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Written by: Joe Pokaski
Directed by: Paul Edwards
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The One Where: Hiro and Ando leap five years into the future and discover a dark new reality for our heroes.
Verdict: A great premise makes for one of the best episodes yet. It’s a kick to see all of these future incarnations of the characters – Matt’s mutation into a hardass working for Homeland Security is perhaps the most surprising of all. It’s a scary future that feels fully realised – check out the throwaway reference to The Linderman Act, and the news footage marked “America Remembers” – and finally begins to pull all the strands of the show together, showing us what everyone’s fighting for.
Influences: This glimpse of a bleak near-future where the authorities hunt down parahumans is reminiscent of the classic X-Men saga “Days of Future Past”, where older, grittier versions of the mutants struggle to survive in a Sentinel-policed world.
Highlight: Sylar – disguised as Nathan – bolting from his political address by soaring into the sky. Maybe Gordon Brown could try that one?
Mmm, Sexy: Niki’s performance in the strip bar, natch. It’s good to know that the splendidly filthy music of Goldfrapp survives in this dystopian future.
WTF?: How come Peter has a huge scar on his face when he (presumably) still possesses Claire’s healing powers?
Trivia: Sendill Ramamurthy says that it took him three long weeks to grow the beard worn by Mohinder in this episode.
Best Line: “I scare me.” (Hiro)
Nick Setchfield
