User:El Sandifer/Heroes/Episodes/Genesis

"Genesis" is the pilot episode of the NBC science fiction Television drama|drama series Heroes (TV series)|Heroes. It was directed by David Semel and written by Tim Kring. The episode focuses on several of the main characters discovering their superpowers for the first time, and attempting to find out more about them. Some cast members, including Greg Grunberg and Leonard Roberts, do not appear in this episode, and are introduced later in the season.

Plot
As the series pilot, "Genesis" establishes the stories of most of the main characters, as well as the series premise. Robert Canning of ign.com describes the episode as "short on action", but with "much to look forward to."

The central theme of human evolution, and the potential for superhuman changes, is introduced by the character of Mohinder Suresh, a genetics professor in Madras, India. After receiving news of his father List of characters in Heroes#Chandra Suresh|Chandra Suresh's death, Mohinder goes to New York to finish Chandra's research, believing it was the reason he was murdered. Mohinder's story also introduces the idea of an underlying conspiracy involving the "heroes". At his father's apartment in India, he hears (but does not see) a Noah Bennet|mysterious person searching the apartment. The same man later gets into Mohinder's taxi, asking him several suspicious questions before Mohinder flees.

Two storylines in particular reflect a darker perspective on the new-found abilities. Isaac Mendez is an artist and heroin addict in New York City. He claims that he can precognition|paint the future, but his girlfriend, Simone Deveaux, believes it is just the influence of the narcotics. Later, following a severe overdose, he paints a mural of a nuclear explosion destroying Manhattan. Niki Sanders, a cam whore|webcam stripper in Las Vegas, Nevada, discovers her abilities when she and her son Micah are forced to flee from thugs approaching their house. During the escape, Niki believes she sees a reflection that is not her. She leaves Micah with a friend and returns home, where the thugs coerce her into stripping. She blacks out during the performance, awakening some time later to find that they have been savagely killed. Her strange reflection motions for her to keep silent. Both Isaac and Niki find their powers to be "an unwelcome change that they are forced to deal with."

Meanwhile, Hiro Nakamura, a cubicle worker in Tokyo, Japan discovers he can control the passage of time. Hiro is presented in a lighter, happier manner, as someone who is excited about the changes happening to him. His friend and co-worker, Ando Masahashi, is skeptical, even after Hiro proves it to him by teleporting into the women's restroom at a bar. Hiro believes he is meant for something more, but Ando disagrees. Later, Hiro successfully teleports to Times Square.

Other characters include Claire Bennet, a high school cheerleader in Odessa, Texas, who has discovered that she regenerates from any injuries, and has her classmate List of characters in Heroes#Zach|Zach film her doing such things. She believes that if discovered, her life would be over. Heading home, they come across a train wreck, from which Claire saves a man, escaping unharmed.

Peter Petrelli's story crosses paths with many of the other characters. A nurse in New York, Peter has recurring dreams of flying. He tells his brother, United States Congress|congressional candidate Nathan Petrelli, that he believes he can fly. Nathan responds by saying that Peter should put his time to better use. Peter tells his mother that he has a metaphysical connection with Nathan, but his mother is skeptical. Simone, who is the daughter of one of Peter's patients, tells him to bring morphine to Isaac's apartment. There, Peter sees a painting of himself flying. At the end of the episode, he summons Nathan to an alley in the middle of the city. When Peter leaps off of the roof of an adjacent building attempting to fly but instead it is Nathan who flies up and catches him, only to lose his grip and drop Peter. Kring credits the direct concept and idea for this last scene to Damon Lindelof, producer on Lost (TV series)|Lost.

Symbolism and recurring themes
The episode features a solar eclipse, which would become a recurring element throughout the first season of Heroes. An eclipse forms part of the series's logo, and also occurs in the season one finale, "How to Stop an Exploding Man". As well, an image of the Earth eclipsing the Sun as viewed from an observation point away from the Earth, is used in the series' title sequence.

