‘Revolution’ 1.13 Episode Recap And Review: The Song Remains The Same

Another night, another episode of Revolution behind us. And what an episode! We begin this week with Monroe admitting Neville into his office, after making the man wait outside for an hour. Monroe tells Neville that he wants to send him on a top-secret, high-priority mission. Randall – who obviously is enjoying his newfound power – mocks Neville, wondering aloud if the man is up to the task. When Neville demands an explanation, Randall replies that, in his opinion, Neville’s track record to date shows a “staggering lack of incompetence,” and if he were Neville’s boss, he’d fire him. By the expression on Neville’s face, I’d say he was remembering his prior life when he was belittled and ultimately fired by a young man he was forced to call his superior. In this case, he responds to Randall’s goading by stating that Randall is not his boss, and then does his own name-calling, telling Randall he’s just a “smug civilian in a cheap suit.” Before the two can keep trading barbs, Monroe interrupts, telling Neville that Randall is important to the Republic and deserves a little respect. Then he proceeds to tell Neville that he trusts him (after stating in last week’s episode that he trusts no one) and, as an old friend, believes he is the best man to handle the mission.

As Neville prepares to leave, his wife, Julia, trails after him down the staircase in their home, demanding to know where he is going. She states there have been too many secrets lately; particularly in the case of their son, whom she knows is not dead, but must act as if he is. She starts to break down, and Neville forces her to admit what would happen if Monroe discovered that Jason had gone AWOL: he would begin to question their loyalty, which would ultimately end up in their deaths.

In the Rebel camp, Charlie and other rebels practice sword-fighting under Miles’s tutelage. While she is busy with that, Aaron is sitting with Rachel, staring at her notebook in a state of shock. It is revealed that the “virus” mentioned in the prior episode is actually a computer, the size of a virus, which floats through the air with only two commands: absorb electricity and replicate. When Aaron wonders how many are out there, Rachel casually responds “a couple hundred quadrillion.” She tells him that they are everywhere, invisible to the naked eye, being breathed in even as they spoke. She goes on to tell Aaron that she never did find out what went wrong with the mission that caused the computer viruses to replicate out of control; only that she believes it originated out of the Tower. Aaron responds that this means they need to go to the Tower, but Rachel refuses, stating that Charlie is all that she has left and she’s not going to leave her again.

Nora interrupts the sword-practice to inform Miles that Hudson’s scouts spotted a militia convoy heading in their direction, which would pass them by in about half an hour. The three confer with Nicholas on how to handle the approaching vehicles, not knowing that it is Neville and some other Militia men.

Within the second vehicle, Neville is blasting Lionel Richie’s “All Night Long” on an IPod, obviously getting into the music. He starts to strike up a conversation with the young man driving, when the truck in front of them suddenly explodes. Neville’s vehicle spins out of control, and when it comes to rest, the driver is dead, and Neville staggers from the passenger seat, disoriented by what just happened. He attempts to walk, and collapses; as he lies gasping on the ground, he looks up, and discovers Nora, Charlie, Miles and Hudson approaching. Charlie stares down at him for a moment, before simply stating “You,” and clubbing him over the head with her rifle.

The group brings him back to the rebel camp with his arms secured and a bag over his head. Charlie hands her mother the pendant they retrieved from the convoy, and when Rachel questions who the prisoner is, and discovers that it’s Neville; she demands that they kill him immediately for what he has done. Miles responds that he is too important as a source for Militia information, and Charlie, though silent, appears to agree with him; Rachel storms off, clearly upset at their decision. She goes into another room and destroys the new pendant; when Aaron asks if she is okay, she doesn’t answer, staring at the sizzling flash drive

