I really enjoyed this episode of Heroes. I know I must sound like a broken record, but I’m getting a real kick out of seeing those we assumed were heroes acting as villains, and those that we’ve deemed evil showing their lighthearted side. This was ESPECIALLY apparent in this week’s episode.
For the most part, the episode took place four years in the future. There, future Peter (who, I suppose, would actually be present Peter) and present Peter (who, in this case, would be past Peter. Confused?) traveled to the future, so the former could show the latter (confused?) what terrible things are to come in order to adequately explain why he had to shoot Nathan.
Indeed, the future is a bit freaky, with people flying through the sky. It seems that future Peter is considered a bit of an extremist….perhaps even a terrorist as he tries to warn people that the end is near. Unfortunately, he’s shot down and killed by his niece Claire (who, apparently, is absolutely destined to dye her hair brown sometime in the future). Present Peter manages to escape and goes on a quest to find Sylar (heeding the advice of his future counterpart). In order to find Sylar, he must visit Mohinder, who’s covered in a cloak due to the faulty serum he had injected himself with.
Peter finally finds Sylar, who is living a quiet and humble life in the old Bennet house. He’s got a son, he’s going by Gabriel, and he’s wearing glasses. It seems that his villainous ways are behind him. He opens up to Peter, revealing that they are indeed brothers (I guess it’s true, then). Shockingly, this scene actually made me care about Sylar. Maybe even like him. And in a weird way, I think Peter experienced the same unexpected feelings. It was actually really, really neat seeing them team up together. Such an odd, fun scene.
Perhaps what made the scene even more enjoyable was their odd opposition. You had an exceptionally sinister acting Claire working alongside Daphne and the nightmare guy (I forget his name). It would be easy to call them the “villains,” except for the fact that Daphne is married to a very loving Parkman (dear God, I guess that means he survives for another four years), and is helping to raise Molly. She also went as far as to refer to her as “not the villain.” But man, I gotta admit, future Claire kinda scared me.
They also seem to have an alliance of some sort with Nathan, who’s now President and married to Tracey. It seems undeniable that he still cares deeply for Peter, and that he truly believes he’s doing the right thing. But, incredibly, Peter truly couldn’t control his thirst, and ultimately killed Nathan for little reason in particular (other than, ya’ know, the thirst).
One thing that was said, which I found curious, was future Peter noting that some people were manufactured, while others were born this way. This COULD have been referring to those who actively took the injection opposed to those who developed abilities naturally, but I’m not sure I read it that way. We’ve recently learned that some people were genetically engineered, like Tracey and Niki. Others, presumably, may have simply been born this way. Perhaps the “heroes” and “villains” of the future are actually those who are naturally gifted, and those who were manufactured. That would be an interesting take on the whole “battle lines” thing.
The scene with present Sylar sitting in his cell was great, as well. I enjoyed how he just sensed that Peter was there. These two really have been so intimately tied together. It actually makes the idea of them being brothers kinda cool.
I’ve had mixed feelings about the whole Hiro/Ando thing, but I loved the final scene. Heroes does a wonderful job of abruptly cutting the episode off just as some form of profanity is about to be uttered. That was no different here, with Adam. And I must admit, I’m interested in seeing which side of the line he decides to stand on.
The lack of HRG hurt this episode, but it was otherwise great. Although I must admit, I’m going to get a little upset if they do the whole “can Claire trust her father?” story arc AGAIN. Honestly, do we need to do this every year?
Matt Basilo has been writing for Inside Pulse since April 2005, providing his insight into popular television shows such as Lost, Heroes, Prison Break, and Smallville. You can visit his blog at A Case of the Blog.
