Mythology of Heroes

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The television show Heroes includes a number of mysterious fictional elements that have been ascribed to science fiction or supernatural phenomena. Tim Kring and the creators of the series refer to these fictional elements as part of the mythology of the series. Kring confirmed that although the show does have a unique mythology, he doesn't want to sink too deeply into it. Rather, Kring has used volumes to wrap-up ongoing plotlines, rather than carrying storylines over long periods of time, as in Lost.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]} As far as the overall mythology of the series, Kring said "we have talked about where the show goes up to five seasons."^[7][8] As far as the show's ending date, Kring has commented that, "This show doesn't posit an ending..." The show does not have a designated ending point and is "open-ended."^[9]

[edit] Superpowers

Ordinary People Discovering Extraordinary Abilities was the promotional-campaign for the series, before and after its debut. In an interview conducted by Lost producer Damon Lindelof, Kring states "...it's a show about characters dealing with extraordinary things happening to them. That is the central premise. So my sense is that if one can assume that dealing with their extraordinary abilities is something that these characters will always face, then their stories can bend and morph and evolve forever."^[10][11][12]

Within the series, it has been suggested that these superpowers derive from somewhere genetic or in the brain, however, in several interviews, Tim Kring has shied away from discussing the origins of the characters abilities.^[13] Although not the actual answer, Kring has given his own personal theory on powers, stating, "...my original theory was that we’re living in such a fucked-up world and things are so awful that Earth needed to populate itself with people who were going to do something about it." When asked in the same interview to give a direct answer, Kring responded, "I’m not going to give an answer to that because that becomes a really fun part of the show."^[14] When it came to the conception of these abilities, the character was designed first, and the ability second. The ability created for every character concept was designed around the character and not the other way around. The stories and plot are driven by the characters and their lives, not their super-human ability.^[15]

Some abilities have been shown to be able to extend to another person, such as phasing, teleportation, time travel, invisibility and cellular regeneration (through an extension of blood). These abilities have been shown to extend to other individuals who are not enhanced humans and those who do not have the ability of power mimicry/absorption. Other abilities such as flight and super strength have not been shown to be extendible. Clothing and personal items also extends in some abilities, such as phasing, invisibility and time travel.

[edit] Activating Evolution

Activating Evolution is a fictional book written by Chandra Suresh. It describes Chandra's discoveries and predictions about the emergence of humans evolved with special abilities. It has been read by or given to many of the characters within the series and is considered a source of information in regards to their abilities.^[16]

[edit] Prophetic paintings

Main article: Artwork of Isaac Mendez

Isaac's painting of Manhattan's destruction in "Genesis" - the following episode, set five weeks in the future, depicts the same explosion, and the painting forms the basis of the primary story arc of the first season.

Tim Kring has gone on record stating, "Everyone painting we've had on Heroes has come true, but don't forget, sometimes the true meaning of a painting has been misinterpreted."^[17] Joe Pokaski and Aron Coliete have also stated that Isaac's paintings are not "absolute."^[18]

Isaac Mendez paintings were first introduced in the pilot episode of the series. Tim Sale (artist) is an American Eisner Award-winning comic book artist and is responsible for all the paintings shown on Heroes.^[19][20] Although Santiago Cabrera was written out of the series by the end of season one, Isaac's paintings still played an important role in season two.^[21] The concept of Isaac Mendez came when Tim Kring wanted to create a character with the ability of prophecy, but do it in a different way.^[22] The paintings of the show correlate with the idea of the comic book style series that Heroes is.^[23] Over 50 Tim Sale paintings have been presented in the series. Although most are credited to the character of Isaac Mendez. Peter Petrelli and Sylar have both been credited with paintings as well.

