Theory:Sylar

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The following fan theories are about Sylar.

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Theories

- I think Elle is still the mother of Noah Gray in the timeline we saw him. And Claire hates Sylar, for one. Also Claire is too young for him, and I doubt the writers will do that. Lastly, Claire may have been darker in the future, but still showed a little sadness when she killed Peter. She threatened Noah's life, telling me that I doubt she would threaten her own child.

Theory	Citations	Notes
The Company kept Sylar alive with Adam's blood while they tested him.	Mr. Bennet told Hank to keep bringing Sylar back if he died.	+ It appears that the Company has done the same with HRG. + Sylar hasn't demonstrated any other ability that would allow him to recover from death. If he did, he probably wouldn't have needed Claire. • This might also explain why Sylar no longer needs glasses. - If the healing effect did cure Sylar of his bad eyesight, then he would surely use his ability to find out how Claire or Adam's ability works. • Sylar wears glasses in the exposed future. • Claire's blood does not seem to have restored Noah's eyesight. - If the Company has a stock of Adam's blood, they wouldn't need Claire's blood - and they would have cured Sylar after the Kirby plaza event instead of letting him cure by himself under the guard of Candice. + They could have ran out of Adam's blood, and by the time they went to get some more, Adam had already escaped. + Bob seemed to be confident of Claire's blood's regenerative powers. This could be because he saw Adam's blood have the same effect. + Adam could have found out about his blood's healing properties through this. - HRG's instructions could have simply referred to bringing Sylar back by conventional methods, for example cardiac resuscitation.
Sylar's life has been repeatedly saved by a shadow-faction within the Company - not by the Company itself.	We learned in Fallout that orders came from someone high-up in the Company to prevent Sylar from being killed after his capture in Odessa, despite their usual policy of killing those with dangerous powers who could not be controlled. Someone high up in the Company arranged and paid for Sylar to receive treatment for his injuries and for Candice to keep an eye on him. (Kindred)	+ The background given for Sylar in his updated profile on Assignment Tracker 2.0 ends with his escape from the Primatech facility in Odessa and a note that Sylar's "current location is unknown". Apart from speculation that he may have been responsible for killing Ted Sprague, no mention is made of Sylar's role in the later events of Volume One - much less the events of Volume Two. This suggests that whoever has been using the Company's resources to aid Sylar has been doing so without their approval. + Granting that the Company has been consistently arrogant in which threats they could control (locking up Adam Monroe, putting Maury Parkman in a coma, etc.) they have also had a record of killing those empowered people who were too unstable or too dangerous to be controlled. It goes against their mission to keep saving Sylar's life regardless of how much could be learned by studying him. + In Powerless, it seems that Elle was surprised to see Sylar alive and well. Given that she knew who Sylar was, it also seems likely she would have known if Sylar was being preserved somewhere using Company resources if it were an official Company operation. + Additionally, somebody at The Company would probably have checked up on Candice and found out about her death and Sylar's escape had she not been working in secrecy. + If Angela Petrelli really is Sylar's mother, she could have done that. We also see that she runs the company in another way than Bob.
Sylar is meant to be Peter's literary/thematic antithesis.	None.	+ He has a similar motivation (to be special), similar looks, (perhaps) similar powers, both have mothers that don't believe in them, and both men have even talked to a Suresh who ultimately gave up on him before he could prove that he was special. One major difference between them is that Sylar's main power depends upon logic and Peter's power depends upon emotion - a common theme in many literary conflicts. + In Five Years Gone, when Sylar and Peter fight, Sylar uses cryokinesis while Peter uses the power of pyrokinesis. In other words, Sylar is cold and emotionless ice, while Peter is hot and passionate fire. + The cast commentary confirms that it was "fire and ice". + Peter and Sylar have the same initials as a well-known pair of comic book nemeses: Peter Parker (Spider-Man) and the Green Goblin. + Furthermore, numerous references to other comics outside the Heroes universe have been mentioned, like the Hulk and Captain America ("It's Coming")
Sylar may also be a thematic foil to evolution itself.	None.	+ His profession of watchmaker is often used as an analogue to an intelligent designer. Rather than following an evolutionary imperative, he appears to be redesigning himself using existing powers as a template which he then improves upon. + Evolution requires reproduction of the fittest, not merely survival of the fittest. So, unless he starts trying to have babies, he can't affect evolution at all. In fact, by taking so many evolved people out of the gene pool, he is actually slowing down evolution. + With all the alterations to his DNA, it is possible that he will cease to be genetically human and will therefore be unable to reproduce. - But, would that then render Peter and Arthur Petrelli as inhuman as well, were they to absorb numerous powers? It would seem that, with the other Petrellis being natural sponges, Sylar himself could absorb a (theoretically) unlimited number of abilities.
