Revolution: Rachel Matheson's Journey

She's the scariest person you know.

            I'll say this: I liked Rachel somewhat better in season 2. A lot more than when she was a psychopathic bitch who went around hitting people with things. She's had a very long, hard journey; facing more trials than we will probably face in our entire lives. But I have to say, for all of Rachel's insanity, she's one tough bitch. I think of Charlie as a very watered down version of her; they have that Matheson women strength and stubbornness that will get them through anything.

Break ups are hard, ho.

        Rachel was a wild child who always went after the wrong kind of guy. She wore black nail polish and a bad attitude. She dated drug dealers, drummers, and one guy who carried around throwing stars like a ninja. And even when she met Ben, a stable guy who could give her stable life, Rachel's wild child wasn't about to disappear without a fight or an affair with the bad boy older brother. Rachel was ho. I have to say that. She cheated on Ben but at least she didn't go all stalker on Miles or try to make Ben miserable. We keep forgetting that Rachel was quite the genius and as such, she was prone to some erratic behavior (as geniuses often have). But Rachel settled into her role as a wife and mother. She began to focus more on her family. Rachel was a fighter. Always fighting for her kids especially Danny. Because Danny was the child who always needed Rachel's attention I suppose you can say a deep bond developed for Rachel. Yes Rachel loves Charlie but her daughter didn't really need her. Then the Blackout happened. Rachel spiraled but let loose that "protect your family" instinct that has carried her for the past 2 seasons.

Why weren't you watching her?!

              Rachel was the sort of person who felt with her entire soul. After a few months, Rachel realized that she and Ben had so much blood on their hands and broke down. Rachel became conscious of the fact that all the horrible things she did were for her kids which led to the death millions of other children. I think it was Ben who reinforced the idea that they have to protect their family, their kids above all else. So Rachel abandons her children when she heard that Miles, the Butcher of Baltimore, was looking for her and Ben so he could get the power back on and use weapons to kill more people. Rachel believes she's being selfless. Not just for her kids but for everyone else who survived the Blackout. She told Miles that she didn't know how to turn the power back on but we know that was a lie. Ben could have gone in Rachel's place but I think Rachel knew that Ben wasn't strong enough. Ben was a good man but he couldn't bring himself to kill a man who was stealing their food. Rachel could though. So she went off to become a sacrificial lamb.

She's been in worse places.

          Rachel wasn't my favorite person but I couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her. Miles and Bass tortured her to get information about the power but Rachel stood strong. Bass even subjected Rachel to not only physical abuse but possibly sexual abuse by his deranged officer Sergeant Strausser. Only when Monroe threatened Danny did Rachel cave. I could see while Rachel was Monroe's prisoner that she sometimes tried to reason with him. They used to be friends but also I think she felt since they had a one night stand that Bass would be more inclined to do as she asked. Nope. Bass preferred the dominant position. So Rachel often had to go to the extremes to survive Monroe even so far as stabbing an old colleague in the chest with a screw driver. Of course Rachel felt really bad about that because they were once friends but she made excuses. On a side note you can say she is a hypocrite about making excuses. She said Bass never took responsibility, but you can make the argument that Rachel never took responsibility for her actions either until much later. 

Wow what a martyr.

            Then Rachel lost her son, which sent her into a spiral of anger and suicidal/homicidal rage. She let her thirst for revenge blind her from all reason and rationality. This blindness caused her to neglect her one living child making Rachel once again abandon her daughter for the second time with the express intent on never coming back. Then she refused to save a man's son and even threatened to leave Aaron behind. Rachel was a terrible friend and mother through out season 1 and that lead to more people dying. Nora was a casualty and then Philadelphia and Atlanta were bombed because she let Randall into the Tower. If she hadn't made her way to Colorado then Randall would probably never have gotten inside and more people would have been alive.

She did what Ben couldn't do.

           After the bombings, Rachel suffered a psychotic break and her relationship with Charlie degraded even further. Charlie went off on her own while Rachel struggled her way back to sanity. But during those excruciating months, Rachel began to examine her mistakes more introspectively, which caused her to think less of herself for a change. Rachel knew she failed Charlie but never sought to repair the damage before. And with Aaron, Rachel became a much better friend, more inclined to worry about him and care for him as he had for her during their journey to Colorado. Her relationship with Miles also improved. It really shows the strength of Rachel's love for him to forgive Miles all of the pain he had caused her in the years after the Blackout. But then Monroe came into town and who led him there? None other but Charlie. Rachel was ready to blow Monroe away but Charlie maintained that it was the right thing to do because they needed his help. 

"I always dreamed of cooking with my daughter."

        Needless to say, Rachel once again allowed her hatred and bitterness towards Monroe to put a strain on her relationship with her daughter. We know what Monroe had done but when Miles and Charlie were going to spring Bass from jail, Rachel had tipped off the Patriots and so they moved him to a bank. This hatred of Monroe even out a strain on her romance with Miles. But Charlie had enough. She called Rachel out saying that Rachel doesn't listen because she thinks she's smarter than everyone else and always right, "even when you're dead wrong." For once Charlie got through to her mother. Rachel realized that Charlie was right. I think that somehow hit home to Rachel that she needs to stop believing that she's always right. So Rachel humbled herself and saved Monroe's life because Charlie asked her to. This repaired some of the damage to her relationship with Charlie. 

No woman left behind

        But Rachel's relationship with her father hit a wall. Rachel gets her stubbornness from her father, Dr. Gene Porter. I guess stubbornness runs in the family with Charlie the most recent carrier. Rachel was very angry that her father was spying on them for the Patriots even though he had little choice. So we kind of hate Rachel again for almost killing her own father, but also glad that she hesitated long enough for Miles to stop her. Gene reminded Rachel: you never did a bad thing for a good reason. Once again Rachel is proven a hypocrite. She does that a lot. Still, Rachel is learning from her past mistakes and trying to be better even if it's not the smart move. Then Rachel sort of combats Monroe over Miles's soul. I don't know about you but I kind of agreed with Bass that Rachel was as much a psycho as him but I didn't agree about his other thoughts about her, that she was ruining Miles. I do hate Rachel for sleeping with Bass but that was the old vindictive Rachel. 

"You are a hypocritical bitch!"
"You're an insecure child!"
Both of you are nuts!

         I expected Rachel to keep ragging on Charlie for stupid reasons like Charlie hooking up with Connor, Monroe's son, but she didn't. Charlie saw her mom as a scary person but Rachel explained that she was fighting for her daughter so Charlie didn't become her mother. That was nice and honest of Rachel for a change. She began to think more about what Charlie needed. She even told Charlie after she shot Jason, "When you're ready to talk I'm ready to listen." Rachel knew her daughter well enough that she was a grown woman who needed her own space and started treating her as such instead of as a child like she was before (causing the tension). 

Why didn't they keep this scene?

        Towards the end, Rachel proved herself a person capable of change. She may never forgive Monroe but she let go enough of her anger to thank him for helping them and admit that she wasn't always right. We kind of rooted for Rachel when she was taking on the Nano Priscilla. She gave her one good slap across the face. Rachel had faced worse odds and worse foes before. She asked Aaron, "Why do you think I slapped her?" Aaron said bluntly, "Because you're Rachel." Exactly. Rachel is... Rachel. There's no one thing you can describe her as; she's a walking contradiction. She's done horrible things but she's not an entirely evil person. Her journey was a long and hard one but Rachel is a survivor and she'll always have the strength to live for her family and those she cares about.