Unless you've been living on another planet for the last few years you will have at least heard of the world-wide hit that is Heroes - the series that has spawned novels, graphic novels, actions figures, t-shirts and CDs. If somehow you have managed to miss the first incredible series of Heroes fear not, as it is on DVD and can be picked up at a very reasonable price.
What Is Heroes About?
Heroes is about the lives of people who have found that they have special powers that set them apart from normal folk. The series follows their lives as they try to hide said powers and what happens when they meet others of their kind. No-one yet knows why some people have these special powers in the Heroes Universe, but there are bigger problems for them to deal with right now - from controlling their powers to figuring out who it is safe to trust their secret with. And of course there is the problem that not everyone who has these amazing powers is going to want to use them for good.
Blending together the style of comic books (From the chapters for titles to the comic-style font used for captions) with a host of in-jokes for the more vigilant viewers to pick up on, Heroes is a sci-fi show with a difference. It has captured the imaginations of regular viewers and sci-fi fans alike, and done so in a clever and modern way without being over the top or cheesy.
Where Is Heroes Set?
Primarily Heroes is set in America, where most of our characters hail from - focussing particularly on Texas, Los Angeles and New York. Japan also features heavily in this first season as three important characters are Japanese, Hiro (Franklin in Scrubs), his father Kaito Nakamura (Sulu in Star Trek) and Hiro's friend Ando.
Who Is In Heroes?
Heroes has a rather large and ever-changing list of characters, but to avoid confusion here are the most important reoccurring characters of the first season. There are many more characters that you will see who are important to the story but you will see that as you watch.
Hiro Nakamura (Masi Oka): A personal favourite of mine for his innocence and belief that everything should work out okay in the end, Hiro hails from Japan and works for his father's company as an office grunt. He hates his job and loves comic books and Star Trek. His power is that he can manipulate time and space, allowing him to teleport himself (Most notably into the ladies bathroom), travel through time and slow down/stop time at will.
Ando Masahashi (James Kyson Lee): Hiro's beast friend and a fellow office grunt, he too loves comic books and Star Trek. He also has an overly perverted interest in women, even though they never go for him. He has no powers and feels like Hiro's sidekick, which occasionally bothers him.
Claire Bennet (Hayden Panettiere): The best known phrase from Heroes is "Save the cheerleader, save the world" - well here is the cheerleader. Pretty, blonde and looks like butter wouldn't melt, this Texas teen is hiding a huge secret power that will save her and others time and time again. Her power is that she is essentially impervious to harm due to her ability to heal - there is only one way to kill her and that is to take off her head.
Noah Bennet (Jack Coleman): Otherwise known as H.R.G (Horn Rimmed Glasses). Mild-mannered middle class worker and father of Claire, Noah isn't all that he seems as he works secretively for a mysterious group called the company. He knows a lot about people with super abilities and disappears mysteriously often. He has no special power but this doesn't make him any less of a force to be reckoned with.
Nathan Petrelli (Adrian Pasdar): A member of the hugely powerful Petrelli family, he's also a politician who is running for congressman. His ambition exceeds his morals and like all politicians he has done some less than honourable things in his fight for congress. After his brother has vivid dreams of being able to fly Nathan has to fly in and save him from certain death - literally. Nathan's power, if that isn't already clear, is that he can fly.
Peter Petrelli (Milo Ventimiglia): The younger brother of Nathan and a much nicer man, he is a nurse for an old and dying man whom he cares for deeply. After being driven mad by dreams that he can fly he attempts it, throwing himself off a building forcing his older brother to save him. Though after this happens Peter can fly he couldn't before. His power is that he can absorb/mimic the abilities of others after having touched them, hence why after touching his brother he could fly. He can also hold more than one ability making him a very powerful man.
Isaac Mendez (Santiago Cabrere): The tortured and passionate artist Isaac is an incredible painter; his studios are filled with jaw-dropping works of art. The problem is that the only time he can paint is when he is out of his skull on heroin, and when he does paint he paints apocalyptic images of the future. This would all be fine if it weren't for one thing - Isaac's power is that of precognition, he sees the future. If only he could see a happier future.
Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg): Ah Matt, he is a really good guy. Matt is a cop for the LAPD with a marriage on the rocks at home. He always wants to do the right thing and that is never enough. Sadly for Matt, his power is telepathy - and reading minds is never a fun power to have, especially when you can hear what your angry wife is really thinking.
Niki Sanders (Ali Larter): Mother to Micah, Niki will do anything to make ends meet and keep her young son safe - including stripping for webcams. Not the classiest of jobs but this girl isn't a tramp; she just doesn't want her son to go without. She has both a power and a problem, he power is that she has fantastically enhanced strength - the problem is that there is another side of her that is desperate to get out and use her power for her own ends.
Micah Sanders (Noah Gray-Cabey): The cutest cast member by far, little Micah is a child of many depths. He is compassionate, intelligent and has a power that many would kill to have in this technological age - he can control machines and talk to them. If ever you want a red light to change, this is the boy to have along with you.
Mohinder Suresh (Sendhil Ramamurthy): The charming and geeky Mohinder comes to America after his father is killed to pack up his work, which he finds out was about people with special powers and their locations throughout the world. It turns out that though these people are in the minority there are many more than we will ever see in the seasons of Heroes and with his interest piqued he sets out to help them find out why they are the way they are, and why his father was killed.
Sylar AKA Gabriel Gray (Zachery Quinto): The frightening and mysterious Sylar has some serious problems, and also some seriously good powers. He is a very angry and envious man who doesn't let anything get in the way of him acquiring new powers - even having to kill those with powers he craves is not a problem. His powers are very similar to those of Peter Petrelli in that he can acquire the abilities of others, but are amplified by his intensely inquisitive mind (which is also one of his powers - a need to know how everything works). This is a man you should never turn your back on.
Episodes:
In the first season of Heroes there were 23 episodes, each lasting 45 minutes which when shown in America obviously had breaks in order for advertisements to be show - without much effort you can see where they stopped for a commercial break. As in the UK it is shown on the BBC we get to enjoy our 45 minutes of geekiness without interruption.
Chapter One "Genesis": In a busy opening episode we are introduced to the Petrelli's when Peter decides to jump off a roof to prove his dream right and Nathan has to come to his rescue. Claire Bennet, the Texas cheerleader, who knows that she is virtually indestructible, saves a fire-fighter from a dangerous and out of control train fire and runs before anyone can give her the glory she deserves. Mohinder Suresh arrives in New York after the death of his father whilst in Japan Hiro's boredom and clock-watching finally becomes useful at work, much to the astonishment of his friend Ando. Isaac paints horrendous pictures of the future under the influence of drugs and Niki has some problems with her dark side after a run in with some mobsters she owes money to. The mobsters certainly won't be a problem now.
Chapter Two "Don't Look Back": Niki wakes up and has to deal with the aftermath of her run in with the mobsters, but with a little help from her friend clears up the mess. Peter wakes up confused in the hospital where he is told his father has killed himself due to depression. Hiro tests out his newly found powers a little more and teleports to Times Square where he buys a comic book by Isaac that seems to show him what his destiny is through a very familiar face. Matt gets to be the hero at work due to his abilities whilst a video of Claire's gets into the wrong hands.
Chapter Three "One Giant Leap": Hiro, armed with his comic book bible returns to Japan to persuade Ando to join him in his mission to save the world. Nathan hurts Peter's feelings when he publicly declares he's crazy and Peter also struggles in his latest attempt to fly. Claire winds up in a morgue in the middle of an autopsy - how will she explain things when it was her autopsy that was being done?
Chapter Four "Collision": Hiro and his side-kick friend Ando travel to Vegas, where Niki is being held by a mob boss who is rather upset about the events of the first episode and still wants his money back. Meanwhile back in New York Peter and Mohinder meet for the first time, and in Texas after the madness of the morgue Claire has another dark moment to face with a football player who doesn't seem to understand that no means no.
Chapter Five "Hiros": Niki is interrogated by police after it is found that her imprisoned husband D.L has escaped (and in a very interesting way) and Matt's abilities finally start to help him at home with his wife when he listens in to what she wants. Claire decides to confide in her father Noah about her ability, little knowing how dangerous that could be and Mohinder thinks about leaving America.
Chapter Six "Better Halves": Hiro and Ando start on their journey to New York but are given a deal by a Vegas gambler. Noah helps Claire with her questions about her real parents by organising a meeting with them. Isaac is confused once more by a call warning him about his life, but finally the important message gets to him with the help of a Petrelli.
Chapter Seven "Nothing To Hide": Claire's secret is found out by another family member who watches the video she stupidly filmed of herself proving her powers by trying to kill herself many times, will he keep his mouth shut or is this the end of the line for our super cheerleader? Hiro helps a fugitive save an innocent woman with his strengthening powers whilst on his way to New York and Isaac disappears leaving only a frightening vision of what is to come at his studio.
Chapter 8 "Seven Minutes To Midnight": With Mohinder back in India for the burial of his beloved father he begins having strange dreams about his family and questions his leaving his father's work behind in America. A potential problem is encountered by the name of Ted, whose sad tale makes him both a tragic figure and a possible danger to not just the city, but the entire world.
Chapter Nine "Homecoming": Its Homecoming time in Texas, a big time for a teenage girl but Claire has other matters to attend to. Hiro falls in love fast with a sweet waitress and decides to use time travel to save her from a sad end and learns that sometimes, no matter how much you want to, you can't save someone.
Chapter Ten "Six Months Ago": Exactly as the title says, this takes place six months previous to the current storyline, Claire is about to become a cheerleader, Hiro finds out why he can't save the woman he loves and the Petrelli brothers plan to take down their massively powerful and not particularly nice father. Mohinder's father Chandra is alive and in America looking for people with extraordinary abilities as he believes that rather than being freaks of nature they may have merely evolved faster than the rest of us and be the next step in our evolution - it is during this time that Chandra meets Sylar, a man who can move things with his mind. But Sylar has another reason for meeting Chandra, namely getting information on where others with powers are.
Chapter Eleven "Fallout": So the cheerleader has been saved, so that means the world is safe right? Well that's the question on our Heroes lips as they ponder whether this changes what Issac painted previously. Noah shows a rather different side if himself to usual after capturing or enigmatic psycho Sylar, looking him in a pitch black room. However is this a smart thing to do to someone who has the power to take over the world? Would you want to upset someone who will slice open your skull?
Chapter Twelve "Godsend": As Hiro searches for a particular sword from Isaac's paintings that he believes is key to saving the world, Nathan is desperate to get help for his younger brother who is currently unconscious and Niki is also desperate for help, though the police refuse to believe her when she tells them what it is that is wrong with her.
Chapter Thirteen "The Fix": After the police are shown the more dangerous side of Niki she is sedated and later visited by a psychiatrist who wants her to confront her darker personality - big mistake. Mohinder is begged by Nathan to try and help Peter control his newly absorbed power. Noah goes to a hidden laboratory where he has Sylar's corpse but gets the surprise of his life when he sees who is waiting for him.
Chapter Fourteen "Distractions": Having unravelled the web of lies surrounding her biological mother Claire begins to find it hard to keep up with the lies she's telling her father Noah. Hiro's powerful and wise father Kaito arrives to bring Hiro and Ando back to Japan, telling him that his job with the company is more important than searching for a sword that may save the world.
Chapter Fifteen "Run": There's a shock for both Claire and the viewers when her biological father's identity is revealed, and back at the Bennet house her adoptive mother is having problems. Hiro and Ando's quest for the sword is put on hold when they have to rescue someone; meanwhile Mohinder speaks to someone on his father's list of people with powers and puts himself in serious danger. But who is it on Chandra's list that Mohinder has gotten involved with?
Chapter Sixteen "Unexpected": Ted makes another appearance, turning Matt's life upside down in the process. Peter finds that he may have been betrayed and Hiro has to make a tough decision about the future of his mission and the quest for the sword. Claire is struggling with a great rage towards her father, but will the teen lash out?
Chapter Seventeen "Company Man": Ted and Matt turn up in Texas looking for Noah, and more importantly answers. To make sure they get them they take Noah's wife, son and Claire hostage to get what they want. But with Ted's radioactive powers becoming increasingly out of control in this tentative situation a tragic confrontation is in store for the Bennets.
Chapter Eighteen "Parasite": The election for congress is looming, as is the obliteration of New York - and instead of trying to save the city Nathan is in a cloak-and-daggers meeting with the mysterious Linderman (Played by Malcolm McDowell). Suresh, undeterred by his last experience with someone from his father's list, manages to find out something useful - but it isn't all good news. Isaac, our friendly neighbourhood future painter paints a new painting, and if the Heroes thought that any other the previous paintings were horrifying they haven't seen anything yet!
Chapter Nineteen ".07%": Not realising Sylar's true nature, Mohinder continues to let him help track down people with abilities. Now that couldn't go wrong in any way could it? Whilst his rampage continues, Nathan has to make big decisions that will affect not just him and the Petrelli family, but the world at large.
Chapter Twenty "Five Years Gone": Much as the "Six Months Ago" episode, this instalments title has a very literal meaning. Hiro and Ando take us five years into the future we see that things have gone very very wrong, encountering a version of Matt never seen before now, a brunette and very trigger-happy Claire Bennet and a Niki who has made peace with her darker side Jessica - sort of.
Chapter Twenty-One "The Hard Part": Back from the dark and unpleasant future, Hiro and Ando set off to find Isaac and see if there is a way to stop the events of the future. Noah, Matt and Ted are meanwhile travelling to New York and Peter tries to stop Claire from going to Paris.
Chapter Twenty-Two "Landslide": Linderman's true colours are revealed in the penultimate episode when he convinces Micah to do something for him whilst Niki and DL try frantically to find him. Peter is trying valiantly to control his newest power whilst tracking Sylar through the streets of New York.
Chapter Twenty-Three "How To Stop An Exploding Man": In an explosive finale to the final season many questions need to be answered. As the Heroes all end up in Kirby Plaza, New York their minds races as they try to save themselves, each other, and the world. Will anyone be able to stop Sylar? Will Peter be able to save the world? Who will have to make sacrifices in order to save it? And of course, how do you stop an exploding man?
Storylines Running Through Heroes
As you can probably tell by now this is a rather complex series even though it is based around a simple premise, this just shows the brilliance of the writers. They have managed to weave together many different story strands that aren't even all set in the same place and it works. Here are the main story strands that you follow:
Claire's Identity: From telling her adoptive parents about her powers to finding out where she comes from, Claire's story is one of discovery of identity and more importantly being able to live happily with it. If you take away her power it is the same story every teenager goes through, this longing to figure out who you are and where you fit in.
Hiro's Maturity: Coming from a proud Japanese family where he lost his mother at a young age, he has become used to doing what other's tell him and not fighting for what he thinks is right. But with his newly-found power and a little help from his best friend he begins to mature into a fully-functioning man who is even able to stand up to his controlling father. No longer a man-child he is willing to fight for what he believes in regardless of what others say with confidence.
The Company: A shadowy group who follow those with powers, they feature heavily in every episode of the first season even though they may not always be mentioned. You learn along the way just how important The Company are and how long they have been running, telling you that people with abilities aren't quite as new as Mohinder and Chandra thought. But the question is, are The Company good or bad?
Sylar's Quest: Perhaps if he had been nurtured more, or if someone had stopped him sooner, Sylar wouldn't have turned out the way he did. But he isn't fully formed and throughout the season the viewer sees how far Sylar will go, sometimes going even further than he had thought possible. Though he is the villain of the piece, in following his journey you get to see that he wasn't born bad, and there is still a glimmer of goodness in him, there is hope - albeit very small.
Saving The World: This is obviously a huge story thread, and it encompasses every Hero at some point. These complete strangers slowly find each other and through this apocalyptic prophecy strive to save the world. At first it appears that all they have to do is save the cheerleader, but when the paintings don't get better it takes more work and sacrifice than any of them had imagined. Every single character does something in order to get to the final showdown in Kirby Plaza, and these small actions are littered through the first series.
Why Should I Watch Heroes?
If you like sci-fi or mysteries you should watch Heroes if you haven't already, the blend of mystery, murder and comic book style sci-fi has made this a ratings winner around the globe, gaining millions of fans. For those who aren't big geeks like myself, why not give it a try anyway - it will make excellent respite from the constant barrage of celebrity game shows and talent competitions. And if nothing else you will oh and ah at the brilliant special effects and make-up, and drool over the host of gorgeous men and women that make up the cast.
This is the show that has essentially made it cool to like sci-fi. Gone are the insults or funny looks that you get when admitting to watching Buffy, Star Trek and the like. This has appeared in teen magazines, had its cast on some of the most famous publications in the world and built an army of fans up that are proud to say they love Heroes. Heroes was the beginning of a new era, where loving the fantastical and mad isn't frowned upon and sci-fi for grown-ups has been allowed to move into the mainstream and no longer has to rely on scantily clad women or soft-core porn to drag in viewers at an obscene time of night. For a generation this is the new Star Trek, and long may it reign.
Final Verdict
This is one of my favourite shows; it mixes real-life with fantastical elements without taking it too far and making it ridiculous. The premise for the entire story is so simple and yet the strands that build it are so diverse and complex that you really have to keep your wits about you whilst watching. The characters have a lot of depth to them, and hidden depths which are seen throughout the season and into the next. I love that they didn't pick overly huge names for their cast - other than of course Malcolm McDowell and George Takei (Who aren't really in huge starring roles in this so it doesn't take over).
