Genesis -
How soon before I run out of songs with "hero" in the title? Let's take bets. It's exposition central in this first episode. We meet some of the potential heroes, including a teleporting Japanese cutie and a stripper who sees an evil version of herself in the mirror. There's tons more that happens, but utterly NO WAY to deliver all the goods in this small amount of space. Trust me on this.
Don't Look Back -
Hiro has teleported into the future by about five weeks, Niki's alter ego has cleaned up her murderous mess and led her to a killing field, both Petrelli boys can fly, Claire's father is a creep, and Suresh decides to track down all the heroes to carry on his father's work. And a new Hero makes an appearance in the form of Matt Parkman, a telepathic cop who discovers a hidden child. Oh, Agent Sean. Welcome back!
One Small Leap -
Hiro and Ando embark on a global road trip to save the world, Mohinder discovers that Sylar is an OCD freak with a sin complex, Matt discovers that Sylar can do all sorts of shit he never imagined and that a bald black man has it out for him, Niki digs, Peter falls in more ways than one, and Claire gets stabbed in the head by a rapist, only to wake up on an coroner's table with her internal organs waving at her FROM HER CHEST.
Collision -
The Heroes are starting to intersect, and the world it is rejoicing. Or just us comic book geeks. Peter and Mohinder meet, then Niki/ikiN and Nathan meet, then Hiro and Peter meet, and then Claire decides to take Jock the Rapist out of the picture by driving him directly into a wall.
Hiros -
It seems that, in order to save the world, the Heroes, in particular Peter, must save the cheerleader. She's a little busy needlessly lying in a hospital bed while her father has her would-be rapist's brain wiped, but I'm sure she'll be needing a hand at some point in this series.
Better Halves -
"Hey la, hey la, he broke my GI tract!" Also, Claire meets some actors pretending to be her biological parents.
Nothing To Hide -
Checking in: Mrs. Nathan Petrelli and her wheelchair; ikiN's real name; a potential Hero with "rad" powers; and Micah's calling plan. Checking out: Charles Deveaux, who dies; Isaac, who takes his paintings and bolts; Matt's marriage, because Janice is a cheating cheater who cheats; and any interest Sars may ever have had in Mohinder's pompous narration.
Seven Minutes To Midnight -
A cute diner waitress with a photographic memory ensorcells Hiro, adorably. Elsewhere, Isaac goes back on the junk, Mohinder goes back to India, and Ted -- after briefly cooling down while comparing origin stories with Matt -- goes back to irradiating his foes instead of just using his words.
Homecoming -
Peter manages to save the cheerleader, but another cheerleader dies, so does that mean he saved the right cheerleader? And it doesn't really matter anyway, because Sylar gets away and then gets captured by Eden, whose voice brings men to their knees. Literally.
Six Months Earlier -
It's six months ago and Niki's alter ego, Jessica, shows up for the first time and we learn that she's really Niki's dead sister or something, Claire discovers she can miraculously heal, Hiro tries to save Charlie and fails, and Sylar turns out to be a guy named Gabriel who has some serious ego issues. The "how it all began" answers are in short supply, really. But Pasdar is hot, so who cares?
Fallout -
Eden kills herself rather than let Sylar take her brain, Niki turns herself in to the police so that Jessica can't harm her family, Isaac paints the future and it has a dinosaur in it, Claire discovers that her dad might not be such a good guy after all, and Peter has a dream about the future where he blows up. I can't believe we have to wait over six weeks to find out what happens.
Godsend -
The Heroes have returned after a nice, long winter vacation, and all they brought back was a fake sword, a straightjacket-clad Niki/Jessica, a comatose Peter, a whacked-out Sylar, and a cheerleader who can't figure out if she's been saved or not. I would have preferred a shot glass or something, but I'm so happy to see them all that I'll just say "thanks" and ask to see their vacation photo slideshow!
The Fix -
Peter and Claude team up for a mentoring relationship that involves Claude teaching Peter how to not blow up. Hiro's kidnapped by his dad, who turns out to be George Effin' Takei, which is totally awesome. Sylar dies but then comes back to life and is about ready to kick some serious HRG ass. And Claire discovers her birth mother, who is alive and well and flammable.
Distractions -
Claire's mother is a firestarter, and her father is none other than Nathan Petrelli. Claude throws Peter off a building in an effort to teach him how to control his powers. Sylar is thwarted in his attempt to murder Ma Bennet, but winds up getting away because the Haitian Sensation is pretty to look at, but not all that quick on his feet. And Jessica's back, this time for good.
