Heroes: A Giant, Intelligent Leap

It is not uncommon to hear regularly on the news about how forms of media, such as video games, the internet, and television are vastly changing our world. More often than not, critics claim that the media is ruining the human population by influencing its actions, thoughts, and ideas. Many of these critics do not realize that they are also a part of the media frenzy; thankfully, there are those that oppose them. Steven Johnson, the author of Everything Bad Is Good For You, has done extensive research on various forms of media. In his book, he tells his readers that there is much more to media and popular culture than just mindless nonsense that keeps us busy in times of boredom (Johnson 9). There are actually intelligent forms of media and pop culture in our world that help us grow and challenge our minds individually and as a whole culture. Johnson uses the term the “sleeper curve” to describe this phenomena, where what was once thought to be unhealthy for a person can actually be a good thing for them (Johnson 9). The very popular TV show called Heroes exemplifies what Johnson believes is the sleeper curve– the TV and other forms of media can be “healthy” forms of entertainment that make us think by forming our own connections between characters and the show’s story. Heroes features an intense plot, lots of storyline twists, and turns and connections. All of these things support Johnson’s sleeper curve theory.

The TV series Heroes has become very popular. The show mainly focuses around the characters Mohinder, Nikki (and Jessica, her other self), DL, Micah, Claire, Mr. Bennet, Peter, Nathan, Hiro, Matt, and Isaac. All of them have certain kinds of powers that make them much more powerful than every day humans, and none of their abilities are exactly alike. Some of the powers they have are the ability to bend time, which is controlled by Hiro; the ability to fly, which Nathan is capable of; and the ability to paint the future, which is Isaac’s power. Each of them is unique in some way, with a different age, cultural background, gift, and their own story to unfold. They are constantly in danger—of the general public finding out about their weird powers, of harming others, or of being destroyed themselves by others like them. However, many of them have come together hoping to save the world from a disastrous fate, and maybe a cheerleader or too on the way. In the book Saving the World: A Guide to Heroes, the show is described as having a “complex mythology” and a “large ensemble cast[s]” (Porter, Lavery, Robson 2). Though there is violence, the characters overcoming obstacles together and strengthen their family ties and friendships quickly overshadows all of the bloodshed (Johnson 115). This also makes the show a perfect candidate for Johnson’s sleeper curve.

The human population, all over the developed world, is continuously getting smarter as time goes on, as shown in IQ scores (Gladwell). This is not contributed to schooling alone, but also to pop culture (Gladwell). Pop culture is available to everyone. Even if a person does not own a TV at home, they are influenced by the music they hear and the television shows they see while they are out. Humans can not help but grow intellectually as they explore the world. As technology advances, we as a people keep finding more complicated things to keep us entertained – where a pinball machine used to be very popular, it has been replaced with virtual, computerized pinball game, with more controls, ways to earn points, and also more ways for the ball to find its untimely demise. Like games and other forms of entertainment, television seems to be in a nonstop evolution. It is constantly changing, becoming more complicated and requiring its viewers to pay more attention to their favorite shows to grasp each show’s concept than in the past (Gladwell). Heroes is keeping up with the needs and wants of today’s television viewing population by encompassing all the things that viewers love about TV but by also demanding more from its viewers.

Heroes not only requires its viewers to follow many different stories, but also to carefully take note of individual characters and their interactions with other characters. Heroes features complex multithreading, which Johnson describes as when a television episode presents more than just one story it is following, but rather a main story and various other side stories, or various main stories (Johnson 65). Johnson describes multi-threading as “the most acclaimed structural convention of modern television programming” (Johnson 65). During any given episode, Heroes has various multi-threads taking place at once. For example, during the episode called “Nothing to Hide”, we see glimpses of Nikki’s story, a woman who has two personalities, including one that is extremely strong. DL and Micah, her husband and son who also have powers, have their own side story. Hiro, who controls time, and his sidekick Ando have their own story. Then, near the end, Micah, DL, Ando, and Hiro experience their own adventure at the same time.

One cannot watch Heroes halfheartedly. The show demand’s the viewer’s full attention in order for them to completely understand exactly what is going on in the story and why things are happening. By missing even a few minutes of dialogue, the viewer will be at a loss as to what is going on with a certain character’s mini story, since the stories are only slightly connected at this point in the show and are not really related to one another. This all holds true to Johnson’s theory. He mentions that with the way television shows are now, viewers need to have patience when watching TV, the ability to pull the story apart and piece it back together, and the ability to fill in holes and gaps that are left to the viewer’s imagination by the television producers, such as sudden cliffhanger endings (Johnson 64).

Each character has their individual story and their own problems to focus on. Later in the show, the characters begin to meet and find connections with each other, further complicating the show’s storyline. This is an increase in complexity of social networks, or character mapping. Johnson describes character maps as “dense webs of relationships” (Johnson 109). Character maps have become much more complicated for television shows over the years (Johnson 112-113). The character maps for Heroes are extensive. As the series goes on, more and more characters begin connecting with each other and meet each other. They each gain a personal and complicated relationship with each other. A good example of a character map comes from the episode “Homecoming”:

Claire is the essential main focus in this episode, with many characters revolving around her at once. However, Nikki (and her alter ego Jessica), DL, and Micah have their own side story. This is another thing that causes the viewer’s minds to think instead of just numbly going through each episode, unaware of what is truly going on. Viewers have to be aware of each connection between the characters and keep note of their experiences together to be able to grasp each episode’s plot (Johnson 109).

Steven Johnson has theorized that forms of popular culture visual media are good for us in the way that they make us think and also how we as a population relate to them. In an interview with Bruce Cole, Johnson said “we have been in a sense trained to watch ever more complex narrative patterns on TV” that what we as a culture used to watch (Johnson). By featuring complex story lines and characters with deep connections, Heroes exemplifies the sleeper curve theory. Heroes is proof that, as Johnson said, we are getting smarter, not dumber (Johnson 9). The show requires a much more complex thought process with its twisted plots and close character connections. Its fans need a much greater ability to piece things together than what television has required its viewers in the past.

Works Cited

Gladwell, Malcolm. “Brain Candy.” The New Yorker. 16 May 2005. 12 May 2009

"Homcoming." Heroes Season 1. Writ. Tim Kring, Adam Armus, and Nora Kay Foster. Dir. Donna Deitch. NBC. 20 Nov. 2006. DVD. Universal Studios, 2007.

Johnson, Steven. Everything Bad Is Good For You. England: Penguin Books, 2006.

"Nothing to Hide." Heroes Season 1. Writ. Tim Kring and Jesse Alexander. Dir. Donna Deitch. NBC. 6 Nov. 2006. DVD. Universal Studios, 2007.

Porter, Lynnette, David Lavery, and Hillary Robson. Saving the World A Guide to Heroes. New York: Ecw P, 2007.

"WHEN Oliver Twist MEETS GRAND THEFT AUTO." Humanities 27.6 (Nov. 2006): 6-54. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. 5 June 2009