After the conclusion of last week’s episode, Hiro is more certain than ever that it’s his destiny to become a superhero. Using his powers and the comic book he brought back from the future, he convinces his friend Ando of this and the intrepid pair head to the US. Hiro still provides most of the laughs, but after the apocalyptic climax of the previous episode there’s also a desperate urgency about him. After all, he only has five weeks to save New York.
This week Peter Petrelli also provides a lighter moment as his attempts to fly result in not only a bruised body, but a bruised ego as well. On a more serious note, there’s a rift between him and his brother after Nathan informs the press that Peter’s jump off the building was a suicide attempt brought on by depression. All of this improves Peter’s character to no end. He’s getting much more interesting, and even punches Nathan out. I didn’t think he had it in him. He also hooks up with Simone after she breaks up with junkie precog artist Isaac when he refuses to get treatment for his addiction.
Matt Parkman, the telepathic cop we were introduced to last week, not only convinces the FBI agent who arrested him that he’s not Sylar but also gets the chance to help catch the killer. He even gets to save the little girl from last week from another attack by Sylar, pumping several bullets into the super-powered serial killer. But it seems that Sylar’s as invulnerable as Claire and manages to escape. Matt’s home life is less than perfect however, one of the downsides of being able to know what your wife is thinking. He finishes the episode face down in a bar after an encounter with a man whose thoughts he can’t hear. Matt’s story is interesting enough, but far from the ace in the Heroes deck.
The mystery surrounding single mother Niki deepens. She believes the bodies she found in an unmarked grave in the desert to be victims of her estranged escaped convict husband, although after the events of the previous episodes this viewer is pretty sure she should probably look in the mirror for the culprit. She’s picked up by a cop working for Mr. Linderman, who is presumably the mob boss she owes money to. I hope for Linderman’s sake he doesn’t piss her off. There’s an unpleasantness to Niki’s story that keeps it consistently gripping, it’s got a certain film noir feel to it and she’s definitely a femme fatale.
Suresh discovers his father was connected to Sylar, who has an apartment in the same building. He decides to pay Mr. Sylar a visit, but on finding no one home breaks in. Inside, he finds a map much like the one his father has, showing the location of those with enhanced abilities. The difference between this map and his father’s is that this map has a lot more people on it and it’s clear they’re being hunted down. Suresh leaves to summon the police only to find the room stripped bare on his return, yet more evidence of Sylar’s talents. Can he move through time like Hiro? The closer Suresh gets to the truth the more compelling his storyline becomes.
As was true last week, Isaac Mendez has too little to do and his role requires the most development from the writers. Still you can see their problem – what do you do with a character whose only power is to paint the future? At this moment it seems like he’s only there to further the plot, a human MacGuffin if you will.
Claire, the spunky indestructible teenager, is giving Hiro a run for his money as my favorite character. This week she has to deal with the geek who videotaped her heroic rescue at the train crash site. The tape has gone missing and he’s a little concerned, as well he should be, as it’s in the hands of Claire’s creepy stepdad. Then there’s the attempted rape by the school quarterback which leads to this week’s closing scene, which manages to top the one from last week. It was a case of jaw meet floor as the closing credits started.
The clever way the characters interlink must make the show a challenge to write, but it’s one the writers have risen to with gusto. Each week they manage to top the week before, telling a story that seems to have been carefully planned and yet keeps us guessing where it will go next.
This episode was written by Jeph Loeb whose name should be familiar not just to TV viewers, but also to comic book readers. On TV he’s been one of the writers and key creative forces on Smallville, and is also a supervising producer on Lost. In the comic world he’s most famous for his work with artist Tim Sale on titles like Batman: The Long Halloween and Daredevil: Yellow. As he knows TV and superheroes inside-out it pretty much makes him a perfect choice to work on Heroes.
This isn’t just “must watch TV” it’s “must watch NOW TV.” I haven’t felt this urgency to watch the next episode since the cliff-hanger Doctor Who stories of my childhood, and that was back in the days before the VCR, when, if you missed it, that was it. Roll on next week.
