Heroes (II) (2006–2010) User Reviews

Incredible start, then fizzled

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 28 August 2013]

This show started with an incredible premise. Everyday people starts to have superpowers. Each one discover their power and try to deal with it. There is also serial killer Sylar who discovers a way to kill these special people and take their powers.

Like the brightest of stars, they burn hottest but don't last. This show fizzled as the story got more and more complicated. The vast number of characters with unique superpowers gets out of hand. There are too many to maintain. Like a truck overloaded, it just couldn't continue and rolled over. By the 2nd or 3rd season, this show gets increasingly convoluted and becoming almost unwatchable. They try to reboot the 4th season by adding a whole new set of people and a circus. Of course, it didn't work and the show was canceled. The first season is a 9 or even 10 but it's a long slide into 4 territory at the end.

Superheroes

[pawanpunjabithewriter · 7/10 · 10 October 2021]

I was awestruck watching the way it took off. One character at a time, it kept developing. The fantasy was top-notch, plot like never before. It gave the traditional save-the-world genre, a new look. Season 1 was magnificent. Few characters, mostly Hiro, were impeccable. It did look stretched in the second half. The first 4-5 episodes of season 1 were exceptional. Soon, it started slowing down. Episode 10 was the greatest of them. However, yet again, it started slowing the pace and awesomeness. Only the last couple of them were magnificent after the 10th. The climax was stunning. I enjoyed the complete season 1 and it was a package full of fantasy, emotions, creativity and wonderful characters.

Season 2 never looked the same. It couldn, even for once, keep up to the level of the first.

I eneded in the middle of season 2 until things started making no sense whatsoever. Hiro wasn't hiro either.

Wildly uneven, but getting back on top

[thegkman · 7/10 · 14 December 2009]

Heroes is one of the most controversial shows of the decade, but not for the reasons you may think. When Heroes premiered, it was one of the most popular shows on television. Fanboys were created around the world, but disaster struck: Heroes, for reasons unknown, started to suck after a wonderful first volume. Fanboys were in denial everywhere: Was their precious Heroes really going down the drain, or was it just a hiccup? People expected old Heroes to come back when volume three came to us, and.... Heroes was awful. People stopped watching, but as they stopped, the old Heroes we loved slowly came back in volume four. Now the show is in volume five, and did the show returned to form? Read on...

VOLUME ONE: GENESIS - Here's the thing about Heroes: Instead of having "seasons" like normal TV shows, it has "volumes" to be more like comic books. Volume One is where everything starts. In it the Heroes must stop a nuclear bomb from exploding in NYC, but all of the Heroes are scattered around the world and none of them except one knows about it. We're introduced to the main cast that has remained with us up until recently. The best part about superhero stories has often been said to be the "discovery" phase, and the whole first season is devoted to that. As the volume progressed, the characters become more accustomed to their powers, showing the natural stages of average Joe to superman. The magic of real people having superpowers captivated the world. The only major downside to this volume was the average finale. People expected a grand finish for the volume, but one wasn't delivered. Maybe I wasn't disappointed because I watched this volume after the fact, but fans were just plain angry. Despite the sub par finale, expectations still soared for volume two...

VOLUME TWO: GENERATIONS - Volume Two dealt with heroes from the past, and the heroes also had to stop a virus from being released. Sounds exciting... at least on paper. In execution however, this volume was horrible. Nothing happened in the first 4 episodes. It was BORING. These people have superpowers, but they aren't doing anything. Things started to pick up, but none of it seemed to be planned out. As the volume started to be interesting, the volume was cut short due to the writer's strike. What we're left with is a boring mess that made fans want to tare their hair out. Tim Kring apologized for the show's 180 degree turn in quality. Fans laid the blame on the writer's strike, so expectations soared yet again for volume three...

VOLUME THREE: VILLAINS - Volume three had the heroes trying to stop a formula which gives normal people superpowers from being mass produced, and would therefore destroy the world. This season started out by introducing new characters to us and created exciting new twists that should have been awesome. After the premier though, things started to suck. Instead of things being too slow now, they were too fast. Random things were happening left and right, the plot was spinning out of control, and fans everywhere gave up on the show. Thankfully, this volume was only half the season, and Heroes then segued into volume four...

