“Revenge” is bringing twisty storytelling to Wednesday nights. Emily (Emily Van Camp, “Brothers & Sisters”), who used to go by the name Amanda, returns to the posh Hamptons a decade after a group of her father’s wealthy co-workers conspired against him.
The premiere episode (10 p.m. EDT Wednesday) opens in the Hamptons at a posh engagement party for Emily and Daniel (Josh Bowman). His society-matron mother, Victoria Grayson (Madeleine Stowe), imperiously presides.
| On TV |
| ‘Revenge’ |
| » When: 10 p.m. Wednesday |
| » Channel: ABC |
| » Info: abc.go.com |
“In a word, I approve,” Victoria says of their pending union. “And as anyone can tell you, approval is not something I give away easily.”
But her approval may disappear when Daniel is found dead on the beach before the show flashes back to five months earlier as Emily rents the beach house next to Victoria’s mansion. Turns out Emily may look sweet, but she’s plotting revenge against the wealthy denizens — including Victoria and her husband — who framed her father for a crime he didn’t commit.
Much soapy intrigue ensues, including infidelities, Emily’s flashbacks of her father (James Tupper) and the love lives of working-class brothers Jack (Nick Wechsler) and Declan (Connor Paolo, “Gossip Girl”).
The show burns through a lot of plot in the fast-moving premiere — establishing relationships and backstories — but the pace is often undermined by a one-two punch of bad dialogue delivered poorly.
“You must come from a family of polar bears,” says Lydia Davis (Amber Valletta) when she comes upon Emily dipping her toe in the ocean.
“Only at first,” Emily replies. “After a while you can’t feel anything.”
“Sounds like my marriage,” Lydia shoots back.
Whether the lines or the performances are more painful is a tossup.
Actually, Van Camp is as likable an actress as ever; it’s the actresses playing upper-crust socialites who are prone to chewing the scenery. Sometimes these showdowns between Emily and the Ladies Who Lunch play out with subtle cattiness; other times they flail wildly.
If “Revenge” can curb its more outlandish tendencies, this soap could become a welcome guilty pleasure.
