Note I didn't have the time to watch the second part of last night's 2 hour premier, so any opinion of the season opener is based off of the first chapter. Since this blog was on a long hiatus I guess it's best to break things down into two parts anyway so I have more to write about.
First things first - I was underwhelmed. Where was the big bang, the "POW" from the season opener last year? The second part of last season was even more tremendous - all people with powers being hunted and everyone on the run from The Man. This season started off very slow. Normally a season opener will 1.) identify the villain and 2.) unveil their evil plan. Ok, so #1 was established - we think...All we know right now is the Carnies are probably villains. We're supposed to think that because of the dark, brooding evilish music in the background. And they killed Denko - which may or may not be a bad thing. Oh, and the main Carnie leader has evil hair and dark eye makeup, so that probably makes him a villain. But yeah, I don't think it's going too far to say the Carnies are the bad guys. Only thing is based off of the first part of the premier - we don't know what the hell they want. Sylar wanted your brains. Arthur Petrelli wanted to build a force of super humans (they never really fleshed that out though). The Gov'ment/Denko wanted to round up all people with abilities. Like I said, there was a lot of BANG! POW! to these openers. They're supposed to set the table for the rest of the season.
What do we know so far?
Ali Larter is immortal: That is, she will always be on this show. Her name may not be Nikki, it may not be Jessica, it may not even be Tracey - but she'll always be a character on this show in some way. She wasn't rather annoying to me in this opener, but alas, the season is young. I'll give her time.
Mohinder is gone: ...for now. Normally season openers will show what all the characters are up to, but Mohinder was nowhere to be found. There wasn't even the normal narrative voiceover that starts and ends the show. I think a different person does the narrating if you look at the credits - but it sounds like Mohinder so I always pretended it was him. Anyway - all gone. I'm sure the writers have him stashed away to bring out at some other opportune time (ie, when it's convenient to them after they've written themselves into a corner) but for now the show seems to be Mohinder-free.
The Hiro & Ando Comedy Group: Officially have crossed over into comic-relief. The show even *unnecessarily* has that whimsical music everytime they're on the screen. At one point when Ando was on the roof saving the cat and he fell I swear there was a Benny Hill sound effect. Almost like a Fozzie Bear "whocka whocka" or bicycle horn. What the hell is going on? And now Hiro was considering going back into the past so he wouldn't meet a fortune teller who set him on the path to wanting to be a hero? Ummm, don't you think that would mess up the storylines of the previous seasons??? Without Future Hiro to give Peter the "save the cheerleader, save the world" order then Sylar gets Claire's power in season 1 and chaos ensues. Although Sylar wound up getting Claire's power eventually, which kinda negated the tension from season 1. Granted, Hiro inadvertently has some as much harm as good with his time travelling - if he goes back in time to prevent all that who knows what winds up happening. Why did Ando not bring that up? Why did he not say "Hellooooo? If you go back in time you'll mess everything up by altering the timelines!". Also, we get it already - you don't want Hiro timetravelling all over the place so you devised this contrived scenario so that he has a built-in weakness/deterrent for using that power. Hiro's power is cool, but the character himself isn't. If this is the best you can muster then kill him off and let us remember him fondly. I sighed during the scene when Hiro/Ando were talking to the little girl. Cringe-worthy, I think some would describe it.
Carnies, small hands...smell like cabbage: From the first episode we don't know much other than the lead Carnie must really be a sweat talker as he apparently convinced that Tattoo Chick she needs to be topless when she uses her power.
Lead Carnie Guy: "Ok, I need you to take your top off so you can show me a face."
Tattoo Chick: "Is this really necessary, I can easily make the face appear on my shoulder or something."
Lead Carnie Guy: "DAMMIT JUST DO IT!"
Also not sure why he had to inject his cohort with ink to do that cool tattoo hand choking the throat trick - he's able to move dirt so he obviously has a similar telekinesis power as Sylar.
Parkman: The most powerful hero on the show (now that Sylar is out of commission for the time being) isn't interested in being a hero any longer. So let me get this straight - Angela Petrelli tells you the person you helped lock in someone else's body is now starting to manifest himself and you need to fix it before it's too late. You're reply is "it's not my problem anymore"? Granted towards the end of the show Sylar mentally threatens Parkman so I only have reason to believe he'll come around. But it's just weird someone who's now a parent wouldn't be totally gung-ho to make the world as safe a place as possible for his young. He's morphed into my defacto favorite character due to being so powerful, I hope the writers tread carefully here. I don't want another Hiro on my hands.
