Grandiose ambition setting up a horrible downfall is a popular storyline, both in fictional and real worlds. Most of this year’s shows have seemingly gone for broke, pulling in big names both in front of (Zooey Deschanel on “The New Girl”) and behind (Steven Spielberg on “Terra Nova”) the cameras, while others stubbornly tried to make high concepts work on a smaller scale (“The Playboy Club”).
It is thus ironic that the must-watch new show of the year might be a nighttime soap that is tangentially linked to its source material. The humble “Revenge,” a modern-day reworking of Alexander Dumas’ “The Count of Monte Cristo,” stands out amongst this year’s new offerings.
After spending much of her teenage years in juvenile prison, Amanda Clarke (Emily VanCamp) finally returns to the free world, only to find out that her father has passed away, leaving behind a huge inheritance. Aside from enough money to set her up as a millionaire, there is also a journal by her father.
Inside it are revelations that he was framed for funding a terrorist organization that led to a fiery plane crash. The ones that pulled all the strings were his former friends and colleagues, led by the family Grayson, Victoria (Madeline Stowe) and Conrad, who managed to falsify reams of evidence and false testimony. Though Clarke’s father urges her to forgive and forget, Clarke changes her name to Emily Thorne and begins a long, elaborate plot to take them all down.
If you’ve never heard of the show’s creator, Mike Kelley, you’re excused. This is only his second production as show runner, having cut his teeth on the midseason replacement show “Swingtown,” which lasted just 13 episodes before getting canceled.
Similarly, VanCamp’s first major role was on the unheralded teen drama “Everwood” before getting a supporting role in “Brothers and Sisters,” with neither show really setting the world on fire. Combined with the so-so concept, “Dumas in the Hamptons!”, it would have been easy to dismiss the show without watching it, but this is really one of the few times the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
“Revenge” combines the social scheming of “Gossip Girl” and the machinations of “Leverage,” but gets just the right amounts of both to avoid going over the top. In each of the six episodes aired so far, Clarke/Thorne, with the aid of techie ally and annoyance Nolan Ross (Gabriel Mann), takes down a member of the conspiracy against Clarke/Thorne’s father, with the audience keeping score through a company picnic photo that starts to amass a collection of crossed-out faces.
The plots aren’t as grandiose and “gotcha!” inspiring as those in “Leverage” but they are well thought-out, which really helps give the sense that Clarke/Thorne has been hatching these schemes for quite some time. That level of foresight is one of the reasons why the show works so well. Everything is so well-planned by the show’s writers that there hasn’t been a single misstep or out of place moment. This is a rookie show that has so far run tighter than series that have been on the air for more than five years, a huge accomplishment.
Aside from the revenge angle, the show also works as a straight-up soap opera. Clarke/Thorne gets involved with the son of the Graysons, Daniel (Joshua Bowman, whom, my female friends insist I point out, is dating Miley Cyrus), but is it because it’s part of her plan or does she harbor genuine feelings?
Complicating matters is the presence of Jack Porter (Nick Wechsler), a childhood friend of Clarke/Thorne. Not a part of the socialite group in the Hamptons, Porter represents the townies, as an owner of a local drinking spot. Not only does he harbor a childhood crush for Amanda Clarke, Porter also falls in love with Emily Thorne, resulting in a complex love polygon.
On the other hand, the only sour note in the mix is the telenovela-esque romance between Porter’s younger brother, Declan (Connor Paolo, formerly on “Gossip Girl”) and the Graysons’ daughter, Charlotte. Beyond the standard “She’s rich! He’s not!” plot, the two seemingly only exist as walking plot contrivances.
Aside from the two kids, however, there’s all sorts of other, more interesting behind-the-back trysts going on between Conrad and Victoria’s best friend, the head of the Grayson security staff (perhaps the only person so far to suspect that Clarke/Thorne is not on the up and up) and Victoria, and even Daniel and his best friend from college, who gives off a “Talented Mr. Ripley” vibe.
But for all the smart and clever writing that exists on this show, it falls largely to VanCamp to deliver and avoid making things sound hokey and cartoony. The 25-year-old actress simply does an excellent job as Clarke/Thorn, working the false identity well, shifting in tone and emotion depending on who she’s talking to, while executing vicious schemes that ruin people just as they ruined her father without any remorse.
One of the great things about television is that it allows one to root for horrible things to happen to horrible people, and that fact is probably one of the things that makes “Revenge” so watchable. It works the other way too, as people tune in to see just how far Clarke/Thorne is willing to go in the name of her father (especially when people start dying, I mean, getting put into a coma, as per the latest episode). Also intriguing is the fact that the show reportedly has a finite end for Clarke/Thorne’s story, as its creator plans to shift the focus to another character after this season.
Does she get to go off into the sunset or will someone take revenge on the revenge-taker? Simpler in concept, but more ambitious in its execution than just about everything else currently on the TV, this sweet “Revenge” easily earns must-watch status.
