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Hiro attends his father's funeral and realizes that he can change what's happened with his special powers. Because messing with the past and the future has worked out so well for him. He goes back to the day of his father's death to see who killed him. Hiro pops out after Angela leaves but before the killer can show up. He tells his father he must leave so he won't die, but Kaito just says he has to accept his fate. Hiro won't accept this, so he takes his father away before his death arrives. Matt realizes that he can not only read minds, he can push at them and get inside them, just like his father. He tries to get to the bottom of Kaito's murder. When his boss tries to stop him from digging any further, Matt pokes into his brain and gets 24 hours to get more info on the case. Matt goes to talk to Angela about his ability and his father's. Matt pushes at her mind to get her to answer his questions truthfully. And she does. She tells him everything about Adam, including that he can heal and that he'll never grow old. She also declares that Adam's the one who's killing the ElderHeroes. Matt tries to find out who an unidentified woman is in the photo, but Angela won't give up the goods on her, no matter how much blood comes out of her nose. Mohinder goes to California with Tobby to nab Claire from Bennet and meets Tobby's daughter, Elle, who has become quite the electric shock sharpshooter. Mohinder also gets a gun and realizes that, with his broken nose, he now has everything required to make the painting become a reality. The Bennets are leaving town, but Claire ain't. She's staying for West. This of course makes Bennet and Claire come to loggerheads with the end result being that Claire announces that she hates her father. Once she leaves the house, West confronts her about her father and doesn't seem to believe that she truly is staying behind for him. He flies away even though Claire's made him a really pretty apology out of rocks. Unfortunately, he flies right over and abducts Bennet as he's walking out of the house. He wants answers about whether Claire really cares about him. Bennet tells him the truth but as soon as they land, Bennet tackles the kid and orders him to tell Claire that leaving is the best thing to do.
Mohinder and Elle lure Bennet to a distant location in a joint effort to get him to give up Claire. The plan backfires when West swoops in and takes out Elle before she can kill Bennet. Mohinder goes to pull his gun on Bennet, emulating the painting, but Bennet easily grabs the gun and turns it on Mohinder and appears to be about to shoot him when West's gasping interference makes him stop. However, when he runs back home to check on his family, he discovers that Tobby has taken his daughter. Thinking on his feet, Bennet has West grab Elle and he keeps her nice and damp so that she can't use her powers while he tries to leverage an exchange with her father. Kick. Ass. Hiro takes his father back to his own mother's funeral to show the heartache he would feel if his father allows his own murder to take place. Back in the past, Hiro runs into his younger self and he realizes that he can't play God. So he takes his father back to the future to meet his death. They say goodbye on the Superroof in a tearful farewell. Hiro time travels out of there seconds before Kensei meets his killer. But he sticks around long enough to stop time and learn the identity of the murderer. And, of course, it's his old hero, Takezo Kensei. West joins forces with Bennet to get Claire out of harm's way. They have a stand-off by the beach with Tobby and Mohinder. Bennet stupidly announces their plan for Claire's escape RIGHT IN FRONT OF ELLE, who's neither deaf nor stupid. The second the girls pass each other and Claire's safely in West's arms, Elle frees herself from her bonds and shoots West and Claire out of the sky. Bennet shoots Elle and she goes down. Tobby goes to his daughter and Bennet goes to shoot him so that they can stop running and that's when Mohinder fulfills the painting prophecy and shoots Bennet in his right eye. But at the very end...Bennet gets some of his own daughter's blood and wakes up in a dirty room with a very heartfelt, "Holy shi--" Holy shit indeed. Want more? The full recap starts right below!
Previously: It was four months ago, and we learned all about how Peter wound up shirtless in a cargo container and what Adam's agenda is and how the Wonderless Twins were annoying and useless even in the past and how Niki ended up hanging out at The Company. All in all, it was basically a flashback episode that could have been filler, but wound up being relatively compelling. But that's probably just because it ended with Shirtless Peter, which is how EVERY episode should end, really.