Having seen the unaired pilot which had a rather different story I'm eternally glad that they rewrote and came back with this version of "Genesis", as you'll be able to see if you watch the pilot on the DVD things went down a politics/terrorist route that wouldn't have been as interesting and quite frankly in the world these days it's nice not to have to hear the world terrorist for once - there are only so many times that the fate of the world can be ruined due to terrorism after all! The rewrite makes this more of an escape from reality than many American shows can be, and it's nice to see someone go out on a limb and write a sci-fi show at a time when sci-fi wasn't exactly doing great - after all when this first aired Buffy had been long gone, as was Angel and Dark Angel.
This will be an on-going addiction for me TV-wise, and even though later seasons have been a little more strained or lacking (Partly due to the Writer's Strike as you can hear about in the special features of the second season) I still want to see what will happen to the characters. There have been deaths which have touched and saddened me, cliff-hangers where you hope everything will be okay and new additions to the cast who have been just as interesting and important as the founding members. Hopefully with this next season in January 2010 Heroes will be 100% back on form and even more fans will grow to love the show that has spawned fans from every walk of life.
DVD Information And Extra's
This season of 23 episodes is 967 minutes long and spans an impressive 7 disks, it is rated at a 15 - mainly due to violence and a little nudity from Niki though if you have mature teens that are a little younger I wouldn't hesitate in getting them into this show. It may be violent but its intelligent and shows that every action has a consequence - so unlike buying a videogame I wouldn't say the age rating on this is a hard and fast rule. There are a generous handful of extras too:
71-minute pilot episode: Want to see how they were originally going to do things and then breathe a sigh of relief that they didn't? Well here you go! If they had gone for this rather than their redraft it would have been much more of a 24-style show.
Deleted Scenes: Due to time constraints there are always deleted scenes, especially when Tim Kring is involved - he could make a biblical epic seem short!
The Making Of Heroes/Special Effects/The Stunts: How do they do that and why do they do that? 3 features on how they do everything and anything on the set of Heroes.
The Score: A small piece on the musicians that work on Heroes providing not only the theme tune but much of the incidental music that features throughout.
Profile Of Artist Tim Sale: Exactly what it says, this is a profile of Tim Sale who is integral to Heroes.
Audio commentaries with the cast, crew and creator: If you want to know what someone in the cast or crew was thinking during filming, chances are they say it during this. Only really for the most geeky of fans (So, well...me!).
You can buy the box set brand new and sealed for just £9.99 on Amazon. For the amount of entertainment you get it is most definitely worth the small sum, though if you are unsure go onto youtube and watch a few clips to see if it's for you if you've never tried any comic-book style sci-fi before.
"Nurture your mind with great thoughts; to believe in the heroic makes heroes" Benjamin Disraeli
Monday, August 15, 2011
"Nips, Tucks and a hell of a lot of F***ing" (Nip/Tuck Season 1)
Nip/Tuck is a medical show with a difference. Unlike Casualty, The Flying Doctors and all the other medical dramas we are accustomed to seeing this is a very different look at the medical profession. Definitely not family viewing, thus why it got a late slot on channel 4 when it was shown here, this show is still drawing in viewers now who eagerly await the final season of the violent and sex-filled show.
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What Is Nip/Tuck About?
Nip/Tuck follows the lives of two plastic surgeons who own a clinic in Miami, Florida called McNamara/Troy after its founders. The two surgeons have various different personal problems which quite often affect or get in the way of their work, with sometimes worrying results. Each episode focuses on one main patient who has come into the clinic and becomes the title of that episode. Far from just being about botox and boob jobs, there's a wide range of surgeries performed and for many different and sometimes heart-warming reasons.
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Who Is In It?
As this is primarily set in a clinic there are characters coming and going throughout every episode so here the focus will be on the doctors and those outside of the clinic.
Dr. Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh): One half of our duo of doctors, Sean is so tightly wound it's a wonder he doesn't explode into orbit. He's bored with his life, which consists of work and going home to his family and is suffering from a mid-life crisis. Oh woe is me, a wife, kids, huge house, nice car and a big balance. It is sometimes hard to feel bad for Sean but once the character grows on you you'll feel a lot more sympathy for him. In the midst of his marriage breakdown he gets his heart broken by a patient and has to make a big decision to put her happiness first.
Dr. Christian Troy (Julian McMahon): The other half of the clinic comes in the form of the dashing sex addict Christian Troy, he and Sean have known each other since college and are like brothers to one another. Christian does have feelings, but he keeps them so deeply buried that he seems cold to most who meet him. He's not well liked by his ex's that he has loved and left usually within a night and in all honesty needs to grow up because the playboy lifestyle will only work for so long. His past has played a huge part in who and what he is now and when that is uncovered his character makes perfect sense and you will feel so awful for him.
Julia McNamara (Joely Richardson): Married to Sean and also went to the same college as him and Troy, she gave up all of her dreams in medicine when she found out she was pregnant with Matt, then along came daughter Annie and her only role in life became being a mother and supportive wife to the man who was living out her dream. She resents how much she's given up for her husband and children and desperately wants to get back into medicine, all of which causes extra tension in an already warring house. Maybe she married the wrong man at college?
Matt and Annie McNamara (John Hensley and Kelsey Batelaan): Sean and Julia's two children. Matt is a troubled teen that seems to have a knack of getting into trouble whilst Annie is the quiet and very observant younger child who sees what is going on with her parents.
Liz Cruz (Roma Maffia): Funny and witty, anesthesiologistLiz is always on hand to make Sean stop worrying, yell at Christian for sleeping with yet another woman and pretty much make sure the clinic doesn't collapse in all the madness. She is the rock of the clinic and when she isn't running around after the doctors she is trying to fix her troubled love-life. If only the woman of her dreams would come along and they could live happily ever after.
Escobar Gallardo (Robert LaSardo): Escobar is a Miami drug lord who after seeing something the doctors did that wasn't very professional, blackmails them into giving him huge amounts of their weekly takings and any operations he wants for anyone. He threatens not only Christian and Sean, but also Sean's family - which may seem like a harmless thing to do to the weak-willed doctor but Escobar finally makes our moralistic medic snap and seek revenge.
Dr. Merrill Bobolit (Joey Slotnick): A fellow student from the same medical school as Troy and McNamara, but unlike the dynamic duo Merrill wasn't exactly top of the class. He does however make a lot of money at his practice, he's even more well-known than the McNamara/Troy clinic and has billboards bearing his face scattered around Miami. The reason for this is that he has absolutely no scruples and will operate on anyone who wants surgery without counselling them against it or telling them to look at other options. He's just in it for the money.
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Episodes:
In this first season there are 13 episodes at about 60 minutes long each. These were aired in a post-10pm slot in the UK on channel 4 due to the violence, scenes of surgery and explicit sex.
McNamara/Troy: A mobster turns up offering to pay a ridiculously huge sum of money to the two surgeons if they give him a new face. Christian decides to accept the money and angers Sean whilst putting them both in grave danger. At home things aren't any better for Sean, his marriage is in tatters and he's going head-long into a mid-life crisis.
Mandi/Randi: Twins come into the clinic both wanting surgery to make them look different, but will this backfire? Sean tries to flirt with Grace but she flatly rejects him, (Not a great start to his attempt to live like a single man) but accepts an offer of a job at the clinic. Christian is having naughty thoughts about someone close to him and Matt, worried about what his girlfriend thinks of a certain part of him, decides to tackle it with a bottle of vodka and some nail scissors.
Nanette Babcock: Julia and Sean have to have a serious talk with Matt after they discover what he has done. A potential patient is ruled out of having surgery when she is found to not be as mentally stable as she thinks whilst Christian offers "favours" to a rich widow who plans to file a malpractice suit against the clinic after Sean forgets to make sure he's got all of his surgical tools on the tray when closing up.
Sophia Lopez: Christian has a cunning plan that doesn't impress Sean; he wants to make the clinic the number one choice for porn stars seeking surgery with the help of surgeon Merrill Bobolit. Sean meets transsexual Sophia Lopez, who has ended up with problems following a botched backroom surgery.
Kurt Dempsey: A man in love comes to the clinic wanting the duo to make his eyes look Asian, sounds mad on paper but he has a very sweet reason for wanting it. Christian decides to try and deal with his addiction to sex, which ends up in a rather unhelpful place with fellow sex-addict Gina, and Julia finds out she is pregnant which is a light to the touch paper of her fraught relationship with Sean.
Megan O'Hara: Both doctors are being naughty boys today as they carry on inappropriate relationships with patients. Someone is upset with Christian and is getting back at him in a public way. Matt finds himself in a guy's complete fantasy but when you are more in the way than anything else it turns out it isn't quite as sexy as the idea seems.
Cliff Mantegna: In helping his sex addiction Christian goes to a very private swinger's party - great idea no? Whilst at Sean's house news of his son Matt's threesome becomes a very uncomfortable and hilarious intervention with all three families meeting under one roof to discuss it. Julia also makes a handsome young friend in Jude when studying, but what will Sean make of it when he finds out?
Cara Fitzgerald: Matt seems to think that visiting the girl he is responsible for almost killing makes up for what he did whilst Grace thinks that Sean may be carrying on a relationship with Megan O'Hara. The doctor's make a huge mistake when they remove an incriminating birthmark from a priest, leading to a dangerous face-off in a church and uncovering a lot about Christian's traumatic childhood and why he is the way he is.
Sophia Lopez II: Love is in the air for Sophia and a member of the clinic, giving Sophia doubts about the gender reassignment surgery that is shortly scheduled. Bartering is apparently back in with Christian trading Kimber, his on/off girlfriend for fellow surgeon (and downright cretin) Merrill Bobolit's rare Lamborghini. If ever you needed a reason to stay single girls...but don't worry, Kimber has some vengeful payback plans up her sleeve that involves handcuffs and a lipstick.
Adelle Coffin: During his recertification exam Sean starts feeling the pressure as the cadaver head he is working on comes to life and won't shut up about his dying lover Megan's urge to commit suicide. Will he manage to get recertified or will Christian be working on his own for a while? And will dying Megan get the release from pain that she wants so badly? Make sure you've got the Kleenex handy in this heartbreaking but beautiful episode.
Montana/Sassy/Justice: In an interesting episode that makes you question ethics the male persona of a woman's multiple personalities forcefully demands an operation for one of the other personalities. And Christian's life changes as Gina tells him that he's going to be a father. The girl that Matt nearly killed returns to school apparently unaware that he was the driver that hit her and an awkward love triangle forms between her, Matt and his friend Henry who was also in the car.
Antonia Ramos: The doctors are blackmailed by Escobar, who has been keeping a big secret for them. They are now stuck doing his bidding, removing heroin-filled breast implants from Escobar's naive drug mules who think they are on the road to stardom in Hollywood. Lovable and wise transsexual Sophia is in turn befriended by Julia and shunned by every other woman at the local gym and Christian's bank account, already low from the payments he and Sean are having to make to Escobar, is getting dangerously low coping with pregnant Gina's demands.
Escobar Gallardo: Is the cosmetic clinic turning into a veterinary clinic? Well that's what one man seems to think as he offers to pay obscene money for a cosmetic procedure on his show dog. Talking of dogs, after trying to force the doctors to move into organ harvesting for him he gives them another option - he wants a brand new face. Escobar is given a new face by Sean, though Escobar will not be having the last laugh in this climatic finale to the first series.
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Why Should You Watch Nip/Tuck?
If you prefer your drama more adult themed than some of the popular British fare and have a strong stomach then this is a show that could be a winner. Nip/Tuck is a very well-written show that deals with ethical and moral dilemmas alongside more odd moments that show you just how different we all are - as soon as Sean and Christian ask the patient "Tell me what you don't like about yourself" you see how no matter how beautiful we may think a person is, if there is something they don't like (and in this show they tend to have a very good reason for their dislikes) they feel desperately ugly. Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.
This has a mixture of characters you will love or hate - or in the case of Christian love AND hate. This is another show where they picked actors based on talent rather than how big their name was already and this shows that you don't have to be well-known to be arresting in your performance.
The soundtrack features big names played on the theatres stereo during operations, and more often than not the songs picked are brilliantly telling about either the patient under the knife or the feelings of the doctors at the time. Using big name songs in this way is rather fun as it's a very different way to bring music into a show - the rest of the time you won't notice the music that may be playing in the background of a shot.
Of course being set in Miami the people you see on screen are for the most part annoyingly beautiful, not something to watch when you're having a bad day as you will feel worse about your appearance seeing all of these gorgeous toned bodies on screen.
This is rated as an 18 certificate and definitely isn't recommended viewing for anyone under that age. I also, as with True Blood, wouldn't recommend this for watching with parents and certainly do not have this on if there's any chance your friendly neighbourhood vicar. Aside from the very graphic surgical scenes where you will see a lot more of the patients than you will probably care to there is also a lot of violence, drugs and bad language.
And oh did I forget that sometimes Nip/Tuck is more soft core pornography than medical drama? Yes, you will see a lot of sex - and not just the usual either, threesomes, orgies and more are shown here. This is an explicitly sexual show and though it is woven into the storyline and isn't just there for the sake of it this does mean that it is not suitable for anyone under 18.
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Final Verdict?
This was a favourite show of mine back when it first aired, and though I haven't caught up with the last two seasons yet still has pride of place in my DVD collection. I love medical dramas, and when this was shown it was just such a shock to see such a grown up take on the genre where they didn't censor anything from the viewer. In many shows the surgery scenes are kept to a minimum and when you do see what they are doing it quite often looks very fake. This wasn't like that and you feel like you have an all access pass to the O.R. That means it's not the best thing to watch whilst eating a meal but it is thoroughly engrossing and engaging when you do watch. It is truly fascinating to see surgery in that much depth, and much of the time you get to see the patients afterwards when they get their check-up giving you closure on that character and their story.
Though not a huge fan of plastic surgery watching this showed that people don't just want surgery to look pretty. Many do and in this they seek out alternative doctors such as Bobolit who is more than happy to oblige. But Sean and Christian take on cases that aren't based solely on attaining the perfect body that the magazines push, these patients have deeper reasons for the surgeries they want and it shatters the myth that the only people that want surgery are shallow and vain. Most of the patients in Nip/Tuck are anything but vain, they just need help.
Nip/Tuck sucked me in from the first episode and since then I have watched the exploits of doctors and patients at this clinic with great interest. Yes sometimes I have to watch surgery scenes through my hands because they are so horrific, or cringe as Christian has very energetic sex with another woman in some mad position. But they are integral parts of a very complex show and it wouldn't be the same without these moments. I've laughed and cried whilst rewatching this first season again and probably will again next time it's watched. If you are looking for a new medical fix since the end of ER and aren't squeamish, try Nip/Tuck - more gorgeous people saving lives, just in different ways.
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What Is Nip/Tuck About?
Nip/Tuck follows the lives of two plastic surgeons who own a clinic in Miami, Florida called McNamara/Troy after its founders. The two surgeons have various different personal problems which quite often affect or get in the way of their work, with sometimes worrying results. Each episode focuses on one main patient who has come into the clinic and becomes the title of that episode. Far from just being about botox and boob jobs, there's a wide range of surgeries performed and for many different and sometimes heart-warming reasons.
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Who Is In It?
As this is primarily set in a clinic there are characters coming and going throughout every episode so here the focus will be on the doctors and those outside of the clinic.
Dr. Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh): One half of our duo of doctors, Sean is so tightly wound it's a wonder he doesn't explode into orbit. He's bored with his life, which consists of work and going home to his family and is suffering from a mid-life crisis. Oh woe is me, a wife, kids, huge house, nice car and a big balance. It is sometimes hard to feel bad for Sean but once the character grows on you you'll feel a lot more sympathy for him. In the midst of his marriage breakdown he gets his heart broken by a patient and has to make a big decision to put her happiness first.
Dr. Christian Troy (Julian McMahon): The other half of the clinic comes in the form of the dashing sex addict Christian Troy, he and Sean have known each other since college and are like brothers to one another. Christian does have feelings, but he keeps them so deeply buried that he seems cold to most who meet him. He's not well liked by his ex's that he has loved and left usually within a night and in all honesty needs to grow up because the playboy lifestyle will only work for so long. His past has played a huge part in who and what he is now and when that is uncovered his character makes perfect sense and you will feel so awful for him.
Julia McNamara (Joely Richardson): Married to Sean and also went to the same college as him and Troy, she gave up all of her dreams in medicine when she found out she was pregnant with Matt, then along came daughter Annie and her only role in life became being a mother and supportive wife to the man who was living out her dream. She resents how much she's given up for her husband and children and desperately wants to get back into medicine, all of which causes extra tension in an already warring house. Maybe she married the wrong man at college?
Matt and Annie McNamara (John Hensley and Kelsey Batelaan): Sean and Julia's two children. Matt is a troubled teen that seems to have a knack of getting into trouble whilst Annie is the quiet and very observant younger child who sees what is going on with her parents.
Liz Cruz (Roma Maffia): Funny and witty, anesthesiologistLiz is always on hand to make Sean stop worrying, yell at Christian for sleeping with yet another woman and pretty much make sure the clinic doesn't collapse in all the madness. She is the rock of the clinic and when she isn't running around after the doctors she is trying to fix her troubled love-life. If only the woman of her dreams would come along and they could live happily ever after.
