Ok, I'm Ready to Drop Heroes

I remember when I saw the season premiere of Alias' last season, and I realized I just didn't care about any of the characters anymore. It's not that the episode was all that bad (actually it was, since it was the one with Vaughn's "death"), but it was time to move on. I made it through the rest of the season, bad as it was, since I knew it was the end and I wanted to see it through. But since Heroes will continue until NBC finally pulls the plug, it's in no such luck.

Now, my decision isn't entirely based on the premiere. This isn't like when I dropped Grey's because the ghost Denny thing just became unbearable. No, this was a long time coming, I just needed to make sure the writers wouldn't actually follow up on their yearly promise to fix the mistakes of the previous season and make Heroes right. Three strikes, you're out.

But since I did make it through all of the seemingly never-ending 2-hour premiere, might as well look at what I won't be seeing this year. Like many aging shows looking for a comeback, Heroes was jam-packed with references to season 1 (ie "the good ol' days"). Beginning with a montage of how everyone discovered their powers in the pilot, the episode would go on to contain many "Save the cheerleader, save the world" references as everyone went back to their original jobs (paramedic, cop, student). But just like volume 4, it won't be long until all that goes away.

Going character by character, let's start with Claire, which mostly demonstrated the writers' complete inability to write for young characters. How embarrassing were all the attempts to seem hip, with references to Facebook and Guitar Hero? And the stereotypical over-achieving roommate - have they never seen a high school show transitioning to college? You'd think they could have come up with a better (or at least more subtle) bad roommate than that. Amazing to think Claire used to be one of the reasons to watch the show. Also embarrassing - Tim Kring namedropping his previous show, Crossing Jordan, as if anyone currently under the age of 40 watched that when it was on.

Moving on to the other season 1 favorite, Hiro. Seeing as he's the only one who ever had any fun on the show, of course he has to be dying to take out any enjoyment. And I'm worried that the time travel's already back first thing, since every single volume Heroes massively abuses the time travel to the point that every fan yells "Enough already! Stay in the present!" So far it hasn't gotten too bad (though I expected people to start disappearing from that photo Back to the Future style), but you know we'll be back to the yearly vision of a dark future 5 episodes from now.

Who else is there? Tracy gave up her revenge quest pretty quickly. So much for that. And a romance with Noah (which seemed to be implied)? Not buying it. Nathan realizing he's actually Sylar? Potentially interesting. Matt seeing Sylar everywhere? Not. Guess which got more screen time? Peter shouting out his love of being a paramedic? Meh. And I think the current definition of his powers has been somewhat flexible.

The most promising storyline from the premiere is the carnyfolk, most notably Robert Knepper's Samuel. If anything could breathe some new life into the show it's him. But since Heroes wants to prove it's core-characters first, they haven't had too much screen time yet, just setting the seeds for the season with cryptic talk about "the compass." Problem is, cryptic talk doesn't cut it when I'm deciding whether to stick with a show for 19 more episodes. I need to know why I should care now. A tease doesn't work unless something intriguing has been teased.

So goodbye Heroes. I'll likely check in to see how you're doing from time to time, but I doubt I'll miss you too much. And Nip/Tuck, get ready, cause you should be expecting a similar post once you premiere.

Fall TV Preview

As enjoyable as summer TV could be, this week begins the process us TV junkies have been waiting for: Fall TV Season, when all of our favorite shows come back from their summer vacations to come entertain us once more. If you want to know when CSI and Grey's Anatomy come back, look elsewhere. If you want to know what I'll be watching, read on.

Glee (September 9th, 9-10 PM, Fox, NEW SHOW)

If you saw the pilot last May (and if you haven't, do it now), you know this is heading into the fall as frontrunner for best new show. As hard as that performance of "Don't Stop Believing" may be to top, the news that there will be 2 soundtracks in 2009 alone to cover all the songs leaves me very hopeful.

Gossip Girl (September 14th, 9-10 PM, The CW)

Will Gossip Girl avoid the college curse that's plagued every high school show ever? Since we never actually saw them in high school, and NYU barely counts as college, they stand as good a chance as anyone. Just as long as it's not another season of "omg Blair & Chuck 4eva omg."

The Office (September 17th, 9-9:30 PM, NBC)

Jim and Pam get married! Other than that, we'll really see the writers' creativity in keeping this show going into its sixth(!) season.

Community (September 17th, 9:30-10 PM, NBC, NEW SHOW)

A chance to see Joel McHale do something other than make fun of Speidi/Ryan Seacrest/Miley? I'm so there (as long as I can still get my weekly Soup fixings on Friday).

