Review:

To say this episode brings Heroes to a spectacular mid-season conclusion would be an understatement.

"Fallout" doesn't just showcase the writing and acting that make Heroes exemplary; it doesn't just leave us desperate to know how each of its cliffhangers will be resolved after the show's six-week hiatus; beyond that stuff, it sets up the principal story arcs that will drive the second half of the season.

So, like I say, "spectacular" doesn't do the episode, or the show, enough justice.

"Fallout" isn't without flaws. There are still characters peripheral to the plot. There are still story threads moving too slowly. Simone barely appears, and Mohinder gets his standard two-scene cameo. The Niki story is still moving too slowly to keep up with the others, and D.L. and Micah still deserve to have their own story arcs rather than play the supporting roles in Niki's.

That said, there's evidence here that the problems undermining the show during the first half of the season are going to be fixed in the second: Mohinder has returned to New York, meaning he might now spend less time staring at computer screens or contemplating kids with footballs and more time becoming involved with the search for the other heroes.

Isaac has met Hiro and painted the future without heroin, meaning he might now stop acting like a crazy-ass junkie and start using his power to function as the group's oracle.

And Matt's story thread has now linked with Claire's and Peter's, meaning the guy has a chance to be a part of the central Sylar plot rather than listening to his wife's thoughts and visiting the convenience store for ice cream.

It's not that these things dragged Heroes down over the first eleven episodes; just that they were weaker parts of an otherwise phenomenal show. Judging from their significance this week, it could be that even these weaknesses will become the show's strengths before the season is out.

The episode starts out where "Homecoming" left off, recapping how Jessica fired a rifle at D.L., how Peter stopped Sylar and saved Claire, how Eden worked her coercion whammy on Sylar, and how Claire was ready to tell Daddy Bennet about her power to insta-heal. You'll note that the least captivating story arc comes first in the recap, presumably because the show was hoping it might seem more exciting if it wasn't tailing the other story threads. Sadly, this strategy fails.

Bennet's house of canine love. Daddy Bennet turns the light switch on. The first thing we notice is a giant painting of a poodle on the wall. Is it me, or is Sandra's obsession with dogs more terrifying than Sylar's obsession with brains?

That level of detail is part of what makes this scene remarkable, though. It's the way Daddy Bennet gives Claire his coat. It's the way he gets chocolate milk from the fridge. It's even insane stuff like framed portraits of poodles on the walls.

Daddy Bennet reveals that he knew about Claire's ability before she did. His decision to tell her gives Coleman a chance to once again excel in his role as the misunderstood yet loving father. When he tells Claire he only wanted to protect her, we believe him. In spite of the character's ambiguity after kidnapping and monitoring people against their will, his love for Claire comes across as genuine.

The counter-argument to that, I guess, is the way we'll later see Daddy Bennet decide he DOESN'T want Claire to remember that he knows, or even that she has a secret to know about. On a surface level, this scene underlines how important it is to Daddy Bennet that his daughter remains safe. With hindsight, it's odd that he decides to open up to his daughter now, only to send the Haitian to wipe her memory later.

You also have to wonder how wiping Claire's memory and the memories of the people around her will protect her from Sylar. I mean, it's not like keeping Claire in the dark about her power will prevent Sylar from finding her. That part's unclear because we still don't know how Sylar is finding these individuals; whether he's working from Papa Suresh's list, from The Map, or from his own research. But if he's going to search for them, it seems like he's going to find them whether they know about their ability or not.

Not a criticism of the way the story arc is written; just something which needs to be explained at some point.

Beyond these questions, though, all you can do is marvel at the way Hayden aces her performance this week. She manages to do that almost every week, but her acting this week exudes confidence and understanding of the character she's playing. When Claire learns that Daddy Bennet watched her struggle to accept her ability and reconcile herself to the fact that she was different, Hayden brings such an amazing blend of shock, hurt and disbelief to Claire's reaction. The tears are subtle enough not to become sentimental, but it's Claire's expression which really makes us feel for the character: it's the way she looks at her father, wondering who he is and how he could have kept this from her.

Meanwhile, on the high school hill of coercion, Matt and AudreyClea show up to investigate. They don't look too exhausted, given that they just traveled 900 miles overnight to be here. I'm not complaining that Matt's now involved with the Claire and Peter threads, but it seemed a little bizarre that he and AudreyClea suddenly show up in Texas.

AudreyClea notes that this crime scene "fits Sylar's MO." And it does, even after AudreyClea sagely noted in "Nothing To Hide" that Sylar didn't HAVE an MO. They speculate about whether Sylar stopped on the hill "to catch his breath." No one wonders whether he just wanted some air or to stretch his legs after plowing through a dozen hot dogs at the homecoming game. He'd lost a lot of blood, it emerges, so I guess not. Also, the fact that there were other sets of footprints on the hill suggests "accomplices" rather than adversaries with a penchant for coercion and super-power inhibition.