[edit] The Company and The Company founders

Main article: The Company (Heroes)

Primatech logo

The Company was first introduced in season one of the series as a fictional covert international organization whose primary purpose is to identify, monitor and study those individuals with special genetically derived superhuman abilities. In season one, Noah Bennet and Primatech Paper Co. were the face of the Company. It was later revealed that Bennet took orders from Thompson, who in turn, took orders from Mr. Linderman. In season one, the ongoing story-arc of the New York City explosion, was derived and plotted out by the Company and some of its founders; most notably Mr. Linderman and Angela Petrelli. In season one, Hiro Nakamura made it his destiny to stop New York from exploding. In retrospect, unbeknownst to Hiro at the time, his father, Kaito Nakamura, was also a founder within the Company, although he and Charles Deveaux, another Company founder, did not support the plans for the New York explosion.^[24][25]

It was revealed in season two, that Adam Monroe founded the Company with 12 other founders. A photo of the group was later shown, revealing who the 12 were, including Arthur Petrelli (father of Peter and Nathan Petrelli and husband of Angela Petrelli), Maury Parkman (father of Matt Parkman), Victoria Pratt, who experimented and mutated the Shanti Virus, and Bob Bishop, who is currently heading operations for the Company. Seven of the eighteen main cast members from seasons 1 and 2, are fictionally related to one or more of the founders. The four remaining founders, Paula Gramble, Suzanne Amman, Harry Fletcher, and Carlos Mendez, have yet to appear within the series, except in photographs. Kring has confirmed that these characters have been cast by the same actors in the photograph, and will eventually appear in the series.^[26]

Adam Monroe, also known as the legendary warrior Takezo Kensei, was the one who brought the Company founders together, although he is not present in the group photo. He has attempted to kill several of the founders in an act of revenge, after he was locked up for trying to release a deadly strain of the Shanti Virus. He has only been confirmed to have killed two founders; Kaito Nakamura and Victoria Pratt with attempts on Bob Bishop and Angela Petrelli. At the end of Volume 2, Bob Bishop was still heading the Company, however, 9 of the 12 founders are confirmed dead. Bob, Mr. Linderman and Maury are the only founders with confirmed abilities, while Angela and Kaito have been confirmed to have abilities by the producers, although they have not been revealed within the series.^[27][28]

[edit] The legend of Takezo Kensei

Main article: Adam Monroe

Adam as "Takezo Kensei"

In an interview with writers Joe Pokaski and Aron Coliete it is revealed the Kensei legend^[29] is, "Absolute fiction inspired by the vague recollections of various swordsman legends (Including Mr. Musashi)' by...Michael Green."^[30]

Hiro mentions the legend of Takezo Kensei many times in season one, though little is actually related until he trains in kendo with his father in the episode "Landslide". Previously, in "Godsend" and "The Fix", Hiro mentioned that the sword — which he was working to steal from Mr. Linderman — helped Kensei focus his power. He also said that his father used to tell him stories of Kensei, presumably including the many that Hiro tells Kensei in season two. When training with his father for his part in "saving the world" before the showdown with Sylar in New York, Hiro relates the story of "Kensei and the Dragon" and realizes that, if he wants to win, he must be strong enough to sacrifice himself.

In the 17th century, civil war threatened Japan; behind it was the warlord "White Beard." Kensei found a sword frozen in the snow. He was not, however, a good enough fighter to wield it, so he went to see the dragon of Kiso Mountain, who could teach him the sword's secrets. The dragon agreed to do this in exchange for Kensei's love. Knowing that Japan would fall under the rule of "White Beard" unless he took action, he had to agree to the dragon's demands even though he loved a princess.

After saving Japan in a great battle, the dragon came to Kensei to claim his end of the bargain. The dragon demanded the life of the swordsmith's daughter, the princess Kensei loved. Instead, Kensei cuts out his own heart and handed it to the dragon, saying, "My love is in here. Take it," and he died.

According to the mockumentary "Sword Saint", presented on the official Heroes 360 website, the dragon was touched by how much the warrior was willing to offer for his people and love, and restored Kensei's heart to him. Kensei then ran away with the princess.^[31]

In "Out of Time", it is revealed that Hiro Nakamura is the Takezo Kensei portrayed in legends, or rather the source behind the tales, having used his own knowledge of the stories to inspire the real Kensei to create the legends. The real Kensei becomes a villain after Yaeko falls for Hiro, and after Kensei's defeat she spreads Hiro's tale under Kensei's name.

