In the fall of 2006, NBC launched a new show about a group of people with special powers that were destined to come together to save the world. The show was a ratings hit for the network, but poor storytelling quickly eroded any support for the show and it limped through four seasons before being cancelled. Yesterday, NBC announced that it was bringing Heroes back in 2015 as an event mini-series, similar to FOX’s plans for 24 this summer.
The difference, of course, is that there were people looking for 24 to return, at least in movie form. Nobody was expecting, or even hoping for, Heroes to return. Any goodwill the series had from a strong first season had been burned away by the messes that followed for the next three that led to its cancellation in the first place.
The announcement gave no indication of who, if anyone, from the original cast would be involved in this reboot. I can’t even remember where any of the characters were left off, so I can’t even speculate on who would possibly be involved. One would imagine the Zachary Quinto and Hayden Panettiere, the two breakout stars, would have little interest in returning, given their current commitments.
I can’t imagine a world where this gambit turns out well for NBC. The network has seemingly turned its back on developing original content and has instead devoted itself to dusting off old properties in the hopes that familiarity will be enough to draw an audience. That strategy didn’t work for Bionic Woman, Knight Rider, or Ironside. We’ll have to wait until next summer to see if it pans out for Heroes.
