In lieu of a Heroes recap, here is a letter to the show's creator, Tim Kring.
Dear Tim Kring,
Two years ago, your show was the most compelling drama on TV. Lost was in its season long funk, 24 had started getting too far fetched, and everything else was crap. But here was your smart, fast paced show that kept me hooked, dying to know how to stop an exploding man or find out who Linderman was. Even the more annoying characters that didn't tie into the show's main plot were fun to see each week. Here, you had the perfect synthesis of comic books, Lost-like mystery, and family drama.
Then came Season 2. It was not good, but with the writer's strike impeding the show from hitting its stride, I looked the other way, deciding to wait for another full season and hope there'd be a return to form.
Unfortunately for me an scores of other fans, this was not to be. Instead, we've been treated to a season that is inconsistent within episodes, that has too many, often far fetched, threads to follow, and that has taken even the most lovable characters and made them hard to swallow, if they're even seen at all.
What's going on? Did the strike mess up your creative juice? Did you not have enough time to come up with a better plot? Or was Heroes a one-season wonder?
The first big issue to me seems to be that too much is going on. The Patrelli family war is clearly the main story, but why then are Claire and HRG (who's barely been there) bickering? Why do Sylar and Elle jump all over the board as far as if they're good or bad? Why has Daphne's story been so rushed, with Parkman falling for her too fast? Why is Mohinder still relevant? And most importantly, why the hell is Hiro 10 years old?!
I understand that the theme of this season is villains and that the idea is to make each character morally ambiguous so that we don't know who the true heroes and villains are, but maybe it's time to make one explicit or to kill someone off. There's too much going on, and much of it isn't worth caring about. Take a page from Lost or Season One and make one episode about one thread and move on. "Company Man" is the best episode you've done, but we haven't yet seen a comparable episode.
Furthermore, the likable characters are either annoying or non-existent. Peter started off as being super optimistic and bright, and now he's angsty. He can see the harsh realities of the world without being all emo. Also, pick a side for Sylar. He's fantastic as a villain or a good guy, but having him bounce back and forth takes the depth away from his character. HRG too has been gone for the whole season and when he as appeared, it's been sparingly. Fix that.
Lastly, there are too many threads that have been snapped off. What happened to Monica? Is Peter's Irish Lass still stuck in the future? Adam just got killed off before he could do anything. Even a character I despised, Maya, was simply sent home.
I think if these things get fixed, the show is salvageable. It's no longer the cultural phenomenon it was in its first season, but keep in mind, the same thing happened to Lost, albeit to a lesser degree. If you take a page out of there play book and start writing for the fans instead of NBC, maybe you'll get a little bit better response. I hope that helps.
I want to close by saying, I do love the show. It's just frustrating me.
Sincerly,
Michael of Television Rules the Nation
P.S.
I'm currently looking for a job in TV after I graduate in May, so if you liked my ideas and want me to come help the show, I'm available!
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