The second season of “Heroes” is flawed, but enjoyable television.

“Heroes,” which revolves around super powered humans all across the globe, was a massive hit in its first season. People couldn’t seem to get enough of the show and the characters (especially Hiro and Claire). However, when season two rolled around, there was a huge backlash against some new characters and the story arcs involving a virus. After viewing the second season, I can’t say I fully understand the criticisms.

 

Granted, the second season does have its flaws. I personally could have done without Maya and Alejandro, the backpack rescue mission in the finale, anything involving Nikki, and Peter’s Ireland adventure. Even with those complaints, there is still much to admire in this season. I found that several of the new characters really spiced up the show, especially Elle and West. Elle, played by the superb actress Kristen Bell of “Veronica Mars” fame, is a nice complex character who can be both good and bad. West (Nicholas D’Agosto) is a kind hearted “good” guy character who makes for a great love interest for Claire.

 

Among the other aspects of the season I enjoyed were Hiro’s adventures in Feudal Japan, learning about the character’s parents past, as well as seeing how Sylar can still be evil even without his powers. I can’t wait to see Sylar (and other villains) take center stage in season three which is being dubbed “Villains.”

 

Overall, I would recommend checking out the second season of “Heroes.” Sure, it’s not perfect, but neither was season one. With intriguing new characters, action-packed episodes like “Four Months Ago,” and plenty of plot twists, there’s enough here to satisfy fans of the series.

The 1.78:1 widescreen picture quality is generally clear, but some parts look a bit grainy. I’m sure the Blu-ray edition looks sharper.

The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track is fine. The dialogue, score, action sounded clear to me.

Disc 1:
* 2 deleted scenes from “Four Months Later.”
* “Heroes Season 2- A New Beginning”- A 14 ½ minute featurette about the season’s episodes and characters old and new.
* Commentary on “Four Months Later” by Tim Kring, Jeph Loeb and Jack Coleman.
* Commentary on “Lizards” by Allan Arkush, Greg Grunberg, Michael Green. This is a very lively track. I’d pretty much listen to any track Grunberg is on as he’s a riot to listen to.
* Commentary on “Kindred” by Paul Edwards, J.J. Philbin and Zachary Quinto.

Disc 2:
* 5 deleted scenes from “Fight Or Flight” and 3 from “The Line.”
* “The Drucker Files” is an 8 ½ minute fake news piece on Richard Drucker.
* “Takezo Kensei: Sword Saint” A 24 documentary on the samurai legend that appears in this season.
* Commentary on “The Kindness Of Strangers” by Tim Kring, Dana Davis, and Adrian Pasarr.
* Commentary on “Fight Or Flight” by Greg Grunberg and Greg Beeman.
* Commentary on “The Line” by Adam Armus, Kay Foster and Jack Coleman.

Disc 3:
* 2 deleted scenes from “Out Of Time,” 3 from “Four Months Ago,” and 2 from “Cautionary Tales.”
* “Genetics Of A Scene”- A 23 minute extra that focuses on creating the flying scenes, the look of Feudal Japan and Mexico, as well as the sets.
* Commentary on “Out Of Time” by Daniel Attias and Masi Oka. This is another fun track as Masi Oka makes a lot of amusing wise cracks.
* Commentary on “Four Months Ago” by Greg Beeman and Milo Ventimiglia. A rather dry and monotone track.
* Commentary on “Cautionary Tales” with Greg Yaitanes, Ashley Crow and Kristen Bell. No one seems to want to be doing this track here. Skip it.

Disc 4:
* An 8 ½ behind-the-scenes look at season three.
* An 18 minute alternate ending for “Powerless” in which the Virus is released.
* Commentary on “Truth And Consequences” by Adam Kane and Stephen Tobolowsky.
* Commentary on “Powerless” with Allan Arkush, Lisa Coleman and Wendy Melvoin.
* 3 NBC.com featurettes.
* A 2 minute “Tim Sale Gallery Of Screen Art.”
* Universal trailers.
* “Inside The Alternate Ending”- The creators/writers/producers talk about what would have happened in the season had there been no strike. They also show off some storyboards.
* The best extra is by far “Untold Stories” which are deleted scenes from the never aired/finished episodes 12 and 13. This batch of 12 minute scenes contains a creepy dream scene in which the Heroes are destroyed by the villains, as well as a few scenes in which Elle tries to track down Sylar.