An Invisible Thread
Encyclopedia
"An Invisible Thread" is the twenty-fifth and final episode of the third season of the NBC
science fiction
drama
series Heroes
and fifty-ninth episode overall. The episode aired on April 27, 2009. It marked the end of the Fugitives volume, as well as its 2008-2009 season run. It ended with a brief introduction to the next volume, entitled Redemption.
is shown to be unaffected after Emile Danko attempted to incapacitate him by stabbing Sylar in the back of the head. Sylar explains that by using his shape-shifting abilities, he has moved the weak spot. Sylar then morphs into Danko and kills an agent, framing Danko for the murder. Sylar morphs into an agent and helps apprehend the furious Danko.
Meanwhile, it is revealed that when Noah Bennet
and his car had been stopped at the roadblock, Claire Bennet
and Angela Petrelli
were not actually in the vehicle. A little while previously, Noah had realized the construction crew roadblock was a set-up, and had Claire and Angela leave the car, resulting in only Noah's capture. From there, Claire and Angela head to the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., where Angela tells Claire to find her father, Nathan Petrelli
. Angela says she has dreamed the future, and leaves to go find Matt Parkman
, explaining Nathan will be in trouble and Matt will be able to save him. Claire meets Nathan in his office, though actually Sylar in disguise, and wishes to accompany him to warn the President about Sylar. Sylar agrees, though he intends to meet the President so he can become him. The two go to meet the President, but are instead directed to a suite to wait for him. Claire notices that Sylar, as Nathan, uses the wrong hand to sign his name at the required sign-in checkpoint and deduces who he really is. Sylar holds her hostage and begins to toy with the possibility of her becoming his First Lady.
Following his nosebleed from the previous episode, Hiro Nakamura
is able to stop time and he and Ando Masahashi
break into Building 26. Hiro and Ando find the prisoners hooked up to the drugs and replace them with members of the Building 26 unit. When Hiro reverts time, he begins to feel dizzy again and starts to bleed from his ear. Also freed from among the prisoners, Mohinder Suresh
informs Hiro that his body is rejecting his power, and stopping time again could result in his death. Also in the building, Danko and Noah are being held in a room, though Hiro had opened the door when he had stopped time. Danko proposes they work together to take down Sylar, intending to use a tranquilizer to subdue him. However, Danko turns to use it on Noah, but Hiro stops time once more to take the tranquilizer from him and injects Danko with it. Hiro reverts time and then collapses, while Noah calls Claire to check up on her. Noah is stunned to hear Sylar answering her cell.
Having followed Nathan, Peter Petrelli
finds the now conscious Nathan, and the two head to find Sylar and Claire. They reach the room where Sylar and Claire are, just as she is thrown out of the room. Nathan and Peter fly in and have a brief duel with Sylar, resulting in Sylar and Nathan flying off. Claire rushes in only to find Peter, who confirms he has taken Sylar's power and they can now stop Sylar. The two head downstairs to meet Noah. Meanwhile, Nathan crash lands into the previous room, followed by Sylar who slits Nathan's throat, killing him. Disguised as Nathan, then as Chief Aid, Sylar is able to meet up with the President. He enters the President's limo and takes the president's extended hand. In doing so, Sylar reverts back to his original form and is injected with the tranquilizer by Peter, who absorbed Sylar's shape-shifting ability to take on the President's appearance.
Angela manages to find Matt stepping off from a bus, who was intending to head to Building 26 to stop the agency. Angela convinces him to come with her, and they head to the room where Nathan was. Angela is thus horrified to find Nathan's body in the room. Noah then brings up the body of the unconscious Sylar, explaining they intend to use Matt to mentally alter Sylar's mind to believe he is Nathan, with Sylar's acquired ability of reading the history of objects enabling him to fill in the gaps of Nathan's life, and fully embody Nathan's personality and gain his memories. Initially Matt is reluctant, but Noah convinces him that Nathan would be the only person that could convince the President to shut down Building 26 or any such future agency. Matt finally agrees and does so, causing Sylar to forget everything about himself and become Nathan, and changes his appearance to look like Nathan. Noah, Angela, and Matt agree to keep Nathan's death a secret. Volume Four ends with Claire, Noah, Angela, Peter, 'Nathan', Mohinder, Matt, Ando, and a recovered Hiro all gathered around the burning corpse of Sylar, though actually the body of the morphed James Martin. The group then proceeds their separate ways, and 'Nathan' confirms the President has indeed shut down Building 26, and the funds transferred so that Angela and Noah can start up their own company which Noah favorably wants to call "The Company".
The title of the episode is not clearly explained but might be a reference to G K Chesterton's 'The Innocence of Father Brown' where Fr Brown, the detective hero of the stories, says, "I caught him, with an unseen hook and an invisible line which is long enough to let him wander to the ends of the world, and still to bring him back with a twitch upon the thread." This might refer to how Sylar is caught at the end of the episode. There is however another explanation to the title, and as the "invisible thread" is mentioned in Mohinders' opening speech at the beginning of the episode.
