Arthur Petrelli

Arthur Petrelli
Portrayed by	Robert Forster
First appearance	War Buddies, Part 2
In-story stats
Known abilities	Power absorption Absorbed abilities demonstrated: Telepathy, Rapid cell regeneration, Lightning, Telekinesis
Alias	Dallas
Gender
Date of marriage	1965
Occupations	Founding member of the Company, Leader in Pinehearst Company, former Linderman Group criminal defense attorney, former Law firm head, former U.S. Army soldier
Significant other	Angela Petrelli
Children	Nathan Petrelli, Peter Petrelli, Gabriel Gray
Grandchildren	Claire Bennet, Simon Petrelli, Monty Petrelli

Arthur Petrelli is the husband of Angela and father of Nathan, Peter, and Sylar. He is an evolved human with the ability to steal other evolved humans' abilities through physical contact.

About

After having served in the Vietnam War alongside Daniel Linderman, Arthur (and his wife) helped found the Company. He worked with the others in the group to perform acts they believed would help the world. Arthur continued his relationship with Linderman, as he was the criminal defense attorney for the Linderman Group. Arthur was reported to have committed suicide in April 2006 after a long battle with depression. However, about a year later, Arthur made his existence public and began assembling a team of evolved human "villains" to carry out his plans.

Character History

Season One

For an episode-by-episode summary, see Arthur Petrelli: Season One History.

Mr. Petrelli is said to have died six months before Volume One: Genesis begins. His death is explained by his wife, Angela Petrelli, to have been a suicide brought about by delusions of grandeur and clinical depression. However, another story was given that Arthur died of a heart attack.

He is mentioned several times throughout the season. Angela and Arthur had plans for their granddaughter, Claire Bennet, and had made arrangements for her. Arthur was close friends with Daniel Linderman, a mobster and a client of Arthur's law firm. Arthur's son Nathan was asked to prosecute Linderman by the District Attorney, which would have made Arthur, Linderman's lawyer, look bad as well. However, shortly before the trial, Arthur is declared dead.

Season Two

For an episode-by-episode summary, see Arthur Petrelli: Season Two History.

It is revealed that Arthur was one of twelve founders of the Company, as were his wife and Linderman. The twelve individuals had formed together to save the world and help evolved humans like themselves.

I Am Become Death

Angela informs Hiro Nakamura and Ando Masahashi that everyone is being manipulated by someone very powerful, and that they must stop it.

Angels and Monsters

Angela reveals that she and Arthur genetically enhanced their son, Nathan, as a baby, to give him an ability after Nathan was born an ordinary person, something which disappointed Arthur.

Angela has a dream, where she sees Nathan, Tracy Strauss, and Peter dead. Arthur appears to her in this dream, telling her that he can't have her dreaming the future like this. Angela vows to stop Arthur's plans, but in turn he tells her she won't be able to move. Angela wakes up from this dream in a coma, indeed unable to move.

Maury Parkman, another Company founder with the ability of telepathy, talks with a bedridden Arthur at Pinehearst. Though Arthur does not speak, Maury hears his questions using telepathy and answers, reporting that Adam Monroe will be delivered to them soon and that his illusions of Daniel Linderman are causing Nathan to believe he is carrying out God's plan.

Dying of the Light

While lying in bed hooked to a respirator, Arthur has Adam Monroe brought to him. Adam, greatly surprised that Arthur is still alive, is told by him something that visibly frightens Adam. Adam attempts to escape, but Knox holds him back. After Adam pleads for his life, Knox forces Arthur's hand on Adam's, causing Adam to age rapidly and turn to dust. Mr. Petrelli then pulls the respirator from his throat, heals instantly, and proclaims that "It's good to breathe again."

Later, Arthur welcomes Maury, Knox, Daphne, and Flint to Pinehearst. Peter interrupts the meeting and is understandably shocked to see his father. Arthur asks Peter to give him a hug, to which he reluctantly agrees. Suddenly, Peter cries out as a white light is pulled into Arthur from Peter. Peter falls to the floor and attempts to use an ability, but nothing happens. Arthur then demonstrates a spark of electricity at his fingertips, claiming that he has Peter's powers now.

Eris Quod Sum

Peter has a dream, recalling the day that he learned that his father was dead, and some of his mother's words at Arthur's funeral. He then recalls his most recent memories of Arthur stealing all of his powers. Suddenly, Peter wakes up, and finds that he is handcuffed to a gurney and unable to escape. Arthur is sitting nearby reading Nieztsche. Arthur tells Peter that his body is still in shock from when he aborbed his abilities. Peter swears that he will stop Arthur. Arthur then tells Peter that he is grounded.

Daphne checks in with Arthur, who wants to know why she hasn’t recruited Matt to Pinehearst. He wonder if she was thinking something that might discourage Matt from joining. Knox picks up on her fear and she asks how she can fix it. Arthur tells her to kill Matt, much to Maury’s outrage. Maury says he’s promised his loyalty in return for Matt’s safety. When he tries to interfere, Arthur casually snaps his neck using telekinesis, and thanks him for all of his sacrifice. Daphne insists there must be another way, and Arthur glares at her.

