After watching five comedy pilots, I figured it was time the networks start releasing some new dramas too! Luckily, NBC came to the rescue and released the pilot episode of Revolution yesterday, and I got to take an exclusive look! Here's the basic set-up: Sometime in the not-so-distant future, Earth is inexplicably swiped of it's energy and power. Flash forward fifteen years to a dystopian looking America, where agriculture and greenery cover where skyscrapers and power lines once stood. We meet the Matheson family, Charlie, Danny, and Ben. Danny, the father, is approached by The Militia, the closest thing to government this new world has, and after a violent altercation, Danny is left for dead while Ben, the youngest child, is captured by the leader of The Militia, Captain Tom Neville (played by standout Emmy nominee Giancarlo Esposito). Before Danny dies, he instructs his oldest daughter, Charlie, to find her Uncle Miles in Chicago for help. Charlie is off, but she's accompanied by her father's best friend, Aaron, and Maggie, her father's new partner after his wife is killed (she is seen in flashbacks, played by sci-fi fave Elizabeth Mitchell). Along the way they run into the mysterious Nate and eventually find Miles (pilot MVP Billy Burke), but trouble is lurking as The Militia locate the Matheson duo. Also, Ben escapes The Militia, is taken in by a woman named Grace who then allows him to be recaptured by the bad guys and (somehow) has access to energy and higher powers (it all makes sense if you watch the whole thing). So...how is it? It's okay, with strokes of good and bad. I wasn't completely impressed by the show and I see some areas where they're going to have to work, but it seems like they have some idea of where the show is heading. There are some twists at the end of the episode that point to obvious plot lines, but I won't spoil them here. There's no character that I really feel for, except maybe Miles, but maybe that's because Billy Burke was my favorite part of this episode. Giancarlo Esposito is seemingly playing the same role that got him his Emmy nomination this year, but he does it well so you can't complain. Tracy Spiridakos is good as co-lead with Burke, although her plead to Uncle Miles comes off like she's trying too hard. JD Pardo plays Nate but I really don't know what to think of the character. Is he good? Is he bad? Does he feel the heat between him and Charlie? (The last one is definitely a yes.) The other characters don't get enough time for me to form an opinion, but there's certainly potential. The writing is okay, my biggest complaints being the references to modern times (I think we're supposed to love Aaron, but with his references to "this old Internet thing called Google" and his whole "I'm a bumbling idiot on a mission" thing, it's forced) and the forced speeches (again, the "family" speech is cheesy, cheesy, cheesy). But is there potential? Yes. I think so. We'll see. This could get better and become a success story, or it could become a carbon copy of last season's flop Terra Nova. Let's pray it's not the latter. Judge for yourself by watching the first episode on Hulu or NBC.com or when it premieres September 17th! Check out the series trailer below:
Evan
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