Heroes: Godsend

by Erin

A Soulful Spike Society Review
www.soulfulspike.com

 

 

“I all alone beweep my outcast state/And trouble deaf Heaven with my bootless cries,/And look upon myself, and curse my fate…”

William Shakespeare, Sonnet 29

 

After 11 episodes of set-up, introductions, heroic rescues, crushing failures, and momentary connections, we are moving forward. Do we need to keep looking behind us for the answers, or, as Aron Malsky suggests, only if we want to see where we’ve been? Where have we been? New York, Texas, Japan, Nevada, to name a few. We’ve rolled with Hiro and Ando through space and time, seen Matt go from cuckolded traffic cop to quasi-agent for the FBI and back again, seen Jessica kick everyone’s ass, and Sylar stop time again and again. And if you can’t remember where you’ve been? How do you rebuild what can’t be recalled?

 

Most importantly, what do you do when there’s a hair’s breadth difference between “godsend” and “freakshow”?

 

Progress is made; heroes are gathering and exchanging information and taking action, while others are imprisoned, whether in actuality or by choice or inside their heads. Some watch visions of future disasters, or the slow creep of a more evolved species circling closer. Each hero featured in the episode, except three, expresses a need to see (or be shown) or told. (More on those three later.) This may, actually, represent the first time that every (living) hero we’ve met thus far has appeared in the same episode.

 

But what does it all mean? Are these abilities a curse or a godsend? Can those on the list actually save the world, or will they destroy it, accidentally or on purpose devouring the smaller or weaker species, like the T. Rex in the film Hiro watches? “They are here, and the earth shudders underfoot.”

 

At the end of the episode, Mohinder talks about making connections, about imposing order upon chaos. Each of the heroes goes about that in a different way. Mohinder reaches out to the FBI; Mr. Bennet reaches out to Mohinder. DL takes care of Micah his “style,” trying to bring order to his son’s previously chaotic life. Yet his ability to do so is limited; he can’t get Linderman completely out of their lives; he can’t even stop Micah’s classmates from referring to Niki as a “psycho killer.” Matt’s hunch leads nowhere due to the presence of the Haitian, and Audrey loses faith in him; yet this leads him to finally open up and tell his wife the truth about what’s going on in his life.

 

Claire watches the coverage of the homecoming aftermath and lies to her father about not remembering what happened during homecoming; he lies right back to her, telling her his truth in one respect; that “forgetting” is “a blessing.” (This as the reporter talks about how the community “struggles how to remember” Jackie Wilcox.) Of course, buried in Claire’s questioning is an accusation: “Nothing? Nothing at all?” He wants to impose order on his daughter’s life; for her to remain the girl who hasn’t outgrown her love of their “bears of the world” tradition. It is not surprising that he would want to protect her, or that he doesn’t understand that in doing so, he makes her more vulnerable to the real “bears” in the world. It is up to Claire impose order on her own terms; to shore up the only vulnerable part of herself: her memory.

 

Nathan wants to see the pre-seeing painter whose work sent his brother to Texas on his quest to “save the cheerleader.” The chaos of coincidence that confronts him at Isaac’s loft sends him into full denial mode, until Hiro utters the magic word: Linderman. Yet, still, he hides his own ability from everyone but Hiro. He wants to see Isaac’s work, but he doesn’t want to be seen for what he really is. Is it for political reasons only? Is that why Peter always sees Nathan in his vision emerging from his campaign headquarters?

 

Hiro, on the other hand, is completely open regarding his abilities, only to see them diminish after he tried to save Charlie. He is searching for a focus, and believes that the Takezo Kensei’s sword holds that power; when Ando sees the special symbol on the sword and translates it as “great talent” and “godsend,” Hiro is convinced. (Of course, Ando wonders if stealing is really part of the Bushido code, another example of trying to impose order: frugality, loyalty, mastery of martial arts, and honor to the death.) But is it really necessary? It connects him to Japanese history, and to his previously unmentioned father, but will it return Hiro to his full strength? Or is it like Dumbo’s feather, restoring Hiro the confidence he lost when he couldn’t save Charlie, when he declared that he “can’t change the past”? The fact that the sword he steals is only a replica seems to underscore that interpretation. Of course, as we see in “Hiros,” he does acquire the sword at some point, and has even taken on some of the physical characteristics of Takezo. Maybe the real lesson for Hiro is not that “we can’t change the past” (which is true), but we can learn from and draw strength from it.

 

What about our heroes that remain in isolation? Our first glimpse of Niki is blinking in reaction to the light of the law as she is taken from, well, isolation, to meet with her lawyer. Can we really ever say Niki is alone? Jessica and Niki fight for control the entire episode, and even as Niki manages to reach out to DL and (somewhat) to Micah, her lawyer nearly runs out of the room and she ends up in a padded cell, praying to God.

 

That brings us to the three most isolated heroes: Ted, Sylar, and Peter. Ted is the most isolated; he has secreted himself in the Nevada desert, and illuminates his cabin again and again as he tries to control his power. It is unclear whether this is for his own sake, or for the sake of the world. Sylar is drugged and incapacitated as Mr. Bennet watches him watch a cockroach trundle around him. This brings back Mohinder’s lecture in “Genesis” about the cockroach being more evolved than humans; a fitting irony for Sylar, who went to such great lengths to evolve himself beyond ordinary humans. On the other side of the coin is Peter, who comes by naturally what Sylar has had to work so hard to gain. With Peter, however, there is no question why he remains in the state that is burning up his brain and heart; it is fear of hurting those he loves (including all of humanity). He wants them near; he doesn’t want to be isolated, but he also knows that he will kill them if they don’t get away from him. That fear brings him out of stasis and into action, even if that action is to disappear so he won’t hurt anyone. He gets his wish when he runs into our newest and most invisible hero, who may, hopefully, keep him from running straight towards Nevada and the one hero who could conceivably make Peter’s nightmare become reality.

 

Godsend, or curse? Order, or chaos? Only time will tell.

 

Other observations

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That’s it for me this time. Next week, Sara will take on the heroic job of reviewing, so stay tuned to hear her thoughts as well!

 


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