Heroes #13:Duels/Dec.2008

[wolff96]

I actually do not assume that Peter was reset. But I might be wrong.

What I would *really* like to see is a division between "Natural" and "Synthetic" abilities.

So Peter was an Empath naturally (hero parents) and could vaccuum up powers, using them at any time. But then his father permanently drained his abilities and he resorted to the formula to save his brother.

His new, synthetic ability is weaker -- so he can only use the powers of those around him, not access the full suite (except when Ando super-charges him, perhaps...) That *still* allows him to face Sylar, since he would automatically have all the same tools at his disposal in a showdown. It also means that no matter how much they power Sylar up or down, Peter could STILL always match him toe-to-toe.

They could do the same thing to Hiro -- give him back his power, but no Time Travel without help from Ando. Then he could just teleport and slow time to a crawl... which is still ridiculously useful.

I doubt it will happen, but that's what I would LIKE to see. And since I got part of my wish about Hiro, maybe I'll luck out. I still think it would have been great to see him show up in the future, when Ando is discovering his new "Super-Charge" ability, as bad-ass Hiro 16 years older (and with the formula in hand).

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One last thought: Someone up-thread mentioned that Peter couldn't get invisibility back if his powers were reset. Umm... Why not? Nothing has happened to Claude other than he went (deeper) into hiding.

They proved last season you could find him with Infrared goggles and he only bent visible light... Peter could theoretically find him again if he needed to do so.

 

[Staffan]

Edit: One thing I wondered, though... and I feel like I had this same thought earlier in the series... why didn't Nathan fly himself? Those flames obviously didn't reach the ceiling. He really has no instinct for when to use his abilities.

If you're in an enclosed space, you generally don't want to be directly above the flames. Heat tends to rise upward, and oxygen tends to flow downward (since it's heavier than air).

Not that that would matter all that much if you're flying at the speeds Nathan is capable of.

 

[Merkuri]

Not that that would matter all that much if you're flying at the speeds Nathan is capable of.

I guess my point was, "Why didn't Nathan do what Peter did?" Theoretically they both have the same power and actually Nathan should have the better grasp of his power since it's natural to him (they've showen that Peter sometimes has trouble controlling his powers). It really should have been Nathan flying out of that room, not Peter.

Unless they're trying to play the angle that Nathan really wants to be normal to the point where he doesn't remember he has his power in a life-and-death situation.

 

[Mark]

Maybe the point is that Nathan doesn't react as quickly as Peter or that he is less aware or perceptive. Maybe they just wanted to even the score for the save-by-flying during the saving of NY. They're even, now.

 

[fba827]

remember that nathan still somewhat rejects his power, while peter accepts and embarces it as part of his being. while peter always first opts for the powered solution (when attacked, he'll first try and use his powers, etc), nathan has in fact always opted for the "mundane" response (talking, running, swinging) and only resorts to his power when push comes to shove, that could explain some hesitation on nathan's part.

 

[LightPhoenix]

Or, more thematically: Peter is the hero, Nathan is not. Helping people comes instinctively to him; it's part of his empathy. He'll use the tools at his disposal to save people, which in this case was the formula.

 

[RangerWickett]

Alternately, the writers didn't care to spend the 30 seconds it would take to write, "Something falls on Nathan's head, knocking him out, so only Peter can save him." Or heck, "Nathan starts to walk down the fire escape, Peter asks why he doesn't fly away, and Nathan replies that he is a real human, just like everyone else, and he doesn't cheat. So Peter sighs, grabs him, and flies away."

 

[JoeGKushner]

In terms of Nathan leading a gitmo thing... wouldn't someone eventually 'narc' on him?

"Crap, you can fly! In with the rest of 'em."

 

[Relique du Madde]

In terms of Nathan leading a gitmo thing... wouldn't someone eventually 'narc' on him?

"Crap, you can fly! In with the rest of 'em."

Problem is how can you prove he could fly when his having powers was not genetic? The only way they could do it would be to drop him from a plane (or building) and see what happens.

 

[delericho]

Once again, the Heroes writers crammed too much into the final episode of their arc. Last year it was at least excusable, what with the strike, but this time out it just wasn't. It was a very poor episode.

Five things particularly annoyed me:

- Daphne goes and gets the formula to power-up Ando, and picks up one dose. Because obviously they only need one dose - it's not like there's anyone else they know who could benefit from getting his powers back.

(Besides, this show needs some 'normal' characters in principle roles to act as contrasts to the heroes. HRG, Ando and Mohinder, in particular, should never be given powers. That 2 out of 3 now have is a very bad thing.)

- Matt gives the techno-babble explanation about Daphne being able to run backwards through time. The problem with this is that, back in the first season, Matt was introduced as being a nice guy, but not very smart. He has failed the exams to become detective on several occasions, and he can't read. He was the wrong person to give that explanation - it should have come from Ando. (This, unfortunately, gives Matt nothing to do in that scene but take up space, but that's better than breaking his character like this.)

- Besides, if Daphne runs fast enough, she can travel backwards through time. How exactly is she supposed to get back? Gosh, if only they knew a time-traveller, and had some means to restore his powers...

- And then there's poor Hiro. I can forgive them leaving him de-powered, although it makes me not want to watch any more. What is particularly annoying, though, is that he's faced with his father, one of the few people who actually would understand the truth, and his father is giving him an opportunity to explain who he is and why he's trying to steal the formula... so he doesn't.

Of course, if Hiro did destroy the formula in the past, that would have compelled a Reset Button ending, which would have been absolutely disasterous. And yet, I think it would probably have been the best possible ending this time out. I for one wish I could wake up and find this volume was just a dream.

- Finally, there's the end of the Sylar arc, for the moment at least. Leaving aside the annoyance that he still isn't dead, when he should have died at the end of the first season, there's the problem that Claire snuck up on him. The problem here? Sylar has had super-hearing for quite some time. The writers conveniently forgot this (for the second time this season). They might even have gotten away with it, had the plague in season 2 acted as a reset for Sylar's ability, but it didn't - he retained the telekinesis he picked up as his first supplemental power.

Anyway, I'm afraid that's it for me. The "mutant registration" storyline has been done before, and Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan are better actors than (almost) anyone on Heroes.