Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Thoughts on HEROES, Season 3, Chapter 10 - The Eclipse, Part 1

My interest is waning and I heard about a Tim Kring interview that may piss me off into never watching the show again. But we'll save that news until after the blogging... just in case.




7:58 PM - Oh great... the skipping thing is happening again. Worse than before. Blogging On-Hold Until I Can Get an episode download on-line.

8:48 AM - Letting my conditioner soak a bit. I see that the episode is finally up on NBC.com. Let's do this.


8:53 - Okay. Arthur has Precognitive Drawing now (second-hand from Peter or from Mr. African Issac?) and we get a few images here.

Two men falling over a jungle (Nathan and Peter?)

A man holding a gun kissing a blonde woman in a cell (Sylar and Elle?)

A man talking to two other men (Hiro and Ando are the men on the right, but who is the one on the left?)

A man holding a young woman, who is bleeding profusely (Bennet holding Claire?)

An eclipse

I'll admit that some of this is obvious given the commercials from last week... or the episode last week ... but hey, let's see how it plays out.


8:58 - Am I the only one creeped out by Sylar's dad saying "it's a good pairing"? Like he's already thinking about their super freak babies for forming "ze Mastur race"!


8:59 - Wow, the Company base is just SWARMING with activity now when it was completely empty last episode. And Claire asks the question that everybody has already asked "Why is it always me?"


9:02 - Okay. So Matt is going off looking for Hiro, Nathan and Peter are going after the Haitian and Claire is going to partner up with Bennet. Where is Daphne, though? With Matt, probably since he can't get around too fast.


9:03 - Baron Samdei? Haitian villain naming himself after the voodoo god of death? Into drugs and slavery. I totally had that guy as the main villain of my last superhero RPG! Okay, I called him Papa Loa, but still... you owe me a check, Kring!


9:05 - Just what I wanted. More of Mohinderance being a whiny bitchface. Oh, you need the catalyst. Maybe you should have thought of that before you injected yourself with an untested serum!


9:08 - Oh hell - so the Eclipse DOES change the powers thing up. Somehow. Ick. Still, did anybody else just cheer when Mohinderance said "I'm going to die?"


9:12 - Matt describes Hiro as a walking do-over. I'm guessing he got this from Angela's files because there's no other way Matt should know that. And Daphne is being all whiny about being a betrayer and a liar and going all psycho girlfriend, Bella from Twilight "I'm so worthless I don't know why you put up with me" - yeah, I'm sure this is REALLY helping calm the nerves of all the people afraid of this show becoming less of a WiR fest and more of a Faux Action Heroine show. As it is, Claire (and to a lesser extent Angela) are the only dynamic female characters.


9:15 - Easiest search mission ever. And yeah - Masi Oak saves/steals the scene again. Of course now I'm annoyed that... ah well, who's to say that Matt CAN fix Hiro even if the comic says he's supposed to?


9:18 - Wow. Claire being uncharacteristically bitchy to her dad. Look, NOBODY buys that she's upset about him being a semi-amoral hunter of super-powered folk - okay?!


9:21 - And yeah - crazy girlfriend act again. And she's off. Also, you'd think Matt would know that openly reading someone's mind is NOT a good way to establish trust. Then again, he is kinda overwhelmed, over his head and... well... being Matt Parkman.


9:24 - Oh hell... NOW they decide to start having Elle act like herself, stirring up shit just for the hell of it and challenging authority? Well, anything to kill a few acts, right?


9:26 - On the other hand, if it brings Sylar back to being the psycho-bad guy he SHOULD be... go Elle!


9:28 - Oh gods... Moon controlling everything... uncontrollable changes... they're all werewolves!


9:31 - Wow. Actual decent acting. How I've missed it. Even if it is giving me 'Fight Club' flashbacks.


9:33 - Okay. Time out. When did Nathan tell Tracy his plans? When did she get all the way across the country back to the Company base in New York when she was in California with the rest of Arthur's team in the last episode? For that matter, HOW did she get back across the country that quickly? And why would she be stupid enough to take a phone call from Arthur INSIDE THE COMPANY BASE if she's honestly being a double agent?

Oh right. Because the plot demands it.

*sighs* At least Angela is back on form and already knows something is up.