Sylar can be identified with some supernatural harbinger of the end of the world.	None.	+ Sylar builds and restores watches. The notion of supernatural "watchmaker", setting the laws of science in place then letting them tick away, is one frequent symbol for God (a rather apt one for a show centering around apparently God-directed evolution). + Sylar, like the biblical Lucifer/Satan, became dissatisfied with his status in life, wanting desperately to be more important, more special. By acquiring more and more superhuman powers, he appears to be making himself God-like, an act of supreme hubris. + "Gabriel" is the name of the archangel supposed to arrive immediately prior to the apocalypse. • The first episode of the first season (Genesis) and the first episode after the mid-season break (Godsend) both had titles of religious significance, the first being "Genesis" and the next being "Godsend". The Haitian associates these powers with being from God, and Jessica's character flippantly rejects the need for God's help at the end of Godsend. There are many religious references (predominantly Christian) throughout the show, which could be hints that Sylar plays a significant role in a supernatural scheme. • Both "Genesis" and "Godsend" begin with a G, as do both of Sylar's real names (Gabriel Gray).
Sylar is Peter Petrelli's twin brother.	None.	+ Tim Kring said "Peter and Sylar are two halves of a similar coin". - That would rather refer to them being enemies and completely opposite. + Their abilities are both absorbing powers, although differently. • Both Zachary Quinto (Sylar) and Milo Ventimiglia (Peter) were born in 1977. + Angela and Arthur claim that Peter and Sylar are brothers, so it is entirely possible they could be twins. - Noah claims that they are lying. - In a Behind the Eclipse Week 4, the writers said that they are not twins.
Sylar may have a secondary ability that works with his intuitive aptitude to alter his genetics.	None.	+ Sylar takes brains and does something with them, but we don't know what. + Sylar somehow altered his own body to mimic death when he was in the cell at Primatech. + Several evolved humans seem to have multiple, related abilities (Hiro bends time and space, the Haitian removes memories negates abilities of those around him). - Noah Bennet said that all the evolved humans with whom the Company has come in contact have only had one power each. Whatever Sylar does to give himself more powers should be just another facet of his own ability, or something that anyone could do (but only Sylar knows how). + If Sylar had some secondary ability to alter his body as long as he understood the principles and what was needed, he could modify himself in order to add powers to the core of his specific genome that gives all evolved humans their abilities. This is similar to Peter's mimicking, which is perhaps the reason Sylar said, "You're like me aren't you? I'd like to see how that works."
Sylar's intuitive understanding of how things work is not a special power, but some form of autism or savant ability.	None.	+ When Chandra first tested him, none of the tests suggested that he had an ability. + While being tested by Hank at Primatech, Hank could see no signs of any special abilities other than telekinesis, possibly suggesting that before he killed Brian Davis and acquired his ability, he had none of his own. - At the time, Sylar had several abilities, such as freezing. If only telekinesis was detected, that means there are definitely holes in the Company's system. - Peter manifested this ability. - He was on Chandra's list.
Sylar is a different species of evolved human.	None.	+ There is much about him that is different from the others know evolved humans, and his original power was not detected by Chandra. - Chandra might have lacked the necessary equipment to detect intuitive aptitude. + Only his telekinesis was detected by The Company. + This would make him a even better villain and a opposite force for other characters.
Sylar has Mosaic DNA and is a Chimera.	None.	+ This explains why the Company only found "telekinesis DNA" when tested him.
Sylar can recover from near-fatal wounds (such as being shot) by using his telekinesis to perform surgery on himself.	None.	+ There were many medical textbooks in Sylar's apartment, which he could have memorized once he gained enhanced memory. + In the graphic novel Road Kill, Sylar definitely shows bullet wounds where Noah shot him, and he mentions "These bullet holes wouldn't be a problem if I had just gotten to that cheerleader." However, he still manages to recover remarkably fast. His telekinesis could also have eased the impact of the bullets. + The writers have stated that much of Sylar's apparent invulnerability is due to his telekinesis.
Sylar has some sort of enhanced durability or a super charged immune system power.	None.	+ Hank told Noah Bennet that they had administered enough glycimerine to kill an elephant. + He hit the Bennet's fridge with enough force to dent it and was able to escape the Haitian with relative ease. + Sylar has killed at least ten people but has only conclusively exhibited seven acquired powers. + Sylar fell off the roof of Union Wells High and walked away. When Peter sustained the same fall, his legs were mangled and entire body bloodied. - He wasn't completely unharmed after the fall, he is seen walking with quite a limp. Also, he could have formed a telekinetic cushion for himself to land on, but let Peter fall. + After being stabbed through the chest, it took four months for him to heal enough to wake up, but he did heal. + He could use his telekenisis to deaden the impact of weapons or move his internal organs out of the path of weapons. This would cause him pain, but possibly less than getting shot or stabbed.
Sylar wasn't going to kill Molly Walker; he was going to kidnap her and use her to find other evolved humans.	None.	• Sylar normally leaves no signs of physical contact when attacking his victims. Sylar causes a ruckus when he tries to drag Molly away when he could have easily killed her in the blink of an eye. (One Giant Leap). + Sylar showed that he had some conscience when he was afraid of blowing up after painting the explosion. He may have, at first, also been opposed to killing a child. - Sylar can just kill Molly and take her ability.
