NBC's show about ordinary people with extra-ordinary powers is striking a chord with viewers. "Heroes" now ranks among the top new dramas on television.

Jinah Kim takes us for a behind the scenes look from Los Angeles. "We're rolling." "Action!"

In this scene from an upcoming episode of "Heroes," time traveler hero and his buddy Ando arrive in Texas, to meet indestructible cheerleader Claire - who destroys proof of her superpowers.

But Texas is actually Santa Clarita, California. And Tokyo..

"Roll! Action!"

is shot in downtown Los Angeles. In fact, much of what you see on "Heroes" is not what it seems.

"If people really get grossed out all you have to think about is that it's totally fake and it's actually sugar. The blood is sugar. So I lie in pools of sugar all day long."

All the special effects are nothing new to star Masi Oka, who in real life is a gifted special effects computer programmer.

"I was fortunate enough to be working for "Industrial Light and Magic," which is George Lucas's special effects company so I had a very good understanding of how to visualize things that aren't there in 3D so that has definitely helped in terms of my acting." "Each episode of "Heroes" takes about 8 days to shoot, at an average cost of 3 million dollars. And this episode alone shot at 5 different locations simultaneously."

"Cut!"

But the cast and crew say the ever-changing story lines and characters are what make the show so successful. "My mom sorta calls it a little bit of Da Vinci Code, mixed with Xmen, mixed with a little bit of Syriana." "It's a constant rollercoaster and it just gets better and better with every episode." "I think the show's got something for everybody."

Jinah Kim, NBC News, Los Angeles.

HEROES --(9:00PM-10:01PM) --(TV-14)
"Fallout"

AS SHOCKING DETAILS ABOUT ISSAC'S NYC NUCLEAR BOMBING PREDICTION ARE REVEALED, THE "HEROES" FACE TRAGEDY AND BETRAYALS -- The tragic events in Texas have sad, serious repercussions for many of the "HEROES", their families and friends. Meanwhile, shocking details about the moments leading up to Issac's (Santiago Cabrera) predicted New York City nuclear bombing are revealed. Later, Issac's newest painting has fascinating future implications for a hero in crisis. Suresh (Sendhil Ramamurthy) takes the first steps along his new path. Matt (Greg Grunberg) and F.B.I. Agent Audrey Hanson (guest star Clea DuVall) pursue a break in the Sylar case. Horrified by Jessica's recent actions, Niki (Ali Larter) makes a tough decision to protect her family. Jack Coleman, Tawny Cypress, Noah Gray-Cabey, Greg Grunberg, Masi Oka, Adrian Pasdar, Leonard Roberts and Milo Ventimiglia also star. Ashley Crow, Thomas Dekker, Jimmy Jean-Louis, James Kyson Lee and Nora Zehetner guest star.

MEDIA CONTACT: David Gardner

NBC has announced it will air the remaining episodes of Heroes in a LOST derived schedule. Following a six week hiatus, Heroes will return to run straight through with no repeats on January 22nd. This will split the 22 episode season evenly in half.

No words yet on what NBC might have planned to keep Heroes fans busy during the break.

"Heroes" is maturing into a smart adult fantasy series.

From the first, the show's strength was its confidence in its mythology. The writers clearly knew where they wanted to take this epic story. They are doing that. Their self-confidence has enabled them to bounce among a dozen major characters without losing dramatic tension. "Heroes" unfolds smartly. The storyline is detailed but not so convoluted that missing one episode will prevent one from keeping up.

And while Hiro (apparently a fan favorite) continues to be simplistically drawn, the other weak character, Peter, has become more deeply aware of his gift?s consequences. That's made him darker and at the same time more convincing. His turn reflects the maturing of the series, and also its growing strength in the ratings. It is the highest-rated new show among adults 18-49s and has hit series highs the past two weeks.

Save the cheerleader. Save the world.

That's the attention-grabbing catchphrase for "Heroes," NBC's new hit drama about a group of ordinary people who suddenly develop superpowers.

NBC executives, however, are probably chanting a slightly different mantra: Save "Heroes." Save the network.

It's easy to understand why.

