So Heroes is back after a way too long hiatus. In fact, it seemed even longer than the one Lost went through. Before I get to my thoughts, I wanted to touch upon the finale before the hiatus, which I thought was absolutely fantastic. I had long wanted to write a column about it, but just never got around to it.
First things first, H.R.G. (yes, I finally succumbed to calling him that) may very well be the best developed, most complex character on television. His journey from mysterious to bad to sorta bad to possibly bad to possibly good to good to possibly bad to bad to possibly good and, finally, to probably good has been, well, very good. Claire behaves as an exceptional foil to his character, and the two have wonderful chemistry. Perhaps they are just phenomenal actors, but you can really feel how intense their emotions are. Bravo to both of them.
Speaking of character development, Claire’s mother is takes the red ribbon (red ribbon is second place, right? Well, whatever the case, she takes second place) for that award. She was initially introduced as a ditz, but it soon became apparent that there was much more to her than meets the eye (particularly in the episode that she first comes face to face with Sylar). I absolutely loved her scene with H.R.G. where she revealed to him that he spilled the beans to her about everything he does and that he can’t go after Claire. It was also a surprisingly touching scene.
I am noticing a theme in regards to this show, namely that characters are much more knowledgeable than they appear. Claire’s mom, Nathan and Peter’s mom, the Haitian, Linderman. It really makes you wonder who knows what.
Finally, the Candice character. Damn, is she evil, which became especially obvious after we saw her taunting Isaac when pretending to be Simone. I also really, really enjoyed the subtleties of her two scenes with H.R.G. and his wife. Notice how Candice noted how much she liked Mrs. Bennet’s hair. And also the emphasis on her “dogs barking” ring tone. . Then at the end of the episode, when Candice was pretending to be her, she was combing her hair, and had a normal ring tone. Very cleverly done.
On top of that, I also want to turn your attention to the preview below, which is absolutely awesome. It’s so good it actually made me like that Nickelback song, after constantly turning the radio dial every time it came on.
Speaking of songs, I finally listened to the lyrics of that new Carrie Underwood song (another song I immediately turn the radio dial on). So let me get this straight, hon a guy cheats on you so you key his car, carve your name in his leather upholstery, take a baseball bat to his headlights, and slash all his tires. Maybe he’ll learn next time he cheats? How about he learn next time not to get involved with some crazy bitch in the first place?
Well, anyway, enjoy this preview
Now, with that out of the way, prepare yourself for a rant.
So earlier this evening (Tuesday, that is) I’m driving home from work on the highway, not going particularly fast, when I see a police car parked on the side of the road. Now, normally, at this point everybody slows down, creating some very annoying congestion. However, being that I wasn’t going particularly fast (around 65 in a 50 zone), and I was going with the flow of traffic, I didn’t. Then, through my rear view mirror, I see the car pull out. I merge to the center lane (I was in the fast lane). The lights go on, and he merges also. So I pull over, and the cop pulls up behind me. I’m thinking, “there MUST be a headlight out or something, because this sure as hell can’t be because of speeding.”
So the cop gets out of his car and nonchalantly says that I am, indeed, getting pulled over for speeding. I give him my license and registration, and he returns several minutes later with my ticket. I ask him how fast I was going, and he says “65.”
The reason for my rant, you ask? First off, I was going 65 friggin’ miles per hour in the fast lane with a 50 miles per hour speed limit! Hell, heading to work I hit close to 80 and was STILL going with the flow of traffic. In fact, when he pulled me over, I had to SPEED UP just to merge lanes, which means the car in the lane next to me was going faster than I was. Not to mention that it’s the end of the month, which coincides nicely with that whole belief that cops pull over lots of people at the end of the month to make up any money or quotas they may need to catch up on.
Oh, and on top of that, the penalty is contingent on how much over the speed limit you were, with 1 to 9, 10 to 14, 15 to 19, and so on. How convenient that I just so happen to be going an even (well, odd, technically) 65 and not, say, 64 or 63. Didn’t that work out nicely?
So, yes, I will be going to court, if only to show that they won’t be getting an easy $150 out of some sap. Maybe I’m bring my brother the lawyer, just to make things even sassier. Oh, and apparently if you got ONE SINGLE mile per hour over the speed limit, that’s an $85 fine. Yeah, and they stop the criminals?
I respectfully request that the powers that be not edit that whole rant out, because I really needed to get that out of my system.
Normally talking about cops would be a stereotypical segue to heroes, but currently I don’t feel that way. How about the fact that one of the central characters this episode used to be a cop? Yeah, we’ll go with that connection.
In my last column, I noted how much I enjoyed H.R.G.’s manipulation of Parkman’s telepathy, and this episode continued that trend. I thought it was fantastic how he focused his thoughts so intently that he actually woke Parkman up. I also enjoyed how he kept Parkman on a need to know basis (by telling him to hit the pipe, then later revealing that it alerted the guards) and how he anticipated certain questions (like how he offered detailed explanations of his instructions for Ted). I also look forward to H.R.G., Parkman, and Ted’s journey to New York City.
Claire’s reunion with Peter was sweet, if short lived. Although I did like the way he argued in her defense, urging Nathan to have a relationship with her. I am curious, however, how long he and Nathan knew that Claire was Nathan’s daughter, as I’m surprised that they wouldn’t show Peter’s reaction get getting said news.
Speaking of Nathan, I like how they’ve shifted his ambition of winning his election. Before it was a personal, selfish thing. Now, he’s fulfilling a destiny. As Linderman said, everybody’s got a role to play, and Nathan is just ensuring that nothing gets in the way of him fulfilling that role. Despite telling Claire that she needs to leave until the election is over, he came across as far more caring than usual.
Isaac’s death is an interesting development, as he’s the first really main character to get knocked off, if memory serves. His approach towards death was also worth noting, as he seemed to fully accept it as an inevitability. What I didn’t quite get, however, was his lack of resistance. Sure, he sent somebody information on how to kill Sylar (more on that in a bit), but it seems like he understands how Sylar’s abilities work, so why give him that power? Why not pull an Eden and shoot yourself in the head so that he can’t have your ability? I know that’s easier said than done, but it doesn’t seem like a much worse fate than having your head sliced open.
I am curious about who Isaac sent the painting to, which apparently details how to eliminate Sylar. Peter? Linderman? Hiro? H.R.G.?
Some quick notes:
Where was the Haitian? If I remember correctly, wasn’t he at the Petrelli household when Claire arrived? Then suddenly he was missing. By the way, apparently it is the Haitian’s ability (or other ability) to negate people’s powers. A big “goof” was how Nathan was allowed to fly when in his presence. Given that it was later revealed that the Haitian works for Nathan’s mother, perhaps he let him go?
I’m interested in seeing how Mohinder’s reluctant alliance with The Company, sans H.R.G., plays out. Clearly these two have very, very different agendas. Sure, their pathways may interconnect here and there, but make no mistake, they are on distinctly different paths.
What exactly is it that Linderman wants from Micah? Does he want him to repair the damage done by Ted at the facility? Is it something else? How exactly is he going to “save the world”?
While Candice impersonating Nikki/Jessica was diabolical and neat, I really have trouble getting into that story arc. Perhaps it’s because the character is just so unsympathetic, and it dragged on way too long. I’m willing to wait and see how it plays out, but it’s definitely the weak link of the series.
