Column by Craig Byrne
Full disclosure here: I was there for the beginning of Heroes fandom, having helped NBC and the show’s producers to launch 9thWonders.com in July 2006. Since stepping down from there later that year, I launched HeroSite.net at the middle of the first season when the show was really doing well. I’ve seen every episode of the show, through good times and bad. However, what I have to say might not be popular with the entire Heroes fan base, so please, go easy on me.
With that in mind… despite international popularity and still being one of the best-selling series as far as TV show DVD’s go, it’s no secret that Heroes is in trouble. The show has lost a large percentage of its audience, apathy is growing among viewers, and for some, it’s no longer that show that everyone fell in love with during the first season. It’s easy to place the blame – people can point to creator Tim Kring, the loss of key creators, the writers’ strike, slashed budgets, repetitive story fake-outs and alliance shifts, Maya & Alejandro, the network, losing Adrian Pasdar, you name it, it’s been said before – but at the end of the day the important thing to look at is that the show could use some heroes of its own. If NBC wasn’t in such bad shape that they are in right now, a fifth season of Heroes would not even be a possibility, despite the benefits that are there.
The fourth season finale was viewed live by less than 5 million people. Now, downloads, DVR, and such will probably push the show over the edge – but it’s those live viewers that matter the most to advertisers. So, what’s a network to do?
One idea that has been proposed by critics and columnists is that Heroes should return for a protracted Season 5 to “wrap things up.” While again, there are benefits to that, there’s another factor: Whether it was intended to be one or not, the final episode of Season 4 worked very effectively as a series finale if it has to be one. Hiro’s journey is complete. Sylar is finding redemption. Claire’s final moments echo our first introduction to her. And Tracy… is a puddle. (Can’t win ’em all) As a viewer of the show for four seasons, I could leave there and be satisfied. BUT…
….despite the falling ratings, there are still a lot of people who want more. They love the universe of Heroes and want to see it continue. So what do I propose? Keeping in mind that I am not a television executive and if I were one, I’d probably be laughed at for this idea…
…Heroes should return, during November sweeps or thereabouts, as a 2-hour TV-movie or even two 2-hour TV-movies.
Let some time pass into this “Brave New World,” and treat it like a “reunion movie” of a long lost series. What’s happened since then? Did the world react well to Claire’s coming out? How is that good guy thing working for Sylar? And please, oh please, is the carnival gone for good?
This could also serve as a good “jumping-back-on point” for those who gave up on the show years ago. It’d be a fresh start for all, about a re-gathering of Heroes, moving forward with the concept rather than going backward and, even worse, retconning past moments.
Time past would also mean if certain actors are (or aren’t) available, it can be written around depending on availability.
A TV-movie (or two) would surely sell well on DVD, bringing parent company NBC Universal a nice revenue stream. Sure, they’d get a revenue stream by picking up another season, but I’m sure the profit margin on a single DVD would be much higher than the profit margin on a full season of something that’s not a sure thing.
Then say a rejuvenated Heroes TV-movie is popular. That’s when a full-scale relaunch of the show, as a weekly series, would be a keen idea. And if it didn’t do well… then, hey, the loyal fans of the show get an extra movie or two, and NBC gets profits from that. Consider a TV-movie to be like a “new pilot.”
Comic books relaunch all the time after sales start to fall. A relaunch for Heroes might be just what the Company ordered, because if the show continues on the trajectory it was falling, and NBC picks the show up for Season 5, they could be seeing CW-level numbers by the end of December.
Now, NBC’s in such dire shape they could end up picking up Heroes regardless. I admit, though, that I’m a little skeptical that there’s much that can be done to get people to tune in for a Season 5 premiere without making some drastic changes, and so far it seems almost everything they’ve tried since Season 3 or so hasn’t brought anyone back. Some might write Heroes off as a dead franchise already; I don’t think so. With the right redirection, and an accessible enough reason to return, it’d still have plenty of life yet. (Just please, enough with the death fake-outs, gimmicky kisses, repetitive storylines – Hiro I’m looking at you, and changing sides. It’s getting old.)
What do you think? Sound off in the comments, and again, go easy on me. I’d definitely be curious what others would propose for NBC in continuing the franchise.
58 Comments
The idea makes sense.
I think you could do an S5 with the existing characters. But equally, as you said, you could use the ‘everyone knows about supers’ angle to tell stories about characters finding about their abilities in that climate. The show as it started was about ordinary people finding that they had abilities and thinking they were alone… a natural extension would be someone finding out they had an ability in a world where the general population knew about said abilities.
How would that affect someone?
It’s ripe ground for a pseudo-reboot. Not a flat-out reboot, but the way that Marvel will change the numbering on a comic-book from time to time. It’s still the same comic-book, but we’re letting new people in and showing them that there’s fresh stories that can be told.
It also means the existing characters can be used, but in a guest facility.
They can go back to the original theme that S2 was to have. Namely a brand new cast with the existing actors hopping in when their schedule permits. It allows for a fresh-start, but with an established crew who – let’s face it – are exceptional at creating sets, make-up, and directing the show. Those people should in no way be out of work, but instead used to create a new extension of the franchise.
You know Ian, at this point I think I’d be down with a new cast of people with abilities, but mostly because I admit I kind of grew weary of the current crop – even characters I loved in past seasons.
My proposal above mostly involved keeping the established characters, maybe even bringing back some forgotten favorites (like Monica, who never got a decent send-off)… but you know what? A new cast would be a lot more fun than “Hiro has wacky antics, again.” (I really hoped Hiro would be more like the Hiro at the end of Hiros by now)
It’s still a very good, thriving universe and you are right, there are some talented people working on the series. I wouldn’t want anyone out of work. But I do think some decisions need to be made about bringing it back, that’s for sure. And like I said, the end of Season 4 really felt like a fitting final chapter to me… and I mean that as a compliment.
If you want to grab people by the face and make ’em look; rather than 2 TV movies, how about 3-4 part mini-series? Personally, I think TV Movies have a bit of a stigma attached to them. Yes it worked for Smallville to a degree; but playing word association, you say TV movie… I think Hallmark Movie Channel. But a high budget, 4 night, 2 hour mini-series EVENT would generate attention.
The second thing I would do is tap an uber-comic geek with some (comic) street cred to write the re-launch story. I’m not into comics nearly as much as I once was, but thinking someone like a Kevin Smith, Neil Gaiman, Chris Claremnont, or a hot indie scribe (like Todd McFarlane was in the 1990’s when he started Spawn, after relaunching Spidey for Marvel). Someone with a vivid imagination for the fantastic, that could really open up a comic world to the masses (again).
Thirdly, I would definitely think about running said mini-series on SyFy (or USA) rather than the mother ship itself. NBC (the broadcast network) is in turmoil; move the show to a place it could be properly marketed and nurtured back to health (the only downside would be the inevitable Heroes on SyFy Friday competing with Smallville).
Doug, also some fantastic ideas.
I still would side with the NBC mothership because honestly, they can use all the good programming they can get. A good Heroes movie (or mini-series, as you suggest) could be a good tentpole for their Sweeps line-up.
Also love the idea of some big name involvement.
I don’t think they have to get rid of the “regulars”, but of course they’ll have to bring in new characters. I’ve had a few ideas, mostly jumping-off points.
Instead of having “specials” treated like pariahs (as in the X-Men), or showing them attempting to enter the mainstream (as in “True Blood”), show them being treated like celebrities. Show them readily accepted and even admired for their abilities, and having to deal with their new-found fame (and all that entails, not all of which is good). Of course that won’t always be the case, which can be the origin of another subplot. Perhaps “Brave New World” could become like the “I Am Become Death”/Exposure Future, the same way that “Fugitives” was like the “Five Years Gone”/Explosion Future.
Tracy started a half-way house for specials in the online comics. They should definitely explore this. Lots of room for old & new characters, with Tracy, HRG, and Lauren in charge. (Can you imagine Sylar as a counselor?)
And there will be another “big bad”. I thought about a string of murders, possibly blamed on Sylar, but actually commited by another character (Sylar’s dad? Sylar’s long-lost brother? Those might be too obvious/cheesy).
