“How do we find our true purpose? Is it something we’re born with, written into our genetic code or is it something we must learn over time, a growing awareness derived from one’s joys and sorrows…from our love’s, our losses, our achievements and our suffering.”- Mohinder Suresh

And with this poetic quote, Heroes Reborn’s fourth episode sets sail. “The Needs of the Many” picks up right where the last one left off: with the aftermath of the car crash involving Tommy and his mother. Tommy manages to teleport himself out of the car and his mother to a hospital before he promptly passes out at the scene of the crash. We then check in with Luke and his nasty as ever wife Joanne, who continues to be my least favorite character of the season. Not to be harsh, but newsflash lady: your son is dead and killing loads of innocent people won’t bring him back or bring you a sense of justice. Joanne shoots an Evo point-blank in the head and becomes giddy with how he looked seconds before she pulled the trigger. Luke is becoming increasingly uncomfortable with his wife’s actions; now more than ever due to him being an Evo himself, which is slightly hypocritical if you ask me! Malina and her guide appear before us to spout out some more ominous dialogue before Malina brings back a horde of butterflies back to life… at least that’s what I think she did.

After the opening credits, the scene shifts to my favorites: Miko and Ren. A cab driver hilariously mixes up Ren’s “profession” and assumes he makes money off of online pornography. Ren’s cocky side emerges during this scene as he boasts about how he is a famous gamer online and just how many people subscribe to him. I would definitely be one of his subscribers… just sayin’! Ren then makes a video asking all his followers to dress up as their favorite Evernow characters and to meet them at the gates of Renautas before proclaiming, “Gamers of the world, unite”! Miko finds Ren’s behavior humorous and yet it’s clear as day just how much she trusts him. When are these two going to get together?

Carlos and Jose appear briefly and judging by the scene, Carlos is ready to go all out as El Vengador; he’s basically planning on turning one of the shops cars into a bat-mobile with bullet proof windows and heavy artillery. Fresh off their failed attempt at rescuing Molly and discovering Erica’s sinister plans for all Evos via the launch of EPIC, Noah and Quentin ask a wavering Taylor to question her mother’s true intent. I enjoyed this scene quite a bit because of the dynamic between these three characters. I’m hoping Taylor turns against her mother and joins forces with Noah and Quentin. Taylor demands Erica gives her answers and all Erica does is continue down her road of delusions by justifying her heinous actions. Erica is shaping up to be a villain to be reckoned with; her warped perception of all Evos is what makes her a formidable foe, one that will do absolutely everything to get what she wants. Back to Tommy, Emily and Brad check in with the teleporter, who makes the risky decision to test his blood in order to see if it fits the same blood-group as his mother. Tommy runs the risk of having the hospital staff find out he’s an Evo or worse, the authorities.

We finally find out the name of Malina’s mysterious guide: Farah, who knocks out a passerby that witnesses Malina’s powers and attempts to call for back-up. Shifting back to the troublesome twosome, Luke once again attempts to convince Joanne to abandon her mission of revenge. Come on Luke, when will you learn? Joanne’s response to Luke’s pleas is perhaps one of my favorite lines of the episode, “Things change Luke, you got to keep changing with them”. Joanne leaves Luke to stew in despair as his hands once again light up with his powers (fire? radiation?). The sky suddenly brightens due to the aurora and each of our central characters is shown witnessing the phenomena. Malina comments she won’t be able to save the world alone, and Farah assures her that there will be others who will help her. When Farah says this, we’re shown Miko, Carlos, Noah, Tommy and Luke; it’s safe to assume the fate of the world rests in the hands of these 6 individuals (including Malina).

Miko and Ren continue to be the MVPs of Heroes Reborn with their adorable scenes and attitudes. Ren tries to reassure Miko and take her mind off of Harris’ words about her not “being alive.” Down the road, I’m sure those words and the meaning behind them will be explained. Meanwhile, Carlos has created version 2.0 of the El Vengador suit, which resembles Iron Man’s get-up just not as elaborate or flashy. Carlos states he isn’t donning the suit of El Vengador for Father Mauricio or Oscar; he’s doing it because “for once, he wants to believe in something bigger than himself.”

Tommy’s blood does not match his mother’s so he decides to travel to Indiana with Emily where the nearest blood-match resides. Taylor predictably switches sides and lets Noah and Quentin into the Renautas facilities after knocking out two guards. I love Taylor’s switch in motive, but I fear she may be one of this season’s causalities; perhaps her mom will kill her? I haven’t mentioned this before in my earlier recaps, but I absolutely adore Eve Harlow, who blew me away with her honest performance as Maya in The 100, and Heroes Reborn needs to upgrade her to main cast status ASAP!  Before the three can venture out to find Molly, they encounter Harris… well to be more exact, they encounter three of him!

