The

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

serial

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

series ''

Heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

'' follows the lives of people across the globe who possess various

superhuman The term superhuman refers to humans or human-like beings with enhanced qualities and abilities that exceed those naturally found in humans. These qualities may be acquired through natural ability, self-actualization or technological aids. Th ...

powers as they struggle to cope with their everyday lives and prevent foreseen disasters from occurring. The third season premiered on September 22, 2008, and was released on DVD on September 1, 2009. Within the seasons of ''Heroes'' are "volumes", which allow the writers to focus on shorter story arcs. The third season comprised 25 episodes that aired in two blocks generally without

rerun A rerun or repeat is a rebroadcast of an episode of a radio or television program. There are two types of reruns – those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Variations In the United Kingdom, the word ...

s. The first 13 episodes of the season made up the third volume, ''Villains'', and the final 12 comprise the fourth volume, ''Fugitives''. The season premiered on September 22, 2008 in the United States on NBC and on

Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...

in Canada, with a one-hour

clip-show A clip show is an episode of a television series that consists primarily of excerpts from previous episodes. Most clip shows feature the format of a frame story in which cast members recall past events from past installments of the show, depicted ...

and two regular episodes. The DVD and Blu-ray were released on September 1, 2009 in the United States and Canada.

Plot

"Villains", the season's first volume, began with the assassination attempt on Nathan Petrelli ( Adrian Pasdar) by

Peter Petrelli Peter Petrelli, portrayed by Milo Ventimiglia, is a fictional superhero on the NBC superhero drama series Heroes. He is a hospice nurse-turned-paramedic in his mid-20s with the power to absorb and mimic the powers of other people with specia ...

(

Milo Ventimiglia Milo Anthony Ventimiglia (, ; born July 8, 1977) is an American actor. Making his screen acting debut on ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' in 1995, he portrayed the lead role on the short-lived series '' Opposite Sex'' in 2000 before landing his br ...

) from the future, and explores its consequences. In addition, several villains with abilities escape from the Company's prisons. Some of them join forces with Arthur Petrelli (

Robert Forster Robert Wallace Forster Jr. (July 13, 1941 – October 11, 2019) was an American actor, known for his roles as John Cassellis in '' Medium Cool'' (1969), Captain Dan Holland in ''The Black Hole'' (1979), Abdul Rafai in '' The Delta Force'' (1986 ...

) (Peter's and Nathan's father) at Pinehearst Company, who wants to find a formula that gives ordinary people abilities in order to make the world a better place. Character arcs involve

Tracy Strauss ''Heroes'' is an American superhero drama television series created by Tim Kring that aired on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006, to February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover that they have supe ...

(

Ali Larter Alison Elizabeth Larter (born February 28, 1976) is an American actress and model. She portrayed fictional model Allegra Coleman in a 1996 ''Esquire'' magazine hoax and took on guest roles on several television shows in the 1990s. She made her ...

) discovering her origins,

Sylar Sylar (Gabriel Gray) is a fictional character and a primary antagonist of the NBC superhero drama series ''Heroes''. Portrayed by Zachary Quinto, he is a super-powered serial killer who targets other Superhumans in order to steal their powers. H ...

(

Zachary Quinto Zachary John Quinto (; born June 2, 1977) is an American actor and film producer. He is known for his roles as Sylar, the primary antagonist from the science fiction drama series ''Heroes (American TV series), Heroes'' (2006–2010); Spock in th ...

) trying to decide his loyalties, Peter losing his ability, Mohinder Suresh ( Sendhil Ramamurthy) giving himself an ability, and

Hiro Nakamura is a fictional superhero on the NBC superhero drama '' Heroes'' who possesses the ability of space-time manipulation. This means that Hiro is able to alter the flow of time, teleport and time travel. In the show, he is played by Japanese actor M ...

's (

Masi Oka is a Japanese actor, producer, and digital effects artist who became widely known for starring in NBC's ''Heroes'' as Hiro Nakamura and in CBS's ''Hawaii Five-0'' as Doctor Max Bergman. Early life Oka was born in Tokyo, Japan, to Setsuko Oka. Hi ...

