Sylar

Sylar
Portrayed by	Zachary Quinto
First appearance	One Giant Leap
In-story stats
Known abilities	Intuitive aptitude Known powers gained: Telekinesis, Cryokinesis, Enhanced memory, Liquefaction, Enhanced hearing, Precognition
Formal name	Gabriel Gray
Aliases	Gabriel Sylar, Drew O'Grady, Dr. Suresh, Zane Taylor
Gender
Home	New York, NY
Residence	Sylar's apartment
Occupation	Timepiece restorer
Parent	Unnamed New York City watchmaker

Sylar is a serial killer who sometimes removes the brains of his victims, primarily those he believes to be evolved humans. Chandra Suresh identified him as Patient Zero in his research. Before adopting the name Sylar, he was known as Gabriel Gray.

Character History

Genesis

Mohinder Suresh finds a cassette tape in his late father's apartment, labeled "Sylar".

Don't Look Back

Sylar is stated to be a suspected serial killer. His suspected victims are sometimes seen with their heads sliced open horizontally at the center of their skull and their brain removed. Other victims are pinned to the wall with various household objects and no apparent signs of physical contact. Audrey Hanson, an FBI agent, investigates a murder scene she believes to have been the work of Sylar, and Matt Parkman uses his new powers to locate the victim's missing daughter, Molly Walker.

Sylar knew the late Chandra Suresh, before he died. Chandra told his son, Mohinder that he thought that Sylar was "Patient Zero". In a taped phone call between Chandra and Sylar, the latter alludes that the former "made him this way" and refers to a mysterious "uncontrollable hunger" he now has. Chandra wanted nothing to do with Sylar at this point.

When Hiro travels to the future to November 8 he visits Isaac Mendez in his home. Hiro finds Isaac dead with his head sawed off and his brain removed, in the same style as Molly Walker's father.

Sylar's first appearances were mysterious and shadowed.

One Giant Leap

Mohinder and Eden visit an apartment believed to be Sylar's. When no one answers, Mohinder breaks in. Inside, Eden notes that Sylar has no photographs in the apartment but plenty of books on philosophy, as well as a copy of Chandra Suresh's book. Mohinder takes pictures of the apartment, including a picture of his father's book on a bureau, books on the shelves, and a book in a glass case. He stumbles upon a secret room behind the glass case. Inside is a map similar to one used by the Suresh's, but with many more connections and papers linked to several of them. Eden identifies Nathan Petrelli on one of the links. Mohinder finds another room in the secret area covered by vinyl tarps. Inside, the walls are covered in scrawls, possibly indicating that Sylar's mental state is unbalanced. Writings such as, "Forgive me. I have sinned," are written all over, some apparently in blood.

Meanwhile, a man believed to be Sylar attempts to abduct Molly, who is being held in a safe room in the Los Angeles FBI Headquarters. Matt and Audrey stop him, with Matt protecting Molly and Audrey giving chase. When Audrey pulls her gun, the man somehow forces her backwards against a wall and makes her point her own weapon to her head. When Matt arrives, he shoots at the unknown man. However, when Matt turns to check on Audrey, the man stands back up and the bullets Matt had fired at him seem to fall to the ground. As Matt and Audrey look back, the man disappears.

Hiros

Sylar appears in a painting by Isaac Mendez which Peter Petrelli finishes. It reveals that Sylar will murder and remove a cheerleader's brain if nothing is done to stop it.

Nothing to Hide

Audrey believes she's found another of Sylar's victims, Robert Fresco, but it turns out the victim was instead accidentally killed by Theodore Sprague.

Seven Minutes to Midnight

In Midland, TX, Hiro and Ando talk to a waitress, Charlie, in the Burnt Toast Diner. Meanwhile, sitting at a table is a man wearing a ballcap. He pulls a glass to his hand using his powers, revealing a broken analog watch reading 11:53.

When Charlie is discovered murdered, the top of her head sliced off, Sylar is nowhere to be found. When Hiro sees Charlie's body, he immediately recognizes the wound as identical to that suffered by Isaac in the future timeline.

At the Primatech Paper Co. warehouse that serves as his headquarters, Mr. Bennet reveals to Isaac Mendez that Sylar is a superpowered serial killer who is hunting and killing other individuals with powers, and confirms that the painting Peter Petrelli helped Isaac finish shows Claire, Bennet's own daughter, murdered by Sylar. He tells Isaac he needs him to paint where Sylar is so they can stop him before he kills Claire at her homecoming the next night.

