Writer: Tim Kring
Director: Greg Beeman
Cast: Kristen Bell (Elle), David Anders (Adam), Dania Ramirez (Maya), Adrian Pasdar (Nathan), Milo Ventimiglia (Peter), Ali Larter (Niki/Gina), Noah Gray-Cabey (Micah), Dana Davis (Monica), Jimmy Jean-Louis (The Haitian), Shalim Ortiz (Alejandro), Rena Sofer (Heidi), Nichelle Nichols (Nana), Cristine Rose (Angela) & Stephen Tobolowsky (Bob)
Peter regains his memory, sending us back in time 4 months to see how some of the heroes dealt with the fallout of the NYC explosion...
Heroes loves to leap back and forth in time -- usually instigated by time-travelling characters like Hiro and Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) -- but here we're given a more standardised flashback episode, caused by Peter suddenly regaining his memory by regenerating the damaged parts of his brain...
Four Months Ago is effectively the season 2 premiere most people were expecting, as it follows on directly from the events of season 1's finale. Nathan (Adrian Pasdar), having flown human-bomb Peter to safety high above New York, is burned to a crisp by his brother's radiation. Implausibly, Peter survives his resulting combustion and flies his incinerated brother to hospital.
Bob (Stephen Tobolowsky) promptly appears with Elle (Kristen Bell) and soon persuades Peter to join his facility, where he can inhibit Peter's powers using "Haitian Pills", to prevent him hurting those he loves...
We also discover that D.L (Leonard Roberts) survived being shot by Mr Linderman. Niki (Ali Larter) and Micah (Noah Gray-Cabey) are at his bedside in hospital, where Bob appears (he must spend his days loitering around hospitals) and offers Niki the chance of a normal life by taking the same inhibiting pills he's pushed on Peter.
Unfortunately, despite a fully-recovered D.L turning his life around, by using his phase-shifting ability to save lives as a fireman, and the apparent demise of his wife's violent alter-ego because of her meds, Niki realizes another personality has emerged: Gina.
With most of the episode focused on explaining the immediate after-effects of last years finale, one subplot instead reveals the back-story to Maya (Dania Ramirez) and Alejandro (Shalim Ortiz). In Santo Domingo, Alejandro is getting married to a girl his sister strongly disapproves of – with good reason, as she catches her kissing another man! Her anger triggers the first use of her eye-bleeding power that kills everyone in the vicinity – which happens to be all the wedding guests, except for her brother...
Back with Peter, he's willingly locked up in a facility/prison, next door to Adam Monroe (David Anders), who we've known as regenerative immortal Kensei from Hiro's Feudal Japan subplot. Adam, the "first superhero" (the clue's in the Biblical name), convinces Peter that he's actually a prisoner, not a patient – and suggests he stops taking the Haitian Pills delivered to him by Elle and break-out.
Niki, who's also voluntarily stopped popping pills, finds new personality Gina taking control (in a snazzy mirror reversal trick shot) and heads off to party the night away in L.A. D.L realizes what's going on and heads off in pursuit, finding his wife writhing on the dance floor with a sleazebag who doesn't take kindly to D.L spoiling their fun -- and promptly shoots him dead in quite a grizzly off-camera moment. I guess D.L is just cursed to die by gunshot -- which is ironic for a man able to walk through solid objects like burning walls, punching fists and bullets!
Peter soon regains his powers and frees Adam from the facility/prison so that Adam can heal Nathan's third-degree burns -- by injecting his blood into his drip. Bob, Elle and The Haitian (Jimmy Jean-Louis) are in hot pursuit of both, leading to Peter crawling half-naked into a shipping container, unable to use his abilities against the power-inhibiting Haitian.
Fortunately, the Haitian is sympathetic to most people he encounters, and instead of killing Peter, he instead chooses to wipe his memory and allow him to be dispatched to Ireland...
Four Months Ago is a mildly illuminating episode, mainly regarding Peter's subplot, which helps paper over some cracks in season 2. The season makes more sense now, although it's little wonder the writers decides to jump ahead in time for season 2's finale, if this is how weak the present day continuation would have been!
But the episode exposes how slapdash Heroes is with its storytelling at times – as things happen to save time and proper explanation (Peter's miraculous survival of a nuclear blast), or characters that enigmatically appear just to move plodding stories forward (The Haitian).