Curb Your Enthusiasm (September 20th, 9-9:30 PM, HBO)

This show's still on? After however many seasons, Larry David's found a surefire way to get people to watch: Seinfeld reunion! Guess he wins, cause I'll be watching.

Bored to Death (September 20th, 9:30-10 PM, HBO, NEW SHOW)

Sure, it's cool that the cast consists of Jason Schwartzman, Ted Danson, and The Hangover's Zach Galifinokusableskiver (maybe someday I'll learn his name, but today is not that day). But the real reason I'm excited? The theme song. Wouldn't be the first time I watched a show just for its theme song (that would be Angel).

How I Met Your Mother (September 21st, 8-8:30 PM, CBS)

Barney & Robin! Ted's at Columbia! The mother's in his class! 100th episode musical spectacular! All of which suggests this season will be legen - wait for it...

Heroes (September 21st, 8-9 PM, NBC)

I know I wrote a whole post on how Heroes' fourth volume wasn't as bad as everyone said, but that doesn't mean I'm actually looking forward to the new season. It's go big or go home time for Heroes, cause I don't think anyone will put up with another year of coasting by.

...dary! Legendary!

The Good Wife (September 22nd, 10-11 PM, CBS, NEW SHOW)

This so doesn't seem like my kind of show, but critics seem to be enjoying it. And there's absolutely nothing else AT ALL on Tuesday nights. So maybe I'll check it out? We'll see.

Modern Family (September 23rd, 9-9:30 PM, ABC, NEW SHOW)

Count this as another one the critics (may or may not) have convinced me to watch. Sounds like a pretty standard family sitcom to me, but supposedly it's hilarious. Maybe I should actually watch a promo...

Cougar Town (September 23rd, 9:30-10 PM, ABC, NEW SHOW)

Ok, promos aren't going to help on this one, but it's Bill Lawrence! The Scrubs man himself! So I've got to at least give it a try.

Flash Forward (September 24th, 8-9 PM, ABC, NEW SHOW)

People keep calling it "the next Lost", thinking it will fool all of us die-hard Lost fans into watching. They're right. I can't wait. Whether it lasts past the pilot to become a great series or suffers The Nine syndrome (which many critics fear), at least it won't be an NCIS spin-off.

Dollhouse (September 25th, 9-10 PM, Fox)

Yes! After getting hooked this summer, this is one of my most anticipated returning shows. Adding to my excitement is their decision to go all-out geek this year, with guest/recurring roles by BSG's Apollo and Colonel Tigh, Summer Glau of Firefly fame, and Buffy and Angel's Alexis Denisof (aka Mr. Alyson Hannigan). Now we just need to get Amy Acker's show canceled so we can have our Whiskey back.

Saturday Night Live (September 26th, 11:30 PM-1 AM, NBC)

New girls were cast. Other girls were kicked off. Still nobody can do a decent Obama.

The Cleveland Show (September 27th, 8:30-9 PM, Fox, NEW SHOW)

Even though I no longer regularly watch Family Guy, I'd still like to give the spin-off a look. Can't be as bad as American Dad, right?

Dexter (September 27th, 9-10 PM, Showtime)

Yes! My #1 most anticipated show of the fall. No matter what the storylines, I'm always happy to watch Dexter, Deb, Rita, and the rest. And with John Lithgow's Trinity Killer, the return of FBI Agent Lundy, and domesticated Dexter now married with a baby, this season should up the watercooler factor even further.

South Park (October 7th, 10-10:30 PM, Comedy Central)

South Park likes to alternate between smart, satirical humor and stupid, gross humor. While the former may be less than 25% of the show, it's good enough that I trudge through the rest.

30 Rock (October 15th, 9:30-10 PM, NBC)

Why does NBC keep holding 30 Rock back a month? If season 4 starts better than last year's guest star marathon, I'll forgive them.

V (November 3rd, 8-9 PM, ABC, NEW SHOW)

Juliet vs. aliens? What's not to love? It's like a preview to the Lost series finale (I'm kidding....I hope).

So that's what I'm looking forward to. How about you? What new shows are you most excited to try, what returning favorites have left you in suspense all summer, and what shows are finally getting kicked off your DVR? That's what the comments are for.

In Defense of Heroes

(pretty much spoiler-free)

To begin, I'll state that I've never been among Heroes' diehard fans. When people compared Heroes to Lost in its first season I thought they were joking - they aren't even in the same playing field. Heroes was never a great show, just a fun way to watch a comic book on TV.

