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Huh. I can't recall a Smallville episode that has ever left me more bemused. I didn't hate it though I certainly didn't love it. I'll give it a B(+). There were some interesting points raised about law enforcement and justice, and some good Tess moments. But ultimately, this episode was all about the resurrection of Clana, and that's never a good thing.
From the first episode of Smallville, there's never been a time when Clark did not love Lana. It's a given in his life, and drove one potential girlfriend to attempted murder and caused no end end of heart break for Chloe in high school. Not even several bad break-ups, Lana's marriage to Lex, being cheated on with Bizarro and an unceremonious dumping have been enough to make Clark truly look beyond Lana. Although normally we might admire someone for being so persistently devoted, its long past the point where there's any hope for the relationship. It was time to move on after season five.
And yet, I can understand Clark's hesitation to do so. As Danny-the-cop said, to make a difference in the world, you have to remember why you do what you do. Danny is a cop to help protect the people he loves, and Clark will become Superman for that same reason. When you have a tough moral call to make, thinking about how your loved ones would react is a great way to guide you to the right choice. For Clark, having someone to love isn't selfish - it's a necessity.
So when Lana says she left him because the world needs him more, well, that's just not a very good reason. He wants to make her understand that its not an all or nothing situation. Clark can save the world AND have someone to come home to every night to share his life with. We all know that Lois will ultimately become that someone, but Clark certainly doesn't. So he wants to give Clana one more try, and while I want to scream at the TV, I can still hope, maybe just maybe, this time they'll get the break up right. IMHO, they should break up because Lana will always want to much of his time and will always resent the broken dates. They set this up as early as the not-date in Season 1's Cool. But I'm terribly afraid we're going to get some other nonsense reason that will leave a bad taste in the mouth of everyone but the most die hard Lana shipper. And even they'll be upset since she is after all leaving. So what's the point? Sigh.
Moving on, the first two Tess-Lana scenes were, um, interesting. We got some more Lana worship but at least Tess says it with venom and distrust. "You're stunning. And devious." So now we're supposed to believe that Lex loved Lana because she was his equal? What ever. But once the Tana fight was out of the way, the revelation of what Lex had been up to was really stunning. I loved the visual images of Tess watching herself watch herself in an endless feedback loop. And I did like Lana's commiseration with Tess, saying how she remembers being the one defending Lex with all her energy only to have her loyalty rewarded with one lie after another. And then Cassidy hit the ball out of the park with Tess's farewell scene to Lex. I particularly loved how she only said "I loved you, you son of a bitch" AFTER she'd interrupted the feed. She's not giving Lex that satistifaction. And we can see that she's moving quickly on her threat to Lex to strip away the life he knew: he's now been declared officially dead. So it might be years before he can regain control of his empire.
On the Ollie front, I'm not a fan and thought he behaved like a jerk throughout much of the episode. Yes, its a serious problem if the police are resorting to vigilante justice, but the solution isn't more vigilante justice. Clark is starting to grasp this and I thought it was kind of touching when he asked Danny if the capes were just making things worse. Danny's response is germane to the issue: "Cops got rules, capes don't." Until they develop some guidelines and form liasons with law enforcement, our erstwhile heroes will never truly be able to change the system. Anyways, we have a few scenes where Ollie takes needless pot shots at Clark. Fortunately, Ollie was listening to Clark's impassioned reply about how to truly change someone. With his life on the line, Ollie tells Danny to shoot him if he wants to prove Clark wrong. Danny proves Clark right and Ollie heaves a sigh of relief, then winds up saving Danny's life when the other cop starts shooting. And then Clark gets the final save by blocking the bullet. I was all set to yell at the BDA for letting himself be seen doing so, but Clark thought this one through. He tells the cop to take his own advice and always wear a vest. Clever lad!
This is the second episode written by Bryan Miller, Committed being the first, and I must say I don't care for the way he contrives the story line. Or maybe it was first time director Morgan Beggs fault. Regardless, there was no interaction between the A cop story and the B Lana-Tess story, all the transitions felt abrubt, the timing was jerky and there were parts that flat out didn't make sense. The worst offense was at the end of Act Three, where we find Clark somewhere and for some reason he X-rays the trunk of a car and removes a rifle, only to be immediately arrested by the police. Huh? We're told Danny set him up - OK, but why not SHOW it. Grrrr.
To finish on a more positive note, here are some random things I liked:
From the first episode of Smallville, there's never been a time when Clark did not love Lana. It's a given in his life, and drove one potential girlfriend to attempted murder and caused no end end of heart break for Chloe in high school. Not even several bad break-ups, Lana's marriage to Lex, being cheated on with Bizarro and an unceremonious dumping have been enough to make Clark truly look beyond Lana. Although normally we might admire someone for being so persistently devoted, its long past the point where there's any hope for the relationship. It was time to move on after season five.
