...finally made its way on to the BBC last night. Of course I'd heard plenty about it (including that creator Tim Kring apologised publicly over it); now came my chance to watch the first two episodes.

My first impressions are that season 2 carries on in much the same vein as season 1, with similar strengths and flaws. On the plus side, there are still interesting plot twists, and the most engaging characters largely remain as engaging; on the minus side, I still think that a programme about people with special powers should not shy away so much from having its characters actually use those powers.

So: Hiro has accidentally transported himself back to 17th-century Japan, only to find that his hero, Takezo Kensei, was really English, and a drunk. Masi Oka is as good as ever, and David Anders plays the English rake very well (with a pretty good accent, I must admit). So there's no problem there, but I do wonder where that leaves the character of Ando; he was always best as Hiro's foil, so I'm not sure where the writers can take him on his own.

Nathan Petrelli also seems something of a spare part at the moment: the whole point of his character was that he was in the public eye and had a highly visible power; now he's more or less in hiding, I doubt he'll be using his ability much (I'm tempted to speculate that that's why they introduced another flying character). Meanwhile, Peter has turned up in Ireland with amnesia; such a powerful character was always going to be difficult for the writers to deal with, and it remains to be seen how they'll handle him.

The Bennet family have moved to California, where Claire has to fit in at her new school; this season, she wants to use her healing powers, but her father tells her to keep a low profile instead. Noah himself is now working in a copy shop, but is secretly in touch with Mohinder Suresh, who has infiltrated the Company with the intention of bringing it down. I did think the writers were perhaps trying a bit too hard to replicate these characters' circumstances from the first season (seemingly cosy family, teenage tribulations, secretive father), but the actors make it work.

Matt Parkman is now lodging in Mohinder's Brooklyn apartment and guarding young Molly. I'm reminded of an article from Off The Telly that suggested it was a shame that an actor as ebullient (in behind-the-scenes interviews) as Greg Grunberg wasn't able to demonstrate that quality more in his role. I think Sendhil Ramamurthy has a similar lot; both his and Grunberg's characters could do with more levity to round them out.

The main new characters introduced here are the fugitives Maya (who infects people with a fatal disease when she is placed under stress) and Alejandro (her twin brother, who can cure the same disease). This seems to me a poor choice of abilities that can only lead down similar storytelling paths; most of the characters in season 1 detested their powers, so I'm not sure how much this storyline can add. But I'll wait and see.

In short: okay so far. To be continued...