![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
SV "What If" Game
Edited to rename my game now that it is famous all over teh internets, since "an SV Game/Poll Thingy" doesn't scan quite as well.
I have one of those extremely tedious projects at work that require, for sanity, an lj break every half hour or so, so it seems like a good time to play a game.
So here's the premise: the SV fairy has appeared to you and offered you the opportunity to travel to the SV-verse, temporarily, to improve Smallville and/or the lives of the characters in any way you see fit. There are rules, however. You can either (1)have one conversation with one character (and only one character), time length up to one hour, at any point in the timeline OR (2) you can change one event, but not speak to anyone.
--If you choose the conversation, you can talk to anyone at any point in their timeline, but you have to be yourself (mysterious stranger); you can't, for example, be Clark to talk to Lex. You can, however, be a mysterious stranger who knows the future; you just can't hang around more than an hour to show that your predictions were accurate.
--If you choose changing an event, you have a fair amount of power--let's say the limit of your power is that of a meteor mutant--but you can only change one event, and you can't speak to anyone. So, for example, if your goal was to prevent Jodi from becoming a fat-sucker in "Craving," you could either magically prevent her father's greenhouse from being salted with kryptonite OR you could have a conversation warning her, but you couldn't do both. If you wanted to save Jonathan's life in "Reckoning," you could have a conversation with Clark or you could blow up the Fortress of Solitude (if you think that would help) OR you could puncture Jonathan's tires so he never has the encounter with Lionel, but you could only do ONE of those things, not all of them. If you want to redirect the meteors in the first meteor shower to squash Lana, you can do that, but you can't then talk to Clark to get him to wait on Loeb bridge so he saves Lex's life even though he no longer has Lana to moon over and so he may not end up there on his own.
SO:
What is your goal?
What are you going to do to accomplish it, given the constraints on your powers?
What do you think the effect of your change will be?
What might be the unintended consequences?
For example, here's mine.
What is your goal?
I want Lex NOT to become an evil monster whose sociopathy exceeds Lionel's. It turns out I want that even more than I want Clark and Lex to get together.
What are you going to do to accomplish it, given the constraints on your powers?
After much thought about this, I think what I would do is appear to Lillian a couple days before she kills Julian and HEAL HER with my magical kryptomutant powers.
What do you think the effect of your change will be?
Even though I don't get to talk to her, my hope is that healing her would cover both her post-partum psychosis (to which I am attributing her desire to kill Julian) AND her heart condition, so she would live and continue to be a countering influence on Lex. I think by the time Lex gets to Smallville it's really too late for him to really change; he's too fucked up already. My hope is that if Lillian is not sucked down into despair because of her mortal illness, she would actually be able to support Lex in not becoming like his dad. And Lex would still have a little brother, who he clearly loved a lot, so that would give him motivation to try to be a good person and set a good example.
What might be the unintended consequences?
Well, Lillian might already be so damaged that she would still kill Julian, and maybe this time Lionel would catch her and she'd go to prison or be locked in an asylum, which probably would NOT make things better for Lex. Or maybe she wouldn't be caught, but she'd live, and instead of being Lex's dead model of goodness, she'd be the psycho-mom he was protecting, and that could get ugly and he might go evil earlier. Or maybe none of that would happen but instead Lionel would succeed in molding Julian to be the heir he wanted Lex to be, and instead of Lex being the evil genius he'd be locked in an eternal struggle with his brother the evil genius.
So, does anyone else want to play, or did I make the rules too complicated?
I have one of those extremely tedious projects at work that require, for sanity, an lj break every half hour or so, so it seems like a good time to play a game.
So here's the premise: the SV fairy has appeared to you and offered you the opportunity to travel to the SV-verse, temporarily, to improve Smallville and/or the lives of the characters in any way you see fit. There are rules, however. You can either (1)have one conversation with one character (and only one character), time length up to one hour, at any point in the timeline OR (2) you can change one event, but not speak to anyone.
--If you choose the conversation, you can talk to anyone at any point in their timeline, but you have to be yourself (mysterious stranger); you can't, for example, be Clark to talk to Lex. You can, however, be a mysterious stranger who knows the future; you just can't hang around more than an hour to show that your predictions were accurate.
--If you choose changing an event, you have a fair amount of power--let's say the limit of your power is that of a meteor mutant--but you can only change one event, and you can't speak to anyone. So, for example, if your goal was to prevent Jodi from becoming a fat-sucker in "Craving," you could either magically prevent her father's greenhouse from being salted with kryptonite OR you could have a conversation warning her, but you couldn't do both. If you wanted to save Jonathan's life in "Reckoning," you could have a conversation with Clark or you could blow up the Fortress of Solitude (if you think that would help) OR you could puncture Jonathan's tires so he never has the encounter with Lionel, but you could only do ONE of those things, not all of them. If you want to redirect the meteors in the first meteor shower to squash Lana, you can do that, but you can't then talk to Clark to get him to wait on Loeb bridge so he saves Lex's life even though he no longer has Lana to moon over and so he may not end up there on his own.
SO:
What is your goal?
What are you going to do to accomplish it, given the constraints on your powers?
What do you think the effect of your change will be?
What might be the unintended consequences?
For example, here's mine.
What is your goal?
I want Lex NOT to become an evil monster whose sociopathy exceeds Lionel's. It turns out I want that even more than I want Clark and Lex to get together.
What are you going to do to accomplish it, given the constraints on your powers?
After much thought about this, I think what I would do is appear to Lillian a couple days before she kills Julian and HEAL HER with my magical kryptomutant powers.