Peter: Completely useless once again. Just leave him like this, guys, he does more harm than good. He's more suited to be a super-paramedic than a super hero. He's perfect in his current role. Of course he's not going to go an entire season like this, but I'll enjoy this new Peter (insignificant, not crucial to the storyline) for as long as I can.
Claire: The writers listened to me. They put her back in school. It's where she belonged for the last season and a half. Glad they've seen it my way. I still don't know why they showed a scene of her playing Guitar Hero, unless that was a poor stab at product placement. Sure the song being played was ominous - "very supersticious...writing on the wall" - but unneeded. I think her geeky friend has a power, she commented something along the lines of "I'm learning this quickly every second", which I took to be a hint of some kind of ability. Her murdered roommate was going to really be a downer on the show if they gave her more airtime, I'm glad she was quickly disposed of. But anyway Claire belongs in school, back to being a special person who just wants to be normal. Crime-fighter Claire was a bomb. Not "the" bomb - "a" bomb. A failure.
I'm going to assume last night's premiere kinda needed to be watched in its two-hour entirety. The first part was just too "bleh", perhaps they saved the fireworks for the second part.
Showing posts with label Parkman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Parkman. Show all posts
September 22, 2009
April 21, 2009
I Am Sylar (and other tidbits)
Taking a brief hiatus from the blog I'm back. I'll admit it's much easier to have opinion and criticisms on the show when the writing sucks. With the improved writing and stellar storylines, well, I'd be a fool if I just turned this into a nitpicking blog. Applause for the writers for making me shut my mouth.
That having been said, let's review and compare notes and what's gone on since I last wrote:
Sylar: Let's just get right into it. I'm liking the character, but after his latest Norman Bates impression in the most recent "I Am Sylar" episode, ummm, whatever? What's this all about? The guy goes from wanting to redeem himself/becoming a good guy, reverting back to form, teaming up with Danko (and we all knew that was going to be a temporary partnership), now he's trying to "find himself". Jeez, pick a Sylar and run with it, guys. Sylar and Nathan are two of the most inconsistent characters in this series. Remember last volume when Nathan was all over the place? Same thing goes for Sylar. Every three episodes it's a new thing. Speaking of Nathan, what the hell was he thinking going to face Sylar by himself? The same Sylar who survived an exploding building at the end of the last volume.
Peter: Um, wow, what a fall from grace. The character goes from being the main guy on the show to getting like 10 minutes - if that - of screentime per episode. Wow. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. I think he's had his time in the sun, running around and playing God. Nice to be able to take a step back and say "the second volume of season three was when Peter Petrelli went back to being just one of the characters instead of the focal point of the show". There's nothing really to write about Peter. He's been such a small factor, his most notable (and I'll admit, probably coolest) contribution in the last few episodes was showing up in the elevator to whisk his mother away while agents were poised to apprehend her. This was the volume where characters like Peter and Hiro took a step back and characters like Matt Parkman and Nathan to an extent were allowed to sit at the big boys table. The show is much better for it, Parkman is a much better written character, more consistent and he was allowed to evolve slowly. The episode where Parkman's dad said to him (paraphrasing) "You don't even know what you're capable of, what you'll be able to do with your power. You can do so much more than read minds..." as his turning point. That's the seed and from there he's blossomed into someone exciting to watch and someone who can affect the storyline.
Future Timelines: I don't know, for a while it seems like several of the events in the future timelines were not going to come true. But lately it seems there's a possibility that Sylar will assume Nathan's identity and eventually become President like he did in the future timeline in season 1. Hiro/Ando keep bickering a bit too much for the Hiro vs. Ando future event to have been totally eradicated. Also Nathan probably dies at some point since Sylar has his identity. HRG was some type of underground rebel and with him being apprehended at the end of the latest episode I think his days as a Government Agent/consultant are over. I'm just saying, we've seen *just* enough these past few episodes that we can't completely write off some of the future storylines, and trust me, I was the first to proclaim "all those future storylines are done and probably moot".
