Tim Kring is a genius. Masi Oka is a rockstar. Ali Larter and Hayden Panittiere are smoking hot. NBC's new show Heroes is the talk of the town and for good reason. But there's one very big and painful problem with the show that could only get worse with its popularity...selling out to big corporate ad dollars.

Never before have I seen such blatant product placement in a television show until the day I saw the pilot episode. Every time I see that Nissan Versa or the mention of it on the show makes me cringe. The Apple iPod video was a little less blatant, but irritating nonetheless. Product placement has been creeping up on us for years now, but recently it has become more and more prolific finding its way from film to television and now even into video games (Did you see that giant Coca-Cola billboard go by when you were gunning down grannies in Grand Theft Auto? Sneaky bastards). Sometimes it's very subtle without us knowing that the companies have subliminally programmed us to grab a Coke from the fridge at the 7-Eleven instead of a Pepsi. But othertimes, it's a bit too in your face, in this case having Hiro and Ando mentioning the Nissan Versa in conversation and praise and constant shots of the little blue car. It obviously adds nothing to the show but a disgusting plug for a new car from Nissan. That ends up leaving a bad taste in everyone's mouth including the people who might buy said Nissan Versa. It looks like Nissan has paid the folks over at Desperate Housewives a pretty penny as well, having their emblem show up twice in the last episode. So much for artistic integrity.

I'm hoping that they just had deals and sponsorships signed for the first season and that they will end there. The last thing I would want to see is Nathan Petrelli flying in a pair of Dockers khakis. Or Matt Parkman soothing his headaches from all the voices from mind-reading with Advil. Or Hiro Nakamura checking his Rolex watch when he stops time. We already saw our hero James Bond sellout to BMW and Ericsson. Please Mr. Kring, I implore you for the love of all that is creative and genuine, don't let these Heroes become another billboard.