Of all the episodes of Misfits so far, this is up there as one of my faves. It begins with Simon continuing his training on his mission to become the Masked Hero that saves Alicia's life. I have to admit, that scene reminded me a bit of Spiderman, as Simon fumbles along the way. When he spots a robbery in progress, he sweeps in and saves a kid from a mugger. The kid is relieved, but he's also starstruck by the masked man, declaring, "You're a superhero!" He asks for a picture, but the Masked Hero has slipped away. Back at Simon's flat, you see the look of elation on his face because he's actually saved someone. Alisha is not too happy with this … if Simon becomes the Masked Hero, that means he will go back in time again and die saving her. And thus begins the conflict that drives us through this episode - the question of whether or not you can fight your destiny.
At the community centre, the probation officer brings in a group of kids for his version of a "scared straight" program. He has the kids meet with the community service gang, and what do you know, one of the kids is the one that Simon saved! He's there because he tried stealing a girl's purse so he could pretend to return it to impress her and be a hero. Simon ends up in the bathroom at the same time as the kid, and tells him, "You won't be like this forever. You'll meet a girl who likes you." The kid recognizes Simon's voice and realizes this is the guy who saved him. He again calls Simon a superhero and asks if they can hang out together. Simon tells the kid to move on and forget about ever meeting the Masked Hero.
We then see the kid drawing a comic, and it's of Simon and his alter ego. This is where things take a weird turn - all of a sudden, Simon and the kid (who we learn is named Peter), are sitting on the roof of the community centre together. Peter admits that he has an obsession with superheroes, and says that Simon is a real life superhero. How does Simon respond? He asks Peter to be his best friend! OK, something is definitely up here. Alisha sees Simon talking with Peter, and Simon tells her that they're friends. Alisha doesn't seem pleased by this.
Simon then takes Peter to his lair, and shares the story of his future self, how his destiny is to go back in time to save Alisha, and that he dies doing it. At that point, Alisha walks in. She's not happy that Peter's there, and even less pleased that Simon has told Peter about his secret. She tells Peter to leave and reams Simon out, which Peter overhears. When we next see them together, Simon tells Alisha that he has to face his destiny on his own, and that he has to end their relationship, that he'll "sacrifice their love for the greater good" and that Alisha will one day see that he did it all for her. Alisha tells the rest of the gang that Simon dumped her, and that it came out of nowhere. Alisha runs into Peter, who is drawing one of his comics. He tells her that being a superhero and having a girlfriend don't mix. She notices the comic and suspects that Peter may be doing something to Simon. My suspicion at this point - Peter has a power, and what he draws comes true. Sounds a little bit like a show I watched as a kid …
In the B-story this week, we see more of the Kelly/Seth chemistry. She meets him for a drink at one point, where she chugs a beer in a very unladylike fashion, and makes fun of him for ordering a G&T, which is what her ran drinks. He asks her if she's "on the market", but the conversation doesn't get very far as the gang pretty much summons Kelly. She does meet with Seth again, and he gives her the brush-off. She asks if it has anything to do with the grave he goes to visit, and he reveals that it was his girlfriend. She died of a drug overdose before the storm, back when he was a drug dealer. He actually gave her the drugs that she OD'd on. Kelly tells Seth that he needs to move on, but he says that he can't because he still loves his dead girlfriend.
Alisha is with the gang, and confronts Peter about making Simon break up with her. Simon appears at that point in costume, and Kelly asks him to beat up Peter. Instead, he takes on Alisha, Kelly, Rudy and Curtis. This is Rudy's first sighting of the masked hero, and he seems to think it's the probation worker. He couldn't be farther off the mark!
The gang, minus Simon, heads over to Peter's flat. They break in, and Kelly uses her power to disarm the alarm. Once inside, they see all of Peter's comics, and realize that everything he draws is coming true. They tear everything down, and the scene cuts to Simon, who is affected by these drawings being destroyed. At that point, a look crosses Simon's face as if he realizes that he was under a spell. Alisha goes to Simon, and he asks for her back. She tells him that it was Peter's drawings that affected Simon's behaviour. Alisha doesn't blame Simon for his actions, but he is truly remorseful.
Peter arrives home to find his drawings destroyed, then heads out to confront Simon. Peter says he was only trying to help Simon, and that Alisha doesn't understand what Simon needs to become. Simon tells Peter he's not a superhero, that superheroes are fantasy, and that he won't ever leave Alisha.
Everything seems to be back to normal - well, normal for this gang - but we see a masked man looking at them from on high. I don't think it's future Simon back again, but perhaps a copycat. We then see Alisha is being chased, and this other masked man grabs her.
Simon arrives at his flat and sees a message written on his mirror, instructing him to go to a warehouse. He grabs his costume and heads right out. At the warehouse, we see Alisha is tied up by the other masked man who, of course, turns out to be Peter. Simon arrives to rescue Alisha, and ends up in a fight against the other masked man, which ends with Simon stabbing his opponent. He doesn't realize that it was Peter. Simon learns it was Peter behind Alisha's capture, and before Peter dies, he tells Simon, "A superhero has to be willing to die for what he believes in."
Back at Simon's flat, Alisha begs Simon to not go back in time, to never leave her, and to burn the suit. He takes it along with him to the warehouse where he burns Peter's body. He then picks up the backpack that contains his suit, but we don't actually see him burn it. He heads back to his place, and tells Alisha he did it … but we see him hide the suit in a false back in a closet.
At the very end, we see the final comics that Peter made before dying … he actually orchestrated his own demise and everything that happened afterward. The final cell of the comic says "To be continued", which can only mean we have not seen the last of our Masked Hero!
What's in store for tonight's new episode? Apparently, an older gent tries to use Curtis' former power to go back in time and kill Hitler. The plan goes totally wrong and the gang finds themselves in an alternate reality where the *** conquered Britain. This is one you won't want to miss! Make sure you're tuned in at 10pm.