Even if the Haitian were to remove the memories of Claire from Sylar, Sylar would not be affected because of the enhanced memory he gained from Charlie.	None.	- Having an eidetic memory means one can form memories quickly and accurately, and in volume. Those memories can still be lost by damage to the brain, so the Haitian could excise those memories like any others. However, Sylar's precise memory may make it more likely for him to notice incongruities in what is left. + Charlie's power comes from a genetic anomaly, and not simply eidetic memory. The Haitian could suppress her power long enough to erase her memories, but might have to continually nullify her power to keep her memory from returning via enhanced memory. + The first trailer for Godsend included a shot of Sylar lying on the floor of his cell with Mr. Bennet saying "He is to have no memory of Claire." This may mean that, in an unaired scene, Mr. Bennet had the Haitian erase Sylar's memories of Claire. If so, Sylar somehow resisted having his memories erased. + When the Haitian wipes Peter's mind, it only takes him a week or two to get them back, them having been triggered by the familiarity of his mother. Sylar could have encountered something that triggered his memory. + Healing restores memories. If the Company used Adam's blood to stop Sylar from dying, it is conceivable that his memories returned too. + Artist Jason Badower theorized, "The graphic novel confirms Sylar has Charlie's memory... He was immune to the Haitian's 'Jedi Mind Tricks'." - Sylar lost the eidetic memory power when he contracted the Shanti virus.
Sylar killed Claude and stole his power.	None.	- Claude is invisible, making it near impossible for Sylar to find him. - Elle found Claude alive in London after Sylar attacked the Company. Since then, Sylar has spent little time outside of his cell.
Sylar has gained a power which repairs or enhances his vision.	Gabriel Gray wore glasses. (Six Months Ago) After this time, he did not wear them until visiting his mother. (The Hard Part)	- It is possible that he only wore glasses in Six Months Ago because he was working on a watch. + Gabriel wears glasses while talking to Chandra and outside of his apartment. - Sylar could be wearing corrective contact lenses. + With his apparent knowledge of optical lenses, Sylar could have studied up on refractive surgery and then used telekinesis to change the shape of his own cornea in order to give himself 20/20 vision. - Hiro always uses glasses, but when he travels to ancient Japan he seems to see perfectly without them. • It is possible Hiro has a weak prescription, and did not need it for the time that he wore Kensei's armor. • Perhaps the noticeable lack of glasses is down to what the writers describe as "coolness effect". Sylar seems more human and hesitant when he wears glasses. - He could have only needed the glasses to see long or short distances but only wore them as a force of habit. - Sylar did not start wearing glasses when he lost his abilitites to the Shanti virus. + He hasn't had much of a chance to get new glasses. + Future Gabriel wears glasses.
Sylar developed powers at a young age, as Micah and Sanjog did.	None.	+ Sylar has stated matter-of-factly on more than one occasion that he can understand how things work. The connotation of this may imply that he has had this particular power for a long time, that he, too, developed powers at a young age. + His initial power suggests an inherent intellectual prowess; both Micah and Sanjog are smarter than usual for their age. - His apparent cleverness may simply be a byproduct of intuitive aptitude. - Intuitive aptitude may not actually be a power. + Intuitive Aptitude has been confirmed as a power by Sylar himself, when talking to Maya in the car on the way to the border.
One of Sylar's abilities is enhanced reflexes or "danger sense".	None.	+ Sylar would need enhanced senses to stop speeding bullets. - Sylar doesn't make an attempt to dodge Hiro when he rushes at him from about ten feet away yelling loudly with his sword pointed towards Sylar's chest. (How to Stop an Exploding Man) + He may only be able to sense things he can't see.
Sylar's adoptive father, if he appears, will be played by Leonard Nimoy.	None.	+ Two principal cast members from Star Trek (George Takei and Nichelle Nichols) have played the parent (or grandparent) of a main character, and Zachary Quinto is going to portray a young Spock in the next Star Trek movie. - Other casting coincidences cannot be used to predict who would play a characters relative. Why would the writers limit themselves to one actor?
Sylar understands Spanish.	None.	+ Sylar often showed some form of understanding of conversations between Alejandro and Maya, such as the fact that Alejandro needed Maya to translate English to Spanish, or his desire to abandon Sylar and cross with a coyote. - Sylar may have understood Alejandro's intent from tone and body language. + Sylar's intuitive aptitude, if it still works, may have helped him to learn the language by now. + Sylar could have used Charlie's power to learn Spanish earlier, or could simply have learned in school. + In How to Stop an Exploding Man, Sylar appears to understand Japanese, as he responds very specifically to what Hiro says to Ando. • Again, Sylar may simply have been picking up intent from tone, context, and body language.
Sylar physically absorbed Brian Davis's DNA to gain his power, but thanks to a more recently acquired power he no longer must do this.	Hank says that Sylar only has telekinesis DNA in his body.	+ Sylar obtained an unknown power from James Walker that he has not otherwise shown. - In that case, Hank's inspection would also show James Walker's or the other person's DNA he used to more easily acquire other abilities.
