Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring, which premiered on NBC on September 25, 2006. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the characters’ lives. The series emulates the aesthetic style and storytelling of American comic books, using short, multi-episode story arcs that build upon a larger, more encompassing arc. The series is produced by Universal Media Studios in association with Tailwind Productions, and it is filmed primarily in Los Angeles, California.
In the episode “Hysterical Blindness”, Gretchen (played by Madeline Zima) looks up Claire Bennett (actress Hayden Panettiere) with Finder-Spyder.
Three complete seasons have aired, and the fourth premiered on September 21, 2009. The critically acclaimed first season’s run of 23 episodes garnered an average of 14.3 million viewers in the United States, receiving the highest rating for any NBC drama premiere in five years. The second season of Heroes attracted an average of 13.1 million viewers in the U.S., and marked NBC’s sole series among the top 20 ranked programs in total viewership for the 2007–2008 season. Heroes has garnered a number of awards and nominations, including Primetime Emmy awards, Golden Globes, People’s Choice Awards and British Academy Television Awards.
A digital-internet extension of the series, Heroes 360 Experience, later rebranded as Heroes Evolutions, was created to explore the Heroes universe and provides insight into the show’s mythology. Other official Heroes media include magazines, action figures, tie-in and interactive websites, a mobile game, a novel, clothing and other merchandise. In the fall of 2008, NBC Digital Entertainment released a series of online content for the summer, including more original web content, wireless iTV interactivity, graphic novels available for mobile viewing and webisodes.
The plot of Heroes is designed to be similar to the stories of comic books with small story arcs built into the series’ overall large story arc plot. Each season of Heroes is designed to involve ordinary people who discover extraordinary super powers, and how these abilities take effect in the character’s daily lives.
Season one featured 23 episodes that were broadcast starting September 25, 2006 collectively as volume one, Genesis. The series went on hiatus twice; first from December 4, 2006 to January 22, 2007, and again from March 5 to April 23, 2007, with the season finale airing on May 21, 2007.] The volume begins as a seemingly ordinary group of people gradually become aware that they have special abilities. Events illustrate their reactions to these powers, and how the discovery affects their personal and professional lives. At the same time, several ordinary individuals are investigating the origins and extent of these abilities. Mohinder Suresh, a geneticist, continues his late father’s research into the biological source of the change, while Noah Bennet represents a secret organization known only as “The Company”. While coping with these new abilities, each of the characters is drawn, willingly or unwillingly, into the Company’s conspiracy to control superpowered people and into a race to stop an explosion from destroying New York City.
Season two featured volume two, Generations, and began on September 24, 2007. Volume two begins four months after the events of Kirby Plaza. The main plot arc of Generations deals with the Company and its research on the Shanti virus. This research is explored through the Company’s founders, whose identities are revealed, as well as through the effects of various strains of the virus. The “heroes” ultimately come together in an attempt to stop the release of a deadly strain of the virus and avert a global pandemic.
Season three featured 25 episodes that aired beginning on September 22, 2008. The season comprised volumes three and four, titled Villains and Fugitives respectively. The lead-in to Villains showed Sylar regaining his lost powers, shown as the final scene of the Generations finale. Tim Kring said that the new volume would bring a cadre of villains to the show, hence the title. Volume three began with the assassination attempt on Nathan Petrelli, and the consequences it has. In addition, several villains escape from the confines of Level 5, and the Company attempts to recapture them. Arthur Petrelli heals from systemic nerve damage with the help of Adam Monroe’s healing abilities and eventually recruits a few of the villains (Flint Gordon Jr., Knox, and Daphne Millbrook) while later luring in Mohinder Suresh, Nathan Petrelli, Tracy Strauss, Elle Bishop, and Sylar. Their objective is to create a formula to give people abilities but after many failures they soon realize they need to find the “catalyst”, which is contained within a person.
