What does the Department of Homeland Security, American citizens being rounded up & sent off to detention centers and a politician standing in the pit of a destroyed area of New York City proclaiming lies have to do with
"Heroes"? Follow me after the jump & find out.....
Chapter 20: Five Years Gone begins exactly where the previous episode ended. Hiro & Ando have traveled to New York City of 2012. In this timeline, half the population of New York was killed by "the bomb", with Sylar being responsible for it.
In something akin to the worst nightmare of Marvel's X-Men, the aftermath of the destruction of New York was to unite public opinion against the mutant population. After passage of the Linderman Act, all citizens must submit to genetic testing. Those found to possess the genetic mutation have.....
- Restrictions on breeding.
- Restrictions on movement.
- Been tracked, monitored & confined by the Department of Homeland Security.
All of these measures are done in the name of stopping another Sylar-like attack on the population, even if it overrides rights or splits apart families. In this future, characters of the show are shown to have been changed by the passage of time......
- Hiro Nakamura - Hiro is considered a terrorist by the United States government on the level of Osama Bin Laden. Hiro has been working to change the timeline. The 2012 version of Hiro reveals that in the original timeline, Sylar killed Claire Bennet & caused the explosion in NYC. It is also revealed that Ando was killed during the explosion.
- Matt Parkman - In 2012, Parkman is an agent of Homeland Security. He has bitterness to his personality. His wife & child are in hiding because of the mutant restrictions.
- Mohinder Suresh - Researching a "cure" to the genetic mutation. He agreed to cover-up the fore-knowledge of the attack on New York & do anything necessary to stop another attack. After billions in research, he's unable to revert the mutations. President Petrelli asks Mohinder to be complicit in a genocidal removal of the mutant population.
- Mr. Bennet - Now operates a sort of "underground railroad" for mutants & their families seeking to escape government confinement.
- Peter Petrelli & Niki Sanders - They are now a couple. Niki lost Micah in the explosion in New York. Peter (now with a scar across his face) has decided to withdraw from life. He reveals that as a result of Hiro's tampering with time, it was not Sylar, but him (just as in his vision) who exploded in New York. Peter is also shown using Hiro's time power, when he comes to save Future Hiro & Ando from Parkman.
- President Nathan Petrelli - Came to office on the heels of the attack just as Mr. Linderman said. He's responsible for the security measures in place.
- Claire Bennet - As a result of Future Hiro's message of "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World", Claire is now alive & her power wasn't absorbed by Sylar. She's been in hiding from the government, and is a waitress in Midland, Texas. She's planning her wedding when Parkman comes & captures her, after he already shot Mr. Bennet.
- Sylar - The twist of the episode is that at some point after the explosion in New York, Sylar killed Nathan Petrelli as well as the shapeshifter Candice & took their powers. Sylar has been the President of the United States all along. After being told that Claire is alive & in custody, Sylar kills Claire & absorbs her power.
The episode ends with President Petrelli/Sylar planning to eliminate the mutant population by announcing a cure. The cure is in fact intended to kill off the mutant population. President Petrelli/Sylar announces that the world will rejoice in the cure & then
unite in grief.
Future Hiro, Peter Petrelli and Ando break into the Department of Homeland Security office in New York to break out the current Hiro at the same time President Petrelli/Sylar is giving a speech from a flag draped backdrop reminiscent to Ground Zero announcing the cure. After Peter, Future Hiro & Ando are able to save Hiro, Sylar is informed by Parkman. Sylar uses Nathan's power and flies away in front of the crowd, in order to confront Peter. Meantime, Parkman shoots Future Hiro. After Sylar arrives, he reveals that he killed D.L. as well when he pulls Peter through a door. Peter & Sylar fight while Hiro watches Future Hiro die. As the battle outside the door between Sylar & Peter rages, Hiro eventually grabs Ando & they teleport away, now knowing that they must stop Sylar.
Next......"The Hard Part"