What with the WGA strike and the indefinite time of said protest, there’s no guarantee much of the current shows will be returning, so it’s probably a good thin that creator of “Heroes,” Tim Kring, has outright apologized to fans for “Heroes: Season Two.”
I’ve yet to come across a fan who hasn’t said “Heroes sucks lately.” And that’s a sad thing to admit, especially as one who made “Heroes” such a primary part of his week. I always looked forward to “Heroes” and it was becoming a Monday event and then… Kring and co. followed it up with season two.
In spite of a few reservations, “Heroes” is horrible this season and hopefully it can rebound if a season three even emerges. The planned “Heroes: Origins” has already been scrapped, and the general consensus among fans has been that the series should be fixed before a spin off is even considered.
In spite of your reservations with the show though, Kring has done an interesting thing. Perhaps it’s because now he’s on strike so he can’t get in too much trouble, or perhaps he’s apologizing because he has nothing left to lose and NBC may be re-considering the entire show altogether, but… he’s apologized to the fans.
His examination of the faults with the second season is an echo of all the fans, and Kring promises a revamp with possibly brand new characters. Regardless, with the fifteen percent drop in ratings, it may be too little too late, but hey, maybe the show can go out with a bang… considering it returns for season three.
If you remember this blog, which I wrote with great sadness, Kring’s concerns are pretty much the same, and at least he’s acknowledged the garbage, unlike Al Gough.
His concerns, which I will paraphrase and offer a rebuttal to are here:
Kring: THE PACE IS TOO SLOW
Me: “We taught [them] to expect a certain kind of storytelling. They wanted adrenaline. We made a mistake,” says Kring. The problem with this second season is that it’s too low key. The first season was so tense and always built up to something, not to mention it felt more like a ride rather than a story, and the problem this season is that not only do the sub-plots meander, they’re sloppy, and most of all bland. There are no surprises, no suspense, no tension, and all tedium.
Kring: THE WORLD-SAVING STAKES SHOULD HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED SOONER
Me: “The first 11 episodes of season 2) would have been better served if Peter’s vision of viral Armageddon had appeared in the season premiere rather than episode 7.” Once again Kring is dead on. There simply was nothing but recaps of season one episodes and a lot of the old characters bouncing from place to place without a purpose. The conflict was established in episode one of season one and now there just isn’t a direction. Even now with Peter’s purpose established, there’s nothing hooking us in, there’s no goal, no primary objective. Even with this new storyline, the thrill is gone.
Kring: THE ROOKIES DIDN’T GREET THEMSELVES PROPERLY
Me: “New Heroes Monica (Dana Davis), Maya (Dania Ramirez), and Alejandro (Shalim Ortiz) ”shouldn’t have been introduced in separate story lines that felt unattached to the show.” With this response I think Kring is off. These new characters are horrible. Kung fu cousin is nothing but a repeat of Peter. Peter can absorb powers, she can mimic powers, and they’re both humble people who want bigger things. Maya and Alejandro are vapid, one-dimensional, and their conflicts are repetitive, Kensei is too thinly drawn to be sympathetic, and Elle barely had a role in her introduction. Juice up the characters and their sub plots and audiences won’t care if their storylines are detached.
Kring: HIRO WAS IN JAPAN WAY TOO LONG
Me: When many people begin to call Hiro Doc Brown, then there’s a good chance he’s not serving much of a purpose. How can we take Hiro seriously when his primary goal is “I have to save the world!” and then suddenly says “I have to ruin the Space Time Continuum and stay in Japan for the hot piece of a*s!” Hiro’s role in interacting with his hero was a great concept sadly wasted and turned into a camp fest. “It should have [lasted] three episodes. We didn’t give the audience enough story to justify the time we allotted it.” I wouldn’t go that far. It could have gone on longer if the sub-plot was… oh, actually good! And for the love of good, find a use for Ando.
Kring: YOUNG LOVE STINKS
Me: ”In retrospect, I don’t think romance is a natural fit for us.” It can be, but only if done well. This is one of the primary problems of season two. You kept characters who were pretty much done. Claire seems to be there just to be there. And her horrible romance with Superboy isn’t making things better. He’s stalking her and she’s attracted to him, he sneaks into her bed room, she yells at him and they’re on the couch making out. How can we get involved in these two when Claire is so idiotic? You expect us to believe she can’t tell this guy is stalking her, yet she caught on to her father and the Haitian so quickly? And their romance was too quick, forced, and predictable to get into. The romance with Hiro and the maiden was also cliche. Claire, Peter, Nikki, Nathan, HRG, and Suresh shouldn’t have even been in season two.
I hope this reboot planned for next year really does this series some good. It’s still one of the better series around and I’d hate to think it was a one trick pony. Says EW: “The Dec. 3 episode has been retooled to function as a potential season finale “” a move inspired by the writers’ strike and a desire to give the show ”a clean slate” when it goes back into production for Volume 3.” Here’s hoping the series can go back to its former glory.
”The message is that we’ve heard the complaints “” and we’re doing something about it.”
That’s all we ask, Tim.