Hiro: Ok, I'll admit, I don't know where the show is going with him. I thought he was back, as in back back, but I don't know what his latest problem is (bleeding from the nose, power not working). My early estimate is maybe Baby Matt Parkman's power is temporary, in the sense that after he turns something "on" it won't stay "on indefinitely if he's not around. Baby Matt Parkman and the Human Lie Detector Woman are tied for two of the most "convenient" characters on the show. They were created for a very specific purpose. Like, it's so convenient that Hiro bumps into the one character that can turn his power back on. See how everything fits into the box so neatly? That kind of writing makes you roll your eyes a bit, but I guess it was a necessary evil just to get Hiro his powers back (temporarily?).
Season Finale: If there is someone reading this who does not think this season finale isn't going to be top 2 in this series, let that person state their case. I think a major character is going to die - that's how big I think it's going to be. (And I think that character is going to be Nathan who winds up dying to save someone in the ultimate act of selflessness which would be a rarity for that character). I don't know where the series goes after this episode as far as future storylines go, that's how important this upcoming week is. Everything hinges on this one episode. In the preview for next week they showed us Nathan and Peter walking, with Nathan saying "I love you, Pete," and Peter replied "I love you, too", the same words they said to each other in the last episode of season 1 as Nathan flew nuclear Peter away. Based off of that one brief exchange I think that's meant to be probably the last words they say to each other. Much like how in Episode 3 of Star Wars when they showed Obi Wan and Anakin's last words to each other before Anakin officially became a Sith - it was a poignant moment. I don't know, if I'm a writer that to me is a perfect time for a "famous last words" moment, you know, a calm before the storm afterwhich nothing will ever be the same again.
You know the upcoming episode is gonna be big cuz I had one of my rare "oh snap, next week's show is gonna be big!" moments after the preview. Bet the house on it (if it hasn't been foreclosed yet).
That having been said, let's review and compare notes and what's gone on since I last wrote:
Sylar: Let's just get right into it. I'm liking the character, but after his latest Norman Bates impression in the most recent "I Am Sylar" episode, ummm, whatever? What's this all about? The guy goes from wanting to redeem himself/becoming a good guy, reverting back to form, teaming up with Danko (and we all knew that was going to be a temporary partnership), now he's trying to "find himself". Jeez, pick a Sylar and run with it, guys. Sylar and Nathan are two of the most inconsistent characters in this series. Remember last volume when Nathan was all over the place? Same thing goes for Sylar. Every three episodes it's a new thing. Speaking of Nathan, what the hell was he thinking going to face Sylar by himself? The same Sylar who survived an exploding building at the end of the last volume.
Peter: Um, wow, what a fall from grace. The character goes from being the main guy on the show to getting like 10 minutes - if that - of screentime per episode. Wow. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. I think he's had his time in the sun, running around and playing God. Nice to be able to take a step back and say "the second volume of season three was when Peter Petrelli went back to being just one of the characters instead of the focal point of the show". There's nothing really to write about Peter. He's been such a small factor, his most notable (and I'll admit, probably coolest) contribution in the last few episodes was showing up in the elevator to whisk his mother away while agents were poised to apprehend her. This was the volume where characters like Peter and Hiro took a step back and characters like Matt Parkman and Nathan to an extent were allowed to sit at the big boys table. The show is much better for it, Parkman is a much better written character, more consistent and he was allowed to evolve slowly. The episode where Parkman's dad said to him (paraphrasing) "You don't even know what you're capable of, what you'll be able to do with your power. You can do so much more than read minds..." as his turning point. That's the seed and from there he's blossomed into someone exciting to watch and someone who can affect the storyline.
Future Timelines: I don't know, for a while it seems like several of the events in the future timelines were not going to come true. But lately it seems there's a possibility that Sylar will assume Nathan's identity and eventually become President like he did in the future timeline in season 1. Hiro/Ando keep bickering a bit too much for the Hiro vs. Ando future event to have been totally eradicated. Also Nathan probably dies at some point since Sylar has his identity. HRG was some type of underground rebel and with him being apprehended at the end of the latest episode I think his days as a Government Agent/consultant are over. I'm just saying, we've seen *just* enough these past few episodes that we can't completely write off some of the future storylines, and trust me, I was the first to proclaim "all those future storylines are done and probably moot".
