Jamil Scalese" />
Psycho Drive-In logo
Search
  • PDI Press
    Featured
    • BETTY WHITE VS THE STUPID WORLD: The Movie

      Jamil Scalese
      January 17, 2022
      Fiction, PDI Press, PDI Press Writers
    Recent
    • BETTY WHITE VS THE STUPID WORLD: The Movie

      John E. Meredith
      January 17, 2022
    • Betty White Vs the Stupid World (Chapter Seven)

      John E. Meredith
      January 16, 2022
    • Betty White Vs the Stupid World (Chapter Six)

      John E. Meredith
      January 15, 2022
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    Featured
    • X (2022)

      Jamil Scalese
      April 22, 2022
      Movies, Reviews
    Recent
    • X (2022)

      Nate Zoebl
      April 22, 2022
    • Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

      Nate Zoebl
      April 15, 2022
    • The Adam Project (2022)

      Nate Zoebl
      March 16, 2022
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
    Featured
    • Interview with Indie Horror Master, Chris Bickel

      Jamil Scalese
      July 13, 2018
      Interviews
    Recent
    • Interview with Indie Horror Master, Chris Bickel

      The Final Girl
      July 13, 2018
    • David Black: Carnies, Carnage, and the Creative Chaos of Darkness Visible

      Dan Lee
      March 7, 2017
    • Jaiden Kaine joins the Marvel Universe as new Luke Cage baddie, Zip

      Andre Lamar
      September 29, 2016
    • SDCC 2016 Interviews: The Cast and Creators of Batman: The Killing Joke

      Jason Sacks
      July 28, 2016
    • SDCC 2016 Interviews: The Cast and Creators of Syfy’s Van Helsing

      Dave Hearn, Paul Brian McCoy
      July 27, 2016
    • Wondercon Interview: The Cast of Damien

      Gary Richardson, Laura Akers
      April 16, 2016
  • News
    Featured
    • John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum arrives on Digital 8/23 and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand 9/10

      Jamil Scalese
      July 30, 2019
      DVD/Blu-ray, News
    Recent
    • John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum arrives on Digital 8/23 and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand 9/10

      psychodr
      July 30, 2019
    • X-Men: Dark Phoenix arrives on Digital 9/3 and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD 9/17

      Paul Brian McCoy
      July 16, 2019
    • Avengers: Endgame arrives on Digital 7/30 and Blu-ray 8/13

      psychodr
      July 16, 2019
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise
Breaking
  • X (2022)
  • Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)
  • The Adam Project (2022)
  • The Batman (2022)
  • Entropy (2022)
  • Killer Sofa (2019)
  • RSS
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • Who We Be
  • Contact
  • PDI Press
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise
Home
Reviews

Heroes Reborn 1.09 “Sundae, Bloody Sundae”

Jamil Scalese
November 18, 2015
Reviews, TV

Old habits.

I got a few. Some good, most bad. One of them is watching Heroes Reborn. Even in the face of multiple fallacies and far more bad material than good I’m still a “fan.” I just really like superpowers, and to finish what I started.

Coming off two really good episodes I was eager to see if the show would start to trend upward in quality as the season moves downhill toward its finale. My conclusion: Eh.

It’s about the same as it’s ever been: small parcels of ingenuity marred by poor characterization or plot fails. This episode was just OK but if one removes the “Heroes Handicap” it’s below average television. Tim Kring and his team could get away with this stuff eight years ago but the TV landscape has so drastically improved that the audience refuses to accept a subpar product. There are just exists too many successful blueprints for really good television to continuously give Heroes (Reborn) a pass.

HEROES REBORN 1.9 tommy nathan

The episode does a decent job of trying to combine the disparate players. Freshly returned from his trip to June 13th 2014 the immutable HRG swiftly works to find his grandchildren but is unaware that his sidekick from the first half of the season, the comical Quentin Frady, has gone all turncoat due to Noah’s tampering with past events.

While HRG has certainly been the prime focus much of this episode’s concentration moves to his grandson, Nathan, the boy formally known as Tommy Clarke. HRG drops a bucket of context confetti on the young Evo and he pretty much takes it in stride, dutifully accepting his role as apparent world savior.

Meanwhile Joanne Collins, still pursuing her hyperactive revenge kick, tracks down Nathan’s beau, Emily, in Carbondale, Illinois. In an ice cream parlor she holds the young girl and Casper the Penny Man hostage in an attempt to lure out Nathan (I think) but her plan hits a snag when her husband, new Evo Luke, and Malina, Nathan’s secret sister, show up. Nathan himself also arrives to save Emily, but not Penny Man, and manages to unlock the full scope of his time-travel powers, which had formally manifested as teleportation.

