Hooper Reviews Heroes: Fugitives - Ep 9

Heroes Season 3
Volume Four: Fugitives


Episode Nine: "Turn and Face the Strange"

What Happened:

Let's nutshell this one:

*Sylar and Danko frame HRG, who figures out the two are working together (clever girl). HRG also faces divorce, after Sylar messes with him while looking like his wife, prompting the company man to slam his wife into a table and press a gun to her head before a conveniently-timed call from Lyle (who? Oh, the brat) convinces him of her real-ness.
*Peter and Angela (later met by Claire, Nathan, and HRG) show up at a broken down camp of sorts where the bodies are buried, or something ominous (summer camp gone horribly wrong!).
*Matt Parkman meets his son, successfully delivered by Hiro and Ando, after ruining the one good thing in Danko's life (because that's heroic; to be fair, he doesn't kill anyone and realizes he's hit bottom).
*Suresh discovers what his dad was up to back in the 60s.

***

There are three great things about this episode:

1) Matt meets his kid, and it's a genuinely happy moment in a grim story. We see this has/will change Parkman's characterization for the better, both within the story and narratively. The guy's been Debbie Downer since this all started, not thinking logically, ignoring all the cop stuff and any sense of levity.

2) HRG is still amazing. No non-powered character is better than him, and I'd say he's more rounded than anyone on the show. So not only does he deduce the Sylar-body isn't Sylar, but James Martin, he then puts two and two together that Danko rigged this up. Sans glasses, he strolls into Danko's office, pretending to be Sylar-as-HRG and holds up some "new" files from Primatech. The bald hunter takes the bait. HRG holds him at gunpoint, but it goes downhill after that (Danko correctly tells HRG which agent Sylar is posing as, HRG shoots him and tells those around that it's really Sylar, but Sylar holds off healing to frame Noah. Noah flees, etc etc.). He's smart, and he operates using real logic, not make-believe emotional snap-decisionry (a Petrelli favorite).

3) The Japanese Trucker that sounds like GW Bush's neighbor.

***

Heroes: Fugitives
Episode One: "A Clear and Present Danger"
Episode Two: "Trust and Blood"
Episode Three: "Building 26"
Episode Four: "Cold Wars"
Episode Five: "Exposed"
Episode Six: "Shades of Gray"
Episode Seven: "Cold Snap"
Episode Seven: "Into Asylum"

-Hooper

Read on, faithful few!

Hooper Reviews Heroes: Fugitives - Episode 6

Heroes Season 3
Volume Four: Fugitives


Episode Six: "Shades of Gray"

Note: This will be really short, as I didn't see the whole episode the first time around and have been busy since.


A quick rundown:

*Parkman had a bomb strapped to his chest by the Hunter (Danko); he was drugged and released into a crowded area around Congress. The SWAT team surrounded him, and Nathan quickly arrived (flew) at the scene, calming Parkman down. Matt was able to read a bomb tech's mind and defuse the device. He was taken into custody after being knocked out by Nathan (can't have him reading minds now, can he?).

*Sylar came to the end of his road trip, an old shack in the woods, and finally met his father, Samson Gray (played liver-spotted, in full beard and very grey by John Glover)...who turned out not to be the great white hunter Sylar expected. Dying of cancer, on oxygen, Samson also has the intuitive/absorption power. In fact, he "hunted" for a number of years before giving up on the big game, finding it pointless, and settling in with what powers he can still remember (including a lulling whistle [sedation] and telekinesis).

He stuffs animals now (not slang for anything, you pervs). Sylar chose not to kill him and instead sought answers, such as why did Samson kill his wife (as seen last episode in flashback). Unfortunately, the years have not been kind to his memory, and Samson didn't remember. But he did remember the hunger that drove him to kill for powers, that Sylar deals with, when he saw his son cut his finger and then heal.

Pinning him to the wall with arrows and sedating him, he moved to cut Sylar's head open and gain access to all his abilities, but was stopped. Sylar was playing possum (irony!) and proceeded to choke Samson with his own oxygen tube...before realizing it better to let this old, broken man die alone and in pain. He left, having only made one mistake: he told Samson where he got the healing power...a cheerleader in California

*Tracy got moved back into her heat room in Building 26, received a message from Rebel that hope is coming, and then Nathan said that he's her "only hope." Danko questioned her about Nathan, trying to get her to admit he has a power (she did say, "You're one of us!" at one point). She replied he's lousy in bed, and doesn't know anything about any power.