The second part of the series titled Fugitives involves what happens after Nathan fails to produce the formula. After the destruction of Primatech and Pinehearst, the Heroes attempt to lead normal lives until Nathan initiates his plan to round up all people with abilities. Meanwhile, Sylar begins the search for his real parents. Throughout the way, the Heroes are guided by Rebel, later revealed to be Micah Sanders. In the finale, Nathan is killed by Sylar in an intense duel. Peter, who copies Sylar’s shape-shifting ability in the duel, uses it to disguise himself as the President and tranquilize Sylar. With Sylar’s unconscious body and a dead Nathan, Matt is instructed to alter Sylar’s mind to believe he is Nathan, with Sylar’s acquired ability enabling him to fully embody Nathan’s personality and gain his memories and form.
On May 4, 2009, NBC confirmed renewal of Heroes for a fourth season consisting of 19 episodes. The season began with a 2 hour premiere on September 21, 2009. The fourth season contains volume five, Redemption. Madeline Zima joined the cast as Gretchen, Claire’s new friend in college. Rick Worthy will have a recurring role, playing Matt’s new police partner, an experienced and capable Los Angeles cop. Robert Knepper joins the cast as Samuel, a new villain. Ray Park is cast “for a sizeable arc” as Edgar, a carnie who is suspicious of Samuel. After episode eleven ended on the NBC broadcast on November 30, 2009, they announced that Heroes would return with new episodes on January 4, 2010.
On July 14, 2008 (in between seasons 2 and 3), the first Heroes webseries, Going Postal, was released. The trilogy of online-only videos introduces Echo DeMille, a seemingly ordinary mailman with an extraordinary ability. The three-part series is written and directed by the same creative team behind the main series. On November 10, 2008 (During Season 3), the second Heroes webseries, Destiny, was released. This is the first of many more webisodes sponsored by Sprint. This series is a tetralogy. Destiny introduces Santiago, chosen by the fans. Santiago wonders if his newfound abilities are either a miracle or something else. On the streets of Lima, Peru, he discovers his powers. On December 15, 2008, the third Heroes webseries, The Recruit, was released. The Recruit introduces Rachel Mills, a marine who survives the explosion at Pinehearst. This follows the finale of Volume Three. On December 22, 2008, the fourth Heroes webseries, Hard Knox, was released. Hard Knox flashes back to 18 months ago, to a time when Matt Parkman knew the villain Knox before his abilities began to manifest. It was originally part of the episode “Villains”, but was cut due to time constraints. In April, Nowhere Man picks up where the third season leaves off, and focuses on the life of Eric Doyle. On September 28, 2009, Slow Burn began airing along side Season 4 with multiple writers. It showed behind-the-scenes goings-on of the “Sullivan Bros. Carnival” as it follows the character of Lydia, revealing she has a pyrokinetic daughter named Amanda whom she discovers is in trouble and tries to help.
Originally, Kring designed the series to have an ever-shifting cast. However, his motivation changed when he realized how popular the original cast was with audiences; therefore he brought back most of the first season cast for the second season, with a few additions who received star billing. In its first season, the show features an ensemble cast of twelve main characters making it the third largest cast in American primetime television behind Desperate Housewives and Lost. Although NBC’s first season cast page listed only ten characters, Leonard Roberts (D.L. Hawkins), who first appeared in the series’ fifth episode, was an additional member of the original full-time cast. In episode eleven of the first season, Jack Coleman (Noah Bennet) was upgraded from a recurring role to become the twelfth full-time cast member.
The initial season had 12 major roles getting star billing. Hayden Panettiere portrayed high school cheerleader Claire Bennet who has the ability to spontaneously regenerate. Jack Coleman played her father Noah Bennet, an agent for The Company. Santiago Cabrera played the troubled addict Isaac Mendez who could paint the future. Tawny Cypress portrayed Simone Deveaux, an art dealer and skeptic. Greg Grunberg played LAPD police officer Matt Parkman who could read people’s minds. Ali Larter played Niki Sanders, an internet stripper with a severe dissociative disorder and super strength. Leonard Roberts played Niki’s husband D.L. Hawkins, an ex-convict who could pass through solid matter. Noah Gray-Cabey played Micah Sanders, Niki and D.L.’s young son who could communicate with and control digital technology. Masi Oka portrayed space-time manipulator Hiro Nakamura. Adrian Pasdar played Nathan Petrelli, a congressional candidate with the ability to fly. Sendhil Ramamurthy played geneticist Mohinder Suresh. Milo Ventimiglia portrayed hospice nurse Peter Petrelli, with the ability to mimic abilities of other posthumans.
