Episode Report Card DeAnn Welker: C | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT They Got Carnivale in Our Heroes
By DeAnn Welker | Season 4 | Episode 1 | Aired on 09.21.2009
Washington, D.C., skyline as we hear Angela Petrelli talking on a phone about how "all four" were Danko's men. She says these are revenge killings, and we both know it's Tracy Strauss. We see Bennet's on the other end of that call, in a crusty D.C. apartment. Bennet thinks he'll be on her list soon enough, and Angela adds, "Or Nathan," which is why she needs Noah to put his personal problems aside and take care of this. She says Nathan tattled that Bennet's not taking his phone calls, and he's like, "You mean Sylar?" He says it was a hasty decision he made to be nice to a grieving mother, but he regrets it now. Angela says there was no other choice, and then reminds us what happened at the end of last season (though she doesn't explain how it makes sense that Matt could make someone bad think they're someone relatively nicer all along, but then again ... this is Heroes). Bennet says he can't look at Nathan knowing who he really is. Angela tells him that's fine, but he needs to get the company up and running, since he's supposed to be the man with the plan. He says he's not that guy now that he lost his family, and he's already late to Claire's first day of school.
Bennet hangs up and gets in his car, which won't start and then fills up with water. The outside starts to get all icy. He's trapped until someone shoots a hole in one of the windows and water pours out. Bennet opens the door and falls out with the flooding water. He looks up at the gun-wielder, who we can't see, and says, "Danko." Danko steps forward and says he can't figure out how Tracy's doing this, since he watched her shatter into ice. Bennet doesn't think it's weird. He just says, "Ice melts." Danko's here to offer a solution to their mutual problem, which is to kill Tracy before she kills them. Danko also says he's still hunting "these people," even though the government isn't, and he's also heard Bennet's going back into business with the Petrellis. I'm sorry, but how would Danko know that? Unless Sylar's still reporting to him? Which he better not be, or this show is even dumber than I thought (which is saying a lot). Bennet denies it, and says he's changing careers; it's time to start over. Danko says guys like "us" don't start over, and Bennet protests that they're not alike. Danko says that's fine, Bennet's on his own when Tracy comes back for him.
Claire College. She picks up a flier as the slutty teen from Californication stalks her until she catches up and makes fun of cheerleaders. To which Claire manages not to reply, "I'm THE cheerleader, bitch!" Instead, Claire agrees, because she knows from experience. They introduce each other. Slutty teen is Gretchen, and she's from Texas, too, just like Claire. Then she's like, "You're not that Claire Bennet, are you?" Claire wonders how she heard about that, and she says you sort of remember when a cheerleader gets her head sawed off (and you apparently remember who was also nearby, not just said cheerleader?). Gretchen, who I loathe more every second, thinks Claire should have changed her name. Claire says she did that for awhile, but she wants to be herself and she foolishly thought people might forget. Then she excuses herself from this more-awkward-by-the-minute conversation.