There could be a group of villainous specials (like the Brotherhood of Mutants in X-Men) that make people rethink their admiration for specials. Maybe the group includes the microwave kid, who decided to follow in Sylar’s footsteps (the bad Sylar, that is).
I don’t think the Gretchen-Claire kiss was necessarily “gimmicky” (though they did promote the hell out of it) provided they actually see the storyline through (it seems they planned to, given the events of “Pass/Fail”). I think it’s fortunate that Gretchen wasn’t killed off, given the way most Heroes relationships end – namely, in tears. Anyway, I think it would be interesting to see how Claire being the face of the “Brave New World” affects their relationship. I think Gretchen will be supportive, but who knows what might happen…?
I think in a whole season I really couldn’t get much of a grasp on the Gretchen character besides “she digs Claire.”
I wish the Tracy “halfway house” storyline had been explored on the show itself; yes, it sounds very X-Men but it sounds “very X-Men” in a good way!
I’d be totally okay with it if I never see Lauren again, though.
The series should have followed more closely to film franchises, less characters and stayed on track with what the volume title was. First season Origin, Second season confusion/misbelief, Third season dark paths/villains and Fourth, destiny
Volume 1 started off well and it delivered what was promised. Ordinary people finding out they could do extraordinary things. Simple. Direct. Fun.
It was great to see the journey (or maybe origin is more appropriate for a comic book influenced show) to watch Peter and Hiro discover their powers and they genuinely wanted to do good. Peter, a hospice nurse and Hiro, an passionate comic book fan are great choices and almost become believable that in today’s world, as bad as it is, Superman could exist.
I loved that Peter discovered, wow, I can do something extraordinary, but only with extraordinary people present. Already overshadowed by his brother and family, this was perfect for character development. That even with powers, he wasn’t special enough to stand out. And Hiro and his famous face to teleport worked well too….for marketing and the struggle. Two guys, same family problems, working to make a difference with what they had.
So, I’ll get to my point. Less Heroes (and heroes who actually save US and not eachother) and more villains (even common thugs or gangs. We dont really need Sylar all the time). And yeah, the tragic future story served well, but has anyone noticed, anytime we saw a future, it was ALWAYS terrible. Why bother if every year the future got worse and worse??
Peter should have not scratched the service of his power until Season 2. Hiro as well. Sylar, make him as powerful as you want, but God, stay true to that. He flipped flopped so many times it lost value.
Less powered people. I mean we continued to see powers duplicated and how did Suresh’s father have such a hard time when two dozen people with abilities resided in NYC alone.
So ween out Matt, Ando, Tracy, and keep it simple
Heroes
Peter – our very own Superman. He can do anything but with one weakness, harm to his family and friends.
Hiro – time jumping batman. He can be anywhere, but not all at once
Claire – our younger wonder woman. Her faith in mankind gives her the strength she needs to make a difference. She can’t feel pain, but she certainly feels pain for others and a father who breaks her heart.
Suresh – We need the Beast. Someone who understands how this works.
Micah – You can have someone like Peter, but tech nerds are always a win.
Villains
Sylar – perfect bizzaro for our Peter Petrelli
HRG – I’m sorry, but he worked better as a threat than a “is he good or bad” guy. Heroes can’t pull off shades of gray..AT ALL.
Nathan – the Cain to the Petrelli brothers. He worked so much better as a bastard than a constant flip flopper.
The Company – just trained opperatives who know how to take down specials…and maybe yeah, have a team of supers who are back ups.
Linderman – Perfect Lex Luthor. He could cure cancer, but out of selfishness and greed, he only wants a better tomorrow to be HIS
Carnies – I think they had the right idea, but poor execution. I didn’t care about anything Samuel had to say. He just plays a bad guy so well, even his sentimental, sincere moments sound mischievous. Don’t try to some up with eleborate plans or be diabolical. Just freaks who want to harm humans. Basically the Magneto to this show.
Agree or Disagree, but thats how I would have ran Heroes and not to the ground.
What they need to do is shake up the show and take it to another level. They should bring in new characters that are far more powerful for our heroes to go up against. Introduce a new villain that is Godlike in power to make Sylar look small and give him a challenege and to redeem himself. Also Peter needs to get his powers back already it’s what we all want to see! The show also needs a new mythology to concentrate on something epic last year the stories were becoming so small and repetetive. The point of Heroes in the first place was to take a group of individuals and they have a giant effect on the “world” lets get back to the big picture.
I couldn’t agree more about finding some way to revamp the show. I loved season 1 as I’m sure most of you did too, but what I think is a massively under-rated chapter is the beggining of season 3 “Villains”. I thought it was thoroughly exciting, you never knew what was coming and in almost every episode there was something that shocked you.
We need the next season to be like this, be it the last or whatever. Short of introducing new characters (perhaps an empath for Peter to finally get his powers back I mean come on!), then it’s practically impossible to create another season 1.
I also think they should give the fans what they want. By this I mean showing the characters the audience enjoy as a majority, such as Sylar, Peter, Claire and Hiro. I’m sure different people have different favourites but looking around these four seem to be the most common faves.
I do like the idea also to get experienced new writers in. People who have written for programmes like heroes before, or perhaps as mentioned above people who have written successfully for comics to bring in wild new ideas.
Whatever the case there needs to be some twists and turns in whatever’s to come. They need to give the fans what they want, I feel they need to make it faster and more exciting, they need to promote the hell out of it so even us here in England hear about it, get the right writers in, possibly introduce some new more interesting characters with better personalities and powers (not just being able to see sound…and maybe a funny guy like Johny storm out of the fantastic four or something).
But finally a kick ass story, like I remember someone posting about Tracy’s half way house against a league of super villains. Does that not make you want another season?
Thoughtless column. If the basic quality issues are addressed then Heroes would at least have a chance. Unless those issues are addressed there would be no chance. Why do people think the problems would go away if it was a ‘two hour movie’ or a short run or even a single episode? Or on a different night?
The issue here is that Kring is not producing a quality product. All the churn in the world won’t change that.
Viewer’s didn’t leave Heroes, it left them.
This column really took the easy way out. Either not well thought out, or the author has little experience with manufacturing content.
Some great comments… I loved this show, Season 1 was amazing in merging a geek-fest comic book story to a spiritual storyline of people being connected and sharing an affinity. Whilst Season 2 wasn’t as good, it still worked, was a pretty tight story and in comparison to the last two seasons holds up really well. Season 3 had its moments and i love the concept of having two or more volumes in one season. Season 4 started well, seemed to be focusing on characters again, introduced an interesting sympathetic villain and i thought it was going to build to something nicely but then it just stalled and plodded along… how many times did we really need Emma playing her music and looking at wonder at pretty colours?? ; what happened to Peter’s urgency to heal Hiro; How much time was wasted on Clare’s uni mate relationship? Clare’s father-daughter relationship has been done to death, etc
The strongest moment for me this season was the kid who could heal and was lynched by the town, we need more stronger sub-plots like this where it beautifully mixes fantasy elements to real-life consequences. Samuel’s revenge of this incident was great too, and i thought at that moment this could build to the best season finale yet… but it was awful, it’s become terribly obvious that the budget cuts have killed the effects budget and the writer’s aren’t strong enough to write there way around such restrictions… they also don’t know what to do with half the regulars.
It’s now at the point where the audience seem smarter than the writers, picking up plot holes and inconsistencies around character’s behaviour and motives.
CHARACTERS
Peter – Would be great if he regained his powers and I’m surprised he hasn’t tried to learn if there’s a way he can do this, such as Claude taught him in season 1 how to keep each… yes it’s not exactly the same gift he had originally but you’d think he’d look into it.
Sylar – Great character but not sure what they can really do with him anymore, they’ve played all the cards it seems. The teaming up with Noah in s3 was fun where he had a conflict between hero and gaining more powers. Got a feeling they’re just going to retread this over and over again.
