“Revolution”: The Second and Final Season had some potential especially between the production values and ensemble cast, but the storytelling was lacking in substance and style and it’s easy to see why this not only got cancelled but why its viewership dwindled to a pitiful 4 million viewers for the series finale.
“Revolution”:
The Complete Second and Final Season
(2013-14)
Genre(s): Adventure, Drama, Science-Fiction
Warner Bros. | NR – 943 min. – $69.97 | August 19, 2014
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MOVIE INFO: Directed by: Various Writer(s): Eric Kripke (created by) Cast: Billy Burke, Tracy Spiridakos, Elizabeth Mitchell, Zak Orth, Giancarlo Esposito, J.D. Pardo, David Lyons, Daniella Alonso, Stephen Collins DISC INFO: Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0) |
THE MOVIE – 2.5/5
Season Summary (from Blu-ray back cover): The swashbuckling post-apocalyptic adventures continue! Three months after season one’s mysterious Surge, young rebel Charlie (TRACY SPIRIDAKOS), her mother Rachel (ELIZABETH MITCHELL) and uncle Miles (BILLY BURKE) regroup in Willoughly, Texas, along with Rachel’s dad, Dr. Gene Porter (STEPHEN COLLINS). A desperate Tom Neville (GIANCARLO ESPOSITO) and his son Jason (JD PARDO) search desperately for their beloved Julia (KIM RAVER), while Aaron (ZAK ORTH) undergoes some mind-blowing changes. Yet no one and nothing are as they appear. The newly formed Patriots are hell-bent on ruling the continent, and unseen nanotech is manifesting itself in ominous ways. All that’s left is love, trust and family…but every connection has its limits.
Quick Hit Review: Interesting idea. Bad execution. That basically sums up both seasons of NBC’s now cancelled “Revolution”, a post-apocalyptic series from television aficionado-turned-geek-god J.J. Abrams and having seen this second season for the first time — like most of America, I also missed it when it aired — I can see why it had a hard time catching on because frankly there’s nothing here that makes it stand out from the others and also… it’s really dull.
Now, the acting isn’t half bad and Billy Burke is at least an interesting enough actor to carry a series, along with Elizabeth Mitchell and Giancarlo Esposito, but the material doesn’t give them much to work with. But also on the plus side, at least the production design was well done, but not much else to really admire and now that the series is over, it’s doubtful many will remember this one very fondly.
Episodes:
1. Born in the U.S.A.
2. There Will Be Blood
3. Love Story
4. Patriot Games
5. One Riot, One Ranger
6. Dead Man Walking
7. The Patriot Act
8. Come Blow Your Horn
9. Everyone Says I Love You
10. Three Amigos
11. Mis Dos Padres
12. Captain Trips
13. Happy Endings
14. Fear and Loathing
15. Dreamcatcher
16. Exposition Boulevard
17. Why We Fight
18. Austin City Limits
19. $#!& Happens
20. Tomorrowland
21. Memorial Day
22. Declaration of Independence
SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.75/5
This 9-disc set (4 BDs, 5 DVDs) comes housed in an extra-wide HD Keep Case which slides into a matted slip cover. Inside is a redemption code for the Digital Copy and an episode guide with plot summaries.
Revolution: Heading West (23:22; HD) – Creator Eric Kipke discusses his vision for the evolution of the show and his approach to new story possibilities.
Impact Revolution: Conversations with the United Nations (11:49; HD) – See the collaboration between the United Nations and the “Revolution” creative team.
United Nations: The Mission Continues (5:15; HD) is merely a PSA on the micro-hydro power plants in Napal and the benefits it provides to the local communities.
2013 Comic-Con Panel Q&A with Cast and Creators (28:04; HD) finds the group taking questions about the then upcoming season. Only goes to show how fan fervor is limited.
Gag Reel (3:18; HD) is filled with line flubs and general on-set/location fun.
Deleted Scenes (TRT 14:12; HD) on ‘Love Story’, ‘Patriot Games’, ‘The Patriot Act’, ‘Three Amigos’, ‘Mis Dos Padres’, ‘Captain Trips’, ‘Happy Endings’, ‘Fear and Loathing’, ‘Dreamcatcher’, ‘Exposition Boulevard’, ‘ Austin City Limits’, ‘$#!& Happens’, ‘Tomorrowland’ and ‘Declaration of Independence’
VIDEO – 4.5/5
“Revolution”: The Complete Second and Final Season rides into town on Blu-ray presented with a 1080p high-definition transfer and a 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio. Although the series isn’t all that great, this video transfer is at least more than admirable with excellent detail levels even though the bulk of the series is set at night. There aren’t any noticeable artifacts, pixilation or aliasing. Given this originally aired on television, where it doesn’t necessarily translate to a great looking HD transfer, this one looked fantastic.
AUDIO – 4.0/5
The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track offered up is more than satisfactory where dialogue is crisp and clear mainly coming out of the center channel where the front and rear speakers are relegated for ambient audio and the score. The only downside here is the LFE is relatively soft and so it doesn’t quite have the depth compared to other shows.
OVERALL – 3.0/5
Overall, “Revolution”: The Second and Final Season had some potential especially between the production values and ensemble cast, but the storytelling was lacking in substance and style and it’s easy to see why this not only got cancelled but why its viewership dwindled to a pitiful 4 million viewers for the series finale. The Blu-ray released by Warner at least isn’t bad with some OK bonus material and the video/audio transfers both well done.
Published: 09/01/2014