'Heroes': Season Three Preview

There's no ponderous foreplay this year, as Heroes is back with an immediate bang in the magnificent season premiere 'The Second Coming'. A darker tone has certainly descended on the show for its third chapter, entitled 'Villains'. Here is our look at what to expect over the coming months - and there's a lot more than brain-devouring Sylar on the roam...

New Characters

"You're going to see a lot of bad guys," stated Heroes creator Tim Kring earlier in the year. The inner recesses of The Company's supposedly secure Level 5 section are unveiled, with several baddies locked up in cells - but not for long. Benjamin Knox, Jess Murphy, The German and Flint all escape into the outside world with powers including magnetic manipulation, fear feeding and pyrokinesis.

We've already met the motherly Niki, last seen in a burning house, and her vicious alter-ego Jessica. Now brace yourselves for Tracy Strauss, a determined woman mixing in political circles and bearing the power of cryokinesis.

No, that doesn’t mean Tracy can cry at will like some X Factor contestant milking their sob story. Instead, it means she is basically a female version of 'Mr Freeze' from the Batman franchise, but bearing less cheesy one-liners than the Arnold Schwarzenegger interpretation of the character. So chill!

Tracy is wrapped up in the affairs of New York Governor Robert Malden, played by Babylon 5 actor Bruce Boxleitner. His true nature and motivation is unclear, although he is wrapped around Tracy's little finger and adopts her suggestion of appointing Nathan Petrelli into a prominent role.

Matt Parkman encounters a chap named Usutu in the desert, although he initially thinks he's chatting to a turtle. Usutu is very similar to Isaac Mendez, in that he visually depicts events before they happen. Meanwhile, Hiro is in pursuit of a Paris-based lady called Daphne, a real speedster who makes Usain Bolt look like Stephen Hawking.

Resurrected Characters

Linderman is back! The mysterious old man, who appears to be morphing gradually into Captain Birdseye, is on hand to give Nathan Petrelli some guidance after the shooting incident. Does he actually exist or is he a figment of the politician's imagination?

Claire's fiery mother also rises like a phoenix from the flames, while Hiro's daddy Kaito (aka Mr Sulu) is also making his presence felt from beyond the grave.

New Plot Strands

Identities are set to be toyed around with throughout 'Villains', which is evident from the very first scene in the chapter where we see a very different and very brunette Claire. As for Peter Petrelli, brace yourselves for a bit of a shock. There's a chance he may look rather unlike Milo Ventimiglia – scar or no scar.

Mohinder's scientific dabbling enables normal humans to suddenly develop special powers, after he figures out that adrenalin is the key. He uses himself as the guinea pig and appears to turn into Jeff Goldblum from David Cronenberg's The Fly. But who else will he inject with the life-changing serum and can he prevent himself from straying to the dark side?

Hiro's relationship with Ando becomes increasingly strained when the time-hopper takes a glimpse into the future and discovers he doesn't quite see eye to eye with his old pal.

Angela Petrelli's backstory will be examined in some detail, especially in the season's eighth episode. Her seemingly cold and ruthless disposition is explained, while there's a shock revelation about someone she gave birth to - namely his or her identity.

Beyond 'Villains'

Tim Kring has stated that the final twelve episodes of the third season will all be part of the fourth chapter - 'Fugitives'. However, little else is currently known about the storyline.

Heroes: Villains starts on BBC Two on Wednesday October 1 at 9pm.