But what Heroes naysayers (which is most of us) sometimes forget to mention is that not all latter Heroes is created equal. Season 2 was, in my opinion, unequivocally terrible, and nothing Heroes has done since has even come close. The Wonder Twins, the pointless arc in New Orleans, Claire's lame boyfriend, the constant moving through time - if it weren't for Sark and Veronica Mars I'm not sure any of us would have made it through.

Season 3, though still a far cry from the first season, showed many signs of improvement. It actually had some good ideas - the group of bad guys that escaped from the Company, the formula that gave people powers, giving Sylar a redemption arc - it just had too many of them. By the time Sylar had switched sides for the 13th time and those escaped villains had been long forgotten, we all gave up hope of a Heroes comeback.

But now having finished watching season 4 (or 3.5, if you prefer) off of my DVR, I'm willing to say it: Heroes is back. Everyone was too disheartened by the past two seasons to notice, but Heroes actually improved. Sure, it had its problems (loads of them). Some major characters got neglected (Peter, Claire, Hiro), others got annoying (Parkman), and many storylines didn't tie together (what was the point of Sylar finding his dad, and why did Rebel largely disappear after being revealed?)

Heroes has never been accused of being a tidy show however, so I'm going to focus on the positive. First off, they finally took everyone's biggest note: stop following eight storylines at once. Now each episode concentrates on 3-5 characters, so you actually spend some time with them instead of whipping back and forth between a bunch of bores. By not cramming everyone into every episode, everyone wins.

Second, this season saw a real return to the core characters. The only major new character was Denko, and Heroes needs to bring in new blood for its villains (cause Sylar-as-villain has become ridiculously played out). With Denko and his government agency providing a central threat, the main guys actually banded together, which means more X-Men style fun and less time-killing misadventures.

Finally, the individual episodes were just better. The last two seasons got so caught up in their overall over-complicatedness that that's all there was. This season saw some more focused episodes, whether it was the reveal of Rebel's identity, Angela's childhood flashbacks, or the fairly satisfying finale, which came up with a pretty cool twist to make next season actually worth watching.

So I'm still not saying this is a great show, or something likely to make my top 10 list, or even better than its first season. I'm just saying that after two seasons of watching solely out of habit, I actually enjoyed Heroes again. There's still a lot of work to be done, and it's possible (even probable) next season will see it revert to its old ways. But if you stopped after season 1 and have been meaning to catch up since: just watch the past 12 episodes. It's all you need.

Monday Night TV Overload

Since when was Monday the most happening night of TV? I haven't caught How I Met Your Mother yet, but that still leaves 3 shows that had big enough episodes last night to be worth discussing.


Last night's Heroes premiere had something to prove: Could Heroes learn from its mistakes, or is it doomed for crappiness? By fixing many of its biggest criticisms, the premiere definitely leaned toward the former. The episode felt less cluttered by slowing down the pace to give every character some time. The characters were all back in the real world, instead of the sci-fi land they've been in the past two seasons. And we're back to just the core cast, as the only major new character introduced was villain The Hunter (Zeljko Ivanek). So anyone thinking about catching up on seasons 2 or 3 someday, don't. Just start now.

That said, there wasn't anything too exciting about the episode until the ending. I'm unclear why Parkman suddenly gets to draw the future. Isn't mind reading enough? Sylar's quest to find his parents seems completely separate from everything else going on (and I'm sick of him). I'm not entirely sure why HRG is working for the bad guys again. And Claire's annoying me. That's not really a new criticism, I just thought maybe she would have improved.

But the plane crash at the end leads me to think the season has promise. Promos for the rest of the season show everyone working together, which could end the era of many uninteresting stories competing for time. Fighting against government hunters is a nice twist from the usual Company/Sylar threats of seasons past. So for the moment, at least, I think Heroes appears to be worth watching. But in a season where Lost, Battlestar Galactica, Damages, and even 24 are all having pretty exciting seasons, is there really room for Heroes at the watercooler? It'll have to do a whole lot more to earn its place.


You know it's a good episode of 24 when a ton has already happened and it's only been 15 minutes. This was one of those big arc-ending episodes, where Jack and Team Buchanan successfully made it into Dubaku's headquarters and killed all his guys...but not him. Nice to see Freckles become one of the team, even seconding Bill in highest level of paranoia by fighting Jack in getting outside help. Also cool to see Jack, Tony, and Bill take on Duabku's whole crew without getting a scratch. That's the Jack Bauer I know.

