Don’t you just hate people who wait for your favorite TV show/band/book/movie to be embraced by the masses, then start pointing out everything that’s wrong with it? Yeah, I kinda hate those people too. Of course, right now, I’m going to be one of those people, and therefore, by the time I finish writing this blog item, I will officially hate myself. But that’s what a therapist is for, PopWatchers. And so, despite the rising urge to betch-slap myself the way invisi-guy Claude thwacked waffle-boy Peter (Milo Ventimiglia, pictured) during last night’s episode of Heroes, please allow me to point out the growing list of questions and inconsistencies that are detracting from my enjoyment of NBC’s Monday-night hit.
- Since turning herself in to the police (for a series of violent murders in which she tore her victims to shreds), Niki/Jessica has snapped a wooden baton in half and beaten the bejesus out of at least one guard. So how come her shrink was left alone in a room with her with only a taser?
- No one knows better than HRG that Sylar is a vicious murderer with unrivaled powers of escape. So how come he left that doctor dude all alone to treat Sylar? Why weren’t at least two or three armed guards stationed around the clock outside his glass cell, just in case the dude returned to consciousness and tried to bust loose? And how did Sylar get out of the paper factory without triggering an alarm system that would’ve alerted the Haitian or some other HRG cohorts?
- Why did Hiro’s father fly halfway around the globe, abduct his son (and his son’s friend) and have them driven to a warehouse, only to be convinced within a matter of minutes that his daughter was a more fitting heir to the family business?
- Why is Peter so deeply convinced Claude can help him control his powers? Wasn’t he just trying to get with Team Mohinder for the same reason? And didn’t you find it a little fishy he interpreted Simone hugging Isaac as some kind of huge betrayal? (Also, doesn’t Milo Ventimiglia’s acting seem twice as wooden when Sendhil Ramamurthy’s not around for comparison?)
- Also, why would HRG erase his wife’s memory when it would clearly be beneficial for her to recognize the face of the man who’s intent on killing their teenage daughter?
Okay, enough complaining from me. At least last night was a Mohinder-free zone. And at least TV’s most adorable canine, Mr. Muggles, has survived for another episode. It’s not like I’d ever miss an episode anyhow — but I mean, if the show’s writers were just a little more conscientious, couldn’t this show go from enjoyable to truly great? I’m not the only one bugged by the above set of questions, am I?
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Stop the Mohinder hating! Anyone that dreamy deserves a free pass! Yes…I know that’s girly and lames…but he makes me melt
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And he’s not THAT boring. I think if they really get his plotline off the ground he can be key in brining people together and helping them discover their potential
Um- Why was Nikki let out of jail? Um, yeah she was quitted of murder charges but delivering a beatdown to a few cops and a pyschiatrist is also an offense that will put you in jail for awhile. Or how about a mental ward?
The shrink mentioned that Niki/Jessica was tied up in chains that could hold an elephant. I guess that’s suppose to explain why they were in a room alone together with just a taser. She broke through those pretty quick though. Anyhoo, I wasn’t a big fan of the Hiro’s dad storyline. Seemed kinda pointless. Is he suppose to come back sometime this season?
Oh i agree, Mohinder is just too damn dreamy to care how he acts, hahaha.
D
Anyways, i really see the points made but i don’t pay that much attention to them. The only one that really bothered me was why Hiro’s father kidnapped them just to tell him to go back to work, lol.
Anyway, LOVE the show
anyone in therapy of their own accord (like nikki) with a doc who wanted to actually help would not have a bunch of guards standing around while she confesses her deepest and darkest…
and if HRG is just working in a paper factory and nothing strange is happening (like that week when the FBI raided and found absolutely nothing) then of course there would be no sensors or alarms or anything
i’m more curious as to why jessica hasn’t just knocked down the walls of the cell and taken off, seems like she could do that and also honestly, would they really let you not put your first name on a drivers liscense? cuz HRG’s wasn’t on there, even his signature was just bennett…
If Peter can heal himself now aka Claire, why did Hiro from the future say to him on the subway train last year, “You look different without your scar”
Maybe the doctor was left alone with Sylar because they thought he was DEAD. Makes sense to me. How is any regular security system going to hold Sylar in anyway? And what good would it do Mrs. Bennet if she knew what Sylar looked like? It’s not like she could do anything about his presence. Also, I could have sworn Mrs. Bennet referred to her husband as Lyle when talking to Sylar.