Neville is led into a room, and chained to a chair. When the bag is pulled off his head, he focuses on Nicholas and begins questioning him, saying that he had heard that Nicholas was a priest and heard confessions; before Nicholas can respond, Miles enters the room and assures Neville that he’ll be confessing in no time. As the others leave, Miles puts a tool kit down on a table, and starts pulling out tools. Neville tries to laugh off Miles’s “big, scary tools,” asking Miles if he really thinks that he can use them to make Neville talk. Miles reminds Neville that he managed to make him fold in the past, simply by holding a knife to Julia’s throat. He then proceeds to question Neville on where they were going, what they were planning, etc., as the rebels found about 30 lbs of loose diamonds in Neville’s vehicle. He asks Neville what Monroe needs that he can’t already get, and then tells Neville that was the first and last time he’d ask his questions nicely. Neville is quiet a moment, and then says he will answer Miles’s questions if Miles will answer his first: he wondered how it felt to have to bury Danny. Miles tries to brush him off, asking again after the diamonds, but Neville keeps talking about Danny and how much Miles and the others went through to save him, only to lose him. Miles gets visibly upset, and finally hauls back and punches Neville full-out; Neville simply smiles through his bloody lips and chides Miles for his temper. He continues to rattle Miles, taunting him about how Miles must have thought saving Danny would redeem him in some way for the many lives he’d taken in the past. Finally, he again pushes Miles over the edge, and Miles punches him repeatedly in the face, until blood is dripping down his face. When he stops, Neville urges him to continue, telling Miles that he can’t talk if he’s dead. Miles, having regained his composure, tells Neville that isn’t the plan; that Neville faces a future of repeated beatings, and periods of time to heal in-between, until he provides all the information the rebels need.

Outside, Nicholas greets a new arrival of rebels from Allentown. Charlie is sitting on an old car, and watches in disbelief as Jason Neville appears, obviously part of the group. She remains skeptical, telling him he can’t go in the building; when Jason asks why, Charlie hesitates, and Jason reveals that he already knows that his father is there, and he wants to see him. Miles approaches and tells Jason that isn’t going to happen. Jason turns, and casually greets Miles, before walking up to him and punching him in the face, telling him that that was for what Miles did to his mother. That business over with, Miles tells Jason that he can never be trusted, and in the best quote of the episode, tells Jason to leave, stating that if Jason goes anywhere near Neville, he “will bash [Jason’s] little boy band face in.” As Miles leaves, Jason turns to Charlie, and ask in bewilderment, “What’s a boy band?” Ah, if only that was a question we all didn’t have an answer for…

Later that evening, as Neville sits bound, alone in his room, he happens to spy a nail on the floor several feet in front of him. Rachel tries to bluff her way past the guard to Neville’s room, and when that doesn’t work, she uses the tray she’s holding to knock the guard unconscious. As she reaches for the door, Charlie confronts her and asks what she is doing. Rachel replies, bluntly, that she is going to kill Neville. Charlie manages to insert herself between Rachel and the door, telling her mother that they need to keep Neville alive for now. The two argue, with Rachel insisting that it’s only a matter of time until Neville escapes, so they need to kill him as quickly as possible. Charlie repeats that he is needed alive, and even tells her mother that she will be the one to kill Neville, once Miles is done with him. Rachel starts to cry, still insisting that this is their one chance to kill him. In a bit of a role reversal, Charlie is the voice of reason, telling her mother that she is angry too, but that they are at war, and can’t let their emotions get in the way of things. This stuns Rachel, and she tells Charlie that she sounds like Miles; Charlie replies that that’s not such a bad thing at the moment. Finally admitting defeat, Rachel turns and walks away. As she gets outside, Miles spots her, and asks her if she is okay. Rachel turns, and coldly asks him, “In what world does it turn out that you’re better for Charlie than I am?” When Miles asks her what she means, she bursts into tears, and the two embrace, Miles trying to comfort her, while in the distance, Jason watches, and sees his chance to get inside.