Hiro: Ok, I'll admit, I don't know where the show is going with him. I thought he was back, as in back back, but I don't know what his latest problem is (bleeding from the nose, power not working). My early estimate is maybe Baby Matt Parkman's power is temporary, in the sense that after he turns something "on" it won't stay "on indefinitely if he's not around. Baby Matt Parkman and the Human Lie Detector Woman are tied for two of the most "convenient" characters on the show. They were created for a very specific purpose. Like, it's so convenient that Hiro bumps into the one character that can turn his power back on. See how everything fits into the box so neatly? That kind of writing makes you roll your eyes a bit, but I guess it was a necessary evil just to get Hiro his powers back (temporarily?).
Season Finale: If there is someone reading this who does not think this season finale isn't going to be top 2 in this series, let that person state their case. I think a major character is going to die - that's how big I think it's going to be. (And I think that character is going to be Nathan who winds up dying to save someone in the ultimate act of selflessness which would be a rarity for that character). I don't know where the series goes after this episode as far as future storylines go, that's how important this upcoming week is. Everything hinges on this one episode. In the preview for next week they showed us Nathan and Peter walking, with Nathan saying "I love you, Pete," and Peter replied "I love you, too", the same words they said to each other in the last episode of season 1 as Nathan flew nuclear Peter away. Based off of that one brief exchange I think that's meant to be probably the last words they say to each other. Much like how in Episode 3 of Star Wars when they showed Obi Wan and Anakin's last words to each other before Anakin officially became a Sith - it was a poignant moment. I don't know, if I'm a writer that to me is a perfect time for a "famous last words" moment, you know, a calm before the storm afterwhich nothing will ever be the same again.
You know the upcoming episode is gonna be big cuz I had one of my rare "oh snap, next week's show is gonna be big!" moments after the preview. Bet the house on it (if it hasn't been foreclosed yet).
March 25, 2009
WOW...I'm Good At This Stuff
All right, before I get started let me just say - congrats to the writers. This past episode was the best episode in this series since season 1. We're talking top 3 Heroes episode of all time. I rank the Heroes episodes in the following:
#1: 2nd to last episode in season 1. (Where Future Sylar and Future Peter battle in...uh, the future. The first and probably best major hero vs. major villain action in the series.)
#2: The last episode of season 1.
#3: The latest episode of the current season. (I think it's Chapter 7 of the 2nd volume of season 3, if that makes any sense HAHAHA)
And congratulations to Matt Parkman. You're officially one of the coolest characters on the show. Three seasons and a half is a long time, many characters have come and gone but you stuck in the sidelines waiting and now your time in the sun has come. There was a little spark of what was to come this current volume, and your potential was showcased a few episodes ago when Peter and yourself walked in, literally, to a fortified government compound and you held them all hostage for a while. But now it's been hammered home in this latest episode. You are officially the 2nd most powerful character in the show (behind Sylar, of course). Bravo. And since we're throwing out congrats, I'm going to give some to Ali Larter in what was her best performance in this series ever. The coolest episode involving the Tracey/Jessica/Niki character. I wouldn't write her off as being dead just yet, as I'm sure everyone caught the fact that the block of ice where her face was happened to blink. The writers LOVE Ali Larter so I thoroughly believe she's not completely done on the show.
Unlike Daphne. Hey, someone needs to be the sacrificial lamb. Can't go all this time without one or two people dying.
Nothing was left on the table. This one had it ALL. I am thoroughly and completely back on the bus with this show. Season 2 was a hiccup. Hey, not even Babe Ruth hit a homerun every at-bat. It's back. I just had to get that out of the way.
Ok, I know a broken clock is right twice a day, but I hit a grand glam out of the park:
Rebel = Micah
Now, I'm sure as this chapter has gone on Micah being the Rebel became more and more apparent (at least to me), but I called this a while ago. Like, the 2nd episode or so of this chapter. 2+2=4. That's all there was to it. Kudos to the writers for not making a complete random, newly created character the Rebel, as it's been fun to play the "who is the Rebel?" game. As soon as HRG said to Tracey "lead us to the Rebel and you can walk away" I knew Micah was it. I knew it because it seemed so obvious at that point the writers wouldn't make it so easy for Tracey to walk away. She was gonna have to have some type of moral dilemna. And as soon as Tracey got the free money from the ATM I knew it as well (of course Micah was revealed like a minute after that). Free ATM money is an old Micah trick.
