'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
by James Hibberd
Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn’t want to hold onto the NBC
drama’s central mystery — What caused the blackout? — too much longer.
And he’s giving some hints about what the answer might entail.
“We’re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
blackout] before end of this season,” Kripke tells EW. The answer is
something that’s passed muster from a physicist consulted by the
producers. So expect what caused the blackout to be at least somewhat
scientifically plausible.
“The sweet spot is to find an answer that’s actually scarier than what
you were thinking,” Kripke says. “Like, ‘Oh wait, this is not even
just about electricity.’ And that’s what we’re designing. I don’t see
any reason to withhold it much longer.”
Billy Burke, who plays Miles on the breakout drama, says Kripke’s
blackout answer has managed to assure the actors, who have had many of
the same questions about why certain technologies no longer function
as fans. “We’re asking those questions on a daily basis,” Burke says.
“We have conversations on set all the time — ‘What about this? What
about that? Wouldn’t that work?’ There always seem to be a
technologically sound answer for the questions.”
One fan question about the epic power loss that’s been asked since the
pilot — Wouldn’t steam engines work? — was answered in a recent
episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
lightning would still work (it does).
A giant Revolution revelation makes creative sense. Fans of the show
don’t tune in each week for nuggets about the blackout mystery, so
it’s really unlikely answering that question will result in a ratings
drain. Whereas holding onto mysteries too long sometimes annoys
viewers. The show’s characters, frankly, have bigger things to worry
about. Noting that the blackout occurred 15 years before the show’s
main storyline, Kripke asks, “How much are you sweating what happened
in 1997?”
For more scoop on Revolution, check out this week’s issue of
EntertainmentWeekly for a feature story on the show.
> 'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
> by James Hibberd
> Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn’t want to hold onto the NBC
> drama’s central mystery — What caused the blackout? — too much longer.
> And he’s giving some hints about what the answer might entail.
> “We’re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
> blackout] before end of this season,” Kripke tells EW. The answer is
> something that’s passed muster from a physicist consulted by the
> producers. So expect what caused the blackout to be at least somewhat
> scientifically plausible.
> “The sweet spot is to find an answer that’s actually scarier than what
> you were thinking,” Kripke says. “Like, ‘Oh wait, this is not even
> just about electricity.’ And that’s what we’re designing. I don’t see
> any reason to withhold it much longer.”
> Billy Burke, who plays Miles on the breakout drama, says Kripke’s
> blackout answer has managed to assure the actors, who have had many of
> the same questions about why certain technologies no longer function
> as fans. “We’re asking those questions on a daily basis,” Burke says.
> “We have conversations on set all the time — ‘What about this? What
> about that? Wouldn’t that work?’ There always seem to be a
> technologically sound answer for the questions.”
> One fan question about the epic power loss that’s been asked since the
> pilot — Wouldn’t steam engines work? — was answered in a recent
> episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
> thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
> lightning would still work (it does).
> A giant Revolution revelation makes creative sense. Fans of the show
> don’t tune in each week for nuggets about the blackout mystery, so
> it’s really unlikely answering that question will result in a ratings
> drain. Whereas holding onto mysteries too long sometimes annoys
> viewers. The show’s characters, frankly, have bigger things to worry
> about. Noting that the blackout occurred 15 years before the show’s
> main storyline, Kripke asks, “How much are you sweating what happened
> in 1997?”
> For more scoop on Revolution, check out this week’s issue of
> EntertainmentWeekly for a feature story on the show.
I kinda think that one should only reveal a central "mystery" if and only if doing so properly opens up a wider mystery.
This reminds me of B5:Crusade where the show was based on finding a cure for a virus. The plan there was to reveal and solve that problem early in (IIRC) season 2, and that would have revealed a greater story. If they reveal the "best" bit early with nothing to follow, then obviously the show is probably done. If they stretch it too far, it then become a Lost type disaster.
It sounds like the Revolution lot have this in mind. If so, I might be interested in having another go at watching it.
>'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
>by James Hibberd
>Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn’t want to hold onto the NBC
>drama’s central mystery — What caused the blackout? — too much longer.