Then, in one of those "how-did-we-go-from-THAT-conversation-to-THIS?" moments, the discussion turns to why Matt is popping aspirins left and right and whether he cheated on Janice the way she cheated on him. Because apparently, all males in law enforcement are "dogs", and all females in law enforcement are "bitches". I get that, but where do the pigs, foxes, wolves, coyotes and pit bulls fit in? And what of the sharks? Is it just land-based species? More importantly, why is AudreyClea trying to take the emphasis away from Janice cheating and shift it onto whether or not Matt's loyal to his wife? Either AudreyClea's looking out for Janice when she has absolutely no reason to, or the people writing this show want us to forget the fact that Matt's wife cheated on him.

Odessa Sheriff's Department. The animal metaphors continue. Peter is locked in a glass cell where people can watch him like a zoo exhibit. The cops even let Peter keep his blood-stained T-shirt to make him look extra-savage.

Nathan shows up with a tuxedo and enters the cell. Brotherly bonding commences. Nathan justifies his decision to destroy one of Isaac's paintings by claiming he was trying to keep it from happening. I know a lot of people will dismiss it as a cover story and say it only masks Nathan's villainy, but it once again highlights that Nathan is clued in to what's happening, and that his actions stem from good intentions. He believes in Peter's ability; he knows that Peter has a role to play in this group of super-powered individuals; it's just that, for their own safety, Nathan doesn't want Peter or himself to get involved.

Anyway, Peter starts telling Nathan how he keeps meeting people like, Isaac, Hiro and Claire, and how he thinks they're "all the same," and that he's supposed to bring them together to stop the explosion which Isaac painted.

Wasn't that Mohinder's role on this show?

See, that's why Mohinder's importance on the show is steadily diminishing. Beyond the list of names that he's working with (which it would be easy enough for Peter to get a hold of) there's really very little reason for him to be on the show. This scene is about Peter expressing his uncertainty about how to go forward, but he's realizing that his purpose is to contact the various members of the superhero group and then either enlighten them or work with them. Which, until now, has more or less been Mohinder's role on the show.

Nathan's voice goes ultra-deep, and when Peter looks over to him again, it's Sylar looking back. Peter wakes up from this nightmare, scared out of his wits, wondering why he couldn't be dreaming about Charlize Theron or Scarlett Johansson.

Or even that gorgeous cheerleader he just met at Union Wells High School. 'Cause she was hot.

Somewhere in "rural Utah" (no longer "along HWY 12"), D.L. is still trying to get into his wagoneer to take himself and Micah back to Vegas. Jessica fires her rifle, and the bullet hits D.L. in the right shoulder.

Now THIS surprised me. I was sure this would have been one of the cliffhangers which the show would immediately write its way out of by having the bullet phase through D.L. and continue into the cafe. A second bullet hits the side of the car, and we get a neat little effect when the third bullet phases through D.L.'s skull and into the car's tire. But for some reason, D.L. isn't able to phase into his own shoulder to extract the first bullet.

Jessica throws down the rifle and goes striding across the road towards the car. Micah and D.L. have both disappeared, and Jessica's left with her less-evil-and-infinitely-less-entertaining alter ego reflected back at her in the car window.

One issue that comes up here is whether Niki is aware of what Jessica's doing. The way she's remonstrating against Jessica every time her reflection appears makes it seem like she's conscious and watching what's happening (but unable to intervene). It would seem to match the way Jessica is aware of what's happening to Niki and emerging when she wants to. Problem is, it's disproven when Niki retakes control of her body and doesn't seem to remember anything.

So, even though Niki's present as a reflection and looking very upset about what Jessica's doing, it seems like she doesn't know what Jessica's doing while she's in control of Niki's body. I get that Niki comes across as more innocent and more of a victim if she isn't aware of Jessica's actions, but it's a little tedious for the viewers when Niki needs a recap of what happened every time Jessica takes control of her, and it's a little exasperating for viewers when Niki's unaware of half the events in her story thread.

Primatech Paper, where Rufus is still waiting for Daddy Bennet's sign-off on next month's parking sticker. Eden's sitting outside Sylar's cell, looking slightly more stunning than usual.

Daddy Bennet turns the lights on in Sylar's cell and looks at him through a glass window. This is one giant cell compared to Peter's. Plus, Sylar gets a blanket on his bed and a change of clothes. How is it that the serial killer gets a comfier cell than the guy who just saved a cheerleader's life?

Sylar is told that his powers won't work in this cell. How? We don't know. Some of you think it's because there's some kind of power-dampener around the cell. Or that Daddy Bennet has a power-deflecting aura which doesn't require the Haitian to be around him all the time. Like the whole human-genome-leads-to-a-list-of-individuals-around-the-world concept, it's one of those things which really needs to be explained. Like, really soon.