We open on Camp Bennet, where the whole crew sans Claire is packing up every last item in preparation for their big migration to yet another safe house. Claire trips down the stairs wearing her adorable blue cheerleader outfit and causes a raised eyebrow from her father. "What're you wearing?" he asks. "A pair of yellow rain boots and a donkey's head, retard -- what's it LOOK like I'm wearing?" she should have responded. Instead, she just informs him that it's her cheerleader uniform, and when he's like, "Uh, you won't be needing that where we're going," Claire just tells her father that she's not going with them: she's decided to stay behind with her flyboy Romeo and listen to more crap music on her cell phone. Bennet's all, "You get up there and take that uniform off or I'll--" And Claire's like, "Or you'll WHAT? Wrap me up in plastic and siphon me off to a dank room somewhere so you can experiment on me and erase my memory and make little hash marks on my neck?" And Bennet's all, "Watch your mouth, little girl!" And Claire's all, "Dude, YOU KIDNAPPED MY BOYFRIEND." This elicits a "WTF" look from Mrs. Bennet and a "WTF are you talking about?" comment from Lyle, who I actually totally forgot existed until just this moment. Where the hell has he been? Maybe his superpower is fading into the background until snarky comments are required? Claire continues going off on her father, saying that he's a bad man and that her mother should stop defending him and there's a big old Mexican standoff in the middle of the kitchen/dining room until, finally, Bennet says that all he wants is for them to have a safe and normal existence. Claire says that it's all about him and the things he's done in the past. Bennet spits that if Claire and West hadn't showboated with that cheertator, none of this would be necessary. Good point. But Claire doesn't see it that way: she thinks Bennet's using her boyfriend as an excuse. She thinks that, no matter what she does, due to her father's past, they'll always be running.
Claire goes to leave, but Bennet orders her to not walk out the door. "What're you gonna do?" she sneers at him. "Tie me up?" Okay, that just doesn't sound right. It sounds even worse when Bennet grabs some duct tape and says, "If I have to." This is turning kinky. Mrs. Bennet puts an end to the potential sexploitation drama by telling her husband to put down the damn duct tape already and stop threatening to tie her daughter to a chair; she then orders Claire to go to school and say goodbye to her friends and come back and start packing. Claire just looks at her father: "I hate you." She leaves, and Bennet realizes that they're well on their way to making his Death Painting become a reality.
Japan. The chapter title appears on two headstones in a cemetery. Hiro and Ando are attending his father's funeral. Hiro gets up to speak, but instead of saying something, he decides to walk off to a distant hill and stare at the sky. Ando follows, asking what's up, and Hiro tells him that they don't know who killed his father, and that he can't honor him in the present until he goes back and rights the past.
So Hiro blinks his eyes to go back in time and save his father because, apparently, he learned nothing from fucking with time during the Kensei situation. He winds up on the Superroof a week in the past, and catches the tail end of the scene between Angela and Kaito. He crouches off to the side as they discuss the ElderDeaths and their sons and how Kaito believes they deserve all the suffering they can get for what they've done.
The Biggest Apartment in Brooklyn. Matt's looking at a full picture of the ElderHeroes, who have all been identified via Post-It Notes stuck to the photo -- except for one woman in the top row. Her stickie just has question marks all over it. Matt seems to be frustrated, and rubs his brow ferociously. Molly enters, wishing him a good morning, and telling him that she slept nightmare-free for the first time in months. I don't know what it is about this kid, but she creeps me out. I think it's her gums -- they look like they're taking over her mouth. I mean, I know she can't help that, but it still skeeves me. So, anyway, Matt pours Molly some cereal as she goes over and looks at the photo. She asks what it is, and he tells her that it's a puzzle, and that he has to find the people in it. She offers to find them for him, but he refuses, saying that he asked her to do that once before and he never will again. Matt and Molly sit down to breakfast, and he tells her that he just wants her to be a normal little girl. She says that she's not normal, but he doesn't care -- he wants her to just go to school and eat too much candy and watch too much TV; you know, normal. They hug, and she asks why they can't be their extraordinary selves. Without realizing it, Matt thinks at Molly that she should just do it for him. Molly's eyes open up and she suddenly says, "Okay, I'll do it for you. Back to normal." Matt's like, "Whoa. Wait a second. Did I just make that happen?" He experiments by thinking at Molly that she should come back to the table and finish her cereal, and she turns and walks right back to the table and eats her cereal like a cult member or something. Matt just watches her guiltily.