We also got another type of classic 24 plot in Kidron, Ohio, in which a minor character was introduced only to soon be killed. He may have called Janis honey, but his heroic sacrifice held up a strong 24 tradition. Looks like Kidron, OH can take down those signs asking for Jack Bauer's help. Any thoughts on the odd scene with Duabku's waitress girlfriend at the end? Will she be played against Dubaku only to stab him in betrayal, a la Alexis Drazen's girlfriend from season 1? Will she be collateral damage? Is there any other option in 24 land? With little screentime for the First Gentleman, an all around good episode. Let's keep it up.

Finally, Gossip Girl. I'd like to take a moment to take stock of how many seasons' worth of material Gossip Girl has blown through so far. Let's see, there was Lord Marcus and the Duchess, Serena the Socialite, Jenny the Fashionista, Cyrus and Aaron Rose, Bart's Death, Uncle Jack, the Rufus/Lily baby, and now the sexploits of the Teenage Teacher. I think that averages out to an entire different story every two or three episodes. Way to go.

So this week, Teenage Teacher found herself mixed up with The Police, as Dan was humming. "Young teacher/the subject/of schoolboy fantasy." It's like that line about how if you show a gun in act I, it has to go off in act III. If a teacher is introduced who looks younger than the students, she has to end up sleeping with somebody (actually, on Gossip Girl, you could just say "if a character in introduced, he or she has to end up sleeping with somebody"). So, after denying it all episode, she and Dan did the deed. I guess that's what happens when teachers give their address to all of their students.

My big question is this: Dan and Serena have now broken up for, by my count, about 800 trillion times. And each time, the scene goes exactly the same way. This time they even seemed to be going through the motions, as if to say, "Do I really have to talk about the Bass brunch again?" So why not grant that wish? We know now that anytime they get together, they will inevitably break up within two episodes, so can't the cycle end? I doubt it. I'm predicting at least two more make-up/break-ups before the season ends.

Oh, and how could I have forgotten Chuck Bass' trip into Eyes Wide Shut? A little odd, but at least Chuck Bass is being Chuck Bass. The whole secret society that (probably) killed Elle for telling their secret is just wacky enough for me to be intrigued. I'll hold off judging until I see where it goes.

Midseason Preview

2009 may have just begun, but the TV midseason isn't wasting time, beginning on January 5th. I'll help you figure out when my favorite returning shows come back and what new shows may be worth considering.

Gossip Girl (January 5th, 8-9 PM, the CW)
When we last saw the Upper East Siders, Chuck was a mess over his father's death. This week introduces his Uncle Jack, played by Desmond Harrington (Quinn from Dexter). Elsewhere, Jenny finally goes back to school, but no word on whether she'll start looking human again.

Scrubs (January 6th, 9-10 PM, ABC)
Now on ABC, Scrubs is back for its (probably) final season, starting with two episodes. The season starts with Courtney Cox as the new Chief of Medicine and, judging by the promos, awkward facial hair for JD. There's also a Hawaiin wedding for Janitor later this season.

Nip/Tuck (January 6th, 10-11 PM, FX)
At the end of last season, Sean was stabbed by his crazy fake-publicist Colleen Rose and Julia was shot by her girlfriend's crazy daughter Eden and was left with amnesia. Eden should hopefully be gone, given that her portrayor (Annalynne McCord) is now on 90210, but Colleen is definitely back. No word on how long they'll continue the never-successful amnesia device, but don't expect a creative comeback anytime soon.

Top Chef (January 7th, 10-11 PM, Bravo)
Season 5 returns with new judge Toby Young (author of How to Lose Friends and Alienate People), and two chefs will be eliminated.

Damages (January 7th, 10-11 PM, FX)
Damages tries to top season 1 with a boatload of top-tier new cast members like William Hurt, Marcia Gay Harden, and Timothy Olymphant. After settling the Frobisher (Ted Danson) case, Patty Hewes (Glenn Close) is moving on. When a whistle blower (Hurt) tells of her of shady practices coming from his company, it seems she's got her next case. Meanwhile, Ellen (Rose Byrne) works with the FBI to bring Patty down, and Frobisher survives his shooting to come back for more mischief.

30 Rock (January 8th, 9:30-10 PM, NBC)
30 Rock continues to become the next Will & Grace by having Salma Hayek and Peter Dinklage both guest star.