Back in Neville’s prison cell, the door opens, and Jason enters. He admits he’s now with the rebels, and when Neville asks if he’s come to gloat at his father’s capture, Jason responds by asking what he did wrong, stating that he did everything his father ever told him to do – hurt people, kill people – and he can’t understand why that didn’t satisfy Neville. Neville responds that in the new world, weak people die, and Neville didn’t want his son to be weak. He admits that he might have been too hard on Jason, but he was always proud of him. Jason stares at his father for a moment, before stating that Neville is only saying those things so that Jason would untie him. As he turns to leave, Neville changes tactics, and tells Jason that this mission was meant to prove to Monroe that he was loyal, and that if he doesn’t return, Monroe will kill Julia, simply because she is his wife. Jason pauses, and struggles with what his father is saying, before returning to him and quickly removing his restraints. As Neville stands, Jason asks where they are going; Neville at first scoffs at his son coming with him, but Jason says he knows the area, and that if his mother’s life is really at risk, Neville will need his help. Neville finally reveals that he had been headed toward an old cement factory in Finley. When Jason tries to probe for more information, Neville refuses, stating that he can’t say anything more. Jason replies that that is okay, that he’s already said more than enough, and pulls open the door to reveal Miles, Hudson, and Nicholas standing there, having listened in on the entire conversation. They quickly grab Neville and put him back in restraints, while he tells Jason that it will be entirely his fault if Julia is killed.

Back in Philadelphia, Randall is called into Monroe’s office. Monroe tells him that they haven’t heard from Neville, and for whatever reason, has failed in his mission. Randall offers to go in his place. He turns to leave, but can’t help turning back to rub it in a little that he was right about Neville – phrasing it in a good way, of course, but ultimately pointing out to Monroe that he made a mistake in sending Neville out.

In the rebel camp, Miles, Hudson, Nicholas, and Jason look over a map and outline a basic plan on how to proceed to Finley. Miles admits to Jason that he was wrong about him, and when Jason expresses concern about his mother’s safety, Miles tells him not to worry, that they can always make an attempt to get her out of Philadelphia. However, when Jason presses him for details on how that could be managed, Miles doesn’t have an answer for him.

Charlie finds Rachel, and tells her, in a subdued voice, that she is going to go with Miles and the others to Finley. This is a far different Charlie from the one in last week’s episode, who basically told Rachel she was going out on raids whether Rachel liked it or not. Rachel gives her blessing, and also promises not to kill anyone while Charlie is gone. Charlie promises in return that she will be back soon.

As the group walk toward Finley, Jason and Charlie have a brief conversation about Danny, and how word is out all over about what he did, how he died. Jason says that is what prompted him to join with the rebels; Charlie responds that that, also, is what made her decide to stay and fight with them.

Neville requests and audience with Nicholas, and as he walks in with another rebel, Neville states that he’d like to confess his sins to Nicholas; that he knows his future is “uncertain,” and he’d like to leave the world with a clear conscience. Nicholas comes closer, still skeptical; Neville continues to ask for his mercy, telling him that they can keep his hands bound, but he would like to kneel while he makes his confession.

Nicholas, bless him, is still convinced that Neville is messing with him – and unfortunately, is proven correct. Neville leaps to his feet, and knocks Nicholas aside, grabbing his sword in the process. He slits the throat of the rebel guard, and then, as Nicholas backs up against a wall, thrusts the sword into his chest. As he stands over Nicholas’s inert body, he holds up the nail that he had spotted earlier in the episode – apparently, with enough time and patience, anyone can manage to un-handcuff themselves with such an object. He drops the nail next to Nicholas’s head, before making good on his escape.

In Finley, Miles and the others watch as a unit of Militia patrol around the old concrete factory. They watch as Randall Flynn is handed off a large plastic briefcase. Miles makes the call to take out the unit, and Jason pulls an arrow, preparing to fire at Randall. However, as he rises from behind their hiding place, a scout in a stairwell spots him, and Jason narrowly avoids being shot. He ducks in time, and then rises again and takes out the scout – however, their cover is now blown, and Randall is able to make his own escape while the Militia and Rebels duke it out. While suffering some losses on their end, Miles, Jason, Charlie, and Hudson make it, and they and the other rebels manage to win the fight. They go into the concrete factory to see what was going on inside, and discover a room filled with chemical bottles and flammable equipment.

