played in the blackout, and how it can be undone.
The first thing that really stood out to me was the trailer. Normally in a trailer, be it for a movie or a tv series, you inevitably get minor spoilers and revelations about the story, and you essentially watch the best bits in a 3 minute time-span, meaning you already know the bar the show has set, and it can only go lower. Everything in the trailer for Revolution however, is taken primarily from the first episode, even the revelation at the end. This means that the rest of the show is basically an unknown, and the best is yet to come.
Whilst the trailer holds absolutely no surprises, it also means that the first episode is pretty weighty, and establishes a lot of the story very quickly. If you’ve seen the trailer you’ll know that’s a lot of twists and turns to fit into an hour, and they do it well. The second episode (at the time of writing only two have aired) is a bit slower paced, and only deals with a few of the plot points brought up in the first episode. This is probably an indicator of the show settling into it’s rhythm, and is more indicative of what to expect from the series. Whilst the second episode is perfectly able to stand on it’s own as a good show, the preceding episode creates a juxtaposition that is actually quite jarring. I would have much rather they unravelled the premise out over a couple of episodes, before slowing into the regular rhythm of the show, to avoid the pilot overshadowing the first half of the series.
The characters are strongly written, although rather generic for a show of this type. This applies especially for Charlotte, the leading lady, whose inexperience about the world is almost rammed in our faces, and her inevitable growth as a character is already sadly apparent. This actually makes the rest of main stock of characters shine through much more, and I’m interested to see what direction they take each character, especially those of tough-nut Miles, and Google guy Aaron. The final member of the group so far, Maggie, has an interesting story but her stereotypical middle-class English accent is providing a real block to me liking her as a character. I think it must be a very British thing, to be annoyed by such a stereotypical and uncommon accent being used to denote “British,” especially when it sticks out like a sore thumb, but believe you me, it’s fucking grating.
The action scenes I’ve seen so far are particularly spectacular, fantastically choreographed, and provoke memories of Summer Glau’s performance in Serenity. There are a couple of gunfights, although why gunpowder still works but an internal combustion engine doesn’t isn’t fully explained, but then again since we’re playing with the laws of physics here why don’t we just throw a couple of contradictions in for shits and gigs eh? The interesting mix of sword fighting, gunplay, crossbows, and fisticuffs, makes for some of the most unique action sequences to date, and the equally diverse mix of technologies when it comes to the community and culture that has survived the blackout makes for an extremely immersive universe.
I’ve never been sure why, but I’m a sucker for scenes of urban decay. Things like the cities around Chernobyl, and Angkor Wat provide a real fascination to me, and if that’s your thing then many of the cinematics in Revolution will wow you. Many of the establishing shots are very well done, and the cityscapes overtaken by nature look very real and very very awesome. Naturally the show takes advantage of a lot of rural and forest type locations, but there are many urban scenes made up to look reclaimed by nature, and I think many of the sets are just as beautiful as the wider angled shots.
Since we’re just getting started, I can’t really comment of the plot, but the first two episodes have so far been impressive. The third should have just aired by the time this goes up, and so I hope you’ll give this show a chance, because all signs so far point to yet another must see american show with much more to give than is first apparent. My only concern is it may not live up to the bar it set in the first episode, or that such a fast paced first episode might create a slower pace and a bit of a lull, at least until the inevitable mid season cliffhanger picks up the pace again.
Right, I’m off to pour myself a Gin and watch the next episode, catch you on the flipside!
Jamie out xoxoxo
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