Revolution

Could you survive in a world without power? If you were the computer reliant, tech-savy, electronics-dependant sort of soul (like myself) could you transition to a world in which electricity simply ceased to exist?
That is the premise of Revolution, and why the logo of the show is the all so often seen in our lives power button icon.

The image that hung over the convention center is what I tend to think of as 'in the know' advertising. If you know the power button represents Revolution and a lack of power, you know exactly what that banner is all about. And for those who didn't, there was a broken down feris wheel near the trolley tracks, where water bottles were occasionally being handed out, bottles that conveniently said 'Revolution,' and TVs showing the trailer for the show. Overall I liked the pilot, but there were a few plot aspects towards the end that frustrated me. There was one subplot I wished they hadn't had. Maybe, if I'm lucky it will quickly fall by the wayside.

When the pilot ended there were no closing credits to alert the Comic-Con staff time to turn on the lights in the room was approaching, so, for a moment we were without lights... as if we had no power. The poetry, or irony, of the moment was not lost on the crowd, but fear not, cell phones and eager to help audience members to the rescue! Within seconds the moderator was lit up while waiting for the room lights to come on.

When the actors came out and were introduced there were some non-surprises, after all, we had gone in search of Uncle Miles, so I expected Uncle Miles (Billy Burke) to come out on stage. And Charlie (Tracy Spiridakos) had been the one to go in search, so again, I expected Charlie to come out. Then came out JD Pardo who plays Nate, a seemingly small character in the pilot who there is reason to believe might recur, but I hadn't thought the pilot established as guaranteed to be every week, and yet, there he was on the panel. The other character/actor I was surprised to find is a regular was Giancarlo Esposito as Tom Neville. While I saw the importance of the character and how him motivated the events of the pilot, somehow I did not think he would be regular for all of season 1. It was another character that felt like he would recur for several episodes to drive events forward, then having played his part 'be dealt with' by Uncle Miles.

On the other side of that coin, I was surprised Anna Lise Phillips, a surrogate mother of sorts to Charlie was not available for the panel, nor were Graham Rogers (Danny, Charlie's younger brother who instigates a lot of the plot) or Zak Orth (Aaron Pittman) on stage. It felt as though only half of the cast was in attendance, with no real explanation given for how they had picked which half of the cast from the pilot they had chosen... and given at least two of them felt like characters unlikely to last through the season, the choices felt even odder.

But, perhaps, like everything about the show Revolution itself, they were simply choices made to leave the audience feeling a bit off-kilter and out of their comfort zone. Something the show Revolution does all too well.

It's a world of bows and arrows. Raising your own sheep and chicken, and knowing your own home remedies for things like asthma. A glimpse of a world in which some people want to live, because there is no boss calling on your cell phone at inopportune times, yet others are convinced they would not last three days in. After all, can you card wool, or shear a sheep? Or would you be praying your clothing lasted forever, or you kept finding nicely preserved clothing everytime what you had wore out?

As always look for video of wb panels, such as the Revolution Panel at the wb comicon site.