Finalewatch: Did they save the world?

May 21, 08:37 PM

Heroes ended its first season Monday with a finale steeped in awesomeness, including a mind-bending coda that begins next season.

And yet I can't help feeling -- just a wee little bit, because the rest of it was really good -- that "all you need is love" is not an entirely satisfying solution for the episode's title, "How to Stop an Exploding Man."

(It's about to get spoiler-y, so probably you ought to Hiro yourself away if you haven't watched the episode.)

It would have sat with me better, I think, had the solution been revealed to Peter -- who, we finally saw for sure, was fated to be the bomb -- in a slightly less tidy way. Instead we got a sequence in which Peter was dreaming, or had transported his invisible self backward in time, or something (as the returning Charles Deveaux noted, "It doesn't matter what it is"), and listened to Mr. D explain that Peter could save the world because his heart was capable of unconditional love.

And so, apparently, is his brother, who has shown just enough doubt about his role in leveling Manhattan in recent episodes to make his (probable) sacrifice credible. Nathan was undoubtedly seduced by the power that could potentially be his if he let Linderman's scheme happen, but his better nature won out in the end, and he flew Peter away so his little brother could explode without hurting anyone.

If the save-the-world portion of the finale was a little too neatly wrapped, that's still only a minor quibble. Because Tim Kring and Co. left themselves a whole lot to play with in Volume Two, which we learned in the final two minutes will be called "Generations."

Let's start there. After fulfilling his mission and stabbing Sylar, Hiro saved himself from the brain-munching bad guy's wrath by teleporting -- to 17th-century Japan, where he encounters a group of unfriendly warriors on one side and the legendary Kensei, riding with the Godsend symbol as his flag, on the other.

All together: Say what now? I have no idea what this will mean for the show, but I'm intrigued as hell, both for Hiro and for Ando, who will apparently have to fend for himself for a while. I also really liked the shot of Hiro looking up at the solar eclipse, mirroring a scene from the pilot.

Back in the present, Sylar isn't dead, or at least that's what I took the open manhole with the trail of blood leading to it to mean (and why, again, did he need Claire's regenerative power in the flash-forward episode?). Neither is D.L., who got shot in the gut last week, and neither, somehow, is Parkman, who took several of his own redirected bullets from Sylar in the final fight.

Sylar has been a great villain for the show, so it's good that the door is open for his return. Part of me also wonders if there's any bigger meaning to the flashes of his victims in his whited-out eyes before he went out. The flashes ended with Parkman. Pure speculation here, but might that mean that the two are somehow connected now?

What I really, really want to know, though, is the identity of the one person Molly the Tracking System refuses to find, the one who can see her when she sees him and, in her mind, is worse than Sylar. And who I really hope is next season's Big Bad; worse than Sylar is some serious evil.

And, of course, the fate of the Petrelli brothers is (literally) up in the air. It seems likely that Peter would survive his own blast, given that he has Claire's regenerative powers, but what about Nathan? Did he stick with his brother until the end, or did he fly off once he got Peter to a safe altitude?

Finally, what does it mean for the world as a whole now that this supposedly "inevitable" outcome has been changed? I suspect the folks connected to Linderman and Mrs. Petrelli will be none too pleased with the outcome, so what next there? (Kring and Hayden Panettiere live-blogged after the finale, but there's little help to be had there.)

Couple other matters to note:

HRG has a first name! It's Noah, which must be a little bit of a bummer for Jack Coleman, who was hoping his character's name would be Tony Bennet.
Niki and Jessica finally got on the same page about something, and Niki discovered she could kick ass without summoning her alter ego.
Sylar's line, "Turns out you're the villain, Peter. I'm the hero," may have been the episode's best.
Unless it was Hiro's final exclamation, "#@!$."

So that's a wrap on Heroes for the season, although NBC promises more installments of its graphic novel over the summer. And I think I may already be over my misgivings about the overly neat saving of the world. Is it fall yet?

Your thoughts on the season finale, folks? And what comes next?

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Comments (97)

Comments

Loved every minute of the episode. Can't wait for next season. I, too, was most intrigued by who Molly didn't want to find.

Jeff | May 21, 2007 9:06:02 PM | #

ok ok did any ever grasp the idea that there still is a "bomb" and that they saved New York and not yet the "World"? But DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAng it was an awsome ride this season with this show Loved the Finale watched it 3 times already. THANK YOU TIVO

bj | May 21, 2007 9:37:38 PM | #

It was a great episode, and a nice conclusion to one of the best first seasons for any show I've ever watched. I especially liked some of the hints about next season. My only complaint was that the fight between Peter and Sylar didn't feel epic enough. I mean, Sylar kicked ass, and I liked how everyone got involved a little bit (loved when Nicki hit him with the parking meter, its the first time all season I've liked her character), but I thought Peter and Sylar would use some more of their powers against each other, for a Superman vs. Zod type battle. That said, it's just a minor quibble, and I can't wait till next season.

Chris | May 21, 2007 9:37:48 PM | #

Great show, great season. I hope next season is as good or better. Second only to Battlestar Galactica in my estimation.

