I must say, I was really curious just how Heroes was going to rebound after last week’s rock solid episode.  Well, after one of the coolest teases the series has ever given us, this fourth season of the sci-fi drama has presented us with yet another good hour.

This episode, ‘Hysterical Blindness’, features our new group of carnival performers and their leader as they try to cope with an important promise.  We also get Claire and Gretchen rushing a sorority, and there’s a new, very interesting, twist in the story surrounding our favorite cheerleader.  Sylar is having a rough day, as he is held in police custody with no memory, and finally, we get yet another cool story with Peter and our newest hero, Emma.

This episode really has taken the most interesting parts of this season so far, and created quite the gripping hour of TV.  The storytelling here is very good, and both new and old characters are growing by leaps and bounds.

-BEWARE: SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT DON’T CONTINUE IF YOUR DVR HAS THIS EPISODE!-

If you recall, at the end of last week’s Heroes, Nathan was driven out to the middle of nowhere, where he was ultimately executed and buried on orders from his mother’s best friend.  After the assassin left the scene of the crime, the fresh dirt covering the flying senator was pushed aside, and Sylar emerged from the ground.  We pick up right where we left off, with Sylar bringing himself to his feet, and stumbling down the road, full of dirt and blood.  As this is quite the suspicious scene, he is questioned by a police officer, played by Ernie Hudson, and when his condition is discovered, he is immediately put in handcuffs and brought into the station.  Everyone is concerned, as this man looks as if he has just been through hell and high water, but he has no idea who he is or what is going on.  An ambitious psychiatrist sets out to help him, and begins to form a bond with this man without an identity.  As their sessions continue, it seems the only thing Sylar knows is details about his new doctor’s watch.  Things get complicated when his fingerprints name him as Gabriel Gray , wanted for killing his own mother.  When the overzealous police officer begins to try to extract a confession from him, Sylar instinctively uses his powers to hurl him through a window and escapes.  Very confused, and not believing that he is who everyone says, Sylar takes his doctor hostage and gets away in her car.  As the police stop them, Sylar decides not to hurt the good doctor and runs off in the woods.

This Sylar plot was one of the more interesting aspects of this season of Heroes.  The fact that Nathan was shot while trying to uncover details about his past is a very cool twist, and it’s a curious plot point that Nathan seems gone, with a mindless Sylar left behind.  With Sylar’s mind still trapped in Matt Parkman, it’s going to be interesting to see if Sylar makes it back to his old self.

Elsewhere, Claire is having a fun time eating breakfast with her new roommate Gretchen.  Her longtime fantasy of having a normal life is starting to look achievable.  As the two are enjoying their meal, they are interrupted by a hyper sorority girl, who wants the two to pledge.  This sorority girl, Becky Taylor (Tessa Thompson, Veronica Mars) reminds Claire that her mother was a sister and her status as a legacy would excite the other girls.  Claire convinces Gretchen to come with her, and the two seem to have a fun time.  At a speed dating icebreaker, Claire is unsettled when it seems that all Gretchen talks to others about is her.  Claire begins to grow suspicious of her new roommate, as Gretchen starts to wear her cloths without asking.  Then, when a book falls off of the shelf, Claire notices Gretchen’s computer is full of Claire pics and information on suicide trajectories.  Finding this curious, Claire goes to a party at the sorority house alone.  As she’s making friends with one of the girls, she shoves her out of the way, just as a flagpole nearly impales her.  It seems that Gretchen tried to kill Claire’s would be friend, and Claire really freaks out.  As Claire confronts Gretchen with her suspicions, Gretchen is embarrassed to admit to Claire that she isn’t crazy; she just has a crush on her and kisses her.  After this shocking moment, it turns out that both girls are invited to join the sorority.

We finally get a Claire plot that’s fun to watch.  After the dull Claire centered stories that this season has brought, this episode was full of fun, mystery, and suspense.  It really seems like Gretchen is out of her mind, but when she admits her attraction to Claire, everything kind of makes sense.

