Commentary: Heroes 3x13 - Dual

[brighteyedjill]

Previously, on Heroes…


Arthur was an evil bastard, Hiro is stuck on a pole, Arthur microwaves some jello, the 4440 guy goes all hulk, and the Petrelli parental issues continue.


Is this a Sylar voiceover? Sweet. He can get away with being introspective.
Now…Chapter Thirteen: Dual

Nathan is somehow proud of Peter for shooting Arthur, even though he came here to team up with his beloved father. The emo bangs return, and Peter likes the feel of a gun in his hand. Nathan doesn’t believe for a second that Peter will shoot him. Peter pretends to fold like a paper party hat, and then wimpy wimpy Peter knocks out Nathan with a single punch…?

Sylar gets all Jigsaw on the Primatech crew. In the grand tradition of horror movies, they split up and go creeping through the dark.

Matt finally goes looking for Mo, who he hasn’t talked to since that one phone call. He seems surprised that Mohinder isn’t just waiting around for him. Matt makes an excellent point about Mohinder wishing he would turn into a crazy bug man. Perhaps that was Mohinder’s dearest wish.

Knox and Flint unnecessarily trash the lab, although they do manage to save Peter from himself Mohinder. Knox kills the 4400 guy with dispatch, and glowers at Nathan, but doesn’t try to kill him.

Hiro thinks of a good idea: save the future by changing the past. That idea couldn’t possibly go wrong.

Angela watches impassively as Sylar plays mind games. She is not particularly intimidated by Sylar’s crazy talk, but she knows Claire is a Petrelli, and therefore capable of bad, bad things.

Peter destroys the vat of jello, but he’s still concerned about Mohinder and keeping his spine in alignment. He remembers his nursing training at last!

Unspecial Ando psychs himself up, and Matt and Daphne assist. He scrunches his eyes up really hard, but still can’t travel through space. We know this is because he’s all sparky in that one future.

Meredith wanders off on her own. Puppet man thinks he’s awesome, but Sylar is having none of it. He inject Meredith with adrenaline and leaves her to flame uncontrollably, Noah wisely wanders into the cell where Meredith is freaking out. Sylar continues to re-enact Saw 7. Zachary Quinto acts the shit out of his contempt for HRG.

“Everybody roots for Peter, but in the end he always ends up losing,” Nathan says. He talks a big game, and tries to knock out Knox, but Tracy beats him to the punch, and freezes his ass.

Daphne goes all Dorothy, because Ando’s power is augmenting other people’s powers. So much so that she is fast enough to go back in time! Strangely, his power is actually interesting.

Angela’s inner monologue, “I am surrounded by idiots. We are all gonna die.” Sure enough, Sylar easily separates Claire and Angela. I predict he’s going to discover that Angela really is his mother just as he’s killing her.

All it takes to break the bulletproof glass is some heat, one bullet, and Claire’s average cheerleading strength.

Tracy touches Peter’s face, and grabs his tie, and Nathan remembers that only Peter touches him like that. He fires Tracy. She is not a happy camper.

Daphne and Ando skip off to save Hiro, and Kaito Nakamura gets some awesome swordfighting in. Meanwhile, Matt stays in the loft and chills like a villain.

Hiro punches Tracy, but luckily she doesn’t think to freeze him.

Flint and Peter knock over a whole vat of jello. Anyone ever notice that Flint has a scar that looks like the godsend symbol? I don’t in a million years believe that Nathan would try to beat Peter to death with a pipe. Luckily, Peter quickly reverses his stance on “all the formula should be destroyed” in time to give himself all this powers back. And he saves Nathan from a terrible explosion by flying away.

Angela’s a little jealous that Sylar was the one to kill Arthur. She tells the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Sylar gets a little testy, but it turns out that Angela knows who Sylar’s real parents are. Which means that Sylar isn’t really dead, because they wouldn’t leave that end loose.

Nathan and Peter scuffle. Nathan claims he wouldn’t have saved Peter. Um… And then in the preview for the next volume, he goes full frontal asshole.

In conclusion, what the hell did they do to the brothers? What caused that character development? What? How? Seriously? I mean... Can somebody explain this to me?

Comments

[47-trek-47.livejournal.com]

I just can't take it anymore, man. I just can't. I JUST CAN'T.

MY NATHAN. THOSE BASTARDS. I KEEL THEM ALL!

[summers84.livejournal.com]

This episode blew me away. It was brilliant. I was screaming at the tv when it looked like Claire killed Sylar. But then again, he has the regenerative powers too so he won't die.

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

I agree that Sylar is unlikely to die. First of all, Zachary Quinto is amazing. And I think they're not eager to get rid of him. But I could have done without the horror-movie rip-off. And Claire finally does something right! Hooray!

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

Possessed. By Arthur. Which was his plan all along. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

[avaserenity.livejournal.com]

I honestly thought i wopuld be more upset by Nathan's action but I think some of this is in line with his character.

His line to Peter is complete bull because we all know that when Peter is in real danger Nathan comes swooping in.

Will this rift between the brothers stick? Most liekly not.

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

I think they may be setting Nathan and Peter on the enemies path, which would make for good drama IF it was in line with the characters' development. I agree that swooping in and saving Peter is what Nathan does, so the idea that he would have let him die is just ridiculous. Some of the other stuff I'm willing to buy, but that...? Hm.

[jaune-chat.livejournal.com]

What in the name of the unholy alligators? I'm with Jill, Nathan must be possessed by Arthur, with some extra-crunch asshole topping, because WTF? Nathan has gone from God-fearing devotee to Hitler in the course of one season, and honestly, without much reason. Why? WHY?????