When the total solar eclipse occurs in "Genesis", it is witnessed directly by Peter, Claire, Hiro, and Niki, as well as indirectly by Isaac. It is implied that the event is seen simultaneously in New York, Texas, Nevada, Japan, and California, although this is impossible in the real world, as the umbra is at most a few hundred miles wide. However, series creator Tim Kring has said this is part of the plot. Early in the episode, Micah is making a pinhole camera through which to witness the eclipse.

DVD Director's Cut version
On the Season 1 DVD release, the original 74 minute long pilot is included. This version had significant differences with many characters and overall plots, compared with the pilot episode which ultimately aired.


 * A subplot involving an engineer with radiation-based powers and ties to an Islamic terrorist cell was cut. The terrorist cell was responsible for the train derailment in Odessa, Texas where Claire saved a fireman.  The overall plot for the cell had to do with acquiring nuclear fuel for a bomb being created.  Matt Parkman was to be connected to the engineer, as they were childhood friends and lived together for a short time.  Elements of the engineer character, including inducing cancer in his wife, were reused for the character of Ted Sprague.
 * Matt Parkman finds one of the members of the terrorist cell hiding underneath the stairs. This was remade later with Matt finding Molly Walker the same way.  Also, a different actress played the role of Matt's wife.
 * Sylar is introduced as Paul Sylar instead of an alias for Gabriel Gray. Sylar is shown making contact with Mohinder by the end of the episode.
 * Isaac Mendez handcuffs himself to a pipe to try and go cold turkey from heroin. He later cuts off his hand with a saw and subsequently overdoses.
 * Micah steals $300 from Tina and leaves on his own, apparently to buy a bus ticket to Moab, Utah where his father (DL) is imprisoned at the Moab Federal Penitentiary.
 * DL is introduced as being an inmate at the Moab Federal Penitentiary. His powers of being able to phase through solid objects have manifested while he is sleeping and he wakes up in different spots in the prison outside his cell.  In this version of the pilot, he has a vendetta against Nathan as Nathan was the prosecutor responsible for his imprisonment.
 * Unlike the "leaked" version, the director's cut used the original series music

Ratings
The total viewership for this episode was 14.10 million.

Reception
Heroes director/producer Greg Beeman considers the premiere to be "exciting" and "inspiring". IGN.com's Robert Canning described the episode as "creating a realistic, modern day world where ordinary people have suddenly found themselves blessed (or cursed, depending) with extraordinary abilities." This episode was submitted for consideration in the categories of "Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series|Outstanding Drama Series", "Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series" and "Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Drama Series|Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series" on Santiago Cabrera's behalf for the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards.

InSinkErator Lawsuit
On October 2, 2006, Emerson Electric Company, an appliance market competitor of NBC's owner General Electric, filed suit in federal court against NBC. The suit was in regard to a scene that appeared in "Genesis (Heroes episode)|Genesis", the first episode of season one, when Claire Bennet reached into an active garbage disposal|garbage disposal unit—labeled "InSinkErator"—to retrieve a ring and severely disfigured her hand. Emerson claimed the scene "casts the disposer in an unsavory light, irreparably tarnishing the product" by suggesting serious injuries would result "in the event consumers were to accidentally insert their hand into one." Emerson had asked for a ruling barring future broadcasts of the pilot, which was previously available on NBC's website and had already aired on NBC Universal-owned cable networks USA Network and Sci Fi Channel (United States)|The Sci Fi Channel. It also sought to block NBC from using any Emerson trademarks in the future.

On February 23, 2007, the case against NBC was dropped. NBC Universal and Emerson Electric reached an agreement to settle the lawsuit outside of court. The episode in question was briefly unavailable in the iTunes Store, but an edited version was soon made available for download. A non-edited version of the episode was shown in the BBC Two premiere on July 25, 2007. The DVD and HD DVD releases contain an edited version where the "InSinkErator" label has been removed from the scene.