Siansonea | May 21, 2007 9:41:01 PM | #

So Sylar comes back as a ninja turtle?

Jason | May 21, 2007 10:51:25 PM | #

OK, loved the season, loved the show...but Peter could fly on his own already! Did Nathan need to give him that boost because if some "one power at a time" rule?

noncentz | May 22, 2007 1:33:00 AM | #

Oh...and it was nice to see the return of the big cockroach.

noncentz | May 22, 2007 1:34:03 AM | #

It's interesting how the finale parallels so well with the pilot episode. Peter, whose main super power seems to be his whiny sense of self-importance, is convinced that it's up to him to go toe-to-toe with Sylar, just as he was convinced he had the power to fly. Both times his ego turned out to exceed his capabilities, and it was only by the intervention of his older brother that he didn't end up dead. Unfortunately, Peter probably will survive to give us another season of angst, but all in all I thought it was pretty great.

Rorshach | May 22, 2007 4:12:01 AM | #

cant wait for the big bad who is worse than sylar. tho i wonder if it is someone we know or not. i hear theres only one new hero next year, a woman. so im thinking a character we may already know. but it would probably be one that appeared human, cause i cant think of a special character it could be if it is someone we've met. also, you were spot on noncentz. why couldnt peter fly himself. now im racking my brain trying to remember if hes used more than one power at a time. i read on watch with kristin at e online that adrian pasdar and milo ventimiglia will be back. but between evil candice who is still alive (booo kill her niki!) and all the flashbacks im not entirely sure he'll be alive in the present. also, i love heroes and the whole hiro being in japan circa 16whatever was a bit of a let down i wanted something bigger. maybe its just me. also, love how they always have that cockroach near sylar. he definitely is a cockroach. he just wont die. even tho he supposedly doesnt have claires power. lastly i love evil momma petrelli over i have no idea whats going on busybody momma p. i wonder if she'll be a big villain next year. with lindy dead (?) someone has to step up.

fanboy | May 22, 2007 4:50:32 AM | #

I must admit, I liked most of the final episode. But I agree that the final 15 minutes was a little anti-climatic. Come on, we waited a whole season to see Peter "bash" Sylar with a few punches? (perhaps with Nicki's Ability?). Give me more!

And why did Peter suddenly lose his ability to control his powers? Also I thought flying into space to blow up was a little cheese-y.

Also how is it that like 3 people get shot and 1 gets stabbed, and like no one dies. Guh! Need more death!

Luckily, I love this show so much I can't wait for next season. Also definitely gonna buy the DVD so can I watch all episodes non-stop.

P.S. Jason, Loved your ninja turtle comment.

Gary | May 22, 2007 5:07:11 AM | #

We never actually SAW Silar crawl into the sewer. Maybe he was dragged in. Just a thought. Excellent season and show though. It is so nice to have a show that you not only watch but can't wait for again.

lex town legend | May 22, 2007 5:10:28 AM | #

how much death do you want people? Even with the survival of the characters they had tonight, this show still has killed more recurring and regular characters in one season than even LOST or 24 ever have. This gives adage to the idea that no one truly is safe. I sure as heck didn't want to see anymore of the regulars die. I'm pretty sure Nathan ain't going to make it out alive unless he just tossed Peter in the air and then flew away. I predicted that's how it was going to go down. Peter may be able to fly, but it does seem he can only use one power at a time, plus he's kind of like the Jack of all trades, master of none. I did like that Sylar managed to slither off. I knew Hiro should have chopped his head off after gutting him. That was pretty sweet to see! I still wish we could have seen Nikki really hulk out, like maybe throw a car at Sylar to distract him so that Peter could get a jump on him. Great finale! I'm glad they resolved the nuke NY issue and they gave us a taste of what's to come with Hiro going back in time. Anyone else think that Kensei is going to turn out to be Sulu? It kind of looked like him behind the mask. I've got a feeling he's immortal or something like that. At the very least, Hiro will probably be related to him.

steve | May 22, 2007 5:36:35 AM | #

The showdown was a bit of a letdown. I expected an epic battle of powers between Peter and Sylar. And how did Peter save the day ...? The "all you need is love" advice didn't really make sense with how things ended.
And it feels like a cheat that Sylar was not definitively dead.
I was hoping Heroes would be the anti-Lost: give us a story with an actual ending and then move on to a new story....

hr | May 22, 2007 5:38:54 AM | #

After freezing and forwarding back and forth several times, I now think the final image in Sylar's eye was his own, not Parkman's. Since he absorbs the power of those he kills (hopefully not by eating their brains, ugh) maybe he absorbed his own power somehow? I would guess Sylar will come back in a different form next season. Good catch by Gary, above, on Peter's confront w/ Sylar. I'll bet he did absorb Jessica's super strength. I would guess his rage at Sylar made him lose control of his nuclear ability, just as it did for Ted Sprague. Also, I agree Peter may be limited to one ability at a time, as speculated by noncentz. That would explain why he needed Claire, Hiro and finally Nathan to help him out, as he was "locked in" to nuclear mode.