Daddy Bennet starts off with the old exposition, telling Sylar that he used to be Gabriel Gray, "an insignificant watchmaker." Sylar's all, "Dude, I KNOW because it's MY STORY, and could you please say I 'restored timepieces' instead of calling me a 'watchmaker'?" And Daddy Bennet's like, "Yeah, just what I thought ... You're insane! You've harvested so many brains that it's turned you even more cuckoo than you were to begin with!"

Then Sylar starts talking about his daughter, and the wry smile disappears from Daddy Bennet's face. Capturing individuals with super-powers and declaring them insane is laughs aplenty for Daddy Bennet, but when they make things personal, he gets ... really ... really ... angry.

Not Incredible Hulk angry, but he shouts a bit. And it's scary. The guy who was pouring chocolate milk for his daughter hauls out his authoritative, menacing personality. And suddenly it's gone again: Sylar slams himself against the window and shrieks "MY NAME IS SYLAR!", and the wry smile returns, and suddenly Daddy Bennet's all, "Yeah, that was fun," and Sylar's all, "Come inside here and tell me that, buddy." The scene is intense because the reactions from the characters are so sudden and so ephemeral. Daddy Bennet's vulnerability only emerges for an instant when Sylar taunts him about Claire, but it's bookended with self-satisfied smugness. Sylar's fury at being called Gabriel and hearing the reference to his old life is terrifying, but it's all the more disturbing when it's so sudden, and when it's veiled beneath a calm, composed exterior.

Daddy Bennet walks out of the cell, finishes a conversation on his cell phone, and tells Eden that keeping Sylar alive and in custody are their "marching orders." It's the first hint that Daddy Bennet might not be running the operation the way he wants to, but instead be following instructions from someone above him. Eden's all, "Which idiot came up with that plan? Let me work my whammy and tell Sylar to kill himself!" Daddy Bennet thinks about this for a moment, and there's a reversal to the scene in "Homecoming" when he told Eden not to let her emotions impair her judgment. And bizarrely, we can't help advocating Eden's plan to work her whammy on Sylar and have him take his own life. Because as immoral as it is, Sylar's a serial killer, he killed Papa Suresh, he killed Charlie, he killed Jackie, he's threatening the ClaireBear, and he's the central villain of the story.

We finally find out that D.L. was the one who got the suitcase with Linderman's $2m, even though we didn't see him make off with it at the end of "Better Halves", and even though Jessica suddenly had $2k handy to pay for the sniper rifle in "Homecoming". D.L. and Micah find an abandoned house in the forest, and D.L. phases his arm through the door to unlock it from the inside. And even though Micah just watched his dad get shot and knows that his mom has a psychotic alternate personality, seeing his dad do cool superhero stuff is enough to make him smile and forget how much life sucks right now.

D.L. passes out on the steps in front of the house. Micah's left wondering if his dad's going to bleed out in the middle of nowhere. You really have to feel sorry for Micah when he gets dragged through this twisted drama and is just waiting to see whether one of his parents is going to kill the other in front of him.

At the Odessa Sheriff's Department where clean T-shirts aren't supplied to murder suspects, Peter finds himself about to be questioned. Matt and AudreyClea show up, and suddenly Peter's head "feels like it's gonna split open." There seems to be a lot of uncertainty about why Peter's health suddenly deteriorates this week. It seems to me that Peter's proximity to other super-powered individuals doesn't just imbue him with their ability, but also their physical state. Meaning Peter absorbs Matt's telepathy in this scene, but also his headaches; he absorbs Claire's insta-heal power, but also the cough which she suffered from as a baby (mentioned in "Better Halves").

AudreyClea says they know Peter didn't kill Jackie, and that the blood on his T-shirt is his own. But she twigs that something's amiss based on the fact that Peter, in spite of all that blood, doesn't have a scratch on him. So Peter's all, "That's great, can I get outta here and slip into something that ISN'T covered in blood?", and AudreyClea's all, "Not until you tell me what a hospice nurse is doing at a high school in Texas. Are you some kind of pervert?"

Peter looks appalled. And I know we should too, because Claire's not legal, and darn, just putting Milo and Hayden together in a scene where there's such undeniable chemistry ain't legal. But I'm ashamed to admit that I'm really, really glad this hospice nurse showed up at the high school in Texas, and that we got to see him share these scenes with the cheerleader. Because they really are so cute together.

To get back on topic: Matt gets the go-ahead from AudreyClea to start reading Peter's mind.