>And he’s giving some hints about what the answer might entail.
>“We’re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
>blackout] before end of this season,” Kripke tells EW. The answer is
>something that’s passed muster from a physicist consulted by the
>producers. So expect what caused the blackout to be at least somewhat
>scientifically plausible.
>“The sweet spot is to find an answer that’s actually scarier than what
>you were thinking,”
The sweet spot is to find a retcon that will actually be plausible
scientifically!
> 'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
> by James Hibberd
> Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn t want to hold onto the NBC
> drama s central mystery What caused the blackout? too much longer.
> And he s giving some hints about what the answer might entail.
> We re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
> blackout] before end of this season, Kripke tells EW. The answer is
> something that s passed muster from a physicist consulted by the
> producers. So expect what caused the blackout to be at least somewhat
> scientifically plausible.
More likely it will be just like Lost's "non-sci-fi" answer that in
reality turned out to be time travelling thanks to them making the whole
thing up as they went along. :-\
>'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
>by James Hibberd
>Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn’t want to hold onto the NBC
>drama’s central mystery — What caused the blackout? — too much longer.
>And he’s giving some hints about what the answer might entail.
>“We’re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
>blackout] before end of this season,” Kripke tells EW. The answer is
>something that’s passed muster from a physicist consulted by the
>producers. So expect what caused the blackout to be at least somewhat
>scientifically plausible.
>“The sweet spot is to find an answer that’s actually scarier than what
>you were thinking,” Kripke says. “Like, ‘Oh wait, this is not even
>just about electricity.’ And that’s what we’re designing. I don’t see
>any reason to withhold it much longer.”
A mass illusion caused by orbital mind control lasers, which can be
suppressed locally with the lucky charms?
-- Jerry Brown
A cat may look at a king
(but probably won't bother)
> 'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
> by James Hibberd
> Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn’t want to hold onto the
> NBC drama’s central mystery — What caused the blackout? — too
> much longer. And he’s giving some hints about what the answer
> might entail.
> “We’re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
> blackout] before end of this season,” Kripke tells EW. The
> answer is something that’s passed muster from a physicist
> consulted by the producers. So expect what caused the blackout
> to be at least somewhat scientifically plausible.
In a laughable, comic book sort of way, perhaps.
If they'd consulted with an engineer in the power industry, well, they'd have to just admit it's a mgic premise and the show is fantasy, not science fiction, but oh well.
-- Terry Austin
"Terry Austin: like the polio vaccine, only with more asshole."
-- David Bilek
On Thu, 01 Nov 2012 15:23:23 -0700, JRStern <JRSt...@foobar.invalid>
wrote:
>On Thu, 01 Nov 2012 20:44:21 +0000, Jerry Brown
><je...@jwbrown.co.uk.invalid> wrote:
>>A mass illusion caused by orbital mind control lasers, which can be
>>suppressed locally with the lucky charms?
>oooh, I like it!
Much as I'd like to be correct, I think having a real scientist say
that mind control lasers are possible is not going to help the show's
credibility anymore than the currently assumed current dampening
field.
I suppose a certain segment of the population may stand up and say "I
knew it!" but I doubt these are the target audience that advertisers
would want to appeal to.
-- Jerry Brown
A cat may look at a king
(but probably won't bother)
>>On Thu, 01 Nov 2012 20:44:21 +0000, Jerry Brown
>><je...@jwbrown.co.uk.invalid> wrote:
>>>A mass illusion caused by orbital mind control lasers, which can be
>>>suppressed locally with the lucky charms?
>>oooh, I like it!
>Much as I'd like to be correct, I think having a real scientist say
>that mind control lasers are possible is not going to help the show's
>credibility anymore than the currently assumed current dampening
>field.
oh yeah, credibility, ... well, you can't have everything!
> > 'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
> > by James Hibberd
> > Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn t want to hold onto the
> > NBC drama s central mystery What caused the blackout? too
> > much longer. And he s giving some hints about what the answer
> > might entail.