Grey's Anatomy (January 8th, 9-10 PM, ABC)
The surgeons have to work on a death row inmate, and it's not even a sweeps month? What are they saving up for February, an operation on Ghost Denny? Also, Jessica Capshaw joins the cast as a pediatric surgeon and a romantic interest for Callie (since she hasn't had enough this season).

24 (January 11th and 12th, 8-10 PM, Fox)
As it has the last two seasons, 24 will begin with a two-night, four hour premiere to kick things in motion. These year-old episodes see Jack on trial in DC for his actions after CTU has been shut down. But he gets off when the government needs him to stop Evil Back-From-the-Dead Tony Almeida from his terrorist activities. Also, there's a Lady Prez.

How I Met Your Mother (January 12th, 8:30-9 PM, CBS)
Reality stars taunt Marshall from a magazine, as they do to us all. Ted and Robin become friends with benefits. That should last about as long as it did for Jerry and Elaine.

The Office (January 15th, 9-9:30 PM, NBC)
I don't have an episode description, but expect fall-out over Phyllis telling the office about Dwight and Angela.

Battlestar Galactica (January 16th, 10-11 PM, Sci-Fi)
In the final season, Earth has been found, but now what? Will they try to live on that post-apocalyptic planet? Will the human/Cylon truce hold? And who is the last frakking Cylon?

Big Love (January 18th, 9-10 PM, HBO)
I still haven't seen season 2, so I got nothing on season 3. But this is when it premieres.

Flight of the Conchords (January 18th, 10-10:30 PM, HBO)
You could wait until January 18th to see Bret and Jermaine's newest adventures. Or you could go to Funnyordie.com and watch it now.

The United States of Tara (January 18th, 10-10:30 PM, Showtime, NEW SHOW)
Toni Collette (The Sixth Sense) plays a woman with multiple personality disorder. John Corbett (Sex and the City, Lucky) plays her husband. Steven Spielberg's producing. Diablo Cody (Juno) wrote the pilot. With all those big names and Showtime's recent hot streak (Weeds, Dexter), this is certainly worth checking out. But it is paired with the ultra-dull Secret Diary of a Call Girl, so who knows.

Lost (January 21st, 9-11 PM, ABC)
After a year of waiting, it's finally here. Lost is back. Season 5 will find Jack and Ben getting the Oceanic Six back together to return to the island while we learn just what "bad things" happened to those who stayed on the island. Those who have already seen the premiere say the new time-jumping device makes flashforwards seem like child's play. They also say it's awesome.

Lie to Me (January 21st, 9-10 PM, Fox, NEW SHOW)
Tim Roth (Pulp Fiction, The Incredible Hulk) plays a human lie detector that heads some special FBI agency. Is this just a lame procedural a la The Mentalist? Too early to tell, but it could be fun to see Tim Roth on TV.

Trust Me (January 26th, 10-11 PM, TNT, NEW SHOW)
If you've watched TNT at all in the last month, you've surely seen tons of ads for this new show in which Tom Cavanaugh (Ed) gets a new boss: his best friend, played by Eric McCormick (Will of Will & Grace). I have yet to get into TNT's other original shows (The Closer, Saving Grace), but the leads seem likable enough to make me want to give this one a try.

Heroes (February 2nd, 9-10 PM, NBC)
After season 3 got bogged down in too many characters and too little logic, why am I still watching this show? Well, cause season 4 looks kind of cool. After Nathan leaked word of the heroes to the government, the Hunter (Damages' Zeljko Ivanek) will start rounding them all up. Seems like a welcome break from the typical "stop big threat to save the world using lots of time traveling" formula. But the second it starts to lag, I'm out.

Dollhouse (February 13th, 9-10 PM, Fox, NEW SHOW)
In this new show from Joss Whedon (Buffy, Angel, Firefly), Eliza Dushku (Faith from Buffy) plays Echo. She works at a secret agency (is there any other kind?) as a blank slate, with personalities put into her depending on what her mission calls for. The show has suffered some bad early buzz, due to conflicts between Whedon and Fox and some production issues. But the plot sounds badass, and it's Joss freaking Whedon. If given time to grow, it can definitely stand with his previous classics.

Heroes Meets Saw in Finale

A tell-tale sign that a show's writers are sick of the season is when it ends in flames. Think The Hatch in Lost season 2. Or the town of Majestic in Weeds season 3. It means the writers don't even want to imagine that set again. So the Heroes writers must have been even more fed up with their Villains chapter than we were, since they burned down both season 3's Pinehearst and Company headquarters Primatech as well. I wrote last week about Heroes' problems this season: too many characters, too much time jumping, too much bad/good/bad, too little focus. So I'll just stick to the finale this time.

