SV 6x15 Freak Review
Episodes like "Freak" are the reason I still watch Smallville. So yeah, a Chloe-centric episode (and that's appeal in its own right although I enjoyed the ensemble feel of the episode) but actual plot and the characters resembling their iconic selves, and seriously why can't every episode be like this? Also Chloe and Clark were so Lois and Clark, both separately and together as a team and in their general interaction with one another.
It's been said before but the Chloe/Lana scene at the bowling alley made me believe they were actually friends. And while I enjoyed the sentiment that Lana wanted to spend quality time with her best friend, I also got the sense that she really doesn't have many real friends, particularly of the female variety. That she's isolated (arguably that she's always been isolated) when it comes to real and genuine friendship. Especially in comparison to Chloe who seems so much more stable, with more of a life and friendship/peers outside Lana, even discounting Chloe's friendships/relationships with Clark, EDLois, Pete and Jimmy.
I think Tobias' comments to Chloe and Clark ("Come in guys, it's nice to hear a familiar voice"/"You guys are such close friends, I thought you knew") compared to his comments to Lana ("When we were in high school, the only thing I thought Lana Lang cared about was lipgloss and pom poms") were telling. First off, it demonstrates that the level of intimacy between Chloe/Clark is evident to all (and how much did that make my heart go squish, squish?). Secondly, it reiterates the fact that most people don't know Lana, don't have a sense of Lana outside her beauty/trophy status, that she doesn't really have any close friends and she needs to manipulate/bribe/beg to reach even a modicum level of emotional intimacy with anyone ("I have money"/"I can put you on a plane"/"You can get the surgery somewhere else"/"Tobias, it's okay, you can trust me").
(Side note: Lana felt extremely manipulative when she was extolling the wonders of meteor freaks to both Chloe and Clark. And while Chloe's comments about meteor freaks not being in line to win Nobel Prizes to Lana was a WTF? moment, it also felt like it was part of a major defence/deflection to turn Lana's attention away from Clark.)
Smallville is Lana's bubble but outside of it (removed from Lex's mansion and highschool) there really isn't much out there for Lana - and she may have the world currently at her finger tips but it's only because of Lex.
I think "Freak" continues to hint at the reality that Lana will become (and is becoming) the girl that's going to be left behind - by Clark, by Lex, by Chloe. Lex is pulling away from her as he continues with the lies. She's desperately trying to cling onto and resurrect the past friendships/relationships she had with Chloe ("like we used to, one last time") and with Clark (the barn scene in "Hydro" particularly comes into mind).
Chloe was AWESOME. Chloe is AWESOME. I'm not sure I can fully express my love for Chloe (and AM). I love her inkling onto Dan the Man's abilities, that she went out the back to investigate further, that she made her presence known during the kidnapping and that she returned to the scene of the crime to further investigate with her obligatory partner in tow, Clark Kent.
Also, excellent observational skills on Chloe's part for noticing Dan's earring. It was small and wasn't very obvious and I didn't even know that Dan had an earring until Chloe pointed it out. It was a nice subtle way of showing that Chloe clearly has well honed observational skills that are needed to become the ace investigative reporter that she will be.
There was also a nice Chlark/jealous!Clark note with Dan the Man. When Dan's all 'did we hook up', MR cuts directly to Clark and there's this look of disbelief/disapproval with the whole raised eyebrows and my heart went squish, squish again.
On a shallow note, I really LOVED Chloe's wardrobe. They had her decked out in really pretty clothes, great colors (especially all the red). AM's hair was also really appealing even though I'm not a big fan of the bangs. Plus have they made her go a shade darker or was it just the lighting? She was very tawny/light brown throughout the episode, particularly during the GPS scene in the Talon with Clark.
