Last week’s cliffhanger message was spoiled by the advertisements which revealed that message. “Save the Cheerleader. Save the world.” That’s ok though, because ‘Heroes’ delivered another fantastic episode. We’re slowly getting to see each of the heroes use their powers to it’s fullest, even if they’ve yet to control them completely. Nathan’s flight in the beginning was particularly awesome.
The show takes interesting storylines and instead of just rehashing or directly building on them we are given a glimpse into that story from a different angle. Right now it works, but as everyone’s lives get entangled this approach could get muddled.
Warning: This is an episode recap. Spoilers for episodes up to and including “Hiro’s” follow.
“I have a message for you.”
Peter and Suresh: Future Hiro lets Peter know that he has to see Isaac to find out how to save the Cheerleader, and stop everything. Peter tells Suresh what he has to do and tries to convince him to go see Isaac. Suresh declines contemptuously.
Peter and Isaac:Peter goes to Isaac’s apartment, who is less than thrilled to see him. I guess taking his girlfriend doesn’t win him any trust points. Peter tells Isaac that he believes the painter can see the future. Peter asks him where he has to go, and Peter looks at the paintings. One is unfinished, but Isaac can’t paint because he’s out of money and drugs. Peter uses his empath power and finishes the painting It shows a shadowy figure standing over a bloodied Claire, and Isaac says, “We have to save her.”
Claire: In the hospital, she’s fine. Looks like Brody, the jerk quarterback, is alive too. Claire confesses to her father that she deliberately crashed the car because Brody had tried to rape her at the bonfire.
Mr. Bennett goes to see Brody. He threatens to kill the quarterback, but it really didn’t feel all that creepy or wrong. More like a father protecting his daughter, and maybe even something bigger than her. Claire’s dad then tells the young man he’s giving him a fresh start. I’m seriously wondering if this man is the bad guy or not. If he is, he’s not just a one-dimensional villain. After the heart to heart talk, the creepy dude erases Brody’s memory.
Claire apologizes to Brody for what she did, but he doesn’t remember who she is. The boy is completely cleaned out.
Nathan: Claire’s dad and the creepy mind wipe dude (we’ll get to him in more detail later) have him. He fights back and gets away, then after threatening to kill his captors he does something awesome. In the second big “Oh Damn!” moment of the season, Nathan shoots up into the sky and then sonic booms away.
Hiro and Nathan (with a little Ando): The guys Hiro and Ando cheated at the casino unceremoniously toss them from a van. Ando blames Hiro for their plight and leaves him at a diner to go find his “internet girlfriend.” Hiro stays to order breakfast (he’s very excited about waffles) when he sees Nathan fly down and land in front of the diner. They talk and Hiro says he can keep Nathan’s secret, and then reveals to the politician he can travel to the future. Hiro tells Nathan about the bomb in NYC, but says it’s OK, “I stop it. I’m ‘Hiro.’” Nathan seems hesitant to believe Hiro’s story but gives Hiro a ride back to Vegas anyway.
Niki: Once again she doesn’t know what happened as she wakes up in the hotel bed to Nathan’s assistant questioning her.
Niki and Nathan run into each other and have a discussion. Niki tells Nathan that she wants to be someone good. He tells her that the woman he was with last night was a girl you wait your entire life to meet. Someone strong, beautiful, and good. So, maybe her alter ego isn’t exactly a Hyde type. Niki tells him about the blackmail.
Niki goes back to her sister’s house where she finds a bunch of cops. They show her a picture and ask if it’s her husband. The picture proves, as many have suspected, that her husband is the creepy dude wiping everyone’s memories. This just raises way more questions than this show could answer in one hour. Is D.L. Hawkins an evil man, or is he working with some sort of government agency for good? I’m not convinced it was Hawkins who killed all those men in the desert, but if he did then what’s the reason? Were they fellow super humans who needed to be dispatched, or is he really just a serial killer? After being told that her husband is in the area, Ando shows up on her doorstep. Instead of being greeted by his “internet girlfriend” he finds a room of cops. Niki turns him away nicely, and Ando leaves.
Niki and Micah are alone at the house and she hears a noise. When she checks things out, there’s nothing there. But then the camera pans back and shows her husband right where she just was.
Matt: After having his mind wiped, he wakes up on his couch to a worried and angry wife. He can’t remember where he’s been, and she’s not too happy about it. Matt orders some food and proposes that he and his wife take a day off to be together.
With his mind reading abilities, Matt is able to give his wife a perfect day. He does exactly what she wants when she wants it. When she wants some post-coital coffee ice cream he heads to the store. While there he hears a kid contemplating robbing the store. Using his abilities he convinces the kid to go home. But as he takes the gun all the customers start freaking out in their heads, Matt understands their concerns at seeing him holding a gun and tries to explain that he’s a cop. He becomes overwhelmed by the voices in his head though and passes out.
Peter, Isaac, Hiro, and Ando: Hiro is waiting with his car for Ando back in Vegas. Ando grudgingly suggests calling the artist (Isaac) again. They call and Peter, who had just finished “vision painting,” picks up the phone to tell Hiro he has a message for him.
Another great episode closes with the same line, “I have a message for you.” This show just gets better and better, the more we learn about our heroes the more interested I am in finding out what’s going to happen. Matt, in particular, got a huge push in his personal story that was great. I’m hoping we get something similar for Niki next week, and from the previews it looks probable. Unfortunately due to her power, it’s kind of hard to get behind her as one of the heroes. We’re five chapters in and she’s the only one who has little idea what’s going on, only that something is. The other side of her story is great, but I really want to like her (it seems she’ll be a major player if her husband works with “Horned Rimmed Glasses”) and that will require some major advancement in revelations. Something like Nathan’s flying in this chapter would work.
‘Heroes’ is doing a great job of answering questions as they ask more. Rather than just answering a question, which then raises additional inquiries. As we delve deeper more queries will arise, but the balance so far has been good.
Discuss ‘Heroes’ at our forum, here!