Hiro – Amnesia, Illness, they’ve given him all sorts of ways to lose his powers but its becoming repetive. The strongest thing they have going for him is the moral code that he knows he should not interfere with history. That’s all you need. The time travel thing is very tricky but could be a lot more fun too. Loved how they resolved the Charley storyline, the only real thing of interest in the finale. The Ando and sister set-up created too many holes for me, if Ando was in a relationship all this time, it’s doubtful he would’ve been with Hiro as much and a fair chance he’d never develop the supercharge powers.
Clare – Got to the point in s4 where the story seemed to just stop whenever it returned to her sub-plot. They need some strong writers who can write for females because they’re not taking her anywhere at the moment.
Need to really bring in new blood and better villains. Volume 3 ‘Villains’ should’ve focused on characters who’d discovered powers but slowly succumbed to the dark side – something akin to Pyro’s arc in X-Men 2 – rather than the heroes just rounding up established bad guys who were just caricatures; that could’ve laid the groundwork for a series of characters as interesting as Sylar in future seasons. At the moment the stakes are just not high enough to keep the conflict going and it’s lost so much of its audience… but this show could be great again!!
Geoff Johns should advise the “Heroes” writing staff – I said it.
And although he was rude in the way he said it, kyle747 was actually right…unless the quality of the product changes, it doesn’t matter if it’s brought back as a movie, mini-series or tv show.
Gary – I agree. Kyle747’s tone was incredibly insulting and rude, especially considering that the subject of the column was how to continue the series, not necessarily how it could improve. But I do agree that creatively, the show needs to change or else it won’t be long for this world no matter what they do.
I’ve had my own serious issues with what Heroes became in this past season. I’d be hopeful a reboot would clear out the dead weight and repetitive/deteriorating storylines. The show had almost become a chore to watch this season. But, that’s not what the column was about – I was preferring to focus on the positive aspects and finding a way to take what Heroes has become and try to make it something that people would like watching again.
Most people that I know that watcheD “Heroes” hated it after the first season. I enjoyed the second season and had to go back to watch the first season, which I had skipped.
“Heroes” was important when it first started because it was fresh. It was a good idea and it was interesting, discovering the powers of the current characters, discovering new characters with powers, deciding alliances even within Peter’s family, getting used to Peter learning what he could do and which powers he had, wondering which alternate universe was going to end up being actual reality…
IMO, The writer’s stike is what killed the show. It never recovered after they had to hustle the ending.
This season was ridiculous, as it was more soap opera than action. It’s the same thing that happened to “The Sopranos”. Season one was great because people were dropping like flies and you’re wondering if Tony’s going to make it. Season two was ok, but after that, they realized they couldn’t kill off any more mobsters and the show became all about Tony’s therapy and hanging out with his family and mistresses. *yawn*
Similarly, they spent this whole season trying to stop T-Bag, whose only skill is to move the Earth.. *IF* he has a bunch of specials around him. HRG could have shot him, Nikki could have frozen him, The Haitian could have blocked his powers, Peter could have flown down from the sky and carried him to the moon.. As soon as Hiro found his girlfriend in the hospital and then he was at the carnival, all he had to do was stop time, go find T-Bag and teleport him away from the specials.. Case closed. There were too many ways for the so-called main villain to be stopped and you’re like “Well.. stop him already. *yawn*”
On top of that, the only character worthy of being a main villain, Sylar, a) wanted his powers removed, and b) ends up as a good guy after hanging out with Peter for “years”, so not only don’t you have anyone that you have to figure out how to stop, but the guy with the most power is now on the good-guy team.
Anyway.. The writing on the first two seasons is great and groundbreaking. The rest of it, you just tune in to watch some of your favorite television stars act.
Hello Craig,
In a way, having followed this show from the start like you, I think many characters have run their course. Even though some events were prevented from “Five Years Gone” from occuring, I think we still should have seen the birth of Future Hiro complete with katana and soul patch (I just think he was a way better characters than naive Hiro is), and also agree that Peter seemed to be a bit lax on his de-powering (even though he should be glad he did get SOME power back).
I think “Brand New Day” should also be set a little in the future and deal with unknown heroes who know about their abilities or just discover them, and struggle with not only deciding to come out of the Batcave, but also whether they’d prefer to use them for the betterment or detriment of man-kind.
Also we need to look at some implications such as will some people try to profit much the same way Booster Gold did in the comics, and what if a famous athelete comes out and admits his high skill is actually an ability? Will he be supported or rail-roaded?
What I mean is not only will this coming out also affect us on a world scale, but also how do people deal with this personally and how does it affect them on a personal/professional level? You would have corporations clammering to hire the man who could fly to sponsor their airline for example: “You might not be able to fly like me, but flying with such-and-such airlines is just as good” etc.
Also I end with that partly where Heroes failed was that they were too busy trying to save each other (and that really includes Noah trying to protect his indestructible daughter which is so stupid), but they should have been saving normal people. The reason Peter’s empathy power originally worked was due to his ability to CONNECT with people, and not just specials. And that is what makes Superman the most popular hero, and head of the JLA is his humanity and care for humans, even though he is not one, just like Peter…..
Whilst I agree that a couple of TV Movies or a four-part mini series would probably work and certainly be interesting for fans, personally I think things have already been wrapped up.
I hope I am wrong, but the ending of season four just seemed to contain a few too many things to make it look like it would ever come back (Sylar’s comment about now being a Hero and what Claire did to point things back to the very beginning).
I don’t think Tim Kring expects this to get another season, so basically finished it (or put a finish in as much as possible for the fans).
Maybe if it is the case that budgets are nothing like they used to be and they have run out of ideas it is best that it ends at this point, as I would hate for it to somehow carry on to another season and get demonstrably worse (Smallville season 8 springs to mind…).
i think it is an excellent idea.Like u i am also a very big fan of heroes and didn’t even miss one episode.I think wat u have suggested is an awesome idea (i wish NBC reads this)and follows ur ideas.i RRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLYYYYYYYY RRRRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLYY want to see anther season of heroes
What I’m personally most interested in is to see Sylar really being and staying a good guy. I always found him to be the most interesting character and hoped he would turn to the good side, so when I read on the web that he has recently become a good guy (in my country they are currently showing the end of season 3, so I haven’t seen it myself yet) I got totally fascinated. I would so love to see a full season with a good Sylar, it would be a such a disappointment for me if the whole series ends just when finally happened what I always hoped for.
i say let there be a 5th season to end the series right. i loved every season and think people what to much from heroes to fit there needs. the only problem with that is every has there own idea of what they want from the show. some like me want small things like peter holding up to five powers at once. others what to many big things that make the show flip-flop alot. i say let there be a 5th season let it play out to the end to see what happens and just enjoy it. remember when you buy your last heroes DVD do you want it to end with a cliffhanger or end with an ending.
I think they should kinda do a marvel thing… maybe like the last incredible hulk movie. Have Sylar down in South America or in some far away russian mountain just staying off the grid. Big bad villain in the states getting more and more powerful like him in season 1. villain way more powerful than Peter and Hiro can handle and they have to find a Sylar that doesnt want to be found. Maybe the company has had this villain in the basement or something for the last 25 years or something and he has been dormant. Sylar could start painting like Isaac or some weird dreams where he knew something bad was coming but just wanted to avoid could be tied in.
Peter definitely needs his powers back. Maybe Ando could juice him or something. This one power thing is lame. Everyone he fights, he just fights them with their own power is boring. you fight fire with water, not fire lol. The Specials that robbed the bank were pretty cool but short lived. Future Peter had that awesome power of placing one person inside another, they could bring the original owner in the show.
Cuttind dead weight characters is a must… instead of a million characters with a little bit of history, get a just a few characters and use a big history on each one. Maybe Peter and Hiro use Emma and the lil girl(that could mentally find heroes) to call out to specials for help to fight this villain. 1/3 of episode be new hero history, 2/3 Peter searching for help and conflict of villain for each episode leading to return of big battle like end of S1 “exploding man”.
Im tired of Noah and Claire fighting over dinner time! they wasted so much time S4 with that crap. She cant die… let her do what she wants. stop saving each other and save the helpless.
I loved this show…(for the first two seasons), looked forward to seeing it every week then bang! Peter had his powers taken.. I felt deflated.. now its just something to watch when there is nothing on the other channels.
