Heroes Reborn: “11:53 to Odessa” Roundtable Discussion

On this week’s episode of Heroes Reborn, the destinies of Noah (Jack Coleman) and Luke (Zachary Levi) finally intersect as Malina unleashes her true power to save those around her. Tommy (Robbie Kay) may need to join forces with his enemy, Erica Kravid (Rya Khilstedt), to complete his mission. Meanwhile, Carlos confronts his violent past while under the watchful eyes of Matt Parkman (guest star Greg Grunberg). Elsewhere, Ren (guest star Toru Uchikado) is tasked with the impossible mission of finding Miko (Kiki Sukezane).

Join Liz, Rueben, Cay and Mel around the table to discuss “11:53 to Odessa”.

Discussion

1. Who do you think took Noah, Tommy or Hiro?

Melissa: I’m torn between the two options. On the one hand, it’s set up like it’s Tommy so I feel like that’s a red herring. On the other hand, Masi Oka said his contract was only for three episodes, and we’ve already seen him in three episodes, so how can it be him?

Rueben: Well I think it was Hiro who got Noah out of that avalanche of cars as for the rest, I’m not sure.

Liz: It was probably Tommy, and since he can time travel I’m thinking he needs him for something.

Cay: My first thought was Tommy, but it could be either…or neither.

2. Were you surprised to see that there was a real Miko?

Melissa: No, I figured there was a real Miko somewhere, or at least that there had been a real Miko. Somehow her being hooked to a machine in the future and used as leverage to get her father to work for Erica makes perfect sense. How weird is this show?!?

Rueben: No, I figured there had to be a real Miko somewhere, but I didn’t expect her to be plugged in and alive in that very distant future.

Liz: I guess I wasn’t paying attention because I didn’t even think about the fact that Otomo created Miko based on a real daughter. If we actually had time with them, I’d probably be touched by the attempt at the emotional connection.

Cay: The whole future story line was harder for me to follow, I think my attention wandered at times so I may have missed critical pieces. But, I guess it wasn’t that surprising, because when characters have already been shown to exist in various places in time as well as in and out of video games (Hiro), you have to expect the unexpected

3. Were you expecting to see that Matt’s name was excluded from Erica’s list?

Melissa: I hadn’t thought about it. In fact, I had to go back and watch that bit again because I didn’t remember it. Unfortunately that’s the case for a lot of the show now – it’s not holding my attention or sticking with me for long. The novelty has worn off (again) and now it’s just a bunch of confusing storylines with no emotional pull to keep me interested. The big “cliffhanger” until January? Meh. Why should I care? Just go back in time and fix things. Oh, wait, that’s what the previews showed. So why should I care about what’s happening in this timeline? I’m getting frustrated, ladies.

Rueben: Yes, I figured he would simply be a casualty of Erica’s plan and he would find out too late that he was being duped.

Liz: I was hoping he’d not find his name on that list and then turn on Erica and help release Micah. But that would have been too easy.

Cay: I’m not entirely clear what Matt’s role is in the grand scheme of things.

4. It looks like Quentin is beginning to have second thoughts about Erica’s plan. Do you think this could play an important part in what’s coming up?

Melissa: Hopefully AU!Quentin gets a clue and starts working against Erica soon. I can see him acting on his misgivings about Phoebe and how she’s using her powers to neutralize her so the other Evos can do whatever they need to do to save the world.

Rueben: It very well could depending on how much change will take place if Tommy does anything about the past to change the future.

Liz: If Quentin switches sides, he will end up dead by his sister’s hand, just like before. I think his ending does not change. But he may be of use before that happens, so we’ll see.

Cay: I can only hope he redeems himself as I’m still upset that he turned out to be in cahoots with Erica in the first place. I really want to like the guy!

5. What was your specific highlight of the episode?

Melissa: The Noah-Malina relationship was a highlight for me. I hope Noah gets a chance to know his grandson, too, and vice versa.

Rueben: It was brief, but I did like seeing Micah again; but I also liked that Luke told Noah the truth about who he was with his wife, nearly taking his life and that Malina saved him. Oh, and that moment where Carlos finally stepped up was good too.

Liz: I think I had more of an OMG moment when Erica said she tried stealing Tommy’s power and it didn’t work. Why? I must know!

Cay: I liked Luke trying to explain himself to Noah. Not that it was that awesome a scene in general, but mostly because I still have a hard time seeing Zac Levi and remembering that his character killed so many people at the beginning. It’s much better for my comfort level that he’s seen the error [understatement!] of his ways and wants to help the world now. I think that is the kind of guy his character was before the attack in Odessa.

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