#The Juicy Relationships of ‘The Republic of Sarah’ Will Keep You Watching

The sleepy New England town of Greylock, awash in autumn rain and color, wants to become its own country to stop a soul-sucking mining corporation from bulldozing it. The premise for this new underdog drama admittedly requires some suspension of disbelief. But give it an hour, and you’ll see the show’s real message shines through: Individual people do matter, and those in power should fight for them.

Rebellious local history teacher Sarah Cooper (Stella Baker, above), who is as popular in quirky Greylock as Lorelai Gilmore is in Stars Hollow, leads the charge against Lydon Industries’ efforts. While her uphill battle fuels the premiere, the rest of the series takes place after she’s successful, as Sarah learns what it takes to actually lead a new nation. Her first challenge: how to keep the town’s lights on when the ticked-off governor of New Hampshire decides to play hardball. And Canadians? Not as nice as you think!

Luckily, Sarah has some devoted friends to help her, including a will-they-or-won’t-they love interest, diner manager Grover (Ian Duff). Even juicier is Sarah’s relationship with her estranged brother, Danny (Luke Mitchell), who returns to Greylock as a Lydon representative and confronts their former senator mother’s (Megan Follows) history of alcoholism and abuse. Revolution means nothing if you don’t have people to share it with.

The Republic of Sarah, Series Premiere, Monday, June 14, 9/8c, The CW