And the President is black... Do you think they filmed this scene after the election? DO YOU?

Brighteyed-Jill, I see shades of In Forest of the Night/Love's a Burning Boy in Volume Four!

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

Uh, yeah. Possessed. Hitler. What the hell? Apparently (according to Greg Beeman's blog) they filmed it before the election. But it's Michael Dorn (of Star Trek fame)!

Ooooo, it is like Burning Boy/Forests! Complete with brotherly betrayal! Now we just need some tatoos and some hot brotherly smexing! Sadly, I doubt that's what the writers have in mind... :(

[jaune-chat.livejournal.com]

Oooo, Michael Dorn! Awesome! Now we just need him to face down the Heroes with a bat'leth! I want to see that on screen. Make it so Mr. Worf!

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

Here's my concern: for Nathan to become president, this guy will have to die. I don't want that to happen! I don't care if it's fiction! Too close to home, people!

But, still... I love this:

[avaserenity.livejournal.com]

Tracy touches Peter’s face, and grabs his tie, and Nathan remembers that only Peter touches him like that. He fires Tracy. She is not a happy camper

Forgive her she doesn't know the Petrelli rules of conduct. But yes grounds for instant firing.

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

Hee! If Peter was watching, there would have been a bitch fight. No one touches his Nathan! Except Niki, and Jessica, and Tracy, and Heidi (sometimes), and Angela, and Arthur... Um... But anyway, no one touches his Nathan!

[avaserenity.livejournal.com]

Well I guess the feeling would be mutual since Claire, Elle, Angela, Simone, Mohinder, Sylar, Arthur and lest we forget even Flint and Know had Peter bent over a table. So Peter's been touched by some of everybody too.

[nsaphrodite.livejournal.com]

"Tracy touches Peter’s face, and grabs his tie, and Nathan remembers that only Peter touches him like that. He fires Tracy. She is not a happy camper."

-that was priceless. and i don't know how i feel about nathan going all evil. seems to me the transition seems a little contrived. i'm sure nathan and peter will work it through somehow b/c i'm not ready to lose nathan yet however big an asshole he is.

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

Nathan is my favorite character, so I would be devastated if he ever crossed the moral event horizon... Still, I feel like they could pull this out. It's just frustrating to watch him get jerked around so much this season.

[miss-miso.livejournal.com]

Man, I'm sleepy, but I had to say before I head off to bed:

Angela’s inner monologue, “I am surrounded by idiots. We are all gonna die.”

That? Had me LOLing. Love it.

Also, were all of your references to Peter and jello intentional? Because now I can't get Peter/Mohinder/Knox/Flint jello-wrestling out of my head. It's...an interesting image, to say the least.

I really enjoyed the episode overall. However, without getting into too much detail, I simply don't like where they're taking Nathan. I certainly can't explain this turn of events to you. I've rationalized some aspects of Nathan's behavior in this episode, but the things he said to Peter just didn't ring true. *shakes head* I'm too tired to be angry, though.

Besides, Peter still loves him, so maybe there's hope.

[miss-miso.livejournal.com]

Ok, I'm awake again, and I've re-watched parts of the episode. And as I said to mystery, Nathan looks so sad and conflicted at the very end after he hands the files to Worf, I'm not losing hope for him. I don't think Nathan was ever intending to kill Peter with the pipe, by the way - just punish him for screwing up his plans. I still can't forgive the writers for the absolute bullshit that happened between him and Peter at the end, but the rest of it, Nathan's decisions, I'm comfortable with.

And OMG, jaune_chat is right, after seeing the vol 4 promo...this IS turning into Love's the Burning Boy! Holy shit, has Kring been reading your lj? If so, please, god, let the brothers find each other and have hot make up sex. All would be forgiven.

One thing just struck me...I guess Hiro's permanently powerless now. He'll be Ando's sidekick!

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

I think over the holiday I will have to re-watch parts of this season... I only have my first impressions to go on, and my first impression is a sort of smoldering discontent, unfortunately.

BUT...I think you're right that he never intended to kill Peter. And although he talks a big game, I don't think he would have really left Peter to die. The end, though... I choose to believe he's possessed by the spirit of Arthur Petrelli. But you're right, he didn't look entirely gung-ho about rounding up the mutants, so that's good. Just wait until they catch Claire or Peter. Then he'll be sorry. And then "Hiro" will assassinate the president, and live run a resistance cell, and Peter will be sold into sexy, sexy slavery and Nathan will look for him, and YES TO THE MAKE-UP SEX! Okay... I don't think Kring has really been surfing lj, so I won't hold out hope for that.

And hey-- I forgot about that plot point. The formula IS destroyed! Hee hee. He will be Ando's sidekick! Until Ando kills him and destroys the world :( Well, like with Peter, the world is probably safer if Hiro doesn't have his powers. Although he's done a few reasonably intelligent things lately...

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

HAH! No, my references were not intentional. I just can't think what else all that red crap was meant to remind us of if not jello. But that would be the best jello-wrestling competition ever. There were some good parts of this episode, but man are they streeeeeeeeeeeeeeatching credulity to take Nathan in this direction. I'll really start to worry when Peter goes dark and stops believing in Nathan. Because if that happens, there really won't be a way back for the two of them. And their relationship is what always saves the world!

[thanners.livejournal.com]

Daphne goes all Dorothy, because Ando’s power is augmenting other people’s powers.

Ha, I was thinking that when I watched that part. "You were there.. and you were there.." But they aren't in Kansas anymore, so it doesn't work quite as nicely.

[brighteyed-jill.livejournal.com]

HA! I hadn't even thought of the Kansas connection. That's hilarious. Seriously.