The CW will soon be saying goodbye to the popular TV series The Vampire Diaries – which will draw to a close after its forthcoming eighth season – but the gap in its schedule will soon be filled. The network has snapped up a new show from three of the executive producers of the departing drama, and audiences will soon be able to cast their eyes over Rise.
Written by Chad Fiveash and James Stoteraux, who will also executive produce with Julie Plec, the drama sees martial law declared in the wake of a devastating terrorist attack. As the population struggles to adjust and come to terms with their new reality, a group of citizens begin to uncover evidence of a coup. It seems that elements within the country have orchestrated events to enable a new regime to sweep into power, and it is left to these citizens to rise up against them in rebellion.
This premise seems to be a new take on the ‘post-apocalyptic/dystopian-future’ dramas, of which there was a rash not so long ago. Taking the form of alien invasion, zombie apocalypse, viral outbreak, or mass vanishings – this trope has been flogged to within an inch of its life. Rise would seem to be set at the intersection of those types of drama and series such as Homeland, however, which makes it slightly more interesting.
In the current political climate, where our airwaves are filled with fear-mongering, suspicion, and an almost ghoulish anticipation of the next terrible event or betrayal, The CW might well be onto a ratings winner with Rise.
