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Smallville: Tomb
Hmm. My first thought about this episode was that not only has Lana taken Clark's's old place with Lex (going to him with all her important problems and asking him for favors), but Chloe has completely taken Lex's place for Clark, as well (there were too many parallels--and direct references--to the Shattered/Asylum arc not to be deliberate).
And even though Chloe is tied with Lex as my favorite character on Smallville, it kind of hurt that the lessons (if any) that Clark learned from Shattered/Asylum--never to let a friend get sent to Belle Reve again--were getting carried out for Chloe's benefit rather than Lex's. *Sniffle*
(Though, frankly, if anything this storyline showed that even if Clark *had* rescued Lex, it wouldn't have helped much--geez, if Chloe had really been having a breakdown rather than being possessed by an evil spirit, she'd probably be dead by now).
Still, I loved getting a Chloe-centered episode. They did a good job with the horror, I thought--especially that scene with Lois and Chloe trapped in the basement. Damn, AM is always good, but ED *really* was awesome in that scene. I *love* Lois being all protective of her cousin. (Though I wish the writers hadn't made Lois so stupid as not to lock the door when that creepy orderly had just left. But that I blame on their bad writing, not on Lois).
I wish we had gotten to see Chloe's mom at the end, but still, I'm really glad that Chloe did go to see her, and I *love* that Clark pushed her into it. (Chloe's always pushed him--sometimes inappropriately--to deal with his past, so it was nice to see that reversed, for once). Really, this episode is definitely showing Clark maturing, as an investigator (having to track down bad guys without Chloe's help!), as a friend (that final conversation with Chloe at the end), and as a son (I *love* that he's the one persuading Martha to take the senate seat.) Now if only he would remember that he and Lana broke up!
Lex was very interesting in this, I thought. I think volunteering to help Lana get Chloe medical help was a genuine desire to help Lana, but it of course would have served to help him find out the secrets Chloe is keeping about Clark, and so we're finally moving on to a Lex characterization worthy of the real Lex Luthor, where everything he does will be for dual (or multiple) motives.
Finally, once again AOT really steals the show. I can't figure out *when* in the timeline of her life Martha was supposed to have been a "corporate animal" (didn't she marry Jonathan right out of college?), but I loved that line and the scene with Clark when she decided to be senator. But even more, I loved that scene with Lionel--she had barely *any* lines in the last half of it, and she conveyed so much just with her eyes and her expression. I am *really* getting excited about this storyline, if only because it gives AOT a chance to shine, even if they *do* decide to let Martha get played by Lionel. (I'm torn on how I feel about that plot, because I would really love to see Mionel, but I can't figure out any way the writers could get there *without* Martha being played by Lionel.)
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Yes I was thinking, it was like. At first, Lana asks something, and he agrees just because he can. Same as he often does with Clark, he doesn't *care* at all and he doesnt have any emotional investment, he *enjoys* being the guy that people turn to. Then after Lana leaves, Lex is thinking, 'this could totally work for me, Clark is *way* closer to Chloe than he used to be and *way* further away from Lana. There *has* to be a reason for this. And its then that his motives come in to play, which is why he is a little creepy at the hospital.
I love that he mentions Lana *twice* in that scene. Telling Clark that Lana told him all about and the 'Lana thinks so too' jab. I loved that scene so much. I *love* that Clark didnt say anything, and just *stood there* and I thought he was going to let him do it too and I was so pleased when he didnt, but he didnt shout at Lex or rant and rave he just waited til he was gone and then took her out. And he didnt bother denying it later on either. I loved that.
I'm not counting the previous Clana breakup, they held hands at the funeral and his dad has *just* died, there really isnt an appropriate time to have the 'so are we still together' conversation. It would have been better, I think, if Lana had hesitated before saying 'couple' but she didnt, never mind. And maybe if Clark had *looked* a little suprised when she said it, but whatever. I really did see todays scene as a breakup though, just a resigned 'we are never going to work' thing, and Clark has more important things now, he seems to really be growing into that, scoobying on his own, helping Chlow out and the lessons he learnt in Vengeance. Lana doesnt have *any place* in Clark's life anymore and I *think* he's coming to realise that. Which pleases me as I have great hopes that this means the Rift will be about something that isn't Lana, that its about *Lex* and *Clark* and their rapidly diverging paths and goals.
Okay, sorry I rambled there. My bad.
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Good point--Clark's getting a lot savvier in his dealings with Lex, which is a good thing, I think.
I'm not counting the previous Clana breakup, they held hands at the funeral and his dad has *just* died, there really isnt an appropriate time to have the 'so are we still together' conversation. It would have been better, I think, if Lana had hesitated before saying 'couple' but she didnt, never mind. And maybe if Clark had *looked* a little suprised when she said it, but whatever.
I read Clark's total nonreaction to the "couple" comment as a sign that they've had some sort of offscreen conversation in which they are not officially broken up. Or something. Because otherwise I think he would have said something then.
Lana doesnt have *any place* in Clark's life anymore and I *think* he's coming to realise that. Which pleases me as I have great hopes that this means the Rift will be about something that isn't Lana, that its about *Lex* and *Clark* and their rapidly diverging paths and goals.
I think it's still too much to hope that Lana's not going to have any role in the rift, though. They are actually doing a good job of showing CLark and Lex moving in different directions--last night was a painful indicator of that, I thought--but even though Clark is going to have to eventually acknowledge he can't have Lana, he's not very good at letting people go. And now that he thinks Lex is dangerous, he's *really* not going to be happy with the Lexana.
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Hey Becky! *waves* I got to see ep and it's great to hear your thoughts on it too.