Soon after, things pick up quite a bit: Team Save Molly manage to outsmart Harris, Luke reveals his ability (fire) to a stunned Joanne who surprisingly doesn’t kill him. Tommy gets flagged by the feds, and Jose finds out his father was El Vengador. He also let’s Father Mauricio know about his abilities, which is quite poor timing on Jose’s part because soon after Captain James Dearing (Dylan Bruce) arrives to the scene to hunt them down. Father Mauricio is taken out by a Taser and Jose is on the run. Back to the scene with Tommy, Heroes Reborn included an homage to Peter Petrelli by having Tommy say the same exact line Peter did in the Heroes season 1 premiere, “Do you ever get the feeling you were meant to do something extraordinary?” All of the shout-outs to Heroes serve as a knife to the heart because of how much I miss the characters of the original show. Despite the sad feeling it induces, I genuinely appreciate the references to Heroes.

Miko and Ren arrive at the gates of Renautas with Miko in full Katana Girl gear where hordes of fans rush towards her. Then…we arrive at the saddest scene of the series thus far (other than Noah’s voicemail to Claire in the premiere). Noah, Quentin and Taylor reach a room filled with Evos’ plugged into these bizarre machines that essentially harvest their powers; Noah compares this to Sylar’s ability, which was a nice shout-out to the fan-favorite Heroes character. Noah finds Molly there, who has lost all hope and is mentally and physically exhausted. Molly steals Noah’s gun and Noah attempts to get some answers out of her about what’s really going on and what’s truly at stake. Molly doesn’t provide any concrete answers and instead tells Noah, “Forget the past, save the future.” After uttering this line, which seems to be the tagline of Heroes Reborn, Molly shoots herself. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! *cries profusely.* Yet another Heroes character bites the dust; will any of the originals remain standing once the season ends? Molly’s death was nothing short of tragic since all Molly has been surrounded by since she was little was death and chaos; she was never awarded a moment of peace. If and when the world is saved, it would have been nice to see Molly live a life of peace and quiet at long last.

The only benefit in Molly’s death is that it prevents Renautas from finding Malina faster. Harris informs Erica about what’s happened and Taylor’s involvement in the situation; Erica is seething with rage, better watch your back Taylor! During Erica’s anger fueled tirade, she reveals some interesting information. Erica comments she must reach and eliminate “that child” as soon as possible. I’m assuming she’s referring to Malina. Erica sends Harris out to Malina’s last known location and orders him to take “the shadow” who turns out to be Quentin’s sister Phoebe. And with that revelation, “The Needs of the Many” comes to a close, but not before ending the episode with one of Mohinder’s quotes – can Sendhil Ramamurthy narrate everything, including my life?

“We all have a unique purpose… and try as we might, we cannot run from it. The only question that remains: will we be able to stay true to who we are or will we succumb to the pressure of destiny and become something else entirely… something… inhuman.” – Mohinder Suresh

This episode was definitely more fast-paced than the previous and succeeded in emotionally compromising me with Molly’s death and all the Heroes references. Based on the next episode’s preview, Tommy is essentially the Claire of Heroes Reborn, which I’m not exactly fond of. Heroes Reborn’s introduction of Tommy made me realize just how much I miss and like Claire as a character. In regards to Tommy, I don’t exactly dislike him, but I certainly don’t like him; unfortunately, he’s a character I don’t particularly care for, making his time in the limelight snooze-worthy! I’m hoping to form some sort of an attachment to Tommy’s character, but four episodes in and I’m not seeing the appeal. On the plus side, he’s not worse than Joanne because honestly, no one is worse than Joanne!

Now, I wanted to address a fan theory that’s been picking up speed on the internet. A decent amount of people seem to think Luke is Sylar. What do I have to say about this theory? Oh god, please no! Sylar is my favorite character in the Heroes universe and I strongly believe no one can play Sylar as magnificently as Zachary Quinto did…so please Heroes Reborn, don’t even go there! I admit, having Luke be Sylar could be an interesting twist, but it’s not a twist I’m hoping to see. A thing to note that adds to the Luke as Sylar theory, is Luke’s outfit of choice the majority of the episode. His black hat and black jacket strongly resemble Sylar’s “killing outfit” in season 1; though I’m hoping this was yet another homage to Heroes. Sylar does have the ability to shapeshift, last I remember, which could mean the show can literally make anyone be Sylar. Again, as much as I would love to see Sylar again, I would want Zachary Quinto to reprise his role. Time will tell just what direction Heroes Reborn takes in regards to old Heroes characters.

As of this episode, my favorite characters of Heroes Reborn are: Miko and Ren. I also really like Noah, Quentin and Taylor. I’m hoping these five characters are more closely focused on in future episode – NBC please renew Heroes Reborn so we can see more of these fascinating characters!

Despite not caring for quite a few characters, the elements I enjoy of the series are definitely the character interactions. Miko/Ren and Noah/Quentin are two pairs I enjoy seeing on screen. With Miko and Ren, my adoration is plain to see; they add elements of humor and heart which liven up the series. That’s the same exact reason why I love Noah and Quentin’s scenes together. They’re an unlikely duo, but they balance each other out. Quentin rouses Noah’s deadpan humor and Noah watches Quentin’s back. It’s the classic case of Yin to one’s Yang!

I’m hoping these character interactions remain consistent and we get to see each of the new heroes interact with one another!

What are your thoughts and theories on this week’s episode of Heroes Reborn, “The Needs Of The Many”? Let us know in the comments down below!