Escobar Gallardo (Robert LaSardo): Escobar is a Miami drug lord who after seeing something the doctors did that wasn't very professional, blackmails them into giving him huge amounts of their weekly takings and any operations he wants for anyone. He threatens not only Christian and Sean, but also Sean's family - which may seem like a harmless thing to do to the weak-willed doctor but Escobar finally makes our moralistic medic snap and seek revenge.
Dr. Merrill Bobolit (Joey Slotnick): A fellow student from the same medical school as Troy and McNamara, but unlike the dynamic duo Merrill wasn't exactly top of the class. He does however make a lot of money at his practice, he's even more well-known than the McNamara/Troy clinic and has billboards bearing his face scattered around Miami. The reason for this is that he has absolutely no scruples and will operate on anyone who wants surgery without counselling them against it or telling them to look at other options. He's just in it for the money.
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Episodes:
In this first season there are 13 episodes at about 60 minutes long each. These were aired in a post-10pm slot in the UK on channel 4 due to the violence, scenes of surgery and explicit sex.
McNamara/Troy: A mobster turns up offering to pay a ridiculously huge sum of money to the two surgeons if they give him a new face. Christian decides to accept the money and angers Sean whilst putting them both in grave danger. At home things aren't any better for Sean, his marriage is in tatters and he's going head-long into a mid-life crisis.
Mandi/Randi: Twins come into the clinic both wanting surgery to make them look different, but will this backfire? Sean tries to flirt with Grace but she flatly rejects him, (Not a great start to his attempt to live like a single man) but accepts an offer of a job at the clinic. Christian is having naughty thoughts about someone close to him and Matt, worried about what his girlfriend thinks of a certain part of him, decides to tackle it with a bottle of vodka and some nail scissors.
Nanette Babcock: Julia and Sean have to have a serious talk with Matt after they discover what he has done. A potential patient is ruled out of having surgery when she is found to not be as mentally stable as she thinks whilst Christian offers "favours" to a rich widow who plans to file a malpractice suit against the clinic after Sean forgets to make sure he's got all of his surgical tools on the tray when closing up.
Sophia Lopez: Christian has a cunning plan that doesn't impress Sean; he wants to make the clinic the number one choice for porn stars seeking surgery with the help of surgeon Merrill Bobolit. Sean meets transsexual Sophia Lopez, who has ended up with problems following a botched backroom surgery.
Kurt Dempsey: A man in love comes to the clinic wanting the duo to make his eyes look Asian, sounds mad on paper but he has a very sweet reason for wanting it. Christian decides to try and deal with his addiction to sex, which ends up in a rather unhelpful place with fellow sex-addict Gina, and Julia finds out she is pregnant which is a light to the touch paper of her fraught relationship with Sean.
Megan O'Hara: Both doctors are being naughty boys today as they carry on inappropriate relationships with patients. Someone is upset with Christian and is getting back at him in a public way. Matt finds himself in a guy's complete fantasy but when you are more in the way than anything else it turns out it isn't quite as sexy as the idea seems.
Cliff Mantegna: In helping his sex addiction Christian goes to a very private swinger's party - great idea no? Whilst at Sean's house news of his son Matt's threesome becomes a very uncomfortable and hilarious intervention with all three families meeting under one roof to discuss it. Julia also makes a handsome young friend in Jude when studying, but what will Sean make of it when he finds out?
Cara Fitzgerald: Matt seems to think that visiting the girl he is responsible for almost killing makes up for what he did whilst Grace thinks that Sean may be carrying on a relationship with Megan O'Hara. The doctor's make a huge mistake when they remove an incriminating birthmark from a priest, leading to a dangerous face-off in a church and uncovering a lot about Christian's traumatic childhood and why he is the way he is.
Sophia Lopez II: Love is in the air for Sophia and a member of the clinic, giving Sophia doubts about the gender reassignment surgery that is shortly scheduled. Bartering is apparently back in with Christian trading Kimber, his on/off girlfriend for fellow surgeon (and downright cretin) Merrill Bobolit's rare Lamborghini. If ever you needed a reason to stay single girls...but don't worry, Kimber has some vengeful payback plans up her sleeve that involves handcuffs and a lipstick.
Adelle Coffin: During his recertification exam Sean starts feeling the pressure as the cadaver head he is working on comes to life and won't shut up about his dying lover Megan's urge to commit suicide. Will he manage to get recertified or will Christian be working on his own for a while? And will dying Megan get the release from pain that she wants so badly? Make sure you've got the Kleenex handy in this heartbreaking but beautiful episode.
Montana/Sassy/Justice: In an interesting episode that makes you question ethics the male persona of a woman's multiple personalities forcefully demands an operation for one of the other personalities. And Christian's life changes as Gina tells him that he's going to be a father. The girl that Matt nearly killed returns to school apparently unaware that he was the driver that hit her and an awkward love triangle forms between her, Matt and his friend Henry who was also in the car.
Antonia Ramos: The doctors are blackmailed by Escobar, who has been keeping a big secret for them. They are now stuck doing his bidding, removing heroin-filled breast implants from Escobar's naive drug mules who think they are on the road to stardom in Hollywood. Lovable and wise transsexual Sophia is in turn befriended by Julia and shunned by every other woman at the local gym and Christian's bank account, already low from the payments he and Sean are having to make to Escobar, is getting dangerously low coping with pregnant Gina's demands.
Escobar Gallardo: Is the cosmetic clinic turning into a veterinary clinic? Well that's what one man seems to think as he offers to pay obscene money for a cosmetic procedure on his show dog. Talking of dogs, after trying to force the doctors to move into organ harvesting for him he gives them another option - he wants a brand new face. Escobar is given a new face by Sean, though Escobar will not be having the last laugh in this climatic finale to the first series.
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Why Should You Watch Nip/Tuck?
If you prefer your drama more adult themed than some of the popular British fare and have a strong stomach then this is a show that could be a winner. Nip/Tuck is a very well-written show that deals with ethical and moral dilemmas alongside more odd moments that show you just how different we all are - as soon as Sean and Christian ask the patient "Tell me what you don't like about yourself" you see how no matter how beautiful we may think a person is, if there is something they don't like (and in this show they tend to have a very good reason for their dislikes) they feel desperately ugly. Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.
This has a mixture of characters you will love or hate - or in the case of Christian love AND hate. This is another show where they picked actors based on talent rather than how big their name was already and this shows that you don't have to be well-known to be arresting in your performance.
The soundtrack features big names played on the theatres stereo during operations, and more often than not the songs picked are brilliantly telling about either the patient under the knife or the feelings of the doctors at the time. Using big name songs in this way is rather fun as it's a very different way to bring music into a show - the rest of the time you won't notice the music that may be playing in the background of a shot.
Of course being set in Miami the people you see on screen are for the most part annoyingly beautiful, not something to watch when you're having a bad day as you will feel worse about your appearance seeing all of these gorgeous toned bodies on screen.
This is rated as an 18 certificate and definitely isn't recommended viewing for anyone under that age. I also, as with True Blood, wouldn't recommend this for watching with parents and certainly do not have this on if there's any chance your friendly neighbourhood vicar. Aside from the very graphic surgical scenes where you will see a lot more of the patients than you will probably care to there is also a lot of violence, drugs and bad language.
And oh did I forget that sometimes Nip/Tuck is more soft core pornography than medical drama? Yes, you will see a lot of sex - and not just the usual either, threesomes, orgies and more are shown here. This is an explicitly sexual show and though it is woven into the storyline and isn't just there for the sake of it this does mean that it is not suitable for anyone under 18.
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Final Verdict?
This was a favourite show of mine back when it first aired, and though I haven't caught up with the last two seasons yet still has pride of place in my DVD collection. I love medical dramas, and when this was shown it was just such a shock to see such a grown up take on the genre where they didn't censor anything from the viewer. In many shows the surgery scenes are kept to a minimum and when you do see what they are doing it quite often looks very fake. This wasn't like that and you feel like you have an all access pass to the O.R. That means it's not the best thing to watch whilst eating a meal but it is thoroughly engrossing and engaging when you do watch. It is truly fascinating to see surgery in that much depth, and much of the time you get to see the patients afterwards when they get their check-up giving you closure on that character and their story.
Though not a huge fan of plastic surgery watching this showed that people don't just want surgery to look pretty. Many do and in this they seek out alternative doctors such as Bobolit who is more than happy to oblige. But Sean and Christian take on cases that aren't based solely on attaining the perfect body that the magazines push, these patients have deeper reasons for the surgeries they want and it shatters the myth that the only people that want surgery are shallow and vain. Most of the patients in Nip/Tuck are anything but vain, they just need help.
Nip/Tuck sucked me in from the first episode and since then I have watched the exploits of doctors and patients at this clinic with great interest. Yes sometimes I have to watch surgery scenes through my hands because they are so horrific, or cringe as Christian has very energetic sex with another woman in some mad position. But they are integral parts of a very complex show and it wouldn't be the same without these moments. I've laughed and cried whilst rewatching this first season again and probably will again next time it's watched. If you are looking for a new medical fix since the end of ER and aren't squeamish, try Nip/Tuck - more gorgeous people saving lives, just in different ways.
"Nips, Tucks and twice as many F***s" (Nip/Tuck Season 2)
You wouldn't think that after the first season things at McNamara/Troy could get any more exciting or action-packed. But with Matt's paternity in question, Julia and Sean's marriage completely in tatters and Christians ex's coming out of the woodwork with problems that he can't just hide from things have managed to get even more interesting. Add to that the mysterious Carver who is raping and disfiguring beautiful women with no obvious motive and you have the second thrilling season of Nip/Tuck, where the fun has only just begun.
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When/Where Is It Set?
Things haven't changed too much, we pick up pretty soon after the first season at the time of Sean's fortieth birthday. The clinic is still in the prettiest part of Miami and none of the main characters have disappeared (Or been replaced by other actors as has been known to happen).
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Anyone New?
As with the first season, there is an almost endless stream of patients that comes in but we also have a few big characters that are either brand new to the story or who appeared in the first season and have now moved into much bigger storylines.
Kimber Henry (Kelly Carlson): We've seen her since the pilot episode but Kimber really comes into her own now. She is Christian's ex/current girlfriend - depending on the episode as these two fall into bed with each other far too much. She was a model and now works firstly as a porn star before moving behind the camera to work as a producer. A complete narcissist and cocaine addict, Kimber needs a lot of reassurance about her looks which is never helped by Christian.
Gina Russo (Jesselyn Gilsig): A former member of the same SA group as Christian, Gina is an anger and bitter woman who can never take the blame for anything that she does wrong. Even after she gives birth to a child that is very clearly not Christian's she continues to be nasty to him, often using her child to get what she wants from him knowing how much he loves baby Wilber.
Ava Moore (Famke Janssen): A life coach who cares more about helping her own life than those of her clients, often manipulating and using them sexually. She is originally hired to help Sean and Julia's troubled marriage and Matt's bad grades but after seducing Matt and revealing a huge secret it is clear she is not one of the good guys. She is also the step-mother of very bitter teen Adrian Moore.
Quentin Costa (Bruno Campos): The plastic surgeon hired to fix Sean's face after he was attacked by The Carver, he is originally from Atlanta, is devilishly handsome and openly bisexual.
The Carver (I'm not going to tell you as that would ruin season 3!): A masked attacker who rapes his victims and then slashes their faces on either side of their mouth to resemble macabre smiles. He will attack many characters during seasons two and three before being revealed.
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Episodes
The second season has 16 episodes, a whole 3 more than the first season. The running time is still about the same and these too were shown in a post 10-pm timeslot on channel 4.
Erica Noughton: Sean hits the big 4-0, but that is nothing to worry about compared to the spasms that have begun in his hand. Julia's mother Dr Erica Noughton comes to Miami wanting a face lift, and causes stress due to things she did at her daughter's wedding (well to be precise it's who she did that is the problem). Meanwhile Christian is trying to be a good father to the baby that isn't his, but hires a nanny based on looks rather than her CV - something he comes to regret when he finds out how she has been getting baby Wilber to sleep.
Christian Troy: Christian's sex-life hasn't gotten any more mundane since the first season, but after one sneeze during a sexual act leaves him with a broken nose perhaps he'll learn. Sean's shakes almost disfigure a patient whilst his son Matt finds out that his part in the hit-and-run is known after his friend Henry is arrested for rape. Christian's nose finally gets fixed when he has Sean operate without anaesthetic so that he can help him medically and confidence wise. Will that shaky hand ruin the pretty face of the philandering doctor?
Manya Mabika: A Somalian model wants a clitoral reconstruction so that she can have orgasms after having been put through traditional female circumcision as a young girl, though the procedure is experimental and may not work the doctors proceed. After the operation Christian decides to help test it out but when he fails to get her to orgasm believes that there was something wrong with the operation (Because of course, it couldn't have been his sexual skills could it?!) but after some advice from a woman finds that his skills weren't as perfected as he had once thought. Sean meets life coach Ava Moore who suggests that Julia's stress inducing mother could be the cause of her problems (No, really?!!) and Christian turns out to be a better parent to little Wilber than Gina.
Mrs Grubman: Annie enters early puberty, panicking Sean and Julia as they realise that they are getting old and need to stop acting like children. After finding out that Gina has begun custody proceedings against him, Christian wines and dines ex-girlfriend Kimber who has been lined up as a character witness against him, in the process finding out that she is in a mess and addicted to cocaine. What will Christian do to get Kimber on side in order to gain full custody of Wilber?
Joel Gideon: Proof that you shouldn't talk on the phone and drive, Sean causes a serious car accident when doing exactly that in this episode. Though he is unharmed his outlook on life seems to have changed dramatically - he's gone a bit adrenaline junkie. This is fine until he tries to get Matt to eat a potentially lethal form of sushi in a Japanese restaurant, prompting Julia to take Matt and walk out. Perhaps the episode's patient, Joel Gideon, will be able to snap Sean out of it when he comes in to have the dead tissue from his nose removed so that he can go back to the mountain that caused this damage and climb it again.
Bobbi Broderick: Sean gets a stalker when he operates on Bobbi, a mature lady who had liposuction done in order to better compete for a job selling clothes at Saks but wasn't happy with the results. This isn't the only problem in Sean's life however as after hiring life coach Ava to help Matt with his problems she starts playing games with him, offering sex for good grades. He of course becomes obsessed with this older woman and stupidly gets arrested outside her home, causing Christian to have to help him and ends up getting tangled up in Ava's madness himself. The best part of this episode is patient Allegra Calderello, who after burning her lips off in a kitchen accident is bemused to find out that the best skin to replace them with comes from her other set of lips - this is highly amusing because her husband is a very old-fashioned Sicilian - therefore in order for the operation to go ahead Allegra gets the doctors to pretend the skin has come from elsewhere.
Naomi Gaines: In the start of a reoccurring plotline, Sean performs surgery on a model that was raped and slashed across the face by a serial attacker called The Carver. Bobbi continues to make Sean's life hell and at the McNamara house there is a very awkward dinner with Ava and her teenage son Adrian, where all the secrets that have been kept so far just come tumbling out.
Agatha Ripp: Another pro bono case comes into the clinic by the name of Agatha Ripp, a prostitute who inflicted stigmata style markings on herself and not only wants to repent for this but also asks the doctors to convince the church shelter she stays at of this fact. Julia tells Sean news that rips him in two, causing him to lash out at Christian and throw Julia out. Christian's day doesn't get any better when Liz gives him some awful news regarding the selfless act he performed recently.
Rose And Raven Rosenberg: Following the revelations of the previous episode Sean and Christian make plans to separate their practice and partnership for good, but that has to be put on hold for a very special operation - teenage conjoined sisters who are joined at the forehead who need separating because one needs chemo. The operation is not a success by any standards and Sean and Christian, smarting from this fact share a night with a prostitute who looks just like Julia. They are later bought to their senses by the twin's mother, who makes them see that not being alone is important.
Kimber Henry: In sharp contrast to the heart-breaking story of the conjoined twins, the clinic's latest patient is Christian's ex Kimber, who is now a very famous porn star. Upset with the vagina on the sex doll about to be distributed in her image she asks the doctors to correct it, with Sean taking this much too far. Julia meets a handsome stranger but after it turns out that he has a very strange fetish and thought she was a hooker Sean has to save her. A writer also comes to the clinic asking for breast implants - he is writing a book about the experience.
Natasha Charles: Christian is very attracted to new patient Natasha, who blind since birth would like new eyes as her own do not look like everyone else's and make her feel less attractive. Julia gets breast implants after seeing Sean with porn-starlet Kimber and her mother Erica finds out that since the separation things haven't been easy for her daughter and takes it upon herself to try and make Sean see this. Her help is too late though as Julia falls through a glass door after OD-ing.
Julia McNamara: Julia has surgery to fix the scars on her face caused by the glass of the door she fell through and also asks for her implants to be removed. While she is under her mind wanders into an alternate reality where she marries Christian instead of Sean, and the whole experience makes her realise exactly what she wants.
Oona Wentworth: Christian has a run in with scalpel-jockey Merrill Bobolitt after her finds cases of women severely disfigured due to his cheap botox treatments from the back of a salon. But Bobolitt's antics run to far more dangerous procedures and once Christian discovers to the full extent of the operation he is kidnapped and faced with the mad doctor trying to steal his face to replace his own.