*Danko continued to press Nathan, but it appeared he pressed to hard. Nathan came back after the Parkman affair with a presidential order removing Danko from the task force. Catching the Senator in a glass (exterior) elevator, Danko shot the glass and pushed Nathan out. Of course, Nathan flew away after exchanging quite a look with our dear Hunter. "Tell me you didn't know about this," Danko whispered to a stunned HRG.

*Claire helped the Puppetmaster (Doyle) evade the agents and supplied him with fake IDs. While she was saving him, he actually resisted the urge to have a female agent shoot herself, instead forcing her to knock herself unconscious against a wall.

*Hiro and Ando got a message from Rebel telling them to save Matt Parkman at a certain address. They showed up, looking for "Matt Parkman" and are mistaken for babysitters...for the infant named "Matt Parkman." Hilarity is sure to ensue.

To be continued next week in "Cold Snap."


Heroes: Fugitives
Episode One: "A Clear and Present Danger"
Episode Two: "Trust and Blood"
Episode Three: "Building 26"
Episode Four: "Cold Wars"
Episode Five: "Exposed"


-Hooper

Read on, faithful few!

Hooper Reviews Heroes: Fugitives - Episode 5

Heroes Season 3
Volume Four: Fugitives


Episode Five: "Exposed"

What Happened:

Like last week, we focus on only a few of the heroes and leave the massive ensemble behind. Tight plotting here, folks. Forward movement. Let's get it on!

Claire's secret is discovered as Mrs. Bennett finds Alex in the closet. The explanation Claire uses, that they were having sex, doesn't hold water as Aqualad emphasizes he never touched and barely looked at the 17-yr-old cheerleader. That Claire lied and Alex has powers disappoints Mrs. Bennet, and she says that both Claire and HRG underestimate her strength, especially in times like these. She plots to evade the gov't agents in the van parked across from their house (they know Alex is there, even if Claire is off-limits). First hiding Alex in one of HRG's hidey-holes when the agents do a random search and then causing a diversion, Mrs. Bennett proves she's not just a brainwashing practice dummy. Her diversion (driving with Lyle to the movies) gives Claire and Alex enough time to sneak out the back, dodge the agents and hide in a swimming pool (of course they have to "kiss breathe" to keep Claire alive; they've been flirting pretty hard since Mrs. B "outed" him) until Alex can get to a train. They part fondly, and Claire returns home and starts to bond with her mom...until the Puppeteer shows up. Why? "Rebel" told him "Barbie" can help....

Meanwhile, in NYC, Parkman keeps painting the same image over and over (him wearing a bomb vest), wondering if it's tied to the floor painting he did of a nuclear bomb (or mushroom-cloud producing blast) leveling the "capitol" district of Washington, D.C. Peter tells him Rebel has sent a message over the computer telling them where Daphne is (D.C.) and to flee, as the Hunter has a idea where they are (Isaac Mendez' studio). They copy the address, trust Rebel and escape just before the Hunter's agents (plainclothes) arrive.

At Building 26, the Hunter sets Peter and Parkman as top priority for detainment, but also says they are armed & dangerous. So shoot to kill, if you have to. Nathan disagrees but the Hunter calls his bluff and exerts some ominous authority. HRG vocally agrees with his immediate agent superior, leaving Sen. Nathan Petrelli in the cold.

Now, too, at Building 26, Parkman and Peter worm their way in using double-barrel telepathy (Peter ditches flight for it; "I guess the rooftop escape is out," says Matt) and make it to a control room. Now seen by the Hunter on video monitors as just down the hall, Parkman and Peter mind-control two guards to draw their sidearms and by threat of force keep the Hunter from interfering. They discover Daphne isn't at this facility and Peter downloads a crap-load of data (including video of detainees being loaded onto planes) to use as leverage. Rebel pops a message up on the computer ("You have 30 seconds"), causes a blackout and the two heroes flee...right into HRG, the Hunter and their guards. Parkman holds everyone ("his" guards & the Hunter's group) until Peter has safely escaped.