Then after Lana leaves, Lex is thinking, 'this could totally work for me, Clark is *way* closer to Chloe than he used to be and *way* further away from Lana. There *has* to be a reason for this. And its then that his motives come in to play, which is why he is a little creepy at the hospital.
Yes--that's a really interesting point. As you and
this means the Rift will be about something that isn't Lana, that its about *Lex* and *Clark* and their rapidly diverging paths and goals
Yes. For me the Rift is about their growth. Lana plays a part in their growth, for both of them, and she often functions as a symbol or reflection of where they are on that road, but Lana's certainly not the only instigating factor. I found Clark's development in this episode very interesting. He's maturing on his own now. He's devloping more subtle ways of acting (like in the hospital where he doesn't react with anger to Lex) and that's leading him off into his future. I do see them on diverging paths now. It's interesting, huh?!
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if Chloe had really been having a breakdown rather than being possessed by an evil spirit, she'd probably be dead by now
Uh... yes, and I was a little uncomfortable with that. His methods were validated by the outcome within the episode. It could have been otherwise. Still... I tried to go with that in my review.
Lois was good! Yay! I'm glad you thought so. I think Erica's acting was reall strong and I loved the girls saving one another thing. It's rapidly becoming a more female-dominated show! Lois in protective cousin mode is always always good.
I *love* that he's the one persuading Martha to take the senate seat
Yes! I love the way he is maturing. I also found it very interesting, though I didn't talk about it in my review, that he says it's what Jonathan would have wanted. Because I'm not so sure... yes, Jonathan really wanted someone to take on the Luthors. He believed in the cause, not just himself doing it. But would he want *Martha* doing it? Wouldn't he want to 'protect' her more? I love that Clark thinks Martha is strong enough to do this. And I think it's interesting that we've got this developing myth of there being a lot of Jonathan in Clark. But what Clark *tells* himself his dad would want and what his dad really would have wanted... could be different. Or am I just too cynical about Jonathan?
I'm really excited by Martha/Lionel plot too, but I don't want her strength taken away from her. *crosses fingers it's done well*
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Good questions. I think he would want it in the sense that he wants Martha to be happy and successful, but I agree that he would think it might be too dangerous for her, in some ways (especially given how Lionel's hovering around her, now).
I love that Clark thinks Martha is strong enough to do this. And I think it's interesting that we've got this developing myth of there being a lot of Jonathan in Clark. But what Clark *tells* himself his dad would want and what his dad really would have wanted... could be different. Or am I just too cynical about Jonathan?
Well, considering I thought Jonathan was a blockheaded jerk a lot of the time, I *hope* what Clark tells himself his dad would have wanted is going to be different than what Jonathan actually would have wanted. But this does lead me to wonder if Lex, after he inevitably kills Lionel, is going to feel that he, too, has internalized his own father? (And again, as I said in a comment on your post, that makes me a little nervous for Chloe, because we may not have seen the end of the crazy mother plot).
I'm really excited by Martha/Lionel plot too, but I don't want her strength taken away from her. *crosses fingers it's done well*
What I'm especially loving in this plot is how AOT is playing Martha's body language in complete opposition to her actual dialogue. So she is telling Lionel to use the front door (he is not family) and to call first (in other words, stop dropping by, you jerk) but at the same time her facial expressions suggest she is vulnerable to his appeals.
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Yes, me too. And so far this seems to be the case. He's internalised Jonathan as a) telling him to control his anger and not kill anyone, b) supporting Martha in a career. Hooray!
It would be fascinating if Lex also internalised Lionel. It would seem inevitable. It's also an interesting reversal of Lana's plot. She started out with an internalised image of her parents as having a perfect happy marriage and loving smalltown life. Then the reality surfaced in her mum's diary and the photos of her with Henry Small. So the internalised vision was disrupted/distorted/destroyed.
I do fear for Chloe too in the sense that I think noone in SV escapes their destiny. And now the fact that they've given Chloe such space in SV canon and we've seen her go to her mom... well, it could come back. It may not. But I think it's an open plot thread they could pick up again.
What I'm especially loving in this plot is how AOT is playing Martha's body language in complete opposition to her actual dialogue.
That's a perfect description of it. Thank you! *That's* what is so unsettling about these scenes. Also, it's fascinating in the whole image-versus-truth world of SV that her words belie her actions.
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That's a really good point. (Gee, I guess drunken Lex was, in a way, right in "Reckoning" that Lana's lucky her parents are dead. Ok, maybe not, but she had so little heritage from them that at least she's no longer haunted by them. If they hadn't written Nell off the show, maybe she could have been the bad parental influence (after all, it's pretty strongly implied in the Pilot that Nell was having an affair with Lionel).
Oh. DUH. Now Lana is going to have an affair with a Luthor, just like her aunt did. I can't believe I didn't think of that before.
Hmmm. Nell actually seems to have maintained a cordial relationship with the Luthors after she got her diamond earrings--maybe that foreshadows a non-traumatic breakup for the Lexana, when it ends?
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Well it's an interesting point. Lana confronts a lot of things about her parents (including the obvious grief) early on in her life and is, in that sense, more adult than those around her. Nell is *an* influence, but not necessarily her sole defining one. And Henry Small's genes too are interesting (I've just been rewatching that arc).
Now Lana is going to have an affair with a Luthor, just like her aunt did. I can't believe I didn't think of that before.
I had forgotten about that--although at a time I thought this was what would definitely happen. I guess it looks on the cards again now!
maybe that foreshadows a non-traumatic breakup for the Lexana, when it ends?
Maybe! I can picture that actually. I think Lana is convincingly a woman who will have many relationships with men and not necessarily part on bad terms with them.