Costa Verde. Mohinder meets Tobby poolside, and they discuss the plan to nab Claire out of her father's clutches. Tobby mentions that the plan involves taking out Bennet, and Mohinder's like, "I assume you mean KILLING HIM, right?" Tobby insists that it's a euphemism, but Mohinder's not so sure. Tobby recognizes that Mohinder feels a certain loyalty to Bennet, but assures him that he made the right decision in joining up with The Company instead of taking it down as originally intended. Mohinder says that he's not choosing sides; this is about using Claire's blood to cure everyone, and doing the right thing. Tobby says that that's what he digs about Mohinder the most: his moral compass always points true north. This is why he's getting a partner whose moral compass points more toward hell and damnation. They end up at a lounge chair filled with the half-naked body of Elle, and Tobby introduces her as his daughter. Mohinder's like, "Wait -- your daughter's my muscle? She's the executioner?" And Tobby's like, "Well, duh." Needless to say, nurturing father is not a role Tobby is familiar with. Elle twits at Mohinder about his busted-ass nose. Tobby asks whether she's been working on her sharp-shooting; he doesn't want her getting too close to Bennet. "Hey Fight Club," she says, looking at Mohinder. "Get a load of this." She points her finger like a gun at a tasty beverage across the way and pulls the trigger, shooting a spark directly at it that shatters the glass. She turns back to Mohinder and blows the smoke from her fingertip with a smile. Hee.
Meanwhile, in a park across town, Claire's busy building a wall or something with rocks. West shows up dressed all in black and demands to know what her "deal" is, telling her that she can stop pretending, because the jig, she is up. She swears that she's not pretending, and that she really does care about West: "I'm just a cheerleader." West doubts that this is all just one big coincidence, and asks why she didn't just come out and tell him the truth. She claims that she didn't want to lose him, and knew that telling him the truth about her father would force him away. Which, of course, it did. West melts a bit at this, but he turns away. Claire tells him that her family is leaving, but that she's staying because of him. He wants to believe her, but he doesn't. He says that he needs to figure things out, and flies away, which is when we see that Claire wasn't building a wall; she was laying out the word "SORRY" on the grass with rocks, so that West could see it from the air. Aw.
Cut to Matt's police station in New York. He's on the phone, trying to get some cooperation from the FBI. His boss walks up and cuts the conversation short by hanging up the call from the cradle. Matt splutters that he was on hold with the Feds, and the chief wants to know WHY he's trying to talk to the FBI. Matt says that he's trying to get more info on Kaito's murder, but the chief reminds him that Angela Petrelli already confessed to the murder, so the case is closed. Matt says that Angela totally didn't do it; he wants to get to the bottom of the mystery. The chief wants Matt to drop the damn case and move on. Matt whispers that there's something more to the case, and that this group of people were involved in some sort of organization, like back in the '70s. "Like a disco?" the chief deadpans. HAHAHAHA. That's like the best throwaway line I've heard so far this season. Matt pulls out the ElderHeroes picture, and we get a good look at the whole group: Linderman, Monroe, Angela, Kaito, Tobby and Papa Parkman are all in the back row, while Deveaux is seated in the front row. There are also three women and two men I've never seen before, including the unidentified woman in the top row. Matt tries to convince his chief that these people were involved in some sort of research facility, and that he's been there and then he makes the terrible mistake of mentioning that his father was part of the original group. This sets off alarm bells in the chief's skull, and he says that Matt's too personally involved in this situation, and that he has more important work to do. Before the chief can fire his ass, though, Matt remembers what happened with Molly that morning, and thinks at his boss that he should give him twenty-four hours to work the case and talk to Angela Petrelli. The chief just goes, "Tell you what -- give it twenty-four hours. Talk to Angela Petrelli." Matt just smiles and tells him this is an AWESOME idea.