Basically, Four Months Ago lets itself down with illogical moments, revelations that many people have already guessed, and dumb decisions from many characters. Case in point: Bob's prison must be the least effective ever devised -- as it contains no security cameras or alarms! And, to regain your super powers, all you have to do is fake swallowing pills. That's the oldest trick in the book! Wouldn't it make more sense for Elle to inject Peter with the power-inhibiting medication? Or at the very least check Peters' mouth is empty after he takes his pills? Stupid baddies.
On the positive side, I enjoyed Kristen Bell's performance as Elle, now given a masochistic and dominating personality that nicely juxtaposes her cute, subservient, sex-kitten look. She's great fun, and heaven knows the show needs a decent villainess to counteract some of the cloying goodie-two-shoes everywhere else.
The decision to create a different alter-ego for Niki to grapple with was also a great idea, although Gina's only difference to Jessica seems to be that she prefers hedonism over parenting. It was also interesting to learn that Niki's multiple personality disorder isn't actually part of her power, just an unfortunate side-effect. Of course, quite why Bob's pills seem to inhibit the split-personality and her super-strength, is therefore illogical. Jessica should still be around -- just unable to throw men into walls, surely.
Again, the weakest aspect of the episode revolved around the Herrera siblings, as their storyline was just another variation on "Maya gets upset and kills people / Alejandro's presence reverts everything / both go on the run." The only differences in this flashback was that the same event happen to them for the first time. Big deal. After 8 episodes, I think it's clear that their characters are only around to become a handy plot-device later in the season – as I'm sure Maya's death-dealing ability will tie-in to the virus storyline.
Overall, this was an enjoyable episode for the most part, but it ultimately just exposes how simplistic and predictable season 2's storyline actually is – once you take away the 4 month leap into the future that followed season 1. I still have hope things can develop and improve, as Four Months Ago was still significantly more entertaining than most episodes this season, but Heroes is no longer the must-see, surprising television it was last year.
12 November 2007
NBC, 9/8c pm
Director: Greg Beeman
Cast: Kristen Bell (Elle), David Anders (Adam), Dania Ramirez (Maya), Adrian Pasdar (Nathan), Milo Ventimiglia (Peter), Ali Larter (Niki/Gina), Noah Gray-Cabey (Micah), Dana Davis (Monica), Jimmy Jean-Louis (The Haitian), Shalim Ortiz (Alejandro), Rena Sofer (Heidi), Nichelle Nichols (Nana), Cristine Rose (Angela) & Stephen Tobolowsky (Bob)
Peter regains his memory, sending us back in time 4 months to see how some of the heroes dealt with the fallout of the NYC explosion...Peter: I remember. I remember everything.
Adam: Good. Then, shall we save the world?
Adam: Good. Then, shall we save the world?
Heroes loves to leap back and forth in time -- usually instigated by time-travelling characters like Hiro and Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) -- but here we're given a more standardised flashback episode, caused by Peter suddenly regaining his memory by regenerating the damaged parts of his brain...
Four Months Ago is effectively the season 2 premiere most people were expecting, as it follows on directly from the events of season 1's finale. Nathan (Adrian Pasdar), having flown human-bomb Peter to safety high above New York, is burned to a crisp by his brother's radiation. Implausibly, Peter survives his resulting combustion and flies his incinerated brother to hospital.
Bob (Stephen Tobolowsky) promptly appears with Elle (Kristen Bell) and soon persuades Peter to join his facility, where he can inhibit Peter's powers using "Haitian Pills", to prevent him hurting those he loves...
We also discover that D.L (Leonard Roberts) survived being shot by Mr Linderman. Niki (Ali Larter) and Micah (Noah Gray-Cabey) are at his bedside in hospital, where Bob appears (he must spend his days loitering around hospitals) and offers Niki the chance of a normal life by taking the same inhibiting pills he's pushed on Peter.
Unfortunately, despite a fully-recovered D.L turning his life around, by using his phase-shifting ability to save lives as a fireman, and the apparent demise of his wife's violent alter-ego because of her meds, Niki realizes another personality has emerged: Gina.