I also will credit myself with Hiro and the return of his power. My point in the "The Hiro Conundrum" entry was that he had spent a considerable amount of time being powerless and the writers would have to, sooner rather than later, do something about it. Well, Hiro's back. What I nailed was that when he got his power back there'd be limitations, like how they conveniently limited Peter's ability so that he can only have one power at a time. (And speaking of that, why is it most of all the cool scenes with someone flying has involved Peter? You'd think Nathan, the resident fly-guy, would have all the scenes but Peter has completely OWNED that ability. Just saying). So I called it correctly - Hiro got his ability back but he isn't the master of all time/space like he used to be. So he can't teleport. Fine. No more bouncing around back and forth and ruining the space/time continuum. This is how it should've been from the beginning but that's neither here nor there. Hiro and Ando are now major players again. Who knows exactly what Ando can do to Hiro now that he can supercharge Hiro's ability? I was thisclose to writing them off when they were found in Baby Matt Parkman's closet trying to pose as stuffed animals. I groaned. But they quickly came back from that silliness. Big things ahead for those two I'm thinking in terms of possibilities.
You want another prediction? Fine. Matt Parkman gets back with his wife Janice. Hiro and Ando find Parkman, reunite him with Baby Matt Parkman and then Matt Parkman goes on a mission to rescue Janice and in the process they wind up falling for each other again.
I'm going to give you another predicition. This has been nagging me for a bit so I'm going to announce it cuz I think I've seen enough clues to feel safe in making it public.
The Hunter has an ability.
There. I said it.
I liken this to a guy who acts like such a homophobe just to hide the fact that he is, in fact, a closeted homosexual. You know, the kind that is really into sports and makes public displays of how much they dig the ladies, just to put up a good enough screen to hide the truth. Why exactly is he so anti-powers? Being the uber-government military guy you'd think he'd want to capture and have tests done on these people to try to harness their abilities for super soldiers (like what Nathan originally attempted). Why does he want to basically just kill them? I'm going to give a run-down as to the little tidbits I've come across that made me this he has a power:
1. The aforementioned extreme aversion to people with powers just to serve as smoke and mirrors to avoid detection. Shit, even HRG doesn't have a fondness for people with powers but he knows they have their uses and he doesnt' have a problem using them as pawns to serve his needs. He doesn't go around trying to eliminate them no questions asked.
2. It was revealed that he was part of a failed military mission in which essentially everyone underneath him got killed and he was the only one to walk away. Same thing happened to Bruce Willis in the movie "Unbreakable", where he was the only survivor in a huge train crash and, oh yeah, he had powers in that movie, too.
3. The shock value factor. The only way you can surprise and shock viewers is if you have them looking one way and then pull the rug out from under their feet. The potential for a shocking revelation here is too great and tempting for the writers not to go that route.
4. In the previews they showed a clip of The Hunter talking with Sylar - I suppose they wind up forming an alliance of sorts - saying (paraphrasing here) "I guess the benefit to you is that you wind up being the only one with powers" to which Sylar replied (paraphrasing again) "something like that". It could be The Hunter wants people with powers to die just so he eliminates the competition in the same vein of Sylar. I'm sure the Hunter will attempt to turn on Sylar at the right moment, although that's stating the obvious.
There you have it, one immense episode. Welcome back.
#1: 2nd to last episode in season 1. (Where Future Sylar and Future Peter battle in...uh, the future. The first and probably best major hero vs. major villain action in the series.)
#2: The last episode of season 1.
#3: The latest episode of the current season. (I think it's Chapter 7 of the 2nd volume of season 3, if that makes any sense HAHAHA)
And congratulations to Matt Parkman. You're officially one of the coolest characters on the show. Three seasons and a half is a long time, many characters have come and gone but you stuck in the sidelines waiting and now your time in the sun has come. There was a little spark of what was to come this current volume, and your potential was showcased a few episodes ago when Peter and yourself walked in, literally, to a fortified government compound and you held them all hostage for a while. But now it's been hammered home in this latest episode. You are officially the 2nd most powerful character in the show (behind Sylar, of course). Bravo. And since we're throwing out congrats, I'm going to give some to Ali Larter in what was her best performance in this series ever. The coolest episode involving the Tracey/Jessica/Niki character. I wouldn't write her off as being dead just yet, as I'm sure everyone caught the fact that the block of ice where her face was happened to blink. The writers LOVE Ali Larter so I thoroughly believe she's not completely done on the show.
