Deja Tube. It's that feeling that you've already experienced a show on television before.Back in May, I reviewed the original pilot of NBC's new superhero drama Heroes... and I was rather lambasted as a result of my negative review. While everyone I know who saw the pilot in Hollywood absolutely loathed it, fans of the show (how can a show have virulent fans before it's even premiered?) lashed out and members of the production staff assured me that what I saw was drastically different than what was scheduled to air in September.
So I thought: I've got an hour. I'll take another look at the series and tune in for the "new" version of the pilot episode ("Genesis"). I went in with an open mind, cleared out an hour of my schedule (and my TiVo) and sat down, fully prepared not to let my earlier feelings cloud my judgment. Guess what: the version NBC aired last night was only minutely different than the version I saw. (Still no sign of Leonard Roberts or Greg Grunberg.)
Sure, there were some differences between the two versions. Painter-turned-visionary Isaac doesn't cut his hand off in an attempt to escape from his self-induced imprisonment in order to quit drugs cold-turkey; instead he overdoses after painting a vaguely apocalyptic painting about the coming test for the heroes... and a picture of Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) flying. (Gone from earlier in the episode is Tim Sale's evocative painting of Simone standing in the doorway with her briefcase, which is a shame as it was a rather eerie and portentous piece.)
There's also a new plot thread with a comic book called "9 Wonders" that seems to come into play in subsequent episodes and which might indicate that the heroes' stories are being told in a comic book. Also tweaked: the pilot ending that has Peter jumping off a building in front of his would-be Congressman brother Nathan (Adrian Pasdar), only to have Nathan swoop up and catch him in his arms. Instead of registering shock (and relief at not having splattered himself all over that alley), Peter pushes himself out of Nathan's grasp. Gasp!
What hasn't changed is some seriously painful dialogue ("I just wanted to feel alive..." "You hero-worshipped him") and awkward and highly expository character development from writer/creator Tim Kring. There's definitely something very... off about the whole show. It takes itself way too seriously from the start. As I mentioned in my original review, there's something wholly ludicrous about beginning a genre show with a Star Wars-esque rolling text sequence and the indication that this is "Volume 1" of the heroes' story. (Talk about optimistic.) And I still feel that the eclipse that all of the characters seem to talking about endlessly comes and goes without any real weight or significance. It seems as though the pilot is building up to something HUGE with the eclipse but it seems to pass with nary an implication so far.
Sidebar: what still irritates me is that incorrect reference to Uncanny X-Men issue in which Kitty Pryde is able to travel through time. The storyline in question is "Days of Future Past" and any X-nerd will tell you that it occurred in issues #141-142, NOT #143 as Heroes would have you believe. Seeing as that error has been widely discussed several months before the premiere of show leads me to believe that someone should have fact checked that. It also makes me question Tim Kring's comic book background/awareness, even if he does have Jeph Loeb onboard as a producer.This second time around watching the Heroes pilot, I was just as bored and disconnected as before. I'm a comic book fan and have been since I was twelve, and I didn't find anything the least bit rewarding or intriguing about this series, certainly not enough to get me to tune into the second episode. I could see why this series might lure a fiercely loyal crowd looking for a comic-tinged serialized drama, but I for one won't be tuning in.
What's On Tonight
8 pm: NCIS (CBS); Heroes (NBC); Gilmore Girls (CW); Dancing with the Stars (ABC; 8-9:30 pm); House (FOX); Desire (MyNet)
9 pm: The Unit (CBS); Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC); Runaway (CW); Help Me Help You (ABC; 9:30-10 pm); Standoff (FOX); Fashion House (MyNet)
10 pm: Smith (CBS); Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC); Boston Legal (ABC)
What I'll Be Watching
8 pm: Gilmore Girls.