) discovery of a family secret. The second part of season three, titled "Fugitives", involves what happens after Nathan fails to produce the formula. After the destruction of Primatech and Pinehearst, the heroes attempt to lead normal lives until Nathan tells the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

(

Michael Dorn Michael Dorn (born December 9, 1952) is an American actor best known for his role as the Klingon Worf in the '' Star Trek'' franchise. He has appeared more times as a regular cast member than any other ''Star Trek'' actor in the franchise's histo ...

) about people with abilities, and runs a government force, headed by

Emile Danko This is a list of fictional characters in the television series ''Heroes'', the ''Heroes'' graphic novels, and the ''Heroes'' webisodes. Main characters Character duration In its inaugural season, ''Heroes'' featured an ensemble cast o ...

(

Željko Ivanek Željko Ivanek (né Šimić-Ivanek; ; ; born August 15, 1957) is an American actor, known for his role as Ray Fiske on '' Damages'', for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award. Ivanek is also known for his role of Ed Danvers on '' Homicide: Life on ...

), to round them up.

Micah Sanders This is a list of fictional characters in the television series ''Heroes'', the ''Heroes'' graphic novels, and the ''Heroes'' webisodes. Main characters Character duration In its inaugural season, ''Heroes'' featured an ensemble cast o ...

( Noah Gray-Cabey), posing as "Rebel", starts to help people with abilities hide from the government. Meanwhile, Sylar searches for his father ( John Glover).

Cast and characters

Main characters

* Adrian Pasdar as Nathan Petrelli * Jack Coleman as

Noah Bennet This is a list of fictional characters in the television series ''Heroes'', the ''Heroes'' graphic novels, and the ''Heroes'' webisodes. Main characters Character duration In its inaugural season, ''Heroes'' featured an ensemble cast ...

* Sendhil Ramamurthy as Mohinder Suresh *

Cristine Rose Cristine Sue Rose (born January 31, 1951), sometimes credited as Christine Rose, is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Angela Petrelli on the hit NBC science fiction drama '' Heroes''. Early life Rose was born in Lynwood ...

as Angela Petrelli *

Hayden Panettiere Hayden Lesley Panettiere (; born August 21, 1989) is an American actress, model, and singer. She is best known for her lead roles as Claire Bennet on the NBC superhero series ''Heroes (American TV series), Heroes'' and Juliette Barnes in the Am ...

Claire Bennet Claire Bennet is a fictional character in the NBC psychological thriller superhero drama series '' Heroes''. She is portrayed by Hayden Panettiere and first appeared on television in the pilot episode of the series, "Genesis", on September 25, ...

James Kyson Lee James Kyson (born December 13, 1975) is a South Korean-born American actor best known for his television work. Best known for his role as Ando Masahashi on the NBC television series ''Heroes'', his guest appearances on television series include ...

as Ando Masahashi *

Greg Grunberg Gregory Phillip Grunberg (born July 11, 1966) is an American film and television actor best known for starring as Eric Weiss in the ABC series ''Alias'', Matt Parkman in the NBC series ''Heroes'', Temmin "Snap" Wexley in '' Star Wars: The Forc ...

as Matt Parkman *

Dania Ramirez Dania Ramirez (born November 8, 1979) is a Dominican actress. Her credits include the roles of Maya Herrera in '' Heroes'', Alex in '' Entourage'', and Blanca during the last season of ''The Sopranos'' on television. Her film roles include Ale ...

Maya Herrera This is a list of fictional characters in the television series '' Heroes'', the ''Heroes'' graphic novels, and the ''Heroes'' webisodes. Main characters Character duration In its inaugural season, ''Heroes'' featured an ensemble cast ...

Recurring characters

Episodes

Reception

Season three of ''Heroes'' started with strong ratings that dropped steadily throughout the season. The season's finale placed last in its timeslot. This season was met with mixed to negative reception with most criticism directed towards the storylines, writing and characters.

Home media

The Season 3 DVD Box set was released in North America on September 1, 2009, and in Australia on September 2, 2009 with an alternative cover, and in the UK on October 12, 2009.

References

{{ScreenActorsGuildAward StuntEnsembleTelevision 03 2008 American television seasons 2009 American television seasons