Revolution was a notable success for NBC last fall, getting the best numbers for a new scripted drama on the network in years. That being the case, eyebrows were raised when the network decided to take the series off the air for several months, in order to keep all new episodes paired with their big hit, The Voice, when it returned for its spring season. The upside is that means there won’t be any repeats, as the show airs 12 more episodes, up through the season finale.
I spoke to Revolution’s creator, executive proucer and showrunner, Eric Kripke, about what to expect when the show returns and his intention to really up the stakes. We also chatted briefly about Supernatural, which Kripke created and ran for the first five seasons.
IGN TV: TV fans hate repeats interrupting the flow of a series week to week, but then you also get complaints when you take a long midseason break. Did you have to think a lot about how you wanted to structure things, given the spilt your show was given?
Eric Kripke: Luckily, we were already sort of there. We knew that the first half, [episodes] one through ten, was a prologue to this much larger, expansive second half. We knew that break was going to happen over the midseason cliffhanger. So luckily, the second half of the season was always going to be its own storyline. When we come back, it’s very much, in many ways, the launching of an entirely different story. It’s kind of a pilot, in the way that it’s loaded with revelation, and crazy s**t goes down in episode 11, and it just kicks it off for the rest of the season. They found Danny, so it’s time for a whole new story. I think the timing works out really well.
Obviously, look, it’s always a risk to be off the air that long, but I’m hopeful that the fans of the show come back in. The promise I’ll say to everybody is, if nothing else, come in for episode 11. I think if you come back in for episode 11, I think you’re in. I think the show is that much better and bigger and more dire. The stakes are larger. Overall, I think it’s a really good thing. And I have to admit, logistically, it’s been amazing for us because being able to take the time and really consider the season has been great. Again, like I’ve said, it’s how I watch cable. I think it’s good to give viewers -- even though they have to wait a little bit for it. Once they get there, they’re going to be very, very satisfied. And it’s let the producers make the show that much better. For me, it’s a win/win.
IGN: As you mentioned, the first half was really informed by the quest to save Danny. Is there a way you could describe what the next quest is?
Kripke: I think it’s as large as stopping Monroe. I think if the first half is “find Danny,” then I think the second half is “stop Monroe.” Obviously, the story and the stakes and everything are so much larger because it’s about deposing a tyrant. Our heroes have to go to war, and they join up with the rebels. The bad guys have helicopters and electricity, and the good guys have crossbows and swords, so the odds are against them. They’re radically outmanned and outgunned, and they have to mount this fight against overwhelming odds. There isn’t anything in the show you can’t bring back to The Lord of the Rings, so for me it’s just this intrepid band of heroes that are fighting against this overwhelming army. Watching them episode by episode, they score these sort of very impossible wins, but at terrible costs. Then it’s about them struggling to maintain this family that they’ve created in the midst of this terrible pressure. It really is a family show, and I think what makes the show different. It really has a lot of heart. It’s just really emotionally fraught. I’m just as, if not more, interested in what makes these characters tick and can we keep them together and maintain their humanity in the face of this terrible situation they find themselves in.
IGN: You mentioned that they have swords, bows and arrows, but the trailers do show our heroes with what appear to be rocket launchers and machine guns at one point.
Kripke: The heroes have to get themselves some power, too. We use that stuff in small doses. We use it in a way to demonstrate how hard it is without it, more than anything. They’ll get a gun for a hot minute, only to have the gun taken away, and that’s a real pain in the ass. It’s interesting… We’ve established this world that has absolutely no power, and then we start bringing it in in very small and specific ways -- and dangerous ways. The second half has been really interesting because it continues to let us have a conversation about it and still talk about what our society is like with power and what we would be like without it. But we’re finding new ways to attack that conversation so it doesn’t get repetitive.
IGN: Since the first episode, we’ve seen Rachel and Danny away from the others, as prisoners. What’s it like incorporating them into the main group now?
Kripke: It really shakes things up. Rachel’s a really interesting character in that she knows a lot of the show’s secrets. And now she’s cut loose with your heroes. For a few episodes, we had this really interesting debate in the writers room, because we were like, “She has the secrets, so why isn’t she telling her friends?” Then eventually we decided, “All right, she’s going to tell them” -- and early, like, earlier than anyone thinks we’re going to do it, because there’s no logical story reason she wouldn’t. God knows I look for those story reasons, but I couldn’t find any, so I was like, “All right, the character’s saying she wants to spill. We’re going to let her spill everything she knows.” So she does. And then Danny, it’s like, he went through this really traumatic situation, and he’s come out of it really changed. He really helps drive the fight against Monroe and really wants to join up with the rebels and takes that very seriously. He sort of helps lead the others into the fight, because he really wants payback for what happened to him and what happened to his father. So he goes through his own interesting journey, too, where he helps motivate the characters towards the rebels, towards fighting, towards the necessity to stand up to Monroe. A lot of that comes from Danny.
Kripke talks about Charlie’s evolution, Neville’s position and more -- including Supernatural -- on Page 2.
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