[edit] The Blade of Takezo Kensei

The katana first appears in "Collision", strapped to Future Hiro's back. The sword later appears in one of Isaac's paintings depicting Hiro confronting a dinosaur. The sword has the appearance of a traditional katana with a black hilt and black sheath. The most notable feature is a golden emblem of the symbol attached to the hilt.

In "Godsend", Hiro and Ando find the sword in a New York Museum, which also has information on the sword's origins. According to an ancient Japanese scroll, the sword belonged to an ancient samurai warrior named Takezo Kensei. According to the scroll, the warrior possessed strange powers but had no control over them. One day he discovered the sword frozen in ice and, after claiming the sword, suddenly discovered that he had mastery over his abilities. With this control and wielding the sword, the warrior became a powerful leader and hero. Hiro believes that the sword somehow helped focus the samurai's powers, and with it in his possession he may be able to finally master his own abilities. However, after stealing the sword from the museum, Hiro discovered that the sword was actually a replica only used for display. The real katana was in the hands of Mr. Linderman.

In "Parasite", Hiro tries to sneak into Linderman's hotel but is stopped by security, until he meets Nathan Petrelli. Nathan tells the guards Hiro is there to deliver a package to Linderman and they let him pass. Hiro gives the vault curator the ripped painting of Hiro and the dinosaur. When the curator leaves the room temporarily, Hiro finds the sword in the computer system. As he is about to take it, the curator returns and calls all the guards in the hotel to come help. Ando, dressed as a guard, responds first and knocks out the curator. He tells Hiro he had been following him for some time. They take the sword and Hiro teleports himself and Ando to escape the rest of the hotel's security. In "Five Years Gone", Hiro travels to the future where his sword is confiscated by Parkman. When Future Hiro is killed, Mohinder takes the sword from his dead body and hands it to the remaining Hiro.

In "The Hard Part" the blade of Hiro's sword is broken by Sylar with his freezing ability. The damaged sword doesn't seem to affect his power, as he teleports away with Ando moments later, still holding both pieces of the sword. In "Landslide", Hiro's father explains that he had known of Hiro's powers from the beginning and that the sword was not the source of his increased powers; rather, it was the journey that restored them.

In "How to Stop an Exploding Man", Hiro saves Ando from Sylar and takes him back to Japan. Though Ando wants to return to New York with Hiro, Hiro tells Ando the next part of his journey must be traveled alone, to protect him. Hiro thanks his friend for teaching him the true meaning of bravery; Ando reminds Hiro of how his whole life he's obsessed over and talked about the heroes he wished he was, but that now one day people will tell the story of Hiro, and assures his friend that he "looks badass." When Hiro goes to leave to fight Sylar, he leaves Ando with the sword, saying that he does not need it, and that this way Ando knows he'll come back. He then takes the nagamaki Ando had bought and teleports to Kirby Plaza. When Peter and Sylar face off Hiro stabs Sylar in the chest and is thrown towards a building by Sylar. Before impact Hiro teleports to 1671 Japan, right at the beginning of an ancient battle. It is then seen that the leader of one side is the samurai Takezo Kensei, wielding Hiro's katana as the original owner.

In the episode "Four Months Later...", Hiro learns that Kensei did not discover the sword encased in ice, as the legend told. Instead, the sword was created by a swordsmith in the town of Otsu, and given to Kensei by the man's daughter in order to protect the town from bandits. When Kensei failed to keep his side of the bargain, the swordsmith's daughter took back the sword. In the episode "Kindred", Hiro leaves messages for Ando in the hilt of the sword, which Ando (in possession of the sword in present day Japan) receives hundreds of years later.

In an interview with writers Joe Pokaski and Aron Coliete it is revealed "the Kensei legend is, 'Absolute fiction inspired by the vague recollections of various swordsman legends (Including Mr. Musashi)' by our own Michael Green."^[30]

[edit] 9th Wonders! and Uluru

Main article: 9th Wonders!