Trudy Nye: Kimber asks for an operation to change the love line on her hand after visiting a palm reader - I suppose that's one way to cheat fate! Christian decides to break up with blind ex-patient Natasha and the doctors are shocked when a patient comes into the surgery asking for her nose to be fixed after it was broken years before by her husband, who is soon to get out of prison. After finding out that not only did he abuse his wife but also his child to the point of death Christian refuses to have anything to do with the operation he wants to make his face different so he can hide from his past.
Sean McNamara: Sean becomes the latest victim of The Carver when he is attacked by the masked fiend, whilst Gina has some news for Christian that could mean the end of his playboy days for good. She is HIV+, forcing him to have to trace every lover he's had and little Wilber and his biological father (Because after all, what are the chances Gina will do the right thing and tell them). Kimber has moved from the front of the camera to behind it as she starts a new career directed porn films and gives Christian comfort and support when everyone else has left him.
Joan Rivers: In the season finale featuring guest star Joan Rivers as herself, things come to a head. Joan Rivers comes to the clinic wanting all of her previous surgeries reversed whilst Matt and Ava are planning to run away together after Matt steals some pills from the clinic for Ava. Thankfully Christian finds out and confronts Ava, finding out that the pills weren't for depression and that Ava is hiding a big secret from everyone. Sean, Christian and Ava decide to find out more about Ava and stop Matt from leaving with her. The victims of The Carver seem to be being left in an even worse state than previously, and Escobar in dream tells Sean to kill him. After everything is resolved, and not all in a happy fashion Sean settles down to sleep with a loaded gun awaiting The Carver, but will the attacker come back to get Sean when there are so many other targets?
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Why Should You Watch This?
Simple enough reason is that if you watched and enjoyed the first season you'll enjoy the second, it is more of the same sex, confusion and surgeries. In this season however there is the added intrigue of the serial attacker menacing the beautiful people of Miami, this gives the second season (and the third as it continues through) a continuous storyline even though it is often running in the background rather than the foreground. The problems that both surgeons face have certainly gotten more complicated with Christian now desperate to be a father to the child he feel in love with before even being born, and Sean trying to keep his confidence and prove his worth. If you enjoyed watching the characters in the first season then seeing their progression will interest you.
For those who are newcomers to the show, the second season is not somewhere I would recommend you begin. Though you will be able to pick up on what's going on so much happened during the opening season that it's going to make it more difficult to keep up. I'd suggest watching the first season to get up to speed (Or if you are desperate to jump right in at least read reviews/episode guides for the first season to catch you up on important events.
As with the first season I wouldn't suggest this as viewing for anyone under 18 or squeamish, it has a lot of sex in it - and we're talking kinkier stuff than you would usually see on TV. Also with the introduction of The Carver anyone who is very nervous of seeing people with their faces slashed should probably skip both this and season three - you will see up close The Carver's victims. Which for horror fans like myself isn't that big a deal but I know plenty of people will not like viewing this and young teens shouldn't be watching it. Don't say I didn't warn you!
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Final Verdict
For me this season tops the first due to the intertwining storylines and the introduction of the mysterious attacker. It again raises ethical and moral questions as you watch and makes you really think about how far you think it is right to go in the pursuit of beauty and happiness.
This second series had a lot more sad and heartbreaking moments than the first which made me feel more connected to the characters involved that before. The patients are even more varied too, and it was good to see main characters as patients in the story.
The alternate reality bit during Julia's episode was a bit silly I have to admit, but it was appealing to see how she fared when married to Christian rather than Sean in that drug-induced world - pretty much proving that no matter what she has she wants the other option! So you can stop worrying about whether she will have a happily ever after because if this season is anything to go by she will never be happy with what she wants and will always be chasing something new
The reoccurring characters from the first season that were picked to become main players in this one were very well chosen, Dr. Merrill Bobolit shows you the path McNamara/Troy could have taken if they didn't work together or have Liz around to kick their backsides, Kimber was the best choice of ex to bring back as a big character because she is just so messed up bless her, whilst keeping Gina around showed how it isn't always the father who is a bad parent - Gina shouldn't be allowed to look after a pet rock whereas Christian really does try.
This season made me see many of the characters in a different light and therefore gave them more depth, the surgeries performed during the show were more complex and experimental than previously and the wider range of patients allowed for more interesting stories to be told - the stigmata one was very good viewing.
In essence the second season of Nip/Tuck is more of the same but with more depth and variety (and a horrific mystery attacker to ponder). The first season seems a little shallow in comparison but that's no bad thing.
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DVD Information And Special Features
The second season can be bought for £9.93 on amazons website, the price has only gone down by a few pennies over the last couple of years so it must still be a popular purchase. The 16 episodes are spread over 5 disks which total to 720 minutes approx. Now unless I need my eyes testing again my copy doesn't have any special features - a shame but if I didn't already have this season it wouldn't put me off buying at such a low price.
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When/Where Is It Set?
Things haven't changed too much, we pick up pretty soon after the first season at the time of Sean's fortieth birthday. The clinic is still in the prettiest part of Miami and none of the main characters have disappeared (Or been replaced by other actors as has been known to happen).
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Anyone New?
As with the first season, there is an almost endless stream of patients that comes in but we also have a few big characters that are either brand new to the story or who appeared in the first season and have now moved into much bigger storylines.
Kimber Henry (Kelly Carlson): We've seen her since the pilot episode but Kimber really comes into her own now. She is Christian's ex/current girlfriend - depending on the episode as these two fall into bed with each other far too much. She was a model and now works firstly as a porn star before moving behind the camera to work as a producer. A complete narcissist and cocaine addict, Kimber needs a lot of reassurance about her looks which is never helped by Christian.
Gina Russo (Jesselyn Gilsig): A former member of the same SA group as Christian, Gina is an anger and bitter woman who can never take the blame for anything that she does wrong. Even after she gives birth to a child that is very clearly not Christian's she continues to be nasty to him, often using her child to get what she wants from him knowing how much he loves baby Wilber.
Ava Moore (Famke Janssen): A life coach who cares more about helping her own life than those of her clients, often manipulating and using them sexually. She is originally hired to help Sean and Julia's troubled marriage and Matt's bad grades but after seducing Matt and revealing a huge secret it is clear she is not one of the good guys. She is also the step-mother of very bitter teen Adrian Moore.
Quentin Costa (Bruno Campos): The plastic surgeon hired to fix Sean's face after he was attacked by The Carver, he is originally from Atlanta, is devilishly handsome and openly bisexual.
The Carver (I'm not going to tell you as that would ruin season 3!): A masked attacker who rapes his victims and then slashes their faces on either side of their mouth to resemble macabre smiles. He will attack many characters during seasons two and three before being revealed.
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Episodes
The second season has 16 episodes, a whole 3 more than the first season. The running time is still about the same and these too were shown in a post 10-pm timeslot on channel 4.
Erica Noughton: Sean hits the big 4-0, but that is nothing to worry about compared to the spasms that have begun in his hand. Julia's mother Dr Erica Noughton comes to Miami wanting a face lift, and causes stress due to things she did at her daughter's wedding (well to be precise it's who she did that is the problem). Meanwhile Christian is trying to be a good father to the baby that isn't his, but hires a nanny based on looks rather than her CV - something he comes to regret when he finds out how she has been getting baby Wilber to sleep.
Christian Troy: Christian's sex-life hasn't gotten any more mundane since the first season, but after one sneeze during a sexual act leaves him with a broken nose perhaps he'll learn. Sean's shakes almost disfigure a patient whilst his son Matt finds out that his part in the hit-and-run is known after his friend Henry is arrested for rape. Christian's nose finally gets fixed when he has Sean operate without anaesthetic so that he can help him medically and confidence wise. Will that shaky hand ruin the pretty face of the philandering doctor?
Manya Mabika: A Somalian model wants a clitoral reconstruction so that she can have orgasms after having been put through traditional female circumcision as a young girl, though the procedure is experimental and may not work the doctors proceed. After the operation Christian decides to help test it out but when he fails to get her to orgasm believes that there was something wrong with the operation (Because of course, it couldn't have been his sexual skills could it?!) but after some advice from a woman finds that his skills weren't as perfected as he had once thought. Sean meets life coach Ava Moore who suggests that Julia's stress inducing mother could be the cause of her problems (No, really?!!) and Christian turns out to be a better parent to little Wilber than Gina.
Mrs Grubman: Annie enters early puberty, panicking Sean and Julia as they realise that they are getting old and need to stop acting like children. After finding out that Gina has begun custody proceedings against him, Christian wines and dines ex-girlfriend Kimber who has been lined up as a character witness against him, in the process finding out that she is in a mess and addicted to cocaine. What will Christian do to get Kimber on side in order to gain full custody of Wilber?
Joel Gideon: Proof that you shouldn't talk on the phone and drive, Sean causes a serious car accident when doing exactly that in this episode. Though he is unharmed his outlook on life seems to have changed dramatically - he's gone a bit adrenaline junkie. This is fine until he tries to get Matt to eat a potentially lethal form of sushi in a Japanese restaurant, prompting Julia to take Matt and walk out. Perhaps the episode's patient, Joel Gideon, will be able to snap Sean out of it when he comes in to have the dead tissue from his nose removed so that he can go back to the mountain that caused this damage and climb it again.
Bobbi Broderick: Sean gets a stalker when he operates on Bobbi, a mature lady who had liposuction done in order to better compete for a job selling clothes at Saks but wasn't happy with the results. This isn't the only problem in Sean's life however as after hiring life coach Ava to help Matt with his problems she starts playing games with him, offering sex for good grades. He of course becomes obsessed with this older woman and stupidly gets arrested outside her home, causing Christian to have to help him and ends up getting tangled up in Ava's madness himself. The best part of this episode is patient Allegra Calderello, who after burning her lips off in a kitchen accident is bemused to find out that the best skin to replace them with comes from her other set of lips - this is highly amusing because her husband is a very old-fashioned Sicilian - therefore in order for the operation to go ahead Allegra gets the doctors to pretend the skin has come from elsewhere.
Naomi Gaines: In the start of a reoccurring plotline, Sean performs surgery on a model that was raped and slashed across the face by a serial attacker called The Carver. Bobbi continues to make Sean's life hell and at the McNamara house there is a very awkward dinner with Ava and her teenage son Adrian, where all the secrets that have been kept so far just come tumbling out.
Agatha Ripp: Another pro bono case comes into the clinic by the name of Agatha Ripp, a prostitute who inflicted stigmata style markings on herself and not only wants to repent for this but also asks the doctors to convince the church shelter she stays at of this fact. Julia tells Sean news that rips him in two, causing him to lash out at Christian and throw Julia out. Christian's day doesn't get any better when Liz gives him some awful news regarding the selfless act he performed recently.
Rose And Raven Rosenberg: Following the revelations of the previous episode Sean and Christian make plans to separate their practice and partnership for good, but that has to be put on hold for a very special operation - teenage conjoined sisters who are joined at the forehead who need separating because one needs chemo. The operation is not a success by any standards and Sean and Christian, smarting from this fact share a night with a prostitute who looks just like Julia. They are later bought to their senses by the twin's mother, who makes them see that not being alone is important.
Kimber Henry: In sharp contrast to the heart-breaking story of the conjoined twins, the clinic's latest patient is Christian's ex Kimber, who is now a very famous porn star. Upset with the vagina on the sex doll about to be distributed in her image she asks the doctors to correct it, with Sean taking this much too far. Julia meets a handsome stranger but after it turns out that he has a very strange fetish and thought she was a hooker Sean has to save her. A writer also comes to the clinic asking for breast implants - he is writing a book about the experience.
Natasha Charles: Christian is very attracted to new patient Natasha, who blind since birth would like new eyes as her own do not look like everyone else's and make her feel less attractive. Julia gets breast implants after seeing Sean with porn-starlet Kimber and her mother Erica finds out that since the separation things haven't been easy for her daughter and takes it upon herself to try and make Sean see this. Her help is too late though as Julia falls through a glass door after OD-ing.
Julia McNamara: Julia has surgery to fix the scars on her face caused by the glass of the door she fell through and also asks for her implants to be removed. While she is under her mind wanders into an alternate reality where she marries Christian instead of Sean, and the whole experience makes her realise exactly what she wants.
Oona Wentworth: Christian has a run in with scalpel-jockey Merrill Bobolitt after her finds cases of women severely disfigured due to his cheap botox treatments from the back of a salon. But Bobolitt's antics run to far more dangerous procedures and once Christian discovers to the full extent of the operation he is kidnapped and faced with the mad doctor trying to steal his face to replace his own.
Trudy Nye: Kimber asks for an operation to change the love line on her hand after visiting a palm reader - I suppose that's one way to cheat fate! Christian decides to break up with blind ex-patient Natasha and the doctors are shocked when a patient comes into the surgery asking for her nose to be fixed after it was broken years before by her husband, who is soon to get out of prison. After finding out that not only did he abuse his wife but also his child to the point of death Christian refuses to have anything to do with the operation he wants to make his face different so he can hide from his past.
Sean McNamara: Sean becomes the latest victim of The Carver when he is attacked by the masked fiend, whilst Gina has some news for Christian that could mean the end of his playboy days for good. She is HIV+, forcing him to have to trace every lover he's had and little Wilber and his biological father (Because after all, what are the chances Gina will do the right thing and tell them). Kimber has moved from the front of the camera to behind it as she starts a new career directed porn films and gives Christian comfort and support when everyone else has left him.
Joan Rivers: In the season finale featuring guest star Joan Rivers as herself, things come to a head. Joan Rivers comes to the clinic wanting all of her previous surgeries reversed whilst Matt and Ava are planning to run away together after Matt steals some pills from the clinic for Ava. Thankfully Christian finds out and confronts Ava, finding out that the pills weren't for depression and that Ava is hiding a big secret from everyone. Sean, Christian and Ava decide to find out more about Ava and stop Matt from leaving with her. The victims of The Carver seem to be being left in an even worse state than previously, and Escobar in dream tells Sean to kill him. After everything is resolved, and not all in a happy fashion Sean settles down to sleep with a loaded gun awaiting The Carver, but will the attacker come back to get Sean when there are so many other targets?
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Why Should You Watch This?
Simple enough reason is that if you watched and enjoyed the first season you'll enjoy the second, it is more of the same sex, confusion and surgeries. In this season however there is the added intrigue of the serial attacker menacing the beautiful people of Miami, this gives the second season (and the third as it continues through) a continuous storyline even though it is often running in the background rather than the foreground. The problems that both surgeons face have certainly gotten more complicated with Christian now desperate to be a father to the child he feel in love with before even being born, and Sean trying to keep his confidence and prove his worth. If you enjoyed watching the characters in the first season then seeing their progression will interest you.
For those who are newcomers to the show, the second season is not somewhere I would recommend you begin. Though you will be able to pick up on what's going on so much happened during the opening season that it's going to make it more difficult to keep up. I'd suggest watching the first season to get up to speed (Or if you are desperate to jump right in at least read reviews/episode guides for the first season to catch you up on important events.
As with the first season I wouldn't suggest this as viewing for anyone under 18 or squeamish, it has a lot of sex in it - and we're talking kinkier stuff than you would usually see on TV. Also with the introduction of The Carver anyone who is very nervous of seeing people with their faces slashed should probably skip both this and season three - you will see up close The Carver's victims. Which for horror fans like myself isn't that big a deal but I know plenty of people will not like viewing this and young teens shouldn't be watching it. Don't say I didn't warn you!
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Final Verdict
For me this season tops the first due to the intertwining storylines and the introduction of the mysterious attacker. It again raises ethical and moral questions as you watch and makes you really think about how far you think it is right to go in the pursuit of beauty and happiness.
This second series had a lot more sad and heartbreaking moments than the first which made me feel more connected to the characters involved that before. The patients are even more varied too, and it was good to see main characters as patients in the story.
The alternate reality bit during Julia's episode was a bit silly I have to admit, but it was appealing to see how she fared when married to Christian rather than Sean in that drug-induced world - pretty much proving that no matter what she has she wants the other option! So you can stop worrying about whether she will have a happily ever after because if this season is anything to go by she will never be happy with what she wants and will always be chasing something new
The reoccurring characters from the first season that were picked to become main players in this one were very well chosen, Dr. Merrill Bobolit shows you the path McNamara/Troy could have taken if they didn't work together or have Liz around to kick their backsides, Kimber was the best choice of ex to bring back as a big character because she is just so messed up bless her, whilst keeping Gina around showed how it isn't always the father who is a bad parent - Gina shouldn't be allowed to look after a pet rock whereas Christian really does try.
This season made me see many of the characters in a different light and therefore gave them more depth, the surgeries performed during the show were more complex and experimental than previously and the wider range of patients allowed for more interesting stories to be told - the stigmata one was very good viewing.
In essence the second season of Nip/Tuck is more of the same but with more depth and variety (and a horrific mystery attacker to ponder). The first season seems a little shallow in comparison but that's no bad thing.
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DVD Information And Special Features
The second season can be bought for £9.93 on amazons website, the price has only gone down by a few pennies over the last couple of years so it must still be a popular purchase. The 16 episodes are spread over 5 disks which total to 720 minutes approx. Now unless I need my eyes testing again my copy doesn't have any special features - a shame but if I didn't already have this season it wouldn't put me off buying at such a low price.
"A hero is an ordinary individual..." (Heroes Season 2)
Heroes became a worldwide phenomena after the first season ended with fans clamouring for the next season to air, wanting to know what would happen to their favourite characters, what tragedy would befall them this time round, and after the teaser at the end of the season finale why on earth was Hiro in Feudal Japan?
