Heroes, Season Four (2009)

The fourth and final season of Heroes saw a decline in ratings but a change in the fates of its most popular characters.

It has been six weeks since Sylar (Zachary Quinto) brutally murdered Senator Nathan Petrelli (Adrian Pasdar) … but the world doesn’t know anything has happened. “Nathan” is still alive and well and in deep with the government. The brilliant, if morally questionable, decision by his mother to have Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg) transform the shape-shifting Sylar into Nathan seems to have worked; the former psychopath is living a relatively normal existence and is ignorant of his true identity. But Sylar's original powers are beginning to emerge, something “Nathan” does not understand and that terrifies his mother. Her appeal to Matt for further help in further “repressing” Sylar’s instincts falls on deaf ears: having intruded on Sylar’s mind, the telepath has been left with deep psychological scars. Sylar’s consciousness has taken up residence in his mind, and intends to punish Matt for his participation in the deception. His frequent outbursts concern his friends and coworkers on the police force and threaten to make his wife believe he has gone off the deep end.

Life has returned to normal for the other “specials.” Claire Bennett (Hayden Panettiere) is about to start her first semester at college and is attempting to adjust to a “normal” life … something that proves difficult when a fellow student discovers not only that she is “the” Claire Bennet from the infamous high school massacre, but also has healing abilities. Her leap from a third floor dorm room window to disprove a suicide lets out her carefully guarded secret. Her father, Noah, is dealing with the aftermath of a divorce while attempting to reinstate the practices of The Company, an organization that captures and incarcerates dangerous “specials.” His latest person of interest is Tracy (Ali Larter), presumed dead but assassinating his former associates. But she is not the only dangerous one around... the Carnival has rolled into town and with it comes a host of talented individuals united beneath the charismatic influence of Samuel (Robert Knepper), who has an agenda of his own.

The impending death of their resident time-traveler puts Samuel on a deliberate collision course with Hiro Nakimora (Masi Oka), whose increasing headaches and nosebleeds indicate that he too is unwell, something he has striven to conceal from his best friend Ando. And Peter Petrelli (Milo Ventimiglia) risks exposure and self-recrimination when his determination to "save people" puts himself and his secret at risk -- but it also introduces him to the beautiful Emma (Deanne Bray), who has begun to “see” music in spite of her deafness. Dubbed “Redemption,” the fifth season of Heroes combines numerous plots and individuals but in the end comes down to Sylar. He is the best thing about the majority of this season, since the writers have chosen to increase his sarcasm twofold. One cannot help laughing at his quirky presence in Matt’s head even though it is most inconvenient for the telepath; his mockery of individual characters almost makes us forget momentarily what a psychopath he actually is – then his true personality emerges and he reminds us in the blink of an eye. However, Sylar also undergoes a dramatic change and as the story unfolds, it asks us to believe that even he can be redeemed. (Although an interesting twist, this risk by the writers also somewhat diminishes Sylar's screen presence and I was not particularly fond of it.)

Various questionable ethics and moral behavior appear here and there, although none of it is excessive or derails the script. One episode opens with a passionate love scene between Matt and his wife before the camera shifts and Matt becomes Sylar; the implication in the “morning after” scene in which Matt does not remember what happened is that Sylar took control of him and slept with his wife. This is not the last time Matt is “controlled” by Sylar (the audience sees him as Sylar; to everyone else, he is Matt). Working at the carnival is a woman who can predict future events through physical contact. This power manifests in “patterns” on her skin, so on several occasions we see her bare back and/or portions of her side. In an attempt to “read” Sylar, she succeeds in almost seducing him; they engage in heated, passionate kissing and remove various items of clothing before he discerns her true motivations. There are two separate forced kisses in which the women are held telepathically in place and cannot resist. A hint of a lesbian relationship is explored in the presence of Gretchen, who kisses Claire on the mouth and implies she would like to be romantically involved with her. Claire is at first unnerved by it but later is more comfortable with holding hands and confiding in her. There is some discussion about Gretchen's crush on Claire and her exploration of same-sex relationships. Noah considers cheating on his wife and then decides not to.

Gore and violence is considerably toned down this season, although we do see flashbacks to certain of Sylar's brutal crimes (he uses telekinesis to cut into people's foreheads, causing blood to run down their faces). Claire throws herself out a window and snaps her bones and ribs back into place; she is impaled at one point and quickly heals. One individual moves at super speed and slashes two different people to ribbons; both fall and spill out a pool of blood. A scared young man shoots someone through the chest with a shotgun blast; he accidentally gives another man a heart attack by grabbing onto him (his super power is healing or death); we see the bloodied body of a boy who has been dragged behind a truck until dead. We see a severed, frozen ankle. Samuel and Sylar engage in momentary combat, in which Samuel uses wind and earth to "eat away" most of Sylar's face (the result is horrific, but of course he heals). Claire stabs Sylar in the eye with a pencil (seen briefly) and is impaled once on a spike in a butchering plant.

Some fans complained that this season was boring, but I did not find it so. True, Hiro's plot line is the weakest (although Sylar and Peter do spend an episode locked in an alternate reality inside Sylar's mind and that is remarkably dull) but the new characters are interesting and I liked the ultimate resolution. The series ends in a traditional shock moment but the cancellation of the show does not leave us hanging in a traditional sense -- just aware that there is a brand new existence awaiting the heroes.