Heroes: The Complete Collection Blu-ray Review
“Heroes” was a hit-and-miss series.
Over the course of four seasons, the Tim Kring created series “Heroes” revolved around people around the world who developed superpowers. The series primarily focused on the characters of heroes (and villains) such as Mohinder, Claire, Hiro, Peter, Nathan, Matt, Niki, D.L. and his son Micah, Isaac, The Haitian, twins Maya and Alejandro, Daphne, Elle, and Emma. Storylines involved time travel, an impending nuclear explosion, serial killer Sylar, characters coming to understand their powers, Claire’s father Noah (who works for The Company), Claude mentoring Peter, Hiro searching for a sword, a gangster named Daniel Linderman, Molly Walker, Peter getting amnesia, the villainous Adam Monroe, the Shanti Virus, The Company/Primatech and Pinehearst Company, the Eclipse and its effect on powers, Heroes being hunted by the Government (and Emile Danko), a carnival led by Samuel Sullivan, and a prison.
Before the MCU took the world by storm and before streaming changed the television landscape entirely, NBC’s comic book inspired “Heroes” burned bright back in 2006. “Save The Cheerleader, Save The World” became an inescapable quote in the realm of pop culture. The series was quite a hit for about 2 seasons before the show flamed out and lost the plot as it were. While the show had its moments and was full of potential, it never quite found its footing amid questionable character arcs, messy subplots (the amnesia storyline anyone), soap opera personal life drama, far too many interconnected characters, characters switching sides (ala Mohinder becoming a villain), characters dying or being resurrected far too frequently, powers being gained or lost, and more conveniences than you can shake a stick at (Peter and Claire’s parents revelations for instance). It was a messy show to say the least, but it could still be fun particularly whenever Claude (Christopher Eccleston) and Sylar (in the first two seasons) were on screen.
Speaking of the cast, it’s a real all-star affair. Not only did the show launch the careers of Zachary Quinto, Hayden Panettiere, and Brea Grant, but there were a host of veteran actors like Ali Larter, Greg Grunberg and Robert Forster, George Takei, Adrian Pasdar, Christopher Eccleston, Kristen Bell, Malcolm McDowell, Seth Green, Michael Dorn, and, of course, Milo Ventimiglia. You never knew who was going to pop up which was part of the show’s charms. It was never afraid to bring in sci-fi genre icons.
2015’s “Heroes Reborn” attempted to resurrect the franchise, but the much-maligned spin-off only lasted a single 13 episode season. The series did feature characters from “Heroes” such as Mohinder, Matt, Noah, Micah, Hiro and Molly, but for the most part the plot focused on new characters such as Tommy, Carlos, Miko and Malina. Among the plots featured here: A peace summit between humans and evolved humans (AKA Evos) bombed leading to Evos being hunted, Luke (Zachary Levi) and Joanne targeting Evos (Luke eventually develops powers himself), an underground railroad for Evos, tech for finding Evos, the villainous company Renautas (led by Erica), a video game (Evernow), a solar radiation threat, time travel, and clones.
The series never really felt like it had an identity of its own. It was more or less a retread of the original with the impending disaster, an evil company, time travel etc. It’s not hard to see why it didn’t connect with audiences. Since then there has yet to be another revival, but rumors are circulating of another comeback.
Video/Audio:
Presentation: 1.78:1 1080p. How does it look? These are the same hi-def transfers previously released on Blu-ray. To be honest, the transfers are rather fuzzy and have not aged well. They’re in need of an upgrade. ‘Reborn,’ however, looks superb which is unsurprising given that it is a much newer series.
Audio Track: 5.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? The audio fares better here. They may not be the best 5.1 tracks around, but they’re satisfactory nonetheless.
Extras:
* Season 1- 73 minute version of the premiere episode with optional commentary by Tim Kring, 50 deleted scenes, picture-in-picture cast video commentaries, featurettes (making of, special effects, stunts, Tim Sale’s art, and the score), artwork presentations, and “Hero Connections” pop-up trivia.
* Season 2- Picture in picture cast and crew commentaries, deleted scenes, more “Hero Connections,” ”Tim Sale Gallery Of Screen Art,” the alternate ending of “Generations,” NBC featurettes, a faux featurette titled “Takezo Kensei: Sword Saint,” featurettes (“Genetics Of A Scene” and “The Drucker Files,”) and “Untold Stories” (bonus footage).
* Season 3- Deleted scenes, “Hero Connections,” picture in picture cast and crew commentaries, and featurettes “The Super Powers Of Heroes,” “Completing The Scene,” “Genetics Of A Scene,” “Building Coyote Sands,” and “The Prop Box), Tim Sale Gallery Of Screen Art, Pinehearst Commercial, “Alternate Stories” web series, and “The Writers’ Forum” (a discussion between Tim Kring, Adam Armus and Aron Eli Coleite).
* Season 4- Picture in picture cast and crew commentaries, a message from Tim Kring, deleted/extended scenes, “Hero Connections,” featurettes (“Deconstructing Sylar,” “Behind The Big Top,” “Heroes Revolution,” and “Genetics Of A Scene”) “Sullivans Brothers Design Gallery” (concept art) and “Milo Speaks” (Ventimiglia speaks about his character and fandom),
* “Heroes Reborn”- Deleted scenes, “Heroes Reborn: Reviving The Legacy” featurette, and “Heroes Reborn: Dark Matters” web series.
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