OK, just to veer off topic again for a moment: this is the first of a bunch of instances which demonstrate categorically that Matt IS in control of his ability. So from now on there's no defending him when he 'involuntarily' reads Janice's mind. From now on, when Matt garners information from anyone, we know that he's actively CHOOSING to hear someone's thoughts. Moreover, when he elicits information by reading someone's mind, he's effectively invading their privacy. His decision to listen in on Peter's thoughts here is part of a murder investigation, so it can be justified. But the argument that Matt can't help overhearing his wife's thoughts is nonsense after this, because it's clear that Matt CAN control when he wants to read someone's mind and that he's making a concerted effort to hear that person's thoughts.

Just an observation, but I think it's significant in relation to the way Matt uses his power and the way he uses the things he learns from people's thoughts to improve their opinion of him.

Anyhow, Matt tries to read Peter's mind. Peter unwittingly picks up the same ability and begins to read Matt's mind. The result is a mildly comical moment when they're both getting jammed frequencies in their heads. Peter gives Matt this look that's like, "Dude! What the %*@# are you doing in my head?! Knock that #*%^ off!"

Matt gets the "save the cheerleader" line, and AudreyClea's thinking, "Yeah, little late for that," and Peter can hear that, so he starts panicking that Claire's dead, and Matt's all, "What the %*@#? Are you telepathic too?" The whole sketch is extremely cool, and you have to figure it's going to be part of what makes Peter's arc so much fun when he starts meeting the rest of the heroes and absorbing their powers.

Mohinder returns to his Brooklyn apartment. He finds macaroni and cheese in the fridge and a dead lizard in a tank. More importantly, he finds that the apartment is uninhabited. It seems that a spacious apartment in Brooklyn, one which can be afforded by a guy driving a cab, isn't in high enough demand to be snapped up by another tenant within ten minutes of Mohinder leaving for India.

Mohinder finds a note from Eden. "Welcome home! I knew you'd be back! Now get back to work! Love, Eden." What, no exclamation mark after Eden?

Mohinder takes Eden's advice and immediately gets back to work, calling lots of important agencies and asking why they aren't immediately acting on the list of names he sent them.

Uh, OK.

"Hi there, Mr. FBI. Greetings, Mr. CIA. I have a list of names which I think you'll find very importa-"

"Who is this? What are you talking about?"

"My name is Mohinder Suresh, and I'm faxing you a list of people I believe are going to be hunted down and murdered by a man who calls himself Sylar."

"How do you know this?"

"Well, my father was involved in identifying super-powers in individuals based on their genomes and genetic variat-"

"Cut the crap. Is this some kind of prank? Are you wasting federal time?"

"What? No! I'm trying to save these people's lives! You need to send someone to their addresses right now and warn them th-"

"Who's trying to kill them, and why?"

"Well, as I'm trying to explain, they're 'special', and the man who wants to kill them is interested in removing their scalps and extracting their br-"

"Yeah, whatever. Time's up. We got a trace on your location. You'll be telling this story from a mental institute within the hour."

Mohinder might have regained his idealism, but he's not dumb enough to think he can begin faxing his list of names out to agencies, potentially revealing names and addresses to the serial killer he's trying to save these people from, and expect them to help him. There's well-intentioned, and then there's just plain naive.

Still, nice reference to James Walker, the father of the girl that Matt found in "Don't Look Back", and nice detail by calling Charlie "Charlene".

Primatech Paper, residence of clairvoyant artists and serial killers. Isaac sketches without heroin. He tells Eden it's "nice to be drawing just to draw." This is what I wish we could have seen in "Six Months Ago": Isaac's career damaged by a combination of his drug addiction and the discovery of his ability to paint events before they happen. Hopefully it'll be shown in a flashback at some point, but this line hinted at the guy Isaac was before he realized his power: the guy who loved his craft and took pride in his ability to draw and paint.

Eden tells Isaac that Claire's alive and that Sylar's caught. Isaac gets this look of wide-eyed hope, and it becomes clear that, behind the delusional raving at his apartment, the guy always wanted to use his ability to help. When he points out that it's possible to change the future and stop the bomb in New York, he says it with resolve. It's only speculation, but this moment seemed to hint at the way that Isaac's going to become one of the most determined of the group, the one who's committed to using his ability for the greater good.

Eden hands Isaac his cell phone and her swipe card, presumably intending already now to orchestrate Sylar's death and then either run or let herself be caught.

In a neat transition, we cut from the painting of Hiro and Ando below the homecoming banner to the actual characters standing underneath the banner at Claire's high school.

Hiro goes through the Obligatory Exposition with Ando: they need to (1) find Peter Petrelli, (2) find Meester Eeezuk, (3) stop the bomb in New York from going off, and (4) stop listing these darn expository plot points like we've all forgotten them. The show generally assumes a level of intelligence from its viewers, but this mini-recap from Hiro every week (on top of the recap at the start of the episode) is seriously beginning to grate.

