With a blend of comic-book style depictions and multi-layered characters, NBC brought its new show Heroes to the masses in the fall of 2006. In the show, people all around the world were starting to realize that they had powers which they weren't sure about how to quite use, and additionally have no idea why they can suddenly do these amazing things. The show begins to reveal many different main characters, and we start to see what each one of them can do as the season progresses. From being able to fly, to having the ability to regenerate their own cells, to even being able to fly, the powers of all these "heroes" start to come to the fore-front of their own existence. With these powers comes a new way of life for each of them, as normalcy is thrown out the window and they are forced to deal not only with constantly being ostracized, but also with a secret group that seems intent on taking them out. If that isn't bad enough, one of them is out to destroy the world if this group of Heroes don't find each other to put a stop to it.

From the great ensemble cast, the one who has gained the most fame is that played by Hayden Panetierre. She is the one who is basically indestructible, so when she gets injured (be it from a burn, a fall, or being shot) she can instantly regenerate to heal herself. It is a pretty potent power, but with it comes the problems of others wanting to either take that power from her, or find a way to put a stop to it. She is also the one from which the quote "Save The Cheerleader, Save The World" comes from. It is her that one of the other characters must save in order to help save New York City from a seemingly inevitable disaster. She is going to be helped by, among others, Peter Petrelli (Milo Ventimiglia) who can absorb other people's powers, Hiro (Masi Oka) who can bend time and space, and artist Isaac Mendes (Santiago Cabrera) who can paint the future.

If you have to put your finger on one specific thing that this show is about, you could say that it is the struggle of a group of specially talented people to do what is right before it is too late. Along the way each of them are faced with their own morality, and though none of the characters really knows what is going on at first, they all come to understand that their abilities not only set them apart, but give them a sort-of responsibility to help others. With these powers, some able to become better people, but as with most power, there are also those that succumb to the dark side of their new attributes. It is the human side of things that really makes each other characters interesting, and besides what they can now "do", they go through many day-to-day routines that mirror what most people are like in real life. With heavy comic-book overtones, the show is of course fantasy oriented, but its human struggle, and the battle between good and evil makes it a compelling drama.

Viewers of the first season of Heroes know fully well that this is a show all about build-up, where many episodes are used to introduce characters, what they can do, and just how they will be important in the larger scheme of things. One episode always flows right into another one, and it seems like you are always being left on a cliff-hanger in order to peak (and keep) the interest level quite high. It works very well for the show, and lends itself even better to this DVD format where you can watch one episode after another. The only problem will be trying to it away after you have started watching one of them, and it could become an addictive DVD set to own. With the 7-DVD set you also get the original (and uncut) pilot episode that was not shown on NBC, as well as many additional behind the scene showcases, a couple of quite interesting featurettes, and many deleted scenes. The 23-episodes make the purchase well worth it, but the added bonuses could really make this a great gift for fans of the show. With a show arc that may remind many viewers of the X-Men, this fantastic show is a DVD set worth having in the collection.



Quick List of Cast Members:

Hayden Panettiere as Claire Bennet
Masi Oka as Hiro Nakamura
Sandhil Ramamurthy as Mohinder Suresh
Milo Ventimiglia as Peter Petrelli
Adrian Pasdar as Nathan Petrelli
Ali Larter as Niki Sanders
Greg Grunberg as Matt Parkman
Jack Coleman as Noah Bennet
James Kyson Lee as Ando Masahashi
Zachary Quinto as Sylar
Noah Gray-Cabey as Micah Sanders





Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD