Paul Drinkwater/NBC Last night, it was right about the time Andy and Danielle were watching the sun set over the sea in Kauai, just as the producers of The Bachelor played the cheesiest instrumental version imaginable of "Love Lift Us Up Where We Belong" that it hit me: Heroes has been so much freaking better than 99 percent of the crap on TV this season!
Okay, so maybe I'm feeling a bit nostalgic tonight because there's only one episode left and I happened to spend some quality hug time with the cast at NBC's presentation today, but damn if this show doesn't just keep getting better!
Think about it. Every single episode had big plot twists, payoffs, reveals, deaths and at least one big "wow" moment. And tonight's episode was no different, so let's assess. But first I must warn you...
I'm on the East Coast tonight! So, if you West Coasters (or Hawaiians, Alaskans or Martians) haven't yet seen tonight's episode, please wait to read this until you have!
WHAT WE LEARNED
Daddies Are Powerful! In case you missed the announcement, NBC will be doing a handful of "Origin" episodes of Heroes next season, and they are certainly greasing the wheels toward those storylines, with the reveal tonight that Hiro's dad is a badass swordsman (loved the Takei on Oka action!) who "years ago, had allies, but some of them lost their way," and also Linderman's explanation to Nathan that: "Your father was one of us. Someone with great power. He tried to do good but just gave up." Just like...Nathan?
Nathan's Wife Can Walk! We all knew Rena Sofer had too hot a bod to stay seated for too long, right?
Linderman Can Heal: Could Linderman's brain in D.L.'s hand actually rescue Micah's poor daddy from death? Of course it can. This is Heroes! (Not to mention, actor Leonard Roberts was at the NBC upfront today, which is all about next season.)
Candice Has the Best Power of All: She can eat everything in sight, sloth around and fail to exfoliate and still be drop-dead gorgeous in her size-two jeans. Bitch!
Ted Is Dead: And truth told, the actor who plays him should thank his lucky stars 'cause he was supposed to die much earlier in the season, but his fate was swapped with that of Eden's back in the day. Still, he met the exact same fate that was planned all along: Brain candy for Sylar.
WHAT LIES AHEAD
Four Characters End the Season "in Peril": This is what the cast told me today, and I think "peril" is code for "may or may not be coming back next season." The good news? I can assure you that Hayden, Milo, Adrian and Ali will all be back for sure next season. I personally think D.L. (duh), Matt (shown injured in the preview) and Ando are most at risk. (Micah and Molly are of course safe, 'cause you can't kill kids on television!)
Hiro Is So That Ancient Warrior Kensei: It almost seems obvious now, right?
Next week is the big finale and the final redux—stay tuned!
In the meantime, post your theories on what you think will happen. Will Peter explode? Sylar? Will Nathan try to come to the rescue? Comment away below!