9th Wonders! is a metafictional comic-book series in the NBC drama Heroes and is written, illustrated, and self-published in the series by Isaac Mendez. In reality, Tim Sale is the illustrator. In some instances, it has been confirmed that the stories that take place in 9th Wonders! are a direct reflection of Mendez's own precognitive visions. Whether or not Mendez has always been aware of this is unknown.

Uluru is a fictional rock monster that first appeared in the series in the pilot episode. Joe Pakaski and Aron Coliete have stated that Uluru is the native name for Ayers Rock in Australia. They encouraged fans to look into the mythology of Uluru...^[32] Uluru has appeared in paintings and graphic novels, but has never appeared in the Heroes universe outside of artist depiction’s. Uluru has barely been mentioned in the series. On one occasion D.L. Hawkins mimics Uluru to Micah. In May 2007, Kring commented in an interview that he and the writers had not yet decided on how to deal with the Uluru characters.^[33] However, in an interview a couple of months later, Kring commented that Uluru "only existed in the pages of the comic book."^[34]

[edit] The Virus

Main article: The Company (Heroes)#Shanti virus

The Shanti virus is a fictional life-threatening disease, first introduced in season one, which attacks the blood cells. Its first victim was Shanti Suresh, Mohinder Suresh's sister. Other victims of the virus include Molly Walker and The Haitian. Sylar and Niki Sanders also had the virus, but it was shown in the series that they were injected with it, through a series of circumstances. One of its side effects is that it prevents evolved humans who have the disease from using their abilities and ultimately ends in their death. There are several variants and mutated versions of the virus; most created to the credit of the Company. Strain 138 is the most dangerous, as it also affects unevolved humans, and was the central plot for Volume 2,^[35] when Peter saw a future where 93% of the world's population had died from the release of the Strain.^[36][37] The spread of the Shanti virus is shown in detail in graphic novel Quarantine.

[edit] Family connections

Throughout the series, family connections have been seen. On several occasions, parents possessing powers produce children who also possess a power. Together, Nathan Petrelli and Meredith Gordon produced Claire Bennet. Although Nathan has the ability to fly, and Meredith has the ability to generate fire, Claire was born with the unrelated ability of cellular regeneration. The same can be said about D.L. Hawkins, Niki Sanders and their son Micah. The Heroes creative team has confirmed that, "similar powers do not mean a genetic link. We've seen that the existence of powers may be something passed on, but the powers themselves are a crapshoot of sorts."^[38] However, this was the case for father/son Maury and Matt Parkman, who have similar abilities in telepathy, with Bob even commenting that Matt can do the same things Maury can do.^[39] On the contrary, the creators have also responded, stating, "In genetics, nothing is guaranteed. A random mix of traits." This comment was made in response to a question asked about whether or not Nathan's sons would have guaranteed abilities since he does.^[40]

[edit] Crossovers and connections

Character connections have been an apparent theme throughout the series beginning with the pilot and the eclipse, which Kring described as "a global event to link all of these characters together."^[41] Within the series, the characters also acknowledge their own connections with Peter stating, "Look, don't you get it? Everything is connected. We are all connected..."^[42] and Matt Parkman noting, "I think it's all connected. Everything. What you and I can do? We're all connected."^[43] Kring has described the character connections of season one as "...the idea that there is something larger that they're being drawn to." referring to the prophetic painting of an apocalyptic New York City in Isaac's loft and the characters need to get to the event and stop it.^[44] The concept of season two was stripped back down to the concept of season one, which Kring admitted was a mistake. He believed that the fans wanted the same formula as season one, and conceptualized this formula, by spreading and separating all the characters, similar to how they were at the start of the series. He initially thought episode seven was a good place to connect characters back together, but it wasn't responded well by fans and critics.^[45] The characters will continue to come together in small groups and team-ups, however there are no plans to create a Justice League within the series.^[46]