> > We re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
> > blackout] before end of this season, Kripke tells EW. The
> > answer is something that s passed muster from a physicist
> > consulted by the producers. So expect what caused the blackout
> > to be at least somewhat scientifically plausible.
> In a laughable, comic book sort of way, perhaps.
> If they'd consulted with an engineer in the power industry, well, > they'd have to just admit it's a mgic premise and the show is > fantasy, not science fiction, but oh well.
It'll be a mouse that chewed on the main cable ... then again, all of
Auckalnd's (New Zealand's largest city) power supply *was* cut off because
someone dropped a wrench onto the city's SINGLE incoming power cable and
shorted the whole system. :-\
> > > 'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
> > > by James Hibberd
> > > Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn‚t want to hold onto the
> > > NBC drama‚s central mystery ˜ What caused the blackout? ˜ too
> > > much longer. And he‚s giving some hints about what the answer
> > > might entail.
> > > „We‚re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
> > > blackout] before end of this season,‰ Kripke tells EW. The
> > > answer is something that‚s passed muster from a physicist
> > > consulted by the producers. So expect what caused the blackout
> > > to be at least somewhat scientifically plausible.
> > In a laughable, comic book sort of way, perhaps.
> > If they'd consulted with an engineer in the power industry, well, > > they'd have to just admit it's a mgic premise and the show is > > fantasy, not science fiction, but oh well.
> It'll be a mouse that chewed on the main cable ... then again, all of
> Auckalnd's (New Zealand's largest city) power supply *was* cut off because
> someone dropped a wrench onto the city's SINGLE incoming power cable and
> shorted the whole system. :-\
Yikes... That musta made one HELLUVA "kaboom!"
Town I grew up in once had what was determined to be (from the crispy-fried remains) a pair of seagulls who were apparently scrapping with each other then lit one on each peg of the primary distribution station's input terminals, reached across to each other, and blew themselves to hell, shutting the whole town off for about 6 hours. Bystanders reported that it sounded like a cross between a cannon going off and the sound of the world's biggest set of barber clippers.
MUCH smaller town than Aukland, though - 25K-ish population at the time.
-- If the door is baroque don't be Hayden. Come around Bach and jiggle the Handel
> > > > 'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
> > > > by James Hibberd
> > > > Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn‚t want to hold onto the
> > > > NBC drama‚s central mystery ˜ What caused the blackout? ˜ too
> > > > much longer. And he‚s giving some hints about what the answer
> > > > might entail.
> > > > „We‚re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
> > > > blackout] before end of this season,‰ Kripke tells EW. The
> > > > answer is something that‚s passed muster from a physicist
> > > > consulted by the producers. So expect what caused the blackout
> > > > to be at least somewhat scientifically plausible.
> > > In a laughable, comic book sort of way, perhaps.
> > > If they'd consulted with an engineer in the power industry, well, > > > they'd have to just admit it's a mgic premise and the show is > > > fantasy, not science fiction, but oh well.
> > It'll be a mouse that chewed on the main cable ... then again, all of
> > Auckalnd's (New Zealand's largest city) power supply *was* cut off because
> > someone dropped a wrench onto the city's SINGLE incoming power cable and
> > shorted the whole system. :-\
> Yikes... That musta made one HELLUVA "kaboom!"
> Town I grew up in once had what was determined to be (from the > crispy-fried remains) a pair of seagulls who were apparently scrapping > with each other then lit one on each peg of the primary distribution > station's input terminals, reached across to each other, and blew > themselves to hell, shutting the whole town off for about 6 hours. > Bystanders reported that it sounded like a cross between a cannon going > off and the sound of the world's biggest set of barber clippers.
> MUCH smaller town than Aukland, though - 25K-ish population at the time.
Not sure how many people in Auckland (1.5 - 2 million), but the entire
country only has 4 million people.
Despite the accident above, which was a couple of years ago now, Auckland
STILL only has one single line coming in. They planning to build a new
line, but it will come in to the same sub-station, so there will still
only be one line into the city itself. These idiots in management are so
busy stuffing their own wallets (with the ever-increasing power bills we
have to pay) that they never have any common sense and never learn. :-(
>'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
>by James Hibberd
>Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn’t want to hold onto the NBC
>drama’s central mystery — What caused the blackout? — too much longer.