VOLUME FOUR: FUGITIVES - After the events in volume three, the show rightfully decided to ignore most of volumes two and three. This volume had the heroes on the run from the US government. After the madness of the last two volumes, people had given up on the show. Something happened which I started calling the "Heroes effect". The Heroes effect is this logic: The last two volumes of Heroes were so awful that Heroes is bad forever no matter what. This of course is not true. With this volume, the plot slowed down and the heroes started doing rational things. We started to actually care for them again, and they did things logically again. The magic of the show started to return, but by this point there were only about 10 people left who cared enough to notice. The volume also slowly drifted away from most of the show's usual tropes, and fans started to actually look forward to next week's episode. With Heroes starting to get back on track, we now have the current volume...

VOLUME FIVE: REDEMPTION - This volume, aptly titled "Redemption", shows how the writers have learned from their mistakes. The cast aren't bouncing off the walls like in Volume Three, but they aren't sleeping like in Volume Two. The heroes did things we can relate to again, the new villains this round were the most interesting since the first volume, and most of the stuff they did was logical. It started off a bit slow, but takes off with episode 4. After that most of the episodes were awesome up until episode 12; then the volume became really boring. Almost Volume 2 boring. It kills all of the momentum it built up. It's like this for a while, but then the last 4 episodes are fantastic. This volume, unlike all of the others, actually has a satisfying ending. If it didn't have those really slow episodes in the middle, Volume Five would be just as good as Volume One. It's certainly more entertaining than the previous three volumes.

Looking back, it's a miracle how the show got back on track. Heroes promised so much in volume one, but didn't deliver any of it. Heroes had fallen so far that the turn around in quality doesn't even matter now. Most people who watched the show are now biased against it, and the ratings are so low that the show's future is in doubt. Luckily NBC's ratings suck this season, and Heroes is still one of its better performing shows, so Heroes might get lucky.

If you plan to watch Heroes for the first time, skip volumes two and three. They'll make your brain hurt.

1 episode and I'm hooked....

[ryanbramhart3 · 9/10 · 26 September 2006]

I first saw the teaser commercial for Heroes at the end of Medium's last season and started salivating. And now that I've tuned in I'm hooked. The premise of super-humans has been done before and most recently in Mutant X. And I've been around to check these shows out. The misfit one with Courtney Cox was an old favorite. But none of these shows garnished the pure mystery that Heroes had going for it all the way to the end of the pilot. Plus a killer cast should make it a surefire hit.

I've loved Adrian Pasdar since he chewed up the screen in Profit and while he seems to be playing a similar role here, he is balanced by Milo Ventimigilia as his kid brother with a more human heart and dreams he can fly.

But the real scene stealing of the show belongs to the ladies. Ali Larter creates a believable single mother with serious money problems. Her strange gift is actual scary and has yet to have been fleshed out. The sequence where she awakes to find things have gone horribly wrong in her favor are chill inducing.

And on the flip side Hayden Panettiere's discovery of her gift is grueling, bloody, and refreshingly ironic as a modern day Supergirl. All her stunt work in a cheerleader's outfit made me smile. And by the show's end a revelation comes about her family life that made the show even more interesting.

With a painter who creates art that sees into the future and a comedic turn by Masi Oka and his abilities it's hard not to enjoy heroes. It twists and turns in only an hour and keeps you grounded to the characters and the situations they fall into. The previews for upcoming episodes made me actually want more. If your not tuning in on Monday nights, you might be missing something spectacular.

As Good as Advertised

[ffx210 · 9/10 · 26 September 2006]

I just watched this today (recorded it from last night) and quite honestly, I'm pleasantly surprised. I was convinced the hype machine would kill this show, building up expectations so high they could never be met, but Heroes has measured up nicely, hitting on all marks in my book. I'm as a huge a 24 and House fan as is out there, but Heroes may have just taken TV's top billing in one night.

I must admit, shows now-a-days tend to go down hill after the pilot, but NBC's latest offering seems to have set itself up with a concept and tone that could carry on strong, at least for a season. My initial reaction was that we would either see clichéd super hero garb or some awkward NBC drama soaked in hero juice. What we got instead was a surprisingly good pilot that brought enough "hero material" to live up to its name, but not too much as to make us think we were watching an X-men ripoff.