Three main subplots this week: Primatech, Pinehearst, and Matt/Ando/Hiro/Daphne. In the Primatech plot, Sylar became the villain in a slasher film, and suddenly we were watching Saw. Thankfully the gore was kept low (just a severed arm and many slashed necks, nothing out of the ordinary), but Sylar certainly took Saw's little games to get the victims to kill each other. Earlier this season Sylar seemed primed to become Heroes' Benjamin Linus, straddling the line between good and evil. But Heroes' idea of moral ambiguity is having characters rapidly switch between the two, rather than walking a grey line. Despite being left dead in a burning building, the hint about Sylar's parents makes it clear we'll see him again next season. Maybe by then the writers will give him something better to do than make menacing phone calls.

Pinehearst actually housed the season's main conflict, as Peter faced off against Nathan over whether to employ the formula. But it would be easy to forget that given how little happened. Most of it was spent with the busywork of destroying Mohinder's lab. That army Nathan was building, hinting at a giant war? Easily dispatched in about three seconds. Maybe the storyline would have meant more if Peter didn't just look like such a weakling (bring back Future Peter!). And the show once again lost a great opportunity to kill off useless characters by having Mohinder and Tracy magically escape the burning building (like Maya in season 2). As good drama as brother vs. brother should be, it seems all the juice in this story died with Arthur last week.

Finally, the characters left to fill time between these stories. I'm not entirely sure how Hiro escaped to the roof many feet above where he was hanging in the air. Maybe he's stronger than he looks. Ando's supercharger power was kind of cool, but that still doesn't explain how he and Daphne managed to find Hiro's exact point in time on the first try. Also a nice nod to continuity that Hiro's actions caused the split in the formula seen earlier this season. But the storyline just brought out all the more how ill-used these characters were this season.

Then there was the glimpse at next year's fourth season, Fugitives. The tease was better than the brief glimpse given the last two seasons. We actually see the launch of the plot, as Nathan tells the Obama-ish president to round up all the heroes Nathan knows about. As the promo shows everyone back in their normal lives before the capturing begins, it does seem like a promising start. At least it's not just another big threat/band together/argue about right and wrong/save the world plot like the last three. As much of a waste as Villains may have been, I'll still be giving Fugitives a try. Hopefully the fresh start will lead somewhere better.

Killer Penultimate Episodes

SPOILER ALERT: If you are behind on Dexter or Heroes and intend to catch up, stop reading. If you're behind on only one, I'm going Heroes then Dexter.

Heroes



Oh Heroes. It has become somewhat of a punchline this season as the show everyone stopped watching. But I'm still here, somehow. A good way to tell a season has been sloppy is when it's ending has almost nothing to do with its beginning. That villain break-out from Level 5? The two remainders now just give menacing looks once an episode. Sylar's path to become a hero? He's gone back and forth way too many times for us to care. Even Mohinder's foray into The Fly has been ignored for awhile. I still think there were some good story concepts this season, but the execution has been inarguably awful.

Even with all of that, I actually thought this week's episode was a bit of an improvement. And that's for one reason only: the focus on Hiro and Claire. These were the two breakout characters of Heroes' first season, but since then they've been stuck with a boring boyfriend, a trip to Japan, and acting like a 10 year old. The look at important moments in their pasts was reminiscent of Company Man, the show's best episode. Heroes desperately needs more episodes that focus on select characters, so this seemed like a good first step.

Of course, everything else about the episode was a mess. The whole purpose of Hiro and Claire's journey has to do with The Catalyst, some wacky sci-fi thing that we're led to believe is really important. But even though Hiro's parents hyped it up, in one episode it goes from Claire to Hiro to Arthur to nothing. Much like The Eclipse, which got a two-parter that changed nothing, The Catalyst's story was burned through before you could remember its name. Just goes to show that going through storylines really fast should not necessarily be a source of pride.

In other stories: Matt, Daphne, and Ando do something insignificant (though Daphne's still my fave new character). Sylar follows up his completely pointless killing of Elle with some more pointless killing. And the big news: Big Bad Arthur Petrelli is dead a week before the finale. There's something kind of cool about resolving the big conflict before the finale, hinting at something even bigger to come. But this season has not been leading to a Peter vs. Nathan fight. I don't remember Peter even being onscreen since the third episode, yet now he's reclaimed his role as series lead? While Hiro dangles around in space and does nothing? Well, I guess we can be glad this manic and confusing season will soon be over. Hopefully next year's Fugitives volume will make more sense.