Casa de Bennet. Bennet goes through his old Primatech Paper files and finds a picture of West as a twelve-year-old. He shows it to his wife, and says that West can fly. She asks him point-blank whether he did the things Claire accused him of. Bennet answers by saying that he thought he was doing good, saving the world. Mrs. Bennet is freaked out, and wonders why she's just not getting in the car with the kids and leaving Bennet. He then shows her the Death Paintings, including his own and the one of Mohinder with the gun. She asks him whether he thinks Mohinder is going to shoot him, but Bennet doesn't think so, because he's one of the good guys. Bennet says that West is the reason Claire won't leave town and, since Claire and a boy figure prominently in the background of his Death Painting, he'd at least like to converse with the kid to find out if there's any way to prevent the murder from happening. He takes Mrs. Bennet's hand: "I really need you now." She pulls her hand from his grasp and says she's going to take Lyle to school, leaving her husband alone with his death.
Bennet calls Mohinder and asks if Molly can help them track down West. Mohinder asks if he's okay, and Bennet just spits, "Can you do it or not?" Mohinder, of course, is nowhere near Molly, but he says he can do it, and Bennet thanks him and hangs up. Mohinder enters the hotel room where Elle and Tobby are getting ready for the eventual confrontation with Bennet, and informs them that the man himself just called looking for help finding West. Elle hands Mohinder a harness and preps a large gun for his use. Mohinder thinks that they don't have to kill Bennet to make the plan happen. He wants to isolate him from Claire, get the blood, and be done with it; all without killing anyone; either they do it his way, or he'll spill the whole plan to Bennet right this second and they'll all be screwed. Tobby tries to convince Mohinder that Bennet's a dangerous guy, and mentions the mentor he killed in Ukraine, as Elle just needlessly fondles Mohinder in the background. She's terribly touchy-feely, isn't she? Elle says that if push came to shove, Bennet would kill Mohinder just like he killed the Ukrainian. "No, he wouldn't," trembles Mohinder. "He's adorable!" trills Elle, pushing her hands through Mohinder's hair. "Can I keep him?" Hee. Tobby rolls his eyes at his daughter's behavior, but then agrees to do it Mohinder's way. Nonetheless, Elle gives Mohinder the big-ass gun, and he places it in his holster and looks at himself in the mirror, not liking the reflection he sees.
Back on the Superroof, Hiro's watching the scene unfold between Angela and his father. She leaves, and before his father can be murdered, Hiro runs out and greets him. His father asks where he's been, and Hiro tells him that he was back in Kensei's time. His father wants to hear everything, but Hiro says that they'll have a nice chit-chat later on; right now, Kaito's about to die, so they have to get out of there. Kaito's like, "Yeah, um, about that -- I kind of deserve it. So you should probably just...leave." Hiro refuses to allow this to be his father's fate. "We have the power of gods," says Kaito. "That does not mean we can play God." Hiro thinks his father's just being stubborn, and insists on taking him out of there to avoid his demise. Kaito chastises his son for letting his emotions rule his actions, and Hiro says that Kaito once felt as he does and he can prove it. He puts his hand on his father's shoulder, and they disappear.
Casa de Bennet. Bennet grabs his coat and his keys and a folded piece of paper; he's about to leave when Mrs. Bennet appears and asks where he's going. He says that he can't just wait around and that he needs to do something. He opens the front door, and West swoops down and carts him into the air. As they shoot through the sky, West taunts Bennet by asking whether he remembers him at all. Bennet struggles in his arms, but I'd recommend NOT struggling, there, Noah, if you don't want to, I don't know, plummet to the damn ground. West tells him that he doesn't have superstrength, so there's only so long he can hold onto him; he demands some answers, but when Bennet starts explaining why they took him all those years ago, West tells him that those aren't the answers he's looking for. He wants to know about Claire, whether she was working with Bennet, and whether she ever really cared about him at all. Bennet tells West the truth: Claire lied to her father about West's existence, so he's guessing that West was pretty important to her. They tumble to the ground, and Bennet's up and on top of West faster than you can say "NAMBLA." Bennet gruffs into West's ear that they're taking Claire and leaving town, and that West is going to convince Claire that it's the right thing to do.
