Why I Watch "Heroes"
After catching the Season 2 premiere of NBC's most banked-upon series, “Heroes,” I'm left feeling a little empty. I spent all summer gorging on spectacularly brilliant television like “Battlestar Galactica” and “Freaks and Geeks,” so the “Heroes” flaws seem especially obvious -- kinda like eating a Subway sandwich after a City Sub. Last season, I was a devoted fan of "Heroes." I never missed an episode, and enthusiastically recommended the show to friends. But after last night, I’m asking myself why. Frankly, Heroes is only so-so. I realize that the show supposed to feel like a comic book adaptation (or something like that), but that still doesn't excuse its utter disrespect for almost all of the elements that make up a great television show. The dialogue is preposterous (even comic book characters occasionally make sense), and most of the superheroes are flat caricatures, even though we all know that it’s possible to be more than your superpower –- just look at Tobey Maguire's Spiderman, Christian Bale's Batman, and even Pixar's Mr. Incredible. Most annoyingly of all, everyone on "Heroes" goes out of their way to act illogically, doing exactly the wrong thing at exactly the wrong time. The pompously professorial Mohinder Suresh is especially guilty of this crime. Last season, Mohinder was willing to believe that humans had special super-powers, but not that one might actually come to his apartment and seek out his help (even though his father basically wrote the book on superpowernoia!). Proving his inability to recognize a superhero even when one is staring him (menacingly, I might add) in the face, Mohinder spent days road-tripping with the villainous Sylar (who doesn't even bother to clean up after his gory crimes), never suspecting that his mysterious new friend was a psychopathic killer who zips off the top of people's skulls. Last night, we watched Mohinder seriously consider a clearly ominous deal proposed by a creepy, bespectacled loner with the Midas touch. For someone who’s supposed to be a gifted scientist, this guy really doesn’t seem to be very smart.
In another example of character behaving against their best interests, on Monday we saw Claire Bennett, the Indestructible Cheerleader, do a back-tuck off a three-story tower just to prove that she could -- even though her only hope to avoid discovery (and certain death!) is to avoid attracting attention through stupid stunts exactly like this one. Kind of reminds me of how, last season, doomed person after doomed person would wander unsuspectingly into empty artist’s studios and dark, ransacked apartments, refusing to read the writing on the wall (or the blood on the wall, as was the case). Sometimes it feels like Sylar has tampered with everyone's brains... or at least their common sense.
At the end of this season’s first episode, as Claire's mom cooed at her pitiful pup (after all her memory-replacement treatments, shouldn't this woman be effectively lobotomized by now?), and Claire’s dad shot a soap-opera-caliber “portentous look” at his daughter; as Matt "The Mindreader" Parkman cradled the precocious Molly in his arms (I'm sorry, but this kid drives me nuts); as Hiro was left standing in the middle of a field "somewhere outside Kyoto", conversing with a blond, British samurai (okay, I'll admit I'm curious to see where this storyline goes), I was left wondering, why the heck am I still watching this silly show?
Well, after some reflection, I've come up with a few reasons:
1. Now that “Veronica Mars” has been booted off the CW, I'm in dire need of a Kristen Bell fix, and I hear that she's joining the cast (as a woman named Elle -- go figure!) later this season.
2. The adorable, funny, chipmunk-cheeked Masi Oka is my hero!
3. The subtitled scenes between Hiro, his dad, and Ando give me a chance to practice my Japanese (I'm getting pretty good).
4. The scenes with the new Hispanic siblings that were introduced on Monday also include subtitles, giving me a chance to practice my Spanish (have I mentioned I’m going to a wedding in Mexico next February?)
5. The darkly handsome Adrian Pasdar can fly me to the moon any time he wants –- well, as soon as he showers and shaves that scruffy new beard.
6. They had me from, "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World." What can I say? I’m a sucker for a good tagline, and while the delight is fading, it hasn’t worn off yet.
7. Zachary Quinto, who plays Sylar, went to acting school with my friend Sara.
8. For all its flaws, Heroes is still an exciting, quick-moving adventure story. Something exciting happens in every single episode (well, except for last night, but I'll give it a break because it was the series opener). My heart still belongs to the slowly teased-out mystery of LOST, but sometimes, a girl just needs a little action. Heroes delivers. At least, it did for most of last season. We'll see what happens with Season 2.