Dexter



Just like Heroes, Dexter killed his Big Bad the week before the finale, Sopranos style. I'm talking about Miguel Prado, Dexter's sociopathic former BFF. From the second Miguel started killing, you knew the season would end up with Miguel on Dexter's kill table. First the Ice Truck Killer, then Lila, then Miguel. Each got to see the real Dexter and gave him the chance for companionship. And each proved too crazy and unstable to live. I will miss Miguel though for keeping Dexter's third season thrilling without a big important case like the Ice Truck Killer. Jimmy Smits did a masterful job making Miguel extremely charismatic while showing the darkness lurking beneath. Even when strapped to the table, I kind of wanted Dexter to set him free. But more so than Heroes, killing Miguel early makes the finale open-ended. Promos show Ramon going crazy at Dexter's wedding, and we all remember how crazy Ramon can get. I can't wait.

Backing up to the beginning for a minute, I will admit Dexter's kidnapping being for his bachelor party is a bit of a cheat. But I'm willing to forgive the writers as it led Dexter to punch Masuka, thinking it was the Skinner. Very funny. I do hope there is still some reveal left in the Skinner case. The Skinner didn't turn out to be any major character, so nothing too juicy has happened yet. But with his motive for finding Freebo still unknown, I have faith it will pay off. I'd like to say the same for Angel and his cop girlfriend, but I'm guessing that's just to give him something to do. Most intriguing B-storyline from this week was Dexter telling Deb about Harry's affair. With Deb looking into records, it's only a matter of time until she finds out about Laura Mosner. What happens if she learns her killer ex-fiance is Dex's brother? That'll probably have to wait until after the wedding, but it could be something good for season 4. The show has yet to disappoint me.

TV Catch-Up: Thursday-Monday Edition

Gossip Girl

Best part of the episode for me was that so much was shot right outside of Dodge Hall (see above) where I had all of my film classes (the Yale they visited is actually Columbia). It's been interesting to see how Blair has become the main character this season. The Blair and Serena fight was nearly identical to the one last season. But this time it's through Blair's perspective, as Serena has started to feel more and more like a minor character. Dan has also had trouble staying part of the show post-break up. But I kind of liked his interactions with Chuck and Nate. I'm sure he and Nate discussed being new bffs over burgers at HamDel. And Chuck's playing of the not-so-secret society was what he does best.

How I Met Your Mother

Best episode yet of the season. I'm not sure which was funnier, the series of interventions or Barney convincing a girl that he has come from the future to tell her to sleep with his present self. That's not even including the stories of how Ted's apartment was banged up. Wtih Robin in full-on Canadian mode, Lily getting an intervention for her bad British accent, and R2 Sweet Tooth, there were a lot of laughs to go around. But it was also nice to see how all of the funniest gags led to more serious moments, as the interventions led Ted to question moving in with Stella and Barney the Old Man convinced him to go through with it. After Ted's decision last week to leave Manhattan for New Jersey, this episode continued to show the life-altering decisions people make in their 20s/30s. But it's nice to see they can make those decisions while still being funny.

Heroes

4 episodes in, Heroes is a bit of a mess. Last week there were enough time jumps to leave everyone spinning, and this week we can't tell who's alive and who's dead. Mohinder's foray into being a mad scientist has become far more ridiculous than I could have ever imagined. And I don't believe Ando is really dead, because if so that is the worst character death I have ever seen. So where's the upside? Well, even with all the flaws, it is still kind of fun. The emphasis on the vortex guy (Bubbles from The Wire) helped focus the episode somewhat with all of its many plotlines. Sylar's far from my favorite character, but partnering him with Noah has been fun to see. And it's nice to see Angela's secrets unraveling. The writers just need to bring Parkman back from Africa, get Nathan to stop talking about God, and get rid of Mohinder and Majjjja.

Mad Men

Is Don really returning to Dick Whitman? Who did he call at the end? Was it that woman from the flashback at the used car dealership? Plenty of questions left at the end of an episode that saw Don, Roger, and Duck Phillips all dealing with divorced futures. First Don, who took the vacation he denied to Pete by driving off to Palm Springs with a 21-year-old aptly named Joy who sounded a lot like Betty. Joy's crowd hardly seemed like Don's people, but it seems he may be through with being Don Draper. Next Roger, preparing to lose his money to divorce in order to marry the secretary he barely knows. But the most interesting one this episode was Duck, plotting to improve his job by selling Sterling Cooper. Roger and Cooper may have jumped at the thought of new clients, but Don won't be happy to see he's reporting directly to Duck. Don't trust him. Remember Chauncey.

