Heroes Reborn recap: The Needs of the Many

Where last week’s episode of Heroes Reborn felt like it was standing still, “The Needs of the Many” felt like it was finally moving us forward, albeit not as quickly I would like. The show is still in the process of moving pieces around, but tonight, it didn’t let this necessary plot maneuvering get in the way of compelling drama.

Tonight’s episode title refers to the saying, “the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.” It’s a fitting phrase for a show that’s mainly concerned with saving the world, and this theme touches many of this week’s plot threads. “The Needs of the Many” is all about making our heroes aware of their purpose — saving the world — and getting them to a point where they are ready to accept it. In the end, one of our heroes, realizing there’s a greater good, sacrificed herself to help achieve it.

Carbondale, Ill.

“The Needs of the Many” picks up where last week’s episode left off. No surprise here. Tommy survives the car accident, but his mother is severely injured. He immediately teleports her to a hospital before joining her there soon after. To his pleasant surprise, Emily and Brad show up at the hospital to offer their support. It’s clear Tommy has never had friends like this who care about him, and it further explains why he was so upset at the thought of having to leave them.

When his mother comes out of surgery, the nurse informs him that she needs a transfusion. Unfortunately, the hospital is out of O-negative because there’s a shortage. Tommy offers to have himself tested to see if he’s a match. No surprise, he isn’t. But he’s finally figured out how to use his powers. With Emily in tow, Tommy steals blood from a hospital in Indiana and teleports back.

When he returns, the nurse tells him to run because his blood test was flagged by the government, but it’s too late. He and Emily try to flee, but are stopped by some men in suits with badges.

East Los Angeles, Calif.

Oliver Queen wasn’t the only masked vigilante who got a new costume this week. After seeing his nephew work on a fancy engine in the garage, Carlos is inspired to upgrade his suit to increase his strength and durability. He’s super pleased with himself, but the Priest isn’t impressed and interrogates his motives for putting on the mask. Carlos’ answer: He wants to believe in something bigger than himself. El Vengador is basically Arrow’s Green Arrow or any other costumed crime fighter, so let’s move on.

Carlos also turns the car Jose was working on into his own personal Batmobile (i.e., he adds bulletproof glass and boosts the engine even more). Jose’s excited to take the car out for a spin, but Carlos leaves it in the garage because it’s too dangerous. While Carlos is gone, Jose accidentally stumbles upon his pseudo-Batcave. The Priest arrives looking for Carlos, but finds Jose, who, in his excitement, reveals his Kitty Pryde-like powers. That’s right when Captain Dearing shows up and kidnaps both of them. Yeah, the garage was totally safer.

St. Louis, Mo.

Luke survived last week’s explosion and is trying his hardest to hide his powers from Joanne. But, after she kills an evo on their list without a second thought, it gets too much for him. After repeated attempts to convince her to abandon this crusade and to work on rebuilding their marriage because he still loves her, Luke finally reveals his powers to her. And, Joanne rejects him and walks away. (ASIDE: Their story shouldn’t work, but damnit, when Zachary Levi cries, I cry.)

Tommy, Luke and Jose are all struggling to come to terms with their otherness and are looking for help from the ones around them. Luckily, Tommy has Emily, who readily accepts that he’s different and urges him to also embrace it and become extraordinary. In Jose’s case, he’s excited that his father is El Vengador because it means he’s not alone and there’s someone in his family like him, and he looks so relieved when he’s able to show the Priest his powers. And, Luke spends most of tonight’s episode accepting that he has powers and getting to a place where he’s ready to be open with the person he loves. But, alas, it doesn’t go as planned. Heroes Reborn is seems to be saying that before these three can fulfill their roles in saving the world, they must first become comfortable with themselves.

NEXT: More talk of saving the world

The Arctic Circle

Bless evolution for some answers! Tonight’s episode not only revealed the name of Malina’s invisible friend, Farah, but also shed some light on Malina’s powers. She can control nature or life…or something. It’s not entirely clear, but at least we know she isn’t limited to creating the pretty lights in the sky. We also find out a little bit more about Malina’s background. Farah and a group of people have kept her in hiding since she was little because people (Renautas) have been trying to kill her.

Whatever these two were working in the Arctic is complete, and they start making their way south. Before leaving, Malina sends thousands of butterflies into the sky, evoking unpleasant memories of Under the Dome. (ASIDE: Butterflies almost definitely symbolize evolution and rebirth on this show. END ASIDE). Unlike Tommy and Carlos and Luke, Malina knows her purpose is to save the world. She’s worried she won’t be able to do it, but Farah assures her that she won’t be alone. As they talk, pretty lights fill the sky, and every character on the show gazes up to marvel at them.

Midian, Colo.

Noah and Quentin don’t wait too long to make their move against Renautas’ new technology, E.P.I.C. The day after the launch event, the odd couple stakes out the Renautas’ campus to find a way in. They decide to use Taylor, Erica Kravid’s daughter. Naturally, Taylor refuses to help them. However, Noah quickly picks up on the tension between her and her mother and implies that Erica might not be telling Taylor everything she’s planning. “Believe me, all parents lie to their to protect them from the truth.”

A seed of suspicion is planted in Taylor’s head and she pays her mother a visit. Their conversation confirms Erica’s bigotry — “I’m not mad at you for sleeping around; what upsets me is that you would sleep with one of them” — and reveals how much it is driving her decisions. She tries to hide behind some “Heal the World” nonsense, but eventually she says that she’s trying to save their species. The show is clear that she’ll never succeed because of her hatred of those who are different. (ASIDE: Also, the impending apocalyptic event threatening is definitely global warming, right?)

Meanwhile, Ren and Miko are en route to Colorado. Before their plane takes off, Ren uses his Internet fame asks his millions of followers to meet him in Colorado to help the real-life Katana girl, Miko, retrieve her sword and save her father.

Taylor isn’t convinced by her mother’s impromptu TED Talk and decides to help Noah and Quentin break into Renautas and save Molly Walker. One gun fight exchange with Mr. Harris’ clones later, and they make it to where Renautas is keeping the evos. Noah tries to disconnect Molly from her Matrix-like chair but can’t, and anyway Molly refuses to go with him because she’s tired of being used by people. Molly steals Noah’s gun and kills herself to prevent Erica from ever using her power to kill others. But, before she dies, she pleads with Noah to forget the past and save the future. With Molly dead, Hiro Nakamura is the only one who can tell him what happened on June 13.

Naturally, Erica is furious when she finds out about Molly’s death and Taylor’s role in it. The E.P.I.C. system is mostly down. Lucky for them, before Molly’s death, they detected a power signature in Canada, which they suspect is Malina. Erica sends Harris after her, but this time he isn’t going alone. He’s taking Phoebe, a.k.a The Shadow, a.k.a. Quentin’s sister

“We all have a unique purpose, and try as we might, we cannot run from it. The only question remains: Will we be able to stay true to who we were? Or will we succumb to the pressure of destiny and become something else entirely? Something…inhuman,” narrates Mohinder as the episode closes on a shot of Phoebe, dressed as Sith Lord, playing with a shadow ball.

Ninth Wonders:

• Did no one writing the show or at NBC think ending tonight’s episode on the word “inhuman” was a poor idea? I’m sure this wasn’t the intention, but all I can think about is Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which doesn’t do Heroes Reborn too many favors.
• Mohinder has narrated two episodes, but we still haven’t seen him in the present. Are new viewers confused about who is narrating? More importantly, are there actually any newcomers to Heroes Reborn?
• Does anyone else suspect that Emily might be hiding something?