So Hiro moves on from guilt at Charlie's death and gets back to fulfilling his mission and waiting for Destiny to find him. As Destiny would have it, Meester Eeezuk calls him right now and says they need to meet. And Ando's like, "I wish Destiny would lose our number." Yeah, and let him go back to the Burnt Toast Diner where he can gulp down another bojillion cups of coffee. 'Cause those were good times for Ando.

Odessa Sheriff's Department, where telepaths meet. AudreyClea gets Claire to recount what happened at the homecoming game while Daddy Bennet listens. Hayden again gives a heartfelt performance as she conveys her remorse at the way she left Jackie to die.

Matt stands outside the room, straining to listen to Claire's thoughts. He's not having any luck because, as we learn, Daddy Bennet brought the Haitian along. And, what, no one wondered about the guy who was lurking outside a room where a witness was being questioned? No one asked what relation the guy was to the witness when he entered the Sheriff's Department? No one suspected that this guy might be connected to the murder at the high school, and that he might be about to murder the cheerleader who escaped at the high school?

*Sigh*

Let's just assume the Haitian used magic powers to get past the officers without them noticing.

More importantly, let's also assume that Daddy Bennet somehow KNEW he'd need the Haitian around when Claire was being questioned. It's not like he would have expected the same telepathic Matt Parkman he'd already captured to show up, but let's assume that the Haitian was there in case ANYONE with an ability of some kind showed up and needed to be inhibited.

In the Utah forest, Jessica's ambling after her husband and son. She finds D.L.'s coat, feels a stab of regret for shooting him, and Niki resurfaces. Based on this, I guess we're supposed to conclude that what brings out Jessica is fear, despair, a sense of danger or a survival instinct. What brings out Niki, it seems, is love.

And as soon as Niki returns, Ali Larter switches from the quick, resolved, sure-footed sniper to the clumsy, uncoordinated, hapless victim. It's impressive to watch how the actress plays them differently, but I'd still say that Jessica's part of the story is a lot more compelling than Niki's, and that Ali Larter plays Jessica a lot better than she does Niki. And when she's playing them side-by-side in this scene, it's like the end of "Better Halves" all over again: you can tell that the actress enjoys playing the bad half a lot more than the good half.

Back at the place where creepy power-inhibiting guys lurk without being suspected, we're treated to the forbidden love.

If it's so wrong, why does the show allow it?

So Claire and Daddy Bennet walk into Peter's cell, and Peter's like, "Hey, you're OK!", and Claire's like, "Thanks to you ... Now let me rip that blood-stained T-shirt off your manly chest and make sure you haven't suffered injuries that I should tend to." Or something like that. And Daddy Bennet just glares, and tells Peter that he owes him his life, and that he hopes he'll one day find himself in a situation where he can return the favor. Which, the way Coleman delivers it, sounds less like an expression of gratitude and more like a threat.

Peter starts coughing. Hilariously, the camera then reveals the No Smoking sign painted on the wall behind Daddy Bennet.

Claire asks Daddy Bennet to wait outside while she talks to Peter. He doesn't like that idea much, but can't really refuse his daughter anything. And who can blame him.

So Daddy Bennet exits the cell with this look at Peter that's like, "I'll be standing RIGHT OUTSIDE, young man!", and Peter's like, "Yes sir, I got that!" Claire immediately skips to asking Peter how long he's known that he can insta-heal, and Peter seems to only now be figuring out that he survived the fall at the high school because of her. Claire launches into this spirited speech about how she always thought she was alone, but now there's someone like her. And Peter's all, "Wow! This is WAY cooler than flying off rooftops or painting the future!"

Then Claire sits down on the bed next to Peter (no, really!), and Peter tells her he knew he had to save her, and Claire gives him this look that is SMOULDERING. I kid you not. If the show wants to stop making Peter look like he's taking advantage of jailbait, this really isn't the way to do it.

Peter tells Claire that he thinks he died at the school, and Claire's all, "Yeah, I've died before too, it's no big deal." And she giggles and flashes those pearly whites, and Peter's instantly smitten. Though Milo pretends not to be, because he's a gentleman and knows it would be wrong.

Daddy Bennet sees where this is going and starts rapping on the window. And Claire's giving him the "just-a-minute" finger and trying to recapture the moment. Peter admits that he didn't know he was going to survive the fall at the high school, and admits it was "kinda stupid." Claire just gazes at him with admiration, telling him it wasn't stupid at all. It was amazing and heroic and chivalrous and romantic and boy does Claire want him to rip that bloodied T-shirt off right now and let Daddy Bennet and the cops gawp behind the glass as the zoo animals do naughty things.

