'Revolution' delivers a shocking death in its newest episode

Miss last night’s episode? Here’s what you need to know about REVOLUTION’S “The Plague Dogs”

AIRDATE: 08/10/12

WRITER: Anne Cofell Saunders

DIRECTOR: Felix Alcala

SYNOPSIS: The search to rescue Danny Matheson comes to a screeching halt when Miles, Charlie, Nora, Maggie, Zak and Nate encounter a ravenous pack of dogs and one equally ravenous owner. Meanwhile, after a storm traps Captain Tom Neville under a roof, Danny must decide whether or not to save him, while Monroe’s interrogation of Rachel continues.

INTRODUCED: Maggie’s backstory, which involves her heartbreaking, not to mention unsuccessful attempt to reunite with her children in England after the lights went out fifteen years prior and features her first meeting with what would become her surrogate family in the Mathesons.

HISTORIC MOMENT: REVOLUTION’s first “major” character death. And while we aren’t going to pretend we didn’t see it coming from a mile away thanks to some very emotionally manipulative flashbacks, Maggie’s death still resonates. Particularly by reinforcing the idea that nobody in the increasingly addictive world of REVOLUTION — outside of perhaps Miles and Charlie — are safe!

NOTABLE QUOTABLE: Charlie slowly begins to piece together that travelling with Miles may end up doing her more harm than good. Observes our heroine, “Every person that we meet wants to capture you, kill you, kill us for knowing you or are flat out terrified of you.”

LESSON(S) LEARNED: While it won’t come as much of a surprise that the dearly departed Ben Matheson was much more than a simple teacher of Algebra, it did come as a bit of one that he moonlighted for the Department of Defence and had something called “Full SAP Clearance,” whatever that is! More interesting still — and something that will surely come into play at some point throughout the rest of the season — is that Miles, not Monroe may be directly responsible for Charlie’s mother’s current captive status. Also of note, there is something “important” about Danny.

CRITIQUE: REVOLUTION is on a roll! Peppered with — dare-we-say-it — the perfect mix of suspense, action and surprise, the hit NBC show’s fourth episode of the season continues to make the case for being considered the first flat-out successful mythological dense drama in a post-LOST world. Which, curiously enough, may not be the most appropriate of comparisons considering an episode like “The Plague Dogs” — complete with a stakes raising death, a slew of delightfully morally ambiguous characters, not to mention a carefully crafted universe that, like an onion, is slowly being peeled back by the REVOLUTION writers to reveal a world where there is a very fine line between right and wrong — played out much more like your typical episode of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA. GRADE: B+

The TV Addict staff blogs at The TV Addict.