NBC’s ‘Revolution’ episode 11 review: Did [spoiler] die, and is the show improved?

We weren’t the only TV writer who was hard on “Revolution” last year. We found the show to be visually stunning and ambitious when it came to its storytelling, but also something with so many flaws that it was also difficult to watch. The female lead in Charlie was unlikable and irritating, and too many episodes were spent with the entire cast just wandering around from one place to the next.

Thankfully, we’re at least somewhat pleased in watching the show on Monday night. It feels in some ways as though the writers and producers listened to all of the criticism they received during the fall, and tried to really make a better product because of it. First of all, it felt like much more of an ensemble show than before, and while we still don’t particularly care for Charlie, at least the universe surrounding her is somewhat stronger.

Part of this week was really spent exploring more of the relationship between Miles and Rachel, who basically looked for help in all of the wrong places trying to find help against the Monroe Republic. They clearly have some baggage thanks to their past, and Miles tried to explain it away by saying that he legitimately thought that she was dead.

Meanwhile, the rest of the camp became engaged in all-out war with some of the helicopters that we saw at the end of last season, and to the show’s credit, there was really some things in here that we would never see on any other show. Rachel and Miles eventually found their way back to them (and with weapons!), and were thus able to lend a helping hand to secure their safety for the time being.

Then, strategy struck, and the final ten minutes of the show convinced us that this was something worth watching for the rest of the spring. Charlie had spent all episode trying to persuade Danny not to get into the line of fire, and he did in order to save everyone. The problem is that in doing so, he gave his own life away, and the show already has a casualty that will rock the entire family. (Did any else feel like Danny’s death scene was a little “Platoon”?) It took this moment for Rachel to realize the sort of mother she needs to be, and just how rough it will truly be for these people to survive from here on out. (It was a little weird, however, to see a young woman like Charlie so emotional after her brother’s death.)

The only real mystery now is this: what in the world did Rachel pull out of her son’s body?

What did you think about the return of “Revolution,” and do you plan on watching for the rest of the spring? Be sure to share some of your thoughts below, and you can see what the show’s boss had to say about the rest of the season here.

Photo: NBC