Just then, Bennet's phone rings. It's Mohinder, telling him that Molly's located West at the corner of Verbena and Palm. Bennet looks up and sees that they're at the corner of Ocean and 4th, so he knows now that Mohinder's up to something. You know, seeing as he's actually sitting on top of poor West right this minute. Mohinder has no clue about this, so he just continues to lie, telling Bennet that he'd better get to the location quickly, since he's not sure how long West will be there. Bennet says he'll be right there and hangs up. He gets up off West, who asks what's going on. "Claire's in danger," says Bennet. "I need your help." West is like, "Hey, the first thing I do when someone tackles me to the ground is wonder, 'How on earth can I help him?'"
Superheroes Superhigh. Claire's at cheerleading practice when she gets called off the field by her coach, who introduces her to Tobby, saying he's from the board of education and wants to talk to her about the cheertator incident. He asks Claire to walk with him, pretending to care about underage drinking and all that, but what he really wants to do is scare the living bejesus out of Claire by addressing her by her real last name. She runs off the field toward home as Tobby glowers after her.
Over at the corner of Palm and Verbena, Mohinder and Elle are getting to know each other. He asks her whether she's killed many people, and she tells him that's none of his damn business. He gulps down his fear of her and insists on speaking to Bennet before she just jumps out and kills him. She agrees. Bennet pulls up to the corner, and Mohinder throws himself into the back seat. Bennet asks what he's doing there, and Mohinder apologizes for lying to him, but he only has a few minutes to say what he needs to say. Bennet asks whether The Company is forcing Mohinder to do this, but he just says that no one's forcing him to do anything: he's here to ask Bennet to give them Claire because they need her blood. Bennet looks at Mohinder in surprise and says, "You've gone native. Are you kidding me?" Mohinder swears that Claire will be returned to him safe and alive, but Bennet's like, "Yeah, talk to the hand because the head ain't listening." Mohinder continues to plead his case, saying that Claire is important to the work they're doing, and Bennet is like, "Dude, you sound like me ten years ago. Have you listened to NOTHING I've said? These people are NOT who you think they are!" Mohinder just plugs his fingers in his ears and la-la-las that these people are actually AWESOME and Bennet just never gave them a chance and oh my god give us your daughter already, bizzotch! "They are not getting Claire," says Bennet resolutely. "I have to do what I think is right," says Mohinder, pulling out his gun and pointing it at Bennet's face. "Drive. Please."
Claire makes it home and runs around looking for her family, but all she finds is the computer with Bennet's Death Painting on its screen. A hand reaches out to touch her shoulder, and Claire screams and spins around, only to find her mother standing there. Claire tells her all about Tobby, and says they have to get out of there right now. She asks what the Death Painting is all about, and her mother tells her that it's why Bennet's been acting so strange -- he thinks that's actually going to happen. Tobby appears with a gun and says that Isaac Mendez painted that picture, and was a very talented (and accurate) artist before Sylar ripped his brain out. "Good to see you again, Sondra," says Tobby with a smile. Claire looks at her mother: "You know this guy?" "He was the regional manager of Primatech Paper," breathes Mrs. Bennet. Regional managers don't often carry guns, though. Unless they're regional managers at gun shops, that is.
Mohinder and Bennet arrive in an alley somewhere and get out of the car, Mohinder still pointing the gun at Bennet's head. Bennet asks who his partner is, and Mohinder's all, "Derr?" "Company policy," says Bennet smugly. "One of them and one of us. Who's yours?" Just then, Elle comes out from behind a black van. Bennet knowingly says, "Elle." "You know her?" asks Mohinder in surprise. "Oh, yeah," says Bennet with a smile. "Hey you!" greets Elle, walking toward Bennet with sparks grouping in her palms. Bennet's eyes shift subtly upward, and Elle suddenly turns and looks up. West zooms in and tackles Elle into and up and over Bennet's car. They both roll out across the pavement, with Elle out cold. Mohinder points the gun at Bennet, seemingly intending to shoot him, and Bennet gets the vision of Mohinder from the painting with the gun, but it clears as soon as Bennet actually hits Mohinder in his broken nose and grabs the gun out of his hand. He points it at Mohinder's face: "You lie to me, betray me, come after my daughter?" He cocks the hammer as Mohinder holds his hands over his nose. "How'd you think it was gonna end?" Bennet demands. "Mr. Butler, what are you doing?" asks West in the distance. This wakes Bennet from his rage, and he uncocks the gun and steps back. "Nobody's taking my little girl!" he spits, kicking Mohinder in the gut. Damn.