Dont get me wrong.. I think its one of the best shows ever but the makers should really listen to the fans for once…
I think exactly the same than Dave, when peter loose his powers, people didn’t react well, his line on the series where broken, and all the evolution of heroes, the big fights, the great effects, were changed for just explanation histories, Heroes should be continue on the line of the first two volumes.
I am from Chile and everybody know Heroes, is a big hit in south america.
I don’t think they need ANY new ideas. The show’s already got plenty of subjects to work with. In the Season 2 finale there was a room with all sorts of strange doohickies that can be given backstory, they must have had some importance to have been locked up. A lot of people have speculated Samson as the new villain and I honestly suspect that they were planning that. He’d make an excellent one too since he wouldn’t have too many powers because he only hunts for ones worth his time, but he’d still be dangerous because the powers he did have would be deadly.
Some people just need to stop complaining though. The Writer’s Strike alone didn’t mess up Season 2, Tim didn’t have to picket the show, but he did because “fans” were complaining that things were too slow. Instead of Exodus for Volume 3 we got Villains and it was definately faster, too fast. The story was messed up from what it was intended to be and the writers understandably failed to right it.
Think about how Maya and Mohinder turned out? The relationship was planned out ahead of time and probably would have turned out better as well as adding more depth to Maya. Maya was also planned as the one who would save the day by absorbing the Shanti Virus in Odessa.
Monica would probably still be in the cast, as well as Micah. Fortunately Micah, as he is now, is very cool even if he could stand to make more appearances. I don’t know, but I believe, that Peter losing his powers wouldn’t have happened, nor would the eclipse that took everyone’s powers away.
All that aside, the story now is wonderful. I think the show has held steady since Volume 4 no matter what people say. I have faith that the show will go on and be excellent, but everyone needs to stop whining. I don’t see any problems with the way things are now and if you’d just sit back and relax you wouldn’t either.
I say they should pull a Dallas and wipe out at least the last 2 seasons. Season 5 could open with Hiro addressing the camera and saying “Sorry for the last three seasons folks, but don’t worry, I will fix it.” Hiro then goes back in time to the end of the first season (or second season) and we proceed from there. (Future Hiro would then disappear into the alternate universe from which he came, or disappear completely, depending on which theory of time travel the writers decide to go with). Sylar would be the villain again, Peter would have his original powers, Suresh would be the everyman without powers that the series needs, etc. We could then see the series progress the way it should, with our heroes furthering the discovery of their powers and using them as real heroes. There could be fast forwards interspersed throughout the season to bring it back into present time.
Peter, I’d go for that too – if only to wash the last few seasons from my mind.
If there is a fifth season (as opposed to a mini-series/TV movies), I think the key is, very simply, to do a ‘soft’ version of the original plan. Bring in an original character. Let him/her discover the world of “Heroes” and make the regular cast supporting characters, recurring through this new character’s discovery of metahuman powers. Focus on a specific, single character as opposed to trying to do Noah/Claire/Sylar/Peter/Matt/Hiro at the same time. Make the regular cast recurring instead. Give the show to a new set of eyes.
It’d certainly be cheaper…
It’s astonishing how fall “Heroes” has fallen the past few volumes. Season four was the worst season of the show yet and I am not that optimistic that season five will be better. Here are my top five problems with this current season:
#1.) CLAIRE OUTS PEOPLE WITH ABILITIES TO THE WORLD.
So let me get this straight. Claire Bennet is the one who reveals that she has an ability to the press by climbing up a Ferris Wheel, jumping off, going ker-splat, and then heal herself in front of their eyes? CLAIRE?!? She is THE sole character on the show who has been saying since episode one that she just wants to have a normal life, and now that she revealed to the press that she can heal herself, that’s never going to happen. Why would she be the one to willingly do that? It seems a bit rushed, not to mention out of left field, that Claire suddenly goes from “I’m finally getting used to having a normal life as a college student” to “The world should know who we are and what we can do.” Now, when she gets to be hated and feared, she has no one to blame now but herself for outing ability to the world. Besides, this also ruins the one thing that separated it from that certain other group of mutant heroes at Marvel Comics who have special abilities: the world didn’t know about them. Granted, they probably would’ve found out eventually even if Claire hadn’t shown the press, but did nobody learn from Nathan Petrelli’s hunting down people with abilities fiasco? Do they really think that the world’s going to be okay with this? But come on! If you’re going to make the big reveal, you could’ve come up with a better and cooler reason than having a girl jump off a Ferris Wheel and heal herself.
#2.) SYLAR IS A HERO NOW.
Ugh. Ever since Sylar got his powers back in the finale episode of season two, his appeal has been fading fast. He went from Noah’s partner and thought-to-be-son of Angela and Arthur Petrelli to wanting to find out the truth about his real parents, to being stuck in Matt’s psyche after he made him think he was the man he just murdered, Nathan Petrelli – and that was just season three! Now, Sylar has become unable to kill and wants to repent for his past sins as a hero. WHAT?!? Ever since Hiro told Sylar about his future upon sparing his true love Charlie in their encounter in “Once Upon a Time in Texas”, Sylar began to freak out when Hiro told him he’d die unmourned and unloved. How Sylar is suddenly able to go from nearly killing Angela Petrelli in front of Peter’s eyes at the Thanksgiving dinner table to suddenly being unable to kill at all upon returning to the circus and wanting a connection with Claire after getting the tattoo is just baffling to me. Sylar works best as a villain and the less that he’s humanized, the cooler he is. We don’t need so many stories that mishandle and mischaracterize Sylar, and he is certainly not the kind of guy who should be reduced to a repenting wimp. Sylar was at his best in the first season, going around from person to person with an ability – and then killing said person to get it by cutting open their skulls. Sylar’s turn from villain to hero isn’t as appealing to me, and I’m going to miss Sylar being the show’s primary villain. After all, he’s the longest and most popular villain the show has. You can’t imagine “Heroes” without Sylar like you could imagine Superman without Lex Luthor or Spider-Man without the Green Goblin. If you want someone with multiple powers as a hero, just see reason number three as to why the show’s still lacking.
#3.) PETER PETRELLI STILL SUCKS AND HE REALLY, REALLY NEEDS HIS OLD ABILITY BACK.
Do you remember how cool Peter was in season one, being able to absorb the abilities of those around him with his empathic mimicry and then use several powers at once? Well, ever since season three, Peter’s been taking a back seat from being one of the coolest main characters, and the most powerful of them all, to being a supporting character who hasn’t really done a whole lot, especially since he got his new ability replication power from the formula after his own dad took his old ability away. And by a HUG, of all things! Granted, the writers wanted to take the power away because it’s easier to write a guy who has one power rather than several. But without his other powers and being a match for Sylar in terms of his power mimicing ability, I’m really surprised Peter has lived this long, especially since Sylar could’ve – and logically should’ve – easily killed Peter at any time during any one of their fights. All he had to do was pin him with his telekinetic power, cut open his skull, and then that’s it. Sylar wins. Peter is dead. That’s all it takes, unless Peter had Claire’s ability. Besides, I really was hoping that season four was going to right the wrong of season four by somehow giving Peter his original empathic mimicry ability back, or at least mature his current ability so that he can store multiple powers at once. But since Peter needs to actually touch someone and willingly take their ability, he loses the previous ability he had – and that is really lame. Also, a lot of what happened to Peter in season four was pretty lackluster. He had a mysterious compass tattoo pop up on his arm, he had a friendship with the new character Emma (who I didn’t care much for), and he stopped Samuel by pushing the dirt around and then sending him down with a lone punch. That was their big fight of the season finale? And don’t even get me started on why Peter never bothered to save his love interest Caitlin after her departure in season two. When he had Hiro’s ability, why didn’t he just go back to when he went with Caitlin to the virus-unleashed alternate 2008 future and take her back with him then? Also, I REALLY miss Peter’s on-screen chemistry with our next, and now previous, cast member…
#4.) NATHAN PETRELLI IS STILL DEAD.