The writing and the interweaving plot and characters is compelling and interesting, nothing dumbed down, but nothing contrived either. The direction fits the concept perfectly, it grabs you as much as it should, without being distracting. The acting is most surprising in that it's actually good. Masi Oka, who plays "Hiro Nakamura", is quite possibly the best of the cast, though he never speaks a word of English (unless you count "Spock"). Overall the cast is nothing big on paper, but they all manage to hit their marks well.

Last but not least, there were some pop culture references and nods to comic book lore that just made me smile. There seems to be a very cool hero/comic book hip feel that makes you trust the writers on this one.

Again, shows have been known to start strong and fall off soon after, but in this case, Heroes has made a strong enough showing that everyone should check this out.

The Best pilot this season...so far

[alan4artg · 9/10 · 19 August 2006]

Heroes, in this writers opinion, is probably the most compelling pilot I've seen this year. Yeah there's "traveler" "Jericho" "Kidnapped"... they were good, but nothing that wasn't predictable. I must give credit to "Tim Kring" the creator of this series much credit for not treating the viewers like idiots. Superhero TV shows always have tendency to be wannabee big-budget Jr. movies. "Heroes" will have none of that! From reading the outline one would an expect "X-men" rip-off. Such is not the case for "Heroes." It is completely original in it's presentation. It would be a crime for me to give away plot details. I just hope the rest of the series continues to be this smart.By the way, it's nice to see "Ali Larter" given a provocative role like the the one she plays in this series, that's demonstrates her range as an actress. Kudos to all involved! Now only if NBC gives this darn show a friggin' chance!

Season 1 made me think this was going to be one of the best superheroes show...

[KineticSeoul · 6/10 · 24 June 2014]

The concept of this show is about people with special powers similar to mutants in the Marvel universe. And how the characters cope with it and what they decide to do with it. The main drive of this show isn't necessarily the the superpowers, but the subconscious and the philosophical aspects that revolve around power. Unfortunately this is one of those shows that has a very captivating and entertaining first season, but goes downhill from there. It probably has to do with the fact that after the first season it was first planned to introduce new characters with brand new main characters with just Suresh (who is sort of the Beast character from the Marvel universe without the furriness). Which didn't go into effect because they wanted to keep the main cast that become dis-likable and annoying as the seasons drags on. The writer strike could have been a big factor why the show started to go downhill after season 1. I think season 2 was the most boring season of all. Season 3 it sort of picks up, but just about everything is so inconsistent with the story and the character that it takes away a lot form the experience. The 4th season revolves around a mutant carnival and they just seemed to drag that on way too much. And the constant love, hate relationship between Claire Bennet (Hayden Panettiere) and Noah Bennet (Jack Coleman) gets really really annoying...Like super annoying and irritating. As a matter of fact most of the chemistry that starts out strong in the first season goes downhill. The story gets poorly written for each season after one that even the characters decisions and motives makes no sense sometimes. Especially the villains in the shows, including Sylar. And to increase the running time of the show, it has multiple story arcs that doesn't go anywhere. One of the most disappointing part about the show is the showdown between Peter and Sylar. The constant plot-holes and tons of time paradoxes when it comes to time travel doesn't make things better. Overall this is a show that has a good start but gets worse and worse with each installment. Who knows, maybe just maybe the fifth season could have been a boost with the world knowing about super humans and might go in the direction like "True Blood" except people with super powers going out into the public. And Sylar's redemption might have been cool to watch. To sum it up it's one of those shows that soars skyward with the first season and spirals downward. I give this show a 6.4/10 because I found some of the philosophical aspects to be intriguing.

6.4/10

A very good start to a show that only promises to get better.

[Blackavaar · 9/10 · 26 September 2006]

Although the show's concept is sort of a ripoff of the X-Men concept of people evolving to have super powers, I have to admit it was enjoyable. The acting was all very well done as were the slices of life that introduced you to each character. The effects are kept very low-key making it more believable than the typical super hero show. There is a great underlying darkness that permeates as well, giving one the feeling that some very bad things are about to happen. My mom even liked it, and she usually just sticks to shows about cops and politics (like West Wing, Law & Order, and CSI). If you haven't seen it give it a try. It's a very good show so far and only promises to get better.

I will definitely be tuning in for the next episode myself.

Unfortunate Writer's Strike Mid-S2.

