Heroes 1x20 Five Years Gone

[oyceter]

Every single time I think this show can't get any more awesome, it goes and does it.

Here is your warning for a total excess of exclamation points and capital letters and utter incoherence.

To get the somewhat rational out of the way first: am somewhat annoyed that more CoC ended up being killed off in the past five years (Ando sort of, DL, Micah) and am irritated that still only two women in play.

I probably could have analyzed stuff more, but really I was too busy concentrating on all the AWESOMENESS!

Possibly the neighbors and anyone outside could have heard me screaming at the TV the entire hour.

ZOMG SYLAR! Sylar is Nathan! Sylar orchestrated this entire thing OMG! Does he want to get rid of all the mutants so he alone will be the special one? OMG!

Also: OMG ANDO AND HIRO EEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!! Um, so, why isn't there lots and lots and lots and lots of Hiro/Ando slash? OMG! Hiro is all gruff and bearded and obsessed because he wants to save Ando! *dies* OMG! *flails* *dies* *is still incoherent*

I wonder why future!Hiro speaks mostly English though? Maybe Masi Oka was sick of memorizing so much Japanese? Or maybe it's because he's had five years without anyone to speak Japanese with and can't quite revert back to speaking it with Ando because then he will be totally heartbroken?

Um yes, that was total and complete fanwank.

Just... EEEEEE! Also, I am wondering if Hiro is going to kill Sylar; it really seems to be against all that he is for. And poor cute Hiro is completely shocked by future Hiro! I love the exchange in the beginning: "I think I'm scared of me. You go talk to me." And I do think the show is positing that this dark grim Hiro isn't good, that Hiro should still be happy and optimistic. But how much do I love that he's still the one trying to save the world? Even if it's to bring Ando back! I love that out of all of them, he's the one still trying.

OMG! Sexy Peter with scar! I wonder how he got it -- maybe he got slashed while the Haitian was there so he couldn't regenerate? Except... huh. Dunno. Peter and Niki! Niki as Jessica to make up for her loss and she has lost her evil sister/twin! *flails at coffeeandink* She is Sekrit Project Heroine Ba!

Mr. Bennet! He doesn't have his glasses anymore, maybe because he sort of lost Claire? Wah! And he's trying to help out, and he's got a deal with Matt! And Matt! Matt being not stupid and really very competent except for the whole not knowing Hiro time travels thing which would really put a glitch in anyone's plan. Also, Matt is really freaking scary, particularly when he betrayed and killed Mr. Bennet. Dude. Also, Hana! I am sad she was only there for three seconds before dying. And Mohinder! Mohinder actually being smart and stabbing the poor Haitian! Too bad we didn't get to see Mama Petrelli, although really, this episode was so packed that I can't imagine fitting her in.

And Claire! Ok, I wasn't quite as squeeful about the Claire moments, because she was more an object that was moved upon than a subject. She was working at the same place Charlie was!

Also! Peter is Neo! And Hiro is... uh... tough martial arts Asian guy! But that moment, when they storm the building? Awesome.

It's too bad the Haitian still doesn't get a name or a voice even five years later.

Also also, even though I know Tim Kring doesn't read comics, the writers totally do, as this is entirely X-Men and the X-Men Movieverse but quite honestly I do not care! It is too pretty! And I love that we can have the dark alternate futures with Hiro's powers and not have the world come to an end in the current timeline.

And I read someone's comment somewhere that it didn't make sense to have this episode right at the end of the season, as it wouldn't contribute to the current plotline, except it does, because it now gives Hiro and Ando a more specific sense of what they're supposed to do now.

vonnie_k has a much more coherent explanation of the Sylar/Nathan timeline than I do -- I totally didn't catch that Mr. Bennet handed Candace off as well as DL and that that was the point Sylar must have taken over. Though... where was he to begin with?

Molly Walker in the promo! Molly Walker whom Mr. Bennet saved? Turned over? At least, Molly Walker whom Hiro found! Also, checking comments in vonnie_k's LJ and 12_12_12 says that Molly is the girl that Matt saved in ep. 2 wow! Ditto with her catching Peter's dream of Nathan turning into Sylar way back during the aftermath of "Homecoming."

Honestly though, I walk off from this episode utterly convinced that there must be angsty tragic future!Hiro fic in which he mourns Ando and Ando/Hiro slash like whoa (despite Ando's very obvious straightness, but really, when has that stopped any slashers ever?) and oh, poor future!Hiro dies, and seeing our Hiro and Ando hug and jump up and down and exclaim over each other was so cute and so bittersweet at the same time. Oh man. That killed me.

Also, the best part about watching Heroes promos is that I always think they're spoiling the best parts in the promo, but really, they are not at all and the promos don't even help me figure out what's going to happen because of all the crazy plot twists and reveals!

Comments

[oyceter]

How are we supposed to feel about her working as a waiter in a diner and engaged to marry a faintly dim busboy? I can't decide if we're supposed to think that's tragic.

Good point. I was rather disappointed in Claire's storyline this episode; not the working at a diner bit (Charlie's diner, yay!) but her complete lack of agency. Mr. Bennet tells her to run, then Matt grabs her, then Sylar kills her, and really, she doesn't do much at all.

[em-h.livejournal.com]

Yes, Claire got very short shrift. She didn't seem Claire-like, really; I'd have to imagine that she's been really beaten down to have become so passive, but it wasn't played that way. Also, I would've had a lot more sympathy with her inability to run away from Busboy Dude if he had seemed to be anything other than a nearby slab of meat.

On the other hand, Hiro/Ando is absolutely my new OTP, and I don't even *do* slash normally.

Wish I had more time to write about the whole show ...

[oyceter]

Yeah, she really didn't! Also.. Busboy Dude was somewhat hot, but really boring. I could have seen it as gritty desperation a la everyone else, but there just wasn't enough development in the episode to say.

OMG Hiro/Ando!!

[evil-kat.livejournal.com]

I have a feeling though, that this 'five years later' isn't REALLY how the five years later would be--if Nathan can kept from being killed by Sylar (and by extension, that lady whose name I've forgotten--Candice?) Then I don't see a lot of this future becoming what it is. Most of the people are in these positions due to manipulation of Sylar/Nathan. I think they had an entire episode about the future to show what 'could have been' but not what will be.

[oyceter]

Well, it's presented as a future that happens if they don't stop the bomb, so it's pretty AU. So I am fairly certain that things will turn out differently, given that Heroes isn't a bleak show, but it's still annoying to see nearly all the characters of color and the women being neatly written out of an episode or having them die.