Review - Heroes Season 1

So I’ve just recently been able to watch some television shows that have been on for awhile. Since I haven’t been able to watch much network television of the last couple of years I have been catching up on shows that I heard so much about but never had a chance to see. As I am an old comic book and superhero fan, all the hype over Heroes had always had me interested. Recently I picked up the first three seasons at Halfprice Books at a steal. Each season was in the $10 range so I figured getting what was about $120 worth of shows for $30 warranted me spending the money.

Although I have the first three seasons of Heroes I have so far only watched one. In case you are not familiar with the premise of Heroes it deals with a group of ten people who are coming to grips with the fact that they posses some extraordinary abilities. Some of them use their abilities for the good and help others, while others use their abilities for personal gain and power.

The show is done in the fashion of classic movie serials with every episode ending in a cliffhanger. Every episode concentrates on the fact that unlike a comic book the world is not just split up between black and white, good and evil. The real world and the world of the characters is made up of varying shades of grey and sometimes the problems you’re faced with will decide if the actions you take are actually good or evil. However some characters are inherently good and some are very evil.

Some of the characters I like more than others but I definitely have my favorites.

Hayden Panettiere plays Claire, the teenage girl who is coming to grips that she is very different than everyone around her. Unlike the Spiderman-Peter Parker character Claire does not believe her new abilities are ‘cool’ but rather it makes her strange or as she says a freak. On top of the usual teenage angst of who they are, Claire’s are compounded even more by what she is becoming.

Ali Larter who plays Nicki is the struggling single mother who is troubled by not only raising her child alone but is in the middle of something mysterious going on as well. Nicki’s abilities develop in a way that is very uncomic book like. Not only that but you’re sometimes not sure if she has abilities or not. Interesting character concept.

The character of Sylar is played by Zachary Quinto and is the major villain on the show. However unlike some of the other characters that are ‘grey’ villains, Sylar’s villainy is very black and white. Perhaps there is still something good in him but in a pivotal point in the show he proves the adage that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. He leaves no doubt in your mind. He is one of only two characters that understands what he is becoming and welcomes it.

My favorite character of the show though is Hiro played by Masi Oka. Hiro is the ‘comic geek’ of the group and while most of the other struggle with what is going on with them, Hiro accepts it fully. Like Sylar he understands what he is becoming and feels it is his destiny to do something heroic. His name is often used as a pun in the show as he is sometimes referred to as ‘super-hiro’. While Sylar is the black and white villain, Hiro is the black and white hero. Very often it is his insight that makes other characters do the right thing. Hiro is incorruptible and always ready to do the right thing.

I really liked the show and I loved the cliffhangers. Made me want to watch the next episode for sure. Not really sure about giving a show a rating as more just expressing that I enjoyed it but if I had to I would give it an 8 our of 10. I’ve had some people tell me that the following seasons were not as good as the first. I’ll have to see. Until I decide if it is or not I’ll be looking forward to watching the next season.

Remember; Save the cheerleader, save the world!