When the Agents discover Rebel's message still on the computer screen, the good Senator calls on his mother, Angela, and asks if she is tipping them off. She knows a lot, after all. No, she says, why would she jeopardize the protection Nathan affords her? Besides, she can't work a computer. Peter then phones in while they're talking and says he'll deal - Parkman and Daphne for the wildly damaging data. If not, or if he's killed, the data will be leaked. Nathan says yes, and sets a place. The Hunter, upon hearing this, says he's operating on Presidential orders ("we do not negotiate with terrorists") and will either capture or kill Peter. Nathan reminds HRG that Peter can "hear [your] thoughts," implying that he should warn the guy.

At the meeting, HRG does just that, thinking loudly (as Peter calls out for Parkman and Daphne) that it's a trap. The Hunter, no veteran of telepaths, broadcasts his thoughts about sniping Peter and though his target hears, the Hunter does hit him high in the left shoulder, sending him falling off the parking garage roof...and right into Nathan's arms. Landing a good ways away, and meeting up with Angela, Nathan tries one last time to get Peter to turn himself over to Nathan's care. All Peter wants to know is why his big brother is doing this. It's out of control, I'm the only one who can, Nathan answers. Peter sadly mocks that it's because his brother loves him that he wants Peter under his eye, right? Sure, the Sen. says, but Peter knows better, takes a dose of "flight" and zips off. Angela warns Nathan that the game has changed and she has foreseen terrible happenings. And then, she whispers in his ear, leaving Nathan looking like he's been gut-punched.

Across the country, somewhere with mountains, Sylar and Luke Campbell drive on, and our favorite serial killer is getting a wee bit annoyed with Thrill-Kill Campbell. They stop at a boarded up roadside diner, Big Jim's. Sylar's been here before, he knows this place. Exploring inside, he has a flashback and discovers that he has been here before, when he was a young boy. And with his biological father, Samson Gray. But it is the worst memory he could dredge up, as it was then that Samson sold Sylar to his brother Martin. Sylar chases his father into the parking lot where he witnesses Samson arguing with his wife. It gets serious, and Samson waves his hand and blood streaks across the back window. He pushes Sylar's mom out of the car and speeds away. Li'l Sylar then sees what will be his calling card: a ragged slash across his mom's forehead, eerily reminiscent of her boy's amateur neurosurgery.

Coming back to the Now, Luke admits Samson is a world-class jerk and Sylar should give up the hunt. The can go off together, they don't need this- Ah, mistake, Luke. Sylar realizes the boy is doing this for the thrill of it all, the excitement of being "bad," and ditches him with a parting gift: his life. Now it's on to meet Samson Gray...alone.

On the TV, the US sees footage of American soldiers detaining - without Mirandizing or probable cause - dozens of US citizens. What is this secret gov't program? Is it legal? Peter has made good on his promise.

Back in DC, the Hunter fiddles with a drugged up Parkman as they drive in a black van to an undisclosed location. You'll be the face of their fear, says the Hunter. He gives Matt an injection and pushes poor Matt out of the back of the van into a large plaza...near Congress. On his chest? A bomb vest. It's the painting, come unfortunately to life.

To be continued next week in "Shades of Gray."


In Character Development:

No Hiro, Ando, Daphne, Suresh or Tracy. Thank God, for the last one. Two weeks without Tracy.

Peter...eases further into an adult role, taking telepathy for its tactical advantage, realizing you can't plan for the end-game (rooftop escape) if you can't reach the objective. Hurray! It's taken over fifty episodes, but he's thinking his actions through.

Nathan...is quickly losing control. I see sacrifice in his future. His own.

Matt Parkman...starts behaving less like a wounded, cornered animal. When Daphne is returned to him, odds are he'll begin acting like a cop again. In this episode, he controls at least four people at once, and though it's taxing, we see he's got a great will and is more powerful than previously thought.

HRG...is our man on the inside. Agreeing with the Hunter while protecting the sanctity of life (...sort of), he walks a thin line. Not really much here, but we know he's a good soul.

