The episode of Heroes to be shown this coming Wednesday on BBC Two is Homecoming. I first saw it a few months ago, but more recently watched it on BBC Three earlier this week, and I think for me, it pretty much defines the first season, and indeed, the concept of the show in it's entirity. Knowing what's yet to come for UK viewers, i'd even go as far as to say it is the best episode of the season.

With the episodes prior to Homecoming all building towards that moment and mythology, "save the cheerleader, save the world", it's this episode where that thought turns into action, and the heroes become, well, heroes. Much like 24 and it's mid-season climaxes, this is the episode where everything pays off for that one hour of television where the story-arc is resolved, and the next stage of the show can begin. Most noticeably, this is where where Issac's paintings become the present, and the clairvoyant thoughts of previous episodes have fully-blossomed into actual events and scenarios, that are taking place now, right in front of your eyes to personal satisfaction and tension. After hours of introductory backstory and scenes of establishment and yet, awe, this is the pay-off, and a reminder if any was needed, why you're a fan of the show in the first place.

*spoilers*

The promise of death, the first of many battles between Peter and Sylar, and the impending doom from the notion that if Claire dies it's over, all with added crossover lunacy and time/space continuum scenes so satisfyingly confusing, it's the end of the first part of the season and the beginning of something far bigger, establishing plotlines for both the rest of the season, and indeed, the series as a whole thanks to added backstory revelations. But best of all, it's the coming together of these scenes that makes the episode work. For just one episode it truly seems as if this entire fictional universe is connected, as previously hinted in earlier episodes, and the new found importance placed on these characters is overwhelming. This episode is the one that separates them from being everyday people, into the superheroes that they'll become, and you do witness that first hand during a lot of the utterly tense yet compelling scenes set in the high school- an utter geekfest if you've been paying attention thus far.

The execution and concept of Heroes cannot be faulted, a show where proving it's worth is rarely needed to begin with going on previous episodes, and yet, Homecoming achieves this well, providing a more than satisfying climax to the first story arc, while leaving you wanting more through just a teaser of what this show is capable of. Things slow down and naturally pick up again like life itself, but for me, this is the highlight of the first season.