In India, Mohinder Suresh has a strange dream. In it, he watches in horror as his father, Chandra Suresh, is murdered by a passenger in his cab. The man smashes through the partition and slams Chandra's head against the window. As he does so, he cracks the face of his watch, stopping it at 11:53.

Homecoming

A shadowy figure stands in front of the trophy case at Union Wells High School, reading the newspaper clipping about Jackie Wilcox's award for supposedly rescuing the man from the train wreck. On his hand is a broken watch — it's Sylar.

Later, the lights in the locker room suddenly go out and a shadowy figure passes by. Jackie protests as Claire attempts to lead her to safety, and suddenly Sylar grabs Jackie by the neck, pins her against a locker, and lifts her up in the air. Claire jumps on Sylar, but he throws her off and sends her flying into a wall. Jackie screams. Sylar covers Jackie's mouth and puts his finger in the air near her forehead. Suddenly there's a slicing noise and Jackie's skull is sliced open spraying blood everywhere.

When Claire regenerates, Sylar realizes she's the one he's after, and chases her out into the hallway, where she runs into Peter. Peter tells Claire to keep running and stops to face Sylar. Using telekinesis, Sylar rips the doors off of the hallway lockers and sends them flying towards Peter. Peter dodges a few of them and runs away with Sylar pursuing. With Sylar at the bottom of the stands, Peter tells Claire to run and find a lot of people as he believes Sylar doesn't want to be seen. Claire runs off and suddenly Peter looks up to find Sylar standing right in front of him. Sylar grabs Peter and they both fall off the bleachers and onto the pavement below.

Sylar climbs a hill to escape. At the top of the hill, Eden is leaning against a tree. Upon seeing her he pauses momentarily before raising his hand. Surprised, he seems unable to use his powers. Using her power of suggestion, Eden tells Sylar that he doesn't want to hurt her and that they need to talk. She tells him to tell her all about himself, but first he needs to sleep. The Haitian catches Sylar off guard, and covers his eyes. Sylar then falls to the ground, unconscious.

Six Months Ago

Gabriel Gray before turning into Sylar.

Chandra Suresh approaches Gabriel Gray at his watch shop, Gray & Sons. Gabriel offers to fix Chandra's watch, even though Chandra hasn't realized it's broken. Gabriel explains he has a talent for knowing how things work. Chandra tells Gabriel he's special and gives him a copy of Activating Evolution.

Gabriel visits Chandra at Chandra's apartment. Chandra tells Gabriel he wants to run some noninvasive tests. Gabriel tells Chandra he always wanted to be special and always resented his family for being normal.

When Chandra's tests are unable to identify anything unusual about Gabriel, he's ready to give up. Gabriel becomes angry. Grabbing one of Chandra's files, he asks if Chandra plans to give up on that man, Brian Davis, too. Chandra asks him to leave.

Later, Brian Davis visits Gray & Sons. He tells Gabriel that someone called him. Gabriel glances at the watch he's been repairing and introduces himself as "Gabriel Sylar". After Brian demonstrates his telekinetic ability, he asks Gabriel if he can make it go away. Gabriel is surprised at first, but then tells Brian that he's broken and that he can fix him. Grabbing a large crystal, he bludgeons Brian to death.

Gabriel meets with Chandra again and demonstrates his newfound telekinetic power by moving a glass across the table. Gabriel apologizes for his behavior the other day and Chandra understands that he was angry. Gabriel tells him that he feels different now and that he feels he's been given a chance to start over with a new life and new purpose. Gabriel tells Chandra that all the others are waiting to be told of their importance and their true potential. He tells Chandra that they'll find them together.

Graphic Novel:Turning Point

Three months ago in Chicago, Sylar has killed a man. He sees Audrey Hanson, and she chases him over the elevated trains. He ends the chase by giving his jacket to an old man, whom Audrey mistakes for Sylar and kills.

Fallout

File:Sylar zen1.jpg

Sylar is held captive by Mr. Bennet

At the Primatech Paper Co., Sylar is being held in a metal room within the secure medical facility; he is separated from an outer room by a glass security window. Mr. Bennet enters the outer secure room, and converses with Sylar. He tells Sylar that they fixed him up the best they could, and that his abilities will not work within the facility. He calls him Gabriel, and Sylar forcefully corrects him. Mr. Bennet notes that not long ago he was Gabriel Gray, an "insignificant watchmaker". Sylar tells him that he was so good at restoring "timepieces" because he could see how they work and what makes them tick. Mr. Bennet tells him that they're interested in how things work as well and that they're interested in him because he has multiple powers now instead of just one like all the others they've met. Sylar tells him that it's what makes him special and that being special is important to everyone. Mr. Bennet tells him that he thinks infusing so many changes to his DNA to absorb these powers has driven him insane. Sylar tells him that as soon as he gets out he's going to collect one more ability from his daughter. As Sylar goes on talking about Claire, Mr. Bennet tells him to stop and calls him Gabriel. Sylar screams that his name is Sylar, not Gabriel. Amused, Mr. Bennet shuts off the light and leaves.