During the first two seasons, some characters were written out to make room for new characters with new stories. Simone was the first major character to be written out, dying near the end of season one. DL became a guest star after the events of the first season’s finale, making two appearances throughout season two. Isaac Mendez was also written out, dying at the hands of Sylar, which was shown during Hiro Nakamura’s time travelling expedition to New York earlier in season one. New characters added during season two included Maya Herrera, played by Dania Ramirez, a fugitive with the ability to emit a deadly virus; Adam Monroe, a 400-year-old Englishman and legendary warrior Takezo Kensei with the ability to regenerate, portrayed by David Anders; Monica Dawson, portrayed by Dana Davis, a restaurant worker with the ability to mimic any physical movements she sees; and Elle Bishop, a sadistic sociopath with the ability to generate electricity portrayed by Kristen Bell. Two recurring characters from season one, Sylar, portrayed by Zachary Quinto, and Ando Masahashi, portrayed by James Kyson Lee, were upgraded to main characters in season two.
Starting in season three, recurring character Angela Petrelli, portrayed by Cristine Rose, was promoted to a main character. Elle, Adam and Micah were removed from the main cast. Monica Dawson did not appear after scenes including her were cut. Niki was also written out but actress Ali Larter remained on the show portraying a new character Tracy Strauss, Niki’s triplet sister with the power to freeze objects with a touch.
For the fourth season, a new character Samuel (portrayed by Robert Knepper) has been added. Originally cast as a recurring part, the part has been changed to a starring role.
Heroes began development early in 2006, when Tim Kring, creator of NBC’s Crossing Jordan, came up with the show’s concept. Kring wanted to create a “large ensemble saga” that would connect with the audience. He began thinking about how big, scary and complicated he felt the world is, and wanted to create a character-driven series about people who could do something about it. Kring felt that a cop or medical drama did not have characters that were big enough to save the world. He came up with the thought of superheroes; ordinary people who would discover extraordinary abilities, while still rooted in the real world and in reality. Casting directors Jason La Padura and Natalie Hart brought forth a cast of new faces such as Milo Ventimiglia who described the pilot as a “character drama about everyday people with a heightened reality.” A heightened reality that was brought to light through the work of production designer Ruth Ammon. Kring wanted the series to have touchstones that involved the characters and the world they lived in.
Before he began putting his ideas together, he spoke with Lost executive producer Damon Lindelof, with whom he had worked for three years on Crossing Jordan. Kring credits Lindelof for giving him ideas on how to pitch the series to the network and advice on the lessons he (Lindelof) learned about working on a serialized drama. The two still speak and support each other’s projects. When Kring pitched the idea for Heroes to the NBC network, he described the network’s reaction as “excited…very supportive.” He comments that he has been partners with NBC for some time based on his six year run as showrunner for Crossing Jordan. When he pitched the pilot, he described every detail, including the cliffhanger ending. When NBC executives asked him what was going to happen next, Kring responded, “Well, you’ll just have to wait and find out.” After the project was greenlit, a special 73-minute version of the pilot was first screened to a large audience at the 2006 Comic Con in San Diego. It was initially reported that this unaired pilot would not be released, however it was included on the first season DVD set.
