"The Second Coming" and "The Butterfly Effect"
It's been a long 10 months since the writers' strike abruptly (or mercifully, depending on who you ask) truncated Season 2 of
Heroes. As such, the buzz around the show's "villainous" two-hour return has been building for months. Who shot Nathan? What would Sylar be up to now that he's "back"? Would Mohinder be able to help Maya? What will become of Adam Monroe who we last saw trapped in a coffin six feet under, courtesy of Hiro? Those were the burning questions facing us as the episode began, so let's dig in. (But before we get too deep, check out this
handy refresher just in case you're a little fuzzy on any of last season's cliff-hangers.)
The show opened in Manhattan, four years into the future with Peter Petrelli on the run from Claire, which we learn eventually when she catches up with him and holds him at gunpoint. Future Peter (with that nasty scar) pleads with Claire not to shoot him, as he is planning to go back and make things right. Apparently, the future wasn't so bright for our friends with powers - they were being hunted and experimented on, forcing them into hiding. But Peter plans to "go back to the day they all found out" and prevent this bleak future, and just as Claire pulls the trigger to stop him, he freezes time, takes her gun, and teleports back to the Odessa police department on the day of Nathan's press conference (the day Peter stopped the Shanti virus from being unleashed, as you recall.)
That's right, it was future Peter who fired those shots at his own brother, effectively silencing his confession about having abilities. Present-day Peter and Matt Parkman give chase, but future Peter escapes (or does he?). On the way to the hospital, Claire (who has seen the news on TV of her biological father being shot) offers to come help him, but Peter insists she stay in Costa Verde. Despite the doctors' attempts, they are unable to revive Nathan, and he dies on the table. That is, until Peter pays his body a visit and bolts upright inexplicably.
Meanwhile, Claire, who decides not to follow Peter's advice, is packing a bag to leave when she is greeted by an unwelcome familiar face: Sylar. He's come back after what he's always been after: her ability to heal. Sylar chases Claire throughout the house, but she ultimately gets the best of him when she plunges a knife into his chest. Even so, he is still able to trap her against the wall, and as he has done so many times, saw off the top of her head. For the first time we get to see just what Sylar does with his victims, though I'm sure he's never been able to talk to them as he did it. (Claire is special, remember?) Sylar finds the piece of her brain he is looking for and uses his newfound ability to heal from his stab wound. Claire is shocked when Sylar doesn't kill her, but perhaps is more shocked when he tells her how little she knows about herself, saying "I couldn't kill you even if I wanted to." Claire truly is invincible, as seen by her scalp reattaching itself to the rest of her head as Sylar leaves the house. (Note: he took several folders from a box that belonged to Noah, presumably people with powers since he called it a "shopping list.")
Peter goes back to the scene of the crime, and just so happens to be looking for the gun future Peter stashed. (Ah ha! Future Peter didn't get away, but rather has been posing as present-day Peter.) Unfortunately, Parkman has already discovered the weapon, and questions how Peter knew where to look for it. Future Peter shapeshifts to reveal his true identity (when did he get that power?) and tells Parkman he is from the future. But because Parkman knows, he is now a threat and Peter zaps him off into some strange wilderness. Perhaps now we know how he got rid of present-day Peter.
Back at the hospital chapel, following Nathan's miraculous recovery, the former congressman gets religion (and his trademark politician's suit mysteriously hung on the back of his door), saying he saw God. In his moment of enlightenment, he speaks of learning of the connections that exist between all people. He believes the goal of this connection is to save one another and save the world (sound familiar), but during his little speech, he again weakens and is about to collapse when Peter catches him and brings him back to his room to rest. Peter makes sure that Nathan doesn't have plans to tell the world about their powers, and Nathan assures him he will be silent, because "they couldn't be angels if everyone knew." When Peter leaves, however, Nathan's religious experience is deflated by the appearance of Linderman (!), who really saved Nathan and (once again) has "great things" in store.
Back in New York, Mohinder has decided his research is no longer worthwhile and he's ready to head back to India. (It really feels like NBC pulled the plug on the Shanti storyline, and there is little to no reference to it
at all.) Instead, Mohinder becomes much more excited by his discovery (by way of Maya) that adrenaline triggers the abilities, and creates a serum he believes could give anyone powers. Maya believes the serum is evil, and tells Mohinder to destroy it. But before he can bring himself to do so, he injects himself and Super Brain Boy is born. (I kid, I kid). But Mohinder does wake up to a couple of muggers, who he quickly tosses aside like bean bags, even bending one of their guns. His newfound strength isn't his only ability. He now has heightened senses (and sex drive it seems, as he rips off Maya's clothes out of nowhere) and can even climb walls. (Spider-man, anyone?) Even better, this "new man" is confident that if the serum works in his body without changing his vital signs, he can use this "quantum leap" in science to create the opposite serum to take powers away, making Maya believe in him again (and willing to have her clothes ripped off as previously mentioned.) Ah, Dr. Suresh, you've come a long way. Too bad your skin starts to peel off at the end of the episode!
