Since I caught the first season of 24 on DVD I have been a devout fan of the show. The intense, machivellian nature of Jack Bauer in the face of ridiculous odds is terribly attractive. For the first few seaons, the dichotmy of Jack trying to protect the world and save his family made the drama even more intense and that much more personal. Season 2 remains my favorite season (other than Kim and the cougar) but the show has suffered some serious missteps. Season 3 was an absolute right off as meandered from plot point to plot point with no clear vision of its intent. Seasons 4 & 5 were good, with last seasons "kill all the supporting characters" mantra and go for broke portrayl of a corrupt President.
Season 6, while starting with a bang is ending with a whimper, a virtual scene by scene repeat of the missteps of season 3. The autistic kid was the end in my eyes, this show has officially run out of ideas. So disappointing at 24 and CSI were my only "appointment" television--
---UNTIL NOW.
Having had the opportunity catch the entire season to date of Heroes, I can only say that I am extremely impressed with this show. Though it works hard to downplay the comicbook traditions with the"super-heroes in the real world" aspect of it, too many of the genres conventions are in full force. While it does suffer from the mocking of the genre in some instances (Nathan's cynic questioning whether he should "put on a costume and patrol the city") it fully embraces the mythological aspects that are the lynchpin of comic books.
The creator's insistence that he has never read a comic is patently false if only because the content of the pilot alone, written well before the series was developed is replete with comic book references and conventions. That said, this show is extremely well written in a pure chararacter sense, with real people dealing with suddenly being extraordinary. The depiction of violence in the show is quite horrifying, bringing an aspect to the sense of what unbelievable power could do in the wrong hands. While exploring the credo "absolute power corrupts absolutely" it also explores the concept of inherent nobility and self-sacrifice in the face uf such horror.
One of the few flaws I find in the show is the constant reference to "destiny" as a way around hoary plot holes and coincidences. Virtually everyone in the show is linked to everyone else in some manner or another, and while it lends itself to the X-files like conspiracy mythology underpinning the plots, it grows tiresome quickly. That being said, unlike 24, this show clearly has a vision and a destination, though it may become distracted along the way (Hope & loathing in Las Vegas for instance).
I love this show.
Some thoughts that have percolated during my marathon viewings:
-Sylar eats their brains to get their powers, as Chandra advised him in the flashback episode (one of the weaker ones in the series), if the soul exists, it exists in the brain.
-Claire's biological mother was really just a lame plot point to get Claire linked to Nathan, and the potential ickiness of a crush on Peter.
-Easily one of the most expensive shows on TV and it looks it. I am very impressed with the SFX.
-Why didn't Charlie recognize Hiro when he returned before her death, even though he clearly didn't recognize her? Because Hiro hadn't changed the past yet, as evidenced by his appearance in her birthday photo.
-Time is immutable, Hiro cannot changed or affect the past, he can only observe and interact. The minutia may change, but the course of history will not. Counterpoint is Issac's ability to see the future, but will it be changeable? Or it time truly immutable? the flash forward episode seems to present the idea that time is unchangeable, that there is a destiny and one must see it through.
I am really looking foreward to the next few weeks
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