NBC’s ‘Revolution’ review: Captain Neville’s story

After Monday night’s new episode of “Revolution,” we cannot really tell you what we are more excited about: the fact that we finally got a look into the background of one Captain Neville, or that his wife is being played by former “Grey’s Anatomy” star Kim Raver.

In looking at his backstory this week, we do have to ask one question: did anyone else equate this with Sylar from “Heroes” or even John Locke on “Lost” in some ways? With all three characters, we have someone who, before the massive change came in their respective worlds, was pretty miserable and hated their lives. Neville was an insurance adjuster, Locke worked a mundane job, and Sylar made watches. Then, they discovered what it meant for them to be alive, and their stories really became all about what they chose to do in their new situation.

For Neville, this was a particularly fascinating story to watch in that it really did feel as though the character was probably a little bit happier in the blackout that he was before it even happened, as he developed a sense of self-respect that unfortunately at the same time drove him to become drunk with power. It was an interesting story to watch, and we actually found this far more compelling than watching Charlie (who has grown to be the weakest part of this show) try and stop a train holding Neville and Danny from taking off to Philadelphia. Why? It felt like it really took us on a journey, and at the time this episode arrived at the station, we had a literal and figurative payoff: Neville’s son is Nate, whose real first name just so happens to be Jason.

What did you think about this episode, and are you starting to wish now that Neville was the primary focus every week?