>And he’s giving some hints about what the answer might entail.
>“We’re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
>blackout] before end of this season,” Kripke tells EW. The answer is
>something that’s passed muster from a physicist consulted by the
>producers. So expect what caused the blackout to be at least somewhat
>scientifically plausible.
-----
As long as it has a grain of truth to it I'm okay with it.
>“The sweet spot is to find an answer that’s actually scarier than what
>you were thinking,” Kripke says. “Like, ‘Oh wait, this is not even
>just about electricity.’ And that’s what we’re designing. I don’t see
>any reason to withhold it much longer.”
-----
Well, since the Department of Defense seems to be involved (Ben and
his wife worked for the DoD) maybe it isn't a desire to see a green
world.
>Billy Burke, who plays Miles on the breakout drama, says Kripke’s
>blackout answer has managed to assure the actors, who have had many of
>the same questions about why certain technologies no longer function
>as fans. “We’re asking those questions on a daily basis,” Burke says.
>“We have conversations on set all the time — ‘What about this? What
>about that? Wouldn’t that work?’ There always seem to be a
>technologically sound answer for the questions.”
-----
Well simply anything involving electricity in anyway likely won't
work. It seems naturally generated electricity works but not
electricity from a artificial source. That seems fantastic but the
answer could be ased on that.
>One fan question about the epic power loss that’s been asked since the
>pilot — Wouldn’t steam engines work? — was answered in a recent
>episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
>thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
>lightning would still work (it does).
----
I can understand the lightning question, but anyone who questioned
whether or not a steam engine would work is an idiot.
>A giant Revolution revelation makes creative sense. Fans of the show
>don’t tune in each week for nuggets about the blackout mystery, so
>it’s really unlikely answering that question will result in a ratings
>drain. Whereas holding onto mysteries too long sometimes annoys
>viewers. The show’s characters, frankly, have bigger things to worry
>about. Noting that the blackout occurred 15 years before the show’s
>main storyline, Kripke asks, “How much are you sweating what happened
>in 1997?”
-----
I see what he meant, still I like to know the character's background.
I liked how before the blackout Tom was a mouse of a man and then over
compensated to the max. Aaron was a mouse of a man too but he isn't
going to over compensate like Tom did. (snip)
------>Hunter
"No man in the wrong can stand up against a fellow that's in the right and keeps on acomin'."
-----William J. McDonald
Captain, Texas Rangers from 1891 to 1907
In article <5093b6b3.7916...@news.optonline.net>,
Hunter <buffhun...@my-deja.com> (Hunter) wrote:
> On Thu, 01 Nov 2012 15:24:17 -0400, David <dimla...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> >One fan question about the epic power loss that‚s been asked since the
> >pilot ˜ Wouldn‚t steam engines work? ˜ was answered in a recent
> >episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
> >thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
> >lightning would still work (it does).
> ----
> I can understand the lightning question, but anyone who questioned
> whether or not a steam engine would work is an idiot.
Not really... The show positively *REEKS* of Stirling's "Emberverse" series, where, among other things, electricity, gunpowder/explosives, and steam engines don't work. Well, I take that back - They can be made to function, but their power output is so low (too low to be useful for anything non-trivial) that they might as well be considered non-operational. Anyone who has read Emberverse is likely to be at least somewhat attracted to the show by the similarity, and would probably be asking about whether steam power is operational.
-- If the door is baroque don't be Hayden. Come around Bach and jiggle the Handel
>> On Thu, 01 Nov 2012 15:24:17 -0400, David <dimla...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> >One fan question about the epic power loss that‚s been asked since the
>> >pilot ˜ Wouldn‚t steam engines work? ˜ was answered in a recent
>> >episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
>> >thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
>> >lightning would still work (it does).
>> ----
>> I can understand the lightning question, but anyone who questioned
>> whether or not a steam engine would work is an idiot.