Okay, so Nathan is the Kenny of “South Park”. We thought he blew up in the season one finale, but he came back in season two and with a logical explanation. In the season two finale, he’s shot and is starting to die in Peter’s arms after nearly outing his ability to fly to the press. In season three, we learn a future Peter shot him to keep the alternate future from happening, and so Nathan allies with his father and wants everyone to have an ability. Peter prevents that from happening, so in the next chapter of said season, Nathan decides to round up everyone with an ability and hunt them down, but later sees the error of his ways and repents – only to have his throat slit by Sylar in the finale. Since then, Sylar thought he was Nathan because of Matt’s mind tampering, but ever since Sylar got his body back and the Sylar-bodied “Nathan” said his last goodbyes to Peter, the show’s quickly gone downhill in terms of writing. Say what you will about how the character’s been handled, but I love Nathan Petrelli. He was one of the best characters of the series, in my opinion, and his scenes with everyone on the cast – from Peter and Angela Petrelli to his own biological daughter Claire Bennet – were always entertaining. After a while, we knew Nathan couldn’t be killed off again and then come back. But the point is, he should never stay dead, because he’s an interesting character and played by a great actor. Nathan should come back in season five, but I really don’t see that happening… unfortunately.
#5.) MOHINDER AND TRACY ARE STILL ON THIS SHOW.
Seriously, what was the point of having them on this season? Aside from Tracy’s cool rescue of Claire and Noah in the season finale, Tracy’s been under-used ever since she made her debut in season three so much so that it isn’t even funny. To me, Tracy’s not as cool in terms of characterization as her predecessor, Niki Sanders, and hasn’t had the same connections to the other characters of the show Tracy has. Niki had D.L. and Micah, as well as scenes with Hiro, Ando, and in the alternate future as the love interest of Peter. Tracy, on the other hand, has been kind of wandering around with little to do on the show and no main cast members to be close with. Sure, Tracy and Noah were buddies for a short while in season four, but that didn’t really go anywhere and since Noah has Lauren as a love interest now, what was the point of having them paired up? Also, and I don’t mean to sound mean here, but why hasn’t Mohinder been written off yet? Ever since Mohinder got an ability, he hasn’t been the same and now the only normal main character of the main cast is Noah. And Mohinder’s big role in season four was… being locked up in an insane asylum after Samuel nearly killed him to get a film reel and then was rescued by the man who committed him after unsuccessfully trying to talk him to lying low, Hiro. Seriously? This guy’s got one of the worst roles on the show and his presence was so little on this season, it wasn’t even necessary. Granted, the actors might’ve been busy with film roles, but it’s like the writers don’t even have storylines planned out in advance for these guys anymore. If you’re going to keep Tracy and Mohinder on the show, give them something interesting to do or give them a proper exit.
Here are the top five things I wish they’d do to fix the next season:
#1.) MORE CHARACTER INTERACTIONS AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.
That was the best part of season one – we got to know everyone, there weren’t as many new characters being introduced and killed off, we had a solid core cast, and they got to bump into each other far more than they did in season four. And just once, I’d like to see everyone come together like in the X-Men and have them fight a common, powerful enemy. It doesn’t even have to be Sylar. It can be someone else. However, I’d prefer it if the world didn’t know that people had abilities. It doesn’t seem as appealing to me by having everyone know.
#2.) SYLAR IS A VILLAIN AGAIN.
No more flip-flopping. No more out-of-character moments where he goes from sinister psychopath to a whining wimp. Make him evil, keep him evil, and make him a credible threat.
#3.) GIVE PETER HIS EMPATHIC MIMICRY AGAIN.
As Sylar’s equal, the good side of the coin to Sylar’s bad, we have Peter finally be able to not only have multiple abilities at once, but he also has to keep control of his often-uncontrollable ability (just see season one for proof – he was a bomb, for crying out loud!).
#4.) BRING BACK NATHAN PETRELLI.
I don’t care how it happens, but it should happen. I’ve lost too many favorite characters with each passing season, from Caitlin and Elle to D.L., Micah and Niki, and I’d love it if Nathan Petrelli found a way to come back from the dead. Besides, it’d be an interesting twist to have a new character with an ability who could bring people back from beyond the grave.
#5.) HAVE A BETTER STORY AND BETTER WRITING FOR YOUR SEASON.
It’s as if that, ever since the season one finale, nobody who’s writing the show really knows what to do with it anymore. If you’re going to continue the series, come up with a good enough story that can appeal to long-time fans as well as new viewers. It’s no easy task, but then again, “Heroes” could pull it off given the right story.
P.S.: To those of you that’d like to see a story that introduces new heroes and still keeps an eye on the current characters, I’ve written a fan fiction story you can check out on the FanFiction site:
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5037052/1/Hate_to_say_goodbye
I agree, with the idea to make one movie about the unanswered questions from the last episode, like for example, what happened to Tracy? Does Peter get all his powers back? and will Matthew ever except Gabriel’s apologies and changes, among other things? I don’t think it is a good idea to make a season 5, because there’s not much to tell after everything that has happened since the third season.
Just get Peter Petrelli his old powers back!! His story is terrible, and every episode I hope that he gets them back. Sylar as a good guy?? He’s killed like a thousand people and I am pretty sure we all wanted a massive Sylar and Peter fight.
There are a lot of fans in the Philippines. The only problem is that we don’t get to watch the show live here(one reason to download). :(
I am from Kenya and watching heroes season 3 yet I see in the website the rating were very low for that season but personally I haven’t seen the what problem is, I hear the the show is loved overseas so it is America alone hate that show, I hope there will be heroes season 5 so the bosses of NBC should think about us who live overseas and not America alone.
I see very good ideas in here. Mine would be quite simple, but I’ll explain myself. Heroes is on tv what MArvel was to comic books. Bring them in: they know the deal, how to present it, they CAN write. I remember back in the days, when I was 8 or 9, I used to read Strange, Spidey, Titans and the other Marvel, DC comics and the like. When I saw Heroes for the first time on TV, I was blast, and then, it became boring: storylines, use of abilities, etc. We want, first, that Peter got his powers back, then we want to see some new abilities, meaning new characters, we want new challenges. If you want something to be well done, what do you do? You ask the guys who know how to do it. Ask Stan Lee.
and I forgot, bring Elle back and put Tracy away!
The problem is too much Sylar, and no heroics. How do you redeem a wanton murderer? Just like the X-Men books in the late 80’s and early 90’s, everyone has a power. If everyone is empowered, then who needs saving. Claire’s change/coming out is needless. What happened to her liking boys in the past? Another cheap audience grab. Peter and Hiro are the core of the show. Claire has become tired. HRG is nearly the only reason to watch.
The smart thing to do would have Hiro alter time to ties things up. Bring back Isaac, explain why there are numerous Ali Larters, less Mrs. Petrelli (so annoying), and more heroics. Peter as an EMT was a great start, but alas, that is not the way for Kring.
Sad, the first season was promising and still fun to watch. Since then, it has been tedious.
Well, you can see everybody wants peter´s old powers back, Sylar has to be his nemesis, and the most important thing is… the audience overseas also wants HEROES back for a new season… please Hyro!! go back in time and fix everything!!!
i love Heroes it’s amazing how it draws you in and captures your emagination it would be a crime to stop Heroes now please i’m being you as a huge Heroes fan from the united kingdom please don’t give up .
Okay, so
1- Peter needs his old powers back!! Seriously, he does! Them taking away his powers was one way Heroes shot itself in the foot because Sylar was all powerful. Technically if Peter touches Sylar, he has most of his powers back, but c’mon, give the dude his powers back!
2- Claire’s lesbian stint = lame! This was a really stupid way of trying to gain viewers…LAME!
3- The whole Samuel/carnival storyline was kind of random and lame. they need to read some old Marvel comics and get some ideas from the X-men! I’m a HUGE X-men fan and love Heroes because its a modern day retelling of mutants. This show had SO MUCH POTENTIAL and it seriously pisses me off that it can barely pull 5 million viewers now. I still love the show, but am seriously disappointed that they have no character development or continuity. They rarely tie up storylines and randomly add/remove characters. I wish Hiro could go back in time to season 2 and start from scratch.
4- Claire revealing her secret to the world? I agree that this was REALLY random. BUT, Hiro could just go back in time and fix it. Or, they could pull some pages from the X-men get creative and cool.
