Heroes 1.18: "Parasite"

Written by Christopher Zatta
Directed by Kevin Bray

As the episode begins, we’re brought back to the moments after Isaac shot Simone, and as one would expect, it does nothing to bring Isaac and Peter closer together. Isaac blames Peter, even though he pulled the trigger. Somehow, that’s not particularly surprising. Neither is his descent back into drug addiction. Seeing his own demise is a just reward.

Mohinder pulls a nice move on Sylar right at the beginning of the episode, even as he continues to generate the list of potential superhumans. It’s nice to see Mohinder demonstrating the intelligence that he was supposed to have from the beginning, even if he didn’t know enough to stop Sylar in any meaningful way. This association seems to be how Sylar gets the information about Isaac, which ties into Hiro’s original jump into the future. Now it’s a question of how that will play out. Peter’s standing in the way now, which has been a long, long time coming!

Hiro arrives in Los Vegas, determined to get into Linderman’s lair and gain possession of the sword. Nathan’s arrival gives him the perfect opportunity. Once again, the deepening connections and interactions between the characters provide a satisfying payoff. Ando’s return to the story was even more rewarding. Is Hiro right? Is his vision of the future immutable? Or will this twist directly tie into his visit with Peter back at the beginning of the arc?

Mr. Bennett, as anticipated, is no longer quite so restrained in his actions. If anything, that makes him a lot more dangerous, because he has his own motives. He sets himself up as something of an independent agent. His new associate (Candace? Faith?) is equally dangerous, for very different reasons. For one thing, she’s quite attractive and confident, not unlike Eden earlier in the season. Her mind-warp ability should prove to be interesting, because it could play into Peter’s vision. Trading Simone for her was a damn good move.

A plot point from earlier in the season, Linderman’s involvement in Nathan’s campaign, comes back in a major way. As it turns out, Nathan is working with the FBI to take Linderman down for illegal activities. Using Jessica to eliminate that threat was a good move on Linderman’s part, if only because it weaves her into the big picture even more. Jessica continues to be a lot more fun than Niki ever was, something that Micah certainly appreciates. That’s not to say that Niki is impotent under the current circumstances, as her scene with Nathan aptly demonstrates.

In a nice touch, Claire struggles with the implications of her new existence. Her play with the Haitian may not be the best move in the world, but she is taking control of her own future, which is better than playing the victim. In trying to find her own way, she stumbles onto an incredible connection. Who thought that the Haitian was working for Mrs. Petrelli all this time? If she was trying to protect Claire, then that would explain why she tried to keep Nathan from meeting with her biological mother.

This is the perfect episode to mark the beginning of the resolution, and while it would have been tempting to break into the hiatus with the previous episode, it’s better to give the audience a hint of the resolving plot threads to make sure they all show up when the final five hours hit in late April. I’m just happy that the series is finally living up to its potential.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10