Revolution is one of three trillion shows and movies JJ Abrams has in development, and you’ve almost certainly seen the ubiquitous promos for it by now.
In the very near future, we lose all power, then mankind has to try to figure our way through the world without it. The first reviews that trickled in weren’t very positive but didn’t actually stop Revolution from having a big debut on NBC.
How big? Deadline tells us that that for the 18-49 age range, Revolution was the biggest drama premiere for NBC in five years, while Entertainment Weekly confirms 11.7 million people tuned in for Revolution’s debut, which was obviously helped along by going live after The Voice.
Revolution’s certainly a great idea for a show, and there’s a lot you can do with it. It certainly makes an appropriate metaphor for our very troubled world, and how we’re trying to survive the present one day at a time.
At the same time, it’s disappointing to see the show ripping off the Hunger Games with the leather jackets and crossbows. The concept for Revolution is good enough on its own, it shouldn’t have to chase down the current trends. Seriously, I think the audience understands what post-apocalyptic means without having to reference Games.
Although both the Daily Beast and Vulture marked Revolution in their “Skip It” categories for Fall TV shows, other reviews for the show were mixed to fair. The Huffington Post wrote, “There’s a good chance you’ll enjoy the modest, competent first hour of this show…. I am torn between the competence of the Revolution pilot and the fact that, over the long haul, none of the broadcast network shows with genre overtones have ever consistently had a tenth of the wit, audacity or depth of the mothership, i.e., Lost.”
Even with a debut this big, Revolution’s got a ways to go before it proves it has true staying power. It can take some time for a series to find its feet, so here’s hoping Revolution will keep moving in enough interesting directions, and keep getting better with time so it will keep people tuning in. As Abrams told the New York Times, “The interesting thing about this series is that it’s such a vast world. If it works, there are so many cool places we can go.”
