Okay, I watched the series opener and after thinking about it I've decided to let the whole realism thing slide. I was reminded of the Arthur C. Clark rule: Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. The "technology" to alter physics in this series definitely resembles magic to me!

That said, it wasn't really that interesting of a show. I even tried giving the show a second shot (it was repeated last night) since I was pretty distracted the first time I saw it, but it still didn't really work for me ... the problem not being the underlying premise of the blackout but with the actions & choices of the show's protagonists and the overall lack of development of the world and its characters.

For example, by how they presented things, we're basically told the good guys are good and the militia is bad without really establishing any of that. They're simply relying on old archetypes instead of actually telling (and showing!) us what's what (so far at least). However, it seems to me the "good guys" are only good because the producer said so, nothing in the show actually made me want to root for them at all.

So, thinking about it a bit, I thought why not reverse things ... maybe root for the militia. I think the following makes more sense than what the TV show has said so far .

In a shocking, premeditated act, a group of terrorists built and used a weapon that fundamentally altered the rules of physics which resulted in a worldwide blackout; electricity no longer worked. This horrible act resulted in the death of billions of men, women and children. Even worse, the men and women who were a part of this original cabal held on to the key to undoing this modern apocalypse and did nothing but use this for their own, personal means. For 15 years they've watched the world burn - all the while holding the key to its salvation in their very hands.

However one man, General Monroe, has found out about this conspiracy and will use the full force of his resources to find the key behind the great blackout, and return power to the world.

In the series opener, family man Captain Neville comes to what he assumes will be the conclusion of his tiring quest to find one of these original terrorists, Ben Mattheson, and hopes to bring him peacefully back to General Monroe. In an unexpected turn, his forces are attacked and his query is killed in the crossfire. Hoping the instigator of these troubles, the terrorist's son, will help him find one of the other conspirators - the boy's uncle - Neville takes the boy into lawful custody.

The search is now on for the key to restoring power and the hope for a return to the modern age for mankind.