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What is Heroes about?
Heroes as ever is about the lives and struggles of a group of people with special abilities/powers that set them apart from the average human being. As established in the opening season, not all will use their powers for good - and they won't just use them against others with powers, they are willing to hurt innocent people with no idea that these abilities exist.
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Why Is The Second Season So Short?
As I mentioned previously, after the first season of Heroes aired there was widespread anticipation for the second season, some fans were evening likening it to the new generations Star Trek. And in terms of fan love and obsession they pretty much hit the nail on the head with that likening. Unfortunately for Heroes however, as they write and film at the same time (usually only writing 2-3 episodes ahead of what they are filming and often doing rewrites on the set) the writer's strike was a real blow to them and the second season. With the writer's out of action the series length had to be cut and they finished up the episodes they could. In a fortunate way there was one simple way to give the season a conclusive ending by changing one small moment where the drop of a vial could change the world as we know it. But they never planned for the second season to be only 11 episodes in length, due to unforeseen circumstances however there was little they could do - many shows just stopped mid season when the strike happened and as no-one knew when it would end that would be far too risky a move for a burgeoning show. So if you keep this in mind it's a lot easier not to feel hard done by with the shortness of the season.
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Where Is Heroes Set?
Heroes is set in two main places for this season, firstly as always it is set in America, and also Japan. The difference now is that rather being based in present day Japan we are transported back to Feudal Japan where Hiro has landed smack bang in the middle of battle. There are also large scenes in Ireland during this season plus a few trips south of the border to South America.
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Who Is In Heroes?
A new season means new characters, we've already been introduced to the main players but as the world of special people widens, we meet even more amazing and sometimes frightening people. We also have Sylar coming to the fore as a main character in this season but as he was previously covered in the first review I'll be focusing on characters who either didn't appear or were given only a brief glimpse.
Kensei (David Anders): The legendary Kensei is Hiro's very own hero, having heard the old tales of his epic fights and love story when he was a child. He meets Hiro in Feudal Japan and enlists his help in wooing the beautiful Yaeko. It's hard to categorise him as a good guy or bad guy, though he has a very mercenary-like was of working he has genuine feelings for Yaeko and wants to make her happy. But he doesn't exactly live up to the pedestal Hiro has had him on since childhood and certainly isn't what he expected.
Angela Petrelli (Cristine Rose): Mother of Peter and Nathan, she enjoys being one of the rich and powerful in New York. She loves both of her sons immensely but she often shows favour to Peter, infuriating Nathan who is the successful one. A mysterious woman with power and influence all of her own, she has the ability to dream the past, the future, and even get into others dreams and change them.
Bob Bishop (Stephen Tobolowsky): Robert Bishop is a slimy character, he is one of the people who set up The Company 30 years ago and spends his time giving them the money to be able to carry out their objective. Is he rich? Well, sort of. His power is that he has the ability to change objects into gold - an alchemist in the 21st century is certainly a useful person - especially when running world-wide tracking operations and building prison cells that could probably hold Superman if need be.
Elle Bishop (Kristen Bell): Daughter of Bob Bishop, Elle is a very confused young woman. It's hardly surprising as from birth her father began training her to work for The Company and spends the rest of his time putting her down. No moment of Elle's life has been anything close to normal and she is constantly seeking her father's approval. She has the ability to control and manipulate electricity - allowing the special effects team to have a lot of fun when she lets her powers loose.
Maya Herrera (Dania Ramirez): A young woman who along with her twin brother is trying to escape across the border into the US in search of help with her problematic new power. Through flashbacks the viewer gets to see the destruction Maya once caused and why she is so desperate for a cure. Her ability is that in intense emotional situations her eyes will turn jet black and she emits poison that affects everyone but her. Do not upset this girl!
Alejandro Herrera (Shalim Ortiz): The twin brother of Maya, he is very protective even though it's clear with her ability she can protect herself. He has suffered great tragedy in his life, not unconnected to the reason they are running. He has an ability too, but his could save lives - he has the ability to stop Maya from poisoning people, appearing to almost absorb it from her when he touches her.
Maury Parkman (Alan Blumenfeld): Maury is the estranged father of Matt Parkman, he left when Matt was just 13. Another founder of The Company, he believes that those with abilities are superior to those without and makes this very clear throughout. He, like his son, is also a telepath - but with time and training his powers are far stronger and better developed allowing him to read memories, make people do his bidding and also manipulate the world around them until they are in a kind of waking nightmare. He is known as "the Nightmare Man" by a young and powerful child and make no mistake; this is a man up to no good.
Molly Walker (Unknown): Introduced during season one (If you remember exactly where well spotted!) Molly Walker is a young girl who is highly sought after by both good and bad. The reason for this is her ability - she can track down and see every other person with abilities using the power of her mind. With her on side the good could assemble a larger team to save the world, but if the bad get their hands on her they will use her to construct this own rival group who would probably wipe out those without abilities for not being good enough. There is only one person with abilities that she doesn't want to look for, and that's Maury (The Nightmare Man) Parkman - but he's looking for her.
Adam Monroe (Cannot divulge identity as it will spoil things): Another of the many mysterious founders of The Company, Adam is a man most definitely in the grey area; his power is the same as teenage cheerleader Claire. His cells regenerate at a pace so fast that he can't die - except of course with the removal of his head as mentioned in my first review.
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Episodes
So a short run of 11 episodes this time around, but still have a running time of 42 (approx) minutes without adverts. The first two episodes were shown on BBC2 back to back as in season 1.
Chapter One "Four Months Later...": Its four months since the events at Kirby Plaza and things have changed significantly for the heroes. The Bennett's have moved to a new place to stay safe but whilst Claire is starting at her new high school she discovers that she isn't as alone as she had thought. Meanwhile her father Noah and Matt Parkman have teamed up to try and take down The Company with Noah's inside knowledge. Matt also has a new "family" in the form of Molly and Mohinder, who is co-guardian of the girl with him. Nathan is in a very dark place following the Kirby explosion whilst a confused hero ends up in Ireland, Kaito and Angela are sent information about their deaths and new characters Maya and Alejandro are on the run wanted for murder. Just another quiet day in the Heroes-Universe as you can see.
Chapter Two "Lizards": Mohinder takes a trip to Haiti to treat someone believed to have been infected with a new and dangerous virus and is surprised to see he knows the patient. Back in feudal Japan Hiro is attempting to teach his hero Kensei to make sure that he lives up to the stories told to Hiro as a child. Claire manages to mess up fast in her new home when another student sees her regenerate, will her secret be out?
Chapter Three "Kindred": Back in New York Mohinder starts to set up his new laboratory in a familiar setting and finds a bad omen for another of the heroes. Our confused hero stuck in Ireland helps new friends and starts to think that perhaps remembering who they are isn't that important. Hiro is still trapped in the 17th century getting increasingly tired of trying to make Kensei the legend he should be whilst in the present day Maya and Alejandro have gotten to Mexico but it isn't smooth sailing.
Chapter Four "The Kindness Of Strangers": Micah, now staying with relatives for safety, tries to win the hearts of his family by using his powers to impress them. It means that questions have to be asked about his powers, especially by Monica who is struggling with the fact that she doesn't seem to be like everyone else anymore. Matt continues his investigation into a sad murder and gets a confession from an unlikely source and Claire finds romance with someone who sweeps her off her feet.
Chapter Five "Fight Or Flight": Peter is afraid of losing love whilst Matt and Nathan try to find Maury, with trouble just around the corner for our flying hero. Mohinder takes Molly to The Company hoping to find someone or something that will help keep her safe not just from the world but from the terrible nightmares she's been having. A new hero finds their abilities for the first time in Texas; will they turn good or bad?
Chapter Six "The Line": Vengeance is on the cards when Claire decides to take the head cheerleader down a peg after refusing her a place. Mohinder is placed in an ethical dilemma when The Company ask him to test a vaccine on a blossoming hero he convinced to visit him in New York. Hiro falls for someone that could change world events if he gives in and Noah and the Haitian seek out Issac Mendez's last paintings, but they don't plan to just ask nicely.
Chapter Seven "Out Of Time": Peter ends up in a future time New York in which a virus has killed most of the world, as things fall into place in his mind once more the image of his mother Angela tells him to go back in time to prevent the virus getting out. Claire's beau meets Noah and it isn't a happy event as West realises where he recognises Noah's horn-rimmed glasses. In the past Hiro attacks the camp alone after falling out with Kensei whilst in the present another founder of The Company with a familiar face shows up.
Chapter Eight "Four Months Ago": By now we've all come to know what episodes with these titles mean, we're off to the past now to see what happened in the lives of the heroes after Kirby Plaza. Our South American newcomers are just coming into their powers as disaster strikes on the biggest day of Alejandro's life. Niki is in rehab - well The Company's version of rehab, they are giving her medication to control Jessica but when Niki stops taking the pills she doesn't have only Jessica to contend with.
Chapter Nine "Cautionary Tales": You should never pick up a hitch-hiker, and Maya and Alejandro would have done well to remember this as they travel with Sylar - who seems like a nice (albeit a tad creepy) man. Hiro gets back to the present, but faced with news of his father's death travels back to save him. Matt's abilities get stronger but these new facets to his telepathy are difficult to accept. Claire and Elle end up in a stand-off, both being used as bargaining tools by loved ones.
Chapter Ten "Truth & Consequences": In a tense penultimate episode Peter and new friend Adam find a founder of The Company who has long since given up the cause and find out where the virus that will wipe out the planet is being held. Sylar surprisingly does some good in helping Maya control her deadly power but it's not enough to make her brother trust him. Niki goes back to New Orleans to get Micah, but after his backpack is stolen things don't work out as simply as they could have whilst Hiro seeks revenge and Claire decides to tell the world about her powers to try and defeat the people responsible for her loss.
Chapter Eleven "Powerless": The season two finale is a busy one as always. In Odessa, Texas the two groups of heroes seeking the virus meet, with Nathan, Matt and Hiro desperate to get Peter to believe them when they say that Adam is not a good man. Niki tries to save a relative whilst Maya and Sylar find Mohinder and finally Sylar's true colours are revealed. Someone thought dead visits the Bennett's and Claire is asked to stay quiet. What is Sylar planning to do now he has found Mohinder? Will the virus get out? Will Peter see that he has made a terrible choice? Who will live and who will die in this final episode of Heroes season 2?
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Themes/Storylines Running Through Heroes
As always Heroes is a tangled web weaved of many separate stories and themes. Some are still running from the previous season but have been added to and some are completely new.
Claire's Identity: This has changed somewhat from the first season's take, now Claire has tracked down her real mother and found out the identity of her father. She knows more about herself but all the while she has had to begin anew again when the Bennett's move to a new town. Her struggle has changed from just trying to figure out who she is to also make sure she hides that for the sake of herself and her family and fits in at a new school with very different people.
Hiro's Maturity: Taken to a new level now, with Ando back in Japan and Hiro lost in feudal Japan he has had to learn how to look after himself quickly or he'll get an arrow in the back. He's found love once more but has to struggle with the fact that if he gives into this temptation he could change the entire world. He is faced with a situation where if he gives in and is selfish he could have everything he wants, but if he does the right thing he must look on from afar knowing that his unselfish act has kept the world as it is. After losing Charlie this is a difficult decision, one that his father would never have left up to him had he had the choice.
The Company: The Company are still rather confusing, are they bad or are they good? Well at times it seems they are trying to fix things, certainly their original motive seems to have been for good. But many members of The Company have gone too far, and it seems that if it isn't burnt down and rebuilt from the ground up they will become more corrupt and evil.
Sylar's Quest: The scalp-slicing serial stealer of abilities is back, and this time he is a lot more methodical about getting what he wants. That glimmer of goodness briefly seen in the first season is gone here, he has moved up a notch into calculating evil, and as you watch this season you can see him becoming darker and less human.
Saving The World: It's a hero's job to save the world but this time it is a lot more pressing than before. In the previous season the world wasn't going to end but it was going to become dark and filled with destruction. This time it really will be the end if a virus that will destroy 93% of the world's population leaving a desolate wasteland for a planet is released. The trouble is in not working together some of the heroes have become manipulated into believing that they are saving the world, with two separate teams it is a race against the clock to see who will get to the virus first.
Roots: The character's roots are delved into more thoroughly in this season, Claire finds her birth parents, the founding of The Company is made clear, the legend that is Kensei is begun (under Hiro's teaching) and Matt's father is finally introduced showing us where Matt's powers could end up. Roots are very important in this season which even gives a little attention to the natural disaster of Katrina in New Orleans, when Micah goes to stay with relatives they are his newly orphaned cousins who lost their mother in the disaster.
Family: The importance of family is clear throughout the season with Nathan hitting rock bottom after Kirby Plaza and stupidly pushing his family away from him for quite some time when all they wanted was to help him, and Micah finding solace with his extended family whilst Niki is in The Company. Claire tries to keep her secret in order to protect her family and the twins have no-one but each other after the wedding from hell and stick together through thick and thin for as long as they can. These bonds are so important during the season, and as shown through the dysfunctional relationship of Elle and Bob Bishop, they can make or break a hero.
Trust: The idea of trust is looked at in great depth, particularly in the case of Maya and Alejandro - they trust each other implicitly but whilst Maya trusts Sylar her brother stays wary and tries to warn her that her trust is misplaced. Another misplacement of trust comes in the form of Peter's belief in Adam, travelling with him in search of the virus believing that everyone else is wrong and it will be them that will save the day. Kensei also learns a valuable lesson about trust when he sees a stolen kiss between Hiro and his true love, turning him bitter and cynical which will never change. This season asks the question time and time again, who should you trust?
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Why Should I Watch Heroes?
Of course fans of the first season will be watching, this is a given as everyone wanted to know what happened after Kirby Plaza. But this season isn't just for those who watched hooked throughout the first, if you found that 23 episodes were just too much to commit to and it went on too long this season may be an easier one to watch. Also to those who just entirely missed out on the first season letting it pass them by, you'll be able to watch this without too much confusion as the characters are still developing and there are many flashbacks to help guide you.
If you are a sci-fi fan you should watch this as it has a great impending apocalypse storyline (as does the third season) and some very cool special effects, a comic book fan is going to watch because it is fast paced with lots of stories all at once just like most comic books/graphic novels and deals with a host of rather cool superpowers, and finally geeks like me are going to watch this not just for the aforementioned reasons but also because it is well-written, well acted, and has so many interesting themes that you can discuss it for a very long time and not get bored.
Of course if you aren't into sci-fi, comic books or are just plain geeky (which usually means you like both sci-fi and comics) this may not be the show for you. But I'd still say give it a watch, because not all of the story is about having superpowers - as mentioned in the themes there are a lot of things that you would find in any good drama, it's just there is a slightly different slant on them here. At the very least if you watched the new Star Trek film tune into an episode with Zachary Quinto (Aka Spock) to see just how good an actor he is, as Sylar is one of the best villains I've seen on television in a very long time.
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Final Verdict
For me, though the season length was disappointing it was understandable, and the storyline made up for the lack of episodes. It felt like it was more action packed due to this as there was less time to build the story. As always I loved the casting, though I wasn't that keen on the new characters Maya and Alejandro - but I feel this may have been because there was very little time for them to develop in 11 episodes.
The newer characters meant that some more powers were seen, and I loved seeing Elle's - she can certainly make sparks fly. Well, less sparks and more like lightning strikes! Her relationship with her father was an interesting addition, most characters we've seen have spent their lives hiding their powers from loved ones or only just finding out about them, but with Elle and Bob he knew all along and spent his time trying to shape her into The Company mould.
The incidental music, by the same duo as last time, was nicely done. Not so bland as to be easy to ignore but not so overpowering as to make you lose focus on the story itself. They also didn't make the music so loud that you have to strain to hear the dialogue, a problem I have had with a few shows (The Bill, I'm looking at you on that one - don't ask why I was watching, I was just rather bored!).
I do think that it is a real shame that the writer's strike cut the season short as it meant that the story had to be changed. As you will see on the DVD special features they do include the alternate chapter eleven and the alternate ending which show that this was going to be an exciting story if allowed to continue. Still I can't blame the writers or any of the makers of Heroes because they didn't start the strike.
This season, though in some ways not as exciting as the first (probably because it was no longer a new concept having seen the first season already) was a good solid second season and I hope that it will continue for a long time - I want this to be my generation's Star Trek, even though that means in 20-30 years I'm going to be embarrassing my kids with it whilst they whine about who it isn't 3D or being directly beamed into their brain - or whatever other mad thing happens to TV then!
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DVD Information And Extra's
The 11 episodes and extras are spread over 4 disks totalling 474 minutes with the extras at an additional 126 minutes. It's rated a 15 mainly due to violence so if you have younger teens who are mature enough to handle that but you don't want them seeing nudity and sex this could be something for them - though I'd still suggest watching it yourself first as the scenes in the future with the virus are pretty horrific and could cause nightmares for more sensitive young'uns.
As always, this is a generous section on the box set - this time getting its own disk!
Audio Commentaries: On each disk there are audio commentaries for each episode featured on the disk with cast and crew giving their thoughts and anecdotes.
Deleted scenes: Straight from the cutting room floor to your TV set, there's nothing too major on these but they are still a nice addition to watch.