The Hunter...is not a good soul. He's like Linderman or Arthur Petrellie - the ends justify the means. Also, no prisoners and he plays for keeps. Since he is capable, and not some big brute or intimidating "power," his villainy is craftier, colder, sharper. I like him.

Angela...is certainly more involved than ever, and running at least one shadow operations (HRG as double agent).

Claire (w/ Mrs. Bennett and Alex)...thinks like an adult, like her Uncle Peter. By accepting her mother as more than a domestic damsel-in-distress/target-of-opportunity, she realizes that she can rely on other people to help her. A bit sappy, but necessary. This turn should've happened sooner. Alex is out of the picture, but he'll be back and gunning for Claire's pants. Mrs. Bennett shows a little bit of characterization. Fancy that!

Luke Campbell...shall be spoken of no more, until he microwaves himself back into our hearts. Not the abused, downtrodden boy we might've thought, he is a sociopath and a dangerous influence for Sylar. Left to his own accord, he'd see many more dead.

Sylar...finally has some answers. Next week, we see the Gray men come together, I hope.


Thoughts:

*Quick paced, better than many Season 2 episodes; the season begins to turn around.

*Claire is a better character after this episode, as is her mother. I think the writers figured out the petulant victim-child and brain-adled housewife weren't that appealing.

*I'm glad Luke is no longer a Lost Boy and is just lost and alone. He's bad news.


Looking Ahead:

*Samson Gray: about damn time.
*Does Nathan fly another nuclear-armed hero to a spectacular night-sky finish?
*Hiro or Ando...anyone?

Heroes: Fugitives
Episode One: "A Clear and Present Danger"
Episode Two: "Trust and Blood"
Episode Three: "Building 26"
Episode Four: "Cold Wars"

-Hooper

Read on, faithful few!

Hooper Reviews Heroes: Fugitives - Episode 4

Heroes Season 3
Volume Four: Fugitives


Episode Four: "Cold Wars"

What Happened:
You've waited for answers. And for about a third of this "volume's" story, we got them last night. Unlike other weeks, I can be very brief here because the episode was so tightly focused. There was no ensemble-cast wanderings, like we've had since the volume's opener. Let's begin.

HRG, kicked out of his house after admitting to still being an "agent" of sorts, goes to the hotel bar to have a drink. It is spike with barbitol, obtained by Nurse Peter and somehow secretly administered (did Parkman mentally coerce the barmaid to add it?). They drag him off to their room, keep him drugged up and Parkman begins to "interrogate" him, i.e. push through his memories to see what he knows about this new government round-up program, who organized it and what potential weaknesses there might be.

The Hunter and Nathan notice HRG's absence.

In a series of black and white flashbacks, Parkman uncovers some of HRG's recent past:

*Angela gave him a "retirement" package (plus watch) from the Company and told him to go live a normal life.
*Idly doing crosswords, he approached by Nathan to help form this new government "Company" to round up those with powers and safely contain them on the way to stripping away said powers. HRG says yes, demanding some ground rules be laid down first. He also shows Nathan his "Public Storage" room filled with boxes of data and a big black cased packed with guns, ammo and grenades.
*HRG and the Hunter, upon meeting, are oil and water. The Company's "one of us, one of them" maxim is abandoned for "twelve of us...and none of them." Overwhelming force.
*HRG even goes to the Hunter's apartment (showing he does his research) for a male bonding session that really doesn't go well. No fighting, but you can see these alpha males are headed for a showdown.
*In a twist, we see that Suresh was approached by HRG to be an agent of his, an undercover power to help counteract whatever the gov't decides to do. Suresh refuses.
*When faced with a gun, HRG lets Matt into his mind one last time to prove that Daphne is still alive, but drugged up and wounded.

Now, while we are learning that HRG is a mover and shaker, though not the power behind the black-clad commandos, the Hunter has been trying to locate his wayward agent. After seeing the bit about the public storage unit, Parkman jots down the location and lock combo; Peter takes it and flies over to it. Of course, there is a camera in that unit and the commandos close in. Peter snags a few guns and grenades (smoke, flash, etc.) and flies away.