Unlike Daphne. Hey, someone needs to be the sacrificial lamb. Can't go all this time without one or two people dying.
Nothing was left on the table. This one had it ALL. I am thoroughly and completely back on the bus with this show. Season 2 was a hiccup. Hey, not even Babe Ruth hit a homerun every at-bat. It's back. I just had to get that out of the way.
Ok, I know a broken clock is right twice a day, but I hit a grand glam out of the park:
Rebel = Micah
Now, I'm sure as this chapter has gone on Micah being the Rebel became more and more apparent (at least to me), but I called this a while ago. Like, the 2nd episode or so of this chapter. 2+2=4. That's all there was to it. Kudos to the writers for not making a complete random, newly created character the Rebel, as it's been fun to play the "who is the Rebel?" game. As soon as HRG said to Tracey "lead us to the Rebel and you can walk away" I knew Micah was it. I knew it because it seemed so obvious at that point the writers wouldn't make it so easy for Tracey to walk away. She was gonna have to have some type of moral dilemna. And as soon as Tracey got the free money from the ATM I knew it as well (of course Micah was revealed like a minute after that). Free ATM money is an old Micah trick.
I also will credit myself with Hiro and the return of his power. My point in the "The Hiro Conundrum" entry was that he had spent a considerable amount of time being powerless and the writers would have to, sooner rather than later, do something about it. Well, Hiro's back. What I nailed was that when he got his power back there'd be limitations, like how they conveniently limited Peter's ability so that he can only have one power at a time. (And speaking of that, why is it most of all the cool scenes with someone flying has involved Peter? You'd think Nathan, the resident fly-guy, would have all the scenes but Peter has completely OWNED that ability. Just saying). So I called it correctly - Hiro got his ability back but he isn't the master of all time/space like he used to be. So he can't teleport. Fine. No more bouncing around back and forth and ruining the space/time continuum. This is how it should've been from the beginning but that's neither here nor there. Hiro and Ando are now major players again. Who knows exactly what Ando can do to Hiro now that he can supercharge Hiro's ability? I was thisclose to writing them off when they were found in Baby Matt Parkman's closet trying to pose as stuffed animals. I groaned. But they quickly came back from that silliness. Big things ahead for those two I'm thinking in terms of possibilities.
You want another prediction? Fine. Matt Parkman gets back with his wife Janice. Hiro and Ando find Parkman, reunite him with Baby Matt Parkman and then Matt Parkman goes on a mission to rescue Janice and in the process they wind up falling for each other again.
I'm going to give you another predicition. This has been nagging me for a bit so I'm going to announce it cuz I think I've seen enough clues to feel safe in making it public.
The Hunter has an ability.
There. I said it.
I liken this to a guy who acts like such a homophobe just to hide the fact that he is, in fact, a closeted homosexual. You know, the kind that is really into sports and makes public displays of how much they dig the ladies, just to put up a good enough screen to hide the truth. Why exactly is he so anti-powers? Being the uber-government military guy you'd think he'd want to capture and have tests done on these people to try to harness their abilities for super soldiers (like what Nathan originally attempted). Why does he want to basically just kill them? I'm going to give a run-down as to the little tidbits I've come across that made me this he has a power:
1. The aforementioned extreme aversion to people with powers just to serve as smoke and mirrors to avoid detection. Shit, even HRG doesn't have a fondness for people with powers but he knows they have their uses and he doesnt' have a problem using them as pawns to serve his needs. He doesn't go around trying to eliminate them no questions asked.
2. It was revealed that he was part of a failed military mission in which essentially everyone underneath him got killed and he was the only one to walk away. Same thing happened to Bruce Willis in the movie "Unbreakable", where he was the only survivor in a huge train crash and, oh yeah, he had powers in that movie, too.
3. The shock value factor. The only way you can surprise and shock viewers is if you have them looking one way and then pull the rug out from under their feet. The potential for a shocking revelation here is too great and tempting for the writers not to go that route.
4. In the previews they showed a clip of The Hunter talking with Sylar - I suppose they wind up forming an alliance of sorts - saying (paraphrasing here) "I guess the benefit to you is that you wind up being the only one with powers" to which Sylar replied (paraphrasing again) "something like that". It could be The Hunter wants people with powers to die just so he eliminates the competition in the same vein of Sylar. I'm sure the Hunter will attempt to turn on Sylar at the right moment, although that's stating the obvious.
