Heroes

[Magill]

I was disappointed. There were just too many WTF? moments for me. And yes, I realize I'm nitpicking a live action comic. However:

-Who decided to give Matt and Suresh custody of Molly? In what world does that make sense? Shouldn't they be on the run from OWI? They didn't even change their names or anything.

-What's up with Nathan's beard? And his Senate seat?

-Perhaps I'm being overly sensitive, but why did this legendary hero Hiro idolizes have to turn out to be a Caucasian (maybe I'm disappointed because I totally thought Kenzei would be Hiro's dad)?

-Could they hire actors with worse Irish accents? So an amnesiac Peter can use powers to force people away, but can't get out of the box or even the handcuffs?

-Do we really have to deal with the Hispanic version of Niki this season? Why must every female hero on this show have to deal with sexual exploitation?

I'm just worried that the already large cast will suffer from character bloat a la Lost.

[StarOpal]

I'm pretty excited actually. My biggest fear was that they would start out the show with more new cast/less old cast.

- Oh, Mohinder. *shh* You're pretty when you're quiet.

- Stephen Tobolowsky! Bing!

- Mr. Bennet is awesome.

- Claire breaking her legs is awesome.

- Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Muggles are crazy but awesome.

- When Creepy Stalker/Claire's Love Intersest started flying, am I the only who thought, 'Ew! Don't be half brother and sister!' That's the way my mind works.

- Judging by what they showed Nikki will be back, as for the rest of her group....

- I think what Peter did was something along the lines of Ted's "burn bright not hot." At least it looked the same. I'm pretty sure that the Hatian must be involved, because of the lack of memory, if so then he stopped working for Mrs. Petrelli and is still working for the Organization.

- The Petrelli's are looking kinda ragged.

- My vote is: Hiro IS Kensei.

- Sylar isn't actually on a beach. The chick he was with is the one who can change perception of reality.

- Since they opened up with a focus on Hiro's dad and Angela Petrelli, and this season is titled "Generations," I'm thinking they might have flashbacks or use Richard Roundtree's way back dream machine to fill in some history. If that's true, George Takei may be back.

- So who do you think did the pushing?

- Geeze, did Ando go all the way back to Japan to get the sword or what? Took him forever judging by how dark it was!

[Lissa]

I have finally caught up. I have also been totally spoiled by watching Season 1 on DVD- getting to watch one or two episodes a night and no commercial interruptions. Disadvantages of watching real time.

I really enjoyed it. (I actually even liked the finale, but since I watched it Sunday night and had heard a lot of people found it anti-climatic, I think my expectations were lower.) As always, I have MUCH love for Hiro, who is the most adorable hero I've ever seen in my life. Seriously, how can you NOT love the guy? I love Ando, too, and his loyalty to Hiro and his relationship he had going there with Hiro's dad.

I actually don't have an issue with the expansion of the cast. For one, they killed off several Mutants heroes in Season 1, so there's some extra room. (And while I'm not convinced splattering all over the sidewalk kills you, I AM convinced having your brain eaten does.) But I wasn't even opposed to it in Lost- just in the ham-handed, cruddy way they shoehorned the new characters in. In this case, where everyone is so scattered and the plotlines intersect rather than flow together, adding in the new characters is fine with me. Although I do definitely agree about the sexual exploitation thing. Sheesh.

The only thing that mildly bummed me out was the divorces. I saw a comment in EW that they want to focus on romance more this season. The two they cited (Claire and Hiro) don't bug me, because I'd find it more unbelievable if an adorable teenaged girl like Claire DIDN'T have a boyfriend, and Hiro is the epitome of sweet and deserves some love. But one of the things I liked about season 1 was they seemed to be exploring marital love some. I can understand why Matt and Janice divorced, although it made me sad for Matt, but I was really bummed they didn't keep Nathan and Heidi together. Oh well. I may completely change my mind on this subject in future episodes.

Did anyone else think that Noah must be close to puking when Mrs. Bennet kept kissing Mr. Muggles? Thinking "I have to kiss her"? Just... ew.

And I love Matt and Surresh taking care of Molly Sorry, but it's just adorable to me.

Anyone else feel compelled to buy a Nissan Rogue?

[StarOpal]

I can't believe I didn't say something about Matt Parkman. Shame on me! I loved how his introduction this season made him look all badass and showing him use his powers in a police situation. My favorite scene last season with his powers was when he had the run-in with Jessica, and this had the same flavor.

On the custody of Molly issue, here’s what I think might’ve happen:

Molly’s parents die and she’s taken in by the Organization. With no family to worry about, and not wanting anymore outside involvement, my guess is they make Molly Walker “disappear.” So by the time Mohinder and Parkman come in Molly’s history is a clean slate. Mr. Bennet surely knows (or knows people who know) how to rig up some fake paperwork. Whammo, Officer Parkman is now Molly’s guardian.