After Parkman discovers Suresh knew something was afoot, he attacks him (a fight he can't win easily) and in the confusion, HRG escapes. He doesn't make it far, as Peter lands on the car he's trying to hotwire. Parkman sends Peter to the Hunter's apartment, where the two have a tense stand-off (lopsided, as only Peter has a gun). Nathan risks exposure and flies over, defusing the situation and letting Peter escape. This reiterates the point the Hunter has been making: Nathan, with his powered brother and daughter, is too compromised.

With the commandos closing in, Suresh offers to divert their attention, shortly after they find out about Daphne. Suresh knocks some soldiers around, but gets tagged by about eight or nine electro-rounds and the commandos still snag Parkman. HRG escorts him out and, once in the open, Peter swoops in and snatches him from their midst.

The Hunter tells HRG to take some time off, but this situation has galvanized HRG and he says he is not torn anymore between loyalties and will Do What It Takes. He later meets with Angela and we discover he's a double-agent, gaining Nathan's confidence while having an ulterior motive. When told by Angela that he'll have to make some hard choices to "prove" his loyalty to the Hunter & crew, HRG replies, "I've always been comfortable with morally grey."

In Building 26, Natahn approaches Suresh and asks for his help...or else the government won't just contain and seek to strip the powers away, but kill on site.

In NYC, Parkman finishes a furious bout of painting and wonders why, why! he's cursed to paint this. He and Peter look down at the big picture on the floor, the centerpiece of all Parkman's prophetic doodles: a nuclear bomb erupting in Washington, D.C.

To be continued next week in "Exposed."


In Characters Development:

Nothing this week with Hiro, Ando, Tracy, Sylar, Luke, Alex or Claire. Here are some quick thoughts on the others.

Matt Parkman - his orderly, police-trained mind is now showing the strains of his run from the law and seeing his love gunned down. He is out for revenge and is letting it cloud his judgement. It's a human reaction, though I'll say Greg here doesn't quite play it as well as he could. Hm. I think he needs to start thinking like a cop again. When Daphne is rescued and his desire to kill fades, especially as he starts to realize what he saw in HRG's head can be interpreted differently than "pure evil" based on his actions, I think his character will rebound into the "likable" column.

Suresh - he is wracked with guilt over killing people (vol 3., Villains) and just being a jerk overall. In fact, he probably carries a degree of guilt for those he let Sylar kill, unknowingly. So now he seeks redemption, and the sacrifice to let Peter and Parkman escape is just the beginning. Will he become Nathan's "pet special" and superscientist? What damage will he inadvertently cause this time?

Peter Petrelli - a soldier in this episode, and still a bit headstrong, I think he's taking more ownership of his powers and their responsibility, understanding that making a decision requires thought and care and that wanton revenge is not the right way (or else he'd have killed the Hunter).

Nathan Petrelli - conflicted over what he's doing and worried about the beast he's unleashed (the Hunter), perhaps after three seasons of "greater good" talk and always falling in with the smooth-talking bad guys he'll finally see the light.

The Hunter - he knew there were heroes before joining Nathan's little initiative. What more do we need to know? Who had powers in his past (see "Rev. Stryker" in God Loves, Man Kills)?

HRG (Noah Bennett) - playing the undercover hero, the spy who'll never get all the credit he deserves, the "Company Man" will most certainly play a key role to undermining and dismantling what the Hunter is doing. We see his humanity numerous times in the flashbacks, as he stresses these are people they are hunting, not animals. They can be an asset, many can be good. Remember, not all were locked up at PrimaTech, only the most dangerous. Tag the quiet ones, watch them and make sure no one goes "boom." But those tactics did prove flawed as more heroes started popping up. Perhaps he'll work for integration or some sort of mass-hiding to protect these "special" people.

Daphne - Not dead.


Thoughts:

This episode moved. More importantly, it moved in the right direction, highlighting good characters (HRG, the Hunter, Parkman) who had dynamic stories to tell. We need to have some episode that are predominantly action at this point, not just talking heads. Bryan Fuller's first episode is close at hand.