Episodes have a distinct structure: following a recap of relevant events, each show begins with a cold open, which is sometimes the beginning of a scene that was introduced in the previous week’s episode. Most then provide a philosophical voice-over by character Mohinder Suresh, occasionally relating to the title or theme of the episode. At a dramatic juncture, the screen cuts to the title graphic, which shows the Earth turning into a solar eclipse, featuring an instance of Baily’s beads, with the Heroes logo and a musical interlude written by Kring himself. The episode title is usually introduced after the title scene, which is followed by a commercial break. The episode title is usually presented on a mundane object within the scene following the first commercial break. The title is presented as a chapter, with each episode receiving a chapter number, which correlates to the episode number within the volume. The opening credits generally appear alphabetically by last name over the scenes that immediately follow. Several characters’ stories are shown throughout the episode. Sometimes these stories are stand alone events, while at other times character stories intertwine and cross over. At this point, a closing voiceover is provided by Suresh, and most episodes end with a suspenseful twist or cliffhanger, revealed just seconds before a smash cut to a “to be continued” graphic.
When the writing team works on an episode, each writer takes a character and writes the individual scenes surrounding them. These stories are then combined and given to the episode writer. This system allows every writer to contribute to every episode, and enables the writing team to finish scripts sooner, so the filming crew can shoot more scenes at a location. Tim Kring describes the writing process as a collaborative one and states that the collaboration process is important because production needs to shoot several scenes at a single location. In order to do this, several scripts have to be ready. Jesse Alexander, co-producer and writer, explains that this process is important in a serialized drama because one has to know where each character’s development is heading.
The second season coincided with the WGA writers’ strike, meaning only 11 out of the planned 24 episodes were produced. This forced the producers to redesign the season to encompass only the Generations volume out of the three planned. The planned third volume, Exodus, which was originally designed to be a story arc reflecting the effects of the release of strain 138 of the Shanti virus, was canceled. The planned fourth volume, Villains, was changed to the third volume and moved into season three. Scenes from the volume two finale “Powerless”, were reshot to reflect the cancellation of the Exodus volume, and to tie up all the loose plot storylines of Generations.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Heroes creator Tim Kring commented on criticisms of season two, and the series’ 15% decline in ratings. Kring said that he felt he had made mistakes with the direction of season two. He had thought that the audience was looking for a “build-up of characters and the discovery of their powers”, in contrast to season one, when viewers were instead looking for “adrenaline.” Kring also outlined what he felt were problems with plot development, stating that the second season “took too long to get to the big-picture story”, explaining that Peter’s vision of the viral armageddon should have occurred in the first episode instead of the seventh. He feels that it would have been better to introduce new characters within the context of the main storyline, as with Elle, rather than in unattached arcs such as that of Maya and Alejandro. Kring also admitted that he should have resolved the “Hiro in Japan” storyline much more quickly, and that the romantic stories are not working well. With regards to Claire and West, and Hiro and Yaeko, he said, “I’ve seen more convincing romances on TV. In retrospect, I don’t think romance is a natural fit for us.”
Tim Molloy from TV Guide reported that Heroes would return to its roots with the fourth volume, Fugitives, in an effort to attract new viewers and regain those who gave up on the show due to too many characters and plotlines. Fugitives begins with Nathan Petrelli telling the president about the existence of individuals who possess superhuman abilities. The president authorizes Nathan to capture such individuals, and the majority of the main characters are rounded up, with the exception of Sylar, who escapes Nathan’s agents while attempting to locate his biological father. The heroes receive help from mysterious ally called Rebel, later revealed to be Micah Sanders.
In November 2008, NBC fired Jesse Alexander and Jeph Loeb from the production staff of Heroes due to creative differences and budget problems. As a result, Tim Kring would refocus the series on character development and simple storytelling. However, a high-ranking insider told TV Guide that rather than pressure from NBC or Universal Media responding to recent plummeting ratings, it was Kring himself who fired Alexander and Loeb because the duo refused to continue character-driven stories that made the first season popular from the start. In December 2008, Bryan Fuller signed a 2-year deal with Universal Media Studios after the cancellation of his ABC series Pushing Daisies. He rejoined the writing staff of Heroes starting with the 20th episode of Season Three and had a “key role in the writing and direction” of the series. However, on June 22 it was revealed that Fuller left Heroes to work on other projects. Fuller had recently written a part for Pushing Daisies actress Swoosie Kurtz as a woman named Millie, a one-time character who might be promoted to a recurring character on Heroes. On April 28, 2009, writer/director/producer Greg Beeman was fired by NBC.
