The cool thing to do, these days, is dump on Heroes. I’m not saying that the show doesn’t deserve it (because I’m not stupid), but it’s almost funny the kind of hatred that has developed for this show since, well, the first season finale. Despite the meteoric fall, I seem to have been one of the few people out there defending Heroes (Well, maybe I am stupid). The question, though, is can the show turn it around and get some of its viewers back?
For most people, the answer will be no. Heroes has not exactly been kind to its fan base lately. From dropping storylines (Does anyone remember Caitlin? Peter certainly doesn’t), to confusing plots, to deaths that don’t mean anything (Seriously, there was a running joke on Kona‘s liveblogs about the difference between “Heroes Dead” and “Lost Dead”), people haven’t really been given a reason to keep tuning in. Once people have changed the channel, the only thing that can bring them back is for word of mouth of how good it’s gotten. But the “getting good” is the necessary part.
So what does the show have to do? The first season was magic. Get back to it. The characters were ordinary people discovering extraordinary powers. Somewhere along the way, they stopped being normal. It’s time for these folks to find out who they are again. They are not fugitives on the run, they are not terrorists … They are regular people who can do things. Trying to be normal despite their reality is both a logical desire and a good story.
The exception to this rule is with Hiro Nakamura. His ability to time travel, and the writers’ over-reliance on it as a plot device, has been the source of quite a bit of the frustration. Hiro was such a good character in season one because we knew how boyish he was, and also the badass man that he’d become. Its time for him to start becoming that, minus the time travel. This team has proven that a time travel story really isn’t their gig. Nakamura has been on some kind of journey, literally and metaphorically, for a while. It’s time for him to get there.
I can’t write about this without mentioning Bryan Fuller. He is being touted as the guy who can turn things around. Frankly, if anyone can, it is Fuller. From interviews, he thinks it’s about the characters (I know, I like to beat dead horses), and their journey. Less about what they can do, and more about how they handle it.
I hope the promise of Fuller will bring people back. Unfortunately, I think the show has too many hurdles, and has wasted too many chances. I actually think that the show is going to have a creative comeback this season, but no one will be around to see it.
Clacked by Ivey West 
on Jun 07, 2009 @ 16:00 EST5EDT
I know I have written this before – It would be grand if the Heroes would do something Heroic once in a while.
*POST AUTHOR*
That’s totally a sage piece of advice, and frankly, a no-brainer when you say it out loud.
I’ve got enough faith in the show to give this season a chance. I just hope it delivers, and that there are enough people watching to notice.
The Bryan Fuller part of season 3 was the best the show has been in a while, so quality wise I’m sure it can reach and even surpass its season 1 heights. Bringing back viewers, however, is a different story. Because the show fell so hard, I don’t know if people will be willing to come back. And isn’t it midseason for NBC next year? I remember reading it only got a 13 episode or so order, so will that be at the front or back end of the season?
I agree with bsgfan2003 – nobody on Heroes is actually a hero. The show is based around these characters who constantly make bad decisions.
I have ditched and I know I will not be coming back.
Unfortunately, I think it is nearly impossible to get viewers back. Once someone has left a show like Heroes, they aren’t likely to come back. It is too much of a serial. Even if it ends up being spectacular, anyone coming back would most likely be missing something from the missing eps.
I stuck it through because I have hopes that it can find its groove again. They start filming tomorrow, so I wish them lots of luck!
The smartest (albeit annoying) thing that BSG did was a huge gap between seasons. It allowed people to hear the “word of mouth” and catch up the past seasons to watch the final season. While most people that were hooked from day 1 didn’t really like waiting a year between seasons and even half-seasons, it allowed for the audience to grow. The only way this will happen for Heroes is if it gets good and there is sufficient time for people to catch up, which I do not believe NBC is going to allow the time.
Heroes isn’t BSG. Even when BSG went in rather bad directions in seasons, the show is still watchable for the most part. Heroes has had two really horrible seasons and after that no one wants to watch.
Heroes used to be a huge mega hit, and now it’s hardly even on life support.
Well the one saving grace for Heroes is you don’t -have- to go back and watch those other seasons. But you do have to watch each season in it’s entirety. So if this season coming up happens to be great then NBC will need to do something along the lines of what they did with BSG and give a long hiatus period for people to catch the first half of the season. Maybe a year is too long ala BSG, but 4 months probably would do it.
And you’re right, the show is definitely not BSG.