Looking Ahead:

I want Sylar to get to the end of his road trip and an actual resistance to be formed with Peter and Parkman at its head. Are you saying that between those two (and with Angela's shadow backing, bound to be made apparent to them) they can't 1) get a hideout, 2) gather more heroes and 3) counter-attack? Come on!


Heroes: Fugitives
Episode One: "A Clear and Present Danger"
Episode Two: "Trust and Blood"
Episode Three: "Building 26"

-Hooper

Read on, faithful few!

Hooper Reviews Heroes: Fugitives - Episode 1

If you haven't watched the previous two and a half seasons of Heroes, I can catch you up right quick.

Concept! Heroes walk among us, ordinary people with powers far beyond those of mortal Man. Some want to be left alone, others want to help the world while yet more desire power, control and to be feared. Periodically, they clash. Rarely do they stay dead.

Ok? Now to the first episode of the second half of Season 3 (also called vol. 4. Whew!): Fugitives.

***

I will be breaking the reviews up into four parts: the episode summary, main characters development/activity, my thoughts, and questions for next week. Please use the comments section to add your wild theories, because we all know you have them.

Heroes Season 3
Volume Four: Fugitives


Episode One: "A Clear and Present Danger"

What Happened:

When we left our heroes, they had scattered after taking down Arthur Petrelli's "villains" and destroying Pinehurst, a front company in reality founded to artificially develop "powers."

Several months pass.

Nathan, using his post, is planning on rounding up all those with abilities to protect the regular citizens. He starts the episode giving an interview that vaguely refers to his plans to help protect America. What he will do - remove their powers, imprison them, force them to train and work with the US gov't - is up in the air. As the episode progresses, we see his black-clad squads capture Tracy, Suresh, Hiro, Parkman, Claire and Peter. The only one they have trouble with is Sylar, now on the hunt for his biological father. After he seeks out "Martin Gray," his adoptive watchmaker deadbeat dad, he gets the address of the main Martin claims is his real dad. While there, the goons attempt - and spectacularly fail - to capture him. Then he starts "asking" some questions....

Taken to an airport hanger with other captured heroes, blindfolded and manacled, our protagonists are led onto a plane bound for parts unknown. Except for Claire. Nathan, her biological father, packs her away in a car and tells her to forget all of this. Of course, she doesn't. Instead, she knocks out the driver and sneaks aboard the plane.

In mid-flight, Claire unhooks the imprisoned heroes from some chemical nose-plug thing that obviously inhibits powers. Peter awakens, sees the situation, absorbs Suresh's strength and begins to fight the guards. Pandemonium ensues, causing him to get Tracy's cold touch, which he unfortunately uses on the tail end of the plane...now a gaping hole sucking out nameless people we don't care about. Claire goes to the cockpit and sees her father, HRG. "Claire?!" She looks stunned. The ground rushes up through the cockpit as they lose cabin pressure and control. The episode ends.

***

In character development...:

Here's what they did before they got on that plane (no, this isn't about LOST).

Peter & Nathan Petrelli
Peter Petrelli is an EMT now, his brother Nathan a powerful Senator on the Homeland Security committee; the death of their deranged father is behind them. Peter had his abilities stripped from him partway through the "Villains" arc but, using Suresh's super-serum, got them back...or did he? Unable to save the life of an accident victim, he laments to his co-worker that he could've saved him, if he had more power. Throughout the episode he runs into Claire, who warns him of Nathan, and Suresh; they just catch up before reminding each other to be careful. He also seeks out Nathan after Claire's warning, and confronts him not once, but twice (though, the second time, Nathan is in his apartment, waiting). The greater good is brought up, and each has clearly different views of what that really means. Nathan asks Peter, when they first meet at their mother's mansion, what powers he currently has. Flight, Peter replies, as he hasn't seen any of the other heroes since Pinehurst. When Nathan surprises Peter at the apartment, he maneuvers him into a trap and captures him with his chief "hunter's" help.

