Last week’s “Heroes” ended with HRG taking a swig of his drink and, at least to the untrained eye (i.e., mine), his sudden wooziness made it appear that he’d been slipped a fast-acting mickey. Maybe he had been drugged…or, then again, maybe he was under the influence of Matt Parkman’s heavy-duty mental powers. It was hard to tell at the time. Whichever the case, the result was the same: the guy went down, and he went down hard. The next thing you know, he’s being dragged out by Parkman, Mohinder, and Peter Petrelli.
What we learn at the beginning of this week’s episode, however, is how this plan came into being. Unsurprisingly, it’s Matt who’s the mastermind of the goings-on…and, of course, I say “unsurprisingly” because he’s clearly royally pissed off about Daphne being taken down a few episodes ago. I had to laugh at how typically wishy-washy Pete was, though. First, he’s wondering about the issue of drugging him, asking Matt uncertainly, “Can’t you just read his mind and get what we need that way?” But ten seconds later, when Mohinder chimes in about his own issues with the kidnapping aspects, Pete confidently counters, “I don’t like it, either, but this way it gives us answers.” Damn, Petrelli, I’ve heard of getting with the plan, but that’s gotta be some kind of record!
In short, these three stooges (Mohinder, Larry, and Curly?) spiked HRG’s Scotch with a pharmaceutical agent that would enable Parkman’s abilities to penetrate all of Noah’s psychological training and get the answers they want about what’s going on with Nathan’s big governmental crackdown on America’s heroes.
What do they discover? Only the best chapter of the “Fugitives” saga to date…and, I feel comfortable arguing, the most impressive episode we’ve gotten in Season 3, period.
First stop: five weeks ago, with Noah sitting on a park bench with Mama Petrelli. He’s continuing to fight the good fight, trying to pursue the nation’s super-powered troublemakers, but she’s trying to buy him off with a pension, a severance package, and a sweet-looking watch. Clearly, we don’t believe a word Mama’s saying, since she’s never given us any reason to do so, and we want to root for HRG, because despite his occasionally wicked ways, we know without hesitation that he loves his wife, his son, and his Claire Bear.
At the same time, though, we also know he’s right: he’s never known any other life but this one, so what the hell else is he going to do? Because, y’know, somehow, I don’t think that gig at the copy shop is an option any more…
Fast-forward a week to Nathan paying a visit to HRG, laying out his plan to round up all the usual suspects, as it were, and assuring him that his beloved Claire Bear could be an exception to the rule if he just sits down and listens to what he’s got up his sleeve. (Yes, as ever, Claire’s adopted father is once again way more concerned about her well-being than her biological father.) HRG is understandably skeptical about Nathan’s motives, which clearly do not mirror his own. “I joined the Company for a reason,” he reminds the Senator. “That reason doesn’t disappear just because your mother turns off the lights.”
Another week passes. HRG meets Zeijko and quickly discovers that he’s not nearly as important to this operation as he thought he was. We catch up to the beginning of Season 3, seeing HRG meet up with Mohinder…and, whoops, this is the first Parkman’s heard about this! All of these flashbacks were being interspersed with the Three Stooges battling amongst themselves, with Mohinder and Peter questioning the morality of their actions, the former pointedly calling out Matt for doing the whole thing as a way to avenge Daphne’s death. (Well, duh.) It isn’t until this revelation, however, that things escalate to physical violence…and when they do, HRG sees his opportunity to make a run for it, and you can bet that he takes it. His freedom is short-lived, however, when the hood of his vehicle of choice serves as Pete’s landing bad.
Where’s Pete been? Well, in addition to the Stooges’ sidebars, we were also seeing Zeijko and Nathan sniping back and forth, and Zeijko becomes positively giddy when he busts Peter using some of the intel from HRG’s brain to break into his personal stash. Surely it would’ve occurred to anyone…yes, even Peter…that a guy who’s worked for the company for 30 years would have his pad tricked out with video surveillance, but at least he’s prepared for the arrival of Zeijko’s men, blowing past them at Mach 5. But…wait, is he working with Nathan? Because, otherwise, how would he have had the power of flight?
No time to worry about that now. Parkman’s really fucked pissed at this point, so it’s back into HRG’s brain he goes. Now we’re only a week in the past, witnessing a meeting between HRG and Zeijko that is, hand on heart, one of the best moments in recent “Heroes” history. You don’t get much more intense than these two guys having a back-and-forth…except possibly a stand-off between Peter and Zeijko. I mean, you knew damned well that Zeijko won’t hesitate for a second to kill Peter, but the reverse wasn’t nearly as certain, so when Peter did shoot, I was actually kinda surprised. From there, HRG assures Parkman that Daphne isn’t dead after all, proving it by allowing him into his head one more time, and Mohinder proceeds to prove his allegiance to the cause by holding off the troops at the expense of his freedom. But just as they’ve saved HRG and captured Parkman, there’s a “whoosh,” and Parkman is – look! – up in the sky. Thanks, Pete!
And so we close by returning to Building 26 once more. Mohinder’s strapped down and getting the guilt trip from Nathan, and HRG and Zeijko are strolling outside and having a heart-to-heart talk. I’m sure we all figured that HRG wasn’t being honest with Zeijko, but I didn’t expect the full-circle ending of having him sitting on the park bench with Mama. (“You know me: I’ve always been comfortable with ‘morally grey,'” says HRG. Nice.) I’m not sure how thrilled I am about Parkman’s predictions at the end…must every season of “Heroes” lead up to an apocalypse?…but if the only complaint I have about the episode is in its final 30 seconds, then it’s fair to say that I have very little to complain about, indeed.