Later, Mr. Bennet again enters the room just outside Sylar's cell. Sylar claims that they are actually alike, that Mr. Bennet abducts people with powers because it makes him feel powerful, that they both collect special people. Mr. Bennet tells him that they're going to take him apart like a watch and find out what makes him tick. He turns off the light and leaves.

Much later, Eden enters the room outside Sylar's cell. Sylar tells her that he knows her; she responds she lived next door to Chandra Suresh. Sylar marvels over her power of persuasion. Eden uses her power and states that she's going to give him a gun and that he's going to blow his brains out, and she moves to place the gun into the transfer bin. Before she can do so, Sylar telekinetically pulls her through the security glass, shattering it. He grabs her by the throat and tells her that he's going to consume her power. She points the gun at him and he tells her that she knows it won't hurt him. Instead, she points the gun at her head and pulls the trigger.

Graphic Novel:Fathers & Daughters

After Sylar's encounter with Eden, Mr. Bennet and the Haitian enter Sylar's cell. They tranquilize and recapture Sylar.

Godsend

At Primatech Paper Co., Mr. Bennet and Hank discuss Sylar, who lies catatonic in his cell watching a cockroach. They have determined that Sylar has multiple powers, but they haven't been able to identify any other than telekinesis. Sylar's health has deteriorated during the experiments, and further invasive tests may kill him. Unfortunately (to Mr. Bennet), their superiors in the Company will not allow them to kill Sylar.

The Fix

Sylar lies motionless on a table in his cell. Hank tells Mr. Bennet that he is nearly dead; Mr. Bennet says that his superiors need him alive. Later, Hank informs Mr. Bennet that Sylar has died. Suddenly, Sylar opens his eyes. When Mr. Bennet enters the cell, he finds Hank's dead body on the table, as Sylar stands nearby.

Distractions

Sylar escapes from Primatech, killing Hank, attacking Mr. Bennet, and leaving him trapped in the cell. Using information from Bennet's driver's license, he locates the Bennets' home and goes there to find Claire. Posing as a worker from Primatech, he ingratiates himself with Sandra for a while, fishing for more information about Claire. When Sandra becomes suspicious, he attacks her, but flees when Mr. Bennet and the Haitian arrive to recapture him.

Run!

Sylar arrives at Zane Taylor's home while Zane is waiting for Mohinder Suresh. He claims to be Suresh and asks Zane to demonstrate his ability. Later, when Suresh arrives, Sylar claims to be Zane and demonstrates the power himself. He suggests that he and Mohinder should work together to contact other special people.

Graphic Novel:Road Kill

Sylar escapes the Bennets' home, but is badly hurt. He meets a brewery trucker and hitches a ride with him. When Sylar learns that the trucker's destination is four days off, Sylar telekinetically causes beer bottles to ram into the trucker, killing him. Sylar quickly learns to ride a truck, and has police hot on his trail. He thwarts their chase by freezing I-95, and then crashing the truck. Sylar arrives in Virginia Beach, remembering the last name he saw from Chandra's research. Unaware of how he will find more evolved humans to steal from, he rings the bell of a house, and meets Zane Taylor. Sylar finds his next step when Zane answers, "Professor Suresh?"

Unexpected

Sylar and Mohinder travel to Bozeman, MT, to meet Dale Smither. He demonstrates his newest power to help convince Dale that undergoing testing would be a good idea. As she talks about her power, she hears Sylar's hearbeat quicken. That night, Sylar and Mohinder go to a motel, and they discuss the possibility of inhibiting the powers of evolved humans. Sylar asks Mohinder about the man who killed Chandra.

Later, Sylar silently enters Dale's shop and tells her he has murder in his heart. When Sylar and Mohinder arrive the next morning, they find Dale's brainless corpse. However, Sylar has difficulty concentrating because of his newly acquired headaches.

Parasite

In Mohinder's apartment, Sylar offers to help Mohinder with the list. Sylar has no luck contacting any evolved humans (when attempting to contact Isaac Mendez he says that he'll "get" him later). Mohinder drugs Sylar's chai, and when Sylar awakens he finds himself strapped to a chair and hooked to an IV that supposedly takes away his ability to control his powers. Mohinder explains to him that he has known Sylar's true identity, and pulls up Zane Taylor's obituary. Mohinder takes advantage of Sylar's newfound hearing power by torturing him with a tuning fork.