5- They need to have the Heroes come together more and fight a common enemy. That would be awesome.
6- Sylar being good–> Im torn. I like the idea of Sylar’s redemption, BUT, they need a nemesis now. So in Season 5, if there is one, they need to introduce some sick villains and have the Heroes unite to fight them.
7- Ando is the coolest, and they need to use him more!
I hope they dont cancel Heroes. Lets give it one more season and see what they can do.
I’m sorry, but Heroes can’t ends!! What’s that mysterious symbol?? What does mean the eclipse??? How a hero can live among humans? I’m sure, we haven’t seen the end of heroes… I’ve seen with my eyes the “to be continued” :-p
i think they should bring back heroes for a season 5, and then leave it at that. I’ve been watching since the 1st ep…through good and bad, and ever though the whole carnival thing was a complete and utter bust, i’m still thinking they can do something last min. to spice it up like it used to be. but honestly claire and HRG scenes r really boring, they need to not be so central with that..and claire, sigh….she really needs to stop being whiny and pleading all the time, its getting really old!! Idk what that whole gretchen business was about but they need to keep her out of it, cuz it seemed pointless through and through. I’d like peter to get his powers back. I’m not sure what matt has planned, but i’d like to see him and his son have more scenes, baby matt parkman is so cute when he uses his powers. Hiro and Ando i love them, but i really wanna see Hiro have some meaning to his missions, something thats not cheesy, cuz this whole season for him, seemed just dull!!! Sylar is my all time fav. but if he’s gonna b good, then let him stay that way, stop changing it,(personally i think bad is just so sexy for him). They should bring Micah back i’d love to see him again, mb his powers grew or something. Angela i like, but i havent made up my mind with her yet. I wouldnt mind suresh coming back, if they have a great storyline lined up for him. Basically my point is, bring on the next season, with better storylines!!!! get rid of the carnival and gretchen. stop with the claire/HRG boring relationship scenes of the same constant thing. I’d like to see more of the Hatian, and i’d really like to know if the world accepted all of them or not. i thought the ending was the only thing that really could save the show, and im curious to see where it goes.
I loved the first season of ‘Heroes’. I didn’t mind the second season and I loved the third season…though I can see why the first part of it would’ve turned viewers off. But the second half kicked azz.
I expect, when I watch a network television serial of any genre, to see SOME continuity. The ‘Sylar is Nathan’ storyline should have dominated this season. And I must say I had a sinking feeling about it, when it was introduced in the third season finale, because the only resolution that was plausible, would be that one of the actors(Quinto or Pasdar) would have to go. That happened and they picked poorly.
Zachary Quinto is talented. I’m not disputing that. But his character, to me, is very one note. He’s a villain, who half azz tries to redeem himself every once and awhile but can’t. He’s obsessed with gaining other people’s powers…yadda, yadda, yadda. It’s old. Adrian Pasdar as Nathan Petrelli was very multi-faceted. Slimy at times but deep down he was capable of great love when it came to his family. Nathan and Peter’s relationship was a staple of that show. If Nathan needed to die, then it should’ve been done at the end of first season.
Also on the Quinto front, Julian Glover, who played Sylar’s father, and the actor that played Samuel are fabulous actors that would have filled the void that a departing Quinto(if the choice had been made to keep Pasdar) would have left.
Does anyone remember poor Isaac Mendez? His portraits showed that Sylar would be PRESIDENT one day as Nathan. So did the alternate reality episodes we saw. I don’t think it was high handed of me to expect that that plot would be introduced. Like I said before, continuity is a problem for this show.
Craig, I like your suggestions. I honestly think that a two hour movie is all this franchise needs. I think they’ve proven that they’re incapable of writing a proper full 22 episode season.
I kind of agree with you on the whole movie idea. What I look at as a consumer, is the fact that I don’t really see much advertising. I don’t see much of a push from NBC or Heroes themselves promoting and trying to grasp the attention of new viewers. I recently started watching the show, in season 4 and became completely invovled. I bought Seasons 1-3 and watched them like a religion and saw how the writing, although intriguing, gradually became slow (For lack of a better word). I would hate to see this show cancelled but I can understand the ratings falling.
The show definately needs some kind of push.
And Sylar good?? Please, maybe it’s a “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”
I want to suggest that in the fifth season that they should explore a storyline whereby humans hate people with powers plus a human villain who want s to destroy people with powers. who knows? there might be a season 6 after that.
Also peter should have his old powers back.
I like the idea of a mini-series to finish things off. I think that will give them time to have a really good story, a better budget, plus make sure they can get all the actors and actresses since it wouldn’t be a long commitment.
If it does get canceled then I think they wrapped it up better than some other shows that were canceled without finishing their story. (Like the 4400)
If they do get a fifth season, I think they should stick to the mold of Season 4. I really liked Season 4 eventhough I was a bit disappointed in the finale. I’m actually one of the few that love that Peter’s and Hiro’s powers got limited. (eventhough it looks like Hiro has all of his back now) I wouldn’t want Peter to get all his power back because basically it makes the other heroes not needed. If he does get them back then there should be some limit to the number he can have…or he’s not as skillful/powerful as the person that has the original power…or he loses the power after a while. (Claude did say he was like a sponge…and they dont hold water forever)
A few things that could make the show better…
*HRG should have died in the Season Finale. We know everything we could possibly know about him by now and the fact that he’s killed so many people makes it okay if he dies.
*More epic finales. Like I said, I enjoyed this season but I was letdown my the finale. Heroes finale’s should follow Lost’s model. A 2 hour finale with deaths, big reveals, etc. What’s the point of all the build up if there is no payoff?
*All the characters need to move toward their “5 Years Gone” personality. Peter and Hiro need to be darker. Claire needs to stop whining. (she was better this season) Matt needs to turn to the darkside like his father.
*And one thing that really seems to bother people is characters that disappear with no further screen time nor even a mention of them! (Monica, Caitlin, Maya) The same with the characters that die, its like they never existed. So they need to clean that up..atleast throw in a few lines that speak of past characters like Elle, etc to show that they had SOME kind of impact.
With all that said…I still enjoy the show for what it is. Its rare to have sci-fi shows on network television so I hope we get atleast one more season!
Honestly, I think the show could go further than it had gone originally. However the beginning of the show was following different direction and was much more powerful, especially in the more common use of powers to drive the plot and generally ‘be so cool.’
More powers, less restrictions. That’s my idea primarily.
I can’t keep but feeling, as a special effects and video editing artist, that they’ve got to pay a bloated price for many aspects of the show. Many effects in Heroes could be provided more frequently at less cost with a better final product. This is the 4th or 5th show I’ve noticed eventually outgrow its cost seemingly due to special effects budgets. There should be some reform in the industry about that.
Anyway, I just desperately hope that Heroes continues for a LONG time, even if it the chances look shaky at the moment.
I like your points. I watched the first season on DVD just before the second season began and as many of you, fell in love. I hung in through Maya and Alejandro, gritted my teeth with the gimmicky crap and held on. I’m even somewhat OK with the revisionist history (did we really need to give Noah a first wife?) and I think keeping it short and sweet may be the way to go – I’m tired of dragging out plot points (when WILL Sylar get his body back…) and I want some tight story arcs. Rebuild that first season magic. Grigsby’s been good for us this year, but I also miss Beeman.
It is simple you need to make Sylar a bad guy again. Not a bad guy searching for who his Dad is, what his past is, or struggling to be alone. A bad guy who goes around and kills hereos. Maybe they could have him fall in love with another Hereo and somehow she dies sending him into a killing rage. The show should end with him facing Peter in a final battle. But during that final battle we dont see a winner or a loser just cut it off and let us figure it out for ourselves. Or everyone thinks that Peter killed Sylar but there is some indication that Sylar actually killed Peter but has just morphed into Peter so that no one knows.
A problem that this show has faced throughout parts of the third season and most of the fourth that most people don’t usually address is the dialogue. Season 1 had well crafted dialogue between it’s characters, and one could say the same for the much lesser Season 2. While it’s not one of the key problems with the show, I’m sure some more intelligently written and catchy dialogue would do some good.
