Heroes

Last night I saw the premiere of the new NBC series, Heroes. So. Good. I really enjoyed it. The series is about a group of people entering the next stage of evolution (how very X-Men light). There's a guy who can fly, one who can bend the time/space continuum and teleport, an artist who reflects future events in his painting; a woman whose mirror image can take control of her body for brief periods of time; and an indestructible cheerleader who, in the first episode, jumps off an 80-foot beam, runs through fire, and, on purpose, sticks her hand in the garbage disposal, only to emerge unscathed.

Each character is just beginning to realize something about him/herself isn't quite right, and they seem to have an instinctive idea as to what it is that makes them different. It's like watching a bunch of different origin stories all in one show. I tend to enjoy superhero origin stories, so this was just kind of fun. I especially liked the guy who can bend space/time. He's so genuinely delighted with his new-found skill. It's very charming!

They unabashedly embraced the comic-bookiness of the concept and they even managed to surprise me in one segment. The concept is so unbelievably cheesy, but they're really making it work. I hope the show has some staying power, because the story intrigues me. Previews for next week's episode have one of the characters finding a comic book that appears to feature himself as the main character having the adventures he had in the first episode of the series. I'm actually looking forward to next Monday night. How very strange. :)

Anyway, I recommend. NBC is airing an encore of the premiere tonight