TV Review: Heroes 3.8 – Villains

Posted by Adam Sweeney (adam@filmschoolrejects.com) on November 11, 2008

Heroes, NBC, Airs Mondays 9/8c

Episode: “Villains” (Season 3, Episode 8)

Synopsis: Hiro’s spirit walk takes him back in time one year, to the events surrounding the “death” of Arthur Pertrelli (Robert Forster).

Review: So they did it this season. The inevitable flashback episode. I can not stress how much I do not like this style of storytelling. It can be effective when done in smaller doses throughout a story, but if you’re going to spend an entire episode focusing on the past it had better unveil information that is important, not letting us know that Angela Pertrelli (Cristine Rose) makes a hell of an arsenic and artichoke soup. Aside from some clever editing, which I really enjoyed, the episode didn’t do much for me.

At the end of the show I found myself asking, “what was the point?” The point behind the episode was supposedly for Hiro (Masi Oka) to go on a spirit walk in order to learn about the past and his enemy. So then the show negates all that by having Arthur Pertrelli show up right after? Didn’t we watch two episodes this season that focused on Hiro trying to get accepted into the gang of villains so that he could get into Pinehearst? Now we find that it was all for nothing? Come on.

It seems like the show has gotten a bit off track and is trying put the train back on the rails by revisiting season one, their most successful season to date. It reminds me of a boyfriend who cheats on his lover and then brings a scrapbook to them to prove that they didn’t use to be so bad. I’m not saying Heroes is bad but there needs to be some soul searching done, and I don’t mean Elle’s (Kristen Bell) attempt to save Sylar (Zachary Quinto).

Speaking of Sylar, is there anybody else that thinks when he goes into Gabriel mode that he looks eerily similar to Rivers Cuomo, lead singer of Weezer? If they have a Halloween episode next year they HAVE to get him to play that part. Back on topic, I was originally interested in the blurs in the morality of each character. Now I feel like the show is trying too hard. Sometimes it is better to just have good battle evil and leave it at that. I also felt like Sylar revealed his powers way too quickly to Elle. It was almost instantaneous. Maybe Sylar was just that desperate … or maybe the show is skipping important moments that need to develop between characters. You decide.

And is it me or is the Heroes community one big family tree? Meredith (Jessalyn Gilsig), Claire’s (Hayden Panettiere) biological mother, is Flint’s sister? So that makes Flint Claire’s uncle. Ooh, do you think we will see this play out at some point? Let’s keep it simple. I shouldn’t have to be scribbling out notes like John Nash in A Beautiful Mind to follow a story. (Quick side note. Jessalyn Gilsig does not look anything like Hayden Panettiere. If anything she should have played Sarah Michelle Gellar’s mother on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Alas, you can’t turn back time and this is the state of things for sci-fi baby’s mamas)

One last thought. I can’t stand the Arthur Pertrelli storyline. It is wasting precious time in episodes that could be spent on a much simpler and more effective means of storytelling. Do we have to have the Shakespearian power struggle for the world to be in peril? Now more than ever I am wishing that Heroes would go back to the ways of old. Save the cheerleader, save the world. It shouldn’t be save the cheerleader, who is related to this person, this person, and this person, save the world. But before you do make sure you don’t kill Sylar, Angela, Flint, or pretty much any villain in our universe because they’ve got a heart too! I am usually a “things aren’t always black and white” kind of guy, but in this case I think they need to be a bit more.

Up Next Week: After a preemptive strike against Hiro and Ando (James Kyson Lee) in Africa, Arthur Pertrelli orders Knox (Jamie Hector) and Flint (Blake Shields) to hunt down his son Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) and granddaughter Claire. Nathan (Adrian Pasdar) is stunned to learn his father is alive and leading a villainous charge to worldwide destruction. Meanwhile, back at Pinehearst, Sylar (Zachary Quinto) has a charged confrontation with Elle. Suresh begins testing his new, combined superpower formula. Later, with others dead, injured or on the run, Matt (Greg Grunberg) attempts to wake Angela (Cristine Rose).

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Did you watch the “Villains” episode of Heroes? If so, what did you think?

Read more articles by Adam Sweeney