What do you think the effect of your change will be?
Even though I don't get to talk to her, my hope is that healing her would cover both her post-partum psychosis (to which I am attributing her desire to kill Julian) AND her heart condition, so she would live and continue to be a countering influence on Lex. I think by the time Lex gets to Smallville it's really too late for him to really change; he's too fucked up already. My hope is that if Lillian is not sucked down into despair because of her mortal illness, she would actually be able to support Lex in not becoming like his dad. And Lex would still have a little brother, who he clearly loved a lot, so that would give him motivation to try to be a good person and set a good example.
What might be the unintended consequences?
Well, Lillian might already be so damaged that she would still kill Julian, and maybe this time Lionel would catch her and she'd go to prison or be locked in an asylum, which probably would NOT make things better for Lex. Or maybe she wouldn't be caught, but she'd live, and instead of being Lex's dead model of goodness, she'd be the psycho-mom he was protecting, and that could get ugly and he might go evil earlier. Or maybe none of that would happen but instead Lionel would succeed in molding Julian to be the heir he wanted Lex to be, and instead of Lex being the evil genius he'd be locked in an eternal struggle with his brother the evil genius.
So, does anyone else want to play, or did I make the rules too complicated?
no subject
What is your goal?
To get Lana some psychological help.
What are you going to do to accomplish it, given the constraints on your powers?
With the power of persuasion (yes!), I'd convince S1 Lana to get go into therapy. By admitting she's very psychologically damaged (because she'd do that in order to: 1.) convince Nell therapy (aka professional intervention)'s necessary; 2.) prove to Nell she admitting there's a problem is the first step), Lana becomes more symbolic of the damage of the meteor shower than that crappy magazine cover. Further, she'd actually suggest to Nell she should probably go to a facility for intensive sessions.
What do you think the effect of your change will be?
Dancing in the streets?
Removing Lana from Clark's orbit and recasting her as a "troubled teen" would remove the canon hold she has on Clark. Too bad I can't convince the staff at the facility to try electroshock on her pinkness.
What might be the unintended consequences?
I suppose Lana could *die* in treatment, but it's more likely she'd develop a spine and travel a bit, occasionally sending postcards to Pete.
Although, witnessing the "perfect" girl own her own problems could convince Clark he too needs therapy. He wouldn't be wrong.
Looking over the consequences, I have to say they're made entirely of *win*.
SCENARIO #2 (utterly motivated by the promise of S5 and yes, said scenario would involve *genuine character motivation*. Shocking, I know!):
What is your goal?
To make sure Lex remembers *everything* leading up to and including his time as Zod – which means he knows about Kryptonians – including Clark. Why? Because years of forgetting is more evil than Lex could ever dream of being.
What are you going to do to accomplish it, given the constraints on your powers?
Lex gets a full Season 5-plus mental un-wipe.
What do you think the effect of your change will be?
Lex goes on an anti-alien tear. Every project he initiates is designed to learn about "Them" and protect "Us" - and potentially destroy Them. He doesn't see Clark as part of the solution: Clark's part of the problem. Lex doesn't run around talking about "invasions" and "aliens" – he's done his time in Belle Reve – but he's aware the reality is bigger than Smallville's mutant population. Continuing the work he started a year ago means Lex gets to be the hero of the story.
What might be the unintended consequences?
Lex could try to recruit Lana – and Lana could let the beans slip about Clark within earshot of the wrong person. The slip would lead to Clark running for his life.
Lex could decide experimenting on mutants isn't enough – and decide to go right to the source (aka Clark).
Clark might discover that Lex knows *everything* - and *freak out*.
Clark might discover that Lex knows *everything* - and decide spandex is the only option.
no subject
I'm confused as to the timeline of scenario 2: is Lex's anti-alien tear set in season 5 or 6? Because as far as I know, Lex already is the hero of his own story; he is being motivated by the justifiable fear of aliens, even given his lack of memory of precisely what happened when he was Zod.
Or do you mean he'd be the hero to the viewer? Or that you just want a more overt battle between between Lex and Clark? Or just the power balance shifted between them? ::is confused::
no subject
is Lex's anti-alien tear set in season 5 or 6?
Lex starts the hardcore anti-alien tear in Season 5. He'd continue it in Season 6.
Because as far as I know, Lex already is the hero of his own story; he is being motivated by the justifiable fear of aliens
I'm not convinced he fears the aliens. I'm not convinced he understands why he's driven to do what he's doing. Currently, I'm sure he sees himself as a good guy, but returning the memory of Zod, how he got to be inhabited, what he did while inhabited would give him motivation and *power* he doesn't have now. Snippets of information and "feelings" don't justify what he's doing. Having first-hand knowledge of what was done to him, how he felt with those powers, and how he feels now that they're gone? Motivation that anyone can understand.
Lex being the hero in what amounts to his own mind is a solo endeavor - meaning it could easily be crazy talking. I'd prefer Lex be brilliant, not psychopathic.
Or do you mean he'd be the hero to the viewer?
He'd have the potential to be seen as a hero to the viewer. *That* Lex, a man who does questionable things that are, in some measure *the right thing to do* for reasons *he understands absolutely*, would be intriguing. Right now, Lex has a "sense" and "suspicions." A smart man would be working from a base of *knowledge*. Not to mention Lex instantly becomes interesting and dangerous rather than dangerous and possibly unstable (as he seems currently) if he has total recall in this AU.
As for shifting the power relationship between that two, I guess you could call that an unintended consequence, particularly if Lex doesn't let on he knows the truth about Clark.
Clearer?
no subject