The preview of this week’s Revolution touted that “one of these people will not make it out alive!” Any betting man of course knew it wouldn’t be Charlie or Miles, the two leads of the show. And surely the series wouldn’t kill Aaron (you kill the comic relief eventually, just not this early) or Danny. As satisfying as that would be to all audiences, how deflating would it be for our motley group of Revolutionaries to finally catch up and discover him dead? I think they’d just about plotz.
And so it was that minutes into the episode we were treated (“treated,” we can acknowledge, is used loosely) to a Maggie flashback, her first, and knew that her time had come. Goodbye, Maggie! You’re in post-apocalyptic heaven right now, Instagramming your sons with your beloved iPhone.
But before Maggie could take her last British breath, there was other stuff to get to, including but not limited to: junkyard dogs; freak, highly localized tornadoes; and Elizabeth Mitchell as “Mom,” just chilling with the series’ villain for reasons that are no more clear than they were three weeks ago. Answers are for Homeland viewers.
After the events of last week, Charlie, Miles, and Nora reunite with Maggie and Aaron at the farm. The latter two have agreed not to share what they learned about the electricity-summoning pendant. Why? Because TV DRAMA, that’s why! Within moments they’re off again searching for Danny, that Young Hercules-looking prisoner. That night they run afoul of a pack of hungry, vicious dogs chewing on a deer carcass. Their only option retreat, the gang make their way to an abandoned amusement park.
Meanwhile, what appears to be a storm right out of Genesis is bearing down on Danny and Captain Neville, forcing the militia to take shelter. Whether tornadoes or dogs, they’re all just at the mercy of nature in a world without tasers (mostly without tasers) or SUVs. Not a bad thread for Revolution to be exploring, really — what was once so easily tamed or coped with would now pose a tremendous challenge. Let’s see more of that! And less sword fighting, as much as we’ve accepted that saber training is built into the new world order.
Just like Han Solo, Miles contemplates taking off and leaving his traveling companions to fend for themselves. “It would be better for the group,” he suggests. “Better for Charlie.” But she’s going to need you MORE THAN EVER before episode’s end, Uncle Solo! Don’t you SEE THAT? The bland militia kid formerly known as Nate shows up, having escaped the cuffs Charlie put on him, but is quickly overpowered by Miles and roped up again. One day you’ll learn, kid!
More Maggie, this time in the form of a surprisingly nice and understated flashback to her first weeks post-blackout. Stranded in America with her boys back home, Maggie tried everything to secure passage to London. “No can do,” said everyone she spoke to. Would that have changed if she explained to them she only had 10 percent battery life left?
Then it’s back to the present, and to a pack of feral dogs attacking the group. In the skirmish Maggie is stabbed in the leg. She self-diagnoses, proclaiming the wound is in her artery and she is currently bleeding out. She does exactly that over the rest of the episode, dying for long enough to give us solid time to check in with everyone else. You’re the best, Mags!
After his brief escape attempt is thwarted, Danny finds alone himself with Neville, holed up in some farmhouse bunker. They talk, as you do, but right before Danny’s opinion might change, Neville is knocked down by a large wooden beam and trapped underneath. The choice is clear: move the beam, freeing him, or leave him there to die. MORALITY MOMENT! Neville appeals to Danny’s human instincts: “How would [Danny’s dad] feel to see his son murder someone in cold blood?” I don’t think he’d care, frankly, but this seems to mean a lot to Danny. He lets Neville go. (Then Neville grabs him by the throat and makes him regret having saved him. Typical!)
Turns out all those dogs belong to a nut job who lives in the amusement park for some reason. He grabs Charlie — the reasons for this are… unclear — and drags her to his lair, where he assembles a time-release crossbow (I think) to fire on her if her friends step out of line. The psycho, played in another Lost Alert by the man who was Danny Pickett, just wants to avenge the death of his daughter whose tetanus killed her when she couldn’t get meds. He’s sympathetic until he calls Charlie “bitch,” which just seems unnecessarily gross for a random dude.
But don’t worry! Charlie escapes, just in time to watch Maggie die. It is a weird moment for both the characters, who barely knew her, and the audience, who knew her only slightly better. Four episodes! Poor Mags. But you know what? She had to die. Otherwise, how would Miles learn the appropriate lessons about sticking it out and being there for your family?
Then we get our cliffhanger of the week: In flashback, Elizabeth Mitchell’s “Mom” leaving her family to find militia-era Miles. What does she want from him? What is he willing to give her? Why did this episode not end in a fun “electricity moment” the way the last three have? Like I said, it’s all about the QUESTIONS on Revolution. See you next week!
[Image Credits: NBC]
More:
Revolution Recap: The Bridge on the River Why?
Fun With Ratings: The Voice and Revolution Win Again
The Revolution Will Go On: These Gull Season Orders are The New Normal For NBC
