There were plenty of familial ties to go around in "Ties That Bind," along with some seriously head-scratching developments.

The character connections remain the strongest aspect Revolution has going for it, and it’s great to see some of the other major families, aside from the Mathesons, step into the spotlight.

Tom and Julia’s actions to get Jason out from Monroe’s clutches and keep him from being sent on a suicide mission to California were downright cunning. Their loyalties weren’t in line with the Republic, but with their family instead; because those loyalties are bound to blood, they are easily malleable.

Julia’s interests, meanwhile, are focused on making sure Tom can step up and lead. She has no investment in the republic. It’s a stark contrast to Tom, as he knows exactly what happens when something negative is said about the republic: death or disenfranchisement.

Nora’s sister, Mia (played by The Nine Lives of Chloe King and Army Wives’ Alyssa Diaz), looks at family in a completely different way: as the only ties that matter. Mia can’t see the forest for the trees; she’s so blindly loyal to only blood that she can’t see the bigger picture of Nora finding a surrogate family with Miles, Charlie and Aaron. 

Instead, Mia is willing to sacrifice all of them to save one, and she could not understand why Nora became so mad at her for that decision. Mia’s childhood is full of death and loss, but instead of honoring her sister’s wishes, she blindly made a deal with the republic, handing mass murder to one man in pendant form.

The confusing aspect came in Grace form. I can’t tell if she’s a voluntary prisoner for Flynn or not. But once again technology questions cropped up because of her. Somehow, Flynn is able to track where the pendants are, but his goals are still shrouded in mystery. We don’t know if he’s part of the resistance and wants to build the U.S. again, or if he just wants to make sure the pendants stay out of crazy hands.

And that’s not even acknowledging wherever they are.

Other Thoughts

• Pretty crafty: get a pendant, build a generator. I wonder if power can travel outside the radius of the pendant (if it has one at all).
• I really want to see the California side of things.
• There's only two episode left until Revolution heads off into hibernation for four months. What are you hoping to see in these final two episodes?