[swordsnare · 7/10 · 27 April 2021]

Season One was excellent, but the writer's strike Mid-Season Two made for a clumsy unanticipated finale. Unfortunately, the series suffered as a result and never fully recovered with many writing inconsistencies that followed. My rating reflects the goodwill and potential based on the first season and took -1 per season that followed.

A painful fall from a 10/10 S1 to a 1/10 S4.

[TvTobbe · 1/10 · 1 December 2015]

This must by far be the worst butchering of a TV series ever. It is almost impressive how they totally trash a tremendous show along the way until only a burning wreck remains. The writers responsible should quit their jobs and live in shame for the rest of their lives. This is a painful display of inconsistency and incompetent writing. I was actually excited when I heard about "heroes reborn" but now that I have just finished s4 I am not so sure anymore. Maybe I will watch it out of pure curiosity and I am telling myself that it can not get any worse. This show desperately needs Hiro to go back to the start of s2 and bitchslap everyone around the writingtable.

Terrific first season and the rest you can skip

[benfoldsismydad · 12 February 2023]

The first season is terrific I would rate it like a 9.5 out of 10. Some people dislike the ending of season one but I thought it made complete sense and kind of loved it. Originally they planned to have a new group of people each season and tell a new story; however, the first season was such a hit the network wanted the fan favorites back again. Huge mistake. The story didn't have anywhere natural to continue to and you feel it being stretched. Finding ways to keep the characters from over coming things with powers they now know how to use. The second season is bad (maybe a 5 out of 10) and each season gets worse than the one for it. Watch season one and stop there.

First time I've been dying til the following episode in years...

[TiffQLyman · 10/10 · 24 October 2006]

I can't actually recall the last time I was so literally addicted to the show. I don't get home until about 9:40 on Mondays, so it's torture until we can watch it on the laptop. And we willingly watch every commercial with glee to get to the good stuff. I am really impressed by the multi-media approach NBC takes with this - give addicts like myself (who used to maybe watch 5 hours of TV a WEEK) a constant source of intellectual stimulation, while shamelessly promoting the show. But it's so good, who cares!?! There are character blogs & the comic book on the site has hidden links to it that even incorporate the characters as real people, with real blogs on NBC and even on myspace, with fake character friends AND real people as friends. Put fans in the actual drama. There are SO many hidden clues and homages in the episodes, you can watch them over and over and not catch them all.

Whole package

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 14 June 2020]

I have to agree with another reviewer that wrote that the show starts off good. I have to disagree with the notion of only rating and reviewing a show based on a couple of episodes or even just one season. You have to see the whole package. Something that is also true of our heroes on display here. The variety at the beginning is something that is great to see.

The fact it gets predictable and jumps the shark quite early (even season 2 one might say). There are too many coincidences, too many convinient things happening, too predictable, too much hoping and giving the viewers all the characters almost all the time. And then there are character developments that are just plain ... well not good to say the least. Flipping and switching to serve a narrative or artificially heighten the tension.

You may accuse me of being too harsh and you may not care for some of those things. But I am laying them out there for you, not that they are hard to spot. So it is up to you to decide what weight you see in certain things and what matters most to you. I always follow through with watching stuff, even when I lose interest. But I want to able to know where something is going ... clearly the makers didn't think the last season here, would actually be the last season. I have not researched but there may be a continuation in comic books, something Buffy and Angel did for example. Whatever the case, it will leave you with an uneven feeling ...

a top show for sure

[jheke · 10/10 · 19 September 2006]

wow...it is an amazing take on the whole "next stage" thing.. i believe that it may become one of the top five shows to watch and i can't wait to see more.. all the characters are beginning to develop a lot of depth, and i know that they have yet to show all the characters in the pilot but hopefully we will see just how far they can take this and show the back side of things..not the heroes everyone thinks of, but how they all become that person. the cast is very talented Ali Larter is an amazing actress that in my mind hasn't gotten the opportunity to really express how good of an actress she is. the rest of the cast i am not too familiar with but from what i saw they all look quite gifted actors.

Still waiting...

[db_in_uk · 6/10 · 31 October 2007]

I grew up in North America, and quality shows like Heroes were a staple. Now having lived in Europe for a few years, I find it difficult to watch American serial dramas. Heroes is an excellent example of a great story, a great cast, and certainly great potential. Unfortunately, American TV stipulates that the story must be dragged out over 23 episodes. What this means is that, in every episode, not much happens. Wait another week and still not much happens. I am now on episode 8 and am ready to bail. I'm not sure I have the patience to last another 15 episodes.