As to changing names, they want to be found. Mohinder, Parkman, and Molly are supposed to stay out in they open. It’s all part of some bigger plan. Hence the Mohinder/Bennet phone call, and why Mohinder wasn’t more put off by Stephen Tobolowsky’s reference to Molly and the underlying threat.

On the Irish accents, I remember thinking, ‘Are they supposed to be Irish?’ But even worse was their stupidity. Okay you find a shady storage container. Container does not contain shady computers (or weapons I didn’t quite follow). There is a half naked, chained up man with a WTF?! look on his face. Is the first thing you assume that there was no whatever you were looking for and this is some sort of illegal human trafficking? No you silly thing! He knows were the computers/weapons/whatevers are! Duh.

As for not breaking the chains either being mentally swiped means he doesn’t remember he has powers much less his training in summoning specific ones, or Drew’s right. He’s like Samson and needs that hair in his eyes.

Oh, and did Heidi and Nathan actually divorce or are they separated? I seem to remember Mama Petrelli saying that he "pushed her away." I'd like to seem them get back together and work things out.

If Mama dies I'll be sorely grieved. I love her usually evil, mysterious, Manchurian Candidate, slapping people ways.

[DarthShady]

I LOVED IT!

Unfortunately, I had a rehearsal Monday night and couldn't watch it until yesterday afternoon (NBC decided to post the episode late ...grrr...) so by the time I got around to it, I'd already heard some people say they were disappointed, so maybe I just had really low expectations.

Here's a list of what I liked:

-Hiro!!!! Everything about Hiro's storyline! Awesomeawesomeawesome!!! Plus he's got a potential love interest who isn't in the same timeline as Sylar.

-Also, Takezo Kensei. I think they decided to make him English partly because then he could talk to Hiro without subtitles, and it's less arduous on viewers, writers, and Masi Oka (who does a lot of the Japanese translations himself.) He's such a b-stard, but there's something I like about him. And that something's called "sarcasm."

-Matt divorced!! I was very proud of him. He's too good for that two-timing she-harpy.

-Molly's "My Two Dads" situation, even if it is a stretch. I think it works.

-So happy that Ireland, "the homeland," is getting featured! I thought the accents were really good. Well, two of the guys had good accents. The play we're doing at my school is an Irish dialect play, and that's what our actors are supposed to sound like. But the one guy sounded too British.

-Claire's new boyfriend seems pretty cute, like he's not going to rape her or anything. I'm glad for her.

-Mohinder's super awesome double-agenty crap. That looks like it'll be cool.

-Adding in relevant, real-world issues like immigration, and I read somewhere that another character who'll be introduced later is living in post-Katrina New Orleans.

-This is more promo than premiere, but SYLAR'S ALIVE!

-Much as I love Sylar, I love that we're getting more villains, too.

-Mr. Muggles as the Voice of Reason in the Bennet/"Butler" household.

-Shirtless Milo.

[StarOpal]

Just a few quick notes:

- Claire, ick! While it completely grosses me out, I still think her power looks the best.

- Did Nathan's beard double in size or is that my imagination?

- I love you, Hiro Nakamura.

- So Peter's Casino Royale-esque scene... Now that's what I call "torture porn"! (Hey-o!)

[Lissa]

-Matt divorced!! I was very proud of him. He's too good for that two-timing she-harpy.

I am dying to know exactly why Matt and Janice divorced. I have three current theories:

1.) It's not a real divorce, but a sham to protect Janice and the kid from the company. Not crazy about this option, but it wouldn't surprise me.

2.) Turns out the kid was the Other Guy's. Oops. Although I doubt that one, because she mentioned she'd been so careful when he caught her thinking about it the first time.

3.) (My personal favorite) While Matt was out of touch trying to stop an exploding man and getting himself filled with bullets, Janice miscarried. She was (rightfully) rather resentful that he wasn't there, and since they DID stop the explosion and consequently it was all Matt's word about what happened (minus the bullets), was rather dubious about what had happened and how much of a role Matt HAD to play. If their marriage had been on strong ground, it might have survived, but in this case... it just couldn't. I like this because it is complicated, messy, and assigns both of them some responsibility, which is why they probably won't use it

-Molly's "My Two Dads" situation, even if it is a stretch. I think it works.

I adore that. Guys with kids is just really attractive, and I really like both Mohinder and Matt.

Hiro is still love. "Why does he keep saying his name?"

I'm not a huge fan of Peter. I don't hate him, and maybe I'll like him better this season, because I think the reason I normally don't like him is that he's usually tied to Nathan. I think Nathan is a well-written character, but I really don't like the guy at ALL.

I'm ready for some Niki/DL/Micah story now, please

[TheLuckyOne]

lissa said:

I'm ready for some Niki/DL/Micah story now, please

You know, now that I think of it, the "Info" section of my DVR definitely said that Niki and Micah were doing something in Vegas in last night's episode.