Music from the first season is composed by Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman, with music engineer Michael Perfitt and vocals provided by Shankar. Each episode averages thirty to thirty-five minutes of music. Melvoin and Coleman became involved with Heroes from their previous work with executive producer Allan Arkush. Tim Kring gave general instructions to the pair, including the emotion and direction for each character. Kring wanted incredibly unusual music and gave Wendy and Lisa a lot of freedom and permission to experiment. In the pilot episode, Kring suggested that a “dreamy” cue be used in the scene involving Claire Bennet running into a burning train. The “dreamy” cue has since become a signature piece of the show.
Melvoin and Coleman developed specific musical cues for each character. Claude’s theme involved wind and voices to create the feeling of a ghost-like presence. Hiro Nakamura’s involves marimbas and bassoons with staccato to re-create the sound of clocks ticking in reference to the character’s power. Matt Parkman’s theme involves voices being played backwards when he uses his power of telepathy. Peter Petrelli’s theme involves marcato strings. Niki Sanders’s theme was based on her character’s alter-ego named Jessica and involved winds and Indian voices chanting in an underscore to give a feeling that she was possessed. Mohinder Suresh’s theme is the piano composition that plays at the end of some episodes, and Sylar’s theme is the sound of a clock or an old piano.
In 2007, the ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards gave Wendy and Lisa the “Top Television Series” award for their work on Heroes. In France, the theme music of Heroes is composed by Victoria Petrosillo. Her song, “Le Héros d’un autre”, is used by television network TF1 to replace the show’s original incidental music. The network created a new opening credit sequence in order to play Petrosillo’s theme song. The Rogue Wave song “Eyes” from the Just Friends soundtrack is featured in the first season episodes “Genesis” and “Collision”.
The official Heroes soundtrack was released on March 18, 2008 by The NBC Universal Television, DVD, Music & Consumer Products Group. It contains new recordings from Wendy and Lisa, and contributions from Panic at the Disco, Wilco, Imogen Heap, Bob Dylan, Nada Surf and David Bowie, among other artist and bands. The disc also includes the Heroes theme. The disk does not contain, however, “Eyes” by Rogue Wave, which was featured in the first and fourth episode. The B-side features 45 minutes of nonstop narrative by Mohinder Suresh. On February 29, 2008, NBC Universal Television, DVD, Music & Consumer Products Group released five music videos created by Heroes producer/director Allan Arkush, each combining show footage with songs from the soundtrack. The music videos were released on Zune and MSN.
In September 2008, Wendy and Lisa announced that they would be releasing an album consisting entirely of the score from Heroes, entitled Heroes: Original Score. It was released on April 14, 2009 by La-La Land Records.
Eric Grenaudier and John Han of Stargate Digital are the visual effects supervisors and Mark Spatny is the visual effects producer for Heroes. They work with visual effects animators Anthony Ocampo and Ryan Wieber, who are also from Stargate. The series visual effects consist of blue screens and 2D and 3D animation. The visual effects for the series are created after the scene is shot in post-production, unlike special effects, which are incorporated into the scenes during filming. Notable visual effects include radioactive Ted in “Company Man”, Nathan flying from Mr. Bennet and The Haitian in “Hiros”, and Hiro’s time freezing encounter with the schoolgirl in the red bow in “One Giant Leap”. The special effects are coordinated by Gary D’Amico. Stunts are coordinated by Ian Ouinn, who also uses blue screens to accomplish some of the stunts in the series, such as Nathan Petrelli flying away from Heidi during the car accident scene in “Six Months Ago”. Principal filming for Heroes takes place in Los Angeles and Santa Clarita, California.The Stargate Digital team are also responsible for making Los Angeles look like international locations, such as India and Ukraine, using blue screens and set designs by Ruth Ammon, production designer for the series. The series is filmed using a single-camera setup.
