I am – Hercules!!


Bryan Fuller, creator of “Dead Like Me” and “Wonderfalls” and writer of “Heroes’” best first-season episodes, returned to the “Heroes” writers’ room in early December following the wrap of “Pushing Daisies’” final episodes.

Though his name is not on the teleplay of tonight’s episode, titled “Shades of Gray,” the installment marks Fuller’s first episode “in the room.”

The fact is, “Heroes,” like many scripted series, is written by committee. While one writer will typically get “written by” credit for a given episode, it’s routine for all the writers to contribute plot and dialogue, and for senior writers to polish the teleplay before it goes before cameras.

What level of influence Fuller (the only writer besides series creator Tim Kring with showrunning experience) could assert in his first days back – in the middle of a long-planned ongoing story arc – will likely be difficult to gauge, but reports indicate Fuller hit the ground running.

NBC says of tonight’s installment:

When Sylar (Zachary Quinto) comes face-to-face with his long lost father (guest star John Glover), the reunion proves to be what he least expected. Elsewhere, after receiving a tip from "Rebel," Claire (Hayden Panettiere) must decide if she will help her sworn enemy, Eric Doyle (guest star David Lawrence XVII), evade capture. Meanwhile, as "The Hunter" (guest star Zeljko Ivanek) plans to uncover the Petrelli family's secrets and take control of Nathan's (Adrian Pasdar) operation, Matt (Greg Grunberg) finds himself in the spotlight and on the verge of leveling Capitol Hill.

I’m hugely encouraged by the clip below, in which the cheerleader finds herself stranded in a sea of horny comic-book nerds:

NBC execs indicated last week that “Heroes,” still NBC’s top-rated drama despite a huge plunge in ratings over the past two years, would receive an 18- or 20-episode fourth-season order. Fuller, currently working under a newish two-year contract with NBC Universal, intends to remain with “Heroes” into season four.

The first and only season-three “written by Bryan Fuller” episode, “Cold Snap,” airs in two weeks. Five more third-season episodes will air after that.

9 p.m. Monday. NBC.

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