Minutes later, Bennet bursts through the front door of his house in search of his daughter. Instead, all he finds is his wife, duct-taped to a chair. He removes the tape on her mouth, and she tells him that Tobby took Claire. Bennet says that they're getting her back, because he has collateral. West walks in with the unconscious Elle slung over his shoulder. "Hi, Mrs. Butler!" says West cheerfully. "It's good to...uh...see you again!" He carts Elle off into another room as Bennet turns to his wife: "Did you pack Mr. Muggles's doggie bath?" Hee.
The thing we see is a shot of Elle's feet from above, immersed in a tub of water. She's chained to a chair with what appear to be three of Mr. Muggles's leashes. Awesome. Bennet sprays Elle with water from the sink, and she comes to. Her whole body is soaking wet. Bennet replaces the sprayer in the sink and crosses his arms. After a pause, he says, "I need to speak with your father." "What, do you think this is my first day?" she snits, gearing up for some electroshock therapy. Unfortunately, the water acts as a conduit...to her own head. The electricity races through her body. "Stings like a bitch, doesn't it?" snarks Bennet. HA! He says that he knows all about Elle's ability, and that he was there when her father brought her in; she was just a normal little girl back then. Then they started testing her. "The human brain isn't built to take that much electricity," he says. "You poor girl." Elle says that her father would never let that happen to her. "Your father was leading the charge," he says. "I don't remember any of that," says Elle. Hm. Kind of like someone...took those memories away? I have no idea if he's lying right now or not, but whatever he's doing, it's totally working on Elle; she's seriously considering that her father sold her out as a freak to The Company. "Why do you think I never let The Company get their hands on Claire?" he asks her, getting right up in her face. "I didn't want her to become you." He says that he wants to arrange an exchange with Tobby: Elle for Claire. Elle asks what happens if Tobby doesn't want to make a trade. "You'd be surprised with a father will do for his daughter," says Bennet.
Across town, Tobby's attending to Claire's restraints when his phone rings. He thinks it's his daughter, but it's Bennet. "You touch my daughter and I'll kill yours," says Bennet. "And then I'll kill you." He says that they'll be at the Imperial Beach parking lot in two hours, and he expects Tobby and his daughter to be there. He hangs up, and Tobby turns to Claire. "Looks like you and I are going to the beach," he says, pulling on surgical gloves. Claire says that she'll do whatever he wants her to as long he leaves her dad alone. Tobby's not promising anything as long as Bennet has Elle in his clutches. Claire thinks she can talk to her father, reason with him, but Tobby says that Bennet's pretty single-minded once he comes to a decision, which is why they gave Claire to him in the first place. They thought he'd be loyal until the end; which, as it turns out, he has been. Only not to them. Tobby kneels to Claire and ties a rubber strap around her upper arm, getting ready to draw her blood. He tells her that she'd be an asset to the team, what with her regenerative abilities and her superblood and all that. She tells him to take all the damn blood he wants, and just leave her father the hell alone. He sticks a needle in her arm and fills a bag with her blood.
Tokyo. Many a moon ago. Hiro has taken his father to the site of his mother's funeral seventeen years before, so that his father will understand his pain. Kaito acknowledges that it was the saddest time of his life, but that doesn't change anything. Hiro declares that his father simply cannot die! Kaito calls him a foolish boy, and orders him to take him back to the future immediately. Hiro refuses, and runs off, bumping into himself as a little boy. Little Hiro points a fake samurai sword at Big Hiro and says that he's Takezo Kensei. Little Hiro says that his mother died, and asks why his father is painting the grave. Big Hiro says that the names of the husband and wife are carved in the stone, and that the husband paints his name red as a promise to join his wife later. The stone will stay that way until the husband dies. Little Hiro can't believe his father will die, and says that he won't allow it, because he's a superhero. Big Hiro looks over at his father and suddenly realizes that he has been childish himself, and that he has to stop acting like a god. He tells his younger self to listen to his father and learn from his lessons. Past Kaito calls out to his young son, and Little Hiro runs off. Big Hiro walks over to his current father and tells him that he was right. Hiro acknowledges that he was being childish and that he's sorry for that. He will take his father back to his death right after they pay respects to his dead mother. Thank god -- I'm already getting bored with any storyline involving Hiro.
