Heroes Season 1 Finale

On the same night as the two-hour season finale of "24" as well as the aftermath of WWE Judgment Day, "Heroes" delivered, for one last time this season, in a monumental, history-making way (as if there was any other). The conclusion of the first volume of what will undoubtedly be NBC's frontline forerunner for years to come served not only as a conclusion to the biggest story arch of the season, but also took the show straight into the next chapter. In four months, "Heroes" picks up right where it left off with Volume II: Generations and the spin-off mini-series, "Heroes: Origins."

As for the season finale itself? "How to Stop An Exploding Man" didn't turn out quite as good as "Five Years Gone" (but then again I doubt any hour of television will rival that chapter anytime soon), but it definitely beat out "Company Man," allowing it to come in, in my book at least, as the second best "Heroes" chapter thus far.

Lengthy Recap:

• Modesty aside, everything pretty much happened as I had predicted earlier, save for a couple of surprises at the end. Like I had previously explained, Peter Petrelli, due to a cruel twist of fate, was undeniably the bomb now, and Sylar's death, regardless of whether or not Hiro stabbed him, would have nothing to do with the explosion going off in the end.

• Niki and D.L., whom all season long pretty much acted out their own storyline, independent of the other major characters, finally played a role in the big picture. I had predicted the Niki/Candice confrontation, and sure enough, it happened. Of course, Niki finally lost the baggage of a psychotic alter ego but kept the prize - her superhuman strength, which led her to breaking through Candice's illusion and saving Micah. The family united, they would join up with Mohinder and the others and end up ... where else? Kirby Plaza.