It’s hard to remember a science fiction series that has hit so big so quickly. Yet by the end of the first series of Heroes, it feels--for all the right reasons--that the show’s been around for longer than it has, such is the huge amount of success it’s enjoyed.

The setup is simple, yet undeniably intriguing. It essentially tells the stories of a series of people who discover they have legitimate, differing superhero powers. On top of that, these people then gradually appreciate that these powers are needed for reasons that soon become apparent, and the story of Heroes builds up from there.

Heavily influenced by comics both in its structure and story, Heroes sustains interest through a number of story arcs of different magnitudes, skilfully weaving them throughout the 23 episodes that make up the season. It’s contained enough to keep you interested, yet offers enough threads to make several more seasons a very appealing prospect.

Heroes, though, really gels because the basics are right. It’s plotted intelligently, written and directed with real nerve and talent, and has a cast who you can’t help but get emotionally involved with. It’s also, for the overwhelming majority of its episodes, utterly compelling televisions. Ironically, its few miss-steps of any note come right at the back end, by which time you really would forgive it pretty much anything.

Heroes is rightly being heralded as a sci-fi classic in the making. Yet even if subsequent seasons don’t fully do justice to those words--and at the time of writing, season two is still some way from debuting--this boxset will serve as a glowing testament to just how good television can be when it’s just done right. Quite brilliant. --Jon Foster