( CNN ) -- Most of us have n't partied with the bunnies at `` The Playboy Club , '' or fought crime like `` Charlie 's Angels . '' And with the NBC and ABC programs canceled after just a few episodes , we 'll never have the chance . But in the time it took for one alphabet network drama to get the axe , another garnered 8 million viewers and a full season pickup . After all , `` Revenge '' is a language we all understand . The modern day `` Count of Monte Cristo '' reels audiences in with characters viewers seem to love -- and love to hate . Not to mention plot twists to die for . Still , the primetime soap does n't venture into campy territory . Not even while playing with traded identities and crimes of passion . The concept is simple : Amanda Clarke , disguised as Emily Thorne , returns to the Hamptons to take revenge on the people who destroyed her family when she was a little girl . And `` Revenge '' could n't have come at a better time as far as its network is concerned . With `` Desperate Housewives ' '' eighth and final season underway , ABC was fortunate to find a new female-driven drama that so far appears to resonate with viewers . `` Revenge '' even has its own insightful narrator . ( Thank you , Mary Alice Young . You can go now . ) `` For the truly wronged , real satisfaction can only be found in one of two places : Absolute forgiveness or mortal vindication , '' narrator and protagonist Emily Thorne , played by former `` Brothers and Sisters ' '' cast member Emily VanCamp , coos at the beginning of the pilot . Before even making the acquaintance of her victims , she 's got the audience on her side . That 's not to say everyone is a fan of her narration . With `` Desperate Housewives '' and `` Grey 's Anatomy '' in mind , one HitFix reviewer wrote , `` ABC has an in-house style that says that having your female lead narrate nothingness at the start of every episode is a worthy strategy . '' But whether you 're a fan of Thorne 's philosophical musings or not , the numbers do n't lie . About 7.3 million viewers tuned in to `` Revenge '' on Thanksgiving Eve -- better known as the biggest bar night of the year . Now nine episodes in , the series began in a predictable fashion -- with Emily targeting and conquering one victim every week . Each episode even ended with Emily marking a red X over the victim of the hour in a posed photograph of the Hamptons royalty . `` Revenge '' has since taken a more complex turn , with the introduction of new characters , telling flashbacks and plans gone awry -- a change welcomed by some critics . `` The show has wisely realized that it needs to mix it up when it comes to 'revenging , ' and it 's also fruitful to have plans backfire and have unexpected complications emerge , '' AOL TV critic Maureen Ryan wrote in her column , `` Stay Tuned . '' One complication being antagonist Victoria Grayson , played brilliantly by Madeleine Stowe . Let 's just say Emily is n't the only character seeking revenge . The perfect present day villain , Victoria is out to get her son 's new love interest , her daughter 's inept boy toy , her unfaithful husband and the frenemy who led him astray . `` I can believe that this person would be doing these things , '' Stowe told the Sioux City Journal . `` It 's easy for me to slide into her . '' As if Stowe and VanCamp were n't enough of a sell , the show 's portrayal of the Hamptons royalty might be . `` We are dealing at a particular time right now in American history where I think the average American is going to want to see the takedown of the rich , '' Stowe said . Nothing like a show about rich people who hate their lives to keep one entertained during a recession .
Modern day `` Count of Monte Cristo '' reels audiences in with love/hate characters . Amanda Clarke , disguised as Emily Thorne , returns to the Hamptons to take revenge . ABC was lucky to find a new female-driven drama that resonates with viewers .