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Smallville meme
Sep. 4th, 2010 01:46 amDay 16- Best Villain
I'll say Lex as the historical choice in the wider Superman fandom, even though Michael's Lex was a very nuanced creation who, except in a few specific episodes, seldom felt like a villain to me. That's thanks to the empathy created in earlier seasons, and the fact that many things that are supposed to 'prove' his villainy were done by other characters too and soon forgiven. The thing about Lex is you know he honestly thinks he's doing the right thing by the world, but he's all too willing to sacrifice others for the greater good. I think of poor Wes Keenan, turned into an assassin when all he wanted to do was serve his country. I think the show did a decent if inconsistent job showing Lex's descent into darkness, particularly starting in S3 when the Luthor power plays start to get really nasty. I don't like how Clark warned Lex in Memoria - how I wish he would have been more compassionate with his "why does your father hate you so much?" But the warning about the power struggle hurting other people was a valid one, and things only escalated when Lex got control of LuthorCorp. The company set up by Lionel was in moral free-fall for years before Lex took control, cutting corners on safety, hiring people of dubious character and funding projects whose goals could never be printed in the annual report. Rather than cleaning house, it seems Lex just made the whole thing run more efficiently. It is notable that when he disappeared from the scene in S8, LuthorCorp continued to be associated with dubious projects, even AFTER the merger with Queen Industries. Maybe LuthorCorp is the real villain of the story!
And a quick one from the alternates: favorite "someone looking at two people from the outside" scene. It's Chlark from Obscura, with Lana on the outside looking in.
( other days under the cut )
I'll say Lex as the historical choice in the wider Superman fandom, even though Michael's Lex was a very nuanced creation who, except in a few specific episodes, seldom felt like a villain to me. That's thanks to the empathy created in earlier seasons, and the fact that many things that are supposed to 'prove' his villainy were done by other characters too and soon forgiven. The thing about Lex is you know he honestly thinks he's doing the right thing by the world, but he's all too willing to sacrifice others for the greater good. I think of poor Wes Keenan, turned into an assassin when all he wanted to do was serve his country. I think the show did a decent if inconsistent job showing Lex's descent into darkness, particularly starting in S3 when the Luthor power plays start to get really nasty. I don't like how Clark warned Lex in Memoria - how I wish he would have been more compassionate with his "why does your father hate you so much?" But the warning about the power struggle hurting other people was a valid one, and things only escalated when Lex got control of LuthorCorp. The company set up by Lionel was in moral free-fall for years before Lex took control, cutting corners on safety, hiring people of dubious character and funding projects whose goals could never be printed in the annual report. Rather than cleaning house, it seems Lex just made the whole thing run more efficiently. It is notable that when he disappeared from the scene in S8, LuthorCorp continued to be associated with dubious projects, even AFTER the merger with Queen Industries. Maybe LuthorCorp is the real villain of the story!
And a quick one from the alternates: favorite "someone looking at two people from the outside" scene. It's Chlark from Obscura, with Lana on the outside looking in.
( other days under the cut )