Sylar has to think about the person that he has taken his power from just like Peter.	None.	+ This might explain why we have not seen all of his power that he has taken, he might never have seen their face, just their brain, it might also explain why he might never be able to use Candice's power, as he only thinks of her as when he saw her illusion. - Sylar has to see his victims eventually in order to take their brains, he even saw the real Candice (Betty) once she was dead.
Sylar will become Nathan to use Peter to try and destroy the Company.	None.	+ This would also allow Sylar to get close to Peter.
The Company spent considerable resources saving Sylar's life because they need him to extract the power stored in the brain inside the Vault.	One of the items inside the Primatech Vault is a preserved brain.	+ The brain is stored alongside assorted mystery items, including a virus with the power to wipe out the human race, suggesting it holds high value or significant power. + Despite the incredible danger Sylar poses to all evolved humans, the Company has gone to great lengths to preserve his life; forbidding Mr. Bennet from killing him in Season 1, and treating him with several major surgeries to save him from the stab wound from Hiro's katana. + The crew commentary to Powerless suggests that the vault items are major clues to future plot points. + Sylar is the only character to be associated with brains as a plot element. - It would be insane to willingly give a powerful ability to someone as dangerous and uncontrollable as Sylar. + The brain's power may be of a highly valuable but non-combat-related nature, such as Bob's ability to turn base metals into gold. • The Company may believe that they had the means to control Sylar, i.e. by having Maury Parkman mentally dominate him, or by having the Haitian mindwipe his more vicious impulses. • It would be insane to create a virus that could destroy more than 90% of the world's population. + It could also be the reason why the company kept Peter in a cell. Peter should have Sylar's intuitive aptitude ability and would also be able to extract the power from the brain. - The Company has had plenty of chances for Sylar to do this, but they do not seem to have asked him to do it. - They even took away his abilities the second time they saved his life. - Angela even allowed Sylar to extract an ability from a different brain.
Sylar cannot become angry as he uses telekinesis to slow his own heart rate down.	It seems that Sylar only ever becomes angry when he cannot use his powers or when he is distracted.	- Hypothetically it's possible, if impractical (it'd be dangerous if someone surprised him while he did so). But more likely, it's because Sylar thinks he's untouchable, and of course he'd become angry if the only things that make him feel "unique" and "special" were taken away.
Sylar uses Charlie's power to remember the powers of all the people he has killed.	None.	- It does not take superhuman memory to remember people. - Sylar is able to use his acquired abilities without Charlie's power.
If Sylar obtains the Haitian's power he will not have to kill anyone else to obtain more abilities.	None.	+ Sylar's power allows him to "understand how things work." If he obtains the Haitian's power he could be able to analyze someone's brain without having to kill them. • This method has not yet been used. • It's not yet revealed how Sylar obtains abilities. {[note}} Although he may not have to, it is likely Sylar will continue to murder people as it makes him feel powerful and special.
The Serpent in the story of the Serpent and the Crane is a symbolic representation of Sylar.	None.	+ The Serpent kills the Crane and takes its ability to fly. This sounds a lot like power theft. - The story may be symbolic of the Haitian and his ability. The Haitian take the memories of others and "takes" the powers of others. He takes away Guillame's ability, and Guillame tells him that he wants to fly again. (It Takes a Village, Part 3) + Guillame asks, "What good is it to fly, if you have nowhere to go?" Sylar is in a similar situation because he takes powers but does not use them for anything except to gain more powers. + The Serpent believes that the Crane is unworthy of its wings just as Sylar believes his victims are unworthy of their powers. + Serpents are always symbols of evil, especially a form the devil commonly takes. • Serpents are not always symbols of evil. The Ouroboros, for instance, is symbolic of cycles, eternity, and unity. Snakes have also been symbolic of protection, wisdom, renewal/rebirth (outside of the Ouroboros' cyclical symbolism), and medicine (such as on the caduceus). - Although the resemblances are interesting, it's unlikely that the Haitian's tribe would have ever met someone like Sylar before, nor is it likely Sylar would have heard the legend. + While Guillame probably was not deliberately referring to Sylar himself, it is likely that the writers meant for the Serpent to be a symbol or representation of Sylar. - Sylar has had very little contact with the Haitian at all. - Around the time that the It Takes a Village series would have taken place, Sylar would have been very young and still call himself Gabriel. - It is unlikely that Sylar is connected to a Haitian tale. - Linda Tavara's story indicates that Sylar is not the first or only evolved human who has attempted to steal the evolved abilities of others. • Considering that the story is prevalent only in the graphic novels, it is likely that it may be symbolic of the Haitian. However, considering the serpentine nature of Sylar and the stealing of the ability to fly, it could also be prophetic of Sylar killing Nathan and taking his power, just as it was shown in Five Years Gone.
