TV Show Review: ABC’s “Revenge,” starring Emily VanCamp

By: GabrielleAdelle

I swore that Revenge was a new show on the CW or maybe ABC Family. I see ads for it on buses everywhere, but had no idea what it was about, besides revenge. Well, Revenge is actually a new show that’s premiering Wednesday night on ABC. The show stars Emily VanCamp. Remember her from Brothers & Sisters? Or maybe even way before that on Everwood? Well, now she’s in show even more dramatic than the last two. VanCamp plays Emily Thorne, a woman on a mission to revenge the people who purposely accused her innocent father of working with terrorists.

Revenge starts off mysterious. There’s a dead body on the beach, there’s an engagement party going on, there’s a lot of intense staring and overdramatic tension. The opening scene sort of had me confused and baffled. For starters, the party seemed very evil, with its red and white theme. I was pretty much convinced that this was a supernatural show. I was waiting for some witch chanting and magic. But alas, it’s just a bunch of rich people in the Hamptons, partying it up.

Slowly throughout the episode, it’s revealed why Emily wants revenge and who she’s going after. It’s like an adult version of Pretty Little Liars, but a little cheesier. But cheesy can work, if you have a good cast and chemistry. Revenge doesn’t have that. Its main problem is VanCamp as the lead. VanCamp plays naïve well, but a mastermind of a revenge plot? No, she doesn’t pull it off. In fact, she’s not that great of an actress. As the main character, I should have wanted to root for her; instead, I wanted her to go away.

As for the rest of the cast, there’s no chemistry between them. This show is about revenge! Where’s the tension? Where’s the passion? It’s practically non-existent. Every exchange felt awkward and flat. Only because you have a pretty cast doesn’t mean the end result won’t be a disaster.

The plot is semi-interesting. If the story didn’t take itself so seriously, I would ignore the bad acting and keep on watching it. In this case, it does, and it doesn’t help that it’s pretty unoriginal. Also, the crime Emily’s father got framed for is laughably ridiculous. It makes no sense and sounds really dumb.

Revenge is not worth an hour of your time every week. Even if you still want to watch it, don’t get too attached because I don’t see this show lasting more than one season.

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Revenge premieres Sept. 21st on ABC at 10/9c.

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