And yet, I can understand Clark's hesitation to do so. As Danny-the-cop said, to make a difference in the world, you have to remember why you do what you do. Danny is a cop to help protect the people he loves, and Clark will become Superman for that same reason. When you have a tough moral call to make, thinking about how your loved ones would react is a great way to guide you to the right choice. For Clark, having someone to love isn't selfish - it's a necessity.
So when Lana says she left him because the world needs him more, well, that's just not a very good reason. He wants to make her understand that its not an all or nothing situation. Clark can save the world AND have someone to come home to every night to share his life with. We all know that Lois will ultimately become that someone, but Clark certainly doesn't. So he wants to give Clana one more try, and while I want to scream at the TV, I can still hope, maybe just maybe, this time they'll get the break up right. IMHO, they should break up because Lana will always want to much of his time and will always resent the broken dates. They set this up as early as the not-date in Season 1's Cool. But I'm terribly afraid we're going to get some other nonsense reason that will leave a bad taste in the mouth of everyone but the most die hard Lana shipper. And even they'll be upset since she is after all leaving. So what's the point? Sigh.
Is it wicked not to care when they say that you're mistaken
Thinking hopes and lots of dreams that aren't there?
Is it wicked not to care when you've wasted many hours
Talking endlessly to anyone that's there?
I know the truth awaits me
But still I hesitate because of fear
...
And if there was a sequel
Would you love me as an equal?
Would you love me till I'm dead
Or is there someone else instead?
(Belle and Sebastien - Is It Wicked Not to Care)
Thinking hopes and lots of dreams that aren't there?
Is it wicked not to care when you've wasted many hours
Talking endlessly to anyone that's there?
I know the truth awaits me
But still I hesitate because of fear
...
And if there was a sequel
Would you love me as an equal?
Would you love me till I'm dead
Or is there someone else instead?
(Belle and Sebastien - Is It Wicked Not to Care)
Moving on, the first two Tess-Lana scenes were, um, interesting. We got some more Lana worship but at least Tess says it with venom and distrust. "You're stunning. And devious." So now we're supposed to believe that Lex loved Lana because she was his equal? What ever. But once the Tana fight was out of the way, the revelation of what Lex had been up to was really stunning. I loved the visual images of Tess watching herself watch herself in an endless feedback loop. And I did like Lana's commiseration with Tess, saying how she remembers being the one defending Lex with all her energy only to have her loyalty rewarded with one lie after another. And then Cassidy hit the ball out of the park with Tess's farewell scene to Lex. I particularly loved how she only said "I loved you, you son of a bitch" AFTER she'd interrupted the feed. She's not giving Lex that satistifaction. And we can see that she's moving quickly on her threat to Lex to strip away the life he knew: he's now been declared officially dead. So it might be years before he can regain control of his empire.
On the Ollie front, I'm not a fan and thought he behaved like a jerk throughout much of the episode. Yes, its a serious problem if the police are resorting to vigilante justice, but the solution isn't more vigilante justice. Clark is starting to grasp this and I thought it was kind of touching when he asked Danny if the capes were just making things worse. Danny's response is germane to the issue: "Cops got rules, capes don't." Until they develop some guidelines and form liasons with law enforcement, our erstwhile heroes will never truly be able to change the system. Anyways, we have a few scenes where Ollie takes needless pot shots at Clark. Fortunately, Ollie was listening to Clark's impassioned reply about how to truly change someone. With his life on the line, Ollie tells Danny to shoot him if he wants to prove Clark wrong. Danny proves Clark right and Ollie heaves a sigh of relief, then winds up saving Danny's life when the other cop starts shooting. And then Clark gets the final save by blocking the bullet. I was all set to yell at the BDA for letting himself be seen doing so, but Clark thought this one through. He tells the cop to take his own advice and always wear a vest. Clever lad!
This is the second episode written by Bryan Miller, Committed being the first, and I must say I don't care for the way he contrives the story line. Or maybe it was first time director Morgan Beggs fault. Regardless, there was no interaction between the A cop story and the B Lana-Tess story, all the transitions felt abrubt, the timing was jerky and there were parts that flat out didn't make sense. The worst offense was at the end of Act Three, where we find Clark somewhere and for some reason he X-rays the trunk of a car and removes a rifle, only to be immediately arrested by the police. Huh? We're told Danny set him up - OK, but why not SHOW it. Grrrr.
To finish on a more positive note, here are some random things I liked:
- the kid in his Red Blue Blur costume
- Ollie hiring Emile to act as a trusted doctor for the team
- Clark being so engrossed at the beginning of the episode looking for leads on Doomsday, he forgot about Lana
- Chloe's glumness about having to sift through information the old fashioned way
- Chloe reminding Clark that he might be hurting Lois
- Clark looked mighty fine in all his different outfits, but there's something about that grey T-shirt that makes me particularly happy
