About Angela Wilson
Location: Midwest
Occupation: Web Producer/Freelance Writer
Bio: I love to read - and write - and surf. My FAV genres include mysteries, romantic suspense and thrillers. I'm finally working on my own thriller (under a pen name) and writing a book on marketing/PR for authors. I blog about writing at www.wickedwordsmith.com, and have accounts on various sites. You can find me on MySpace, Facebook and more by visiting www.angelawilson.net.
Posts: 222
More from this author
I had to sleep on this episode before I wrote the review. I wasn’t really certain how I felt about it after it was over. There was the good, the dark and disturbing, and then, there were things that just didn’t jive. Here’s what happened:
Claire and her father have it out. She refuses to leave Costa Verde, their most recent hiding place. She’s angry at her father for what he did to her boyfriend, West, and she tells him she hates him before she storms off to school. Company man Bob tracks her down at cheerleading practice. He’s got Mohinder buying into his lies. Mo is now carrying a Company-issued weapon and is well on his way to fulfilling the fate of Isaac Mendez’ last painting. (Or is it the last?) Psychotic sociopath Elle is with them.
They split up. Claire runs home, but Bob finds her there and takes her hostage. He wants to harvest her blood to “help” other heroes. He takes a pint (or whatever they take in those plastic thingys.) Elle and Mo set up a track for HRG, but he has an unlikely ally: West. HRG beats the crap out of Mo for his betrayal – and putting Claire in danger – and he and West take an unconscious Elle hostage.
HRG puts the feet of the electrified Elle in a tub of water so when she tries to use her powers against him, she hurts herself. “Stings like a bitch, doesn’t it?” HRG says with hard, dark look. (I loved that line.) He tells Elle that she was once a normal girl, but Bob turned her over for experimentation and turned her into the girl she is today. The Haitian took her memories of those horrific tests. He never turned Claire over so he could keep her from turning into psychotic Elle.
HRG contacts Bob and they set up an exchange: Elle for Claire. But the exchange goes wrong. West gets Claire and flies her away, but Elle shoots an electric spark that takes them down. Healing Claire saves them by landing on the ground. HRG gets pissed and shoots Elle, then starts to shoot Bob, but Mo shoots him in the eye instead. (WHAT?!?!?!?!?! Mo protecting The Evil Galactic Company?!?!?!?!) In the confusion of the shooting, West is able to fly away again with Claire.
We end with Elle refusing comfort from her father, Mo’s grappling with his stupidity – and HRG recovering from the shot in the eyeball via Claire’s blood. Now, does the Company have him and plan to now use him for experimentation since they can’t have Claire? Or did Mo set this up, knowing he would be able to save HRG with the blood and be able to eventually help him escape? Or did someone else get involved – or is it Claire’s blood at all? Could it be Kensei’s? He is, after all, also a healer. Do he and Peter need HRG to save the world?
That brings us to Parkman, who has discovered that his ability has evolved and now allows him to control people. He gets in a room with Mama Petrelli and questions her about who is really killing the Old School heroes. The pain from his mental intrusion is too much. She tells him it was Adam (who is Kensei for those who missed it earlier). They put him in lockdown 30 years ago because they discovered that after the cells continually regenerate for 400 years, the person stops growing old. Mama P. refuses to give the ID of the final Old Schooler who will be targeted, but Parkman gets it and later we learn it’s Victoria Pratt, who reminds me somewhat of HRG’s wife, Sandra.
Hiro goes back in time to try to save his father, but Daddy Nakamuro tells him you can’t stop fate. Hiro readily agrees and allows his father to die – but he stays there and stops time so he can ID the one who does it. It is Kensei. Hiro is stunned and doesn’t know what to think.
This was a much darker episode – and I liked that. Parkman is showing some bad tendencies – he could easily go rogue if he continues to abuse his powers. After all, he loves Molly, but he first used his evolving power to experiment on the little girl. Hiro’s story was choppy, but I attribute that to the strike since it really didn’t come to play until afterward. I am still stumped by the stupidity of Mohinder – which I cannot attribute to the strike or hurriedly splicing together cutting room floor scenes. It started before that time – I wrote about it in an earlier episode. Did a shapeshifter overtake him when I wasn’t looking? Could Mo really be dumb enough to believe The Company is working for good? Bob’s got Con Man written all over his pudgy face. (I can’t wait to see Kensei get hold of him.)
I also didn’t get the reasoning for Kensei’s imprisonment. They locked him up because he does not grow old anymore? If they were jealous of his looks, they could have just gone for Botox. Maybe I missed something, but it just does not make sense to me.
I’m hoping Mo is playing along for another reason we don’t yet know about. (I don’t know why that bothers me so much, but it does.)
The cinematography was FAB in this episode – dark, graphic novel-type shots filled the screen. I loved it. These scenes on the beach were especially comic book-esque – especially in the “death” of HRG. I also liked how they pieced together the fight scene with HRG and West as they fly through the sky. Tight shots kept the audience from flaking out at anything that could have appeared unrealistic.
We only have two episodes left to see Kensei and Peter take on the virus, Hiro take on Kensei, Claire get revenge, and Sylar to do… whatever he’s going to do.