Later Arthur is with Mohinder looking in on Maya, who, like Peter, is strapped to a bed. Mohinder tells Arthur that he only wanted to help Maya and relieve her of her ability. Arthur says that all Mohinder has to do is watch. He then enters the room and absorbs Maya's ability. He then shows Mohinder the formula and asks for Mohinder's help, who hesitates at first, then asks for test subjects.

Arthur, accompanied by guards, attempts to take Peter to Mohinder for testing. However, he sees that Peter has escaped his cuffs. Peter runs at Arthur with a tray but Arthur telekinetically stops him and then his guards subdue him. Peter is taken to Mohinder, who attempts to inject Peter with the formula. However, Sylar arrives to save Peter from Mohinder. After killing Dr. Livitz, Sylar frees Peter, but is attacked by Mohinder. Arthur comes in and tries to use lightning to stop Peter, but Peter escapes. Arthur then stops Mohinder from pummelling Sylar and reveals to Mohinder that Sylar is his son.

Later, Arthur speaks with Flint about Peter's escape from the building. Flint is sent to go find Peter. Arthur also has Sylar suspended in the air telekinetically. He explains to Sylar that Angela is not the woman Sylar thinks she is and that she had seen Sylar's future when Sylar was a baby. Arthur releases Sylar from the telekinetic suspension and says that Angela was so afraid of what Sylar would become that she tried to drown him in the bath. He tells Sylar that he arrived just in time to stop her.

Minutes later Arthur and Sylar arrive to recapture Peter. Peter tells Sylar that Arthur can't be trusted, but Arthur insists that they can change the future that Peter saw. Peter tells Sylar to just kick Arthur's ass so they can leave but Sylar tells him he isn't going anywhere, but Peter is. He telekinetically tosses Peter out a window for him to fall seven stories. Peter survives. Arthur asks Sylar how he thinks Peter survived but Sylar says he doesn't know. Arthur gazes as Sylar knowingly, then receives a call from Daphne. She says she's won Matt over. Arthur tells her that if she screws her mission up he'll put her back where he found her.

Memorable Quotes

"Your father was weak."

"My father was my hero."

- Linderman, Nathan (Landslide)

"Ah, it feels good to breathe again."

- Arthur (Dying of the Light)

"The bad guys are here."

- Arthur (Dying of the Light)

"I'm sorry it had to come to this."

- Arthur (to Peter) (Dying of the Light)

"You don't have your abilities anymore, Peter...because I have them now."

- Arthur (Dying of the Light)

"I am better, Peter. That's not a belief, it's a fact."

- Arthur (Eris Quod Sum)

"Son, until you change that attitude, you're grounded."

- Arthur (to Peter) (Eris Quod Sum)

Evolved Human Abilities

Arthur Petrelli has the ability to steal the abilities of other evolved humans. By making physical contact, Arthur took Adam Monroe's ability and was immediately able to access it, healing himself from the condition that had confined him to bed. A person whose ability Arthur has stolen is left powerless.

He claims to have absorbed all of Peter's abilities after touching him, leaving Peter without his abilities; however, he has not yet demonstrated all of the abilities that Peter possessed. Abilities that Arthur has acquired and demonstrated include the following:

Arthur claims that the effects of his ability are permanent.

Notes

• Arthur Petrelli appears to have been financially successful as a lawyer, and seems to have left his wife considerably wealthy.
• According to Angela, at age 23 Arthur was diagnosed with major depressive disorder.
• Arthur Petrelli, as Dallas, tells part of his Vietnam War history in the Lonestar File. This file is found in the top secret Pentagon archives.
• The note that Dallas shares with Austin appears to be from the mother of Dallas's son--it reads, "Our son...took his first steps yesterday."
• Mr. Petrelli's law firm used the Symbol in its logo. (Lizards). Now he apparently uses two of the Symbols joined together as the logo for Pineheartst, his new place of business.
• At the time Arthur removed his powers, Peter had demonstrated the abilities of empathic mimicry, super speed, invisibility, enhanced strength, induced radioactivity, intuitive aptitude, precognitive dreaming, precognition, phasing, telepathy, flight, space-time manipulation, and pyrokinesis. Peter had also been exposed to the abilities of persuasion, freezing, enhanced memory, mental manipulation, melting, enhanced hearing, clairvoyance, technopathy, Mohinder's ability, alchemy, sound manipulation and clairsentience. However, Arthur has yet to demonstrate these abilities.
• Arthur removed rapid cell regeneration from Adam and later from Peter, suggesting that he is able to absorb abilities identical to those he had absorbed before.
• In an interview, Chuck Kim confirms that Arthur has the ability of empathic mimicry.
• When Peter wakes up and finds that he is handcuffed to a gurney and unable to escape, Arthur is sitting nearby reading Nieztsche (Eris Quod Sum). A major concept in Nietzsche's philosophy is the Übermensch (variously translated - often without regard to the gender-neutrality of the German word Mensch, which means "person" – as superman, superhuman, or overman).
• Angela was put into a coma after a vision involving Arthur. In it, Arthur said that she "won't be able to move" (Angels and Monsters). It is unclear exactly how she became comatose/paralyzed.

See Also

• For other uses of Arthur, see Arthur (disambig).
• For other members of the Petrelli family, see Petrelli (disambig).

Fan Theories

Please refer to Theory:Arthur Petrelli for fan-created theories and other speculation. Template:Linderman