While Peter struggles to be a hero, Nathan has bullied his way into a very powerful post. He's giving interviews, talking about the greater good, the larger struggles against unseen threats. We know he means "heroes," but the average American can just think he's after terrorists. Good cover, because regular citizens would flip if they knew he was masterminding a program to round up all those with powers and shuttle them off to an undisclosed facility...for everyone's own good, of course. He defends himself and reiterates to his mother that Claire is to be kept away from the others and in the dark. There is a small part of him that cares for his daughter, even if he's never really been a father to her. When everyone is aboard the plane and it taxis for take-off and flies in to the night sky, he stares after it...regretting? Scheming? Mentally rubbing his hands together in evil glee? Or is it resignation, as he knows what he's done to these people is a violation of our freedoms, but in his "greater good" mentality these actions remain the best course to keep the country from ruin? Hm....

Tracy (triplet the second)
She's getting back in with the Governor of NY, or at least still has her political contacts to fall back on after being on the losing side in the PrimaTech heroes vs. the Pinehurst villains fight. The episode - in general - starts with Nathan giving an interview/stump speech about protecting America; Tracy watches while assuring NY's governor that she has no leash on him anymore, that he's climbing the ladder under his own steam. And then she gets taken. She is the first to be kidnapped, and here her attackers show their preparedness. As we know, she can freeze things by touch, and tries to do so when the first attacker closes in on her, grasping his arm and icing it up...but it thaws. Yes, they have built in to their uniforms some measure of "power repellent" against some of the easier-to-block abilities. She is still taken after they use a powerful taser device against her.

Mohinder Suresh
Suresh drives a cab again. After chatting with Peter, a gaunt man gets into his backseat, pulls a gun and tells him to drive. We see his face and it's Nathan's chief black-clad hunter. Driving to the top floor of a parking garage, Suresh stops the cab and finds himself facing a ring of goons with rifles and a waiting fan to whisk him away. The hunter tells him to get out, and he does...but he doesn't go quietly. Gripping his open door, he pulls it off the hinges and batters the chief hunter away (so they have armor on those suits; otherwise, he'd be pudding). He uses the door as a shield against the goons, who fire taser rounds (about the size of sidewalk chalk) ineffectively and with stormtrooper-quality aim, until reaching the downward ramp. Sprinting around the spiral ramp, he stops as...Noah Bennett (HRG) pulls up in his stylish black crossover SUV, urging him to get in now! To save himself! He does, foolishly (why does Suresh always make the wrong choices? He knows Bennett has frequently worked at odds to the heroes, both good and evil, to keep humanity safe from super-humanity). Bennett asks if he's been in contact with any other heroes, Bennett skids to a halt as gaunt hunter appears, Suresh gets confused and apologizing, Bennett tasers and delivers him to the goon squad.

Claire Bennett
Struggling with the mundane real world, Claire wants the action back. Something to keep her from being just another kid. Her biological grandmother, Angela Petrelli, pushes her to choose a college and therefore a normal life. Claire wants to hunt down Sylar, knowing that the "trips" her dad is always away at are related to special people. They have to be, in her mind. Angela tolerates her, at best, saying that Sylar is dead. End of discussion. Later, Claire picks up the phone and hears an agitated Angela talking to Nathan about the future abductions of Peter and Matt Parkman. Nathan tells Angela to keep Claire away from them. It is then that Angela looks up...and sees Claire on an extension.

So later, Claire tracks down Peter and warns him that Nathan's coming to get him. Being who he is, Peter believes her right away and goes off to confront Nathan. Claire, meanwhile, heads to Parkman's apartment. She knocks and they talk, but Matt's more interested in these drawings he's made (see below) that show he and Claire...looking at the drawings. Another shows something sticking out of Matt's neck. What is that, Claire asks. And then Matt is shot with an electro-tranq dart, commandos burst into the room and she's taken.

Hiro & Ando
Hiro, now without his powers since Arthur Petrelli stole/blocked them, is trying to make Ando (who still retains his artificially granted ability to augment others' power) a hero and instill in him a sense of responsibility. This...isn't working so well. Hiro has bought an old firehouse and has converted it to a sort of Ando-cave for his superheroing. To keep tabs on each other, he injects Ando with a GPS tracking device, saying he did the same to himself. Hiro even got an "Ando-cycle," complete with two-way communications to base. Ando is skeptical and views this as Hiro's attempt to live through Ando now that he's powerless. He leaves.