Series like Heroes deserve better. The story deserves to be told for the sake and quality of the story. It does not deserve to be tampered with for the sake of filling a season, because what you get is what we've got with Heroes. A lot of filling and not much substance.

I think what Britain could have done with this. Probably made a cracking good series over 3-4 hours where the story is the focus and the audience is the viewer. Not the advertisers and TV executives.

The Second Show Shows The Potential Of This Series

[GSiessel · 10/10 · 2 October 2006]

This is an episodic series very similar to the "Lost" format when dealing with characters and their history. Like "Lost" they also have a habit of bringing up questions without giving you answers but hopefully that will change as the series goes along. The actors/actresses are very good at what roles they have and I for one am already hooked.

The main characters are individuals that are just discovering their super-human abilities and as the show progresses you are given the feeling that these individuals will be coming together and assisting one another to prevent major catastrophes from occurring. A scientist's son is picking up where his father's research left off and knows these folks are out there and are important to the world.

The second show has some gruesome spots (not a spoiler) so this may not be one for the "kiddies". It does have a great deal of intrigue and hopefully won't leave you with a feeling of being left out on a limb. I am interested in how the sub-plots will all come together.

Started out really intriguing but now ... a huge mess!

[amar_us · 7/10 · 28 February 2007]

So, this show... I happened to have to been hearing a lot about it and so, managed to catch a couple of episodes... and just couldn't get enough of it.. I wanted to watch more and more. It started out really really interesting with the discoveries and resultant comical situations... but as Hayden Panettiere (the cheerleader, Claire Bennett) unknowingly (I guess) put it in an interview... "these shows start out really great but then lose their plot and become really cheesy"... Well, that has exactly what has happened.. so many things just refuse to make sense as people (and even those special people with powers) act in the dumbest of ways possible.. I mean nothing coherent takes place now. This may not stop me from still watching the show... for what it's worth, it's good pass time while dinner... but that's about it... special effects are fine, nothing great.. overall, if you're looking for something to kill time, this could be your cup of tea.. if you're really looking for a good show to watch (a la Rome) .... then thou shalt look elsewhere. I gave it 7 out of 10 because of the initial spell it cast on me... the first few episodes were a lot of fun.

A contender for Best Show Ever!

[PoisonKeyblade · 10/10 · 8 February 2007]

When I saw the trailer for this in the surprising best movie I've ever seen, The Descent, I knew it looked unique, different, and fantastic, but I had no idea just how great it would be.

"Heroes" prevails without a doubt in the area of character development. The show is not reliant on constant action but rather an incredible relation to the realistic characters and then a mind-blowing release. "Homecoming" is a favorite episode of mine because of the way it sealed up the whole "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World" deal. I'm sure the season finale will be absolutely extraordinary as well, as it should all lead up to an amazing concluding episode. One could only imagine my joy when it was officially announced for a second season. All of the characters are interesting, intriguing, and well-written, and my favorites are Peter and Claire.

Not only is "Heroes" a perfect character drama piece, but also a mesmerizing tale of what would happen if real people with real emotions got superpowers. The images are stunning and vivid, and the special effects are subtle and realistic. This is what a good superhero show should be.

After nearly an entire season, I already rank "Heroes" second among my favorite TV shows of all time—it ranks second just under "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." There isn't a single negative thing to say about the show except for the fact that after the passing of each episode, you only want more, more, more! This is, quite honestly and truly, the most addictive show ever on television. Be sure not to miss even a single episode of "Heroes!" You should check out one of the highest rated new shows—you won't be disappointed!

EDIT: After all of season 1 has completed and the finale aired, Heroes is still one of my favorite shows. The finale was my favorite episode of the entire season as every storyline reached its peak and all of the characters finally met face to face. I loved every minute of it.

Great start but season 2 & 3 goes downhill

[steel_arkangel · 5/10 · 27 February 2009]

I loved the first series - innovative, good story, slick cgi, great cliff-hangers. Sadly season 2 seemed to lose it's way (story wise), and it all started to get messy - worse still it was full of moments when you say "what the... why would you do that?!!!?!" for example, you've had a major fight within your arch nemesis & for once he's on the floor unconscious - now is your chance -finally! - so what do you do - would you a) pick up the gun on the floor and take the 2 seconds to shoot that person, or b) leave & then come back later..... let me see now...