Hmmm…interesting point to bring up on the TV watch about the scar…
None of those questions bug me.
I’m choosing to be blissfully ignorant of all the inconsistencies.
Um, Claire’s father didn’t want his wife to know about Claire’s special powers. Or anything to do with what he really does. Which is why keeps mind-warping his wife. Although I suspect she’s starting to reject it. Overall, I don’t overthink the writing. All shows has lapses. I just love the show. With Peter, and Invisible Man. I think Peter sees someone who knows what is going on. Everyone else doesn’t. They are still mystified. Peter is still adjusting to it all. So his behaviour isn’t surprising. All in all, I am enjoying the show. With Nikki, they obviously had the influence of Linderman to get Nikki out. It wasn’t what she wanted. At least you get answers with HEROES when you watch, sooner then you do with LOST. Heroes keeps it exciting. That is why I enjoy it.
I have to agree there are inconsistencies, but you can say that about any TV show, even the greatest, like Heroes. I was struck by the Hidden messages and themes in this episode. A lot are in a blog I like at http://Heroes-spoilers.blogspot.com/ where they discussed the particularly interesting, but not fully revealed relationships amongst the first generation of Heroes. Without giving it away, what do HRG and Nathan flying dad of Claire have together …
First off, HRG doesn’t want his wife to remember Sylar because SHE SAW HIS POWERS. duh. Hiro’s dad is obviously not going to go away. My theory is he’s in cahoots with Linderman somehow. Peter is completely overwhelmed right now, of course he’s going to take Simone/Isaac snuggling as a betrayal, esp. since Claude kept telling him to not trust anyone. Peter is going along with Claude because it’s obvious Claude has mastered his powers for a long time, something that isn’t true for anyone else Peter has met. Hence, he thinks he needs him. Jessica’s shrink was just stupid. P.S. I thought last night was a great episode with really funny lines (i.e. Mrs. Bennett almost outing HRG’s first name; Claude ridiculing Peter for his bangs, etc.)
My two cents:
-The 80s Oprah shrink seemed pretty confident that she was totally in charge of the situation..cocky even. That’s probably why she was alone.
-Ditto for HRG. He seemed to think he had everything under control, that he had planned for everything. he was wrong.
-I am hoping we haven’t seen the last of Sulu, because that was kind of dumb. Although I liked Hiro trying to portray an executive type to try and fool Sulu. He is the cutest thing ever.
-Peter is desperately searching for answers, so latched on to someone who seemed to know what was going on. And leave Milo alone!
-Mrs. HRG has been out of the loop for so long it doesn’t make sense to change the game plan now.
I am not so sure believing any of the above situations is that far outside of the realm of possibility. But, then again, maybe I am way off. And, I will make my weekly plea to PLEASE give Greg Grunberg something to do in this show! The scenes with him and his wife make me want to gag.
This show is very good, but could be so much better. Just having people “be convinced” of what to do with no actual reasons to know why is lazy. All the questions you asked in the article…exactly the stuff I’ve been complaining about lately. Come on Heroes! You can do better! (So can House!)
I understand everything that you are trying to point out but if you really think about it isn’t every TV show a little far-fethced- I mean if it wasnt’t then it would be real life. The fact that their are alot of inconsistencies makes it TV and I think what everyone should remember is that this show is not real and that it is only TV. I do agree that Peter needs to learn how to act. I mean he is not horrible but his facial emoitions suck and that is one of the most important crafts to acting is facial expressions!
Heroes has become my favorite new show and I am happy where they are going with the show. A little more consistency would be better but then again if that was the case you would have nothing to complain about and would be out of a job.
The shortcuts continue this week and continue to frustrate. After last week’s Hiro and Ando go from surrounded by baddies to lying under the car undetected, now we get HRG escaping his own cell to save the day… how exactly? If Sylar couldn’t get out – and he commented on how well build that box was – suddenly HRG just cavalry’s in… (Perhaps the Haitian had a key.) Love the show, but the leaps of logic get to be a bit much.
Thank you, Slezak, for saying what needed to be said about Heroes. I do find in enjoyable, but it is nowhere great. Sloppy writing… Wooden acting… Mediocre production values… Thankfully, LOST returns tomorrow!!!
