"I Am Become Death" is the fourth episode of the third season of the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

series ''

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'' ...

'' and the thirty-eighth episode overall. It was written by

Aron Eli Coleite Aron Eli Coleite (sometimes credited Aron Coleite) is an American comic book writer, television writer and producer best known for his work on the Netflix series '' Daybreak'', the NBC series ''Heroes'' and on the comic book series ''Ultimate X- ...

and directed by

David Von Ancken David Henry Von Ancken (December 5, 1964 – July 26, 2021) was an American film director, television director and screenwriter. Life and career He directed one feature film, the 2006 Western '' Seraphim Falls'' starring Liam Neeson and Pierce B ...

. The episode originally aired on October 6, 2008. The title is a reference to a phrase from the ''

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; ), often referred to as the Gita (), is a Hindu texts, Hindu scripture, dated to the second or first century BCE, which forms part of the Hindu epic, epic poem Mahabharata. The Gita is a synthesis of various strands of Ind ...

'' and was famously quoted by

J. Robert Oppenheimer J. Robert Oppenheimer (born Julius Robert Oppenheimer ; April 22, 1904 – February 18, 1967) was an American theoretical physics, theoretical physicist who served as the director of the Manhattan Project's Los Alamos Laboratory during World ...

; "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."

Plot

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

travels four years into the future with his future self, where they discover that

Kaito Kaito is a popular masculine Japanese given name. The name Kaito is a male name of Japanese origin. (written: かいと, カイト, 海斗, 凱斗, 開士, 魁斗, 海翔, 海人, 快斗, 界人, 嘉惟人 or 海都) Notable people with the nam ...

's formula is being used to administer adrenal power enhancements to ordinary people, some of whom are unable or unwilling to control their abilities. Future Peter tells Present Peter that

Sylar Sylar (Gabriel Gray) is a fictional character and a primary antagonist of the NBC superhero drama series '' Heroes''. Portrayed by Zachary Quinto, he is a super-powered serial killer who targets other superhumans in order to steal their powers. ...

can help to fix the problematic future. The Claire of this future assassinates Future Peter. Peter finds that a friendly Sylar has reassumed his former identity of Gabriel Gray, and is now raising his young son, Noah, in Claire's former home. Gabriel teaches Peter his power. Future Claire, Knox and Daphne show up to kill Peter. Gabriel beats Knox into submission and loses control of his radiation ability. Peter tries in vain to stop Gabriel before he explodes, reducing Costa Verde to nuclear waste. Claire takes Peter back to the base.

Nathan Nathan or Natan may refer to: People and biblical figures *Nathan (given name), including a list of people and characters with this name * Nathan (surname) *Nathan (prophet), a person in the Hebrew Bible *Nathan (son of David), a biblical figu ...

, who in this future is the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

and married to Tracy, offers Peter the opportunity to read his mind to see if he's sincere. Peter stops short of cutting Nathan's head open and teleports back to the present Level 5, where Sylar confirms that he is Peter's brother. In the present, Tracy attempts to commit suicide by jumping off a bridge. Nathan flies in and saves her. Throughout the episode, Mohinder is researching a possible cure for the powers he's given himself. Hiro and Ando finally resolve their differences. They try to escape through a vent and are caught by the Haitian.

Angela Petrelli ''Heroes'' is an American Superhero fiction, superhero Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Tim Kring that aired on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006, to February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of o ...

mentions that Hiro's father would have been disappointed with him for losing both portions of the formula and mentions that he already has "the key" to restoring the formula. The scene switches to Hiro and Ando in a graveyard, digging up

Adam Monroe This is a list of fictional characters in the television series ''Heroes (American TV series), Heroes'', the List of Heroes graphic novels, ''Heroes'' graphic novels, and the ''Heroes'' webisodes. Main characters Character duration In i ...

who, upon seeing Hiro, lunges at him.

Reception

The episode was given a score of D+ by

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...

reviewer Noel Murray. Robert Canning of

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

gave the episode 7.6 out of 10.

References

External links

* {{Heroes episodes Heroes season 3 episodes 2008 American television episodes Television episodes about time travel Fiction set in 2012 Television episodes set in the 2010s