The bear stretches and yawns, dragging his mangy carcass outside his cave to breathe fresh morning air and blink in the sunlight once again. He'd been hibernating along with his "Heroes Season 1" box set, which is a great companion through the long dreary winter.

He's kicking himself a bit 'cos if he had picked it up at Gramophone instead of Blue Max, he'd have got it cheaper by $15! Doh! Oh, well, caveat emptor.

Heroes is the X-men tale of the '00s. All flawed human beings (losers, dark-siders, freaks) gifted with a superhuman ability. There are consequences, of course, in how they fit into 'regular' society, but to be honest, even regular human beings often find it difficult to fit in with each other as it is.

It's the tension in wanting to be part of a larger society versus the desire to stand out from anonymity and homogeneity that makes Heroes so appealing. That, plus the drive to find some meaning in our special circumstances -- but nothing less than "sav[ing] the world" will give us that meaning.

That's a nice ideal, but the danger is that we sometimes feel that we need a superpower before we can save the world. Instead of developing and using what abilities we have, we sit around and wish we we had more while the world goes to heck around us.

So if Ando, the amazing no-power man (his only skill is that he can speak English), can get caught up in the adventure, why not us, whomever we are? All right... slowly... put your hands in the air... step away from that cave... and go up, up, and awaaaaaayyy!!!