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Smallville: Abyss
I was not pleased with a major plot development tonight. Just a warning before you click.
People who can't stand any criticism of Clark should probably not read any further. [And just an fyi--I'm probably going to be backspacing out of Chloe-negative reviews faster than Clark fetches library books. Just in case you're wondering why I'm being even *more* quiet than I have been lately on the commenting front.]
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Clark, why is it ok for you to steal people's memories when it's bad for Brainiac to do it?
So. Now I understand why they had Chloe choose to kill that guy--it was to make Clark's decision look like it was the right one to make. Guess what? It still wasn't.
Honestly? If Clark had found out about what Chloe did and then had Jor-El take those memories away, I could have been persuaded that the decision was justified (if nothing else, to prevent her from doing it again, but also because it would be hard to bring Chloe to trial for killing someone with her brain). And if Chloe, *in her right mind* was making those decisions--which I don't think has actually been definitively demonstrated by the show--perhaps she shouldn't have knowledge of the secret.
But that isn't the motive behind Clark's decision; that's something metatextual that the viewers know and Clark doesn't. Clark made the decision to take her memories away --memories she had just been telling him were a core part of her identity-- just to "protect her." I have never been angrier with Clark in the history of the show. That's just not right. You can't steal a piece of a person's identity "for their own good." I don't care about his moving speech (and I'll grant it was very moving) about how much she did for him and how often she saved him and how hard this was for him blah blah blah--it was a fundamental violation of her selfhood, and it was wrong.
I can certainly understand the emotional place Clark was coming from--once again he's been reminded his secret is dangerous, and his oldest remaining friend was losing herself in front of his eyes--but dammit, not knowing his secret is dangerous, too, especially for Chloe, who's been so involved in his business for so long. I'm not even sure how can she retain memory of the past few years without knowing his secret, so much of her life has been wrapped up in it. And God knows the danger she's in from Doomsday isn't going to be decreased by her now dangerous ignorance.
If this is truly a retcon--Chloe's never going to know Clark's secret anymore, and the show's going to say this is a good thing, I am going to be completely pissed. If it's using this to show Clark that ignorance of his secret can be as dangerous as knowledge, that would redeem this plotline for me, so I hope that's where they're going.
Memories
I'm sad that the ending has left such a bad taste in my mouth, because up until that point, I was really enjoying the episode. I loved all the little flashbacks--to Chloe and Jimmy's dance at the engagement party, but especially to the 8th grade meeting of little Chloe and Clark, who were so damn cute (I just wanted to squish them both, especially Clark after he swished to the library to get the book for her).
And god, it was so heartbreaking to see Chloe lose pieces of herself. That room with all her memories on the wall! It's the Chamber of Chloe Sullivan! Oh, my heart. Especially her comment about how all those folks were just like facebook profiles of random people, to her. Ouch.
And wow, Jimmy really had my respect in this episode. Again and again and again he had to confront Clark's centrality in Chloe's life, and he clearly isn't completely over his jealousy, but he clearly kept making the choice to get over his issues and do what was best for Chloe, including going to Clark for help when he really wanted to solve her problem himself.
Of course, it looked like Davis was doing the same thing until the very end, which turned out to be so.damned.creepy.
People who can't stand any criticism of Clark should probably not read any further. [And just an fyi--I'm probably going to be backspacing out of Chloe-negative reviews faster than Clark fetches library books. Just in case you're wondering why I'm being even *more* quiet than I have been lately on the commenting front.]
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Clark, why is it ok for you to steal people's memories when it's bad for Brainiac to do it?
So. Now I understand why they had Chloe choose to kill that guy--it was to make Clark's decision look like it was the right one to make. Guess what? It still wasn't.
Honestly? If Clark had found out about what Chloe did and then had Jor-El take those memories away, I could have been persuaded that the decision was justified (if nothing else, to prevent her from doing it again, but also because it would be hard to bring Chloe to trial for killing someone with her brain). And if Chloe, *in her right mind* was making those decisions--which I don't think has actually been definitively demonstrated by the show--perhaps she shouldn't have knowledge of the secret.
But that isn't the motive behind Clark's decision; that's something metatextual that the viewers know and Clark doesn't. Clark made the decision to take her memories away --memories she had just been telling him were a core part of her identity-- just to "protect her." I have never been angrier with Clark in the history of the show. That's just not right. You can't steal a piece of a person's identity "for their own good." I don't care about his moving speech (and I'll grant it was very moving) about how much she did for him and how often she saved him and how hard this was for him blah blah blah--it was a fundamental violation of her selfhood, and it was wrong.
I can certainly understand the emotional place Clark was coming from--once again he's been reminded his secret is dangerous, and his oldest remaining friend was losing herself in front of his eyes--but dammit, not knowing his secret is dangerous, too, especially for Chloe, who's been so involved in his business for so long. I'm not even sure how can she retain memory of the past few years without knowing his secret, so much of her life has been wrapped up in it. And God knows the danger she's in from Doomsday isn't going to be decreased by her now dangerous ignorance.
If this is truly a retcon--Chloe's never going to know Clark's secret anymore, and the show's going to say this is a good thing, I am going to be completely pissed. If it's using this to show Clark that ignorance of his secret can be as dangerous as knowledge, that would redeem this plotline for me, so I hope that's where they're going.
Memories
I'm sad that the ending has left such a bad taste in my mouth, because up until that point, I was really enjoying the episode. I loved all the little flashbacks--to Chloe and Jimmy's dance at the engagement party, but especially to the 8th grade meeting of little Chloe and Clark, who were so damn cute (I just wanted to squish them both, especially Clark after he swished to the library to get the book for her).
And god, it was so heartbreaking to see Chloe lose pieces of herself. That room with all her memories on the wall! It's the Chamber of Chloe Sullivan! Oh, my heart. Especially her comment about how all those folks were just like facebook profiles of random people, to her. Ouch.
And wow, Jimmy really had my respect in this episode. Again and again and again he had to confront Clark's centrality in Chloe's life, and he clearly isn't completely over his jealousy, but he clearly kept making the choice to get over his issues and do what was best for Chloe, including going to Clark for help when he really wanted to solve her problem himself.
Of course, it looked like Davis was doing the same thing until the very end, which turned out to be so.damned.creepy.
no subject
My guess would be that she gets her memories back fairly quickly. You have to wonder how much there is in her remaining memory - so much of her day-to-day life revolved around Clark's secret. What else is left? Jimmy, coffee with Lana, breakfast with Lois and huge inexplicable gaps?
If it's using this to show Clark that ignorance of his secret can be as dangerous as knowledge, that would redeem this plotline for me, so I hope that's where they're going.
Ignorance of Clark's secret didn't keep Lex or Lana safe. Clark should know this already!
no subject
Seriously!! And yeah, I agree, ignorance didn't save Lex or Lana. But Clark is never really rational when it comes to his secret.
no subject
Right! Because the problem isn't just Knowing the Secret or not. The problem -- the potential danger -- lies in associating with Clark period. In other words, everyone in Clark's inner circle, whether they know the secret or not, is potentially in danger from anyone who wants to find out about Clark without taking Clark on directly. What Clark has yet to factor into his thinking is that his choice isn't really Whether or Not to Tell. His choice is really Whether or Not to Have People I'm Close to At All. Eventually, he will take the leap of faith that it's better to have people in his life, whether they know or not, than to be alone. In fact, that's part of why he'll come up with the Superman identity. So that he can have a life as Clark Kent that involves having relationships with other people where those people aren't in danger just because they know Clark Kent.
no subject