Later, Hiro tracks down Ando and calls him, demanding to know why he isn't saving the world or being a hero. But I am, Ando says. Then why are you in a strip club, Hiro replies. Ah, Ando. As they continue to bicker, Ando hears sounds of a struggle on Hiro's end and we see our pudgy protagonist carted off, unconscious, by the Hunter's commando squad. Ando races back to the firehouse and is able to track Hiro...to the US.

Matt Parkman and Daphne
They are trying to live normal lives, if their powers (and Daphne's impulsiveness) can let them. She's working and he's a security guard, but neither is really happy. But better being normal than in danger. It's while arguing about what they should be doing that Matt gets a vision of Usutu, the dead African seer. Daphne agrees to be normal, and heads out. Matt's turtle later escapes and in putting in back, he sees Usutu again who tells him he'll be a great prophet and gain the ability to draw/paint the future (like Isaac Mendez). And sure enough, his eyes get all cloudy and he begins to draw. And several hours later, Claire appears, they talk, get taken, etc. You've read that before.

HRG (Noah Bennett)
... is, as always, an enigma. He's working for Nathan, co-leading the round-up of heroes and yet...I don't believe it. See Suresh and Claire for his part in this episode.

Gabriel "Sylar" Gray
Oh, and Sylar, thought dead in the fiery demise of Pinehurst, is healed up and back in the game, searching for his biological father. Sylar tracks down his adoptive father, the watchmaker Martin Gray. At the watch repair shop, Martin pulls a shotgun on Sylar before realizing who he is. To our great surprise, he doesn't lie to Sylar and admits that he wasn't a good father and walked out because he couldn't stand Virginia, the snow globe collector; they should never have had a child together (small lie). No, Sylar's father is the watchmaker's brother, Martin explains after light (verbal) pressuring. The brother, Samson Gray (named later), needed money and gave his child to Martin and Virginia who wanted a kid but couldn't have one. Martin gives Sylar the address; there is no violence between these two, just some regret and resentment.

Going to the address given him, a taxidermy shop, Sylar enters and pokes around. A small picture of a young boy with black hair and glasses (little Gabriel "Sylar" Gray...?) is seen, as is a snow globe and a smoldering cigarette. Suddenly, one of the better action scenes of the series starts. The black-clad commando squad attempts to capture Sylar, shooting electro-darts in him, noosing his head and arms with those contraptions animal tamers use (metal noose at the end of a pole). To no avail. Using his telekinesis, he literally moves the house he's in, shaking everything, throwing his attackers all over the place (with a little electrical assist) until they're down for the count. One remains conscious. Shaking off the restraints, Sylar levitates him off the ground and informs him there will be a Q & A session following this beat-down.


Thoughts:

*Sylar returned too early; I was hoping he'd sit out most of the season and come in towards the end as a repentant savior figure. Following his end-of-the-episode appearance, the next ep would detail where he'd been all season, what he'd learned, done, etc. But that was my fantasy version of the story. As is, I look forward to John Glover giving his impression of Father Knows Best to a bratty superpowered psychochild.

*I want HRG to be good. I think, at the core, he is. But to side with Nathan? Eh...I hope there are wheels within wheels.

*Suresh's super-strength in demonstration was terrific. In fact, the use of powers, the crack detainment squads, the action in general - big fan of all of that.

*I think the direction is better now than it was before. It's not as...average. The producers have realized this show needs a visual flair to match the storytelling and whoever is in the director's chair agrees. Technically superior to the last two "volumes."

*I don't know how Nathan would know about Ando having powers, as they weren't part of the same plot group at any point last "volume." So unless he shows himself off, I think he's clear to act.

*Forcing Peter to touch heroes to get their ability adds a degree of vulnerability to his character, instead of just passively absorbing them through proximity. That was a cop-out to make him this God-like hero.


Looking ahead:

*Looking forward to the plane crash and how they survive.
*Will HRG emerge more heroic after his fellow commandos/goons are knocked out in the crash?
*Where's Daphne? Did she dodge capture?
*Is Angela a plotter, maybe with something on the side with HRG?
*Do we meet John Glover/Samson Gray next episode? They can't get him in soon enough.

Until next week!

-Hooper

Read on, faithful few!