Maybe it’s just because I’ve had a lot going on in my life for the past month or so, but it really seems like forever since the last new episode of “Heroes” aired; I almost feel like this should be the second season rather than just a continuation of the first. Wisely, the producers of the show made the decision to let a certain amount of time pass on the show as well…two weeks, to be precise.
Peter spends most of this episode in the hospital, where he’s been since almost immediately after his collapse at the end of Week 11, with his mother, his brother, and the object of his affection – that’d be Simone – variously standing by his bedside. He’s being barraged with reruns of the vision he had in episode 11, which eventually lead him to awaken, scream like a fucking banshee, then sneak out and decide that he needs to leave town for the sake of New York. (I laughed when he mused, “So they did the nuclear testing in Nevada, right?”) Before he can skip, however, he runs across a strange man – played by the 9th Doctor Who, Christopher Eccleston – who possesses the power of invisibility as well as some possible mental problems.
Niki and Jessica are now battling each other constantly, to the point where they bounce back and forth. It’s solid acting by Ali Larter as she flips from one personality to the other – her freak-out when she can’t hug Micah is particularly fantastic – and it’s disconcerting enough just for me as a viewer that it was a given that she’d end up in a psych ward. Presumably she’ll sneak out quickly…but in the meantime, at least she got in that kick-ass episode-closer of a line. Meanwhile, D.L. apparently owes Mr. Linderman a favor despite having returned his money, which you know he’ll call in soon. I’m not ecstatic about the newly-minted subplot of Micah having problems at school, however; it seems like maybe they’re stretching things too thin.
Claire seems to be successfully pulling one over on her father, keeping him convinced that she did indeed have her memories wiped by Brother Voodoo. It seems risky for her to be meeting with BV on a regular basis…but not as risky, mind you, as her trying to rekindle her friendship with Zack. (Brother Voodoo does confirm, alas, that he cannot return the memories of those he’s wiped.)
So Sylar didn’t manage to escape after slaying Eve. We don’t get much of an impression that he’s capable of any sudden moves…but count on him making a major comeback much sooner than later.
Matt’s battle with Claire’s dad is really escalating, to the point where his association with the FBI is pretty much dead in the water. If he’s going to continue his obsession, it’s going to go badly, I feel certain…unless, that is, Brother Voodoo decides that it might be worth his while to bring Matt into his confidence. On a confidence-related note, surely it’s gonna bite Matt in the ass that he’s told his wife of his mind-reading abilities.
Hiro finally gets to meet the dinosaur while holding his sword aloft…except the dinosaur is in a museum, and the sword is a fake…but just when you think it’s gonna be a complete anticlimax, we get the reveal that the actual sword is in the possession of the elusive Mr. Linderman. It’s an interesting development that Hiro’s powers have declined dramatically over the past two weeks; the big question is, will the sword really assist him in getting back to full strength…? The conversation Hiro has with Nathan is hilarious, particularly the bit where Hiro can’t pronounce “villain” properly.
And the tension between Mohinder and Claire’s dad is palpable. I’m hoping we get more from Monider in the coming weeks; it feels like most of his appearances lately have been really short.
My last observation is that the segment with the new hero – the bit that was used as a tease to get people to watch the episode of “Deal or No Deal” that aired immediately before “Heroes” – felt tacked on. I mean, I’m curious about this chick, ’cause her powers are definitely cool, but it seemed like NBC demanded that the producers give them something for that teaser segment and they said, “Well, we don’t want to give away any of the ongoing plot points, so here’s a fresh one that people won’t really care about.”
But that’s just a minor annoyance. Overall, it was a damned fine return, “Heroes.” It’s good to have Must-See Mondays back.
