Heroes

Last week Heroes promised two would fall and one villain would rise.  On that count, they delivered in full.  Bad as most of this season was, the finale delivers in a way far more satisfying than last season's let-down, perhaps because expectations weren't as high.

This episode of Heroes begins in Mohinder's apartment as he comes home to see Sylar (Zachary Quinto) and Maya (Dania Ramirez).  They have a pleasant chat about what they want (the cure for the Shanti Virus), and Maya lets it slip that Sylar is powerless.  However, Sylar still has a gun, so he forces Mohinder (Sendhil Ramamurthy) to help him.

Elsewhere, at the Company, Bob is disappointed in Elle (Kristen Bell).  Since Claire (Hayden Panettiere) is going to tell the world about her powers, Bob wants HRG (Jack Coleman) to stop her.  As part of a deal, HRG is allowed to visit Claire and his family, all shocked to see he's alive, and HRG tells them to let it go, and they'll never be bothered again.  They tearfully accept, and he heads back with Bob.

Mohinder, Sylar, Maya and Molly head to Mohinder's lab, which is also Isaac's loft.  Mohinder tests the blood and determines Sylar has the same strain as Niki (Ali Larter), so he must have been injected by the Company.  Maya gets upset when she learns of her brother's death (from Molly), so Sylar shoots her.  Unfortunately, it's not fatal.  Sylar asks Mohinder to test the cure on her first, and he does.

At the Company, Elle is trying to get into her father's good graces, so when she sees Sylar on a surveillance camera, she head sto Isaac's loft to make daddy proud.  Sylar shoots her, she zaps him, and he eventually escapes while she revels in the satisfaction of saving people's lives.  Too bad for us, one of those lives is Maya's.

In the most predictable and boring plot ever, the thugs trap Monica (Dana Davis) in an abandoned building and set it on fire.  Niki and Micah (Noah Gray-Cabey) track it down.  She runs in, rescues Monica, but Niki is still inside the building when it blows up.  Niki is dead.  In last week's recap, I asked who you thought would die, and with more than 640 votes, 34 percent said Niki.  So this wasn't all that shocking.

Then we get to the meat and potatoes plotline.  Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) and Hiro (Masi Oka) do some time freezing and teleportation as they hash out their differences.  Adam (David Anders) killed Hiro's dad, but saved Peter's brother.  Tough call.  Peter neutralizes Hiro and goes with Adam to bust open the vault with the Shanti Virus.

Elsewhere, Parkman (Greg Grunberg) and Nathan (Adrian Pasdar) talk to Angela Petrelli about what's going on, and she gives it up that she used to work with Adam when he was trying to do good, then turned when he started talking about genocide.  She tells them where the Virus is, so Nathan flies Parkman to Odessa.  They run into Hiro, who's very happy to see friends.

Inside, Hiro takes on Adam while Parkman and Nathan distract Peter.  Parkman's telepathy is no match, but Nathan's brotherly love breaks through Peter's tough skin.  Adam gets the vial of the Shanti Virus behind his back, and Hiro teleports them both away, leaving the vial.  Peter rushes in, saves it, then destroys it.  Parkman and the Petrelli brothers decide to end the mess their parents have made and tell the world about their abilities.  Unfortunately, a security camera is watching them.

Back in Japan, Hiro tells Ando (James Kyson Lee) what he did with Adam.  He teleported them into a casket buried in a cemetery, then left Adam there.  Cruel, but effective.

In the Texas Police Station, Nathan gives a press conference where he prepares to tell the world he can fly, but before he can, he's shot.  Assassinated!  In the same poll for which 34 percent of BuddyTV readers predicted Niki's death, only 3 percent called Nathan's.  The only people lower were Micah, Claire, Peter and Parkman.  It was indeed quite shocking.

We're left with Angela Petrelli on the phone, telling someone that she knew it had to happen, but that the person just opened Pandora's Box.  Ooh, I love Angela Petrelli when she's mad.

Thus ends Heroes Volume 2.  But then, we get the start of Heroes Volume 3, entitled "Villains."  Sylar is in an alley, shooting up Mohinder/Claire blood.   He sees a can on the other side, and uses his mind to get it.  "I'm back" he says.  Yes you are, Sylar.  I can't wait to see more of you becoming a true Villain.


Also read our HEROES VOLUME 2 FINALE LIVE THOUGHTS


-John Kubicek, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image courtesy of NBC)