Returning to Philadelphia, Julia sits in the parlor of their home, posed and calm while she sips tea with two women, who are trying to comfort her over Jason’s passing. As she listens, she appears to be fighting for control, before responding that he died a loyal hero of the Republic, and that gives her comfort. Before the two can respond, Neville bursts through the front door, calling out to her. She stands up in shock at the sight of his bruised and bloody state, and then abruptly orders the two women to leave. They head up to their bedroom, where Neville hurries to pack. Julia at first attempts to get Neville to go to Monroe and explain what happened, that their place is in Philadelphia. Neville turns her own words back on her from an earlier episode: that Monroe is unstable, and they need to leave immediately before being captured, as Monroe will never believe in his loyalty now that he’s been held prisoner inside a rebel camp. She finally agrees with him and the two proceed with packing.

At the rebel camp, Rachel and Miles discuss what they saw in Finley, while reviewing drawings and diagrams they had brought back with them. Rachel says that from what she can tell, Randall was buying a nuclear bomb from the person in Finley. As Hudson worries about how they can fight back against Monroe with nothing more than “sticks and stones,” Aaron and Rachel exchange a glance as Rachel realizes that she knows what they need to do, and Aaron nods slightly, as if he caught on to her thinking and agrees.

Later on, Nora and Charlie stand over Nicholas’s body, laid out on a table. Charlie finally understands why her mother was so vehement about killing Neville, stating that they should have killed him when they had the chance. She leaves, and heads outside, discovering her mother sitting at a picnic table. She sits down next to her, and Rachel tells Charlie that she has to leave. She plans to return to the Tower, and try to return power to the world, so that everyone has a fighting chance against Monroe.

This is her reasoning later that evening as she starts to pack, while Miles follows her around, arguing over how slim her chances of survival are. Rachel responds by asking Miles to look after Charlie for her, and goes on to tell him that he can’t be who he previously was; he needs to take better care of Charlie than he ever took with her. Miles looks away, anguished, before suddenly gripping Rachel’s head and kissing her.

The episode concludes with Miles, Nora, and Charlie saying their goodbyes to Rachel and Aaron, who is going with Rachel. Charlie states that she should be going with them, as protection if nothing else. Rachel responds that she is not coming back, and hugs Charlie fiercely while reiterating that. Charlie and Aaron hug goodbye, and then just as they begin to leave, Charlie calls after her mother, asking if there might not be even a little chance that she might see her again. Rachel responds that Charlie is no longer a child, and she will not lie to her and offer up empty promises. She and Aaron walk off, and Charlie turns away and heads back inside the building, while Miles stares after the two, conflict rippling across his face.

Thoughts on Revolution Episode 1.13: The Song Remains the Same

Well, I’m sure we all noted one glaring difference between this episode and all prior: absolutely no flashbacks were shown. And I’m still trying to wrap my mind around exactly how Neville managed to get entirely freed from his bindings, with only the use of a rusty old nail, and then managed to still look bound up and able to coerce Nicholas close enough to him to catch him off guard. I am glad that Rachel and Aaron are heading off to try and get to this Tower, if only to keep the storyline going in a completely new direction. It will be interesting to see where Julia and Neville end up as well, especially as we’ve only ever seen Julia in an elegant setting; perhaps this will help develop her character into something more than a pretty background supporter of her husband and son. What are your thoughts on this episode? Do you think Aaron and Rachel made the right decision to leave? Do you think Jason understands how utterly he severed his ties with his family by betraying Neville to the rebels? Make sure to send us your thoughts in the comments section!

Responses

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  1. Revolution continues to improve with each episode. After the first three episodes of the season, it was mediocre at best. I gave it more time and it’s vastly improved.

    I like the Tower storyline with Rachel and Aaron leaving. Rachel is much more than windowdressing esp since we’ve seen how she was involved in the power issue. She seems to be a scientist in her own right. As for Jason, he’s done with his father but will try to rescue his mother. Neville will try to run but think Monroe’s goons will find him.
    Next week’s episode with a glimpse into another part of the country looks interesting.
    Thanks for the recap!