Superhero Profiles

Heroes 3.06 "Dying of the Light" - review

by Grace on October 20th, 2008

Heroes episode 3.06 “Dying of the Light“
Airdate: October 20, 2008

Even after the Level 5 fiasco, I never doubted that those who possess Sylar’s powers - him and Peter - can do the greatest harm. That is, until dad comes along. Arthur Petrelli is scary. He is now virtually unstoppable and everyone around him is dispensable.

But first let’s see what went down -

Knox took Adam Monroe in to see a bedridden, immovable Arthur Petrelli, and for the first time Adam was scared for his life. Arthur only had to touch him and Adam’s powers and life source transferred to the incapacitated elder. Adam dried out and turned to dust right before our eyes! Is this goodbye for David Anders? Man, he wasn’t really given enough scenes to shine in volume 3. It’s a shame.     NBC Photo: Adam Taylor

Meanwhile, Meredith is hostaged by Eric Doyle, a puppeteer who can control a human’s muscles and movement. Claire and her mom Sandra try to save her only to be held captive themselves. A game of Russian roulette points the gun at Claire and Sandra shoots her daughter. Eric Doyle’s mad laughter at the sight of a dead Claire was short-lived when Claire regenerated and hit the puppeteer’s head unconscious. HRG finishes the job by putting Doyle into a coma and bringing him back to Level 5.

Now for a good news and a big ‘whew’!

Ando Masahashi is not dead. Hiro Nakamura faked Ando’s death by going back in time and tutoring his best friend how to fake a death. That sword -jabbing we saw last week was all play-acting. Good call, Hiro! I just can’t accept that you’d be anything other than good. Daphne instructs Hiro to find Usutu, the African bushman and bring him alive back to Pinehearst. After unsuccessful attempts at trying to get the African, Hiro finally learns his lesson and Usutu shows him a painting of the Pinehearst villains.

Meanwhile, Pinehearst Industries’ newest delivery girl Daphne begins recruiting evolved humans to join the Industry. She starts with Matt Parkman, who was at the airport flying in from Africa and expecting to find her. Matt tells Daphne they have a future life together and taken by his seeming kindness, she asks him to wait until she ends her errands. Later on she tells Matt to stay away from Pinehearst instead, since he didn’t seem like the other monsters that she’s been collecting for her new boss.

Daphne goes to Level 5 and recruits Flint and Sylar. Sylar refuses and insists that he no longer wants that kind of life. Instead he wakes up Peter from his coma and asks his brother to help their mother, who mysteriously went into her own coma. Sylar learned that his future self is able to control his urges but Peter wants it taken away from him at once. Peter and Sylar spars their frustrations out and Peter won the fight. Peter locks Sylar in Level 5 again by inducing a coma.

Eager to find out how to remove their powers, Nathan and Tracy go to the professor’s lab. Suresh traps them into believing he can help them. Tracy tries to get Suresh’s sympathy and freezes his arms. She frees Nathan from the straps but Suresh stops them both.

Peter goes to Pinehearst Industries, ready to avenge his mother’s condition and bring down this new villain. He is shocked to find his father is alive and behind all these new killing. But Arthur extends a welcome embrace to Peter, who makes the mistake of taking it. A white aura flowed from Peter to Arthur, taking away all of Peter’s evolved powers.

So again, Arthur Petrelli is one big badass. He can take the powers and life of anyone he wishes to touch. We can only guess that he grows stronger and more powerful with every transfer. It is starting to make sense - Sylar’s and Peter’s powers are similar to their dad’s, except in the delivery. Whereas Sylar has to take the powers directly from the brain, Peter only has to be near a post human and he will absorb that person’s powers.  But nothing beats daddy. Arthur Petrelli has the ability absorb a person’s powers by touch, essence and more than anything, lifeforce. We can only assume he’s had years of using it before his two sons ever did. How did Arthur get these powers? What did he do to Angela and what else can he do?

[UPDATES: Thanks to readers Lewey and Dylan, who pointed out that Arthur doesn't take life forces, only powers.]

images used with permission by NBC / Photos: Trae Patton and Adam Taylor

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POSTED IN: Heroes, Volume 3: Villains