Heroes 1:22 Landslide
This episode was so good I fear for the finale but that’s a Wednesday problem.
Liked the title, metaphorically a victory in the polls, more literally a hint about the threat of physical disaster, metaphorically again the suggestion of all the stones finally rolling down the hill to meet at the bottom. New York, New York.
Last week the issue was how killing is hard. Hiro failed and even Sylar balked. This week Hiro learned how it’s done with the return of Sulu (and was that actually Chris Claremont in the sword shop)?
To save the most important thing you must be strong enough to cut out your heart.
Ominously Hiro showing what he’d learned cut from Sylar taking Ted’s head off. Sylar’s heart must be pretty rudimentary but arguably what was left of it died with his mother. More complex comparisons came with Bennet whose heart has survived multiple stab wounds but still find some things it has to steel itself to do. Not killing a ‘friend’ or even a person but a child. Then there was Nathan breaking Hiro’s faith in ‘Flying Man,’ smiling and smiling and still being a villain. More complicated than that though from Nathan’s point of view and it ties into the essential paradox of Hiro believing his ‘destiny’ is to change the future. The whole concept of destiny implies that the future is set and that does seem to be what Nathan believes, he can’t change it but he can be prepared for it. But he also aparently accepts Linderman (and Candice’s) assertion that the world needs to be healed without querying whether it’s sick. There’s a bitterness to Linderman as if the bomb were not only destined but welcomed as some kind of revenge on the world. Nathan said his father was his hero, I suppose he remembers him from before the disillusion set in whereas Peter being that much younger cannot.
Claire said what I said ::squee:: that she’s not normal and Noah accepted that or at least let it be reason for her to get out of Gotham but even then he must trust her to survive two explodable men. Only one of them is dead already. Poor Ted, just when he finally seemed to have got it together.
Unexpectedly, if I had to choose I’d say my favourite parts of the episode were those involving the elder Hawkins. First they blow into town like Angelina and Brad, but if Angelina were funny (best “haven’t we met somewhere” line evah) and Brad were hardcore. Hard to remember the guy who played Forrest on Buffy, not a trace of petulant fratboy detectable.
Second, if Linderman had watched Buffy he’d have known better than to taunt the girl with her nothingness. Tell her that victim is all she is and she’ll show you she’s more. I wondered why Bill didn’t use the gun before, partly overconfidence about being able to play Jessica, but also he knows that DL can phase out of bullets. But not this one, this one he had to be real for because Linderman was wrong. It was real.