Casa de Bennet. Bennet thanks West for his help, and tells him to head home to his family. West refuses, saying that he wants to stick around and continue to help. Bennet thinks this is a phenomenally bad idea, but West argues that he's the quickest way to get Claire out of danger. Bennet considers this and looks at his wife, finally deciding that West can help and telling him to wait out in the car. "They say girls tend to find boys just like their dads," says Mrs. Bennet. "Because he can fly?" asks Bennet. "No," she says with a smile. "Her real dad -- you. All he cares about is protecting her." They smile at each other, and he gives her his gun, telling her that if anything happens.... She just stops him and says that nothing's going to happen, except that Bennet's going to bring their daughter home. She touches him on the chest, and he takes her hand.
Cut to the Superroof, where Hiro and Kaito reappear to say their goodbyes. Kaito says that he's proud of him and clamps him on the shoulder. They both get tears in their eyes. Hiro says goodbye, and tells his father to give his love to mom. He squints his eyes and disappears. A door slams from behind, and Kaito turns to face his killer. "Of all of them," says Kaito, "I never expected it would be you." The hooded figure in the distance doesn't speak, but we get a close-up of his lips, and I already know who it is before the big reveal because David Anders has very specifically designed lips. Ando appears with the sword Kaito asked for and sees the murderer in the distance. Before he can intervene, Adam launches himself at Kaito, only to freeze in midair before going over the side of the building. Hiro steps forward and walks past his friend. "You were right, Ando," he says. "I can't save him. But I can learn who killed him." He walks to his father and his killer and, of course, sees the face of Takezo Kensei.
Back in the present, Matt pays a visit to Angela in prison. "If you visit me one more time, Detective Parkman," she smiles, "I'll expect you to make an honest woman of me." Heh. I'm no expert, but I think Angela would eat Parkman for breakfast and pick his remains out of her teeth with one of his femurs. Matt sits opposite her and says that he plans on doing just that -- making an honest woman out of her. She wordlessly scoffs at him for attempting to read her mind. "I knew your father when he could do it," she says out loud, "and I'm even less impressed with you." "Those marks on your face," says Matt. "My father made you do that to yourself, didn't he? Did you know him when his mind became something more? When pull became push and he realized he could put a thought into anyone else's head?" Angela's smirk is wiped from her face. "Don't do this," she cautions. Too late. Matt thinks at her, "You are going to answer every question I have, truthfully." He sits down and asks who really killed Kaito. Angela tries to resist, but she has to do what he's told her to, and she finally spits that Adam did it. Matt then asks why they locked Adam up thirty years ago. She says that it was because he was dangerous. Matt asks why and she says it was because he wasn't just regenerative -- he basically stopped growing old. He's become the world's youngest four-hundred-year-old Hero. Angela goes on to say that Adam wants revenge for their locking him up, and that he won't stop until every last ElderHero is dead. "All of you are except you, [Tobby], my dad, and this woman," he says, pointing to Joanna Cassidy in the photo. "Who is this woman?" Angela begs Matt not to do this, but he won't stop. He wants the truth. Angela glares at him: "The truth is that our generation mortgaged our souls to protect yours. Show a little respect for that! Get over your daddy issues and leave us be!" Matt says that all he wants is to leave them the hell alone, but that this woman is out there, and Adam wants her dead, so he has to do what he can to save her. Angela grips the arms of the chair and fights against the compulsion to tell Matt the whole story as he pushes again at her mind. A rivulet of blood slowly drips out of her nostril. "All she wants is to be left alone," says Angela. "I made her a promise. If you take this secret from me, you're not just like your father. You ARE him."