Sylar's rescue by Maya, Alejandro, and Derek was engineered by Drucker.	None.	+ One evolved human being saved by two other evolved humans riding in a car stolen from a third evolved human is a very big coincidence. - Coincidences are hardly uncommon in Heroes, nearly all the characters bump into each other or are inter-related at some point in the show, this could be just another such occurrence. + Derek's fraternity, the reason he stole the Rogue and went to Mexico, has a portrait of Drucker, strongly suggesting that the two are connected.
Sylar has the power of phasing from someone other than D.L.	None.	+ It seems that Sylar has been able to disappear or appear very quickly without being noticed. For example, he could've phased out of the FBI Headquarters. (One Giant Leap)
Sylar has a brother named Michael.	None.	+ Gabriel and Michael are the only named angels in the Bible and Sylar's mother is shown to have been very spiritual. • Raphael is also an angel. • If one such brother existed, he would most certainly be a normal human.
Sylar had a brother who he has murdered/will murder.	None.	• The Biblical name could be a hint that Sylar will act as Cain did. • Then why Gabriel and not Cain? + According to Arthur and Angela, Sylar has two brothers: Nathan and Peter. + In the explosion future, Sylar kills Nathan. - This does not happen in the exposed future.
Sylar will become a hero in Volume 3.	None.	• Angela does not appear to be disturbed by Sylar grabbing her shoulder in the teaser. • Angela is not necessarily a hero. In fact there is a lot of evidence to the contrary. Nathan tells Angela "You're evil, Ma", when discussing the plans that lead to Peter's apparent death. Angela could have feasibly joined Sylar to complete an unknown goal. + In the teaser, Noah is heard saying "It's like 12 Sylars". In the episode Five Years Gone, Sylar (posing as Nathan) issues an order to wipe out all of the other people with powers for the simple reason "I'm getting rid of the competition." This suggests that if there are people with the same goal as him (to gain more powers by killing powerful people) this would count as competition. Thus he would join the 'heroes' to fight these new 'villains'.
Sylar is Noah Bennet's biological father.	We don't know who Noah's father is, so he may be Sylar. While HRG's biological mother may be Elle Bishop, since we know she shares a story arc with Sylar in Season 3.	+ They could travel back in time to the 1960s, in order to put Noah up for adoption. His adoptive parents are unknown, but HRG must’ve recognized the house that he grew up in. So when his family was on the run from the Company, Noah knew exactly where to find the perfect safe house. - Both Elle and Sylar are far too young to be Noah's parents. + Sylar once stated that as a child, he wished someone would tell him that his parents weren't really his parents. This may have been on Sylar's file, which Angela had access to. Sylar would want to believe that someone else in his family has a power. + Angela might want to use Sylar to round up the escaped prisoners. + When Angela went to touch Sylar before his mission with Noah, she pulled her hands back. This could be because she knew he now had the ability to see her entire past. Sylar also noticed the odd gesture of her sudden retraction of the hands before being interrupted by the arrival of Noah in Angela's office.
Sylar is having a baby.	It is implied that he slept with Maya in Season 2.	+ She may be pregnant. Sylar wasn't the only one that slept with Maya. Mohinder Suresh slept with her. I highly doubt Sylar carries condoms. + He has one in the exposed future. - Noah Gray is blond and it is highly doubtful that Maya or Sylar were blond when they younger.
Sylar's achilles' heel, his kryptonite, is calling him Gabriel.	He has been visibly upset when he is called Gabriel, almost as if he is in pain.	- Both his adoptive and biological mothers have called him Gabriel repeatedly. • This could just be because of Sylar's soft spot for mother figures.
Sylar will kill Nathan and take his ability of flight.	In a possible future, Sylar had in fact killed Nathan and taken his ability.	- Now that Nathan is Sylar's brother, maybe Sylar will gain a soft spot for him. + Much of that future has come true, such as Candice's death by Sylar's hand. - Sylar did not acquire Candice's ability in the current timeline. - This did not happen in the exposed future.
Sylar has lost all his gained powers except telekinesis and has just started over gaining new powers.	Sylar hasn't used any power except telekinesis before he got to Claire.	+ In a chat transcript at CBR, writers Joe Pokaski and Aron Coliete confirmed this when asked about it (even though they are joking around a lot in these chats). In the same instance they confirmed, that at this point he only possesses the powers of telekinesis, rapid cell regeneration (from Claire), alchemy (from Bob), and sound manipulation (from Jesse) besides his own power of intuitive aptitude. - When Peter meets him four years in the future, Sylar uses the abilty to paint the future, as well as induced radioactivity. + Adam Monroe helps Peter Petrelli 'heal' his brain to recollect his memory. As Sylar's ability involves understanding how an ability works, if he is eventually able to heal his brain, he might be able to remember how all of his previously acquired skills worked. + Sylar has had "four years of power gatherin" since then. + Sylar can know use empathy to take powers via empathic mimicry, and as mentioned has 4 years to meet Peter (if he gets his powers back) or access his empathic mimicry when in the presence of Arthur Petrelli.