Grey's Anatomy

If you look back to my post on the season premiere, you'll see I was giving this one more chance before dropping it. Unfortunately, Grey's managed to be just watchable enough to delay that happening. I can't say I really remember what happened 5 days after watching. But I do remember it being lighter than the usual melodrama and that some of the characters may have been momentarily likeable. I guess I'm stuck watching for now.

The Office

Another great episode. Best storyline was easily Jim keeping track of all of Dwight's personal time. Trying to draw Dwight out of work by calling Battlestar Galactica a shot-for-shot remake of the original and describing its plot as Dumbledore Calrissian needs to take the ring back to Mordor? Hilarious. Meredith's confession provided lots of great Michael/Holly moments as well. The Office is definitely back from its post-writer's strike slump.

SNL: Thursday Night

Much like the debate it spoofed, the first sketch of the new half-hour edition fell a bit flat. Joking about the time limits might have worked once, but making it the main joke of the sketch left little else. There were some good McCain moments though, even if SNL still doesn't know how to spoof Obama. Things improved with Weekend Update (outside of Kenan Thompson's "Fix it" bit). But there was nothing within the half hour that could compete with any of Tina Fey's sketches this season. It seems SNL needs Palin as badly as the news media does.

How Many Angels Can Dance on the Head of a Pin?

After a second season bogged down in too many characters and boring storylines, last night's third season premiere of Heroes was quite the return to form. The second season was forgotten after quickly identifying Nathan's shooter, putting the focus back on what was right about season 1. Of course, the premiere featured a lot of Heroes' trademark silliness in the pursuit of profundity (see post title above for my favorite line of dialogue, courtesy of Sylar), but that's been there from the start. Heroes has never been a great show, but last night showed it could go back to being a good one.

I'll go through the recap by character, starting with Future Peter. I've always found regular Peter kind of annoying, so badass Future Peter is a nice change of pace. After dodging Future Claire's bullet to put a few in Nathan, Peter goes on a quest to change the future. His quest brings him in contact with most of the regulars, uniting the cast and giving the season a focus the earlier ones lacked.

Hiro & Ando were back to their usual dynamic until Hiro saw a super-powered Future Ando kill him. Even with that development, they still keep things light, using Batman and Catwoman as a model to catch the Speedster, a new character who intrigues without taking over the story. They continue to prove a show about superheroes shouldn't be so angsty.

As opposed to Nathan, who had some of the best and worst from the episode. On the one hand, his return to politics puts him back on track, and it was fun to see Nathan go all Hurley playing chess with dead Linderman. But Nathan's talk of religion and angels is the type of thing Heroes does worst, and was no less laughable this time around. As for Ali Larter's attempt to repent for the always-annoying Nikki, Tracy does show vast improvement with a real power included. We'll see if she holds up or goes back to being someone to fast forward through.

Which is why I'm grateful the writers have paired up dull Mohinder and the universally hated Majjjja, to keep the worst characters contained. I'm still not sure which was sillier: Super Strengh Suresh throwing muggers in the air or coming on to Majjja by referring to "that extraordinary body of yours." Their scenes are a reminder of why it is always good to DVR Heroes.

Sylar, a character who has already oustayed his welcome by a season, finally got Claire's immortality, which I suppose means we're stuck with him. But it was nice to finally have an answer to how he gets other people's powers, when Claire asks if he is going to eat her brain. "Claire, that's disgusting." Almost as funny as the "deep" questions he sees there.

As for the rest: We finally find out Mama Petrelli's power as she yells "The Butterfly Effect!" every few minutes. Parkman talks to a turtle. Noah plays catch. Big Bob dies (so long). And in a nice Veronica Mars reunion, Elle's electric meltdown gets Weevil/Jesse/Peter out of jail.

With a potion that creates heroes, new villains on the loose, and an ever-changing future, there's plenty of good new stories to keep things interesting. Does that justify ending the first hour with a recitation of Yeats' The Second Coming? No. Creator Tim Kring needs to remember this is a comic book show, not The Sopranos. But when Heroes stops philosophizing and sticks to what it knows, it's actually enjoyable to watch again. So I'm taking it off probation and back on the season pass. For now.