GPS scene was totally hot, with major major underlying sexual subtext. Whee! But one of the main things I loved about the GPS scene was not only the depth of trust and intimacy between Chloe and Clark BUT also the fact that Chloe doesn't need Clark to be her hero or 'knight in shining whatever' (tm: Grey's Anatomy). Chloe grabbing the knife and willing to cut the GPS out of herself shows that she can and will take care of herself; she's no damsel in distress and she refuses to rely solely on Clark (or any man/person) to save her (which iterates "Labyrinth", when she tries to save herself by using the gun). But she chooses and trusts Clark to assist her, to comfort her, to hold her hand, to be there when she does need him. And Clark chooses to be that person for Chloe ("Then consider me your own personal bomb squad").
It's a partnership of equals because Chloe saves Clark, holds his hand, is there for him and is that person for Clark. Without the name, and "Freak" cements the fact that Chloe and Clark still are Smallville's version of Lois and Clark.
And the way that Jimmy got shut out in "Freak" was even (arguably) placing him in his iconic position. He's the tag along and Chloe and Clark are the more mature investigators.
There's also a lot of triangle positioning of Chloe/Clark/Jimmy in all their scenes together, often with Clark in the middle:
1. When Chloe reappears at the Talon:
- Clark and Jimmy turn around at the same time at the sound of Chloe's voice making a triangle as they cut to Chloe. It then turns into a line with Clark in the middle.
- Jimmy has to move around Clark in order to huge/be with Chloe, wherein Chloe tells him to ease off.
- Chloe then shifts to her missing photo and the boys move as well forming another triangle.
2. Chloe and Clark in the Talon hacking into Bethany's computer:
- Jimmy enters the room and the positioning is such they're in a line with Clark in the middle.
- Chloe throwing Jimmy out of the Talon and Clark is directly behind (although not noticeable onscreen) forming another triangle.
3. Chloe and Clark in the Talon after the removal of the GPS:
- Jimmy enters the room and heads towards Chloe and Clark forming a triangle. (Also, hee! Clark's hands all over Chloe's chest and yes, Jimmy, I'd be worried if I was you. And why does 'we improvise' sound like 'we had sex'? And Clark having a pocket knife so sounds like a euphemism ).
Lex was evil and clever and sinister, especially with his commands to his underlings to keep a close eye on Chloe (and I love love the final close up shot of Lex's eyes). Clark was smart and actually manned up - great use of all his powers - and I can actually buy that this character will become Superman.
Chloe being a freak, I actually don't have much comments on. They've left the door open so it can go either way. I'm more in wait and see mode.
Finally, all the Chlark? Squish, squish. They're Lois and Clark before they got romantically involved - all the feelings, attraction, love, romance are just unresolved tension bubbling barely under the surface.
It's been said before but the Chloe/Lana scene at the bowling alley made me believe they were actually friends. And while I enjoyed the sentiment that Lana wanted to spend quality time with her best friend, I also got the sense that she really doesn't have many real friends, particularly of the female variety. That she's isolated (arguably that she's always been isolated) when it comes to real and genuine friendship. Especially in comparison to Chloe who seems so much more stable, with more of a life and friendship/peers outside Lana, even discounting Chloe's friendships/relationships with Clark, EDLois, Pete and Jimmy.
I think Tobias' comments to Chloe and Clark ("Come in guys, it's nice to hear a familiar voice"/"You guys are such close friends, I thought you knew") compared to his comments to Lana ("When we were in high school, the only thing I thought Lana Lang cared about was lipgloss and pom poms") were telling. First off, it demonstrates that the level of intimacy between Chloe/Clark is evident to all (and how much did that make my heart go squish, squish?). Secondly, it reiterates the fact that most people don't know Lana, don't have a sense of Lana outside her beauty/trophy status, that she doesn't really have any close friends and she needs to manipulate/bribe/beg to reach even a modicum level of emotional intimacy with anyone ("I have money"/"I can put you on a plane"/"You can get the surgery somewhere else"/"Tobias, it's okay, you can trust me").
(Side note: Lana felt extremely manipulative when she was extolling the wonders of meteor freaks to both Chloe and Clark. And while Chloe's comments about meteor freaks not being in line to win Nobel Prizes to Lana was a WTF? moment, it also felt like it was part of a major defence/deflection to turn Lana's attention away from Clark.)