Let me give you another example - you are a Dr, and the former most dangerous man in the world, who you know murdered countless people & almost brought the city to the edge of destruction, comes to visit - but you find out he's lost all his powers. He "thinks" you can help him get these powers back with an injection, do you a) give him the injection - knowing he'll probably be unstoppable & continue to murder his way through humanity, or do you b) give him an injection of something like saline, or even better some sort of poison - which he wouldn't have known you were doing as he had no medical knowledge??? Again, let me think....

Too many moments like this made it silly and unbelievable, which is a shame....

Interesting, but can be hard to follow

[starrydreamr23-1 · 9/10 · 2 October 2006]

I think this show is amazing! However, I think it can also be a little confusing for anyone who missed the first episode. In the first episode we see how these main characters are finding out that they have different "skills". From what I understand from the first episode, from this solar eclipse that is occurring, people from across the country are finding that they have unusual talent. In the first episode, we see a nurse, Peter Petrelli, played by Milo Ventimiglia, who is the original reason I started watching this show because I've seen a lot of his work and feel that he is a very strong actor, learns that he can fly. A cheerleader, Claire Bennett, finds that she is pretty much invincible and even states, "I walked through fire today and I didn't get burned." Other characters find themselves able to bend time, predict the future through art and find their inner demon. It has an amazing cast lineup and the overall plot is really interesting. I'm really hoping that this show pulls through because it is very interesting could definitely be a big hit if enough viewers watch it and follow it weekly. A must-see!

Awesome

[codyk-86072 · 9/10 · 23 January 2021]

Great show! Great storyline! Definitely recommend.

Stared too long at the sun...crashed and burned

[mozillameister · 6/10 · 14 April 2015]

Heroes is a lot like Icarus: the fabled legend of a boy who grew wings, but stared too long into the sun and ended up falling from the heavens.

Show starts with an ensemble cast of intriguing characters who form super powers. However, what is most interesting is the focus on the characters dealing with these newfangled powers, rather than the powers themselves. Each character is flawed, and even the villain(s) have their own reasons or driven by forces beyond their control. Heroes explores the depths of humanity without ever becoming too dark. Its a masterful first season, and still the best superhero television show ever aired.

However, the series writers wrote themselves into a wall: They gave their ensemble too many powers and deus ex machinas. With so many webs and story lines, the show started to unravel quickly. By Season 3 it became unfollowable, and Season 4 unwatchable.

Its a tale of a show with so much untapped potential, only to fall flat on its own weight. With a skilled writing crew, this series could of been the transcending television show of the decade. Instead, it was another show 'demonstrating' how superheroes do not work in television (except in superior cartoon series like Batman) that has only been "disproven" recently by Arrow, Flash, and Daredevil.

Hopefully, the sequel series remembers what made the show successful in the first place, and place character development over showcasing super powers (and avoid deus ex machinas as much as possible).

Good storytelling

[claire-90304 · 8/10 · 7 April 2020]

The first season was absolutely amazing, great storytelling and great characters. You can always emphasise with the characters and what they're going through and the writers always seem to come up with a new idea.

It was also very impressive how each character got their time to shine, especially because there are quite a few characters and not enough screen time.

Unfortunately the last few seasons are not as engaging as the first one but still very enjoyable.

IMO THIS SERIES IS WHAT INVENTED THE WORDS "GREAT SERIES".

[therapeuticsuicide · 8/10 · 8 August 2022]

SAVE THE CHEERLEADER.... SCREW THE WORLD! SHE ALL I NEED BRO!

Let me tell you a little bit about why we have great series today like Stranger Things and Game of Thrones and all that...

Back when, in case a lot of you forgot, and I know even I almost did, there was a deserted wasteland called "TELEVISION", and it was usually only visited by braindead, unimaginative zombies, with rarities like the original Star Trek series starring William Shatner being the only standouts, so much so that shos like it remain legendary to this day for good reason. Anyone with real sense waited for good movies to hit the big screen, and TV was reserved for laugh-track sitcoms and the news. Many series came and went, and vast majority were garbage no one alive today either remembers or has ever heard of.