>Not really... The show positively *REEKS* of Stirling's "Emberverse" >series, where, among other things, electricity, gunpowder/explosives, >and steam engines don't work. Well, I take that back - They can be made >to function, but their power output is so low (too low to be useful for >anything non-trivial) that they might as well be considered >non-operational. Anyone who has read Emberverse is likely to be at least >somewhat attracted to the show by the similarity, and would probably be >asking about whether steam power is operational.
Yah, same as in Saberhagen's Empire/Swords worlds. What no longer
works is "technology", due to some kind of dicking with subatomic
fields and forces, details unspecified. Yet people work, and now
magic works, and some technological artifacts like flashlights
continue to work indefinitely, for reasons also unspecified.
A certain amount of suspension of disbelief is required,
"plausibility" isn't going to happen, what you want in technobabble is
more like "consistency".
>> On Thu, 01 Nov 2012 15:24:17 -0400, David <dimla...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> >One fan question about the epic power loss that‚s been asked since the
>> >pilot ˜ Wouldn‚t steam engines work? ˜ was answered in a recent
>> >episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
>> >thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
>> >lightning would still work (it does).
>> ----
>> I can understand the lightning question, but anyone who questioned
>> whether or not a steam engine would work is an idiot.
>Not really... The show positively *REEKS* of Stirling's "Emberverse" >series, where, among other things, electricity, gunpowder/explosives, >and steam engines don't work. Well, I take that back - They can be made >to function, but their power output is so low (too low to be useful for >anything non-trivial) that they might as well be considered >non-operational. Anyone who has read Emberverse is likely to be at least >somewhat attracted to the show by the similarity, and would probably be >asking about whether steam power is operational.
----
Well I never heard of the work Emberverse and I will run to its
wikipage as soon as I post this so I guess "idiot" was way too harsh,
but the premise of "Revolution" was always said to be that electricity
doesn't work, nothing else is affected. Nothing was ever said
otherwise to my knowledge.
------>Hunter
"No man in the wrong can stand up against a fellow that's in the right and keeps on acomin'."
-----William J. McDonald
Captain, Texas Rangers from 1891 to 1907
In article <pdo7981k0e15fscivgg7eapu78bnl9i...@4ax.com>,
JRStern <JRSt...@foobar.invalid> said:
> Yah, same as in Saberhagen's Empire/Swords worlds. What no longer
> works is "technology", due to some kind of dicking with subatomic
> fields and forces, details unspecified.
Of course (as you know, Bob), that was only _half_ of the change to
the world there...
("Empire of the East" trilogy, _really_ good stuff. The "Swords"
and "Lost Swords" books, well, I read the first one and wasn't
impressed enough to keep going.)
> >> On Thu, 01 Nov 2012 15:24:17 -0400, David <dimla...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> >> >One fan question about the epic power loss that‚s been asked since the
> >> >pilot ˜ Wouldn‚t steam engines work? ˜ was answered in a recent
> >> >episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
> >> >thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
> >> >lightning would still work (it does).
> >> ----
> >> I can understand the lightning question, but anyone who questioned
> >> whether or not a steam engine would work is an idiot.
> >Not really... The show positively *REEKS* of Stirling's "Emberverse" > >series, where, among other things, electricity, gunpowder/explosives, > >and steam engines don't work. Well, I take that back - They can be made > >to function, but their power output is so low (too low to be useful for > >anything non-trivial) that they might as well be considered > >non-operational. Anyone who has read Emberverse is likely to be at least > >somewhat attracted to the show by the similarity, and would probably be > >asking about whether steam power is operational.
> Yah, same as in Saberhagen's Empire/Swords worlds. What no longer
> works is "technology", due to some kind of dicking with subatomic
> fields and forces, details unspecified. Yet people work, and now
> magic works, and some technological artifacts like flashlights
> continue to work indefinitely, for reasons also unspecified.
> A certain amount of suspension of disbelief is required,
> "plausibility" isn't going to happen, what you want in technobabble is
> more like "consistency".
> J.