I gotta say while I do love the show some of the points you mentioned above were bothering me.. in particular I just dont get why peter knew this guy could help him? how .. please heroes enlighten me…and umm nikki got to go home after assulting a police officer and a shrink? cause Im pretty sure you get in trouble for that these days.. even without the murder charges shed either be in jail for the assaults/attempted murder on the shrink or in a mental hospital
More than being bugged by the plot inconsistencies, I’m just annoyed with the cheesy, unrealistic dialogue. I’m willing to overlook it for now, but they really need to work on the writing.
Absolutely. The overall epic story appears intact, and seems strong. The day-to-day (read: each episode) stories are riddled with lazy writing. It’s like the writers simply hope that the general coolness of the premise will gloss over the erring lapses in logic and narrative. Uh-uh. I wouldn’t let that kind of thing slide in a comic book, and I don’t care for it in my TV shows, either.
Honestly, this show is lazily written and devoid of any wit, irony and insight. I appreciate good fluff TV, but there are thousands of struggling writers who could make this a better show.
It truly seems that the show is written by 14 year olds. Hire some of Whedon’s writers, for the love of god!
Awwww. Sweet Slezak. I love ya. You make me laugh out loud far more than any on-line columnist should. But I think you are being too picky this time. The show has a comic book feel to it. I think the writing mirrors that. Also I think its funny that people complain that a show like Lost takes forever to reveal things and now complain that this show is moving too fast. Can’t win I guess. But think of it this way, the show is about people with super powers, I think we have already taken the leap of faith with reality based plot lines. If we can believe Hiro can stop time, why not believe his father is convinced quickly. Would you rather it take about 4 episodes and have the same result? Keep up the good work, love me some Pop Watch.
I didn’t notice the part where Slezak said this show was moving too fast. Guess you just had to get that little jab at Lost in there. Whatever.
wow. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think it was my dad that wrote this blog. So picky. Looking waaaaaay too much into things.
I kind of see the point: Why would Hiro’s dad, a businessman, feel the need to send henchmen after his son and pull a Layer Cake on him? Makes little sense. Also, just last week Peter was convinced Claude could teach him, yet last night he’s all like, “I don’t have to do anything you say!” I hope they bring Nikki/Jessica and the other Heroes together soon (maybe next week from the looks of the previews). Her story line was moving along nicely and for three weeks it’s been written into a corner.
Slezak, I had the same exact thought about Skylar being left alone with the doctor. I kept thinking… ARE THEY INSANE?! Guards! lots and lots of Guards! but nope… not a single one in sight.
The only thing that bothered me in last night’s show is why didn’t Sylar kill Bennett rather than just locking him up.
Also, since the special powers seem to run in families it will be interesting to see if Hiro’s father and sister have powers of their own which they are keeping secret.
While I liked “Buffy” Whedon’s writers are overrated (Save for David Fury). We don’t need “Heroes” to become a show where it’s characters add a “Y” at the end of every word to make nouns turn into adjetives. Hence making them become smart asses. I like the show the way it is, and we DON’T need any of Whedon’s writers to come ruin it.
Stop the worship of the Whedon Writers!
“Heroes” is fine, plot holes and all. It’s not supposed to be so deep. It’s a show based on Comic Books who’s sole purpose is to entertain it’s audience. Something that a lot of the shows like this forget to do.
If you are going to nit pick “Heroes”, let’s nit pick “Lost”. Why is it that Kate is so bad assed, but when ever she has a gun pointed at her she turns into a wuss. Cant she disarm people? I mean she WAS a fugitive with some skills…… Or what about nit picking the plot holes of “24″?
While I liked “Buffy” Whedon’s writers are overrated (Save for David Fury). We don’t need “Heroes” to become a show where it’s characters add a “Y” at the end of every word to make nouns turn into adjetives. Hence making them become smart asses. I like the show the way it is, and we DON’T need any of Whedon’s writers to come ruin it.
Stop the worship of the Whedon Writers!
“Heroes” is fine, plot holes and all. It’s not supposed to be so deep. It’s a show based on Comic Books who’s sole purpose is to entertain it’s audience. Something that a lot of the shows like this forget to do.
If you are going to nit pick “Heroes”, let’s nit pick “Lost”. Why is it that Kate is so bad assed, but when ever she has a gun pointed at her she turns into a wuss. Cant she disarm people? I mean she WAS a fugitive with some skills…… Or what about nit picking the plot holes of “24″?