Monday, January 30, 2012

ABC's "Revenge" 2011-2012 new series

As Emily confidently walked into the Grayson manor with her signature politely pursed smile, Victoria Grayson was all but comfortable to welcome her to sit down. Just because Emily had caught her son's romantic interest and won his trust, did not mean that she had fooled Victoria.

 Wednesday night at 10pm is the much-coveted time slot that ABC has given to “Revenge," winning out against long-standing contenders, such as "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit."

Released as a new television series in September 2011, it took less than a month for ABC to realize they had a hit, and to give it a full season.

Emily VanCamp stars as Emily Thorne. The viewer quickly learns that Emily is truly Amanda Clarke, a girl with a tragic family history, and a troubled youth.

She returned to her home in the Hamptons with a secret identity, with some serious resources and plans to make things right. She even rented out the house where she grew up, as the young Amanda Clarke.

It was convenient that her beach house had a direct view of the luxury home in which her enemies resided. Emily had learned that the cause of her father’s traumatic death was related to many hidden secrets, and Victoria Grayson (actress Madeleine Stowe) was at the center of it all.


As with "The Count of Monte Cristo" (which has been given credit as inspiration for “Revenge”), Emily's passion to make right violations against her family has shown as one of the strongest motivators a person could have.

The show was nominated at the 2012 People’s Choice Awards for Favorite New TV Drama, and Stowe received a nomination for a Golden Globe, as the primary series antagonist.

Also, in its short time, it has already been given a regular time slot in 25 countries other than the United States. That is impressive, considering most shows require years to achieve such a following.

The two main character actors have an impressive acting history. Stowe had a few small television roles, and after that many movies including, 1987’s" Stakeout," 1992’s "The Last of the Mohicans," 1993’s "Short Cuts," 1995’s "Twelve Monkeys," and 2002’s "We Were Soldiers." These are just a few of her biggest achievements. 

VanCamp, as a younger actress, is only a decade into her acting career, with such experience as her title role on 2000’s "Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis," 2005’s "The Ring Two," and for her main role in "Everwood," from 2002-2006.

Metacritic.com, seems to have a relatively mixed review of the series. Where users score the series 8.1 out of 10, actual critics have rated it 66 out of 100.  The critics don't seem as impressed as those viewers who care to weigh-in, on the site.

It is presumable that viewers will either love or hate the series, based on the review comments on various sites. For some, it's the same old rehashed plot line, but for others, it has become a permanent fixture in their Wednesday night plans.

For other reviews:

Are You Screening? " It's fun, and it pulls you along to the next episode, which is all anyone ought to be after here."

Huff-Post TV "'Revenge' makes the fatal mistakes of wanting to be taken seriously and yet not making its characters worthy of any kind of serious consideration."

NYTimes Television ''Revenge' isn’t a breakthrough, by any means, but it does offer a different take on female rivalry.'"

As far as I am concerned, this is on my weekly must-watch list. For what it's worth, that list is relatively short. I am actually a little surprised at what I consider fairly harsh criticism from some of the reviews, but I was an addict by the middle of the first episode.

At-A-Glance:
Channel- ABC
Time      - 10pm 
Stars      - Emily VanCamp, Madeleine Stowe, Gabriel Mann, Henry Czerny, Connor Paolo, Ashley Madekwe, Nick Wechsler, Joshua Bowman, Christa B. Allen.
Plot         - A young woman (Emily) returns to the Hamptons to avenge her father's murder and restore his reputation amongst the elitist community.
Awards   - 2012 Golden Globe nomination (Madeleine Stowe), and 2012 People's Choice Awards for Favorite New TV Drama

1 comment:

  1. I am really going to have to start watching this show. You made it sound super interesting and I loved how you intertwined bits and pieces of the plot and story line of the show to grab our attention. I like it! Very easy to read and follow.

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