Heroes: Identity Crisis

Ok, so that was kind of a freaky episode.

Unfortunately, I don’t exactly mean "freaky" in a "satisfyingly suspenseful" way. I mean freaky in an "I felt a little uncomfortable because I didn’t know whether to laugh or be scared" way.

It’s too bad because "I Am Sylar" actually got off to a strong start.

Given that the character of Sylar has been yanked around more than any other on this show (and maybe on primetime TV) ( he’s a villain/he’s a budding hero, he found his father/wait, that’s not his father/ok THIS guy is his father, he’s scary/he’s cheeky ) I was happy to see the writers explore something about him that has been in play since season 1.

If you’ll recall this character has always struggled with who he really is. When we first got a glimpse into his past during the first season, Gabriel Gray was a lonely watchmaker who knew how things worked and was positively giddy when Chandra Suresh approached him with the news that he might be special. Last night, Sylar was barely hanging on to his own identity and was increasingly becoming Agt. Taub, which has been his disguise since faking his own death. The scene when he woke up as Agt. Taub and with an extra tooth was disturbing (and confusing until he finally explained what the hell was happening).

After dispatching of a man named Tom Miller (Clint Howard, making a rare appearance in a non-Ron Howard project) and cherrypicking his destructive ability, Sylar realized he needed something to ground him and remind him of who he really is. Enter his (adoptive) mother - you know, the snowglobe-loving older lady he’d killed in a fit of rage after she realized he was a monster. He used his connections as Agt. Taub to acquire the file on her death and set about reconnecting with her in a decidedly "Psycho"-tic way.

Meanwhile, Danko had gotten a read on Rebel/Micah and, after basically telling Sylar to "deal with it" in regards to his identity crisis, enlisted the help of "Agt. Taub" in capturing him.

Here’s where the episode went a little off the rails for me. Maybe it’s just me, but I just don’t buy that Sylar not only hesitates in killing Micah and taking his fantastic ability, but actively helps him escape. Then again, Sylar seemed bored and disinterested earlier in the episode right up until the moment he killed Mr. Miller. I guess Micah is just that much more persuasive.

The fact that he kept Micah alive led to the episode’s freakiest sequence in which we learned Sylar was having conversations with his dead mother by actually morphing into her. To me this was 30% scary, 70% funny. Fortunately, Micah, with his split-personality mom, is one of the few people on the planet who had experience with this sort of thing. He once again implored Sylar use his powers for good (he was apparently the one who planted the idea in his head about impersonating Nathan), before the semi bad guy scared him away.

While I like the mini-twist of Sylar potentially impersonating Nathan (pictured, left with Sylar) for the good of people with abilities ("I don’t want to be you, I want to be better") instead of the nefarious motives we’d all assumed he had, this mostly feels like another frustrating twist for the character. After meeting with his biological dad earlier this season, it seemed like he’d recovered his killer instinct. Now, after a brief encounter with a kid he barely knows, he seems determined to make things better for people with abilities. Whatever.

Danko seemed to recognize what was going on and tried to double cross Sylar after Nathan had been subdued. Unfortunately, Sylar survived and I just don’t like Danko’s long-term prospects on this show.

In other "Heroes" news, it took Matt Parkman approximately 15 minutes to get over the death of the alleged love of his life (Daphne) and try to rekindle the romance with his ex-wife. Sure, you can say that Matt just wants to make sure he stays in Matt Jr.’s life, but I was a little taken aback by how easily and eagerly he wanted to reconcile with a woman who cheated on him and never mentioned that he had a son.

Hiro and Ando were back on our screens. Fortunately, instead of having the duo act like clowns, the show thankfully (FINALLY) decided to explore the shift in their dynamic thanks to Ando’s new power. Before, Ando was literally powerless to complain about being bait because he was, well, power less. Now that he has a power, I agree that he SHOULD have a say because he might be equally helpful.

Last night, Hiro seemed mostly put out by this new development, and I can understand his pain. He’s used to being Superman with Ando being Jimmy Olsen. Now he has to deal with a Batman who wants to give his feedback all the time (and invades his time-stopping space). What wasn’t shown last night is that perhaps Hiro is also worried about Ando’s growing influence because Ando killed him in a vision of the future.

I’ll be curious to see if this gets addressed in a future epi- wait a minute, we’re already at the season finale. That kinda snuck up on me! What’s the one thing you’d like to see in the season finale?

Also, what’d you think of this episode? Is it just me or did this episode totally add on the scene of Danko pointing out Agt. Taub as the person for Sylar to emulate during the "Previously on" montage? (I honestly don’t remember that happening before.) Why didn’t Danko’s knife kill Sylar? (Did he just miss the precise spot on the back of his head he was supposed to hit?) Where was Peter in the episode-ending montage? (My guess is he’s somewhere near Nathan) Finally, why doesn’t the name Crimson Arc work for you? (Besides conjuring images of menstruation, I think it’s a pretty girly name.)