Stupid lying DVR.

-D

[Lissa]

Question about Mohinder:

I know there's something in his blood that serves as an antibody to the virus. For some reason, I got the impression from the show that the reason for this is that his father was a geneticist, and found a way to essentially manipulate a fetus in order for the baby to have the qualities needed, and therefore Mohinder was essentially conceived to save his sister. (Although his parents seemed to have loved him quite well regardless.) However, I've been poking around online and no one else seems to be mentioning this, which either means a.) it's really obvious and no one feels the need to talk about it, or b.) I'm way off base. (Or c.) I'm brilliant and no one recognizes this.)

Is that pretty much an accurate assumption, that the antibodies were manipulated there by Chandra (and possibly some help from Mama Suresh?)

[Magill]

I don't think it's ever specifically been stated that Chandra did some tinkering with fetal Mohinder. When Mohinder was brought in to save Molly, he made a statement along the lines of, "My sister had this disease. Sometimes parents will have another child in the hopes that he or she can be a blood or bone marrow donor to the sick sibling. I was too late for my sister, but not for you." And he tried his blood and it worked.

The actual science behind it doesn't make a lot of sense (but then, this is a show about people with superpowers). It could work if Shanti et al. just needed a blood or bone marrow transfusion, but the fact that he makes these magical antibodies--not so much. Maybe at some point it will be revealed that either a)Mohinder has a superpower, which is to cure this disease (analagous to Alejandro?) or b) the Sureshes monkeyed around with his genes.

[StarOpal]

I am so bored with Maya, I want to scream. Three episodes in and she's used her power three times, and each time the visual and audio cues make it seem like we're supposed to be amazed every time. And such a sniveler! While the brother is a little better, it's just that - a little. Grr!

About the painting, I think what it shows isn't what it seems.
Prepare for a prediction: HRG in the painting is really Sylar using Candice's power to get close to Claire in order to steal her healing ability. Superboy saves the day.

[TheLuckyOne]

Hey, not a bad theory! My alternate one is that the Company knows Bennett is going to try to recover the paintings, so they created fakes (including one they hoped would send Bennett running for cover) and left them out for Mohinder or some other spy to find.

I know I was one of the people who complained about Peter's bangs, but now that they're gone, I actually think he looked better with them. Be careful what you wish for, I guess.

-D

[Lissa]

I like both of those theories. Mohinder really needs to think about how bright it is to call Bennet from a lab designed especially for him on a cell phone. Come on, dude, you're supposed to be smart.

Matt and Mohinder really have a little daddy competition going on there, don't they?

Not happy DL is dead, although I'm withholding belief a little bit. Although Auntie Uhura looked fantastic.

I wish they'd sent Hiro back to the present, but oh well. I still adore the guy, and I loved Kensai's initial reaction to "ooh, I'm immortal!" Ando playing video games in his office cracked me up.

West annoys me. Note to Claire: stalkers probably don't make the best boyfriends. Neither do guys that try to humiliate you in front of your science class. Lizard-girl isn't really a good bet name.

I didn't get that the one guy who gave the twins a ride stole Claire's Rogue until I saw it on another board. But that's kind of funny. Maybe the twins' story line will pick up now.

Note to Candace/Betty/whoever: serial killers are creepy and don't think like other people. The whole sex thing? Yeah- it was realistic Sylar's not all that into sex in general because he thinks he's better than everyone. (Although I guess she had a shot showing him himself.) When a guy kills people and eats their brains (or whatever), it's probably not the best idea to let your guard down, no matter what restrictions his powers might have. And even if he is on the Lost island and is now stuck dealing with The Others. (Note to Sylar: please feel free to eat Jack's brain. Thanks.)

[Al]

Ned? Ned RYERSON??

I'm happy I finally figured out where I know Bob from.

staropal said:

I am so bored with Maya, I want to scream. Three episodes in and she's used her power three times, and each time the visual and audio cues make it seem like we're supposed to be amazed every time. And such a sniveler! While the brother is a little better, it's just that - a little. Grr!

I absolutely agree. For someone who's control over her power apparently depends on her proximity to her brother, she's dong a pretty good freakin' job of staying as far away from him as possible every single time other people are around. It reminds a lot of early last season when Claire stumbles into lethal injuries on a regular basis (broken neck from a freak football tackle, having a branch put through her skull, etc) and just happens to have the power to save herself. I was convinced she had a death mark on her or something like Bill Cosby in Ghost Dad.

[aargmematey]

gunslingeral said:

It reminds a lot of early last season when Claire stumbles into lethal injuries on a regular basis (broken neck from a freak football tackle, having a branch put through her skull, etc) and just happens to have the power to save herself.

That's amusing as just last night when my friend and I were watching the latest ep on nbc.com I used that exact same example.

It's driving me crazy. There are only so many situations where you would be forcibly separated from someone else, and they're quickly going through all of them.