If electricity doesn't work it means electrons either can't travel through conductors or don't want to because the attraction between positive and negative is gone. With that, every living thing drops dead. Whatever they come up with ain't gonna be "plausible."
>> >> On Thu, 01 Nov 2012 15:24:17 -0400, David <dimla...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> >> >One fan question about the epic power loss that‚s been asked since the
>> >> >pilot ˜ Wouldn‚t steam engines work? ˜ was answered in a recent
>> >> >episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
>> >> >thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
>> >> >lightning would still work (it does).
>> >> ----
>> >> I can understand the lightning question, but anyone who questioned
>> >> whether or not a steam engine would work is an idiot.
>> >Not really... The show positively *REEKS* of Stirling's "Emberverse" >> >series, where, among other things, electricity, gunpowder/explosives, >> >and steam engines don't work. Well, I take that back - They can be made >> >to function, but their power output is so low (too low to be useful for >> >anything non-trivial) that they might as well be considered >> >non-operational. Anyone who has read Emberverse is likely to be at least >> >somewhat attracted to the show by the similarity, and would probably be >> >asking about whether steam power is operational.
>> Yah, same as in Saberhagen's Empire/Swords worlds. What no longer
>> works is "technology", due to some kind of dicking with subatomic
>> fields and forces, details unspecified. Yet people work, and now
>> magic works, and some technological artifacts like flashlights
>> continue to work indefinitely, for reasons also unspecified.
>> A certain amount of suspension of disbelief is required,
>> "plausibility" isn't going to happen, what you want in technobabble is
>> more like "consistency".
>> J.
>If electricity doesn't work it means electrons either can't travel >through conductors or don't want to because the attraction between >positive and negative is gone. With that, every living thing drops dead. >Whatever they come up with ain't gonna be "plausible."
One or more of the basic forces is not just turned off, it is replaced
by something just different enough, but actually still amenable to
exploitation once you learn how.
>> Yah, same as in Saberhagen's Empire/Swords worlds. What no longer
>> works is "technology", due to some kind of dicking with subatomic
>> fields and forces, details unspecified.
>Of course (as you know, Bob), that was only _half_ of the change to
>the world there...
>("Empire of the East" trilogy, _really_ good stuff. The "Swords"
>and "Lost Swords" books, well, I read the first one and wasn't
>impressed enough to keep going.)
The first three swords books were OK by me, more than OK actually.
The Lost Swords - never bought them, they didn't look so hot, I did
buy Saberhagen's very last, and it wasn't so hot.
If Revolution doesn't steal more from them, then the Empire stuff is
still primo for Hollywood, I mean even has some limited sexual content
and all.
On Fri, 02 Nov 2012 08:11:12 -0700, JRStern wrote:
> On Fri, 02 Nov 2012 06:55:44 -0700, Don Bruder <f...@spamdump.invalid>
> wrote:
> > [quoted text muted]
> >anything non-trivial) that they might as well be considered > >non-operational. Anyone who has read Emberverse is likely to be at least > >somewhat attracted to the show by the similarity, and would probably be > >asking about whether steam power is operational.
> Yah, same as in Saberhagen's Empire/Swords worlds. What no longer
> works is "technology", due to some kind of dicking with subatomic
> fields and forces, details unspecified.
That's a common trope in sic-fi or fantasy.
One or my favorites is /Worlds of the Wall/ by MacApp. The hero is a Terran astronaut who is stranded in a world where there is magic, but only in regions where allowed by treaty. He tries to make simple machines such as a wind-driven water pump work, but the forces of the world prevent it in increasingly inventive ways. (That's just one chapter of the novel.)
-- Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Tompkins County, New York, USA
http://OakRoadSystems.com Shikata ga nai...
On Fri, 02 Nov 2012 16:16:18 GMT, Hunter <buffhun...@my-deja.com>
(Hunter) wrote:
>but the premise of "Revolution" was always said to be that electricity
>doesn't work, nothing else is affected. Nothing was ever said
>otherwise to my knowledge.
