Too Complicated for Its Own Good?

Monday night I watched Heroes (Lizards) with a couple of house guests that had never seen the show before. It was interesting to 'see' the show through newbie eyes as they volleyed question after question to me about who people were, what their powers were and questions about the plot.

From just spending that hour with a couple of friends, I sense that Heroes greatest asset is also the biggest liability. The show has such a wealth of characters, main and supporting, and a labyrinthine plot, that people can really dive into a total immersive universe. At the same time, this complexity makes it hard for anyone but the most regular viewer to know who is who and what is going on. I'm a big fan of the show but even I have to frequent websites sometimes to remember the names of each character or to make sure I'm understanding the plot. The show doesn't really appear to lend itself to new viewers joining the fun since it doesn't pander to newbies. It's sink or swim (mostly sink), for anyone who wants to start watching the show beginning with season 2.

I really love the show and I'm doing pretty good at following the plots, but I don't think there's many shows that have quite as many characters as Heroes. The only ones that immediately come to mind are maybe Lost and Ugly Betty. Maybe this is a way to maintain rabid fan loyalty or maybe it is just a way to have replacements for characters they knock off, but I think Heroes needs to somehow simplify the storyline and characters. Although I think my friends enjoyed the show, I could tell they were more than a little frustrated trying to understand what was going on. For Heroes to expand on ratings, I think this is the only way to go.

If I've come up with the diagnosis, I should also write a prescription. My least favourite of the Heroes is the Niki / D.L. / Micah family. I got tired, very quick, of crazy powerful Niki / Jessica, her walk-through-the-walls husband and their son Micah, who can 'communicate with machines and technology'. Ho hum. Put them all on a car going off a cliff soon please and we'll all be ahead. Heck, they haven't even used the family for the first couple shows of the season. I think a good rule of thumb is if you can have characters absent for a couple of shows and you don't miss really miss them, off with their heads! I'm sure other people have different ideas though on who, if anyone, should go, and I'd love to hear them.

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