[edit] Number 9

Although the number 9 seems like a mundane number in the mythology of the series, writer/producers Aron Coliete and Joe Pakaski have suggested on several occasions that the number 9 is very important. Although fans have theorized on the number 9, including its appearance on seemingly mundane objects and it's summation of number combinations within the series,^[47] Coliete and Pakaski have stated that, "...the number 9 is pretty important in the grand scheme of things."^[48] They later expanded their statement and encouraged fans to research number 9, "...That being said, we did lots of research in crafting our stories - some of which came from Hindu and Indian mythology. Remember how we've said the number 9 is important? Has anyone looked into that yet? If you haven't, start digging."^[49] As of the end of Volume 2, the significance of nine has either been minimal or hidden. Coliete and Pakaski have credited the story of Ashoka the Great and the Nine Unknown Men as one of the many influences for the show and as a clue to the mystery surrounding the number 9.^[50]

[edit] Discredited Theories

Several of the more common fan theories have been discussed and rejected by the Tim Kring and the show's creators.

[edit] Lost-Heroes connection

See also: Lost (TV series)

Rumors of a Lost-Heroes connection began to spread when a Gannon Car Rental brochure appeared in "The Fix," and had also appeared in several episodes of Lost. The rumors grew after "Unexpected" aired and Adrian Pasdar's character Nathan made the comment "...in a lab on some island in the middle of the ocean" when referring to what would happen to the Heroes if people found out about their abilities. The creators of both shows have debunked the rumors that Lost and Heroes are taking place in the same fictional universe and have confirmed that even though the shows are similar, they are not connected, and both stories take place in different years (Heroes 2006/2007; Lost 2004) and on different networks.^[51][52][53] Damon Lindelof and Kring are good friends and remain in contact. Lindelof was a writer/producer on Crossing Jordan before he went to work on Lost and helped Kring pitch Heroes to NBC. Jeph Loeb was a writer/producer on Lost during its second season, before coming to Heroes.^[54][55][56]

[edit] Peter and Claire's relationship

Although it has been reported that Milo Ventimiglia is dating his Heroes costar Hayden Panettiere,^[57][58][59] Tim Kring, Panettiere and Ventimiglia have all debunked rumors that Claire Bennet and Peter Petrelli will be involved romantically in the fictional universe of Heroes. Rumor began to fly before and after it was revealed that Peter Petrelli is Claire's uncle.^[60] When Panettiere was asked about a possible relationship between Claire and Peter, she responded, "What's creepier? The fact that he's in his late 20s and I'm 17, or that he's my uncle?"^[61]

[edit] Powers and abilities

Several rumors regarding powers have also arisen from fans and the media, which Tim Kring and the creators have rejected. One such rumor is the notion that Mohinder Suresh has an ability. Tim Kring and Sendhil Ramamurthy have both gone on the record that Suresh was designed from the beginning not to have a power. Kring needed someone to bring everyone together, and Ramamurthy commented that Kring didn't want to create a Justice League-type group, where everyone had a power. Kring has gone on record stating that nothing is set in stone on Heroes, however, there are no plans for Mohinder to ever have a power.^[62][63] Rammamurthy has stated, "I'd be sorely disappointed if I got a power at this point — it would just be weird..." Kring also stated in the same interview that Suresh's ability to use his blood to cure the Shanti virus is not a superpowered ability; "That's still a scientific thing, not a special ability...If it were a power, then there'd be a lot of heroes out there in our world."^[64]

Fans have also speculated about an unspecified ability of Sylar and Peter, involving their voice-tone, which has been rejected. Aron Coliete and Joe Pakaski have confirmed that the changes in Sylar and Peter's voice is just for "coolness" factor and is not an indication of anything deeper (not an indication that they are using Eden's power).^[65][66]

[edit] References

The references in this article would be clearer with a different or consistent style of citation, footnoting, or external linking.

[edit] External links

• YamagatoFellowship.org, an NBC-maintained website for the Yamagato Fellowship by extension of Heroes Evolutions.
• Activating Evolution, an NBC-maintained website and wiki for Mohinder Suresh and Activating Evolution by extension of Heroes Evolutions.
• 9th Wonders - Semi-official site from Heroes creator Tim Kring