Rec.arts.sf.tv had VERY long discussions about these matters through
the summer, and not a single instance of early promotional material
was pointed to where Revolutions said it would be only ELECTRICAL
power going out. Instead, it was that "all power" was going to be
negated. It was only shortly before the fall premiere that there were
indications that it was going to be ONLY electrical power that was
negated.
>> > > 'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
>> > > by James Hibberd
>> > > Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn‚t want to hold onto the
>> > > NBC drama‚s central mystery ˜ What caused the blackout? ˜ too
>> > > much longer. And he‚s giving some hints about what the answer
>> > > might entail.
>> > > „We‚re talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
>> > > blackout] before end of this season,‰ Kripke tells EW. The
>> > > answer is something that‚s passed muster from a physicist
>> > > consulted by the producers. So expect what caused the blackout
>> > > to be at least somewhat scientifically plausible.
>> > In a laughable, comic book sort of way, perhaps.
>> > If they'd consulted with an engineer in the power industry, well, >> > they'd have to just admit it's a mgic premise and the show is >> > fantasy, not science fiction, but oh well.
>> It'll be a mouse that chewed on the main cable ... then again, all of
>> Auckalnd's (New Zealand's largest city) power supply *was* cut off because
>> someone dropped a wrench onto the city's SINGLE incoming power cable and
>> shorted the whole system. :-\
>Yikes... That musta made one HELLUVA "kaboom!"
>Town I grew up in once had what was determined to be (from the >crispy-fried remains) a pair of seagulls who were apparently scrapping >with each other then lit one on each peg of the primary distribution >station's input terminals, reached across to each other, and blew >themselves to hell, shutting the whole town off for about 6 hours. >Bystanders reported that it sounded like a cross between a cannon going >off and the sound of the world's biggest set of barber clippers.
>MUCH smaller town than Aukland, though - 25K-ish population at the time.
> 'Revolution' showrunner teases blackout mystery solution
> by James Hibberd
> Revolution showrunner Eric Kripke doesn't want to hold onto the NBC
> drama's central mystery - What caused the blackout? - too much longer.
> And he's giving some hints about what the answer might entail.
> "We're talking very seriously about revealing [what caused the
> blackout] before end of this season," Kripke tells EW. The answer is
> something that's passed muster from a physicist consulted by the
> producers. So expect what caused the blackout to be at least somewhat
> scientifically plausible.
> "The sweet spot is to find an answer that's actually scarier than what
> you were thinking," Kripke says. "Like, 'Oh wait, this is not even
> just about electricity.' And that's what we're designing. I don't see
> any reason to withhold it much longer."
> Billy Burke, who plays Miles on the breakout drama, says Kripke's
> blackout answer has managed to assure the actors, who have had many of
> the same questions about why certain technologies no longer function
> as fans. "We're asking those questions on a daily basis," Burke says.
> "We have conversations on set all the time - 'What about this? What
> about that? Wouldn't that work?' There always seem to be a
> technologically sound answer for the questions."
> One fan question about the epic power loss that's been asked since the
> pilot - Wouldn't steam engines work? - was answered in a recent
> episode that showed a steam train. Another recent episode featuring a
> thunderstorm resulted in a debate in the writers room over whether
> lightning would still work (it does).
> A giant Revolution revelation makes creative sense. Fans of the show
> don't tune in each week for nuggets about the blackout mystery, so
> it's really unlikely answering that question will result in a ratings
> drain. Whereas holding onto mysteries too long sometimes annoys
> viewers. The show's characters, frankly, have bigger things to worry
> about. Noting that the blackout occurred 15 years before the show's
> main storyline, Kripke asks, "How much are you sweating what happened
> in 1997?"
> For more scoop on Revolution, check out this week's issue of
> EntertainmentWeekly for a feature story on the show.
The answer is a device, shielded by a larger version of the pendants, which creates a field that disrupts electrical devices. Worldwide. It continues to operate.
It was a DARPA project, powered by a small atomic pile, also shielded, that created the blackout. The pendants are small shield generators which nullify, in a small area, the effects of the first DARPA device.