Heroes Season 2 A New Beginning: A piece about season 2 of Heroes, nothing spectacular but a very interesting watch for those who want to know everything about the season.
Kensei Documentary: A lovely piece to add to the DVD, it shows us the story of Kensei and the legend of him that Hiro grew up with. It also features "professionals" telling us about the history. An insight into why Hiro loved him so much and why it was so important that the story not be changed.
The Drucker Files: A rather in depth piece that won't be for the casual fan, Drucker is a complete mystery and this makes that clear.
Genetics Of A Scene - The Anatomy Of The Cherry Blossom Scene: A how did they do that moment, this looks at the scene where the cherry blossoms in 17th century Japan distract you from everything else for a short time.
Genetics Of A Scene - Maya & Alejandro Run From The Police: Another how did they do that dissecting the scene in which the twins flee the police and how they set it up and made it look the way it did.
Genetics Of A Scene - The Final Scene: This was of interest to me as I had wondered how they had done the final scene - which I would describe but it will spoil the end. Good to look at afterwards if you wondered how they managed to make things happen.
Alternate Ending And Alternate Episode #11 - Fairly self explanatory and shows where the season was supposed to have been heading had the strike not gone of for so long. Good to see but also a little sad because it would have been a cool storyline to follow had they been able to do so.
This season's boxset gets 4.5/5 stars - it was a short but sweet season which would have lessened the score further but the DVD extras make up for it as we get to see what they had planned.
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What is Heroes about?
Heroes as ever is about the lives and struggles of a group of people with special abilities/powers that set them apart from the average human being. As established in the opening season, not all will use their powers for good - and they won't just use them against others with powers, they are willing to hurt innocent people with no idea that these abilities exist.
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Why Is The Second Season So Short?
As I mentioned previously, after the first season of Heroes aired there was widespread anticipation for the second season, some fans were evening likening it to the new generations Star Trek. And in terms of fan love and obsession they pretty much hit the nail on the head with that likening. Unfortunately for Heroes however, as they write and film at the same time (usually only writing 2-3 episodes ahead of what they are filming and often doing rewrites on the set) the writer's strike was a real blow to them and the second season. With the writer's out of action the series length had to be cut and they finished up the episodes they could. In a fortunate way there was one simple way to give the season a conclusive ending by changing one small moment where the drop of a vial could change the world as we know it. But they never planned for the second season to be only 11 episodes in length, due to unforeseen circumstances however there was little they could do - many shows just stopped mid season when the strike happened and as no-one knew when it would end that would be far too risky a move for a burgeoning show. So if you keep this in mind it's a lot easier not to feel hard done by with the shortness of the season.
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Where Is Heroes Set?
Heroes is set in two main places for this season, firstly as always it is set in America, and also Japan. The difference now is that rather being based in present day Japan we are transported back to Feudal Japan where Hiro has landed smack bang in the middle of battle. There are also large scenes in Ireland during this season plus a few trips south of the border to South America.
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Who Is In Heroes?
A new season means new characters, we've already been introduced to the main players but as the world of special people widens, we meet even more amazing and sometimes frightening people. We also have Sylar coming to the fore as a main character in this season but as he was previously covered in the first review I'll be focusing on characters who either didn't appear or were given only a brief glimpse.
Kensei (David Anders): The legendary Kensei is Hiro's very own hero, having heard the old tales of his epic fights and love story when he was a child. He meets Hiro in Feudal Japan and enlists his help in wooing the beautiful Yaeko. It's hard to categorise him as a good guy or bad guy, though he has a very mercenary-like was of working he has genuine feelings for Yaeko and wants to make her happy. But he doesn't exactly live up to the pedestal Hiro has had him on since childhood and certainly isn't what he expected.
Angela Petrelli (Cristine Rose): Mother of Peter and Nathan, she enjoys being one of the rich and powerful in New York. She loves both of her sons immensely but she often shows favour to Peter, infuriating Nathan who is the successful one. A mysterious woman with power and influence all of her own, she has the ability to dream the past, the future, and even get into others dreams and change them.
Bob Bishop (Stephen Tobolowsky): Robert Bishop is a slimy character, he is one of the people who set up The Company 30 years ago and spends his time giving them the money to be able to carry out their objective. Is he rich? Well, sort of. His power is that he has the ability to change objects into gold - an alchemist in the 21st century is certainly a useful person - especially when running world-wide tracking operations and building prison cells that could probably hold Superman if need be.
Elle Bishop (Kristen Bell): Daughter of Bob Bishop, Elle is a very confused young woman. It's hardly surprising as from birth her father began training her to work for The Company and spends the rest of his time putting her down. No moment of Elle's life has been anything close to normal and she is constantly seeking her father's approval. She has the ability to control and manipulate electricity - allowing the special effects team to have a lot of fun when she lets her powers loose.
Maya Herrera (Dania Ramirez): A young woman who along with her twin brother is trying to escape across the border into the US in search of help with her problematic new power. Through flashbacks the viewer gets to see the destruction Maya once caused and why she is so desperate for a cure. Her ability is that in intense emotional situations her eyes will turn jet black and she emits poison that affects everyone but her. Do not upset this girl!
Alejandro Herrera (Shalim Ortiz): The twin brother of Maya, he is very protective even though it's clear with her ability she can protect herself. He has suffered great tragedy in his life, not unconnected to the reason they are running. He has an ability too, but his could save lives - he has the ability to stop Maya from poisoning people, appearing to almost absorb it from her when he touches her.
Maury Parkman (Alan Blumenfeld): Maury is the estranged father of Matt Parkman, he left when Matt was just 13. Another founder of The Company, he believes that those with abilities are superior to those without and makes this very clear throughout. He, like his son, is also a telepath - but with time and training his powers are far stronger and better developed allowing him to read memories, make people do his bidding and also manipulate the world around them until they are in a kind of waking nightmare. He is known as "the Nightmare Man" by a young and powerful child and make no mistake; this is a man up to no good.
Molly Walker (Unknown): Introduced during season one (If you remember exactly where well spotted!) Molly Walker is a young girl who is highly sought after by both good and bad. The reason for this is her ability - she can track down and see every other person with abilities using the power of her mind. With her on side the good could assemble a larger team to save the world, but if the bad get their hands on her they will use her to construct this own rival group who would probably wipe out those without abilities for not being good enough. There is only one person with abilities that she doesn't want to look for, and that's Maury (The Nightmare Man) Parkman - but he's looking for her.
Adam Monroe (Cannot divulge identity as it will spoil things): Another of the many mysterious founders of The Company, Adam is a man most definitely in the grey area; his power is the same as teenage cheerleader Claire. His cells regenerate at a pace so fast that he can't die - except of course with the removal of his head as mentioned in my first review.
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Episodes
So a short run of 11 episodes this time around, but still have a running time of 42 (approx) minutes without adverts. The first two episodes were shown on BBC2 back to back as in season 1.
Chapter One "Four Months Later...": Its four months since the events at Kirby Plaza and things have changed significantly for the heroes. The Bennett's have moved to a new place to stay safe but whilst Claire is starting at her new high school she discovers that she isn't as alone as she had thought. Meanwhile her father Noah and Matt Parkman have teamed up to try and take down The Company with Noah's inside knowledge. Matt also has a new "family" in the form of Molly and Mohinder, who is co-guardian of the girl with him. Nathan is in a very dark place following the Kirby explosion whilst a confused hero ends up in Ireland, Kaito and Angela are sent information about their deaths and new characters Maya and Alejandro are on the run wanted for murder. Just another quiet day in the Heroes-Universe as you can see.
Chapter Two "Lizards": Mohinder takes a trip to Haiti to treat someone believed to have been infected with a new and dangerous virus and is surprised to see he knows the patient. Back in feudal Japan Hiro is attempting to teach his hero Kensei to make sure that he lives up to the stories told to Hiro as a child. Claire manages to mess up fast in her new home when another student sees her regenerate, will her secret be out?
Chapter Three "Kindred": Back in New York Mohinder starts to set up his new laboratory in a familiar setting and finds a bad omen for another of the heroes. Our confused hero stuck in Ireland helps new friends and starts to think that perhaps remembering who they are isn't that important. Hiro is still trapped in the 17th century getting increasingly tired of trying to make Kensei the legend he should be whilst in the present day Maya and Alejandro have gotten to Mexico but it isn't smooth sailing.
Chapter Four "The Kindness Of Strangers": Micah, now staying with relatives for safety, tries to win the hearts of his family by using his powers to impress them. It means that questions have to be asked about his powers, especially by Monica who is struggling with the fact that she doesn't seem to be like everyone else anymore. Matt continues his investigation into a sad murder and gets a confession from an unlikely source and Claire finds romance with someone who sweeps her off her feet.
Chapter Five "Fight Or Flight": Peter is afraid of losing love whilst Matt and Nathan try to find Maury, with trouble just around the corner for our flying hero. Mohinder takes Molly to The Company hoping to find someone or something that will help keep her safe not just from the world but from the terrible nightmares she's been having. A new hero finds their abilities for the first time in Texas; will they turn good or bad?
Chapter Six "The Line": Vengeance is on the cards when Claire decides to take the head cheerleader down a peg after refusing her a place. Mohinder is placed in an ethical dilemma when The Company ask him to test a vaccine on a blossoming hero he convinced to visit him in New York. Hiro falls for someone that could change world events if he gives in and Noah and the Haitian seek out Issac Mendez's last paintings, but they don't plan to just ask nicely.
Chapter Seven "Out Of Time": Peter ends up in a future time New York in which a virus has killed most of the world, as things fall into place in his mind once more the image of his mother Angela tells him to go back in time to prevent the virus getting out. Claire's beau meets Noah and it isn't a happy event as West realises where he recognises Noah's horn-rimmed glasses. In the past Hiro attacks the camp alone after falling out with Kensei whilst in the present another founder of The Company with a familiar face shows up.
Chapter Eight "Four Months Ago": By now we've all come to know what episodes with these titles mean, we're off to the past now to see what happened in the lives of the heroes after Kirby Plaza. Our South American newcomers are just coming into their powers as disaster strikes on the biggest day of Alejandro's life. Niki is in rehab - well The Company's version of rehab, they are giving her medication to control Jessica but when Niki stops taking the pills she doesn't have only Jessica to contend with.
Chapter Nine "Cautionary Tales": You should never pick up a hitch-hiker, and Maya and Alejandro would have done well to remember this as they travel with Sylar - who seems like a nice (albeit a tad creepy) man. Hiro gets back to the present, but faced with news of his father's death travels back to save him. Matt's abilities get stronger but these new facets to his telepathy are difficult to accept. Claire and Elle end up in a stand-off, both being used as bargaining tools by loved ones.
Chapter Ten "Truth & Consequences": In a tense penultimate episode Peter and new friend Adam find a founder of The Company who has long since given up the cause and find out where the virus that will wipe out the planet is being held. Sylar surprisingly does some good in helping Maya control her deadly power but it's not enough to make her brother trust him. Niki goes back to New Orleans to get Micah, but after his backpack is stolen things don't work out as simply as they could have whilst Hiro seeks revenge and Claire decides to tell the world about her powers to try and defeat the people responsible for her loss.
Chapter Eleven "Powerless": The season two finale is a busy one as always. In Odessa, Texas the two groups of heroes seeking the virus meet, with Nathan, Matt and Hiro desperate to get Peter to believe them when they say that Adam is not a good man. Niki tries to save a relative whilst Maya and Sylar find Mohinder and finally Sylar's true colours are revealed. Someone thought dead visits the Bennett's and Claire is asked to stay quiet. What is Sylar planning to do now he has found Mohinder? Will the virus get out? Will Peter see that he has made a terrible choice? Who will live and who will die in this final episode of Heroes season 2?
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Themes/Storylines Running Through Heroes
As always Heroes is a tangled web weaved of many separate stories and themes. Some are still running from the previous season but have been added to and some are completely new.
Claire's Identity: This has changed somewhat from the first season's take, now Claire has tracked down her real mother and found out the identity of her father. She knows more about herself but all the while she has had to begin anew again when the Bennett's move to a new town. Her struggle has changed from just trying to figure out who she is to also make sure she hides that for the sake of herself and her family and fits in at a new school with very different people.
Hiro's Maturity: Taken to a new level now, with Ando back in Japan and Hiro lost in feudal Japan he has had to learn how to look after himself quickly or he'll get an arrow in the back. He's found love once more but has to struggle with the fact that if he gives into this temptation he could change the entire world. He is faced with a situation where if he gives in and is selfish he could have everything he wants, but if he does the right thing he must look on from afar knowing that his unselfish act has kept the world as it is. After losing Charlie this is a difficult decision, one that his father would never have left up to him had he had the choice.
The Company: The Company are still rather confusing, are they bad or are they good? Well at times it seems they are trying to fix things, certainly their original motive seems to have been for good. But many members of The Company have gone too far, and it seems that if it isn't burnt down and rebuilt from the ground up they will become more corrupt and evil.
Sylar's Quest: The scalp-slicing serial stealer of abilities is back, and this time he is a lot more methodical about getting what he wants. That glimmer of goodness briefly seen in the first season is gone here, he has moved up a notch into calculating evil, and as you watch this season you can see him becoming darker and less human.
Saving The World: It's a hero's job to save the world but this time it is a lot more pressing than before. In the previous season the world wasn't going to end but it was going to become dark and filled with destruction. This time it really will be the end if a virus that will destroy 93% of the world's population leaving a desolate wasteland for a planet is released. The trouble is in not working together some of the heroes have become manipulated into believing that they are saving the world, with two separate teams it is a race against the clock to see who will get to the virus first.
Roots: The character's roots are delved into more thoroughly in this season, Claire finds her birth parents, the founding of The Company is made clear, the legend that is Kensei is begun (under Hiro's teaching) and Matt's father is finally introduced showing us where Matt's powers could end up. Roots are very important in this season which even gives a little attention to the natural disaster of Katrina in New Orleans, when Micah goes to stay with relatives they are his newly orphaned cousins who lost their mother in the disaster.
Family: The importance of family is clear throughout the season with Nathan hitting rock bottom after Kirby Plaza and stupidly pushing his family away from him for quite some time when all they wanted was to help him, and Micah finding solace with his extended family whilst Niki is in The Company. Claire tries to keep her secret in order to protect her family and the twins have no-one but each other after the wedding from hell and stick together through thick and thin for as long as they can. These bonds are so important during the season, and as shown through the dysfunctional relationship of Elle and Bob Bishop, they can make or break a hero.
Trust: The idea of trust is looked at in great depth, particularly in the case of Maya and Alejandro - they trust each other implicitly but whilst Maya trusts Sylar her brother stays wary and tries to warn her that her trust is misplaced. Another misplacement of trust comes in the form of Peter's belief in Adam, travelling with him in search of the virus believing that everyone else is wrong and it will be them that will save the day. Kensei also learns a valuable lesson about trust when he sees a stolen kiss between Hiro and his true love, turning him bitter and cynical which will never change. This season asks the question time and time again, who should you trust?
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Why Should I Watch Heroes?
Of course fans of the first season will be watching, this is a given as everyone wanted to know what happened after Kirby Plaza. But this season isn't just for those who watched hooked throughout the first, if you found that 23 episodes were just too much to commit to and it went on too long this season may be an easier one to watch. Also to those who just entirely missed out on the first season letting it pass them by, you'll be able to watch this without too much confusion as the characters are still developing and there are many flashbacks to help guide you.
If you are a sci-fi fan you should watch this as it has a great impending apocalypse storyline (as does the third season) and some very cool special effects, a comic book fan is going to watch because it is fast paced with lots of stories all at once just like most comic books/graphic novels and deals with a host of rather cool superpowers, and finally geeks like me are going to watch this not just for the aforementioned reasons but also because it is well-written, well acted, and has so many interesting themes that you can discuss it for a very long time and not get bored.
Of course if you aren't into sci-fi, comic books or are just plain geeky (which usually means you like both sci-fi and comics) this may not be the show for you. But I'd still say give it a watch, because not all of the story is about having superpowers - as mentioned in the themes there are a lot of things that you would find in any good drama, it's just there is a slightly different slant on them here. At the very least if you watched the new Star Trek film tune into an episode with Zachary Quinto (Aka Spock) to see just how good an actor he is, as Sylar is one of the best villains I've seen on television in a very long time.
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Final Verdict
For me, though the season length was disappointing it was understandable, and the storyline made up for the lack of episodes. It felt like it was more action packed due to this as there was less time to build the story. As always I loved the casting, though I wasn't that keen on the new characters Maya and Alejandro - but I feel this may have been because there was very little time for them to develop in 11 episodes.
The newer characters meant that some more powers were seen, and I loved seeing Elle's - she can certainly make sparks fly. Well, less sparks and more like lightning strikes! Her relationship with her father was an interesting addition, most characters we've seen have spent their lives hiding their powers from loved ones or only just finding out about them, but with Elle and Bob he knew all along and spent his time trying to shape her into The Company mould.
The incidental music, by the same duo as last time, was nicely done. Not so bland as to be easy to ignore but not so overpowering as to make you lose focus on the story itself. They also didn't make the music so loud that you have to strain to hear the dialogue, a problem I have had with a few shows (The Bill, I'm looking at you on that one - don't ask why I was watching, I was just rather bored!).