Debra McGuire was brought in to design the large variety of costumes viewed throughout the series.
In keeping with the comic book thematic elements used on Heroes, professional comic book artists Tim Sale and Alex Maleev were brought in to provide the artwork used within the series under the direction of Matthew Jacobs and Tom Taylor, including the artwork of Isaac Mendez, and Mendez metafictional comic book series, the 9th Wonders! Additionally, the font used in captions and credits for the show is reminiscent of traditional hand-rendered comic book lettering. It was created by Sale and is based on his handwriting style.
On May 14, 2007, NBC announced that during the 2007–2008 season, the network would air a six-episode Heroes spin-off called Heroes: Origins. The show was to introduce a new character each week, and viewers were to select which one would stay for the following season of the regular series. The reason given for the spin-off was to remove the mid-season hiatus, which caused the ratings to falter when Heroes returned in the first season. NBC’s chief, Kevin Reilly, told reporters on May 14, 2007, “We’ve got something I call the ‘bulk-up challenge’ for next year, which is trying to stay more consistent in our scheduling for the audience. We asked Tim Kring to come up with an idea, and what I love is not only did we bulk up with 30 hours next season, but also a whole new idea which I think is going to take the show to the next level.” The show was supposed to air after the completion of the second season of Heroes in April 2008, as announced at the 2007 Comic-Con International. The second season of Heroes and the first season of Heroes: Origins would have included a total of 30 episodes. However, on October 31, 2007, reports in Variety and The Hollywood Reporter indicated that Origins had been postponed because of a strike by the Writers Guild of America.
Tim Kring stated in an interview with The Post Show on G4 that the first episode of Origins was to reveal the secrets and meanings behind the Helix symbol. However, because of the WGA Strike, Kring commented that the secret will have to be revealed down the line. Kring revealed in the Heroes Live Blog on September 24, 2007 that he was to write the first episode of Origins and that John August had been hired to write another episode. He also said some well known directors could be expected. Director Kevin Smith, a fan of Heroes, was set to write and direct an episode for the spin-off, as were Eli Roth and Michael Dougherty. On February 9, 2008, Tim Kring updated fans on Heroes: Origins and its status after the end of the writer’s strike. When Kring was asked about Origins resurrecting during the Spring of 2008, Kring responded, “There is really no chance for that because it is even farther off the radar than would be the next episodes of Heroes. We would have to gear all the way back up and bring all those people back. It is my hope to resurrect that at some point but right now it is all about getting the show back on the air at this point.”
On April 3, 2008, a day after NBC announced its 2008–2009 primetime schedule, Ben Silverman confirmed Origins’ cancellation. Silverman, the co-chairman of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios stated, “We were taxing our creative team to do too much around that…We wanted thirty-five Heroes episodes and twelve Heroes: Origins, each of which was supposed to be a mini-movie and backdoor pilot. We reached far and challenged our people, and we decided it was better to focus on keeping the Heroes mothership as strong as possible.” On August 28, 2008, Tim Kring indicated that the concept of Heroes: Origins “isn’t totally dead.”
Heroes includes a number of mysterious fictional recurring elements that have been ascribed to science fiction or supernatural phenomena. Tim Kring and the creators of the series refer to these fictional elements as part of the mythology of the series. Kring confirmed that although the show does have a unique mythology, he does not want to sink too deeply into it. Rather, Kring has used volumes to wrap up ongoing plot lines, rather than carrying storylines over long periods of time, as in Lost. As far as the overall mythology of the series, Kring said, “we have talked about where the show goes up to five seasons.” As far as the show’s ending date, Kring has commented that, “This show doesn’t posit an ending…” The show does not have a designated ending point and is “open-ended.”
Among the show’s mythological elements are the Company, the legend of Takezo Kensei, paintings of the future, superpowers and their origins, the Shanti virus, 9th Wonders! comic book and numerous other elements and mythological themes.
Text published courtesy Heroes article at Wikipedia.org and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.
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