There you have it, one immense episode. Welcome back.
November 5, 2008
Episode 7
Let me ask you something.
So, you're a hero - or at least someone who has powers and abilities. You exist in a world where other people have powers. People who can fly or absorb powers of others or create illusions are not shocking to you.
So when you walk into the offices of a mysterious, shadowy company and you see what appears to be your father - even though he's been dead for a bit - standing in a room full of villains why is your first reaction to embrace this individual?
Let me introduce you to Peter Petrelli, folks.
Rather than saying "hold up - let me digest all this for a second, maybe read this guy's mind to see if it truly is my dad" he walks over with open arms and gets his powers stolen in the process. The only thing I find more laughable than that is him being powerless in his holding cell trying to attack his dad and other captors with a tray.
What else did episode 7 tell us?
1. Suresh is a villain now. He's officially crossed over into "Evil Scientist" territory. I'm wondering why it took a show that's essentially a live-action comic book so long to have the stereotypical villainous scientist/doctor. At least Suresh now has a decent reason to be on the show other than to antagonize me with his long-time uselessness.
2. C'est la vie, Maya. Or should that be "Adios, Maya"? The last link to all that made season 2 such a crappy season has now left the building. She never caught on with the audience (despite being so caliente) and has set the record for most consecutive episodes with a crying scene. Seriously, I think every episode she appeared involved her crying at some point.
3. The Elle/Claire tag-team duo. It makes so much sense. With Elle walking through the doors of Pinehurst to have her powers removed one doesn't know how long this duo is going to last but it worked on a lot of levels. Which brings me to this - what's up with all these people looking to remove their powers? First Maya, now Elle (and it also seemed Claire was headed down that path for a bit). I guess we're supposed to contrast Sylar's need to feel special and superior with Claire's need to be normal. I'm not certain people would actually want to have a power removed (unless you're that guy from the Skittle s commercial who turned everything he touches into Skittles). But Elle/Claire has a lot of potential as a crime fighting unit - Claire wants to fight villains but lacks the power to take them down and Elle has a very nifty ability to stop people in their tracks. Would be a shame if they dismantled that duo before exploring the possibilies of a tag-team first.
4. There was an unnecessary Hiro sighting. Ok, we understand he's a fan fave, but his 1.5 minute scene didn't accomplish anything other than to feed the audience's Hiro-addiction. Couldn't they have just saved that scene for the next episode where they could've had a better flow to the storyline? It just felt so obligatory, like "oh snap, we almost forgot to put Hiro in this episode!". It's ok, writers, we know Hiro isn't going anywhere, you can leave him out in an episode and we won't panic.
5. HRG/Noah. You feel that? Yes, slowly but surely you're becoming a background character. What a shame. As Claire breaks further away from him his whole "whatever it takes to keep my family safe" approach becomes more and more pointless. What made this character resonate so well was his motivation to protect his family and to shelter his Claire-bear from the prodding scientists of The Company. Writers need to find another role or purpose for this great character. He consistently was one of the bright spots on the show. You never knew if he was just doing what was best for his family or if he was still an operative of The Company and just playing the role. He always had that sly grin that could've gone either way.
6. Sylar delivers, yet again. As soon as Peter didn't die from the fall as he was launched through the window of Pinehurst I knew Sylar had a hand in it. Excellent turn of events. Is there anyone who wants to argue this show isn't focused on Sylar? Seasons 1 and 2 were all Peter, but season 3 has been the breakout of Sylar. I applaud the writers for this decision.
7. Finally, marvelous plot development in the Parkman/Speedster storyline. Her conversation with Pinehurst cast serious doubts as to whether she was still aligned with them or with Parkman. If I had to bet on this I would say she's playing Pinehurst, afterall if she was truly going to doublecross Parkman he could've read her mind (unless that's a serious gaffe on the part of the writers). You can't make it that Parkman needs to do his "Parkman reading your mind" face every time he uses his power, it should be assumed that this character continuously scans the minds of people he speaks with, thus making it hard to dupe him.
With the election of the president unfortunately getting in the way of our normal Heroes festivities we have to endure a whole week without an episode, thus spend a whole week with me talking about how I wish when Elle's electricity was on the brink of bringing the plane down and Claire decided to absorb Elle's electrical current she had proposed they transferred the electricity by touching lips rather than taking her hand.
