Heroes 3x14 "A Clear and Present Danger"

I can't say that I didn't anticipate Heroes' return. It may not be the smartest show on television, or even the most exciting, but the simple comic book element of the show has kept me coming back through one great season and one and a half mediocre ones.

Let's face it: the first half of season three just wasn't worth the hype. While there were some truly fascinating and jaw-dropping moments throughout the thirteen episodes of "Villains," there was still the hint that you'd seen it all before. There was still predictability.

Chapter one of volume four, "A Clear and Present Danger," was certainly an improvement from the last batch of episodes we got before the winter break, and I was quite pleased when it started. Tracy's kidnapping was well done, especially when intercut with the scenes of Nathan's television interview. I had hope.

And then it all slowly started to slide downhill. We met up with Peter for the first time this volume while he was working as a paramedic, and he had failed to save a car crash victim. His "I could have been stronger" shtick was quite boring, and the angst-filled delivery of those lines made me wince a little bit. There are definitely more convincing ways to convey Peter's messiah complex than for him to say that he could have done more over and over, but unfortunately, the writers have chosen not to use it. Peter was incredibly boring and dull during this episode, and his last conversation with Nathan (and that haphazard embrace) makes one wonder if Peter has a survival instinct at all.

My only other complaint about the episode was the character turn for H.R.G. His complete three-sixty of character is making me quite annoyed -- he tased Peter without a moment's hesitation, even though he was entrusting Peter with his daughter and revealing to him his first name at the end of season one. When audiences said to lose the predictability factor, they didn't mean to change the entire characters.

Sylar's storyline was also somewhat of a bore. The conversation with his first father seemed like pure filler, and was mostly unneccesary to the overall plot.

The episode ended on a high note, however, with the fantastic airplane sequence that had me tense the entire time. Zeljko Ivanek was a welcome addition to the cast as well, performing fantastically with the bit role that the script provided. Hopefully more depth will be given to his character soon.

This volume is poised to be a great volume overall. I just hope it doesn't become as predictable as past seasons.

FINAL SCORE: 70% / C