Last Monday, after a six-week break, the new superhit Heroes finally returned, ready to keep us on the edge of our seats. It's a character-driven, science-fiction drama in which certain people realize that they have unique abilities and become entangled in a plot to detonate-or prevent-a nuclear bomb in Manhattan. The heroes are varied and well-developed: Claire Bennet, the Texan cheerleader who doesn't know her past and somehow automatically and immediately heals any wound; Hiro Nakamura, a Japanese cubicle bug who can travel through time and space ;Isaac Mendez, a Manhattan-based heroin junkie who paints the future and others.

The show manages to attract fans o f both the science fiction and mainstream drama by having a diverse cast of attractive characters who, despite having super powers, lead normal lives with real problems. Meanwhile, the intricate entanglement of multiple storylines keeps the suspense high for every character.

For the geeky fanboys who notice every detail, the possibility that each story could have some kind of profound effect on all of the others is enough to keep them enthralled. To the more casual viewer, if one story gets boring, you know that something refreshing is coming in like, five minutes-but I don't know how you could possibly be bored.

New heroes and familiar-faced cameos keep the show fresh. Every time a new character is introduced, we're always wondering, "What can they do and how do they fit the puzzle?" And of course, the writers will be happy to oblige you-eventually. The show reels you in with a one-two punch of surprise and inevitability that creates an unbelievable suspense, leaving your mind and your heart racing.

But as the season nears its end -four episodes are left including the finale-it looks like its closing the door on its biggest draw: anticipation. Not to worry, though; If last week's episode is any indication, there will be plenty of wild conspiracies for us to conjure up. The return episode showed us that, now that it's back, Heroes is going to be bigger.

(Spoiler alert: If you haven't started watching the show, you won't understand a thing I'm saying, and if you watch the show, but haven't seen last week's episode, skip down 'cause the show will be boring if you already know what's happening.)

Right off the bat we're hit with a big change: Linderman replaces Monhinder as the show's narrator. The change is an ominous signal that the connections between all of the characters are shifting and growing. The episode is action-packed: Each character progresses dramaticall-except Hiro, for reasons people who have seen the previous episode know. Yet, even as all of the players move around, the situation concerning the bomb changes very little. We still have no idea what's going to happen and when it will actually occur. That the story will be expanding into the past as well as the future is particularly interesting. Even the episode's title, ".07 Percent" implies that the writers have only scratched the surface of what's to come.

Heroes has been almost universally labeled as the best new show of 2006. In the ratings game, it has been going toe-to-toe with the king of serial dramas, 24. Monday night is the new "night to watch," a sort of "drama night" to match the traditional Thursday "comedy night" lineup. At a time where very little is certain in the TV world, Heroes is a new staple to set your watch by.