Spoilers for episodes 1-5
I like Revolution for its story and characters, but the most interesting part so far is how the show plays with gender roles. I'll focus on the women in this post.
Charlie. Her name is a good starting point: Charlotte but she goes by Charlie. A blending of male and female, so we can guess that Charlie is going to blur the line between what is typically male and female.
The militia takes Danny, Charlie's younger brother, in the first episode, and she goes after him. The set up is not a strong man going on a journey to save a helpless woman but instead a young woman going to rescue her weaker brother. If you don't think that Danny is supposed to be the weaker of the two, look at how they dress. Danny wears simple clothing, a loose shirt and pants, and Charlie's outfit is close-fitting with a knife sheathed at her hip and a crossbow over her shoulder.
Charlie hunts and she's good at it, but she's not a warrior. She fights the militia men who come after Miles, but Nate has to save her. Miles has to intervene when Charlie gets into fights she cannot physically win. She reacts emotionally and Miles has to remind her to take logical action.
Charlie repeatedly shows herself to be tough but also scared. A good fighter, but also reckless. She doesn't try to hide her vulnerabilities and she doesn't let people talk down, ignore, or belittle her. Especially Miles. She's an excellent example of tempered strength.
Nora. The first time we see her, she is chained up along with many other slaves. But then we find out that she picked the lock and can escape at any time. Nora got arrested on purpose so that she could steal a rifle from the militia. She doesn't need to be saved.
Nora is determined and focused on her work for the Resistance, even to the point of putting Danny in danger in episode 5, "Soul Train." Miles thinks the Resistance has no chance of accomplishing anything and if that's true, all of Nora's work goes to waste. At this point in the story, she is an example of lost potential.
Lastly, Rachel, Charlie's mom. Monroe is holding her hostage and we've seen her tied up and interrogated. A few scenes imply that Monroe's men torture her. In a flashback scene, Rachel killed a man who tried to steal the family's food and threaten Charlie, but now Rachel seems powerless. Monroe manipulates her into telling him what she knows about the blackout and how to turn the power back on. It seems like Rachel is an example of arrested power, but I'm excited to see how that will change when Monroe tries to bargain with Danny's life.
The women in Revolution show strength as well as weakness. At times, we see in them the damsel in distress cliche. The men must come to rescue them. But as we watch, the cliche turns itself inside out. Charlie takes charge of rescuing Danny, Nora defies Miles to blow up the train, and Rachel will do whatever is necessary to protect her children.
I like Revolution for its story and characters, but the most interesting part so far is how the show plays with gender roles. I'll focus on the women in this post.
Charlie. Her name is a good starting point: Charlotte but she goes by Charlie. A blending of male and female, so we can guess that Charlie is going to blur the line between what is typically male and female.
The militia takes Danny, Charlie's younger brother, in the first episode, and she goes after him. The set up is not a strong man going on a journey to save a helpless woman but instead a young woman going to rescue her weaker brother. If you don't think that Danny is supposed to be the weaker of the two, look at how they dress. Danny wears simple clothing, a loose shirt and pants, and Charlie's outfit is close-fitting with a knife sheathed at her hip and a crossbow over her shoulder.
Charlie hunts and she's good at it, but she's not a warrior. She fights the militia men who come after Miles, but Nate has to save her. Miles has to intervene when Charlie gets into fights she cannot physically win. She reacts emotionally and Miles has to remind her to take logical action.
Charlie repeatedly shows herself to be tough but also scared. A good fighter, but also reckless. She doesn't try to hide her vulnerabilities and she doesn't let people talk down, ignore, or belittle her. Especially Miles. She's an excellent example of tempered strength.
Nora. The first time we see her, she is chained up along with many other slaves. But then we find out that she picked the lock and can escape at any time. Nora got arrested on purpose so that she could steal a rifle from the militia. She doesn't need to be saved.
Nora is determined and focused on her work for the Resistance, even to the point of putting Danny in danger in episode 5, "Soul Train." Miles thinks the Resistance has no chance of accomplishing anything and if that's true, all of Nora's work goes to waste. At this point in the story, she is an example of lost potential.
Lastly, Rachel, Charlie's mom. Monroe is holding her hostage and we've seen her tied up and interrogated. A few scenes imply that Monroe's men torture her. In a flashback scene, Rachel killed a man who tried to steal the family's food and threaten Charlie, but now Rachel seems powerless. Monroe manipulates her into telling him what she knows about the blackout and how to turn the power back on. It seems like Rachel is an example of arrested power, but I'm excited to see how that will change when Monroe tries to bargain with Danny's life.
The women in Revolution show strength as well as weakness. At times, we see in them the damsel in distress cliche. The men must come to rescue them. But as we watch, the cliche turns itself inside out. Charlie takes charge of rescuing Danny, Nora defies Miles to blow up the train, and Rachel will do whatever is necessary to protect her children.
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