Can 'Heroes' Survive a Sophomore Slump?

I'll be honest with you I was less than thrilled with Heroes' Season 1 Finale. It didn't live up the incredible excitement built all year. So the big question is will Heroes be able to avoid a sophomore slump? The premiere of "Four Months Later" gave me a little hope.

As a direct result of my disappointment with last season's finale, I've avoided all things Heroes this summer. No graphic novels, no spoilers, no reruns. With the exception of some Heroes news, I've had a Heroes-free summer. So I went into last night's season premiere with no building excitement -- just a fan returning for Season 2.

I'm happy to report that while the episode didn't blow me away, it did peak my interest in the Heroes world once again. I am intrigued by the plot and already have my own slew of questions.

Let's start with the plot that captivates me the most -- the older generation of heroes. We learned a few things. First, there were twelve of them in the original group. Nine remain with Deveaux, Linderman and Angela's husband gone. Yes, Peter and Nathan's dad was a member of the Dirty Dozen and it sounds like he died by their hands too. Hmmm . . . What was his power? And when did he develop it. He didn't have it in the graphic novel when he met Linderman.

For that matter, do we know what Kaito Nakamura's (George Takei) power is? And we might never know. I'm assuming that he is really dead. Surely the Dirty Dozen wouldn't take him out in a way in which he could use his power to survive. Speaking of which, just who was the hitman? Kaito makes it sound like he was one of the Dirty Dozen. What exactly was Kaito going to tell his son? Will Hiro (Masi Oka) going to be able to go back in Kaito's past to find out?

Also, just what exactly sealed Kaito's fate? Was it the past sins he wanted to atone for? Or was it helping his son defeat Linderman's plan that got him killed? Angela Petrelli (Cristine Rose) is also marked for death. Was it because she didn't help her sons or because she wasn't able to stop them? Did all of the Dirty Dozen stray from their original mission to help the world or just the few we've met? Who's their leader -- the mystery man from Molly's (Adair Tishler) dreams?