Or not. But you know that's what Daddy Bennet is thinking when he raps on the window a second time and Claire's like, "Dad, could you just buzz off for a moment?" She tells Peter that he's "totally [her] hero," and Peter gets this face that says, "I'm SO in!"

Yes, I know it's inappropriate. But can you deny it? I mean, next to any of the scenes with Peter and Simone, can you say the chemistry here isn't amplified, like, a million times? Milo and Hayden just click.

Utah forest of superhero families. Jessica follows Micah's voice, gets thwacked with a shovel by D.L., then throws Micah against a pile of boulders and suddenly becomes Niki again.

I'm not saying the scene isn't well done. I'm not saying I wasn't moved by the way Niki does the touching-foreheads thing with Micah and the way D.L. joins them in an embrace. But if this is all the story arc for Niki can be then it's going to get tedious very, very soon. The formula of Niki turning into Jessica, Jessica doing something horrible, Niki reemerging at a fortuitous moment and begging for forgiveness, then Jessica reappearing to do more horrible things over and over again already feels tired.

Hopefully, the show will figure out a way to make Niki's arc more compelling in the second half of the season. It almost goes without saying that putting Jessica behind bars won't hold her for longer than the story needs her to. Niki turning herself in to the cops says a lot about her self-sacrifice, but it lacks the suspense of the other cliffhangers because you know how easy it will be for Jessica to bust her way out of jail. And unless the show plans to explain where Jessica came from and how her power can contribute to the group of heroes which now seems to be forming without her participation, this story arc is extremely limited.

The sad part is, I can see D.L. and Micah forming part of the rest of the group. Not just because their powers lend themselves well to the story, but because they genuinely seem to want to help people and do some good. Jessica doesn't give a crap about helping anyone, and Niki spends most of her time running away from danger and wishing her life didn't suck. At this point, it's difficult to see how either of those personalities would opt to save the world.

Now, let me get this straight: Hiro and Ando are at Union Wells High School in Odessa, Texas. Isaac just snuck his way out of Primatech Paper in Odessa, Texas. For reasons that defy logic, they decide they should meet in Midland, Texas instead of Odessa, Texas, where they're both at now.

My guess is Ando couldn't wait to get back to gulping down coffee.

So they meet at the bus depot, and Hiro's standing there waiting for the bus, straightening his tie. Aw. Nice detail, and nice bit of character work for Hiro to show how important he thinks it is to meet the comic book artist who drew the step-by-step guide he's been using since he and Ando left Tokyo.

Isaac steps off a Greyhound and gets the Vulcan greeting. Because, hey, Hiro doesn't seem to know any science fiction beyond Star Trek. And possibly Ray Bradbury.

Hiro shows Isaac the edition of "9th Wonders" which he bought in the future. At this point, so much of it is screwed up by time paradoxes, rewritten timelines and altered courses of events that the only part which is likely to be the same is the Nissan Versa.

Then the part which is morbidly hilarious. Hiro tells Isaac how he found him a month from now. "I saw you on the floor. You were dead. With your head cut off." And Isaac sort of leans back in his chair and starts running fingers through his hair, like, "Heck, I'd better enjoy it while it's still on my head."

Isaac tells Hiro and Ando that "the man who cuts off heads" has been caught. Ando says it's very good news. Hiro, you'll note, just whispers, "He's caught?" It's another subtle moment for the character because there's no trace of vindication in his voice. Unlike Eden, Hiro doesn't seem to even consider revenge. It's a very minor point, but I think it's little details like this which make Hiro heroic. He never contemplates retribution. He never thinks about pursuing the person responsible for the crimes he's witnessed, both in "Better Halves" and in "Seven Minutes To Midnight". In both instances, he's only concerned with preventing the incidents and saving the people who die. Here, when he learns that the person responsible for killing his puppy love has been caught, Hiro doesn't seem to get any satisfaction from it. Which shows that he isn't vengeful (which we knew), but more importantly, it highlights how Hiro's focus is on saving people from danger rather than catching and punishing the people responsible for that danger.

Isaac tells Hiro about the painting on the floor of his apartment, and how it might be connected to Isaac's recent painting of a man exploding. Hiro wonders how they'll stop an "exploding man." The cool part about this is that the characters' destinies meet. Isaac's role in the story now intersects with Hiro's, just as Peter's does. The characters are beginning to be brought together.

In tragic news: Claire's Jackass Mutilation tapes get destroyed (by her), Lyle gets the memory-wipe treatment, and then Zach gets the memory-wipe treatment.

Truthfully, I'm not sure which of those is the most heartbreaking. I'm just wondering how many times the Haitian has worked his mojo on Mr. Muggles.

Lyle forgetting about the staple gun incident is disappointing. It looked like the character would have a chance to be more than just the annoying younger brother. Evidently, the plan is to keep him like that. It's a shame, but it's not crucial to the plot.

