lethargicperfectionist

EW recipe for success? :

I have read the recent edition of Entertainment Weekly that had some of the Heroes cast on its cover- and damned if it wasn’t the usual suspects: Ali Larter, Zachary Quinto, Hayden Panettiere, Masi Oka, and Milo Ventimiglia. More on that later. The main story was EW’s focus on what was wrong with Heroes, and what could be done to save it. Pretty doom and gloom stuff, but it is true that Heroes is going thru a funk of sorts- though I think that the last episode or two have helped to turn things around. Here is basically what EW said in its article are the 5 main problems and what could be done about them:

• TOO MANY PEOPLE- trim the cast, focus more on single-character episodes
• ABSURD PLOT TWISTS- characters need to be smarter, act in character more often

• OVER-HEIGHTENED REALITY—folks here just are no normal anymore- so back to reality land…yet using Harry Potter as some semblance of normalcy? (more on that later)
• STALE STORYTELLING…too predictable, all too familiar settings, simple moralizing stories…need to go different places, add a couple of twists, get inventive.
• HEROES- too DISPOSABLE? Needs bigger vision, and an end date- possible salvation in “the reformation of Sylar”

So, what is my interpretation of this analysis. Well, I do agree on certain points, and on others, I am not very certain that they are the right fixes. I absolutely agree that time traveling needs to be limited or lost altogether. The fabric of the show’s reality gets harder and harder to decipher, and I think it really hurts the nature of the show to depict a much more interesting “possible” future then the dull current state of affairs. “What ifs” are great, until the show is nothing about “what ifs” and not about “What is.” So that means that Hiro needs to stick to his rule to not venture through time (or at least not to where he witnesses some devastating apocalyptic scene again), and Peter’s flagrant abuse of his time traveling powers needs to be curtailed tremendously- which may have happened with his recent encounter with Arthur Petrelli- we shall see.

As far as the size of the cast- not a big problem for me. There are many shows with large casts, and they make it work- like LOST or the SOPRANOS. No, the problem with Heroes is that they have all of these people, with little of interest to do. Parkman was in a desert for a few episodes, finding his path or whatever, and has only recently been made part of the main storyline…with major connections to his dad Maury and potential soul mate Daphne. Claire’s storyline continues to drag along; I suggest we start seeing her less as the damsel in distress and more as the badass that she wants to be. A little bit of Peter goes a long way: and that hasn’t been the rule for quite some time now. And WTF is going on with Mohinder??? What needs to be done is to utilize your cast in a constructive way, not drag storylines for three or four episodes, and if you’re going to kill someone, it had better mean something. That last part is to the writers/produces of Heroes who maybe influenced by the EW article- trimming the cast doesn’t mean destroying a character or killing someone off just because you have to- and it is possible for a character to leave in a happy place, ya know? But they had better not kill of Daphne or Parkman! That’s where I draw the line!

I have been saying for quite some time now that there are way too many out of character moments for the characters: the formula storyline (whatever happened to the formula anyway?) was driven mostly by Hiro and his reckless and well, stupid behavior. While Hiro is definitely rash and doesn’t always think things through, Season 3 Hiro has definitely lost his common sense. Mohinder’s injection of a heroes enhancing formula was totally out of character- at no point in Season 1 or 2 did it ever become apparent to me that Mohinder wanted powers. It just doesn’t make sense, and now we are left with a character that we don’t really recognize (and probably won’t once the mutation takes over). (Future) Peter’s flagrant use of time travel, not to mention some heretofore unseen powers were mind boggling. I’m talking about sending Parkman to Africa, and Peter into the body of the loudmouth. Why? Because of the storyline said so. So I agree that we need some smarts amongst the characters, that out of character moments need to be curtailed, and storylines need to be crafted with some semblance of purpose (was Nathan saved by God, Lindermen, or Maury Parkman? Does it matter?).