9:38 - Okay, so that drawing WAS Matt talking to Hiro and Ando. And the Eclipse is starting, it seems.


9:39 - And just so we get it, because apparently people have been complaining about the future paintings not being obvious enough... we get to see each of Arthur's drawings with the people it is meant to show.

* Peter and Nathan take a fall.
* Matt, Ando and Hiro are trapped in Kansas.
* Elle and Sylar are back to being their insane selfish selves
* Mohinderance has put himself into a cocoon (Dammit! This means he isn't going to die, doesn't it?)
* And Claire and Bennet are bonding through violence - which apparently won't end well.

Should I even bother pointing out that Claire dying and everyone losing their powers totally negates the alternate future we've seen for this season? Just checking.


9:44 - Ick. Mohinderance covered in slimy white goo. And I think we just got a barely concealed nude shot. Ah well - I'm sure my friend Elizabeth is loving this scene, at least.


9:46 - "The first day you flew, wasn't there an eclipse?" Umm... no, Peter. The first day he flew was six months BEFORE that. You should know - that was the first time you had a prophetic dream.

Wait - didn't a LOT of the characters start manifesting powers before the Eclipse? Claire ran into the burning train car before it. Peter was hovering a little around Nathan. Niki was smashing people with her super-strength as Jessica before that. And Isaac was painting the future WAY before that. Not to mention all the countless Company agents and elders who have been using their powers consistently for the last 30-40 some odd years with no adverse effects.

And come to think of it - wouldn't there have been a partial/total eclipse of the sun SOMETIME within that 30-40 year span? If Eclipses had an on/off effect on superpowers, wouldn't Arthur and Angela know about it? Wouldn't they think to mention this to all the people they are sending into the field? Or maybe even say "You know what kids - we're going to take a break for a few weeks." Hell, that'd even be the perfect way to do the mid-season break that is coming up and then start again in January with the new status quo.

So either The Eclipse causing powers is total bullshit or they are freely ignoring continuity at this point. Hell, it could be both at this point.

Nice thing about watching this on-line. I can take the time to ramble about this in-depth. Ah well. Back to the show.


9:55 - Hmmm. Peter's become quite the expert on Haitian culture.


9:56 - "Why are you turning your head sideways?" - BWAHAHAHAHA!


9:59 - Wow. The Petrelli boys actually fighting like brothers. Haven't seen the two of them acting like this in a while again either. I kinda like it.


10:01 - And at last - the truth - and it's suddenly plausable. Claire isn't really mad that her dad is an amoral killer. She's mad because he was always leaving her and what kicked off was him leaving her this season when she really needed her dad who knows everything to explain everything. I can swing with that.


10:03 - Okay. I thought Matt finding out he didn't have powers was funny. But I LOVE Sylar's look of perplexed confusion as Bennet goes to town on him. And Claire is wounded, yes, but this is hardly serious. Shoulder wound isn't that bad as long as it gets treated.


10:08 - And yeah... Bennet being smart and the writers actually explaining WHY he doesn't take her to the hospital. Cause cops ask questions and "what do we say once her powers do come back?"

Huh. So certain he is. Bad Yoda impression I do, hummm?


10:10 - I just realized this is one long-ass eclipse. And Matt is determined to save Daphne. Ummm... save her from what, again? Her dad/granddad whoever that guy was didn't exactly seem like a huge threat.


10:13 - And... Mohinderance is back to normal. Not dead. Dammit! And he's going to find Maya. Double Dammit! Thankfully, before I completely get pissed off, Arthur and Flint come in and make it clear that Mohinderance ain't going nowhere, no-how.


10:16 - New Comic Book Day! :D Hee hee.


10:17 - Yes, the minds behind Robot Chicken in a quick cameo as two guys running a comic shop in Kansas. And if you had any doubt as to the Jeph Loeb influence still dominating the scripts - "We have plenty of Red Hulk for everyone."

Oh, Jeph. I loved your Batman work but no... you just crossed the line into Bert I. Gordon territory.


10:18 - I just realized - they are literally pulling the Mel Brooks hero "Let me see the script!" gag. For real. And in seriousness. Well, serious as Hiro and Ando ever get, anyway.