Zach's a different story, because as Claire says, he really was "the best friend [she] ever had." Thomas Dekker's leaving to do a Terminator spin-off, so I guess he needed to be written out somehow, and this is less gut-wrenching than watching him have his scalp sliced off. But he was the one person who Claire confided in, the guy who campaigned to make her homecoming queen and bought her books about evolutionary theory and helped her to explore her ability. Erasing his memory of all that seems like a waste of a character, and one who was likeable and central to the development of Claire's story arc.

Outside Primatech Paper, where Daddy Bennet should be panicking about losing one of his patients but doesn't seem too bothered, Matt and AudreyClea wait in their car.

They wait ... in ... their ... car.

Please tell me that's a car they acquired in Odessa.

Please don't tell me they drove from Los Angeles.

Because, you know, that would really be dumb. And it would really be a sign of lazy writing.

AudreyClea knocks Matt's hunch that Daddy Bennet's hiding something, then thinks about how cute Matt is. Matt, of course, overhears. It's played for laughs.

*Sigh*

It's funny. I'll give it that. But come on, is there nothing unethical about this? Is there nothing fundamentally wrong with the way Matt's invading people's privacy by invading their thoughts?

And don't give me, "Oh, but wait, he can't decide when he hears people's thoughts, it just happens." That's garbage after this episode established that Matt needs to concentrate to hear a person's thoughts.

Am I making a big deal out of it? Yeah, I probably am. But to me, it's evidence of someone misusing their powers. It's like Hiro using his ability to become a bookie. It's like Claire repeatedly jumping off skyscrapers because she gets a rush out of the fall. It's like Nathan soaring through Manhattan in a Superman costume and carrying "Vote Petrelli!" banners across the sky in the hope that it'll boost his election campaign.

My point is, there are certain things these heroes shouldn't be using their powers for. There's a code of ethics. Some of those heroes don't care about that code of ethics, but Matt strikes me as one who does. So it surprises me every time he misuses his power like this, and it surprises me that the show turns it into either a joke or into something that helps to make the character more endearing.

AudreyClea again steps in to support Janice, telling Matt that he needs to "grow up," forgive her and try a little harder to make his marriage work. I guess we know who's going to be wearing the pants when this relationship gets off the ground. Which, mark my words, it will.

Daddy Bennet and the Haitian appear. Matt gives himself a nosebleed trying to hear Daddy Bennet's thoughts, and the whole time the Haitian's all, "La-dee-da, the sun is shining, it's a beautiful day, peace to the world," like, not even trying to deflect Matt's power. It's kind of cool that the Haitian's inhibitor mojo works with zero effort on his part.

From here, the Haitian apparently goes straight to Bennet Dog Central to work his memory-wipe whammy on Claire. Hayden again delivers a stunning performance, stuttering out to her father that someone "got" to Zach and Lyle. Poor Claire. She can't believe her dad could do that to his son.

And when you think about it from that angle, this really does make Daddy Bennet the villain again, as he was at the start of the show when he showed up at Papa Suresh's office in Madras and talked to Mohinder in the taxi. If he's going to screw with his family's memories to protect his daughter, is he still a loving father? Is he still at heart a good-natured family man who just happens to be working for a covert organization, and who just happens to have adopted one of the test subjects that his organization kidnaps and studies?

The answer probably depends as much on Coleman's portrayal of the character as it does on the way the character is written. I think it'll only become clear over the course of the show's run whether he can be called a hero or a villain, and that's if the distinction is ever made at all. At this point, he's being portrayed as an "ends-justify-the-means" father, meaning he doesn't consider it wrong to wipe the memories of his loved ones if it keeps them alive.

That said, the fact that the Haitian now betrays Daddy Bennet and offers to let Claire keep her memories pushes Daddy Bennet into a corner where no one trusts him, not even his family or the people he depends on to do his job. And for the most part, we sympathize with Eden, we're happy that the Haitian cut Claire a break and let her keep her memories, and we're sorry that Sandra had her head messed with so many times that it turned her into the kind of dog-obsessed mom who has no clue what's going on around her.

In the same Midland motel which Hiro presumably spent the last six months living in, Isaac sits himself in front of a blank canvas and tries to work up some inspiration to paint the future. Adorably, Hiro helps by giving him the scrunched-up face. And thankfully, it doesn't lead to time freezing while Hiro teleports to the Jurassic era.

Although apparently, based on the T-Rex which Isaac paints next to Hiro, that could now happen. Some of you seem to think it's too over-the-top, and that Hiro will visit a museum, collect his sword and see a realistic-looking statue of the dinosaur. Or that he'll visit a theme park.

Me? I have to admit I'm hoping Hiro really does go so far back in time that the show gets to do a CG dinosaur. Given the standard of the show so far, I think they'd make it look good, and I think the scene would fit with the character's story rather than feel like it was shoehorned in for its own sake.

The reference to "A Sound of Thunder" was a nice touch. At least Hiro gets to mention something sci-fi besides Star Trek, if only obliquely.

That said, Hiro seemed pretty insistent at the end of last week that he COULDN'T change the past. And as dumb as it sounded at the time, it sounds even dumber now when he realizes that just stepping on a bug is going to alter the course of history.

Mohinder gets the second of his two brief appearances this week, learning that Eden wasn't the delightful acquaintance of Papa Suresh's that she made herself out to be. On the other hand, her motivation for now wanting Sylar dead seems to be Papa Suresh, so it seems as if her fondness for him, and for Mohinder, wasn't a total pretense. The fact that Eden calls Mohinder to tell him who she really is serves as part of her redemption.

The unclear part here is whether Sylar could have smashed the glass and left his cell any time he wanted, or whether there was some kind of power-inhibitor field around the cell which Eden needed to shut down in order to work her coercion whammy.

Truthfully, I don't care either way. I'm just really, really saddened that they killed off a character who, exactly like Charlie, had become an integral part of the show, and who, exactly like Jayma Mays, was playing the character in such a way that every scene she appeared in was a pleasure to watch.

That wasn't the case at the start, of course, and that's part of what makes this tragic; Nora Zehetner seemed to tighten her grasp on the character's personality and motivation with each new episode. To kill her off when she finally seemed to understand who she was playing is an enormous shame.

It's not as tragic as killing off Charlie, but I really wish the show could just do away with Simone or Niki and hang on to the characters that work.

But as with Zach, the way the character is written out softens the blow. The fact that Eden chose to take her own life instead of letting Sylar take her ability gives Eden nobility. It adds to her previous stance against Daddy Bennet when he wanted Isaac to paint by having him shoot up. Behind the criminal background established in "Six Months Ago", behind the deception of Papa Suresh and Mohinder, Nora Zehetner brought a sense of integrity and virtue to the character. She changed a little each week after it was revealed that she worked for Daddy Bennet. It's part of what makes her departure exasperating, but at the same time it's what makes the character a hero.

Back at the Odessa Sheriff's Department where 17-year-olds make eyes at former hospice nurses, Nathan shows up to get Peter out. How many days has Peter been in there wearing the same blood-stained shirt? Come on, they can't be that inhumane. Can they?

Peter and Nathan exit the building, and Peter's excitedly telling Nathan how he can do whatever the super-powered people around him can do. And Nathan's like, "Yeah, that's great, did you get the hero crap out of your system? Can we go home now?"

Interestingly, Peter's still coughing, he still looks like hell, and as Nathan points out, he's struggling to walk in a straight line. All of which suggests that Peter isn't just absorbing the physical and health problems of the heroes he's around, but seriously suffering from the number of powers he's now borrowed.

And that's a pretext for this neat dream sequence, and for the question that will set up Peter's story arc for the second half of the season: is he going to be responsible for the explosion in New York?

It depends, of course, on whether this is indeed just a dream or a premonition, and whether Peter's seeing it from his perspective or from the perspective of RadioTed or Sylar.

Whatever it is, it's eerie. It's sinister. And it's very, very cool. To see the entire cast of regulars (sans Daddy Bennet, conspicuous by his absence) on the same location is a surreal delight. To see them on an empty street with abandoned cars lining the roads and everyone running away from Peter makes you wonder if it really is just a dream. But then Claire runs up to him and makes eyes at him, and you know she wouldn't do that for RadioTed or Sylar, so my guess is it's Peter's perspective we're seeing.

Peter goes nuclear. Which is sort of a moment of twisted irony when you realize he's the one who wanted to be a hero more than anyone, in some ways even more than Hiro. Peter's the one who wanted a purpose, sort of like Gabriel, but in the non-psychotic and non-serial-killer way.

Heroes excels at cliffhangers. Most of its episodes end in a way which would be fitting for a season finale. This? This outdoes the other cliffhangers for the simple reason that it doesn't just hinge on one event to be continued; instead, it sets up the story arcs for the rest of the season.

Claire's going to know her secret when Daddy Bennet thinks she's doesn't remember.

Sylar's going to be loose and pursuing the rest of the heroes on the list.

Hiro's going to go after his sword and encounter a (possibly real) dinosaur.

Matt's going to go after Daddy Bennet for answers about his connection to the Haitian and his involvement with Sylar.

And Peter's going to try to figure out how he ends up causing a nuclear explosion which destroys downtown Manhattan.

The amazing part is you know the show will develop and resolve each of those threads with flair. Because on the strength of every one of its cliffhangers so far, it's proven it can do that effortlessly.

5 out of 5