Mohinder and Sylar talk, and when Mohinder points a gun at Sylar's head, Sylar fends him off by explaining that he was more of a son of Chandra's than Mohinder. Mohinder finally tries to shoot him, but Sylar telekinetically stops the bullet and breaks out of his bonds. Later, when Peter visits Mohinder, Sylar pins Peter to the wall. Sylar says he wants to see how Peter's power works--he begins slicing his head open in order to steal Peter's power.

.07%

As Sylar attempts to slice Peter's skull, he notices it quickly regenerating. Peter then uses telekinesis himself to throw Sylar into a glass fronted bookcase, breaking his concentration. When Sylar gets back up, Peter turns invisible, and Sylar expresses his interest gaining that ability. Unable to see Peter, Sylar uses telekinesis to throw shards of glass in all directions. One shard penetrates the back of Peter's head, killing him. As Sylar prepares to take Peter's brain, Mohinder hits him with the board containing the map. Sylar is knocked unconscious.

When Sylar wakes, Mohinder and Peter are gone and the computer containing the list is destroyed. Frustrated, he finds a page from 9th Wonders! that was pinned on the map. The piece of paper has the address of Isaac Mendez.

When Sylar arrives at Isaac's apartment, he compliments the painter on his talent. After a small conversation, he pushes Isaac to the ground and pins the painter's arms and legs down with his paintbrushes before slicing his skull. He now uses his new ability to paint his own version of Nathan Petrelli in the Oval Office.

Graphic Novel:String Theory

According to Future Hiro, Sylar was stabbed by Hiro Nakamura. However, Sylar was still able to regenerate (a power he stole from Claire) and explode.

Powers

Sylar's original power is intuitive aptitude — a superhuman ability to determine exactly how things work.

Sylar appears to have used his innate power to discover how to take the superpowers of other evolved humans. The exact mechanism by which Sylar gains these powers is not at present known; however, he believes that Chandra Suresh is correct that the abilities are based in the brain, and several of Sylar's victims have had their skulls opened and brains removed.

Acquired Powers

Sylar has acquired a number of powers. In order, Sylar has acquired:

• Telekinesis from Brian Davis. (Six Months Ago)
• Cryokinesis from an unknown victim. (used in Don't Look Back and Road Kill)
• Enhanced memory from Charlie Andrews. (stolen in Seven Minutes to Midnight, used in Road Kill)
• Liquefaction from Zane Taylor. (Run!)
• Enhanced hearing from Dale Smither. (Unexpected)
• Precognition from Isaac Mendez. (.07%)

During their conversations, Sylar and Mr. Bennet confirmed that Sylar has additional powers (Fallout), but not all have necessarily been identified. Based on Mohinder's statement to the authorities (Fallout) that six people from his father's list have been murdered by Sylar (not including Zane Taylor), it's likely that Sylar has at least nine acquired powers: the six Mohinder mentions, plus Zane Taylor's, Dale's, and Isaac's.

Scientists at the Company studied Sylar and confirmed that he has additional powers, but they were not able to identify any other than telekinesis. (Godsend)

Alternate History Powers

In an alternate history, Sylar demonstrates two powers that he does not currently possess. Future Hiro has altered history so that Sylar may never acquire these powers. (Graphic Novel:String Theory)

• Rapid cellular regeneration from Claire Bennet, who was not saved by Peter Petrelli in Homecoming.
• The power to explode, presumably induced radioactivity from Theodore Sprague, stolen at an unknown time.

Memorable Quotes

"That’s enough, Gabriel —"

"My name is Sylar!"

- Mr. Bennet, Sylar (Fallout)

"Just a talent I have for the way things work, how the parts should go."

- Sylar (to Chandra Suresh) (Six Months Ago)

"When I was a kid ... I used to wish some stranger would come and tell me my family wasn't really my family. They weren't bad people, they were just ... insignificant. And I wanted to be different. Special. I wanted to change. A new name, a new life. The watchmaker's son ... became a watchmaker. It is so futile. And I wanted to be ... important."

- Sylar (to Chandra Suresh) (Six Months Ago)

"You're broken. I can fix you."

- Sylar (to Brian Davis) (Six Months Ago)

"That sound in your heart, what is it?"

"Murder."

- Dale, Sylar (Unexpected)

"I'm a natural progression of the species. Evolution is a part of nature, and nature kills. Simple, right?"

- Sylar (to Mohinder) (Parasite)

"I wasn't begging for my life. I was offering you yours."