10:19 - "All of our questions will be answered." And if you believe that, I have a well-lit, well-stocked comic shop in Kansas I'd like to sell you.


10:32 - Slight break to wash conditioner out of hair and fix lunch.


10:33 - Slight pause again as I go check HeroesWiki to confirm that yes, nothing was said about The Haitian having a brother before in any of the webcomic stories based around him. Of course there is nothing to suggest he couldn't have a brother, save that the story suggests his family consists of The Haitian and his father.

Okay. I'm going to stop pausing to do research now. Really.


10:36 - Ah. How Shakespearean. Two pairs of two brothers in conflict.


10:38 - And wow... stubtle - well - subtle as this show ever gets - symbolism. Bennet has his glasses off to be the caring father. Puts them back on and you can see his expression steeling. Like he's putting on a mask...

Brainflash - they ever make a Dark Knight Returns movie? Jack Coleman is Batman.


10:39 - I'd expect Sandra to be a little less passive about this. Still, Bennet knows he has his chance to end Sylar (and maybe Elle) once and for all. So he's taking it. Good for him. Because it would be so poetic - once Sylar finally does die - for him to be brought down by a person with no powers.


10:44 - Wow. I admit - I did not see that coming. Without her power, the Speedster can't even walk. Lucky she was "home" when that happened. But wait, if that's what she was before... does that mean her power is artificial and The Company gave it to her?


10:46 - And Claire is bleeding out again?


10:47 - Okay. I first saw Sylar screaming while bent over a counter and I have to admit, I thought for a moment "Man! Bennet does take his revenge seriously." I know. I am a bad bad man.


10:48 - And YES! Confirmation that even without The Hunger, Sylar is a bad, bad man.


10:49 - Okay. Bennet? Don't miss. Seriously.



The Final Verdict - If you had any doubts that they are, in fact, making this all up as they go along, doubt no more. Still, it seems like the show is starting to get back on-track with most of the artificial character drama from this year having been dispelled and most of the characters sounding like themselves again.

If nothing else, I'll tune in next week to see how Sylar's impending death (please, please please) gets resolved.

5 comments:

  1. Maybe you should have thought of that before you injected yourself with an untested serum!
    Maybe you should've just DIED from the serum and saved us all the trouble.
    Then again, he is kinda overwhelmed, over his head and... well... being Matt Parkman.
    Matt's not always the greatest character out there... but I appreciate him being consistent, at least. I just wish he was better used.
    Ick. Mohinderance covered in slimy white good. And I think we just got a barely concealed nude shot. Ah well - I'm sure my friend Elizabeth is loving this scene, at least.
    Do want. But... without the goo. And... god, if Mohinder could just not TALK or ever DO anything, we'd be okay. He can just stand around and be pretty, maybe?
    And wow... stubtle - well - subtle as this show ever gets - symbolism. Bennet has his glasses off to be the caring father. Puts them back on and you can see his expression steeling. Like he's putting on a mask...
    Duh du duh duhn... SUPER BENNET!
    Speaking of which, why the HELL do I not have a Bennet icon? He's my hero. I love a lot of the chars in different ways, but I just don't know that I'd be as interested in the show if he was gone. He's that awesome.
    Okay. I first saw Sylar screaming while bent over a counter and I have to admit, I thought for a moment "Man! Bennet does take his revenge seriously." I know. I am a bad bad man.
    ROFL
    Win.

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  2. Brainflash - they ever make a Dark Knight Returns movie? Jack Coleman is Batman.

    I fully endorse this idea.
    I hadn't noticed just how far gone the plotting and structure of the show has gotten. Likely because I don't pay as much attention. If it wasn't for some awesome(if inconsistent) characters/actors, this show would be a superturd.

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  3. Well, you can't blame the inconcistency on the actors. I get the feeling they're doing the best with what they have. But even the best of them can't save truly bad material.

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  4. Speaking of which, why the HELL do I not have a Bennet icon? He's my hero. I love a lot of the chars in different ways, but I just don't know that I'd be as interested in the show if he was gone. He's that awesome.

    Ditto.
    And apropos of nothing, the last time I took the Heroes personality test, I got Bennet. :)

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  5. I can blame them for not staging a revolt that ends with Loeb locked away in level 5.

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