October 10, 2006 - Having established a world where ordinary people are realizing they possess extraordinary powers, Heroes can now settle in and begin telling the story of these evolutionary wonders. With its third episode, we learn more about each of these characters and begin to see how some of their paths may soon begin to cross. The show is doing a fine job of rolling out just enough information to keep the audience coming back for more.

Most of the character development in this episode comes from our heroes' interactions with the people in their lives. We're witness to the relationship issues Matt Parkman is having with his wife, which emphasizes the struggle he's having with being an unsuccessful beat cop while her career takes off. Knowing this about the character makes his power, the ability to hear people's thoughts, more meaningful as his gift can actually help him become the crime-solving detective he has so far failed to become. Niki's background is also developed further through interaction with her mother-in-law. We learn that her husband, D.L., was convicted of murdering a fellow gang member and is currently in hiding after escaping from prison. But clues laid out in the episode hint to Niki being more involved in the gang member's death than she may realize.

More is also revealed about the mysterious Patient Zero-- the man named Sylar. Mohinder is able to locate Sylar's apartment in Brooklyn where he discovers a map similar to the tracking map Mohinder's father had put together, only Sylar's contains more names and locations of people who may possess a power-- including congressional candidate Nathan Petrelli. But the biggest surprise comes when Sylar surfaces to attack Molly Walker, the little girl rescued by Matt Parkman in last week's episode.

It was a bit of a let down to actually see Sylar so soon in the run of the series. Not that he was fully revealed-- his character remained in the shadows during the short scene he was in-- but it seems like the sort of thing that could have been built up for a much bigger reveal later in the series. However, having seen the silhouette of this character, there's much to consider. His size was a bit disappointing at first. As the show's current number one bad guy, responsible for numerous deaths and missing brains, it was easy to imagine a towering, intimidating creature. Regardless of size, his presence in this episode (including being unharmed after numerous gunshots) has only helped make the character a more intriguing mystery.

Aside from character and story, a fun sort of "Where's Waldo" game has surfaced within these first episodes of Heroes. There is a symbol-- sort of an "S" with two lines pointing right on the top half and one pointing left on the bottom half-- that's been turning up in all sorts of places. The shape has been seen in several of Isaac's paintings, doodled on one of Claire's textbooks and within the graphic of numbers scrolling along Mohinder's computer screen. It is also worn as a necklace by the bald black man in the bar where Parkman loses consciousness. The symbol must play a big role in the mythology of these characters as it's also prominently displayed on the cover of Chandra Suresh's book, "Activating Evolution." At the moment, it is gasp inducing whenever you catch it on screen. We only hope the writers can give us a satisfying explanation.

With so much occurring in this episode, it's a good sign that nothing is boring or uninteresting. Hiro continues to shine as the lone individual who is fully embracing his superpowers. And if they continue to deliver these surprise endings-- this week Claire wakes up mid-autopsy, ribs exposed-- Heroes will always leave you wanting more.