- Sylar (to Mohinder) (Parasite)

"This is usually the part where people start screaming."

- Sylar (to Isaac) (.07%)

Notes

• In an interview, Tim Kring responded to the question "Are Sylar and Claire's father connected?" by saying "There is a connection between the two, which will become clear in later episodes."
• Kristin Veitch of E! indicates that Sylar's character "is the opposite of what you'd think it would be."
• In an interview with Wizard Magazine, Tim Kring states "Sylar's storyline is much cleaner line than a lot of people think. He's literally just a character who wanted to be special and he gets kind of f--ked up and becomes a serial killer. That's all it is."
• When the apparently dead Sylar revives in The Fix, the familiar "tick-tock" can be heard, perhaps implying he has used his power.
• The fact that Sylar survived being shot (by Matt and by Mr. Bennet) and that he walked away from a serious fall at Homecoming led to speculation that he possessed some kind of superhuman endurance. However, Aron Coleite and Joe Pokaski stated in an interview that much of Sylar's apparent invulnerability is a product of his telekinesis. Sylar's resistance to bullets was specifically shown to be a specialized use of telekinesis in Parasite.
• Sylar seems to be able to somehow levitate himself. He did this to escape police (One Giant Leap) and to approach Dale Smither without her hearing any sound of footsteps (Unexpected). He also escapes Virginia Beach police by propelling himself into a tree (Road Kill). Jason Badower stated that the script for Road Kill specifically states that Sylar uses telekinesis to escape the crashing Northeast Brewing Company truck. Whether or not the other instances are also a specialized use of his telekinesis remains is unclear.
• Sylar seems to be able to teleport himself over short distances. This is best seen in Seven Minutes to Midnight, when he moves from the floor of the diner to the pantry at the back to kill Charlie without anyone noticing him entering the pantry. Whether this is the use of an already-revealed power, a new power, or simply a visual effect is unknown. Other examples of him being able to appear suddenly without making a sound can be seen in:
  • Homecoming -- when he appears by Peter's side after Peter sends Claire away to get help;
  • The Fix -- when he appears in his cell behind Mr. Bennet, without passing through the door; and
  • Unexpected -- when he appears close to Dale Smither without her hearing him approach.
• Sylar introduces himself to the trucker as "Drew O'Grady", apparently taking the alias from two headlines in a newspaper he had seen shortly before meeting the trucker. The headlines read, "President drew fire for welfare comments" and "O'Grady Farm to be purchased back..." (Road Kill). This is in keeping with the way he acquired the "Sylar" alias, taking the name from a watch as he meets Brian Davis (Six Months Ago).
• Sylar taking his name from a watch mirrors one theory regarding the Zodiac Killer who killed several people in the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 60s. One suspect was allegedly given a "Zodiac" brand watch that had the same logo (a crossed circle) that the killer used to sign his letters. Also of note, before one alleged victim died, she was followed by a suspicious man wearing horn-rimmed glasses.
• Telekinesis is Sylar's most commonly observed acquired power.

Trivia

• A photograph on NBC's Heroes site shows a birth announcement for a "Paul E. Sylar", dated June 11, 1962. The announcement appears to be pinned next to the map in Chandra Suresh's Brooklyn apartment. However, the casting of 29 year-old Zachary Quinto seems contrary to this information, as does the revelation that "Sylar" is an assumed name. In all likelihood, since the announcement only ever appeared clearly in promotional photos, the character concept has changed since the original announcement was designed and there is no "Paul E. Sylar."
• It is now evident that Sylar is an assumed name for Gabriel Gray, taken from the Sylar brand of wristwatches in the Heroes universe.
• Before the airing of Six Months Ago when it was disproven, the theory that Sylar is Peter had become so stale at 9th Wonders, the semi-official Heroes fansite, that it has inspired a drinking game: whenever someone brings it up, drink.
• The address Mohinder discovers for Sylar in his father's journal is 1146 Trenton Place APT 1B, Queens, NY 11011.
• The role of "Sylar" was originally offered to Christopher Eccleston. He declined the role because he thought it was a cliché for European actors to play villains in American culture.
• In the first draft of the pilot, Sylar was supposed to appear in an Italian prison. According to Greg Beeman's blog, this version of Sylar was supposed to have long claw-like nails and sharp teeth. He was also supposed to be "way weirder and more monstrous — like Nosferatou."
• Ando tells Peter that Sylar is like okage and also like the boogeyman. (Homecoming)

External Links

• Sylar's Blog (Fan site)

See Also

• For articles related to Sylar, see Related Articles:Sylar.

Fan Theories

Please refer to Theory:Sylar for fan-created theories and other speculation.