. She then proceeds to drown the man, and she implies that she has done so to several others. Meanwhile, Angela meets "Nathan" at his office. "Nathan" is bothered by a clock that is ticking in the background and observes that it is running fast by a minute and a half, cryptically revealing that even though Nathan's persona is in control, Sylar's intuitive aptitude still remains intact.
Positive reviews include the Los Angeles Times
which said that the episode was "the best ending so far" and had "edge-of-your-seat anticipation." IGN
said the ending was "quite possibly the coolest twist the series has ever given us."
Entertainment Weekly
s Marc Bernardin praised the twist, as well as Angela's anguish over finding Nathan's body, but blasted the show for not showing the fight between Peter, Nathan, and Sylar.
Negative reviews include the Boston Herald
, which said that Heroes ". . . makes Deal or No Deal
look brilliant." and the New York Post
who called the Sylar/Nathan twist "probably one of the worst decisions Heroes has ever made. And that's saying a lot!"
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
series Heroes
Heroes (TV series)
Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...
and fifty-ninth episode overall. The episode aired on April 27, 2009. It marked the end of the Fugitives volume, as well as its 2008-2009 season run. It ended with a brief introduction to the next volume, entitled Redemption.
Plot
Beginning from where the previous episode ended, SylarSylar
Gabriel Gray, more commonly known by his assumed name of Sylar , is one of the primary antagonists and antiheroes in the NBC drama Heroes. Portrayed by Zachary Quinto, he is a superpowered serial killer who targets other superhumans in order to steal their powers...
is shown to be unaffected after Emile Danko attempted to incapacitate him by stabbing Sylar in the back of the head. Sylar explains that by using his shape-shifting abilities, he has moved the weak spot. Sylar then morphs into Danko and kills an agent, framing Danko for the murder. Sylar morphs into an agent and helps apprehend the furious Danko.
Meanwhile, it is revealed that when Noah Bennet
Noah Bennet
Noah Bennet, also known as the man in horn-rimmed glasses or simply Mr. Bennet, is a fictional character from the NBC drama Heroes played by Jack Coleman. The role was initially recurring, but became regular as of the 11th episode...
and his car had been stopped at the roadblock, Claire Bennet
Claire Bennet
Claire Bennet is a fictional character in the NBC science fiction drama series Heroes. She is portrayed by Hayden Panettiere and first appeared on television in the pilot episode of the series, "Genesis" on September 25, 2006...
and Angela Petrelli
Angela Petrelli
Angela Petrelli , portrayed by Cristine Rose, is a fictional character featured in the television show Heroes. She is the mother of Nathan and Peter Petrelli. The character is based upon the Angela Lansbury character Mrs. Iselin in the film The Manchurian Candidate...
were not actually in the vehicle. A little while previously, Noah had realized the construction crew roadblock was a set-up, and had Claire and Angela leave the car, resulting in only Noah's capture. From there, Claire and Angela head to the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., where Angela tells Claire to find her father, Nathan Petrelli
Nathan Petrelli
Nathan Petrelli, portrayed by Adrian Pasdar, is a fictional character on the NBC science fiction drama series Heroes. He is a New York lawyer-turned-senator with the power of self-propelled flight. Ambitious and pragmatic, Nathan has a decidedly anti-hero streak, which exacerbates his complex...
. Angela says she has dreamed the future, and leaves to go find Matt Parkman
Matt Parkman
Matthew "Matt" Parkman, Sr., is a fictional character of the NBC science fiction serial drama Heroes, played by Greg Grunberg. Matt is a police officer, who works for the LAPD and NYPD in Seasons One and Two respectively...
, explaining Nathan will be in trouble and Matt will be able to save him. Claire meets Nathan in his office, though actually Sylar in disguise, and wishes to accompany him to warn the President about Sylar. Sylar agrees, though he intends to meet the President so he can become him. The two go to meet the President, but are instead directed to a suite to wait for him. Claire notices that Sylar, as Nathan, uses the wrong hand to sign his name at the required sign-in checkpoint and deduces who he really is. Sylar holds her hostage and begins to toy with the possibility of her becoming his First Lady.
Following his nosebleed from the previous episode, Hiro Nakamura
Hiro Nakamura
is a fictional character on the NBC fantasy drama Heroes who possesses the ability of space-time manipulation. This means that Hiro is able to alter the flow of time. Previously, his ability allowed him to teleport, stop time, or travel through time, but recent events in the series have prevented...
is able to stop time and he and Ando Masahashi
Ando Masahashi
is a fictional character on the NBC science fiction television drama series Heroes, portrayed by James Kyson Lee.The character was billed in a recurring role during the first season, and was promoted to series regular in the second...
break into Building 26. Hiro and Ando find the prisoners hooked up to the drugs and replace them with members of the Building 26 unit. When Hiro reverts time, he begins to feel dizzy again and starts to bleed from his ear. Also freed from among the prisoners, Mohinder Suresh
Mohinder Suresh
Mohinder Suresh is a fictional character on the NBC drama Heroes, portrayed by Sendhil Ramamurthy. He is from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India and is a genetics professor at the University of Madras who holds a PhD in parapsychology...
informs Hiro that his body is rejecting his power, and stopping time again could result in his death. Also in the building, Danko and Noah are being held in a room, though Hiro had opened the door when he had stopped time. Danko proposes they work together to take down Sylar, intending to use a tranquilizer to subdue him. However, Danko turns to use it on Noah, but Hiro stops time once more to take the tranquilizer from him and injects Danko with it. Hiro reverts time and then collapses, while Noah calls Claire to check up on her. Noah is stunned to hear Sylar answering her cell.