JCH | May 22, 2007 5:44:42 AM | #

I actually think the best line was when Hiro returned Ando to their cubes in Japan. It was getting very sentimental as Hiro explained he was going on the rest of his journey alone. Right before teleporting back to NYC to face Syler, Ando tells Hiro "You look bad @ss" High Commedy

Josh | May 22, 2007 5:46:49 AM | #

I loved that line, too Josh - but Hiro's excited glance and "Really?" to the bad *ss comment was what made the scene.

Excellent series. Satisfying finale - but noncentz is right. Unless Peter has a 1 power at a time restriction...he could have flown himself to that altitude.

I am eager to see the next chapter. This should prove to the networks that the serial drama does work. Heroes just happened to catch fire. They need to have more patience with other shows.
*No more reality craptastic shows, please*

Mavourneen | May 22, 2007 6:14:53 AM | #

DAI-pinch!
The episode, overall, was good. Not "very good" or "excellent", "good". The big-fight was a little anti-climactic, but the final few minutes were funny/exciting enough to salvage the show.
I'll agree with Josh; Hiro's light-hearted comedy segments are the only thing that stops a melodramatic slide. This is both godo and bad as the writers seem to be relying on it excessively instead of taking an extra minute to give us an explaination.
If someone had just shouted to Peter to fly away and Peter yelling back that he couldn't -- even if we didn't get that "one power at a time" rule, we could at least say Peter was too panicked to do anything.
Hiro travelling back in time 300 years? He could have at least screamed (as he was being flung) "getawaygetaway" so we know he wasn't in control of where he wanted to go. (letting divine intervention guide him)
And the final showdown with Sylar? It looks like everything got cut at the last minute: Niki/Jessica should have been in there double-teaming Sylar with Peter (and his newly absorbed strength) instead of just tagging out. Where were the explosions? Why did Sylar just LET Hiro stab him from 6 feet away without as much as a "Guh?" How is DL still standing?
Right now, "Heroes" is showing some impressive moves, but it often stumbles over its own two feet.

pakopako | May 22, 2007 6:34:02 AM | #

Can't wait till next season. Holly's bad guy is already a big intrest. What a great first season, lets hope they give it their all on the next!

marky marc | May 22, 2007 6:44:48 AM | #

i'm glad steve pointed out that it looked an awful lot like 'sulu' (george takei) as the master kensi. hiro's dad being immortal (and possibly the first ever hero) would make for an excellent twist and would allow for any number of cool story lines. at first i was afraid they wouldn't go that way, and have takei play an ancestor in the nakamura family tree. but the immortal angle would explain why he has the mad ninja skills. AND how he knew about hiros power and the he would indeed kill sylar.
the second season was going to be a can't-miss to begin with, but if this is the way they go then it will be just that much better. you can never go wrong with more takei!

sean | May 22, 2007 6:51:54 AM | #

I loved this episode, especially the scene between Peter and Mr. Deveaux. But I have a theory to put out...do you think maybe he's the man that Molly was afraid of. It makes sense if you look at it. Because Linderman and Mrs. Petrelli wanted the bomb to happen because it would allow them to be heroes. But a villain would ultimately not want there to be heroes right? I don't know. But their conversation sure felt like something that a hero and villain would have. Sometimes, the villain and hero are friends before they're enemies. Maybe Mr. D has some crazy alternative plan up his sleeve. Because I don't think he's dead.

Matt | May 22, 2007 6:54:03 AM | #

A finale without a cliffhanger is good. I got that warm feeling of conclusion.

Tony | May 22, 2007 7:01:30 AM | #

I thoughly enjoyed the Heroes finale.I actually like all the characters on the show (good guys and bad guys)so I wasn't disappointed that most of them survived. I thought Molly seem to bond really well with Nikki/DL/Micah and it was really nice to see Nikki realized that she had super strenght. I can't wait for the next season of Heroes.

kevin | May 22, 2007 7:02:43 AM | #

The one part that made me yell at the TV was when Nathan flew around the corner and responded to what Claire and Peter were saying. There was no way he would have been able to hear what they were saying. And haven't we seen Peter make objects move around while he was invisible? Although Nathan's sacrifice was well-done enough that I can forgive those two quibbles. (Maybe the nuclear poer was just too overwhelming for him to use another power at the same time).

Billiam | May 22, 2007 7:23:04 AM | #

great episode, great series. However, i wanted like a 90 minute finale. it seems like they could have done more as a reward to us loyal viewers. Btw, the fact that no heroes really die in this episode was a little disappointing. I wanted a bigger shock.

But congrats nbc. keep up the good work.

Leslie | May 22, 2007 7:23:06 AM | #

I had heard all the hype about the show all season, but could not watch the shows on monday nights. Well Saturday on the SciFi channel they showed all 21 shows and I sat down and watched them all, made sure I was home last night and I LOVED THE FINAL. This is the best show on TV in a very long time and I can not wait for next season. When Nathan flew off with Peter, I cried. I hope something really bad happens to their mother. I think the best line in the show, was "the future is not written in stone".

Brooke | May 22, 2007 7:40:33 AM | #