Here is where I believe that I differ with most of the analysis done in regards to Heroes. Many folks, including EW, bemoan the lack of realism in third season Heroes. They point to the guy who could create Black holes (ok, that was kinda far-fetched, but season 1 had nuclear dude, so far-fetched is according to the eye of the beholder), and the fact that characters are now lurking with other freaks, locked in the Company’s prison, or part of some secret nefarious agency. They want the show to return to its “roots,” like Claire in school, or Parkman as a cop, or Nikki (RIP) as a stripper/mom. I think this is a bad idea. Why? Because the one part of the first couple of seasons of Heroes that grated in my mind was this attention to realism. I could care less about Claire’s issues at school, and the way that Parkman was continuously facing reprimands from his police superiors was preposterous. Here was a man who could read people’s minds…and he’s being demoted or challenged or something unreasonable. Look, I could care less about this aspect of the show. We are dealing with extraordinary people…shouldn’t we then be dealing with their extraordinary lives? One of the writers/produces of Heroes compares the story of Harry Potter to how people can relate to Heroes…he was a normal boy, living a relatively normal(if abusive) existence, until he was plucked from obscurity to become a great wizard. It’s an everyman story. Fine I get that. But the main storylines throughout the Potter books deal with Harry’s life in a crazy, magically aligned place; and care less about the normal, muggle filled world. So, I’m ready for a “Hogwarts” type place to be introduced into the Heroes universe.

I have no real arguments with the last two points. I do feel that Heroes take an all too simplistic route to telling stories, and needs to come up with a twist every now and then. I thought that Arthur Petrelli’s introduction into Heroes was done in a fantastic way, and I couldn’t really predict what would happen; he placed Ma Petrelli into a coma, absorbed Adam Monroe’s powers and life, and took Peter’s lightning power away (it remains to be seen if Peter is absolutely powerless). But I couldn’t have predicated that, and I think this part of the storyline is going fine. Now that Pa Petrelli has his team together, what does he plan on doing with them? What is Pinehearst’s main goal? Hopefully we won’t have to see this telegraph four steps ahead. And new settings would be cool- looks like we’re going to be see more of the Pinehearst facility, but we could stand to lose Mohinder’s lab, that’s for sure.

A bigger vision is always good to have, but I think it is something that the writers/produces of Heroes necessarily lack. They believe that Heroes is a family story, centered on the Petrellis and Bennets- and all evidence from the past three years supports this vision, but the folks at EW believe that this is not enough. I agree. Grand themes should always be part of the greater vision of a show like Heroes, and it should definitely take a page from the LOST book. I’m not saying the Heroes needs to be like Lost, (elusive and evasive doesn’t always translate over so well), but it could use something greater then a simple family drama. EW believes that the reformation of Sylar could be that kind of saving grace that could keep Heroes going for two more years. I’m not sure we should just throw up our hands and accept the “Sylar” show as our consolation prize. Rather, maybe Heroes needs to focus on salvation, or reformation, or free will. Too many folks on Heroes are moved around like chess pieces- Future Peter was a pro at this, Claire is all too easily manipulated (especially by her father), while Nathan is being basically controlled by his father (via an image of Linderman created by Maury Parkman…geez). Many times throughout the show’s run, characters have been directed because of visions of the future…what does this mean in terms of premeditation or fate? These are bigger questions essentially mooted by the writers/producers, and I think it’s a shame we’re not getting that analysis.

Another common recommendation that I have seen is to leave behind the arcs to become single-episode, single-character driven hours. I am not opposed to a dash of such episodes, as long as it helps to continue the momentum of an arc. I believe arcs are necessary because it forces the viewer to commit to a show; otherwise, you can tune in one week, tune out the next, and not really miss too much. An episode all about Peter returning to his nursing trade to help Sylar repent (which is where it seems that the reviewers on mass want the show to be heading) just seems boring, not to mention that I’m kinda tired of Peter Petrelli (or namely the excess of his character’s parameters and limits; which are none). But an arc dealing with Sylar as a member of the Petrelli family, attempting to atone and deal with his inner demons, might make for compelling tv.

So, we’re half-way through the “VILLAINS” storyline- what should happen? I’m not a writer of this show, so all we can really do is speculate; but I know what I would like to see. Claire needs to move from walking target to being able to defend herself, and that needs to happen soon. It would be nice to see Elle again (and that should be happening soon). I am intrigued by Arthur Petrelli, but we need to know what he plans to do in the next episode, and I am not necessarily liking that we have to see Peter once again locked away in some cell (like in most of Season 2 and part of season 3). Hiro needs to quit being such a clueless-naïve bonehead and stop trying to be a hero because he already is one, and trust in his friendship with Ando (and make Ando do something else then be hiro’s sidekick). Continue to develop the Parkman and Daphne story, but move it along (I don’t want to see them meeting up from place to place, with Parkman trying to convince daphne to join him, only to have Daphne say that she can’t because Pinehearst holds something over her…yeah we got all of that, let’s move the story along). And WTF is happening with Mohinder? That needs to be resolved soon, because I am just perplexed by this new character…I’m going to start calling him MADhinder, cuz he’s wonky.

LP

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