Since its September debut, "Heroes" (9 tonight) has quickly become TV's coolest new show and is averaging an impressive 13 million viewers each week. While such insanely hyped NBC shows as "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" and "30 Rock" have failed to smash any ratings records, "Heroes" continues to soar.

The series captures both the geeky comic book crowd as well as mainstream viewers who don't know the X-Men from the Village People -- a rare TV feat.

In a season overloaded with serialized dramas that are either too complex to follow or not interesting enough to care, "Heroes" has emerged as the one must-see serialized show TV watchers don't miss and can't wait to blog or buzz about on Internet chat boards.

Tim Kring, the show's creator and executive producer, isn't sure why "Heroes" is flying high.

"You never really know why things connect," he says. "It's some combination of zeitgeist, fairy dust and luck. But there's a kind of hopefulness to our show's message. A lot of the shows that didn't work, their subject matter was a bit dim or bleak. While we are in a world that's complicated and confusing, our show posits the idea that there are people coming along who can do something about it."

...

For creative people in the comic book industry, Heroes has been a pleasant yet complicated surprise. Since ''funnybooks'' have long been considered a fringe and juvenile entertainment ? a minor medium for minor minds (even though these days, the average comic book reader is in his or her 20s) ? the people who make their living writing and drawing this stuff dig seeing a smart, savvy, affectionate extrapolation of their oft-maligned working world on broadcast television. ''Heroes makes comics sexy,'' says Jeph Loeb, co-executive producer of Heroes and a superstar comic book scribe in his own right. He says he gets a charge at the end of every episode when there's a plug for ''Ninth Wonders,'' the show's ''online graphic novel'' currently unfolding chapter by chapter at NBC.com. ''When I see the pages fly across the screen and become the feathers of the NBC peacock, it makes me smile,'' he says. ''Actual comics on television!''

Loeb's comic book peers feel the same way, though in the same breath, they are also quick to remind you that Heroes ain't doing anything new. ''I've been habitually watching the show,'' says Quesada. ''I just love that it's taking so many of the rich ideas we've created in comics and is distilling them down to the weekly TV drama formula. It's more of the mainstreaming of the comic book world. It started with all these great Marvel movies, and all these other comic book movies; it's a great feeling of legitimacy.''

...

But if you visit the message boards of comic book fandom ? and if you do, I suggest you tread carefully ? you'll find some complaints that the entire Heroes enterprise smacks of smug condescension toward comics, beginning with that online ''graphic novel,'' which is actually a serialized story, updated weekly. The problem for comic fans is that ''graphic novel'' is a term that has lost much of its meaning in the past several years due to the way publishers themselves have abused it to get mainstream media and booksellers like Barnes & Noble to take their stuff seriously. It used to be that a graphic novel was an original long-form story, created especially for a unique form of packaging. Now the term applies to the industry's hottest-selling product line, trade paperback collections of serialized storylines that originally appeared in monthly comic books. For many, dressing up this exercise in recycling with the tony label ''graphic novel'' is like marketing a greatest-hits CD as a ''concept album.'' Says one distinguished comic book artist about Heroes' companion ''online graphic novel'': ''God forbid they actually call it a 'comic book,' because that's exactly what it is.''

...

NBC's phenom rookie show, "Heroes," continued its strong first season, posting its best-ever 6.7/15 rating during the 9 p.m. hour

Source: Media Post

Other first-run shows on Monday pulled generally good numbers, especially Heroes on NBC which averaged series-high figures of 14.5m viewers and a 15% share in adults 18-49. NBC did well overall, with even the troubled Studio 60 rising slightly week-on-week.

Source digital spy

Being a superhero has never looked so good on TV as it does on NBC's breakout hit Heroes, which enters Toronto's Top 10 for the first time. Three of the series' stars ? the unkillable cheerleader, the adorable Japanese time-traveller Hiro and the politician who can fly (Dixie Chick Natalie Maines' real-life hubby Adrian Pasdar) ? are the faces looking out from this week's cover of Entertainment Weekly. And no wonder. In a season of freshman series that have barely survived the first months of the season (Kidnapped, Smith, Runaway, we're talking to you), Heroes has buzz and about 15 million U.S. fans buzzing about future plot twists. It's never been so cool to be a superhero geek.