What went wrong? Episode 7: starting up a revolution
To this day, Billy Burke remains one of tv’s most underrated actors but that does not change the fact his series have been some of the most impactful I’ve ever seen in my life. Today, we’ll be taking a look back at the greatest series he ever starred in & the legacy it has left on the TV landscape going forward.
Revolution premiered September 17, 2012 on NBC to critical acclaim. Executive produced by none other than JJ Abrams & starring Tracy Spiridakos & Billy Burke, the series, set in a world where mankind has lost access to electricity, focuses on Miles Mathson, ex-marine corps sergeant & former commanding general of the monroe militia, as he strives to find redemption in the wake of retiring from an evil organization (the aforementioned militia) while also getting pulled into the war against his best friend-turned-adversary & current commanding general, Sebastian Monroe. That’s really just the tip of the iceberg as far the expansive lore in this series but that’s the gist of it if you want a quick recap. The series centered around the matheson family as they attempted to maintain law & order in a post-apocalyptic wasteland while trying to uncover the true mystery behind the blackout & what caused it.
What many people loved about the series is the fact that it was not afraid to push the envelope & highlight the true brutality of war. The series garnered many positive reviews from audiences & critics alike & became a ratings powerhouse which was enough to green light a second season. The final season came complete with a change of scenery from Wilmington, NC to Austin, TX & a new time slot, transitioning from Mondays at ten to Wednesdays at eight. This season garnered even more praise & proved to be quite the draw for many viewers. It was even the highest-rated series of the season at one point. So why then was it suddenly cast into the rubbish bin of obscurity?
Well, unfortunately, it was a combination of bad moves made by the network. Viewership had dropped off significantly from the pilot & while that is par for the course with any series, they also split the series in half which caused many viewers to seek solace in other series such as arrow, survivor & the middle. The sad thing is scheduling is everything in the network game & so because NBC royally screwed the pooch in that department, the decision was made to axe it at the conclusion of their second season.
However, hype for the series remained strong long after its tragic cancellation & a petition to save it garnered more than 101,000 signatures. The series concluded May 21, 2014 & although it never did come back for a third season, the fans did eventually receive the next best thing & the ending they deserved in the form of a motion comic online. The four-part comic is still on youtube to this day & wraps up the storyline in a satisfying manner.
The legacy of the series continues on to this day. It managed to garner a bmi tv music award for its score, a saturn for best network tv series & even an emmy for outstanding stunt coordination. Despite it being off the air for close to a decade now, the seres still has a strong cult following amongst the people who watched it back in the day & those memories will live on in our hearts & minds forever. So we say thank you to a series that has meant so much to us & continues to shape the way in which we conduct ourselves in this big, crazy world.