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Parasite Episode Review

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  • Parasite Episode Review

    After an HRG-heavy episode last time, you’d think I’d be ready for some other storylines, but I was desperate to know what happened to him after the bridge! Jack does a great job acting completely wiped and fatherly-desperate to find his little girl. And the line “…took her out of a basinet, put her in your arms and told you to take her home—and that’s after you said no thank you,” was fantastic. What a great way to put his whole outlook on Claire into unemotional perspective. Poor HRG. Also chilling: the way HRG’s love for his daughter is referred to as an “indulgence”.

    Do you suppose the they had planned all along to have Nathan be a good guy in this whole mess and be an FBI informant? Or was he just coming off way too jackass-y, so they wrote in a redeeming quality for him? Still, interesting twist I did not see coming. Speaking of not seeing things, I loved how Peter appeared in Nathan’s office after the agents left. And I’m glad Nathan expressed a little concern about his blood-stained brother before unemotionally plotting how he was going to fix things. But I was definitely concerned about Nathan’s trip to Vegas this time. Jessica’s waiting there to kill you, dude! Stay away!

    Sylar and Mohinder! Back in New York, up to no good, as usual. :-) I love how painfully interested Sylar becomes the closer he gets to the complete list. And personally, I was freaking out. Don’t let him anywhere near your computer, Mohinder! This scene extends in bits and pieces over the course of this episode and well into the next one, too, and I swear it gets better with each minute. I love Zachary’s calming of Mohinder by offering to call Isaac, and the following Bad Guy Monologuing. I never would have guessed Mohinder could be smooth enough to slip something into Sylar’s drink without him noticing, though. He’s got super-hearing, and he’s evil, which as we all know, gives you a bit of an edge on any Good Guy. Other nice details: the way Zachary clears his throat as he drinks the chai, and the way the camera looks down on him and loses focus as he falls to the floor.

    It’s tough to sneak another line in as my favorite in this episode when it has to compete with the entirety of the Sylar-Mohinder scenes, but I think Masi and Adrian steal the top spot with “Hiro.” “Mr. Petrelli? Frying mah—!“ “Sh. Not here.” “Sorry.” Especially when paired with Masi’s follow-up turn and Adrian’s face as he leans back to avoid Hiro’s poster tube. Nice reference: “I think you’ve been around long enough to know what happens when Mr. Linderman doesn’t get something he’s expecting. Or do I have to paint you a picture?”

    Nice to see Jessica back, and I love her fake-innocent look with one finger in her mouth when DL confronts her about Nathan’s picture: “Did you think I wouldn’t find out?” “Bout what?” And thank God Leonard gave us that final look as he walks away from Jessica. I was beginning to think he was a total chump.

    And we’re back to Mohinder’s apartment. With an IV of curare (learn something new today: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curare) in his arm, Sylar suddenly looks beatable. Vulnerable. And at the same time, the look on his face as he quickly assesses his options and snipes right back at Mohinder keeps him scary. This guy is willing to say and try anything to manipulate people and get his way. Now, considering how much I’ve raved so far about these scenes, you’d think I wouldn’t be able to find fault with them, but yes, as it turns out, I can. I have a major problem with Sendhil’s delivery of his lines while torturing Sylar with the tuning fork. It’s silly, it’s forced, it’s bordering on goofy. Zachary does a great job looking like his eyes are about to start bleeding with the pain, and I even believe his gasped “Sylar!” as he finally cracks, but Sendhil fell really, really flat for me here. His eyes are bored, there’s no real anger or desperation in his voice, and he doesn’t seem to commit.

    As soon as the tuning fork segment ends, though, both actors do wonderfully. Sendhil finally looks pissed and heartbroken over his father as he first points the gun at Sylar, and Sylar’s true creepiness slides back over Zachary full-force after his past few episodes as Sylar-as-Zane. And I really want to know more of the backstory between Sylar and Chandra Suresh. I know they made up after Sylar demonstrated an ability, but what really led Sylar to kill him? And once again, let me just say how much I love the way Zachary delivers long stretches of dialogue. If his lines were food, they’d sound delicious. I love the continuing drugged feel the out-of-focus camera gives the scene, and my favorite part of this sequence is Sylar’s challenging lean into the muzzle of Mohinder’s gun and the release of energy you see in his face as the gun is withdrawn and Mohinder backs down. (You can tell Zachary was really into that lean, too—check out the pressure mark the muzzle leaves on his forehead!) And one last comment about this slice of the episode: Mohinder’s “and it’s going to hurt” is another reason Mylar has such a strong foothold. It’s not just creepy intimacy from Sylar’s end, Mohinder’s on board too. Huh. They can’t possibly be doing this on purpose, can they?