So, you're a hero - or at least someone who has powers and abilities. You exist in a world where other people have powers. People who can fly or absorb powers of others or create illusions are not shocking to you.
So when you walk into the offices of a mysterious, shadowy company and you see what appears to be your father - even though he's been dead for a bit - standing in a room full of villains why is your first reaction to embrace this individual?
Let me introduce you to Peter Petrelli, folks.
Rather than saying "hold up - let me digest all this for a second, maybe read this guy's mind to see if it truly is my dad" he walks over with open arms and gets his powers stolen in the process. The only thing I find more laughable than that is him being powerless in his holding cell trying to attack his dad and other captors with a tray.
What else did episode 7 tell us?
1. Suresh is a villain now. He's officially crossed over into "Evil Scientist" territory. I'm wondering why it took a show that's essentially a live-action comic book so long to have the stereotypical villainous scientist/doctor. At least Suresh now has a decent reason to be on the show other than to antagonize me with his long-time uselessness.
2. C'est la vie, Maya. Or should that be "Adios, Maya"? The last link to all that made season 2 such a crappy season has now left the building. She never caught on with the audience (despite being so caliente) and has set the record for most consecutive episodes with a crying scene. Seriously, I think every episode she appeared involved her crying at some point.
3. The Elle/Claire tag-team duo. It makes so much sense. With Elle walking through the doors of Pinehurst to have her powers removed one doesn't know how long this duo is going to last but it worked on a lot of levels. Which brings me to this - what's up with all these people looking to remove their powers? First Maya, now Elle (and it also seemed Claire was headed down that path for a bit). I guess we're supposed to contrast Sylar's need to feel special and superior with Claire's need to be normal. I'm not certain people would actually want to have a power removed (unless you're that guy from the Skittle s commercial who turned everything he touches into Skittles). But Elle/Claire has a lot of potential as a crime fighting unit - Claire wants to fight villains but lacks the power to take them down and Elle has a very nifty ability to stop people in their tracks. Would be a shame if they dismantled that duo before exploring the possibilies of a tag-team first.
4. There was an unnecessary Hiro sighting. Ok, we understand he's a fan fave, but his 1.5 minute scene didn't accomplish anything other than to feed the audience's Hiro-addiction. Couldn't they have just saved that scene for the next episode where they could've had a better flow to the storyline? It just felt so obligatory, like "oh snap, we almost forgot to put Hiro in this episode!". It's ok, writers, we know Hiro isn't going anywhere, you can leave him out in an episode and we won't panic.
5. HRG/Noah. You feel that? Yes, slowly but surely you're becoming a background character. What a shame. As Claire breaks further away from him his whole "whatever it takes to keep my family safe" approach becomes more and more pointless. What made this character resonate so well was his motivation to protect his family and to shelter his Claire-bear from the prodding scientists of The Company. Writers need to find another role or purpose for this great character. He consistently was one of the bright spots on the show. You never knew if he was just doing what was best for his family or if he was still an operative of The Company and just playing the role. He always had that sly grin that could've gone either way.
6. Sylar delivers, yet again. As soon as Peter didn't die from the fall as he was launched through the window of Pinehurst I knew Sylar had a hand in it. Excellent turn of events. Is there anyone who wants to argue this show isn't focused on Sylar? Seasons 1 and 2 were all Peter, but season 3 has been the breakout of Sylar. I applaud the writers for this decision.
7. Finally, marvelous plot development in the Parkman/Speedster storyline. Her conversation with Pinehurst cast serious doubts as to whether she was still aligned with them or with Parkman. If I had to bet on this I would say she's playing Pinehurst, afterall if she was truly going to doublecross Parkman he could've read her mind (unless that's a serious gaffe on the part of the writers). You can't make it that Parkman needs to do his "Parkman reading your mind" face every time he uses his power, it should be assumed that this character continuously scans the minds of people he speaks with, thus making it hard to dupe him.
With the election of the president unfortunately getting in the way of our normal Heroes festivities we have to endure a whole week without an episode, thus spend a whole week with me talking about how I wish when Elle's electricity was on the brink of bringing the plane down and Claire decided to absorb Elle's electrical current she had proposed they transferred the electricity by touching lips rather than taking her hand.
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