is a fictional

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, ...

on 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 ...

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 ...

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'' ...

'' 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

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 ...

. According to the online comic on NBC.com, Hiro is named after

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui h ...

, so his family will always remember the

atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki The United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the onl ...

Tim Kring Richard Timothy Kring (born July 9, 1957) is an American screenwriter and television producer, best known for his creation of the drama series '' Strange World'', ''Crossing Jordan'', '' Heroes'', and ''Touch''. Early life Kring was born in El D ...

has been quoted as saying, "It's no coincidence we named him Hiro... he truly is on a hero's quest." To this end, his name is often used as a pun. His co-worker and best friend Ando once called him "Super-Hiro" in jest.

Character development

Hiro was one of the last main characters to be created by Tim Kring; he was added to the pilot episode after Kring's wife noticed none of the existing main characters were happy about their powers. During a panel session, Kring explained that he developed Hiro as a comic book geek "trapped in a life that was kind of not of his making". Thus, viewers were introduced to Hiro as an office worker in a sea of cubicles. In an interview, Tim Kring noted, "I didn't start off by saying I want a guy who can teleport. I started off by saying I wanted a guy who felt trapped in a life that was not his dream and what could be a power that would be most wish-fulfilling for that character? And that was the ability to teleport out of that life."

Character synopsis

Hiro Nakamura is an

office worker A white-collar worker is a person who performs professional, desk, managerial, or administrative work. White-collar work may be performed in an office or other administrative setting. White-collar workers include job paths related to government, ...

living in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, working as a level-3 programmer at Yamagato Industries when one day he discovers he has the power to bend time and space. An

otaku is a Japanese word that describes people with consuming interests, particularly in anime, manga, video games, or computers. Its contemporary use originated with a 1983 essay by Akio Nakamori in '' Manga Burikko''. may be used as a pejorat ...

, Hiro is an avid fan of superheroes and science fiction. Naïve and over-eager, Hiro is the one character that aspires to the pure heroism of comic book crime fighters, shouldering the responsibility to use his powers for good. His best friend is the skeptical Ando Masahashi. At the start, Hiro is only able to speak Japanese and a little English, relying on Ando as his translator; but as the series progresses, his English slowly develops. Hiro's Blog, maintained by

and written from Hiro's point of view, was updated after each new episode aired, usually about the events of the episode.

Reception

UGO Networks UGO Entertainment, Inc. was a website that provided coverage of online media in entertainment, targeting males aged 18–34. The company was based in New York, New York, United States. History The company started in 1997 as Unified Gamers Onlin ...

listed Hiro as one of their best heroes of all time. The character has had a mixed reception. Malian-French pop singer

Aya Nakamura Aya Coco Danioko (; born 10 May 1995), known by her stage name Aya Nakamura ( ), is a French-Malian pop singer. She is best known for her hit song "Djadja". She was born in Bamako, Mali and emigrated to France with her family, growing up in A ...

adapted her

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

from the character.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nakamura, Hiro Fictional swordfighters Fictional businesspeople Television characters introduced in 2006 Fictional characters who can teleport Fictional Japanese people Fictional orphans Fictional vigilantes Heroes (American TV series) characters Male characters in television Television superheroes Fictional characters who can manipulate time Time travelers