I do think that it is a real shame that the writer's strike cut the season short as it meant that the story had to be changed. As you will see on the DVD special features they do include the alternate chapter eleven and the alternate ending which show that this was going to be an exciting story if allowed to continue. Still I can't blame the writers or any of the makers of Heroes because they didn't start the strike.
This season, though in some ways not as exciting as the first (probably because it was no longer a new concept having seen the first season already) was a good solid second season and I hope that it will continue for a long time - I want this to be my generation's Star Trek, even though that means in 20-30 years I'm going to be embarrassing my kids with it whilst they whine about who it isn't 3D or being directly beamed into their brain - or whatever other mad thing happens to TV then!
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DVD Information And Extra's
The 11 episodes and extras are spread over 4 disks totalling 474 minutes with the extras at an additional 126 minutes. It's rated a 15 mainly due to violence so if you have younger teens who are mature enough to handle that but you don't want them seeing nudity and sex this could be something for them - though I'd still suggest watching it yourself first as the scenes in the future with the virus are pretty horrific and could cause nightmares for more sensitive young'uns.
As always, this is a generous section on the box set - this time getting its own disk!
Audio Commentaries: On each disk there are audio commentaries for each episode featured on the disk with cast and crew giving their thoughts and anecdotes.
Deleted scenes: Straight from the cutting room floor to your TV set, there's nothing too major on these but they are still a nice addition to watch.
Heroes Season 2 A New Beginning: A piece about season 2 of Heroes, nothing spectacular but a very interesting watch for those who want to know everything about the season.
Kensei Documentary: A lovely piece to add to the DVD, it shows us the story of Kensei and the legend of him that Hiro grew up with. It also features "professionals" telling us about the history. An insight into why Hiro loved him so much and why it was so important that the story not be changed.
The Drucker Files: A rather in depth piece that won't be for the casual fan, Drucker is a complete mystery and this makes that clear.
Genetics Of A Scene - The Anatomy Of The Cherry Blossom Scene: A how did they do that moment, this looks at the scene where the cherry blossoms in 17th century Japan distract you from everything else for a short time.
Genetics Of A Scene - Maya & Alejandro Run From The Police: Another how did they do that dissecting the scene in which the twins flee the police and how they set it up and made it look the way it did.
Genetics Of A Scene - The Final Scene: This was of interest to me as I had wondered how they had done the final scene - which I would describe but it will spoil the end. Good to look at afterwards if you wondered how they managed to make things happen.
Alternate Ending And Alternate Episode #11 - Fairly self explanatory and shows where the season was supposed to have been heading had the strike not gone of for so long. Good to see but also a little sad because it would have been a cool storyline to follow had they been able to do so.
This season's boxset gets 4.5/5 stars - it was a short but sweet season which would have lessened the score further but the DVD extras make up for it as we get to see what they had planned.
"Everybody Lies" (House Season 1)
Just seven short years ago another medical drama from across the pond made a splash on UK viewers, this time featuring one of our own fine actors in the form of Hugh Laurie - previously known for his comedy work with Stephen Fry and his part in classic show Blackadder. This has now become one of Laurie's defining works, earning him and the show nominations and awards.
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What Is House?
House is a medical drama set in the US at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey. It revolves around grumpy but brilliant Dr. House and his team as they try to figure out cases that more often than not involves racing against the clock to save a life. House will only take cases that interest him, which is known throughout his hospital and others which means that the strangest cases that no-one can figure out get sent to him to diagnose.
House was created after one of the creators was inspired by a column written by a doctor in the New York Times and there are many references to Sherlock Holmes throughout the show as Dr. House's treatment of those around him was based on Sherlock Holmes' own strange coldness. They originally pitched the show as a CSI-style medical drama, which they most definitely succeeded with creating.
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Who Is In It?
The main casting for this show is smaller than many popular US shows, though that's partly because the main premise of the show is to get a new patient and save them so that they can send them home.
Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie): The cantankerous lead character Dr Gregory House is an odd one. He's insanely smart with a deep love of music and driving people insane. House walks with a cane and takes a lot of Vicodin in order to carry out his day, the reason he walks with a cane is not fully explained until late in the season but we do see others around him berate him over his use of prescription painkillers like tic-tacs. Gregory is divorced, though he still loves his wife with all his heart (But due to something from the past also deeply resents her) and lives alone. His only friend is Wilson, and other than that he has no social life. Patients generally tend to love or hate him - they love him because he is infamous for being able to treat cases no other doctor can figure out, and hated because he has absolutely no bedside manner and will tell everyone and anyone of how stupid they are.
Dr. James Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard): House's only friend Wilson is a kind-hearted man who cares about his patients and is the hospital's head of Oncology (Wilson's specialty). His friendship with the grumpy doctor is a little different from the norm, most of the time it's about arguing and playing head games. He's married and loves to upset House on those few occasions he can manage to win, and is the first person the team will turn to when they can't get House to listen to them.
Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein): As the woman in charge Cuddy spends a lot of her time chasing after House to force him to do his clinic hours or to take on cases. There is a lot of sexual tension between the two of them though neither would care to admit it. Cuddy is single and looking for love, she wants to settle down and have a baby but with a high-powered job and a liability like House on the staff it's amazing she gets time to sleep let alone date. She's straight-talking and stubborn, a lot like House but with a truck-load more tact.
Dr. Allison Cameron (Jennifer Morrison): The only woman on House's team, she is a very compassionate woman due to her own past tragedies and also has some unresolved sexual tension with House. As the only woman in the room most of the time she fights back as much as she needs to in order to be heard. House likes to joke about Cameron when it comes to dating and sexual matters, but she gives as good as she gets and impresses him with her confidence.
Dr. Robert Chase (Jesse Spencer): Chase is a lot like Wilson, which is probably why they get on so well and why House enjoys trying to mess with Chase too. He will work through the night if he needs to for a patient even if he's supposed to be off and is a level headed voice of reason in the team.
Dr. Eric Foreman (Omar Epps): The final member of the team, and the only African-American, he has to put up with a lot of crap from House who likes to send him on break-ins when trying to figure out what's wrong with a patient. Everyone there and watching knows it isn't due to racism which is probably why he hasn't tried to kill House yet. Foreman lives in a very black and white world of stereotypes, as show with his heartlessness towards a homeless woman early on in this first season. As far as he's concerned there is good and there is bad and there's nothing in-between. Though a cut-and-dry view of the world can be okay in other jobs it is not helpful in the moral and ethical confusion which is the hospital, and there are many times that Foreman clashes with House over his behaviour. If only he could see that all the things he hates in House aren't that far removed from Foreman's own personality traits.
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Episodes
Pilot: Kindergarten teacher Rebecca Adler is having a bad day, whilst teaching her class she starts to talk in gibberish rather than words. The children laugh thinking she is being funny, but when she falls to the floor and begins convulsing it becomes a case for Dr. House and his team who must figure out what is causing her symptoms before she completely deteriorates.
Paternity: A high school lacrosse player who suffers from night terrors and double vision comes into the hospital seeking help. He baffles the team and with House now proposing a retinal biopsy that could permanently blind the boy the race is on for his team to figure out other ways to treat him.
Occam's Razor: A college student goes into shock and collapses during a wild night of sex with his girlfriend (Probably not the reaction she was hoping for) and becomes a mystery at the hospital, his white cell count keeps dropping and there is no improvement with IV fluid. Meanwhile at the clinic House is truly infuriated by the walk-in cases, as is the norm.
Maternity: A virus spreads through the maternity ward infecting the newborn patients of the hospital. House has to do the unthinkable and test different babies for different diseases in order to try and save the majority. Will his risky treatment pay off or is there about to be a huge hospital scandal in the papers?
Damned If You Do: Clinic hours again for House, but his usually irritating duties are pushed aside when a nun comes in with red and swollen palms. Believing it to be an allergy she's given a shot to calm the swelling but then goes into cardiac arrest which Dr Cuddy believes is down to House giving too high a dosage. To both prove his innocence and save the young nun he runs a battery of strange treatments and digs into the sisters' life past and present.
The Socratic Method: An episode about families where a schizophrenic mother with DVT arrives with her overly protective son, suspecting that not only is the mother lying about her drinking but that the son is over-medicating her, House takes her off of all her meds and has the team break into their home and search for answers.
Fidelity: A patient with symptoms of a rare African sleeping sickness only transmitted sexually comes in, but when both she and her husband claim that they have never been unfaithful House and the team have to make up their own minds before the patient ends up dead.
Poison: After toxins send a boy into convulsions and hallucinations during a high school exam the team begin testing for known toxins and treating him. However when the tests come back clear and the boy gets worse his mother steps in and stops them from proceeding with further treatment until the CDC speak to her.
DNR: House gets a welcome surprise in the hospital when famous jazz trumpet player John Henry Giles is admitted for breathing problems. However House takes things to far and winds up facing a courtroom for ignoring his DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) order and refusing to accept his patient dying a slow painful death without looking into more experimental treatments.
Histories: A tearjerker episode that shines a light on the problem of homelessness, a homeless woman collapses at a rave house and is admitted. Foreman decides that she is clearly faking her seizures in order to get food and a bed for the night but after being bit by the patient and her vanishing House and the team have to track her down uncovering her tragic past and a deeper look at Foreman and Wilson.
Detox: A Porsche ends up in a bad way after the drivers boyfriend begins coughing up blood. As the bleeds continue House and the team attempt to discover the cause, but due to a challenge by Cuddy, House has accepted a bet that he can stop taking Vicodin (and if he does he doesn't have to work in the clinic for a whole month) and as his cravings get more and more severe so do his treatments for the bleeding boy.
Sports Medicine: A pitcher with a drug-addicted past and a bizarre case of brittle bones intrigues House after he breaks his arm in an unpleasant scene shooting a commercial. House thinks that as always, his patient is lying and is still on drugs. House also has to deal with clinic patients having lost the bet and decides that if he must do clinic hours, he will treat people as fast as humanly possible.
Cursed: If an Ouija board predicted you were going to die you'd probably just laugh it off, if only House's latest patient could do that. He's admitted to the hospital with a fever and a strange rash and it is presumed to be a simple case of pneumonia, but all is not well and what looked like a simple case turns into a medical conundrum where the answer could be anthrax, allergies, an autoimmune disease...or worse.
Control: As the new head of the hospital board tries to make themselves known throughout the episode House meets a seemingly confident female executive who is hiding a fragile heart - that is actually broken. The problem is that she can't get the transplant that will save her because she self harms and suffers with bulimia.
Mob Rules: House covers the case of a Mafia man who has collapsed before taking the stand, when he figures out the cause of his problem House has to question something about the mobster that could get the pair of them in deep trouble if found out. Back in the clinic a guy looking after his younger brother comes in when there is a blockage in his nose, with surprising results.
Heavy: An obese ten year old girl suffers a heart attack, and the girl's mother begs the team to look past her weight to figure out the true cause, leading House to believe that the little girl's weight is a symptom rather than the cause of her current medical issues. Meanwhile new head of the board Vogler throws his weight around, trying to force House to fire one of his team. Finally in the clinic we see that beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder when a woman with a huge tumour on her ovaries refuses to have surgery to remove it for fear that she will be unattractive without it, leading House to really put his foot in it with some obvious comments even the viewer is thinking!
Role Model: House has to think about politics and scandal when an African-American senator who is running for president collapses during a fundraiser. House has to give the man some very bad life-altering news which would destroy his campaign but the patient is determined not to believe it is the truth. Vogler is still determined to make his presence felt and tries to force House to give a speech in favour of a drug made by Volga's company - you can bet House isn't planning to do what is expected.
Babies & Bathwater: Babies are the hot topic when one patient refuses to have treatment for cancer fearing the harm it will do to her unborn baby, whilst another couple at the hospital are arrested after it is found out that they have had their baby on a raw vegan diet (the parents seem oddly surprised that a baby would get ill from this). Elsewhere after all of House's insubordination recently Vogler wants House fired - Will Cuddy finally be free of the stress that is Dr Gregory House?
Kids: There's a meningitis outbreak in the hospital and while all the doctors are working to help the patients House finds himself drawn to one patient whose symptoms don't quite match, though everyone else believe he just has meningitis like the rest of the patients House is determined to figure out the cause and treatment that will save the young race drivers life.
Love Hurts: Today's patient is certainly a little odd - a 21-year-old who after appointments with many holistic doctors suffers a stroke. This would be a cut and dry case if it wasn't for one rather large question - was the stroke caused by the holistic medicine or by his dominatrix girlfriend? Also up for discussion is House's date with team member Cameron, will it be a complete disaster or the start of a beautiful romance...like anyone really needs to ask.
Three Stories: Here is an enlightening episode where House covers a class filled with medical students and decides to tell them three case studies about leg pain, bizarre as it is the students learn that they will have to work hard to be better doctors and House's team learn about House's past and a little of why he is the way he is. Unfortunately for House this isn't his only activity of the day; his ex-wife comes into the hospital and asks him to treat her new husband. Awkward!
The Honeymoon: The tests on Mark (House's ex-wife's new husband) have come back clear, there is apparently nothing wrong with him and he happily checks out of the hospital and away from House. But Stacy refuses to believe there is nothing wrong and implores House to help. With a little wine he manages to get him back into the hospital but is House taking out his anger at ex-wife Stacy on Mark?
---------------------------------------
Fun Facts About House
For those who enjoy this sort of thing here are a few lesser known facts about House:
- When Hugh Laurie made his audition tape he had to do it in a hotel bathroom whilst he was shooting for film "Flight Of The Phoenix" - it would later be likened to a Bin Laden video due to the low light and odd surroundings.
- Bryan Singer thought that Hugh Laurie was American until told otherwise.
-Other people going for the part of Gregory House were Denis Leary (Thank god they didn't go with him otherwise I'd never have watched) and Patrick Dempsey (You know, the guy in the L'Oreal adverts - the unspeakably gorgeous one!).
-House's apartment number 221B is a sneaky reference to Sherlock Holmes' address.
-Dr. Robert Chase was not originally written for anyone other than an American; Jesse's agent persuaded them to rewrite the character as Australian for his client.
-The image of a Vicodin bottle was supposed to be in the opening title sequence but Fox were not happy with this featuring.
-If you go to Housecharitytees.com and you're lucky you'll be able to snag a t-shirt with a classic line on with the proceeds going to the charity National Alliance on Mental Illness (Though they are limited edition so if there are none now, check back every now and then as they like to raise money for the NAMI as much as possible).
---------------------------------------
Why Should You Watch This?
If you enjoy mysteries, puzzles and piecing together clues you will enjoy House. This could be likened to CSI in the way that a case is presented, clues are searched for and a conclusion is made. The difference here is the cases involve live people and the killers aren't people but diseases.
There are plenty of characters to love and care about with pasts that unfold throughout this and the later seasons. The relationships between the characters are all rather different and go through strains as they would in real life, though in real life I'm sure someone would have had House fired by now!
This show could have been boring if the only focus was on the patient, what was wrong with them and treating them. But in this show you see the history of the patient, both good and bad, and more importantly the characters in the series are given well-written pasts that the viewer is privy to as the seasons go on. In many medical shows there isn't much focus on the doctors themselves and their personal lives or flaws, but here they are allowed to be as important as the cases.
The main reason you should watch House is for the title character Dr. Gregory House. He's arrogant, self-serving, drug-addicted and mean, but also witty, smart and determined to save his patients. For all his flaws, and he has some huge ones, he is an immensely lovable character. Though just reading a review about it won't show it, you really have to see him in action to see why he is so appealing.
---------------------------------------
Final Verdict
When this show began I was ready to watch in curiosity - partly to see if Hugh Laurie could play a straight role with an American accent well as I had known him for his comedic roles. It was also appealing that it was different to the biggest medical drama at the time (ER).
Upon watching this I was surprised and overjoyed to see that Hugh Laurie really is an amazing actor who can play more than just the funny man. His American accent wasn't cheesy and was very believable, as was his insanely flawed character that is so rude but so wonderful all at once.
Almost instantly I was hooked on the show and wanted to see what would happen, not just with the cases but with the doctors too. It was clear that there was more beneath the surface of these characters and I was happy to wait to find out the mad, bad and sad things that had happened in their pasts. And I sat (and still do sit) glued to the screen waiting for the moment when House turns his head to the side or his eyes glint and you just know he's figured out the case. It's always something tiny and seemingly insignificant that gets his attention and its fun to try and figure out what it will be that gives away the diagnosis - more often than not I've been wrong but I've enjoyed it nonetheless.
This show isn't cold and clinical, and though they use a lot of medical jargon it's made very clear to the viewer what they are talking about. They even got to the effort of running scripts by several people in the medical profession before filming to make sure they are correct. This is an emotional show that makes you feel for all it's characters, and has had me reaching for tissues to dry my eyes when I've gotten a little weepy (Especially the episode Histories where there are many sad stories told - including the heartbreaking one by the patient). There aren't many shows that can make me shed a tear but this one has managed to a few times every season, I think that is a sign of great writing and fantastically emotional dialogue and performances by the actors.
In conclusion if you love a good mystery - whether that be Columbo, Sherlock Holmes or CSI - or have a fondness for medical shows, this is a show you should catch. Currently seasons 1-4 can be found showing on 5/Fiver/Five US but unless you have watched the previous seasons I'd recommend you buy the DVD and catch up, because you find out more and more about the characters as time goes on it may not make as much sense if you throw yourself into the fourth season.
I loved this first season and it now has pride of place in my huge DVD collection, hopefully this might persuade a few more people to make the same decision (Especially as it's come down in price on every website and can be had for around £8-12).
---------------------------------------
DVD Information & Extras
The first season of House is 22 episodes long and is spread over 6 disks. There is 926 minutes approx of viewing including the small array of extras on the final disk. The season is rated at a 15 though to be honest if it's shown to younger viewers I don't think it will do much harm unless they are a little squeamish or not mature enough to understand some of the moral dilemmas that crop up - if that's the case they are going to find this show boring because it won't make too much sense, though they'll enjoy watching House insult people. This has very little violence and nudity, bad language is used but I've heard much worse.
The DVD extras are rather short on this first box set, which is a shame but the extra's chosen are good.
Dr House: In depth look at the title character House with interview footage and classic clips.
Medical Cases: A look back at the medical cases featured in the season with commentary and interview from the shows medical consultant/writer. For anyone who wonders about how close to reality these medical shows can be if done right, this is a feature to watch.
The Concept: A short interview with the makers of House talking about how they came up with the idea for the show.
Set Tour: Look behind the scenes of the hospital with a guided tour which shows how much really has to go on backstage for filming to take place.
HOUSE-isms: A piece featuring clips from the season of House-isms, those lines that are so quintessentially House. It's interspersed with commentary from the entire main cast. This is a fun short piece to watch that will make you laugh.
Casting Session With Hugh Laurie: A 7 minute piece about casting with Hugh Laurie, it's nice to see him talk in his real accent and speaks candidly about getting the part
---------------------------------------
What Is House?
House is a medical drama set in the US at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey. It revolves around grumpy but brilliant Dr. House and his team as they try to figure out cases that more often than not involves racing against the clock to save a life. House will only take cases that interest him, which is known throughout his hospital and others which means that the strangest cases that no-one can figure out get sent to him to diagnose.
House was created after one of the creators was inspired by a column written by a doctor in the New York Times and there are many references to Sherlock Holmes throughout the show as Dr. House's treatment of those around him was based on Sherlock Holmes' own strange coldness. They originally pitched the show as a CSI-style medical drama, which they most definitely succeeded with creating.
---------------------------------------
Who Is In It?
The main casting for this show is smaller than many popular US shows, though that's partly because the main premise of the show is to get a new patient and save them so that they can send them home.
Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie): The cantankerous lead character Dr Gregory House is an odd one. He's insanely smart with a deep love of music and driving people insane. House walks with a cane and takes a lot of Vicodin in order to carry out his day, the reason he walks with a cane is not fully explained until late in the season but we do see others around him berate him over his use of prescription painkillers like tic-tacs. Gregory is divorced, though he still loves his wife with all his heart (But due to something from the past also deeply resents her) and lives alone. His only friend is Wilson, and other than that he has no social life. Patients generally tend to love or hate him - they love him because he is infamous for being able to treat cases no other doctor can figure out, and hated because he has absolutely no bedside manner and will tell everyone and anyone of how stupid they are.
Dr. James Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard): House's only friend Wilson is a kind-hearted man who cares about his patients and is the hospital's head of Oncology (Wilson's specialty). His friendship with the grumpy doctor is a little different from the norm, most of the time it's about arguing and playing head games. He's married and loves to upset House on those few occasions he can manage to win, and is the first person the team will turn to when they can't get House to listen to them.
Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein): As the woman in charge Cuddy spends a lot of her time chasing after House to force him to do his clinic hours or to take on cases. There is a lot of sexual tension between the two of them though neither would care to admit it. Cuddy is single and looking for love, she wants to settle down and have a baby but with a high-powered job and a liability like House on the staff it's amazing she gets time to sleep let alone date. She's straight-talking and stubborn, a lot like House but with a truck-load more tact.
Dr. Allison Cameron (Jennifer Morrison): The only woman on House's team, she is a very compassionate woman due to her own past tragedies and also has some unresolved sexual tension with House. As the only woman in the room most of the time she fights back as much as she needs to in order to be heard. House likes to joke about Cameron when it comes to dating and sexual matters, but she gives as good as she gets and impresses him with her confidence.
Dr. Robert Chase (Jesse Spencer): Chase is a lot like Wilson, which is probably why they get on so well and why House enjoys trying to mess with Chase too. He will work through the night if he needs to for a patient even if he's supposed to be off and is a level headed voice of reason in the team.
Dr. Eric Foreman (Omar Epps): The final member of the team, and the only African-American, he has to put up with a lot of crap from House who likes to send him on break-ins when trying to figure out what's wrong with a patient. Everyone there and watching knows it isn't due to racism which is probably why he hasn't tried to kill House yet. Foreman lives in a very black and white world of stereotypes, as show with his heartlessness towards a homeless woman early on in this first season. As far as he's concerned there is good and there is bad and there's nothing in-between. Though a cut-and-dry view of the world can be okay in other jobs it is not helpful in the moral and ethical confusion which is the hospital, and there are many times that Foreman clashes with House over his behaviour. If only he could see that all the things he hates in House aren't that far removed from Foreman's own personality traits.
---------------------------------------
Episodes
Pilot: Kindergarten teacher Rebecca Adler is having a bad day, whilst teaching her class she starts to talk in gibberish rather than words. The children laugh thinking she is being funny, but when she falls to the floor and begins convulsing it becomes a case for Dr. House and his team who must figure out what is causing her symptoms before she completely deteriorates.
Paternity: A high school lacrosse player who suffers from night terrors and double vision comes into the hospital seeking help. He baffles the team and with House now proposing a retinal biopsy that could permanently blind the boy the race is on for his team to figure out other ways to treat him.
Occam's Razor: A college student goes into shock and collapses during a wild night of sex with his girlfriend (Probably not the reaction she was hoping for) and becomes a mystery at the hospital, his white cell count keeps dropping and there is no improvement with IV fluid. Meanwhile at the clinic House is truly infuriated by the walk-in cases, as is the norm.
Maternity: A virus spreads through the maternity ward infecting the newborn patients of the hospital. House has to do the unthinkable and test different babies for different diseases in order to try and save the majority. Will his risky treatment pay off or is there about to be a huge hospital scandal in the papers?
Damned If You Do: Clinic hours again for House, but his usually irritating duties are pushed aside when a nun comes in with red and swollen palms. Believing it to be an allergy she's given a shot to calm the swelling but then goes into cardiac arrest which Dr Cuddy believes is down to House giving too high a dosage. To both prove his innocence and save the young nun he runs a battery of strange treatments and digs into the sisters' life past and present.
The Socratic Method: An episode about families where a schizophrenic mother with DVT arrives with her overly protective son, suspecting that not only is the mother lying about her drinking but that the son is over-medicating her, House takes her off of all her meds and has the team break into their home and search for answers.
Fidelity: A patient with symptoms of a rare African sleeping sickness only transmitted sexually comes in, but when both she and her husband claim that they have never been unfaithful House and the team have to make up their own minds before the patient ends up dead.
Poison: After toxins send a boy into convulsions and hallucinations during a high school exam the team begin testing for known toxins and treating him. However when the tests come back clear and the boy gets worse his mother steps in and stops them from proceeding with further treatment until the CDC speak to her.
DNR: House gets a welcome surprise in the hospital when famous jazz trumpet player John Henry Giles is admitted for breathing problems. However House takes things to far and winds up facing a courtroom for ignoring his DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) order and refusing to accept his patient dying a slow painful death without looking into more experimental treatments.
Histories: A tearjerker episode that shines a light on the problem of homelessness, a homeless woman collapses at a rave house and is admitted. Foreman decides that she is clearly faking her seizures in order to get food and a bed for the night but after being bit by the patient and her vanishing House and the team have to track her down uncovering her tragic past and a deeper look at Foreman and Wilson.
Detox: A Porsche ends up in a bad way after the drivers boyfriend begins coughing up blood. As the bleeds continue House and the team attempt to discover the cause, but due to a challenge by Cuddy, House has accepted a bet that he can stop taking Vicodin (and if he does he doesn't have to work in the clinic for a whole month) and as his cravings get more and more severe so do his treatments for the bleeding boy.
Sports Medicine: A pitcher with a drug-addicted past and a bizarre case of brittle bones intrigues House after he breaks his arm in an unpleasant scene shooting a commercial. House thinks that as always, his patient is lying and is still on drugs. House also has to deal with clinic patients having lost the bet and decides that if he must do clinic hours, he will treat people as fast as humanly possible.
Cursed: If an Ouija board predicted you were going to die you'd probably just laugh it off, if only House's latest patient could do that. He's admitted to the hospital with a fever and a strange rash and it is presumed to be a simple case of pneumonia, but all is not well and what looked like a simple case turns into a medical conundrum where the answer could be anthrax, allergies, an autoimmune disease...or worse.
Control: As the new head of the hospital board tries to make themselves known throughout the episode House meets a seemingly confident female executive who is hiding a fragile heart - that is actually broken. The problem is that she can't get the transplant that will save her because she self harms and suffers with bulimia.
Mob Rules: House covers the case of a Mafia man who has collapsed before taking the stand, when he figures out the cause of his problem House has to question something about the mobster that could get the pair of them in deep trouble if found out. Back in the clinic a guy looking after his younger brother comes in when there is a blockage in his nose, with surprising results.
Heavy: An obese ten year old girl suffers a heart attack, and the girl's mother begs the team to look past her weight to figure out the true cause, leading House to believe that the little girl's weight is a symptom rather than the cause of her current medical issues. Meanwhile new head of the board Vogler throws his weight around, trying to force House to fire one of his team. Finally in the clinic we see that beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder when a woman with a huge tumour on her ovaries refuses to have surgery to remove it for fear that she will be unattractive without it, leading House to really put his foot in it with some obvious comments even the viewer is thinking!
Role Model: House has to think about politics and scandal when an African-American senator who is running for president collapses during a fundraiser. House has to give the man some very bad life-altering news which would destroy his campaign but the patient is determined not to believe it is the truth. Vogler is still determined to make his presence felt and tries to force House to give a speech in favour of a drug made by Volga's company - you can bet House isn't planning to do what is expected.
Babies & Bathwater: Babies are the hot topic when one patient refuses to have treatment for cancer fearing the harm it will do to her unborn baby, whilst another couple at the hospital are arrested after it is found out that they have had their baby on a raw vegan diet (the parents seem oddly surprised that a baby would get ill from this). Elsewhere after all of House's insubordination recently Vogler wants House fired - Will Cuddy finally be free of the stress that is Dr Gregory House?
Kids: There's a meningitis outbreak in the hospital and while all the doctors are working to help the patients House finds himself drawn to one patient whose symptoms don't quite match, though everyone else believe he just has meningitis like the rest of the patients House is determined to figure out the cause and treatment that will save the young race drivers life.
Love Hurts: Today's patient is certainly a little odd - a 21-year-old who after appointments with many holistic doctors suffers a stroke. This would be a cut and dry case if it wasn't for one rather large question - was the stroke caused by the holistic medicine or by his dominatrix girlfriend? Also up for discussion is House's date with team member Cameron, will it be a complete disaster or the start of a beautiful romance...like anyone really needs to ask.
Three Stories: Here is an enlightening episode where House covers a class filled with medical students and decides to tell them three case studies about leg pain, bizarre as it is the students learn that they will have to work hard to be better doctors and House's team learn about House's past and a little of why he is the way he is. Unfortunately for House this isn't his only activity of the day; his ex-wife comes into the hospital and asks him to treat her new husband. Awkward!
The Honeymoon: The tests on Mark (House's ex-wife's new husband) have come back clear, there is apparently nothing wrong with him and he happily checks out of the hospital and away from House. But Stacy refuses to believe there is nothing wrong and implores House to help. With a little wine he manages to get him back into the hospital but is House taking out his anger at ex-wife Stacy on Mark?
---------------------------------------
Fun Facts About House
For those who enjoy this sort of thing here are a few lesser known facts about House:
- When Hugh Laurie made his audition tape he had to do it in a hotel bathroom whilst he was shooting for film "Flight Of The Phoenix" - it would later be likened to a Bin Laden video due to the low light and odd surroundings.
- Bryan Singer thought that Hugh Laurie was American until told otherwise.
-Other people going for the part of Gregory House were Denis Leary (Thank god they didn't go with him otherwise I'd never have watched) and Patrick Dempsey (You know, the guy in the L'Oreal adverts - the unspeakably gorgeous one!).
-House's apartment number 221B is a sneaky reference to Sherlock Holmes' address.
-Dr. Robert Chase was not originally written for anyone other than an American; Jesse's agent persuaded them to rewrite the character as Australian for his client.
-The image of a Vicodin bottle was supposed to be in the opening title sequence but Fox were not happy with this featuring.
-If you go to Housecharitytees.com and you're lucky you'll be able to snag a t-shirt with a classic line on with the proceeds going to the charity National Alliance on Mental Illness (Though they are limited edition so if there are none now, check back every now and then as they like to raise money for the NAMI as much as possible).
---------------------------------------
Why Should You Watch This?
If you enjoy mysteries, puzzles and piecing together clues you will enjoy House. This could be likened to CSI in the way that a case is presented, clues are searched for and a conclusion is made. The difference here is the cases involve live people and the killers aren't people but diseases.
There are plenty of characters to love and care about with pasts that unfold throughout this and the later seasons. The relationships between the characters are all rather different and go through strains as they would in real life, though in real life I'm sure someone would have had House fired by now!
This show could have been boring if the only focus was on the patient, what was wrong with them and treating them. But in this show you see the history of the patient, both good and bad, and more importantly the characters in the series are given well-written pasts that the viewer is privy to as the seasons go on. In many medical shows there isn't much focus on the doctors themselves and their personal lives or flaws, but here they are allowed to be as important as the cases.
The main reason you should watch House is for the title character Dr. Gregory House. He's arrogant, self-serving, drug-addicted and mean, but also witty, smart and determined to save his patients. For all his flaws, and he has some huge ones, he is an immensely lovable character. Though just reading a review about it won't show it, you really have to see him in action to see why he is so appealing.
---------------------------------------
Final Verdict
When this show began I was ready to watch in curiosity - partly to see if Hugh Laurie could play a straight role with an American accent well as I had known him for his comedic roles. It was also appealing that it was different to the biggest medical drama at the time (ER).
Upon watching this I was surprised and overjoyed to see that Hugh Laurie really is an amazing actor who can play more than just the funny man. His American accent wasn't cheesy and was very believable, as was his insanely flawed character that is so rude but so wonderful all at once.
Almost instantly I was hooked on the show and wanted to see what would happen, not just with the cases but with the doctors too. It was clear that there was more beneath the surface of these characters and I was happy to wait to find out the mad, bad and sad things that had happened in their pasts. And I sat (and still do sit) glued to the screen waiting for the moment when House turns his head to the side or his eyes glint and you just know he's figured out the case. It's always something tiny and seemingly insignificant that gets his attention and its fun to try and figure out what it will be that gives away the diagnosis - more often than not I've been wrong but I've enjoyed it nonetheless.
This show isn't cold and clinical, and though they use a lot of medical jargon it's made very clear to the viewer what they are talking about. They even got to the effort of running scripts by several people in the medical profession before filming to make sure they are correct. This is an emotional show that makes you feel for all it's characters, and has had me reaching for tissues to dry my eyes when I've gotten a little weepy (Especially the episode Histories where there are many sad stories told - including the heartbreaking one by the patient). There aren't many shows that can make me shed a tear but this one has managed to a few times every season, I think that is a sign of great writing and fantastically emotional dialogue and performances by the actors.
In conclusion if you love a good mystery - whether that be Columbo, Sherlock Holmes or CSI - or have a fondness for medical shows, this is a show you should catch. Currently seasons 1-4 can be found showing on 5/Fiver/Five US but unless you have watched the previous seasons I'd recommend you buy the DVD and catch up, because you find out more and more about the characters as time goes on it may not make as much sense if you throw yourself into the fourth season.
I loved this first season and it now has pride of place in my huge DVD collection, hopefully this might persuade a few more people to make the same decision (Especially as it's come down in price on every website and can be had for around £8-12).
---------------------------------------
DVD Information & Extras
The first season of House is 22 episodes long and is spread over 6 disks. There is 926 minutes approx of viewing including the small array of extras on the final disk. The season is rated at a 15 though to be honest if it's shown to younger viewers I don't think it will do much harm unless they are a little squeamish or not mature enough to understand some of the moral dilemmas that crop up - if that's the case they are going to find this show boring because it won't make too much sense, though they'll enjoy watching House insult people. This has very little violence and nudity, bad language is used but I've heard much worse.
The DVD extras are rather short on this first box set, which is a shame but the extra's chosen are good.
Dr House: In depth look at the title character House with interview footage and classic clips.
Medical Cases: A look back at the medical cases featured in the season with commentary and interview from the shows medical consultant/writer. For anyone who wonders about how close to reality these medical shows can be if done right, this is a feature to watch.
The Concept: A short interview with the makers of House talking about how they came up with the idea for the show.
Set Tour: Look behind the scenes of the hospital with a guided tour which shows how much really has to go on backstage for filming to take place.
HOUSE-isms: A piece featuring clips from the season of House-isms, those lines that are so quintessentially House. It's interspersed with commentary from the entire main cast. This is a fun short piece to watch that will make you laugh.
Casting Session With Hugh Laurie: A 7 minute piece about casting with Hugh Laurie, it's nice to see him talk in his real accent and speaks candidly about getting the part
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