So it’s that time of year where the TV shows are wrapping up, and the networks, like bored, overpaid scientists, put each show under the microscope, probe the viewer ratings in places we’d best not mention, and determine whether or not said show will return for another season. NBC recently announced that a number of shows would be returning, including their new drama Southland, Tina Fey’s 30 Rock, Law & Order: Special Victims, and a bunch of other stuff nobody cares about… including Heroes.

What began as an edge-of-the-seat drama about every day people discovering strange powers has spiraled into a hackneyed dirty toilet of stale characters and plot mechanics that even the writers can’t seem to agree upon. If you followed season 3 of Heroes, you know that almost every episode introduced a new plot line or major twist, where in the next episode it was quickly swept under the table to make way for new and interesting ways to destroy a perfectly good series. If you didn’t follow it, or your dropped it, good on you. You weren’t missing much.

The season opened up with a “butterfly effect” style plotline, where “hero” Peter Petrelli was using his newly acquired time-travel power t o go back and forth between the future in order to prevent a dire explosion. It started strong. It introduced a lot of hooks, including Ando’s betrayal of Hiro, which was teased throughout the rest of the season, and Sylar, the ultimate villain, turning into a house-maker dad with a penchant for cooking.

NONE of this was realized by the end of the show. The writers dropped it entirely, instead introducing new plotlines and not even living up to the exciting conclusions viewers expected from the plotlines they did resolve. Sylar’s 10 episode quest to find his father was one such disappointment.

Oh Claire, put the gun down. For being invincible, you sure are worthless.

It can feel much like a dagger in the back when writers who have previously crafted solid work suddenly take a turn for the worse, making characters we’d come to know and love through the duration of the original piece do inexplicably stupid things in the cash-in follow-up. Mohinder Suresh was a likable character in season 1. By season 3, he’s a complete tool.

That’s the thing about this show – it’s a rare form indeed when a show is actually character versus plot driven. Without getting into a bunch of technical writing specifics, 80% of the shows you watch are plot based. The plot takes priority over the characters in the writing and the characters react to events. In a character driven show, like the first season of Heroes, the characters, their conflicting personalities, and their deep-rooted backgrounds make the drama happen. It becomes more important to the viewer to see what happens to the character than what happens next.

Heroes used to be that show. It isn’t anymore. The characters are cardboard cutouts of their former selves, being tossed around in the wind of mediocre plot twists and getting filthier and more painful to watch with each passing episode.

NBC is introducing a few new shows to stir up the primetime pot, including two new medical dramas, Trauma (HMMM!) and Mercy, as well as a post-apocalyptic drama called Day One, following a rag-tag bunch of survivors, apparently pitched by… one of the writers of Heroes. NBC spokespeople have said they would more than likely use the Heroes time slot to try to gain momentum for Day One.

Sucks to be NBC. Because I am personally giving up on Heroes, and if anyone else is in the same boat, Day One is going have problems of its own.

Stumble it!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 at 2:19 am and is filed under Scott Strichart, Television, news. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. Both comments and pings are currently closed.