Heroes: Collision This may be the best episode of the show so far. The plotlines are starting to converge and the number of taking you out of the show moments are kept to a minimum--though there are a few.
One big one is that Claire goes to school in regular clothes and we come back to her a scene or two later with her in cheerleader outfit. Man, this girl must have a ton of those outfits. Also, how did she explain losing the last one since quarterback guy removed it from her when he had to hide her body. And did quarterback boy have help in disposing of Claire's body in the river?
Also, I have to wonder--how did her father jetset around the globe so fast. He goes from being with Matt in the lab to being at home to then being in Las Vegas. This guy is wracking up the frequent flyer miles. Unless, of course, his friend has the ability to fly or teleport. Then maybe, just maybe I could buy it.
Finally, the change of heart of Mohinder is a bit much. One scene he's at Nathan's office, ranting about powers and then the next he's skeptical of Peter's abilities and claims. Ummmmmmm, ohkay then.
But before you tell to me take a chill pill, let me say that despite all of those, I still found a lot to like about this episode. It felt more solid and less disjointed than the other episodes we've seen until now. We really did see the plotlines of the various players in the game beginning to converge. I do wonder if we'll have two separate storylines running--those who have met up in Las Vegas and those who are meeting in New York.
I do have one huge complaint--NBC's promo department stinks. I hate it when a show gives away the last five or so minutes of a storyline in the promos. I did like Claire's scaring the pants (no pun intended) of the quarterback, but if we hadn't had the final image of that story in all the promos it might have had more impact (and I didn't watch the preview at the end of the episode but it cropped up in
The Office, so I did at least try to avoid it). Interesting to see Claire's tears to start the story and their her slow embrace of her powers and how she can use them to put a stop to what the quarterback is doing. It does bring up an interesting concept that Spider-Man is famous for--with great power, comes great responsiblity. We've seen Claire respond to those in danger with her powers and use them for good. But now that she's used them to possibly kill a person, is she on a slippery slope?
Sort of like the slippery slope that we have with Niki. Interesting to see the shift in personality happen on screen this time. I've got to give Ali Larter credit here--she made the transition from one Niki to the other quite well and very convincing. And it's also interesting that "bad Niki's" motivation seems to be protecting herself and Micah.
Now, I did have to wonder something. The mob brought Nicki in for some type of job. So, are we to assume it was for her to cross paths with Nathan? And was the mob in the pocket of Claire's father? Was their goal to get to Nathan somehow? I am wondering if whatever they are up to, they want Nathan to win his bid for office so they can have an in and possibly exploit that?
Meanwhile, the artist draws some more visions of the future, including Claire being stalked by someone. I'm betting its Syler. I guess we'll see where this all goes.
Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip: The Long Lead StoryAgain, the NBC promo department ruins the end of an episode. Why do shows feel they have to advertise "and in the final seconds..." in order to draw in viewers? Is this some attempt to keep people from tuning away from the final moments of
Studio 60 and flipping over to
CSI: Miami to see whodunnit?
This week, it's less about Matt and Danny and more about Harriet and Jordan. Jordan is coming under pressure to pick up a new reality show that will make the network a ton of cash but Jordan finds disgusting. She passes on the show, instead choosing to pursue a new drama that the young producer really wants to go to HBO. Jack is, of course, upset about this choice and wants the new show that will make a ton of cash for the network--who cares if it's a deplorable concept. You can really see Aaron Sorkin's view of reality TV coming through here. Also of interest is the fact that it seems that the young hot shot producer choosing between two networks is a thinly veiled allegory for the behind the scenes bidding that CBS and NBC had for Studio 60. Did NBC win because they got rid of the
Fear Factor and while they have game shows, they don't have any of the worst examples of reality TV out there....
Maybe I'm reading too much into it here..
Meanwhile, we find out more about Harriet's background. We find out where she came from and interestingly enough, we see that her star and Matt's are tied together in terms of their rise to the top. Matt upped his game to try and impress Harriet, which he admits to Martha O'Dell late in the game. Hearing about Harriet's life and why she went into comedy and how she reconciles what she does with her faith was some fascinatng stuff. I have to admit I like the character of Harriet a good deal and she may be my favorite on the show. (OK, Jack is really my favorite but Harriet is a close second).
Of course,
Gilmore Girls fans probably tuned in to see Lauren Graham on the show...yeah, blink and you miss her. She's in one sketch and is a total non-factor to the show. Maybe we'll get more of her next week when she's supposed to come back.
Personally, I enjoyed this one a good bit. It was better than last week's episode, but it's no where nearly as good as the first two. I like that we're trying to explore the other characters in the universe, but I wish we could see more of Timothy Busfield's character, besides just running the boards.
posted by Michael Hickerson at 10/17/2006 07:37:00 AM |
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