Sylar only becomes "good" in the future, because Angela gave him the love and affection he had never recieved. When realising that Angela will never give up on him - He changes his way and becomes a new man.	None.	+ As seen in One of Us, One of Them Angela has much faith in Sylar. When Sylar states that Angela is wrong about him - She responds "We'll see".
Sylar's genetic marker for telekinesis (as stated in Godsend) means that his body has accepted it as a natural power, not an acquired one.	None.	+ It would explain why Sylar has retained this power after losing the rest of his acquired abilities. + It might also explain why Peter has not been shown using any of Sylar's other acquired abilities - perhaps his empathy only works on 'natural' powers. - The writer's have stated that Peter absorbed all of Sylar's abilities. He may just have a hard time using any of Sylar's other powers because he associates Sylar's memory with telekinesis.
Sylar named his son after HRG because he accidently killed him before this part of the future and wants to try and redeem himself. This means that Claire is after him for that and for taking her ability.	Claire confessed to Meredith that she wanted to hurt Sylar for what he did to her.	+ We didn't see HRG in the future. + In Resistance, Claire talks about getting over the loss of her parents. Maybe Sylar accidentally killed them. - Claire's confession to Meredith came long before the exposed future, at a time when Noah was (and still is) alive and well.
Sylar is destined to become a hero in some form by overcoming or disposing of the "hunger" that intuitive aptitude causes.	We have already seen that Noah's influence reformed Sylar and helped him suppress his hunger in the future.
Sylar was put up for adoption because Arthur and Angela didn't want more than two children.	None	+ Peter and Nathan weren't put up for adoption. - Angela gave him away, because she saw what he would become. - According to Arthur, Angela first wanted to kill him.
Sylar named his son Noah because HRG will become a father figure toward him or because he is in fact Sylar's biological father.	None.	+ A person naming his/her son after his/her own "father" is very common. - HRG only seems to be about ten to fifteen years older than Sylar. It is extremely unlikely that HRG would have slept with Angela when he was 15 at the most and concieved a child with her.
Sylar regained all remaining powers lost to the Shanti virus because he took Claire's power.	None.	+ Future Gabriel Gray was able to use precognition and induced radioactivity, both previously lost to the virus. - In the Sept. 30, 2008 Behind the Eclipse CBR Q&A, Joe Pokaski and Aron Coliete said that Sylar lost all his abilities from exposure to the Shanti virus, save for intuitive aptitude and telekinesis. In the Oct. 13, 2008 Behind the Eclipse CBR Q&A, Pokaski and Coliete implied that Sylar has not yet reacquired those powers, and had to "gather" them in the exposed future.
Sylar was given new parents in an attempt by Angela to hide him from Arthur.	None.	+ Peter kept Sylar from confronting Arthur, possibly setting up a confrontation wherein neither recognizes the other and thus fight with each other as people with powers rather than as father and son. - Arthur told Sylar that he was given away because Angela had a dream about his future and tried to drown him in a tub. + Arthur's credibility is questionable, at best. • what the previous author meant was that perhaps Arthur was telling a lie to gain Sylar's trust. - But the series is an ongoing work of fiction, and as such we must posit based on -all- information. If we arbitrarily (meaning without explanation of the reasoning behind such) disregard statements of characters, then the basis of these theories is gone and theorizing is an even more fruitless endeavor. + Not only did Arthur fake his own death, he also claimed that he wanted to prevent the "exposed future" Peter described. Yet, he is trying to create the formula that, according to future Peter, caused the "exposed future" to happen!
Sylar can obtain powers without killing evolved humans. He only needs to scan the brain. He might as well imagine what the brain looks like.	None.	+ He was able to take Claire's ability without killing her, so he may now be able to take people's abilities and restore them to life with his own blood. - Then only reason he didn't kill Claire when taking her ability is because she has rapid cell regeneration, why dont you try removing the top half of someones head and manage to keep them alive!
Sylar is going to become a hero, and Claire is going to be a villain to many.	None.	+ In the exposed future, Peter and Gabriel were hunted down by Claire and Knox. - The exposed future may not come to pass.
Sylar is still opposed to his father Arthur Petrelli and will strike/surprise him and help take him down.	Sylar used his telekinesis to prevent Peter from dying in the 7-story fall in Eris Quod Sum.	+ Sylar was seen with the power of telepathy in the exposed future, when Peter attempted to read his mind. The only character alive shown to have this ability 4 years ago was Arthur, since Matt Parkman was seen alive one scene earlier. + If indeed Sylar took his father's telepathy, this would coincide with Angela's supposed dream of Gabriel's future which made her attempt to drown him when he was young. - In The Eclipse, Part 1 and Part 2, Sylar seems to be following Arthur's orders to bring in Claire and shows no evidence that he is still allied with Primatech and Angela. Clearly, this was Sylar's original plan because he prevented Peter from falling to his death, but he may have been converted to Pinehurst when Arthur put him in the room with Elle and allowed him to harness his empathic mimicry.
Sylar has an acquired ability that allows him to hide in plain sight.	In How to Stop an Exploding Man, Peter says to Noah that Sylar must be 'hiding in plain sight.'	+ In Landslide, Sylar seems to vanish into the crowd in the time it takes for Audrey to turn around. + Sylar has taken more abilities than have been accounted for. + In The Second Coming, Sylar walks past Claire into a corner of a small kitchen with a low ceiling. She immediately looks at the area where he went, and he is nowhere to be seen. • Sylar had lost all of his powers other than telekinesis and intuitive aptitude at that point, due to the Shanti virus. + In How to Stop an Exploding Man, Sylar suddenly appears behind Ando, seemingly from nowhere. + In The Fix, Sylar is able to hide from Noah in his cell.
Peter and Sylar share some kind of supernatural connection.	None.	+ They are brothers. + In Landslide, without trying to, Peter suddenly picks up Sylar's thoughts in a crowded New York City street. + They have very similar powers, in that they can absorb others abilities. Aside from Linda Tavara, the only other evolved human who has shown the ability to do this is their father. • Ability absorption is only a perk to Linda's ability, not it's intended use.
Sylar regained all of his powers when he was cured of the Shanti virus.	None.	+ While the producers said he lost all of them, the show itself demonstrates that he didn't lose them since he still has telekinesis. Thus, we can safely disregard what they said since on-screen canon conflicts with it. - The writers say that he regained only intuitive aptitude and telekinesis. - In The Second Coming, Sylar says that he isn't fully recovered. - Since then, Sylar has not demonstrated any of his pre-virus abilities except for intuitive aptitude and telekinesis. + The producers only stated that he lost them in an interview. As far as the majority of Heroes watchers are concerned, Sylar never lost his powers, considering that most of them probably do not read interviews or supplemental information. It would not be a considerably drastic retcon if they were to contradict their previously given information. + He also has shown he still has induced radioactivity in the future and possibly in the graphic novels. + There has been no actual quote from Sylar saying he had lost all of his abilities at any point during season 3 after curing himself of the shanti virus. - In the seventh BTE interview, it was stated that Sylar kept telekinesis because of the emotional weight, the guilt he felt after taking it.
Sylar's power is the opposite of his father, Arthur. He can move powers from one person to another.	This ability was implied by Noah in Hiro's dream during the Villains episode.	+ While observing Sylar, Noah implies that Sylar has the ability to transfer powers from one to another, but hasn't learned how (other than Sylar giving himself the ability) - He said he could transfer "power", more likely a reference to his telekinesis. • Sylar may use this ability to counter Arthur and giving Peter his powers back. - Arthur does not seem to have a counter-intuitive aptitude. • This would be in reference, not to how they understand another person's ability, but rather how Arthur and Sylar can affect those abilities. Arthur can "steal" the ability, but cannot transfer to another. It may be revealed that Sylar's use of his ability is to "give" abilities to others, even though he has only given them to himself - beacuse he doesn't understand how to transfer to another. - It is not known yet if Arthur can not transfer an ability to another. - Nothing suggests he can. - Sylar's ability isn't power theft; it's seeing how things work. Power theft is how he uses his power, not his power's "intended" purpose. • This could also have something to do with the development of the serum that the company is creating to give powers, but that's extra speculation.
Sylar does not intrinsically have intuitive aptitude. He was born with the same, or similar, power as Peter.	None.	+ HRG says that Sylar has the ability to move powers from one vessel to another. + He took the powers from Elle without killing her or her losing her powers, similar to how Peter could. + Sylar could have gained intuitive aptitude from his "father" that raised him, or perhaps somebody like Chandra Suresh. - Chandra did not have intuitive aptitude. + Intuitive aptitude could be a corruption of empathic mimicry. We already know his adopted mother did not give him enough attention, instead repeatedly insisting that he become "special". It is possible that this greatly limited his ability to empathize (hence his later psychotic break) and twisted his ability into its current state. + Alternatively, empathic mimicry could have been Sylar's initial ability, and not intuitive aptitude. Sylar came into contact with an individual possessing intuitive aptitude at a young age, and it became his dominant ability, in the way that, after absorbing telekinesis, he actually used it more frequently than intuitive aptitude. • For all we know, intuitive aptitude doesn't even allow ability absorption--maybe Sylar was just subconsciously using his empathic mimicry every time right before a kill and examination.
Sylar is becoming more like the Gabriel Gray from the exposed future.	None.	+ Sylar has discovered empathy, which is not found in the psychopathic personality.
Sylar's telekinesis was gained through empathic mimicry.	None.	+ The murder apparently bothered him, and it is possible the empathy he felt for killing caused it to transfer through empathic mimicry. - Sylar seemed to know exactly what to go for when killing Trevor, by going for his brain. So it can assumed that he did this because that is how he learned telekinesis (from Brian Davis's brain). • He may have gotten telekinesis both ways, from physically IA'ing it from Brian's brain, as well as getting it empathically once he had the guilt trip.