On the other side of the globe in Japan, Hiro is enjoying (or tolerating) life as the CEO of Yamagato industries, though he is bored as a "man without a quest." But destiny literally came knocking at his door as the family lawyer brought him a pre-recorded message from his father while he was still alive. Hiro is charged with the duty of keeping a very important secret form the rest of the world: one-half of a formula that must not be revealed. But wouldn't you know it, Hiro loses this all-important document no more than two seconds later as a new hero, Speedster Daphne, comes whizzing through and steals the formula. Hiro stops time to confront her, but because of her speed, he can't completely stop her, making her his new nemesis. She decks him and gets away.
Afraid to go into the past again, Hiro decided to teleport to the future to see what happens now that he has lost the formula. What he sees is an argument between future Ando and himself. Ando has "betrayed" him in the future, and even has his own powers, shooting a pulse of energy similar to Elle Bishop's to kill Hiro and take his half of the formula. Then, the world starts to explode around Hiro. (Again, I say, very familiar.) He teleports back to present day, but is now distrusting of Ando. Nonetheless, the two get a fingerprint that IDs Daphne, and they teleport to her apartment in France to retrieve the formula. They discover she is a thief of all sorts of things, including the Mona Lisa, but when she returns, she and Hiro face off in a battle of speed and teleportation. Although he does not retrieve the formula, he plants a tracking device that shows him where she is heading, with the plan to teleport there first and get the other half of the formula she is seeking. (I love Hiro, and his bumbling heroics, and I'm glad he has a nemesis. And as a die-hard Batman fan, I loved the "trap" he set, similar to how Batman plotted against Catwoman.)
Nathan gets paid a visit from Tracy Strauss, Niki Sanders' new doppelganger, but one who has no recollection of her past, despite it being thrown in her face by a reporter. She's now an adviser to a big-shot politician, who wants Nathan to replace a recently deceased Senator. Nathan is confused by Tracy/Niki not remembering him, but Linderman strongly urges Nathan to consider her appearance a sign that he should consider the governor's offer. After much consideration, Nathan agrees to accept the position, delighting Linderman, who we learn only Nathan can see. (Hmmmm, very interesting.) Also, after being hassled some more by the reporter, including revealing Niki's affair with Nathan and Tracy's current love life with the governor, Tracy/Niki somehow freezes the reporter and blows him into a million bits, leaving him to run into the drain. New powers abound.
Speaking of new powers, we learn that Angela Petrelli has dreams or visions of the future, a power so adept she is able to instantly realize that the Peter in Nathan's hospital room is not her "real" son. He assures her that he is safe (though he is actually locked inside the body of a prisoner at Primatech). Angela warns future Peter of the butterfly effect he's perhaps already caused by coming back in time, which involves chiefly Claire's run-in with Sylar, and his now having the ability to heal. (When Peter goes to check on her, she is trying to get hit by a train, because though she still heals, she no longer feels the pain she used to, making her feel like she's no longer human.) Peter vows to make set things right, even revealing himself to Nathan and telling him that he shot him. But is he too late? In one of Angela's dreams, she sees Peter, Noah and Parkman dead while Niki/Tracy, Adam Monroe(!), Maury Parkman and Sylar stand with her amid the bodies.
Back in Africa (yes, the Wilderness Parkman was sent to was Africa), Matt is talking to a turtle, perhaps because of the heat. In fact, he has found another human, who just so happens to paint the future like Isaac Mendez, only he uses rocks as his canvas. We've seen that one of his paintings was on the wall behind Monhinder when he learned of his powers, but who knows what else his paintings will reveal. (Also, you catch that Sprint product placement?)
Back at Primatech, Sylar busts in and kills Bob (no!) who had basically told Elle she had failed him one too many times. Although Elle is able to stop Sylar with Noah's help, a dozen of the level 5 inmates (including Jesse, the one carrying Peter Petrelli, and Noah) escape the facility. Noah goes home, but again must leave to hunt down the inmates who have escaped. They are all villains, and since Noah brought them in before, he is the best man for the job. But he's leaving Claire's flame-throwing biological mother behind to protect the family.
And speaking of mothers, Angela assumes command of the Company now that Bob is gone, and relieves Elle of her duties. She then goes in to chat with Sylar, telling him how she will care for him and nurture him, even taking off his cuffs. "You're not my mother," he says. To which she replies, "Oh, but I am." Holy Crap!
Phew! That was a jam-packed two hours. Anyone else confused a little? I have to say, having screened the first hour early, I wasn't convinced that
Heroes was "back." (Yes, I was one of those who was pretty vocal against Season 2, but watching it on DVD made it better.) The second hour was definitely full of exciting twists and turns, but my head is still spinning. I'm concerned that the story is just going to keep sprawling uncontrollably, especially now that we have so many new characters and crazy powers coming out of left field. But that ending definitely has me wanting to see more.
What do you think? Were you shocked by Mama Petrelli's revelation? Do you think there's some sort of double meaning? What did you think of the two-hour premiere as a whole? Happy to see Mohinder get a piece of the "powers" pie? Share all your thoughts and questions in the comments and check back next week for more!
