When Heroes premiered in 2006 it was a minor revelation. Here for the first time was a prime-time drama on a major network that would focus on a group of people with super abilities. Sure there had been recent live-action series that adapted some of the more popular comic characters like Superman, but this was an original property, with the full force of the NBC hype machine behind it. It felt different. Bigger. Legitimate. It felt like the culmination of the public's growing interest in and acceptance of the superhero genre.
For the first season or so, it didn't disappoint. It had flying senators, indestructible cheerleaders, time-controlling comic book geeks, dire apocalyptic prophecies, shadowy organizations, mind readers, and creepily awesome villains. All wrapped up in what was...mostly acceptable character drama. But partway through only the second season, the creators seemed to lose their way. Rehashed and convoluted plots, contradictory character behavior, drab dialogue, terrible acting, and a bloated self-importance quickly became the norm. As a result, viewers have been leaving in droves. Despite this, it is still one of the higher-rated shows on the flailing NBC, so it has been picked up for a fourth season.
Is there any reason to believe Heroes can get beyond this slump and back to its earlier glory? Yes. Several reasons, actually -
- Jack Coleman as Noah Bennet - One of Heroes' best characters has no super powers whatsoever. Throughout his history on the show, the badass formerly known as HRG (for his trademark horn-rimmed glasses) has displayed a fearless devotion to protecting his values (admittedly gray though they may be) and his family. In "Company Man", an episode centered on him that's also widely considered the best of the series, he goes so far as to literally take a bullet for his adopted daughter, Claire. As played by Jack Coleman, Bennet is a smart, passionate, fascinating strategist who also knows hand-to-hand combat, firearms, and a smattering of Russian. In the right hands, this character has limitless potential.
- Zachary Quinto as Sylar - There's a saying in the comic book world that superheroes are only as good as their rogues gallery. In Sylar, Heroes has a doozy. He is a virtually immortal sociopath and remorseless killer who possesses the powers of, well, everyone. He kills heroes and collects their powers like stamps. Though there was a brief tangent in this last season where he was inexplicably helping Noah Bennet catch villains, and though he is currently suffering from amnesia while shape-changed into the body of Nathan Petrelli (don't ask), the idea of Sylar is a great one, admirably captured in all his coldness by Zachary Quinto. And with Quinto's high-profile performance as Mr. Spock in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek reboot, it's a fair bet Sylar won't be kept under wraps for long.
- Super Powers - Heroes is a prime-time series about a group of people with super powers. How awesome is that? And how unique is that? If this show ultimately fails, it will most likely be a very long time before something similar appears again on the airwaves. Yes, that sounds like beggars can't be choosers, and the show has been bad enough that many have chosen to just do without. But here's the thing - there is no one title character, and no formula that needs to be in place. The ensemble nature of the show allows for any number of characters, and any number of powers to come and go as the creators see fit. In other words, anything that doesn't work can be easily dumped. And speaking of creators, here is the best news for Heroes devotees, and the primary reason for hope...
- Bryan Fuller Returns to Heroes - The quirky creative scribe behind the great series Wonderfalls, Dead Like Me, and Pushing Daisies is returning to the show as producer and writer. Remember that "Company Man" episode from earlier about Noah Bennet? Fuller wrote it. It's hard to ignore the direct correlation between Fuller's leaving the show after season one and its subsequent downspiral. It's said that theatre is an actor's medium, and film is a director's medium. Perhaps TV is a writer's medium? With all the time and budget constraints in place, a TV director may not have as much leeway to be creative and make their own personal stamp on a project, so it is left to the writers and producers to guide the quality. If anyone can tap into the inherent potential of Heroes' concepts, it's Bryan Fuller.
So, true believers, let's be optimistic and see what 's in store when Heroes returns this fall. As several characters from the show itself can attest, it's absolutely possible to alter the future for the better.
Dan Kaufman - Dan is an actor/writer/teacher with a passion for all kinds of geek interests. He has been cultivating this passion for over 30 years, to ...
Join the Conversation