The way Sylar's "empathic" ability works is still very much different from how Peter's does. Peter's empathic mimicry allows him to absorb the abilities of others and then recall it through the emotion he first felt when he was with them. Sylar's empathic ability works when he puts himself in the person's shoes, allowing him to tap into their emotions, thus gaining their ability.	None.	+ His interaction with Elle and how he duplicated her power in It's Coming supports this idea. - "...puts himself in the person's shoes..." is the definition of empathy, and what Peter does to use acquired powers. • Peter recalls the emotion he first felt with the person - He doesn't put himself in their shoes, to the extend like Sylar does. Also Peter automatically absorbs their ability, whereas Sylar has to feel for the person in order to access it. Peter: Ability Recall - Sylar: Empathic Mimicry. (Seems reasonable) • It's possible that his empathy is just an extension of his intuitive aptitude. Previously Sylar had to find out how powers worked by interacting with the victims brain. This time he might be understanding how they work by understanding the persons mind, emotions, and what makes the person tick. + The entire scene with Elle shocking Sylar shows that his mimicry works differently than Peter's. Really, he's just using intuitive aptitude to understand Elle's emotions, and when he understands enough about a person, apparently he can mimic their abilities.
Sylar, Peter and Arthur all have the same ability.	Sylar has shown he can mimic powers through empathy.	+ All three can duplicate others powers. + Arthur showed that he had knowledge of mimicking powers through empathy and he knew that Sylar could do it. • The fact that Arthur is the only one who can steal (as opposed to mimic) an ability could be due to his years of experience with the ability. • The ability of power absorption/mimicry could manifest itself in different ways depending on the personality. • Sylar's emotional connection to his first murder would explain how telekinesis seems to be an empathically absorbed ability. • Sylar may have empathically mimicked intuitive aptitude from his adoptive father. • The combination of intuitive aptitude and power absorption could be the cause of "The Hunger". - If Arthur originally had empathic mimicry, then there would have been no need to kill Adam by taking his power to heal himself. He would have just absorbed Adam's power through empathic mimicry and healed himself without the need to kill Adam. • Then again, Arthur has shown himself not to be a very personable individual, such as showing no regret for attempting to kill Nathan. I don't think it is outof his character to kill someone to further his gains and perhaps, by killing Adam, he is removing someone who could be a bump in the road later on. By killing Adam this way, Adam can't regenerate, as opposed to if Arthur tried to kill him in simpler ways. Arthur is also doing the same thing now by killing any individuals who are dreaming or using precognition to learn how to stop him. He is removing problems in his way. - Adam would seem to be more of an asset to Arthur if left alive if possible, rather than kill him.
Sylar was/is/is becoming an empath.	None.	+ Sylar was able to regain telekinesis because of the emotional guilt he had over killing Brian Davis and has understood Elle's emotions in order to gain her ability. + Arthur knows empathy is in Sylar's heart.
Sylar's original power is empathy but he gained intuitive aptitude from his adoptive father, by learning how to fix a watch from him.	It is very unlikely for intuitive aptitude to be linked to the empathy power. Since intuitive aptitude is linked with watches in general, it wouldn't be a surprise if Sylar's adoptive father had this ability and gave it to his son through empathy. If that is the case, it would explain the fact why Sylar only kept intuitive aptitude, telekenisis which he gains through empathy and his original empathy power.	- His original power remains intuitive aptitude. The empathy that Sylar experienced with Elle was associated with fixing her power, which thus is just another aspect of intuitive aptitude ("It's Coming"). He could not have empathically gained her power without fixing her. - Sylar's adoptive father was barely mentioned, if he had the ability, there would've been some mention of him having the Hunger. + A lot of things are not mentioned in Heroes. For instance, we never heard about Arthur's power. Plus the fact that maybe nobody knew that he had the hunger since it is possible to fix it. - The writers are not total idiots; they must surely recognize the poetry of Peter and Sylar being opposites sides of a similar ability. As such, it would make no sense for Sylar to become an Empath, as well. The hunger, furthermore, cannot be fixed, only suppressed. "I Am Become Death" - Also, Sylar lost his abilities to the Shanti virus, and only regained his intuitive aptitude and telekinesis. - It is possible that Arthur somehow "implanted" Elle's ability into Sylar, fixing hers simultaneously, by means of as-yet undisclosed ability.
When Sylar takes another person's power, he also takes their pain.	None.	+ Only two persons have survived when he took their powers. After he took Claire's ability, she no longer felt pain. After he took Elle's ability, she said, "The pain is gone." Before he took Elle's ability, Sylar said to her, "You know the pain I feel about this." This is related to the empathic aspect of his ability.
Claire Bennet will be the mother of Noah Gray.	The revelation that Sylar may, in fact, NOT be in the Petrelli family as of The Eclipse, Part 2.	+ The relationship is therefore no longer (necessarily) incestuous. It would also explain Noah Gray's first name. - There may not be a Noah Gray in the current timeline.