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Smallville 6.9 Subterranean
Well, I had a feeling when I read the TV Guide description of this episode I wouldn't like it, and that proved to be mainly correct, but there actually were a number of individual moments in the episode I did like.
Things I liked:
Clark is getting slightly better at investigating on his own. I liked the fact that he managed to find a reasonable pretext to be on his neighbor's farm without immediately leaping to the accusations. (If only he could do that with Lex. Sigh. If Lex really *had* been behind it, by confronting him that way he wasn't solving anything, he was just giving Lex the advance warning he would need to cover everything else. Still, it was nice that we actually got a Clark-Lex scene).
I also love when Clark is being all protective and compassionate and stuff--when we get to see him bond with one of the people he's protecting--and it sorta kinda made sense that he would identify with illegal immigrants. And I really did like his conversation with Chloe at the end, realizing that no matter how many people he saves, he can't solve all the world's problems. A sense of perspective is good for a hero. (Plus, shades of the future JUSTICE LEAGUE, yay).
Chloe's hair continues to be extremely cute. And she and Jimmy continue to be cute, too, though I was trying to figure out what precisely she meant by saying "define boyfriend." Are they really going in the Chlark direction? Jimmy seems to think so, and I loved his attempt to confront the problem with Clark via basketball.
The Lexana was SO fabulous because Lex is both blatantly and subtly manipulating Lana, and it's a joy to watch, both when he's being deliberately obvious (sending her to Amsterdam since it's a romantic city so she'll miss him) and subtly (encouraging her to get involved in charity that's going to make Luthorcorp look good). That Clana scene, where Lana (in that HIDEOUS red blouse, and I barely ever notice what people are wearing, so it must have been really fugly for me to note it) said "I resent the fact that you think I'm some puppet [Lex] can manipulate" made me laugh and laugh and laugh. Though I do like that she is complicit in her own manipulation--that little speech about finally appreciating how money is power was lovely. Sure, Lana, you start out with good intentions, and then the power starts corrupting. I can't wait to see that.
Lex walking down that corridor of the new 33.1, with all the hands reaching out to him, was BADASS.
Things I didn't like.
The whole illegal immigrant plot. Ok, first of all, SV, way to compund the error you made in Fallout: open the teaser with two minority characters, and have one of them be dead by the end of the scene. Very nice. Way to reinforce Hollywood stereotypes. SV just doesn't *do* real political issues very well; it should stick to doing them metaphorically through FOTW plots. I mean, I get that they are trying to move Clark to being someone who addresses real world problems, but parts of this were just painful to watch (especially Jimmy and Clark's stereotypical assumption that Mexican laborers don't speak English).
I'm not sure I completely bought Martha, oathbound to uphold the law. It didn't really ring true to me. It didn't ring completely false, it just seemed like a dumb dilemma, manufactured to create a conflict between her and Clark.
Lex's magically appearing ability to play the piano, just so he can be more Lionel-esque, is an annoying breach of continuity. I know it's a breach of continuity that goes back a couple seasons now, but it still annoys me.
The incompetence of Lex's minions is really tedious at this point. Dammit, he needs to get some competent minions NOW.
Hmm. Based just on the quantity of "things I liked" and "things I didn't like," you would think I liked the episode overall, but really the A plot drove me pretty insane, so despite all the great little moments overall I didn't like it.
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