Cut to the beach, where the exchange is pending. West, Bennet, and Elle all stand in front of Bennet's car as Bennet asks West what kind of car he drives. West is like, "Dude, in case you missed it, I don't NEED a car." Bennet's like, "Buddy, I know you can fly -- but when you're not scooting around the skies like Superman, what do you DRIVE?" West says that he drives a piece-of-crap SUV, and Bennet says that he drove a '52 Citroen back in the day. "Oh, those things are awesome," says West, as Elle rolls her eyes so far up into her skull that she can see the waves crashing on the beach behind them. The boys share a bonding moment over cars as Mohinder and Tobby pull up in the black van. As Tobby pulls Claire out, Bennet turns to West and basically lays out the entire plan RIGHT IN FRONT OF ELLE. Dude. She's tied up but she doesn't have soundproof HEADPHONES on! Do you think she can't HEAR you? The plan's not really all that elegant, though; it just involves West grabbing Claire the second she's on their side, and swooping her up up and away no matter what else happens. West agrees. Tobby shouts out that it doesn't have to be this way, but Bennet remains silent. So Tobby unlocks Claire's handcuffs and sends her on her way. She walks forward as Bennet pushes Elle ahead. Her hands are tied, but she doesn't appear to be wet, so I'm not really sure what insurance he has that she's not going to spark up.
Sure enough, just seconds after Claire makes it into her father's arms and he shoves her to West, nodding at him to head for the skies, Elle sparks through her bindings and shoots a few bolts up at the kids. They immediately fall to the ground, Claire cushioning the fall so that she can save West and regenerate herself. Elle gets ready to shoot some more bolts Bennet's way, but he shoots her in the right arm before she can aim. Tobby calls out for his daughter and runs to her. Bennet walks toward them, saying, "No matter what I do, I'll always be running. But if you die, [Tobby]? The Company dies with you." He takes aim as Claire and West come to behind him. Mohinder begs Bennet not to do this, but his mind's made up: Tobby has to die. He cocks the gun and a shot rings out, only...it's come from Mohinder's gun. Bennet's left lens shatters as the bullet goes directly into his eye and he goes down. Claire screams, "Dad!," and runs toward him in slow motion as West tries to stop her from getting there. He pulls her away, embracing her, and in a final tableau, it's clear that after all of Bennet's efforts, he couldn't avoid making the Death Painting come to life. Everyone, including Tobby, looks shattered. West flies off with Claire as Mohinder looks down at what he's just done.
The episode wraps up with West and Claire arriving at her house. She tearfully says that her last words to her father were "I hate you," and now she'll never be able to let him know how much she really loved him. She goes inside to give her mother the news. West watches from a distance as Mrs. Bennet falls to her knees.
Cut to Hiro at his father's funeral. He says that he refuses to eulogize his father, because to do so would be to admit that he is dead. And he's not dead. He lives on in the advice and lessons he gave his son. He taught Hiro right from wrong, and what it means to be a hero. As Hiro continues to talk about his father's lessons...
...we see Mohinder in the back of the van looking down at the gun that killed Bennet. Elle drives the vehicle, her arm bandaged up; Tobby gently tries to touch it as if to say he's sorry, but she shrugs him off, clearly feeling that he's not winning Father of the Year any time soon.
Hiro's speech moves on to how certain things are in God's hands, but for everything else, we have the gift of choice. Matt looks down at the photo of the ElderHeroes, and we see that the mystery woman now has a yellow stickie above her head with the name "Victoria Pratt" written on it. So it would appear that Matt has become his father after all. Hiro says that his father gave him the tools to fight the battles ahead: every hand he extends in kindness is his father's hand, and every blow he strikes for justice is his father's fist. Hiro turns and starts wiping the red painted name of his father off the tombstone, as is the tradition. Mrs. Bennet is plopped on the floor in front of the fridge, her eyes dry of tears. Mr. Muggles runs up and jumps into her lap as Hiro says that as long as Kaito's lessons stay with him, and so long as he lives on in Hiro's heart, his father is never truly dead.
And that's when we see an IV with blood dripping through it. The camera follows the line up the arm of the person it's inserted into and...it's Bennet. His left eye is an empty hole, and his right eye glazed over with a white film. But as the blood travels through his system, his left eye miraculously returns, and the film disappears from the right eye. He comes to life with a gasp and sits up, looking around; he's in a small, dank room that can only be in one place: The Company. "Holy--!"
To be continued.
HA!
on Heroes: The Shanti virus is about to be released in twenty-four hours, and apparently Hiro has an interest in removing Peter's head from his body.