Monday night I caught the pilot of Heroes. I have some mixed feelings about this series, however. This isn't to say that I thought the pilot was a waste of time that could have been better spent trimming my toenails. I guess my apprehension is this . . . last fall there were three series that I really liked...
The first one I liked was Surface.
It was about a gentically engineered species that ultimately was to wreak havoc on the Earth unless a biological scientist, an insurance salesman, and a teenager combine their knowledge.
The other was Threshold.
In Threshold, an alien species was taking over the Earth. Only one person on the face of the Earth ever anticipated this would happen. She was called to the White House, along with three misfits who also happen to be experts in their field, to seek out and destroy the aliens.
Lastly, there was Invasion.
Here come the aliens again, seeking to re-populate the Earth. Of the three, this one was probably the best. It's always nice to see these kinds of series pop up. They're off the beaten path. They dare to be a little different. I kind of like the sci-fi stuff as long as it's not too sci-fi. But, it's always a bit of a risk. Obviously the three that I mentioned aren't going to be back. Evidently primetime isn't ready for sci-fi, even if it is good.
With all that said, let's talk about Heroes.
Heroes is about a gentically modified group of people who now discover they have very special abilities. Most of them are unaware that the others exist. However, they are slowly becoming aware that they possess amazing abilities such as . . . Claire Bennet ( Hayden Panettiere ) whose body heals regardless of the inury. Hiro Nakamura ( Masi Oka ) can not only bend time, he also discovers that he can teleport himself. Isaac Mendez ( Santiago Cabrera ) is a drug addict that paints the future. Peter Petrelli ( Milo Ventmiglia ) just might be able to fly - at least we know his brother ( Adrian Pasdar as Nathan Petrelli ) can. Niki Sanders ( Ali Larter ) has some special ability. I'm not exactly sure what it is but she defeats two xtra large, mafia bill collectors when she gets overdue on her payments. Well, wait a minute, she doesn't do it, her reflection does it - I think. Is that wierd or what?
The driving force behind the creation of these genetic anomalies is Mohinder Suresh's ( Sendihl Ramamurthy ) father. At the outset we know that his father has died and Mohinder declares that he will continue his father's reasearch starting with patient zero in New York. He travels there and drives a cab by day. While doing so, he crosses the path of someone we are led to believe is "the bad guy" that has not only rifled through his father's study, but also tracked Mohindu to New York. Later we see that he is also Calire's father. But wait!! There's another twist . . . Claire's adopted and she wants to know who her real parents are. But, why are these people finding their amazing abilities? And furthermore, does the fact that this is happening on the very same day a total eclipse is taking place have any significance? Well, yes.
Obviously these people are to battle evil. Heroes is a really good idea. Something new. Something different. Something off the beaten path. Most of the cast, although having acting experience on other projects, are pretty fresh faces to me. Therefore, I don't believe that any previous assumptions will burden them in this endeavor. There's drama, action, emotion. All in all, it has all the makings of a good prime time show.
But .... Back to my opening monologue . . . Will this series follow the same path as Threshold, Surface, and Invasion. History would suggest that viewers aren't ready for it unless someone is winning a check for simply picking a number and getting rewarded by the banker or voting someone off after lying to them while professing a solemn oath of loyalty. But who knows, maybe I'm just too cynical. I mean, after all, people watch other shows. There's a plethora of lawyer movies, crime dramas, naughty housewives - and they've all been successful. But then again, Heroes isn't any of those either. As much as I hate to say it, I don't think Heroes will make it. Not because it isn't any good . . . but because primetime viewers just won't watch it.
It was about a gentically engineered species that ultimately was to wreak havoc on the Earth unless a biological scientist, an insurance salesman, and a teenager combine their knowledge.
The other was Threshold.
In Threshold, an alien species was taking over the Earth. Only one person on the face of the Earth ever anticipated this would happen. She was called to the White House, along with three misfits who also happen to be experts in their field, to seek out and destroy the aliens.
Lastly, there was Invasion.
Here come the aliens again, seeking to re-populate the Earth. Of the three, this one was probably the best. It's always nice to see these kinds of series pop up. They're off the beaten path. They dare to be a little different. I kind of like the sci-fi stuff as long as it's not too sci-fi. But, it's always a bit of a risk. Obviously the three that I mentioned aren't going to be back. Evidently primetime isn't ready for sci-fi, even if it is good.
With all that said, let's talk about Heroes.
Heroes is about a gentically modified group of people who now discover they have very special abilities. Most of them are unaware that the others exist. However, they are slowly becoming aware that they possess amazing abilities such as . . . Claire Bennet ( Hayden Panettiere ) whose body heals regardless of the inury. Hiro Nakamura ( Masi Oka ) can not only bend time, he also discovers that he can teleport himself. Isaac Mendez ( Santiago Cabrera ) is a drug addict that paints the future. Peter Petrelli ( Milo Ventmiglia ) just might be able to fly - at least we know his brother ( Adrian Pasdar as Nathan Petrelli ) can. Niki Sanders ( Ali Larter ) has some special ability. I'm not exactly sure what it is but she defeats two xtra large, mafia bill collectors when she gets overdue on her payments. Well, wait a minute, she doesn't do it, her reflection does it - I think. Is that wierd or what?
The driving force behind the creation of these genetic anomalies is Mohinder Suresh's ( Sendihl Ramamurthy ) father. At the outset we know that his father has died and Mohinder declares that he will continue his father's reasearch starting with patient zero in New York. He travels there and drives a cab by day. While doing so, he crosses the path of someone we are led to believe is "the bad guy" that has not only rifled through his father's study, but also tracked Mohindu to New York. Later we see that he is also Calire's father. But wait!! There's another twist . . . Claire's adopted and she wants to know who her real parents are. But, why are these people finding their amazing abilities? And furthermore, does the fact that this is happening on the very same day a total eclipse is taking place have any significance? Well, yes.
Obviously these people are to battle evil. Heroes is a really good idea. Something new. Something different. Something off the beaten path. Most of the cast, although having acting experience on other projects, are pretty fresh faces to me. Therefore, I don't believe that any previous assumptions will burden them in this endeavor. There's drama, action, emotion. All in all, it has all the makings of a good prime time show.
But .... Back to my opening monologue . . . Will this series follow the same path as Threshold, Surface, and Invasion. History would suggest that viewers aren't ready for it unless someone is winning a check for simply picking a number and getting rewarded by the banker or voting someone off after lying to them while professing a solemn oath of loyalty. But who knows, maybe I'm just too cynical. I mean, after all, people watch other shows. There's a plethora of lawyer movies, crime dramas, naughty housewives - and they've all been successful. But then again, Heroes isn't any of those either. As much as I hate to say it, I don't think Heroes will make it. Not because it isn't any good . . . but because primetime viewers just won't watch it.
Leave a comment