NUP_170241_0906.JPG

The scene as a whole is a little wonky, I mean Nathan could have teleported Joanne into a volcano with relative ease but instead he spends a few minutes looking scared because she’s holding a gun. While all this is going on Malina is lurking in the back of the restaurant being as useless as ever. I guess there were no bees or plants around to help save the day.

Nathan returns to the hospital where his foster mom is recovering and finds out that mo’ powers means mo’ problems. Quentin, along with his power dampening sister, the Shadow, betrays Noah and abducts Nathan throwing the grander plan for a loop. The Frady siblings transport Nathan to Erica Kravid’s house where she’s wishes to discuss the incoming end-times over a venison dinner.

We see how that deer got to the plate through two small scenes earlier in the episode, heavy-handed imagery of Kravid shooting then butchering the animal. We literally are shown her capability to prey on an innocent creature and a willingness to her hands dirty to shape things to her vision. Pfft. Subtlety, who needs it?

HEROES REBORN 1.9 renee

Elsewhere, her daughter Taylor changes her hair cut and color (yeah, that’ll shake ’em) and reaches out to the underground resistance group HeroTruther. Shortly, she’s abducted by them and confronted by The Haitian (whose death was apparently reversed by Noah’s time traveling) and it’s disclosed that their leader Micah Sanders is missing and presuming held by Kravid. This smoldering plotline doesn’t seem to be going places, though I’ll reserve judgment until we actually see the grown Micah in the flesh.

The remainder of “Sundae, Bloody Sundae” zeroes in Carlos Gutierrez and his attempt to rescue his nephew, Jose, and friend, Father LaCamara from the mysterious Sunstone Manor. When we last saw the Carlos before the flashback episodes he foolishly drank some serum given to him by corrupt cop/secret Evo Dearing and was passing out. When we revisit them Dearing has not beat the bloody pulp out of Carlos and is willing to work with him since El Vengador has hidden the cop’s money. Dearing is somehow extremely interesting but notoriously dull at the same time. If we could get even one throwaway line about what makes that guy tick it would give tremendous depth to a puddle of a character.

At Sunstone Manor something strange going on with the extremely agreeable residents. After knocking out a guard and impersonating him Carlos finds Jose and the Father but they are not at all interested in leaving. Both El Vengador and Dearing, respectively, are subdued and brought to the “Director.”

HEROES REBORN 1.9 parkman

The following scene demonstrates the dichotomy of Heroes Reborn, how it can go from poor to above average in bat of an eyelash. When Dearing goes in front of the Director we never see his face, but it’s very clear from his abilities, physique, and especially voice, it’s fucking Matt Parkman who is running the place. He “allows” Dearing to choose his own punishment which may or not result in the dude shooting himself in the face.

Next up is Carlos who is subject to the same treatment by the Director. Greg Grunberg plays a shady Parkman well, and as I mentioned last week, it’s a bit jarring seeing one of Heroes definitive good guys go way bad, but I’ve always felt like it’d be extremely likely those powers would corrupt someone fully. I always think of Marvel’s Professor X with this in mind. He’s been repeatedly portrayed as a bleeding heart to the point that he’s emotions and compassion are the only thing from using his mutant powers to achieve his dream of world peace. Without that profound, almost debilitating, altruism he’d be as bad as Mesmero or the Purple Man or Dr. Psycho.

Director Parkman reads Carlos’ mind and puts him through the same ringer as Dearing, transporting the man back to his worst memory. The scene is actually pretty well-crafted, particularly for this show, as the audience moves with Carlos through a trippy, intense and loud warzone. His fear is palpable and even an appearance by the unshakeable Farah Nazan fails to calm him.

HEROES REBORN 1.9 malina creepin

The previous episode ended on the evil Quentin twist that lit the fuse for this week and the finish to this one is an even more volatile stick of dynamite. Without fanfare we are transported nearly 8000 years into the future where we find Miko, the Katana Girl, sitting alone in the middle of a barren yellow landscape. She wanders around the desert a bit before finding what looks like a town in the distance. Wha?!

I do have to give it up for some of the more ambitious ideas Heroes Reborn has offered up this season. Video game characters come to life, Evo serial killers as main characters, time-travel escapades resulting in switched alliances, these are some bold ideas. Still, the landing is not yet stuck, and in fact we haven’t even deployed landing gear yet. Nonetheless, I do have to direct a nod to these big ideas because that element was absolutely lacking from nearly every Volume of Heroes.

I’m hopeful the two or three different storylines start to come together more rapidly and the good ideas eclipse the goofiness. But you know what they say about old habits.

