Heroes - I Am Sylar

So Sylar is having an identity crisis. This is a problem when you're a shapeshifter. As per usual here, lots of spoilers, this is your warning.






I just can't enjoy this show any more. I'm only watching it because the season is over with the next episode. After watching this episode, I can't believe there's only one episode left this season. The whole thing, once again, feels totally rushed. Everyone will soon be converging on building 26 via one method or another. Sylar and Danko are apparently rounding up everyone in one big sweep thanks to Micah's server being available to them. More on that later.

The Ando-Hiro distrust story is just tired and old. The line about Hiro and Superman both being fascists was great, but Hiro's stupidity power keeps kicking in so he won't listen to his whiney friend. I guess the once again resolved this by the end.

Of course, not before they tried to talk Parkman into helping them. Hey, remember when Parkman had the gift of painting the future? Yah, neither do the writers. Parkman goes back to his ex-wife to return the baby (because that's a safe move, since the agents know all about the baby), is surprised there are agents listening in (shocking!) and awkwardly tries to reconcile with wifey. Is it really his baby? Does maybe wifey have powers? They have a lot to talk about at the cottage... except he's not going because he realized he has to take down the bad government guys who are chasing him before he can have a happy family with his superpowered baby and boring ex-wife. She's such a Daphne rebound.

Sylar going all Norman Bates was a decent touch. It's a shame that his mother is/was one of the most annoying and milquetoast characters the show has ever seen. But it at least pushes him to full Psycho now, and will confuse the fuck out of his motivation (see: Micah).

Speaking of Rebel... Micah's supposedly a technological genius. He can talk to machines and is a teenager, so therefore is aware of all new technology instantly. He doesn't have a fully-charged laptop and a full UPS hooked up to his setup so if someone, say the the government agency that's hunting you, cuts the power to your block, you can still maintain a net connection and access to your vital systems long enough to create a distraction? He should have been able to send out copies of important data to offsite locations and delete the local copies instantly before creating a shitstorm of alarms and problems that would help him escape. Hell, the fact he had to PACK before running was idiotic, but I'll chalk that up to being a kid.

Sylar actually listening to Micah was an unexpected touch. Explaining it away as his mother's personality dominating him was a bit weak. Michah's look of "oh shit, this dude is way more fucked up than I thought" was excellent though. Sylar having the big fake tear running down his cheek was just cheesy. Although it did remind me of the tear running down Tracy's frozen face. Micah has such an effect on people.

So we spend all of last episode building the Petrelli-Bennett family unit. There's talk about a new co-operation of the family. And then... Nathan flies off to confront Sylar on his own? Nathan knows EXACTLY what Sylar is capable of, and Nathan's only power is to fly. What the fuck did he think he could do? He was even warned by everyone (I even think Princess Leia and Admiral Ackbar showed up to tell him) that IT'S A TRAP, and he just strolls into his office. Lucky for him Danko was there to taser his ass before Sylar found a faster means of transportation.

And then Sylar decides to tell Danko to fuck off, he wants to be President now. And turns his back on Danko? Sylar's obviously not thinking straight, and is certainly letting emotion get in the way of logic. Does he not know that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few... or the one? Anyway, he gets knifed in the back of the head (pretty kickass), and then GETS UP. Sooooooo... did Danko just miss the spot? Did it move in all the shapeshifting? Is this some sort of freaky side effect of something so that Sylar is now unkillable? I suppose decapitation could still work.

Next week is the finale, but this felt like a mid-season episode that has a whole whack of plot left to go. The preview implies death and mayhem next week... and also that Noah and Angela (at least) are free after being surrounded by bad guys at the end of the episode. I predict a clusterfuck of a finale that will just piss me off.

I mean, this wasn't a TERRIBLE episode, but the show on the whole is so aggravating that I'm done. I shall soldier on for one more episode though.