Before we get into this week's review of Heroes, read through our recap of "Strange Attractors." Ready to go? Good. So are we...

WHAT WORKED: Anything Samuel says or does. Whether it's Robert Knepper's performance or the way his character is written, we're mesmerized each time he's on screen. Not to be sacrilegious, but it's akin to The Joker in The Dark Knight.

WHAT NEEDS WORK: Well... Samuel. So he runs a carnival, his brother died and he wants to collect the Heroes for some (supposedly) evil purpose. We get that. We got it after the first episode. But the guy has to actually do something soon. As we just said, yes, his presence alone is captivating. But we're more than a third of the way through the season and his storyline hasn't advanced at all yet.

WHAT DIDN'T WORK: Are they really exploring a possible relationship between Claire and Gretchen?!? This is insulting to the concept of homosexuality and friendship. The former because the storyline implies someone will simply choose to try a same-sex relationship because someone else shows interest; the latter because the show doesn't seem to think we'll care enough about Gretchen's role in Claire's life unless they are more than friends.

WHAT DIDN'T WORK: Parkman thought he could drink Sylar away... only to have Sylar take over his body when Parkman passed out?!? Meanwhile, another version of Sylar is alive and ignorant at the carnival? We're smart people, we swear. But does this make sense to anyone?

WHAT WORKED: We may not like the storylines being handed to Zachary Quinto, but the actor knocks each performance out of the park. He's as versatile as anyone on TV.

WHAT DIDN'T WORK: Is there a reason HRG didn't just call a lawyer instead of concocting that Tracy story? It's illegal to hold a suspect for more than 24 hours without making an arrest. It's also illegal to question a minor without an adult present.

WHAT WORKED: Tracy considering the carnival. As stated above, this promising storyline needs something to actually happen in order to move it along. Ask yourself this: what's the main plot of Heroes right now? It's been set up as the carnival's attempt to recruit those with abilities, but we're almost halfway through the season and there's no direction. Move it along, Heroes, or - as the ratings sadly show each week - there won't be another season after this.

Agree or disagree with any of this review? Sound off in our Heroes forum!

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.