Heroes: Season 2, Episode 5 Review: Fight of Flight

Fight or Flight

Original Airdate: October 22, 2007

Writers: Joy Blake & Melissa Blake
Director: Lesli Glatter

After a few episodes, the pieces are slowly starting to come together. While it may be too slow for some audiences, it is encouraging for the direction of the season. A little bit more is discovered about the threat Mr. Parkman poses while giving some of the characters connected to him more material. It seems likely that some major stuff will come around in the next 2-3 episodes, which should hopefully kick the season into shape.

Alan Blumenfeld as Mr. Parkman could be another interesting villain turn. Blumenfeld looks anything but menacing, and that’s what makes the con in the opening so successful. Zachary Quinto initially didn’t feel right as Sylar, but as the first season progressed, he fit into his character. Hopefully this will be the case for Mr. Parkman.

This is also the first instance of a power passing down from one generation to the next. This seems like it would make more sense than random powers bestowed on the next generation (fire + flight = spontaneous regeneration). However, genetics are far more complicated than that, and considering powers aren’t like facial features or medical history, they have some leeway.

Mr. Parkman’s abilities, while similar to his son’s, are far more sophisticated. Mr. Parkman has the ability to project a physical nightmare world to whomever he wishes; making the participant believe it is real. This explains why he knew Molly was tracking him and the ability to inflict a comatose state on her for getting too close. Matt has a beginner’s degree of this ability as he breaks the hold the nightmares had on them, but he needs training to hone it so he can face him in the eventual showdown.

The nightmares he transplanted Matt and Nathan into both cause them to confront the major issues in their lives. Nathan’s guilt and the visions of his burnt alter-ego have been present since the beginning of the season. Looking at what’s been shown it could be surmised that he cut a deal with someone to restore his face at the price of leaving his brother to the unknown and being unable to tell anyone about it. It seems like he’s hiding something. With Matt as his partner, it would make sense that that truth should come out soon.

Matt worries that he is turning into his absentee father, as doubts that he may be the father of his ex-wife’s child after all creep in. It’s common for someone to turn into the type of person their parent was (or be attracted to that kind of person) even if they were a bad parent like Mr. Parkman. With his father at the center of the crisis, it gives Matt a lot to work with.

Knowing the thoughts of his colleagues was clearly an invaluable asset to Mr. Parkman, and that advantage must’ve corrupted him and may have lead to the twelve separating or whatever would lead one of them to target the others. Mr. Parkman knows how to con people, and the mind reading makes his work untouchable compared to an average swindler. Matt could go that same route.

It’s implied that Mr. Parkman may be involved in the murders of the Group of Twelve, as he happened to have Bob’s ripped picture near his with the omnipresent symbol scrawled over his face. Why would he have Bob’s picture there if he wasn’t going to send it out? He could be working with someone else as well, as his physique was far from what the hooded figure looked like in the premiere.

One of the most highly anticipated moments was the introduction of Elle, played by Kristen Bell of “Veronica Mars”. Perhaps to reel in fans of that series, our first impressions of Elle draw comparisons. Elle is inquisitive, perky and a good sense of intuition. The obvious difference between the two is that Elle can kill someone without hesitation. It seems rash for her to do this, as she may have tried torturing Ricky into giving her what she wanted instead of killing him outright. I’m not sure whether the “Veronica Mars” comparisons are the writers trying to reel in “Mars” fans or if it is unintentional moments grabbed onto by fans of her old show, but perhaps that’s why the introduction ultimately falls short of expectations.

Considering the theme of generations this season, it would be dramatically appropriate for Elle’s father to be Bob. His rank in The Company would give her more freedom than the average agent. Perhaps he spoiled her when she grew up. Having a daughter roam as freely as she does could jeopardize his status in The Company or their operations altogether.

Obviously, Peter is a valuable commodity for The Company as he gets more powerful the more he meets other people with abilities. The Company has a vested interest in wanting to control those with powers, as seen with Niki, and Peter has already shown what losing control of his powers can do to him. So someone would be aggressively searching for him.

It isn’t unreasonable to believe that Elle might’ve been that person all along. Peter has used electromagnetism to throw several thugs away from him and Caitlin. Initially I expected this was Ted’s power, as Ted created an EMP to break out Bennet in “.07%” which looked like Peter’s burst, but being around Elle may be an easier explanation. It offers possible clues to what happened to Peter. Perhaps after the explosion in the season finale, he was picked up by The Company (ie Elle) and another powerful party managed to seize him in transit, placing him with the Irish thugs for safekeeping. McSorely, the alluded to mob boss, may be that power.

While the box didn’t have any huge revelations, it does offer a step for him to contact his family. With the precision of search engines nowadays, it shouldn’t take long for him to find out his past. Unfortunately he is afraid of his true identity. However, that changes when he learns of Ricky’s demise. People around him are at risk by powerful people, and staying low profile is going to get a lot harder. Ultimately he faces the eponymous options: keep hiding from Elle or find out who is looking for him. His only clue comes from his painting of presumably him and Caitlin standing outside a French building with that ubiquitous sign. Since there were plane tickets to Montreal among his personal effects, maybe whoever had him first is trying to sway his journey indirectly.

The scene where the cop takes Monica’s statement could be foreshadowing a future episode. It’s not uncommon for citizens not to speak to the cops out of fear of retaliation, which ultimately only allows the crime to grow and fester in the community. One could surmise from her watching kung fu that she is preparing to possibly help her community that has been affected by the crime post-Katrina, and likely place her in the way of that robber later.

Unlike the other characters, Monica has someone with her to explain what’s happening when she manifests, and that makes a major difference in her learning. Once Micah provides some sympathy, Monica embraces her power: from enjoying double Dutch to recreating moves from kung fu movies. However, her actions in the restaurant were high profile enough to alert Mohinder to her. While Mohinder is out to help those The Company’s ensnared, he has no choice but to bring her in. This merging of storylines is welcome, as those not connected to the main story have been uneven at best.

Mohinder’s undercover operation faces serious jeopardy when he feels Molly has gotten too ill for him to take care of alone, leaving him little option but to seek help from The Company. Mohinder and Matt’s feelings towards Molly are an interesting contrast to how they acted in “Five Years Gone”, where Mohinder eventually sided with the heroes and Matt was a Company operative.

Hiro’s adventures in Japan are getting a little frustrating. All Ando has to work with lately is reading (literally!) about Hiro’s exploits. Unless Hiro’s helping Takezo somehow plays out in the overall arc, like if Takezo was still alive in the present, then it would warrant why Hiro is still there five episodes into the season. Hopefully his battle between the three of them and the army will prove worthwhile.

While the series hasn’t gotten to the thrilling entertainment that made up the best parts of the first season, this episode offers some hope as a few storylines provide interesting developments. Although it is a patience tester waiting for these major moments to hit.

Overall Score: 7/10