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“Heroes,” which has been picked up for another year, has achieved something the other serial dramas haven’t. It has a payoff in almost every episode.

“You know, the idea behind the show was really about what happens to these characters and about their lives,” Kring says. “We will deal with this prophecy of an apocalyptic event, and then in season two we’ll have another story attached to it. That way we don’t have to deal with a giant, complicated plot line.

“We feel like we’ve made a pact with the audience that something is going to happen every week. We don’t want people to be frustrated. We have a large cast and lot of stories to tell and it’s exciting to tell each of these character’s stories.”

There will be 23 episodes total this season, one more than a usual season order, and Kring says we won’t be disappointed by how the series ends. “There will be a resolution that will be satisfactory for viewers.”

Like I said, I don’t want to spoil anything, but you will be amazed by Ali Larter’s (Nikki) performance in this first episode back. “It was one of the toughest things I’ve ever done, but I just went for it,” says Larter. What happens could have gone horribly wrong, but Larter really pulls it off. She says she also gets a chance to work with Adrian Pasdar (Nathan) again in a future episode. I can’t wait to see that.

Oh, and one thing that really impressed me is all of these young actors have experienced immediate success with this show, and they are just as nice as they were six months ago. “I’m still very excited,” says Masi Oka, who plays Hiro. “I love being a part of all this and the fans are so amazing. We are working hard and having a very good time.”

When the show comes back Monday night, “There will be a short recap like we do at the top of every show,” Kring says. “People who maybe haven’t seen the show will still be able to come into it. There’s a lot going on, but we structure it in a way that it’s easy for people to figure out.”