Having followed Nathan, Peter Petrelli
Peter Petrelli
Peter Petrelli, portrayed by Milo Ventimiglia, is a fictional character on the NBC science fiction drama series Heroes. He is a hospice nurse-turned-paramedic in his mid-20s with the power to absorb and mimic the powers of other people with special abilities, or powers...
finds the now conscious Nathan, and the two head to find Sylar and Claire. They reach the room where Sylar and Claire are, just as she is thrown out of the room. Nathan and Peter fly in and have a brief duel with Sylar, resulting in Sylar and Nathan flying off. Claire rushes in only to find Peter, who confirms he has taken Sylar's power and they can now stop Sylar. The two head downstairs to meet Noah. Meanwhile, Nathan crash lands into the previous room, followed by Sylar who slits Nathan's throat, killing him. Disguised as Nathan, then as Chief Aid, Sylar is able to meet up with the President. He enters the President's limo and takes the president's extended hand. In doing so, Sylar reverts back to his original form and is injected with the tranquilizer by Peter, who absorbed Sylar's shape-shifting ability to take on the President's appearance.
Angela manages to find Matt stepping off from a bus, who was intending to head to Building 26 to stop the agency. Angela convinces him to come with her, and they head to the room where Nathan was. Angela is thus horrified to find Nathan's body in the room. Noah then brings up the body of the unconscious Sylar, explaining they intend to use Matt to mentally alter Sylar's mind to believe he is Nathan, with Sylar's acquired ability of reading the history of objects enabling him to fill in the gaps of Nathan's life, and fully embody Nathan's personality and gain his memories. Initially Matt is reluctant, but Noah convinces him that Nathan would be the only person that could convince the President to shut down Building 26 or any such future agency. Matt finally agrees and does so, causing Sylar to forget everything about himself and become Nathan, and changes his appearance to look like Nathan. Noah, Angela, and Matt agree to keep Nathan's death a secret. Volume Four ends with Claire, Noah, Angela, Peter, 'Nathan', Mohinder, Matt, Ando, and a recovered Hiro all gathered around the burning corpse of Sylar, though actually the body of the morphed James Martin. The group then proceeds their separate ways, and 'Nathan' confirms the President has indeed shut down Building 26, and the funds transferred so that Angela and Noah can start up their own company which Noah favorably wants to call "The Company".
The title of the episode is not clearly explained but might be a reference to G K Chesterton's 'The Innocence of Father Brown' where Fr Brown, the detective hero of the stories, says, "I caught him, with an unseen hook and an invisible line which is long enough to let him wander to the ends of the world, and still to bring him back with a twitch upon the thread." This might refer to how Sylar is caught at the end of the episode. There is however another explanation to the title, and as the "invisible thread" is mentioned in Mohinders' opening speech at the beginning of the episode.
Volume Five: Redemption
Volume Five: Redemption begins six weeks later with a former Building 26 agent arriving home to find his sink flooded. As water spreads on the floor, it solidifies, turning into Tracy StraussTracy Strauss
Tracy Strauss, portrayed by Ali Larter, is a fictional character on the NBC science fiction drama series Heroes. She has the ability to freeze anything that she touches. As the series progresses, her ability evolved to include water mimicry. Introduced in the third season, she is an adviser to the...
. She then proceeds to drown the man, and she implies that she has done so to several others. Meanwhile, Angela meets "Nathan" at his office. "Nathan" is bothered by a clock that is ticking in the background and observes that it is running fast by a minute and a half, cryptically revealing that even though Nathan's persona is in control, Sylar's intuitive aptitude still remains intact.
Ratings
Overnight figures shows that the episode attracted 6.38 million viewers, with an average rating of 3.0 in the 18-34 demographics.Reception
This episode received mixed reviews by critics, especially in regards to the death of Nathan and Sylar's subsequent transformation into him.Positive reviews include the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
which said that the episode was "the best ending so far" and had "edge-of-your-seat anticipation." IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
said the ending was "quite possibly the coolest twist the series has ever given us."
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
s Marc Bernardin praised the twist, as well as Angela's anguish over finding Nathan's body, but blasted the show for not showing the fight between Peter, Nathan, and Sylar.
Negative reviews include the Boston Herald
Boston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
, which said that Heroes ". . . makes Deal or No Deal
Deal or No Deal
Deal or No Deal is the name of several closely related television game shows, the first of which was the Dutch Miljoenenjacht produced by Dutch producer Endemol. It is played with up to 26 cases with certain sums of money...
look brilliant." and the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
who called the Sylar/Nathan twist "probably one of the worst decisions Heroes has ever made. And that's saying a lot!"