    It’s interesting to watch the different attempts and positions Sylar takes trying to appeal to Mohinder. My favorite is his evolution from victim asking for salvation to complete meltdown: “Give me that damn list so I can sink my teeth in!” I think he even manages a tear at that point. And the chilling part is his calm, collected follow up, like he’s flipped the Crazy Switch off in his head: “I’m a natural progression of the species.” Mohinder’s shocked expression after firing the gun is perfect—is he just surprised that he actually fired? The vantage point behind Sylar’s head as the shot rings out is perfect, too, we the audience can’t see a thing. The floating bullet was lovely, as is Sylar’s creepy, victorious monologue as he stands up and starts after Mohinder. And kudos to Sendhil: he does a great job at the close of this scene looking like he’s completely petrified. Having Sylar pissed off and out for blood must be like realizing you’re trapped in a cage with a poisonous snake. Death will not come fast, and it’ll be painful in the meantime.

    Peter’s interruption of Sylar’s torture of Mohinder is fantastic. I like Milo’s reaction to the dripping blood, I like Mohinder’s desperate, choked “Sylar!” and I love the way Sylar flings Peter to the wall and inspects him like an interesting bug. And bringing back the this-is-a-show-all-about-ceilings comment, it’s such an interesting choice to have Mohinder pinned to the ceiling of his apartment. Very nice, very twisted. As far as the climax of the episode, I for one was freaking out over Sylar slicing through Peter’s head. Also, as I’ve said before, Milo has a great scream. Not girly, not silly, not fake, just really good. This was one of those episodes that ended on such a crazy note that I didn’t even realize the hour was up, and when it cut to black and the credits started, I looked around wildly like I’d missed something. “What?? What happens next? You’re kidding me!!”

    Bits and Pieces:

    * I love that the “previously on Heroes” was done in Japanese for this episode.
    * I know people talk about a smoking gun, but do they generally smoke that much?
    * Oh my heart breaks for Isaac as Peter runs out the door and leaves him alone with Simone’s body. Santiago is really wonderful in this episode.
    * Poor Matt, strapped to a chair and forced to listen in on HRGs thoughts. But I loved the little hair-tousle Candace gives his head as she walks away.
    * I love that Sandra’s cell phone ring is a bunch of ridiculous barking dogs.
    * Great Sandra line: “Don’t worry. I know how to play dumb.”
    * Wow, Candace recognizes Puccini?
    * Claire bothers me like crazy in this episode. No wonderful, heartbreaking Weepy Blonde Moments of the Week, just a whiny, petulant child.
    * I love the reveal of Candace’s power as she morphs from Simone. Very cool special effect. Followed by a great line: “Maybe you should have thought of that before you shot her. Twice.”
    * I love Linderman’s collection in his vault. Amazing! And again, I love how many details are placed nonchalantly in the background and not harped on. Kudos for being humble about your amazing forethought and continuity, guys.
    * Anyone else hear a similarity between “there are so few dead sea fragments left in the world... it would be a pity if you crushed this one” and “there is a shortage of perfect breasts in the world… it would be a pity to damage yours”?
    * Okay, so I’m glad Ando came back long enough to save Hiro’s butt, but he can leave again now.
    * Fantastic badass delivery on Ali’s part when she breaks in on the agents and kills them. Great line: “Don’t run surveillance on a man from inside his own hotel. It’s really tacky.”
    * Poor Isaac, staring at his own personally foreseen death.
    * I was so excited to see Hiro jump into the future!
    * Glad for the reveal of Angela as the puppeteer behind The Haitian. Now I want to know their backstory!
    * Love the casting of Linderman! Creepy, creepy guy, that Malcolm McDowell. Even if he is making pot pies and bringing plants back to life. This was a long scene, but it totally kept my attention. Kudos to both actors: you guys don’t move, there’s no-one else in the shot, and there’s very little in the background and yet it’s not a boring couple minutes.

    Thanks for reading, guys, and check out my website for more reviews!
    http://th*****engaitbridge.blogspot.com
    Til next time,
    GG
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