Not too long ago David Chase, the creator of The Sopranos, spoke out about the fan outcry of the popular show’s series finale. He was rather negative towards those who criticized the way the show ended, basically calling the fans disgusting and pathetic. Earlier this week the creator of Heroes, Tim Kring, also responded to viewer disapproval, however his reaction was far more rational and productive. He was willing to accept the possibility that some things may not have been handled correctly, and in turn admitted that fans may have had a point with their negative analysis. Here are some excerpts:
In response to the slow pace of the show: “We assumed the audience wanted season 1 — a buildup of intrigue about these characters and the discovery of their powers. We taught [them] to expect a certain kind of storytelling. They wanted adrenaline. We made a mistake: We took too long to get to the big-picture story.”
Kring also believes that the season would have been better served if Peter had his premonition about the upcoming apocalyptic plague in the season premiere, instead of the seventh episode. I actually don’t have issue with when the premonition, which in turn revealed the big story, was revealed. I think the problem more lies in the fact that the surrounding stories were moving so slowly while lacking direction to varying degrees.
I mean, the severe nature of the viral outbreak is now clear, which gives some weight to the scenes we have seen thus far with Mohinder. But for the first several episodes of the season, he was just basically being a fickle, not to mention moody, little scientist.
I also don’t particularly mind the buildup of story, but I do think a bit too much time was devoted to attempting to build up characters, but instead redundantly providing us with information and struggles we already saw last year.
In response to the negative reaction of the new characters: “They shouldn’t have been introduced in separate story lines that felt unattached to the show. The way we introduced Elle (Kristen Bell) — by weaving her in via Peter’s story line — is a more logical way to bring new characters into the show.”
I think that’s a fair point, since Maya and Alejandro have had the most difficult time being accepted by the audience. Monica managed to integrate herself far easier (granted, her ability was made more clear and is more attractive to the general viewers), perhaps because her story was interwoven with Micah’s. Along with that, Maya and Alejandro’s arc became more interesting (slightly so) when they became associated with Sylar.
I also think that this ties back to the whole pacing thing, as the Wonder Twins’ storyline rarely progressed within a given episode.
In response to Hiro being in Japan for, literally, 734 episodes: “It should have [lasted] three episodes. We didn’t give the audience enough story to justify the time we allotted it.”
That pretty much sums up my thoughts to a tee. There simply wasn’t enough story there, and it very easily (and far more effectively) could have been told in three episodes.
In response to the various love stories: “I’ve seen more convincing romances on TV. In retrospect, I don’t think romance is a natural fit for us.”
I remember watching the audio commentary of last season’s DVD set, and I found it interesting how the writers and producers repeatedly brought up the fact that there really wasn’t any love story that season, and that would be changed the following year. What I found interesting was that I so meticulously watched the series, yet it never occurred to me that there wasn’t any romance. It seemed strange to me that the show would go out of its way to remedy that, instead of letting it happen organically.
I have no doubt that the writers said to themselves “we have to give Claire and Hiro love interests” and wrote their stories around that premise, instead of coming up with an interesting story and allowing a romance to occur within it.
What’s even more fascinating is that the writers equated the relationship between Claire and her father to a love story, since there were obviously strong emotions there, and they had such a roller coaster, tumultuous bond. It’s also worth noting that that was, without a doubt (in my opinion, anyway), the most powerful and intriguing relationship out of any other one on the show. Yet this season, in an attempt to replicate that in a more sexual way, they failed to capture that energy altogether.
I have defended the accused slow pace of the show all season, reminding everybody how early it is and how it’s far too soon to criticize the show for not setting up for the finale. I still think that’s true, but of course, due to the writers strike, the finale may end up happening in the eleventh episode. So, like the article states, this entire volume was essentially a wash. And it truly did have a whole lot of potential, as far as I’m concerned.
Nevertheless, it’s very refreshing to see that Kring is willing to admit that the show may have mishandled certain aspects of the series this past season, and I’m fully confident that they will remedy any faults for the remainder of this season (if there is one) and next season as well.
A lot of people accuse shows of experiencing a “sophomore slump” but I’m not sure it’s as simple as that. For shows like Heroes and Lost, it’s the “in thing” to be fanatical about the mysterious new series. The next year, however, it becomes trendy to suddenly rip apart and criticize the now popular show. I’m not saying all of the criticism is unwarranted, but I think a lot of the times certain fans are simply too negative and will never truly be satisfied.