(Visited 73 times, 1 visits today)
Heroes Reborn 1.09 "Sundae, Bloody Sundae"
Jamil's Rating
2.5Overall Score
Reader Rating: (0 Votes)

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Heroes RebornJamil Scalese

Haphazard Stuff’s SPECTRE Thoughts
The Last Witch Hunter (2015)

About The Author

monsterid
Jamil Scalese
Edge Cutter / Shadow Emissary

Jamil Scalese would rather watch reruns of Frasier than catch up on media he's tragically behind on. Follow his weak tweets @jamilscalese

Daily Top Ten

  • Unnatural Selections: Two-Headed Shark Attack (2012)Unnatural Selections: Two-Headed Shark Attack (2012) by Brooke Brewer
  • An Existential Mystical Experience: The Zero Theorem (2013)An Existential Mystical Experience: The Zero Theorem (2013) by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Shakespeare's Macbeth (2010)Shakespeare’s Macbeth (2010) by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Shazzan: The Complete Series DVD SetShazzan: The Complete Series DVD Set by Zack Davisson
  • It Follows (2015)It Follows (2015) by Keith Silva
  • The Return of Julie James: I Still Know What You Did Last SummerThe Return of Julie James: I Still Know What You Did… by The Final Girl
  • If It Ain't Funk He Don't Feel It: Howard the Duck (1986)If It Ain’t Funk He Don’t Feel It:… by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Batman on Film: Batman Returns (1992)Batman on Film: Batman Returns (1992) by Charles Webb
  • Black Mirror 2.02 "White Bear"Black Mirror 2.02 “White Bear” by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Who The Hell Is Stoney Burke and Why Should You CareWho The Hell Is Stoney Burke and Why Should You Care by Don McGregor
400x400 GI Joe Funko Banner

Weekly Top Ten

  • The Final Girl: I Spit on Your Grave (2010)The Final Girl: I Spit on Your Grave (2010) by The Final Girl
  • Women in Horror: I Spit on Your Grave (2010)Women in Horror: I Spit on Your Grave (2010) by The Final Girl
  • Adventure Time 6.06 “Breezy”Adventure Time 6.06 “Breezy” by Dave Hearn
  • Shakespeare's Macbeth (2010)Shakespeare’s Macbeth (2010) by Paul Brian McCoy
  • House of Wax (2005)House of Wax (2005) by The Final Girl
  • Sick Flix: Guinea Pig 2 – Flower of Flesh and Blood (1985)Sick Flix: Guinea Pig 2 – Flower of Flesh and Blood (1985) by Corin Totin
  • Drive-In Saturday: Heavy Metal 2000 (2000)Drive-In Saturday: Heavy Metal 2000 (2000) by Alex Wolfe
  • Unnatural Selections: Two-Headed Shark Attack (2012)Unnatural Selections: Two-Headed Shark Attack (2012) by Brooke Brewer
  • Scream 4: Sidney’s Final KillScream 4: Sidney’s Final Kill by The Final Girl
  • Sick Flix: Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)Sick Flix: Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975) by Corin Totin
400x400 UA Affiliate Banner

FACEBOOK

FACEBOOK

Latest Reviews

  • X (2022)

    Nate Zoebl
    April 22, 2022
  • Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

    Nate Zoebl
    April 15, 2022
  • The Adam Project (2022)

    Nate Zoebl
    March 16, 2022

psychodrivein

Today at https://psychodrivein.com Anything Joes: Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Anything Joes: S01E37 - G.I. Joe #12 / Three Strikes For Snake-Eyes!

It's the start of one of the most iconic Joe stories in it's entire history, and it includes the return of two pivotal characters from the past! Join Greg and Jaren as they venture into Rio Lindo to root out Cobra's next devious plot!
---
Watch Greg and Jaren at the link in our profile!

#AnythingJoes @anythingjoespod #GIJoe #MarvelComics #SnakeEyes
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Lost in Transl Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Lost in Translation 412: Good Omens (2014 BBC Radio Dramatisation)

Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch was first published in 1990 and was a comedy about Revelations and Armageddon.
---
Read more of Scott's article at the link in our profile!

#LostInTranslation #GoodOmens #NeilGaiman #TerryPratchett #BBC #MarkHeap #PeterSerafinowicz #JimNorton #AdamThomasWright #JosieLawrence #Charlotterichie #ColinMorgan #CliveRussell #JuliaDeakin #BBCRadio
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Anything Joes: Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Anything Joes: S01E36 - Lexington Comic & Toy Convention 2022

Greg & Jaren recount their experience meeting Larry Hama at the Lexington Comic & Toy Convention 2022. Plus, the latest news, recent acquisitions, and listener mail!
---
Listen to Greg and Jaren's podcast at the link in our profile!