With most of the episode focused on explaining the immediate after-effects of last years finale, one subplot instead reveals the back-story to Maya (Dania Ramirez) and Alejandro (Shalim Ortiz). In Santo Domingo, Alejandro is getting married to a girl his sister strongly disapproves of – with good reason, as she catches her kissing another man! Her anger triggers the first use of her eye-bleeding power that kills everyone in the vicinity – which happens to be all the wedding guests, except for her brother...
Back with Peter, he's willingly locked up in a facility/prison, next door to Adam Monroe (David Anders), who we've known as regenerative immortal Kensei from Hiro's Feudal Japan subplot. Adam, the "first superhero" (the clue's in the Biblical name), convinces Peter that he's actually a prisoner, not a patient – and suggests he stops taking the Haitian Pills delivered to him by Elle and break-out.
Niki, who's also voluntarily stopped popping pills, finds new personality Gina taking control (in a snazzy mirror reversal trick shot) and heads off to party the night away in L.A. D.L realizes what's going on and heads off in pursuit, finding his wife writhing on the dance floor with a sleazebag who doesn't take kindly to D.L spoiling their fun -- and promptly shoots him dead in quite a grizzly off-camera moment. I guess D.L is just cursed to die by gunshot -- which is ironic for a man able to walk through solid objects like burning walls, punching fists and bullets!
Peter soon regains his powers and frees Adam from the facility/prison so that Adam can heal Nathan's third-degree burns -- by injecting his blood into his drip. Bob, Elle and The Haitian (Jimmy Jean-Louis) are in hot pursuit of both, leading to Peter crawling half-naked into a shipping container, unable to use his abilities against the power-inhibiting Haitian.
Fortunately, the Haitian is sympathetic to most people he encounters, and instead of killing Peter, he instead chooses to wipe his memory and allow him to be dispatched to Ireland...
Four Months Ago is a mildly illuminating episode, mainly regarding Peter's subplot, which helps paper over some cracks in season 2. The season makes more sense now, although it's little wonder the writers decides to jump ahead in time for season 2's finale, if this is how weak the present day continuation would have been!
But the episode exposes how slapdash Heroes is with its storytelling at times – as things happen to save time and proper explanation (Peter's miraculous survival of a nuclear blast), or characters that enigmatically appear just to move plodding stories forward (The Haitian).
Basically, Four Months Ago lets itself down with illogical moments, revelations that many people have already guessed, and dumb decisions from many characters. Case in point: Bob's prison must be the least effective ever devised -- as it contains no security cameras or alarms! And, to regain your super powers, all you have to do is fake swallowing pills. That's the oldest trick in the book! Wouldn't it make more sense for Elle to inject Peter with the power-inhibiting medication? Or at the very least check Peters' mouth is empty after he takes his pills? Stupid baddies.
On the positive side, I enjoyed Kristen Bell's performance as Elle, now given a masochistic and dominating personality that nicely juxtaposes her cute, subservient, sex-kitten look. She's great fun, and heaven knows the show needs a decent villainess to counteract some of the cloying goodie-two-shoes everywhere else.
The decision to create a different alter-ego for Niki to grapple with was also a great idea, although Gina's only difference to Jessica seems to be that she prefers hedonism over parenting. It was also interesting to learn that Niki's multiple personality disorder isn't actually part of her power, just an unfortunate side-effect. Of course, quite why Bob's pills seem to inhibit the split-personality and her super-strength, is therefore illogical. Jessica should still be around -- just unable to throw men into walls, surely.
Again, the weakest aspect of the episode revolved around the Herrera siblings, as their storyline was just another variation on "Maya gets upset and kills people / Alejandro's presence reverts everything / both go on the run." The only differences in this flashback was that the same event happen to them for the first time. Big deal. After 8 episodes, I think it's clear that their characters are only around to become a handy plot-device later in the season – as I'm sure Maya's death-dealing ability will tie-in to the virus storyline.
Overall, this was an enjoyable episode for the most part, but it ultimately just exposes how simplistic and predictable season 2's storyline actually is – once you take away the 4 month leap into the future that followed season 1. I still have hope things can develop and improve, as Four Months Ago was still significantly more entertaining than most episodes this season, but Heroes is no longer the must-see, surprising television it was last year.
12 November 2007
NBC, 9/8c pm