I’d also like to point out two of the key problems this show has had since Season 3 (Season 2 didn’t have any real problems; it was just dull): lack of structure and continuity. The first couple seasons were set in a fully realized world with a deep mythology that was steadily built upon, with bits of information given overtime. And the story, even if it was altered throughout the season (which I’m sure it was) was set up in such a way that every part of the story made sense and the beginning flowed forward right to the end in a cohesive whole. While Season 2 fizzled out with a false ending due to the writer’s strike, it also benefited by the fact that it was GOING SOMEWHERE. With the shows mythology torn to shreds and ignored (when was the last time we saw the helix symbol or heard mention of it?!) the show has been pretty much floating along in a bland and empty universe, with the plot meandering and flip flopping incoherently toward the end. While Seasons 3 and 4 have had a few good episodes and great moments, the stories as a whole all seriously suffered because of all this.
Sylar needs to be bad, everyone knows that. I say build up a bit, do some summer webisodes or mini’s that show him settling down and having that kid you see him have in one of the alternate futures. Start the next season 3 or 4 years later. And have the big event start with being Peter finding out that someone without powers is trying to track down Sylar not believing he deserves a happily ever after. Have the new baddie (with heavy duty help Daddy Sylar?) Bust into casa Sylar and start a rumble with his child getting killed. Flash to Peter arriving too late and finding Sylar over his childs body. Giving a one liner perhaps “this changes everything” then he slams Peter into a wall. Thats just my idea, other thoughts are
Give Peter his powers back(cant say this enough)!! But give him a reason to have them back.
Make Hiro a celebrity in the mold of how the fantastic four are use his code of honor but have him dealing with the fact that he can’t help every cat stuck in a tree if he wants to save the world.
Have people with abilities be treated how they would be treated, some people love them, some people hate them, lots of people are weary of them.
I would have Matt be a something like when he was a liaison with the FBI again that was when his character was watchable, I would like to see him with Mohinder to me they have chemistry on the screen they are just both given crap plots but they could work very well as partners just referring to them as Brains and Brawn is a double meaning because powers wise Mohinder is brawn and Parkman is brains but when it comes to natural skills Matt has his cop skills and Monhinder is the scientist.
I like the idea of Tracy, HRG, and the other blonde running a halfway house could make for some love triangle tension. Great place to throw in a cameo by Micah. Be a good way for them to work through their inner demons, as they try to help and teach the next generation of heroes.
Clair…. I think that they really need to get a writer that has actually talked to a woman. The issue of Claire’s sexuality was terrible, wasn’t really a bad idea, she hasn’t been in many serious relationships and college is the time where things like that could happen but it was writing like a bad after school special and advertised like a cheap skinamax movie.
I have more to say but Hockey
The stories need to be actual arcs. This season they were inconsistent choppy sometimes long winded others.
I think that peters ability fits the show now, it was nice when he had all them powers but it kinda like superman without kryptonite, oh he might blow up and kill some people but it doesnt really matter cos he is indestructable, nah having one power only is perfect for his character, perhaps a backstory into how his powers ended up that way, maybe he is traumatised from absorbing sylars power and killing his brother in the future, so he is subconsiously holding back his power, so it is still there when he really needs to call on it.
surely there is a happy medium with sylar, why is he such a wimp when he is good, good sylar but badass, you know like vic macky from the shield, when he teamed up with noah bennet i thoughthe had promise.
i think hiro is needed, the time traveling aspect would be missed, but i think him going to and fro is getting a bit weak, i mean if something didnt work out he could just change it.
i’d like to see it more powers based, im fed up of them all going off to live normal lives and then comming together when they are needed, its kinda old now. company should be resurected and it should concentrate on the day to day runnings, capturing the dangerous heroes (its an odd term for the villians but its the only one that really fits with the show)
i can think of a few storylines that could save heroes, i hope it stays they need to get some real writers in, look at shows like 24, and smallville (not counting series 8 cos that blowed chunks) but they have exciting storylines, and they have been going for years
something interesting keep sylar as a good guy but let him be tougher i dont understand why as powerful as he is why when he becomes good he restains himself and parkmans becomeing darker parkman as a bad guy and peter needs to have more than one power at a time but not as strong as he was before if sylars good and peter stays good and gains back the infinet power set up the bad guys wouldnt stand a chance so i say peter able to hold on to 3 at a time and bring in a villan of insane power maybe someone like s1 peter but evil and sylars oldman and parkman all three could really raise some hell and give the heros a run for there money a real epic battle
The whole thing started going south when Peter lost his ability. In every hero based comic/movie you have the hero(Peter) and the villain(Sylar) with one not having the upper hand as far as abilities and or powers over the other. Hence Batman and the Joker. Superman and Lex Luther. As powerful as Superman is, Luther has the intelligence to actually defeat him. If Sylar goes back to his evil ways, i wouldn’t cry, but to balance him off, Peter needs to get his original abilities back. Hiro was able to get all of his abilities returned back to him. And he lost them the same way Peter did.(Mr. Petrelli)Peter needs to meet Parkman’s son.
Heroes has/had almost everything, a large budget, great writing, exciting actors, exotic locations, but what it lacks is so simple. It lacked a true interwoven love story that could last from one season to the next. We see fatherly love with Claire, we see brotherly love with the Petrellies, but to have a tragic character like Elle and not see the potential!!!!!!! A sociopath who can change for love. A woman confused by conflict with her father, a girl reaching out for acceptance. I could have written half a dozen scenes that would bring fans to their knees sobbing in grief, joy , and empathy every week by making this character do penance for forgiveness and daring to love and be loved. Instead she is thrown away and forgotten like trash. Consider if she had met a little girl with gray eyes and learned it was her daughter from an alternative future. I think she would have fought harder to stay alive for that alternative vision.
Hi, Craig. Thanks for inviting speculation as to what
improvements or story ideas could be used in a hypothetical
5th Season of HEROES; here are some thoughts as to story
ideas that could be exploited by screenwriters exploring
implications of Claire’s revelation:
Pros: The covert persecution of an invisible minority, dec-
ades-long under The Company (and particularly horrific in
the 3rd Season) goes public, exposing harsh violations of
human rights, if persecuted parties from Danko’s crackdown
follow Claire’s lead, and go public as Specials, to air their
grievances, resulting in a government investigation of every-
thing from The Company, to Pinehearst, to Building 26, and
the Kennedy-era debacle at Coyote Sands. Could it even come
back to bite the Michael Dorn President (impeachment, maybe?)
who originally gave his blessing to Nathan’s plans? Perhaps
there might be diplomatic consequences as well; is it just
me, or did anyone notice that Danko’s efforts (which we were
led to believe were limited to U.S. soil) resulted in Hiro
Nakamura being captured on Japanese soil, in violation of
Japanese sovereignty? (This, of course, raises doubts about
Nathan’s claim that he and Claire were safe from Danko,
while hiding out in Mexico.)
Heads will roll, even heads of people who weren’t the complete
monsters that Danko was; if H.R.G. hasn’t covered his tracks,
he’d be best advised to do so–his good intentions (and under-
standable personal motives resulting from the tragic, pre-
Company loss of his 1st wife to a Special), notwithstanding,
too many violations of due process–and too much blood on his
hands–could easily translate into prison time. (The jury is
out on Lauren; besides opposing the torture of Edgar, what do
we know of her previous Company actions?)
Let’s not get started on skeletons in the Petrelli family’s
closet. Are other guilty parties deleting incriminating
computer records, or shredding documents, in the aftermath of
the public Ferris Wheel stunt I like to call “Odessa Redux?”
Cons: Peaceful political activism by persecuted Specials is
possible (as I suggested earlier), but let’s not dismiss the
possibility of militant Special activists stirring up trouble;
who needs a “Sylar” to panic the public, when media footage of
ugly, super-powered blow-ups with riot cops (by demonstrators
unwilling to turn the other cheek) catches the attention of
the media? (Hey, if it bleeds, it leads, as the saying goes.)
How about demands to politically disenfranchise Specials, if
Micah’s vote-tampering to elect a Special to Congress (the
late Nathan Petrelli) goes public?