@anythingjoespod #AnythingJoes #GIJoe #Mezco #LarryHama
Today at https://psychodrivein.com X (2022) Ti W Today at https://psychodrivein.com

X (2022)

Ti West is a director I haven’t fully enjoyed, though I would say X is his most accomplished film to date for me. 
---
Read more of Nate's review at the link in our profile!

#X #TiWest #MiaGoth #Slasher
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Lost in Transl Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Lost in Translation 411: The Secret of Marvel's Success

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been dominating the box office since the release of Iron Man.
---
Read more of Scott's article at the link in our profile!

#LostInTranslation #Marvel #MarvelStudios #MarvelCinematicUniverse #MCU #IronMan #Avengers #MoonKnight #WandaVision #Hawkeye #RobertDowneyJr
Today at https://psychodrivein.com EZMM 2022 Day Today at https://psychodrivein.com

EZMM 2022 Day 9: All of Us Are Dead S1 E7-12

There are enough plot threads left dangling to give us a good launching point for a future second season, but if that doesn’t happen, All of Us Are Dead can stand as a solid one-and-done.
---
Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile!

#EZMM #EZMM2022 #EasterZombieMovieMarathon #EasterZombieMovieMarathon2022 #AllOfUsAreDead #Netflix #LeeJaiKyoo #KimNamSu #ChunSungIl #JooDongGeun #YooInSoo #ChoYiHyun #OhHyeSoo #YoonChanYoung #LeeEunSaem #YangHanYeoi #JinHoEun #HaSeungRi #SonSangYeon #zombies
Today at https://psychodrivein.com EZMM 2022 Day Today at https://psychodrivein.com

EZMM 2022 Day 8: Return of the Living Dead III (1993)

Return of the Living Dead III is, quite simply, one of the best examples of the genre.
---
Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile!

#EZMM #EZMM2022 #EasterZombieMovieMarathon #EasterZombieMovieMarathon2022 #zombies #ReturnOfTheLivingDead3 #BasilWallace #BrianYuzna #JTrevorEdmond #KentMcCord #MelindaClarke #SarahDouglas
Today at https://psychodrivein.com EZMM 2022 Day Today at https://psychodrivein.com

EZMM 2022 Day 7: Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)

While I really didn’t like Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City very much, I want to give it a fair shake.
---
Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile!

#EZMM #EZMM2022 #EasterZombieMovieMarathon #EasterZombieMovieMarathon2022 #ResidentEvil #ResidentEvilWelcomeToRaccoonCity #WelcomeToRaccoonCity #JohannesRoberts #RobbieAmell #HannahJohnKamen #TomHopper #DonalLogue #NealMcDonough #KayaScodelario #AvanJogia #MarinaMazepa
Today at https://psychodrivein.com EZMM 2022 Day Today at https://psychodrivein.com

EZMM 2022 Day 6: Kingdom: Ashin of the North (2021)

Vengeance. That’s what Ashin is doing. That’s what she’s been doing from behind the scenes all along.
---
Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile!

#EZMM #EZMM2022 #EasterZombieMovieMarathon #EasterZombieMovieMarathon2022 #Zombies #TheKingdom #TheKingdomAshinOfTheNorth #AshinOfTheNorth #Ashin #Netflix #JunJiHyun #KimEunHee #KimRoiHa #KimSeongHun #KimShiAh #ParkByungEun
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Latest Columns

  • Anything Joes: S01E37 – G.I. Joe #12 / Three Strikes For Snake-Eyes!

    Greg Engle
    May 11, 2022
  • Lost in Translation 412: Good Omens (2014 BBC Radio Dramatisation)

    Scott Delahunt
    April 29, 2022
  • Anything Joes: S01E36 – Lexington Comic & Toy Convention 2022

    Greg Engle
    April 27, 2022

TWITTER

My Tweets

Look Who's Talking

Oliver Ghingold
Oliver Ghingold - 2/18/2022
Muppet Madness: You’re the Director
Do you still have these tapes? I've been looking everywhere for them! I loved the Interactive Vision...
white swan
white swan - 12/22/2021
The Hills Have Eyes (1977) vs The Hills Have Eyes (2006)
I enjoyed the article though I would never call brutality gorgeous.
Shawn EH
Shawn EH - 10/26/2021
13 Days of Halloween Day 12: Halloween Kills (2021)
Very disappointing, it's true. And very mean-spirited murders of nobodies. And I don't even see how...
RSSTwitterFacebookinstagramtumblr

Archives

Large_rectangle_336X280
All work on this site is Copyright © each individual writer.
  • PDI Press
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise
%d bloggers like this: