Via the Miami Herald: A new hero’s coming to `Heroes’

Via the SciFi Wire: Boxleitner Joining Heroes?

Aside from the fact that Boxleitner would generically be a good choice, it adds more geek cred to Heroes as the show where folks from other genre shows come to play. We have already seen two TOS actors (Takei and Nichols) and a Doctor (Eccelston) on the show, not to mention the new Spock (Quinto), so the lead actor from Babylon 5 makes a good addition to the collection.

Am I forgetting any other examples?

Nothing too informative, but here it is (via the LAT): Zachary Quinto: Highly logical, for a human

Via the LAT: Adrian Pasdar’s split personality.

Who knew he directed musical theater and was married to one of the Dixie Chicks?

In short: the 2nd season is likely to be cut in half, and the promise Heroes: Origins mini-series will be postponed until next year (assuming it ever gets made at all).

Via SyFy Portal: ‘Heroes’ Season 2 Could Be Cut In Half:

SyFy Portal was tipped off to a report that production had halted on the set of “Heroes,” and that producers were asked to go back and modify the ending of its 11th episode. That report appears to be true, reports TV Guide’s Michael Ausiello.

“Sources confirm that the show is going back and shooting an alternate ending to the Dec. 3 episode that, if used, would allow the episode to function as a season finale in the event of a strike,” Ausiello said. “Originally, the episode was only supposed to serve as the conclusion of the current ‘Generations’ arc.”

Well, at least the first story will conclude.

Via SyFy Portal: NBC Pulls Plug On ‘Heroes: Origins’

With the writers’ strike looming, “Heroes” faltering in the ratings and uncertainty about anything that’s likely to happen in terms of programming in the next few months, NBC has shelved plans for “Heroes: Origins,” the much-anticipated spinoff series of the once hit show.

Production has been halted indefinitely on the six-episode mini-series, which had attracted such talent directors Eli Roth and Kevin Smith and writer Michael Dougherty (”Superman Returns”). NBC had planned to debut the show in April, while “Heroes” was on hiatus.

The story notes that the strike isn’t the only reason, as support for the show amongst viewers and critics is weaker this year than last, and that the show isn;t totally dead:

Insiders said that “Heroes: Origins” isn’t completely dead and could very well be revived as soon as next season.

Via the NY Post: Secrets, Identities: ‘Heroes’ Cast and Crew Unmask Season 2:

“”We called Season 1 Volume 1 and it was entitled ‘Genesis.’ It just happened to be 23 episodes long,”" said Kring. “”Volume 2 is entitled ‘Generations’ and it by no means has to be an entire season long … In fact, we’re looking at that volume to end in the middle of the season, which allows us to wrap up certain stories and allows us to have new stories begin.”"

Producer Jeph Loeb, who’s also worked on Lost and written virtually every major comic book superhero in their monthly titles, said the first 11 episodes comprise the first story arc, airing through December. “”That is actually going to be the end of Volume 2 so that if you started watching the show, we’re not asking you to come on for 24. I mean we would love for you to do that, but you can just watch the first 11 and you’ll have a complete story with a beginning, middle and end.”"

Kring said viewers can expect Volumes 3 and 4 to round out the rest of the season.

Intriguing.

And any show that can pull off the following, and I have no doubt that Heroes can, in simply cool:

“”We start off with two parallel time lines,”" explained Oka. “”One is starting four months after the event and another timeline starts 400 years prior to the event in feudal Japan. And somehow that’s going to coincide and overlap and it’ll all make sense.”"

While the episode was a bit plodding insofar as it had a lot of setup to do, there was still a great deal of plot forwarding going on.

Some interesting new plot threads for this season:

• The anti-heroes plague.
• HRG and Suresh plotting to take down the Company (most cool).
• Irish dudes and Peter locked in a cargo container sans memory.
• Maya and Alejandro (not exactly Zan and Jana, now are they?)
• Hiro and the Gaijin in 17th Century Japan.
• Molly and Evil Eyes .

My only gripe (and it is a minor one) is that the Bennett (now Butler) family’s cover is inconsistent. Dad is working in a copy store (and you have to love the confrontation scene, even if was a bit unrealistic) yet his daughter can have a brand new SUV (maybe the product placement paid for it…) and they live in a house/apartment that many professional couldn’t afford in SoCal. Indeed, the fictitious Costa Verde is clearly too upscale for the cover to make any sense.

A question there: how much do Mrs. HRG and Lyle remember? Or, for that matter, Mr. Muggles?

In terms of who is trying to take out the older generation, a commenter at Unqualified Offerings has an intriguing theory:

Nathan is the guy threatening the older generation.

If you watch the sequence where Ando is bringing Mr. Takamura his paper, he is bumped into by Nathan Petrelli. Ando doesn’t recognize him because of the beard and disheveled appearance. But that’s when Nathan slipped the photo into the paper.

He also tacked the photo up for his mother outside Peter’s(?) apartment.

So, assumming it was Nathan seeking revenge for what the older generation put him and Peter through — he tackled Mr. Takamura over the side of the building and flew off.

I have the episode on TiVo, so will have to go back and give the Ando bump scene a looksee.

I am not sure about the idea that Nathan was the one who went to kill Hiro’s father (and I hope he isn’t dead, as George Takei plays a great supporting character), as the implication was clear that it was one of the older generation, but we shall see.

And speaking of Nathan, in addition to flying, he clearly has super-powerful follicles. That’s one mega-beard!

And yes, his Mom is evil.

Via Reuters: “Bratz” starlet joins “Heroes” team

“Bratz: The Movie” star Janel Parrish will appear in a few episodes of NBC’s hit sci-fi series “Heroes.” She will play May, the head cheerleader at the new school that Claire (Hayden Panettietre) attends.

That is, in my humble opinion, coming up in the world…

The long-rumored casting of Zachary Quinto (Sylar of Heroes) as Spock in the new Trek flick due out in 2024 is confirmed (via Reuters): “Heroes” villain, Nimoy join Star Trek pic:

Zachary Quinto, best known for playing the villainous Sylar in “Heroes,” will don a pair of pointy ears to play Mr. Spock in the newest installment of the Star Trek feature franchise — and he’ll be joined by Leonard Nimoy, reprising the role that he created.

Quinto has done an excellent job as the exceedingly creepy and evil Sylar. However, at the moment he is so ingrained in my mind as Sylar (as, I am sure, in the case for many others) that I am hoping his acting skills are sufficiently remarkable as to make us all to forget about Sylar when we see him as Spock.

Speaking of Spock, the movie must have some sort of flash to the future, as Nimoy will play a TNG era Spock (or, at least, it would seem that he is playing a post-Generations Spock, as getting Shatner as Kirk into those scenes are apparently an issue. One guesses that perhaps this is some sort of recollection of Spock on his deathbed or somesuch that leads to the telling of the early days of Trek.