I, too, like the halfway house idea practiced by Tracy
Strauss, in response to hate crimes. Also, political
activism, calling public attention to otherwise off-the-
radar crimes is possible, with candlelight vigils, or calls
for hate crime legislation (and Tracy just might have the
political connections and clout to organize such activities.
Also, do families disown Special offspring? Not everyone may
be as tolerant as the Bennets. In which case, Tracy (or those
like her) may have their hands full.
Will people demand DNA tests to screen fetuses for any trace
of genetically evolved traits, to eliminate them before birth?
Employment discrimination? (Eric Doyle’s search for stable
employment in the “Nowhere Man” webisodes comes to mind.)
Or academic; can Claire still attend her university, minus
harassment? Those are some ideas–any others?
My thoughts on other points brought up by previous posters:
1.) Yes, Elle Bishop certainly could–handled properly–have
been given a 2nd chance; the lost story possibility recently
posted here, for instance, tells us that fans are often more
imaginative than screenwriters. On the other hand, Elle
appears to have been dramatically (and inevitably), painted
into a corner, a “There but for the grace of God go I” tale,
paralleling Claire’s life, yet without the stable, loving
family life, so she was likely doomed from the start. That
said, however, one can only hope that similar characters–if
such are created, later–aren’t similarly mishandled.
2.) Sylar’s “flip-flopping”: Yes, it can be a bit much, but I
disagree with claims that it makes him wimpy; it’s hardly a
recent development, given that his apartment in the 1st
Season, defaced with the words “Forgive me” (later shown
to be words spoken after his failed suicide) and “I have
sinned” (and his tragic reunion with Virginia Gray) clearly
made him a conflicted character from the start, horrified by
his actions (on some level), yet losing his struggle with
ability-fueled addiction; are real-life addictions so easy
to shrug off? “On-again, off-again” flips can get old (but
are hardly unprecedented, as comic super-villain, Magneto,
reminds us–HEROES is an homage to comics such as X-MEN, so
why the surprise?); with proper screenwriters, however, a
truly tragic supervillain could exist.
While nobody wants villains to be too angst-ridden, I’m
not a fan of someone who’s evil just for the sake of it,
as that stretches credibility too much for my comfort.
3.) Claire/Gretchen:Could it have benefitted from better
writers? Of course, although I disagree with those who say
that the subplot shouldn’t have existed, period, or that it
was a ratings ploy; were the latter true, Gretch would be
gone within a few episodes, turned into a stalker, killed
off, quitting school and never returning, etc., once she
was no longer useful. It’s not as though such cliched possi-
bilities didn’t exist, and it wouldn’t surprise viewers
accustomed to seeing gay/lesbian TV characters treated this
way. The screenwriters actually deserve credit for *not*
taking the easy way out.
Also, the subplot wasn’t frivolous, but was part of the big
picture; her “Pass/ Fail” “outing” foreshadows her “outing”
to the world as a Special in “Brave New World.” This isn’t
subtext; those recalling the 1st Season controversy about
Zach’s sexual orientation may recall remarks by producer,
Bryan Fuller, that a vaguely-gay Zach actually encouraged
her to “come out” (as a Special), telling her to embrace
who she was without fear, an intentional metaphor. (So I
doubt that Claire and Gretchen’s words: “People are going
to start to talk.”/”Let them talk” are accidental, given
what happens in the last minutes of the finale.) And making
Gretch a confidant (not unlike Zach, but openly-gay, this
time), trusting her with the secret of her powers, should
come as no surprise.
Should the relationship endure in the future? Sure; it could
(if properly handled) qualify as character growth–although,
as someone pointed out earlier, it should be written by those
with more knowledge on such relationships.
Last. but not least, barring a return of the TV series, any
suggestions as to what other forms the franchise might take?
1. A canonical “Season 5” comic, continuing beyond the TV
series, not unlike such Joss Whedon properties as Buffy Season
8, or Angel: After the Fall? As HEROES is an homage to comics
(even existing as a series of online comics), I can’t see why
not, and I don’t know why I haven’t heard this suggestion.
2. Or novels? I still can’t believe that “Saving Charlie” is
the only HEROES novel in bookstores. Why an expanded universe
of such books is lacking is beyond me.
Again, Craig, thanks for the chance to offer suggestions.
I don’t know if anyone is still reading these comments,
but it was worth a shot.
OK so i may completely off here but i would like to make a small observation here. Nathan Petrelli outs everyone way back when in the beggining of the show. As a result, Specials are hunted. So they fixed it and Specials are no longer hunted. However, what if season five shows that the future, for the most part, cant be changed? What if Season 5 deals with Specials being hunted and Tracy and HRG open up a half-way house/asylum for specials? What if Hiro still has to become “Future Hiro” and things take a turn from this point and This season has more to do with saving other specials and trying to fix this problem.
It looks like (to me) what they are doing is saying “Everything that the Heroes have tried to prevent is still coming to pass…In a new world How can Heroes Save the Day? and Is it even possible? Are they just delaying the Inevitable?”
Micah is definitely one of my favorite chars and there is so much that could be explored. its Time that they pump the extra dollars back into a show that could really bring NBC to the forefront. Heroes can be compared to many things but it took the best aspects of all these shows and made a super show. If they dont get the spark back soon i do fear for the life of this show.
The current story line with Heroes has been poorly conceived in my mind. When we first started watching heroes, what made it fun was seeing new types of heroes and villains emerging. Constantly watching the petrelli’s and sylar have made this show repetitive. Introduce us to some new Heroes. Give us powers far beyond what you have. Make these new Heroes less powerful than the villains they face, who are waging war on the normal people. Make forge the new Heroes into a group that as a collective are stronger than the villains. Let Claire and HRD live their lives for a bit and create some new story lines. Make a Hero, who stands for the Good of Man at all costs, and explore what the reprecussions of what that means in a disgusting world, where the seven deadly sins run rampant.
They need to fire the writing team and replace them with some of the writers from LOST. Maybe the producers too. They should stop randomly dropping characters. (Monica for example) They need to lay off the Noah Bennet stuff. And when someone has a cool power, they should actually use it sometimes. (Ando) They should plan a whole season at a time, and not just make it up week by week as they seemed to do.
I had the fortunate circumstance to watch all four seasons of HEROES, commercial free and in a matter of just a couple of months on ROKU/NETFLIX. I am actually blown away at overall just how well the show is written.
My frustration is two-fold: First there has never been a contiguous romantic thread where we can really get involved with two or three characters on a whole new level. This has got to be hurting their demographics by letting such a large audience just slip away without any effort to keep them interested! Any romance that kindles a flame in Heroes is dead in 2 episodes or less! I am a hardcore Sci-Fi guy, and I am begging the writers for more romance!!!
Second: When writing is truly exceptional, viewers will be involved enough that they will literally weep when presented with something truly tangible and heart wrenching. I believe TV audiences want to be moved to tears, and not just for sadness, but for joy, for selfless acts, for terrible loss, for self-sacrifice and of course for LOVE won and lossed. But the writers have to create the situations and follow through. How different it would have been if Noah Bennett in the last episode of season 4 , just had a total cathartic breakdown while he was hypoxic and just held his Claire in his arms and wept, tears falling into her hair, gasping for words and finding none.
No dialogue needed, just uncontrolled emotion untethered, and unparalleled by any previous character. The most stoic man in the series on his death bed confesses himself through emotion. It is all there in that moment. Instead Noah lectures Claire 40 feet underground until the audience is almost unconscious. But Heroes routinely avoids these potential circumstances for the audience to become personally involved.
Finally if season 5 does happen, (please be true) aside from having a romantic thread, I would love to see at the very end credits of the series; Claire would be standing still, and her friends and family in mere seconds would age and succumb to their mortality, but Claire would stand silent and emotionless as buildings would rise and then crumble and fall, cities come and go, humanity would wither, nature would change the world. And for artistic sense Claire should be tastefully naked in a non-sexual way. Then as the camera moves in, we see the reflection in her eyes of what she is seeing in the last moment of existence. I will leave that final image up to you. Tom