It's the first non-Amy and Daniel episode from new showrunner David Rosenthal. Will he be able to reverse the downwards trend of last season and reinvigorate the dramedy series, now on the newly minted CW network? On tonight's season premiere ("The Long Morrow"), written by Rosenthal, Lorelai deals with the repercussions of sleeping with Christopher but is asked to elope by Luke; meanwhile, Logan gives Rory a plane ticket to London. Check back here tomorrow for my thoughts...
9 pm: Eureka on Sci-Fi.
The whimsical new sci-fi drama that's more Northern Exposure than Stargate. On tonight's episode ("H.O.U.S.E. Rules"), Carter's sentient house gathers together the gang and traps them inside until they resolve their differences. My house never does anything except sit there and gather dust. Hrumph.
10 pm: Smith.
On the crime drama's second episode ("Two"), Hope is worried that Bobby had something to do with the museum robbery in last week's premiere episode, while Annie asks Tom and Jeff to work on another job involving identity theft.
Comments
This is shaping up to be a hell of a season eh?
House, LOST, Veronica Mars, Battlestar Galactica; and now Studio 60 and Heroes?
Along with all the mediocre shows. :)
The professor's exposition is still very clunky, but the opening scenes came off a little less pretentious. I think, too, it helped not to see a "Chapter 2" card like in the 72 minute version, because that made the show feel even more slow-paced.
Then again, maybe it helped that I felt free to talk while watching the show at home.
YMMV, of course.
Since I've never seen any episodes of "Lost" I have no comment about the character comparisons between the two shows nor which show is better. However the African American kid on "Heroes" haven't displayed any unusual powers that you speak of other than he's precocious.
I do agree that some of the writing is contrived and plots awkward. I wonder why the cheerleader is depressed about her powers like it's ruining her life? And how does the shoplifting mom fit into the storyline? And the symbolic eclipse seemed wasted since it had no visible effect to the already superpowered characters. Perhaps more will be explained later...
But despite its flaws I'm still intrigued on how this all comes together. Perhaps Hiro( which BTW is my favorite character) will be instrumental in bringing the L.A. cop, the Texas cheerleader, and the Las Vegas stripper to New York with his teleporting abilities. And how would that come about I wonder? From the guidance of Suresh or that evil Government guy who's also the father of the cheerleader? Or perhaps the visions from the strung out artist with precog abilities?
All and all I still liked the show alot and I hope it gets better. The preview for next week's episode seems very promising with Hiro stopping time to what looks like an attempt to save a little girl from a colliding bus. And the telepathic cop getting captured by that evil Government guy looks good. My interests were also piqued when we discover that exploits of our characters are also depicted on some comicbook that Hiro picks up from New York. So I'm still very optimistic about this...
I'm curious, how would you've envision this show to be if you were writing this?
Regarding your comment "You made poor comparisons between shows and archetypes that was way out of context," I assume you're referring to the "Lost" comparison but you said you have never seen "Lost" so how do you know the comparisons are poor? Personally, I thought they were right on.
And, yes, pilots are always filled with exposition but it's how the writers get the exposition across that seperates the good storytellers from the mediocre ones. I agree with Jace that this show falls in the latter category of mediocre storytelling.
Can you walk through walls? Let me know if you can.
Got a Heroes site? Link to my blog.
http://therealheroes.blogspot.com
However, I just wanted to point out that your two examples of changes/actions are wrong.
Isaac overdoses and THEN paints the image. Peter doesn't push Nathan away, their hands slip. In the instance of Isaac, it may not have been as clear that those things happened in that order, but it becomes clear in later episodes. He 'needs' the heroine to paint. There's another tidbit about how Peter did fly, after he slipped from Nathan's grasp.
I've never watched Lost. I'd like to one day (no, I don't watch television, as a general rule). If Heroes didn't take itself seriously, it would not be as interesting (to me).
It isn't just a show about people with superpowers. It's a show about people. About how people's lives are affected by such drastic changes to the reality they've known. Suddenly they are freaks, weirdos, with no one in whom to confide.
I like that the show puts that into perspective from time to time.