Hiro: "I loved her."

Hiro not being able to save Charlie after she told him she loved him? Heartbreaking.

But you know, as much as I liked Charlie (and I really liked Charlie), I think it was the right thing for the writers to do. If Hiro can save anyone by going back into the past, what would be the point of pretty much any story? Zero conflict. Show over, the end.


The whole Hiro-in-the-past thing made for some interesting stuff. Talking to himself on the phone, for one. If the two Hiros had met in person, would the world have exploded? (Is that how New York blows up?) And I thought it was fascinating in a circular and paradoxical way that it was Hiro who gave Charlie the Japanese phrase book for her birthday. How can that be, since she had it when she met Hiro for the first time in Chapter 8?

Brooklyn, NY: We finally met Sylar, a.k.a. Gabriel Grey. (And I immediately thought of Jean Grey, but not as cool.) Sylar, a second generation watchmaker, is obsessed with taking things apart and seeing how they work, which is exactly what Sylar is doing with removing everyone's brains. Sylar killed telekinetic Brian Davis here, and in the next scene, Sylar was telekinetic. That must be why he has so many powers: he's absorbing them from the mutants he's killing. Sylar wants to be different, special, and important. Well, he is.

Flashbacks to Peter and Nathan revealed that Nathan used to be a lot different; he was a paragon of virtue, and in love with his wife, and he and Peter used to be close. Nathan was even ready to put his own father behind bars because it was the right thing to do. And then there was the strange car accident in which Nathan involuntarily levitated right out of the car, inadvertently causing Heidi's paraplegia. This certainly explains why Nathan is so negative about his powers. Dan thinks that Nathan is turning into Magneto. Which is an interesting idea.

In other news, we finally found out who Jessica the Homicidal Mirror Woman is. The tragic death of Niki's sister Jessica (caused by their alcoholic, absentee father) must have caused Niki to develop a split personality in order to keep her sister alive. It might actually have nothing to do with the development of her Gift. Jessica is the personality who is strong, who deals with Niki's problems. It makes sense that if Niki has developed superstrength, it's Jessica who manifests it.

Niki is a fascinating character, and Ali Larter does a good job with the part. I wish I liked her more.

Bits and pieces:

-- We still don't know if DL is dead.

-- Did Charlie's aneurysm have something to do with genetic mutation that is creating these gifted people?

-- Jessica's gravestone said, "Beloved daughter and sister, 1976-1987." She died when she was eleven. It wasn't stated, but can we assume Jessica was Nicole's twin? I lost my own sister, too. It's a pain that never goes away.

-- Sylar got his name from the face of a watch. Sylar's special ability is sort of like Peter's. Two sides of the same coin.

-- We saw Claire becoming a cheerleader. We saw her healing power kick in for the first time.

-- Mohinder's sister Shanti had a genetic anomaly.

-- Bennet recruited a recalcitrant, criminal Eden, and ordered her to get Claire's name off of Chandra Suresh's list of mutants.

-- Six months ago, Peter was graduating from nursing school. Peter had a dream about Nathan's accident. That wasn't his first prophetic dream. Is that a power, too?

-- Nathan was his father's favorite and Peter his mother's. That says something interesting about both of them.

-- Matt and Eden and the donuts. That was fun. Mean of Eden, but fun. We learned that Matt can barely read. Dyslexic? That's why he hasn't been able to pass the detective exam.

-- Eden was wanted for grand theft auto, larceny, robbery, arson, murder.

-- Hiro's English is improving. Six months stuck in Texas will do that to you. Hiro teleported as he was about to kiss Charlie. Did kissing have anything to do with it?

Quotes:

Jackie: "Claire, destiny is calling you."

Hiro: "If I teleport again, I could end up anywhere. Lunch for a T-Rex! I'm stuck!"

Chandra Suresh: "If the soul exists, scientifically speaking, it exists in the brain."

Hal: "You're only as sick as your secrets, Nicole."

Three out of four stars,

Billie Doux
Billie Doux's Review Site