The episode focuses on several of the main characters discovering their superpowers for the first time, and attempting to find out more about them.
The central theme of human evolution, and the potential for superhuman changes, is introduced by the character of Mohinder Suresh, a genetics professor in Madras, India.
Niki Sanders, a webcam stripper in Las Vegas, Nevada, discovers her abilities when she and her son Micah are forced to flee from thugs approaching their house.
His friend and co-worker, Ando Masahashi, is skeptical, even after Hiro proves it to him by teleporting into the women's restroom at a bar.
Other characters include Claire Bennet, a high school cheerleader in Odessa, Texas, who has discovered that she regenerates from any injuries, and has her classmate Zach film her doing such things.
Heading home, they come across a fiery train wreck, from which Claire saves a man, escaping unharmed.
Kring credits the direct concept and idea for this last scene to Damon Lindelof, producer of Lost.
An eclipse forms part of the series' logo, and also occurs in the season one finale, "How to Stop an Exploding Man".
When the total solar eclipse occurs in "Genesis", it is witnessed directly by Peter, Claire, Hiro, and Niki, as well as indirectly by Isaac.
It is implied that the event is seen simultaneously in New York, Texas, Nevada, Japan, and California, although this is impossible in the real world, as the umbra is at most a few hundred miles wide.
In fact, the Solar Eclipse that occurred on September 22, 2006 (the date closest to this episode's airdate), was annular in Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana and partial in South America, West Africa, southern Africa, the Antarctic Peninsula, and East Antarctica.
Throughout the first season, much of the plot revolves around the events the heroes face in trying to prevent the nuclear explosion from happening and ultimately succeed in How to Stop an Exploding Man.
This version had significant differences with many characters and overall plots, compared with the pilot episode which ultimately aired.
The suit was in regard to the scene when Claire Bennet reached into an active garbage disposal unit—labeled "InSinkErator"—to retrieve a ring and severely disfigured her hand.
Emerson claimed the scene "casts the disposer in an unsavory light, irreparably tarnishing the product" by suggesting serious injuries would result "in the event consumers were to accidentally insert their hand into one."
[4] The episode in question was briefly unavailable in the iTunes Store, but an edited version was soon made available for download.
[5] IGN.com's Robert Canning described the episode as "creating a realistic, modern day world where ordinary people have suddenly found themselves blessed (or cursed, depending) with extraordinary abilities.