While this is going on, Peter’s mind is still racing after his encounter with Sullivan.  Their discussion of family and brotherhood is still fresh in his mind.  As it appears that the compass tattoo Sullivan left Peter with is gone, Peter finds himself reaching out to his family.  After a small get together with his mother, where the two discussed the importance of family, Peter finds it odd that Nathan has not returned any of his calls.  Assuming he is just busy, Peter leaves his mother and heads to work.  At the hospital, Emma is doing her job in the filing room, when her doctor arrives to discuss the colors she’s been seeing with her.  It turns out that that Emma’s doctor is her mother, who wants her to leave the file room and resume her former post as a doctor.  Emma is offended by this and goes for a walk.  On the street, Emma is still mesmerized with the colors she is seeing from sound.  Completely fascinated by this, she steps into the street without paying attention and is nearly hit by a bus.  Peter sweeps in at the last minute and saves her.  As the two part ways, Peter has unknowingly picked up Emma’s power and is no longer fast.  As the two meet up in the hospital, they share a beautiful moment in a music room, as they experience a awe-inspiring show of lights and colors from a piano.  Peter then explains to Emma all about people with abilities and she thinks he’s crazy at first.  Emma goes home and reflects on recent events while playing her cello.  The more emotional she gets, the harder she plays, and eventually the lights and colors crack the wall of her apartment.  While Emma is breaking her home, Peter is returning to his, where Hiro appears before him.  Peter seems happy to see him, and Hiro collapses onto Peter’s floor.

Once again, this Emma story is one of the most interesting moments of the episode.  Actress Deanne Bray is a perfect fit in this world, and her character is a wonderfully imaginative twist to this series.  Her scenes with Peter are some of the best moments ever featured on Heroes.  Also, the fact that Peter and Emma first bond while watching a children’s choir sing the theme to Greatest American Hero, just proves that the writers are having fun again with this series.  Also, it was interesting to see just what the power is, that it is more than just a light show, it can be used to manipulate objects.

Finally, we get an informative plot revolving around Sullivan and his family of carnival workers.  We start out with everyone sitting down for breakfast.  As everyone looks to Sullivan for leadership, he promises this group that by the time the day ends, there will be a new member of their family.  As the day continues, Sullivan begins to speak to his tattooed psychic and she has no information to give to him.  He starts to feel that his promise will not come through, and his leadership skills will be questioned by his followers.  Then, as he is going through all the characters he’s interested in bringing into his family, he goes through Peter and Hiro, who both have been influenced by Sullivan in one way or another.  Sullivan than talks to someone named Rebecca, who appears out of nowhere.  Claire’s new sorority sister is apparently an invisible girl, who refers to the carnival leader as Uncle Samuel.  We then find out that Sullivan has been instructing Becky to drive Claire away from her new life.  We then see a sequence of scenes of invisible Becky killing Claire’s first roommate and leaving her suicide note.  She also pushed the book off of the shelf that first made Claire suspicious of Gretchen, as well as knocking down the flag that almost killed Claire’s new friend as well as making Claire believe Gretchen is a nutcase.  All of a sudden, Sullivan seems to feel that something is about to happen, and tells his group to prepare to leave.

Elsewhere, Sylar continues his flight from the police, and he is about to be captured.  As he runs through the wilderness, Sylar notices bright lights and heads towards them, just to find Sullivan waiting for him outside the carnival.  Sullivan welcomes Sylar in and tells him that he’s “home”.  As the police near the scene, the lights fade, and when they come out of the forest, the carnival has vanished.

The ongoing plot featuring Sullivan and the carnival workers is really beginning to work.  The revelation that Becky is one of them, and has been manipulating Claire this entire time, was an awesome twist that really pulls together loose strings left around for the past few episodes.  It was also really cool to see another Veronica Mars vet join the cast.  It will also be interesting to see Sylar interact with this family of carnival workers with his lack of memory.

I have to say, this season of Heroes is slowly becoming it’s strongest.  We’ll have to wait and see if it turns out as good as season 1, but so far, I’m impressed.  ‘Hysterical Blindness’ turned out to be one of the strongest episodes, and after last week’s great hour, it seems that this show is back on track.

Hysterical Blindness: 8/10

- Krycek