Heroes Recap: Collision

So I’ve been a little on the fence about Heroes since its debut. I liked the idea of the show, but I wasn’t down with the pacing, and I was getting a little frustrated. Well, I am happy to report that I have jumped off the fence and on the proverbial bandwagon. I thought last night’s episode of Heroes rocked. So much happened to push the story along, and new sides of all the characters were revealed.

Lucky for us, Julie of TV and Sympathy fame, is back with her weekly Heroes recap. I can’t wait for you all to read it so we can chat about it. Feel free to leave comments, but also check out the LIVE GMMR 24/7 Chat and see if other fans of Heroes are online.

Title: Collision
Original Airdate: 10/16/2006

Matt awakens strapped to a bed in a blue room, wires monitoring him. Claire’s papa explains they had to drug him in order to “test his resting rate”. Matt argues that he’s no one, but Big Bad Dad says he’s “special.” Similarly special is BBD’s friend, menacingly serene bald black dude, who seems to be impeding Matt’s ability to hear thoughts. BBD tells Matt that he won’t remember anything by tomorrow. When Matt says “Claire?” BBD instructs his power-outage-causing pal to “go deep, then clean him out.” I’m guessing he’s not talking about playing football and poker.

On the poker-playing side, however, we have Hiro and Ando. Hiro tries to learn the very useful English phrase “You’re going to die in five weeks, then New York will explode” so he can properly communicate with Isaac.

Crossing their path in Las Vegas are Niki and Micah, taken into the office of Generic Evil Asian Lady. After a Logan-style forehead bump of bonding with his mom, Micah departs just in time for GEAL to ask Niki to perform the unsavory “favor” of occupying a certain visiting politician for a while. Do this, and things will be right with Mr. Linderman. Niki looks surprised, but after all the blood she’s washed out of her clothes, you’d think she’d be comfortable becoming someone’s dirty laundry.

Claire gets autopsied by a doc who suspects homicide, possibly accidental. Claire was found naked in a creek. That is hardcore, yo. Also hardcore: Claire smooshing her sliced-and-diced torso back into place, then daintily hopping over the table and swiping a lab coat. While the doc looks the other way, Claire scampers out.

In Manhattan, Isaac stares out at the sunrise. A post-coital Simone and Peter snuggle. Ando and Hiro head for the casino floor. Claire sneaks in at home.

Nathan exits campaign HQ, expositing that he needs Linderman’s money in order to run a successful campaign. He’s surprised by Mohinder, who tries to convince him he may be in danger. (Remember? He was on Sylar’s map of doom. No, not the one with Mordor.) Nathan stops listening when Mo says he’s “Dr. Suresh” and starts talking about abilities and powers. Telling the muscle to make Mo leave, Nathan’s campaign manager says: “I don’t want to see his face again.” That makes one of us.

Peter and Simone do the whole “what does this mean?” morning chat. If Peter was hoping for round 2, he’s cock-blocked by Nathan, who shows up to tell Peter his crazy friend Suresh harassed him earlier, and to offer him money to “disappear for a while.” Peter hands back the cash and shuts the door.

Meanwhile, Simone has gotten dressed and is ready to head out to pick up some of Isaac’s paintings for his show. She doesn’t say anything firm about their relationship, but leaves Peter with this charmer: “I just need time to catch my breath before you take it away again.” The only thing I want to be taken here is me. Out of my misery. I mean, I think this show has some great moments, but the scenes with Simone suffer from some pretty poor dialogue.

Claire comes downstairs, dressed but with a pair of seriously dirty feet that reveal, as her BBD suspects, that she was out all night with the quarterback. Claire confesses, but her dad’s disappointed. He just wants her to be honest with him. He loves her, and she can tell him anything. There will, however, be “a throwdown” when he gets home. Claire sits on the stairs and cries as her mom shouts that the waffles are ready. I guess she really wanted pancakes.

Mo admonishes himself while putting Nathan’s pictures on the map at his father’s apartment. Eden comes in carrying a package – his father’s ashes. Mo’s feeling a bit disillusioned with the whole hero search and trying to work out his daddy issues posthumously. He’s ready to head back to India when who should turn up at the door? One Peter Petrelli, ready and willing to talk about his abilities.

Hiro and Ando at the roulette wheel. Ando’s about to gamble away their last dollar (to E!Online’s Kristin Veich as a casino employee), when Hiro stops time, ensures they win, and has an olive from a toppling martini. Smooth. Once Ando finds out, he’s convinced they have to take advantage of the power. Once he convinces Hiro that Peter Parker would do it, they have a plan. Ah, so that’s where they’re drawing the ethical line.

At home, Niki’s big-haired friend Tina again gives her the brush-off about her powers. Tina thinks she might be suffering from some PTSD-like reaction, but Niki insists it’s like there’s someone else inside her doing things. They’re interrupted by Micah, who wants to play Scrabble. Unfortunately for him, Momma’s got to go work hard for the money.

Back at Mo’s, Peter has apparently explained that “maybe I can only do things when I’m around other people who can do things.” Peter, it sounds a lot cooler to say you’re like Rogue from the X-Men, but you can have sex. Maybe that would impress Mo, who is clearly more than a bit dubious. Peter offers to go see Isaac so they’ll see he can paint the future too, through proximity.

Simone shows up at Isaac’s to pick up the paintings. They have the predictable argument about drugs and her getting frisky with Peter. Isaac’s convinced that with a little Vitamin H, he’ll be able to paint the future and save everyone, save NY from going boom. “I’m going to be a hero,” he says, as Simone heads for the door. Unfortunately. Isaac isn’t the wind beneath Simone’s wings.

At school, Claire’s friend tries to convince her she needs to come forward with the truth about Brody. When Brody sees Claire, alive and well, he bolts to go calm down elsewhere. Another girl, who also watched Claire and Brody at the bonfire, looks on.

Playing poker, Hiro and Ando manage to piss off a cowboy who doesn’t take kindly to having his aces swapped for trash cards. No way that’ll come up again later, right?

Nathan bumps into a well-placed Niki, who is all smiles and Celine Dion-concerts-for-one that she looks more than happy to ditch.

On the subway to Isaac’s, Mo explains his father’s “romantic take on evolution” to Peter. When they arrive at Isaac’s, however, he’s too busy getting high and painting pretty pictures to answer the door. This time, he sees Claire fleeing a shadowy figure that looms behind her. He paints in a daze, his eyes white, unresponsive to Peter’s knocks.

Laurie, the spectator girl from the bonfire, approaches Claire to ask if Brody did anything to her at the bonfire. Claire says it was nothing, but Laurie says she went out with Brody once. “‘Nothing’ happened to me too.” From the way Brody is manhandling a girl across the squad, it sounds like Brody and Cassidy Casablancas would have the same definition of “nothing.” And we all know what happened to Cassidy…

Hiro and Ando Rain Man it down an elevator in matching suits before being accosted by some burly casino employees. They and their belongings get tossed out of the casino (The Montecito, hee) into an alley. Well, “which casino do we hit next?” Ando asks. Sorry, Ando, looks like you’re the one who’s going to be hit next, if the angry cowboy posse marching up to you is any indication. Ando’s mouth writes checks that Hiro’s body can’t cash, and Hiro is out cold with one punch.

Up in Nathan’s hotel room, Nathan ascertains the important facts about Niki: 1) she doesn’t have a husband. 2) No, seriously, that was all he needed to know. Maybe not even that! Despite the fact that he is apparently “married and happy” (and looking sort of like a marionette with some bad makeup in this scene), Nathan and Niki get to macking. She starts feeling a bit guilty, though, and tells him she has to leave.

In the elevator, however, one of Linderman’s thugs tries to convince her she needs to go back so they’ll have something incriminating on Nathan. Isn’t the fact that he likes to wear makeup incriminating enough? Once thug starts making threats about Micah, however, Niki gets a bit “you wouldn’t like me when I’m angry.” Actually, as she puts it, “Niki’s not here right now.” She then proceeds to kick some serious thug ass. Does he want a stiletto through his skull? No. Then he won’t threaten “our son” again, she tells him. Apparently Niki, like Buffy, craves a bit of sex after her violence, so she heads back to Nathan’s hotel room for some strip-teasin’ good times that look like they’re caught on camera.

In the subway headed back to Mo’s, Peter says they should try Isaac’s again tomorrow. Mo, however, has had enough. While he’s giving Peter a well-meaning brush-off, suddenly time stops, the subway pauses, and the lights shut off. The subway car is eerie, painted in a blue light, filled with motionless bodies. Understandably, Peter’s a bit freaked.

Peter also looks a bit freaked in one of Isaac’s paintings. He appears to be rushing to Claire’s aid, but it’s all a little mysterious and unclear. There’s a series of paintings, more with Hiro and Ando and Claire, but none particularly making sense.

Claire, as it turns out, doesn’t need any help. Being indestructible will do that for you. She lures Brody into giving her a ride home. Only, she’s driving. Before you can say “this baby corners like she’s on rails,” Claire is getting Brody to prove what a complete liar and pervert he is. FYI dudes, calling girls sluts doesn’t really endear you to them. Claire states the obvious, that he’s just going to keep doing it to other girls, and Brody makes the mistake of saying there’s nothing she can do about it. Oh yeah? How about driving into a brick wall at top speed? Even if it didn’t lead to decapitation, maybe it’ll turn him into a soprano.

In the hotel room, as Nathan and Niki sleep, BDD tells BBH (bald black henchman) to “just take the one.” BBH heads for Nathan.

Meanwhile, the other Petrelli brother is seriously disturbed inside the silent subway car. He hears a noise, thumping on the top of the car, getting closer. Suddenly, someone moves behind him. It’s Hiro! But…not. “Peter Petrelli…sorry if I scared you. You look different without your scar,” not-Hiro says, in unaccented English. “I don’t know you,” protests Peter. Not yet, says Hiro, but you will. “I’m from the future. I have a message for you.”

Next week, the one clue that will define their destiny: Save the cheerleader, save the world.

Julie is a GMMR recapper extraordinaire, but she also has her own fabulous TV website. Head over to TV and Sympathy to read more from Julie.