Amid this clutter of eye-gougers was Heroes, something that hadn't particularly been attempted before: portraying people with superhero-like powers in a modern light, complete with the implications such powers would have on the world around them and their social lives. It was an incredible start, you had engaging characters played by compelling actors in Peter and Hiro right out of the gates, and not long after, ONE OF THE GREATEST UNDISPUTED VILLAINS OF ALL TIME: Sylar, played by Zachary Quinto. How undisputed? Well, it scored him the role of Spock in the latest Star Trek trilogy of films, where he did another fantastic job. BUT, all was not well in the kingdom of the idiot-boxes...

The entire industry went on strike. What had started off with a huge bang in season 1 of Heroes, already a well-known tv phenomenon in its first season, turned into a fading spark as production of season 2 was cut short (amazingly, despite which, turned out to be another great, engaging season, brimming with promise). In a time where working in TV series was a tough living due to limited market and viewership compared to today's mire of streaming services and screen-time, they had to work within constraints to shorten what they had originally planned, condensing a story that was still very strong, but had untapped potential. So they wrapped it up, and TV series were literally not a thing for quite a few months, if not the better part of a year, as TV production of that variety was halted, not even quite sure how it happened, let alone whether it would be possible for it to happen in today's market, and all that furious momentum the series had already built up was utterly lost, since, in those days, going more than a few weeks without seeing a series meant that the series died in your mind, since on-demand wasn't a thing.

So then, the industry started up again, and the show came back. But they tried something a bit off the beaten path of the previous two seasons, something involving a carnival, I can't remember what, but basically a little bit too much of a freakshow, and not familiar enough for fans of the first two seasons, and it kind of Petered-out, pun intended (the main character's name is Peter, yes), and neither of those seasons lived on in the memories of fans the way the first two had. Sure it had the familiar goodness of some of the same characters, who all remained stalwart and faithful to what we expected of them, but just weren't faced with situations or drama that interested us anymore.

Later they even tried to bring it back again, with Heroes Reborn, but the bread-and-butter of the series had moved on, and the very few engaging characters who remained weren't strong enough to pull the weight, if anything only doing further damage to the series, never once regaining the glory of the first two legendary seasons, which were really only a season and a half because of season 2 being cut short by the strike.

And now we find ourselves here today, with the Disney+ service offering the full catalogue of Marvel films and coughing up mediocre spin-off series, Netflix struggling more often than not to create engaging content, some notable entries like Powers and The Boys and Peacemaker, thank goodness. And yet, a lot of people forget, before the Avengers and X-Men films got lit, a lot of that superhero momentum was already generated by this series from out of left field, Heroes, and the grand-daddy of the Marvel film universe, starring, yes, a black dude: Blade, starring Wesley Snipes.

So if you're a supe fan (and who isn't these days), you owe it to yourself to go back a little farther and see where it all started.

It declines after S1, such a bloody shame

[shweta-51657 · 7/10 · 24 February 2017]

This initially blew my mind. If I had to write a review after watching Season 1, I would have given it 9 on 10. God, it was so well made. The story, from the first episode gets you soo engrossed, it was amazing. Each story, each plot, how well they all tie into each other.. This was one the TV shows that if you missed or skipped even one episode, just go home, because you would be completely lost after. The story was done up like a comic book but in live-action, which honestly leaves your mouth open if you are experiencing it for the first time. Season 1 was one of the greatest things to come on the TV screen. The plot keeps you beautifully enraptured until it makes you weep once the writing changed after the first season.

It is just such a crying shame that everything that made this series great takes a nose-dive so sharply after season 1. The writing. The plot. I am not saying that its terrible, oh no, the story still engrossed me well enough to keep interested till the very end but only now, it feels like mediocre sci fi from a fiction novel.

One of the few ups that stays till the very end of the show, is the acting since most of the lead cast stay on till the end. One VERY notable character is Sylar. I can honestly some really good acting and lines have been delivered by Mr. Quinto in this TV show. Another surprise would be Jack Coleman. His inconspicuous character leaves you guessing about his loyalties. Robert Knepper also had immense potential. He delivered a few good scenes, but a better written script would have used his talents better.

On the whole, this was a great series until it wasn't. 7 on 10.