Smallville is Lana's bubble but outside of it (removed from Lex's mansion and highschool) there really isn't much out there for Lana - and she may have the world currently at her finger tips but it's only because of Lex.
I think "Freak" continues to hint at the reality that Lana will become (and is becoming) the girl that's going to be left behind - by Clark, by Lex, by Chloe. Lex is pulling away from her as he continues with the lies. She's desperately trying to cling onto and resurrect the past friendships/relationships she had with Chloe ("like we used to, one last time") and with Clark (the barn scene in "Hydro" particularly comes into mind).
Chloe was AWESOME. Chloe is AWESOME. I'm not sure I can fully express my love for Chloe (and AM). I love her inkling onto Dan the Man's abilities, that she went out the back to investigate further, that she made her presence known during the kidnapping and that she returned to the scene of the crime to further investigate with her obligatory partner in tow, Clark Kent.
Also, excellent observational skills on Chloe's part for noticing Dan's earring. It was small and wasn't very obvious and I didn't even know that Dan had an earring until Chloe pointed it out. It was a nice subtle way of showing that Chloe clearly has well honed observational skills that are needed to become the ace investigative reporter that she will be.
There was also a nice Chlark/jealous!Clark note with Dan the Man. When Dan's all 'did we hook up', MR cuts directly to Clark and there's this look of disbelief/disapproval with the whole raised eyebrows and my heart went squish, squish again.
On a shallow note, I really LOVED Chloe's wardrobe. They had her decked out in really pretty clothes, great colors (especially all the red). AM's hair was also really appealing even though I'm not a big fan of the bangs. Plus have they made her go a shade darker or was it just the lighting? She was very tawny/light brown throughout the episode, particularly during the GPS scene in the Talon with Clark.
GPS scene was totally hot, with major major underlying sexual subtext. Whee! But one of the main things I loved about the GPS scene was not only the depth of trust and intimacy between Chloe and Clark BUT also the fact that Chloe doesn't need Clark to be her hero or 'knight in shining whatever' (tm: Grey's Anatomy). Chloe grabbing the knife and willing to cut the GPS out of herself shows that she can and will take care of herself; she's no damsel in distress and she refuses to rely solely on Clark (or any man/person) to save her (which iterates "Labyrinth", when she tries to save herself by using the gun). But she chooses and trusts Clark to assist her, to comfort her, to hold her hand, to be there when she does need him. And Clark chooses to be that person for Chloe ("Then consider me your own personal bomb squad").
It's a partnership of equals because Chloe saves Clark, holds his hand, is there for him and is that person for Clark. Without the name, and "Freak" cements the fact that Chloe and Clark still are Smallville's version of Lois and Clark.
And the way that Jimmy got shut out in "Freak" was even (arguably) placing him in his iconic position. He's the tag along and Chloe and Clark are the more mature investigators.
There's also a lot of triangle positioning of Chloe/Clark/Jimmy in all their scenes together, often with Clark in the middle:
1. When Chloe reappears at the Talon:
- Clark and Jimmy turn around at the same time at the sound of Chloe's voice making a triangle as they cut to Chloe. It then turns into a line with Clark in the middle.
- Jimmy has to move around Clark in order to huge/be with Chloe, wherein Chloe tells him to ease off.
- Chloe then shifts to her missing photo and the boys move as well forming another triangle.
2. Chloe and Clark in the Talon hacking into Bethany's computer:
- Jimmy enters the room and the positioning is such they're in a line with Clark in the middle.
- Chloe throwing Jimmy out of the Talon and Clark is directly behind (although not noticeable onscreen) forming another triangle.
3. Chloe and Clark in the Talon after the removal of the GPS:
- Jimmy enters the room and heads towards Chloe and Clark forming a triangle. (Also, hee! Clark's hands all over Chloe's chest and yes, Jimmy, I'd be worried if I was you. And why does 'we improvise' sound like 'we had sex'? And Clark having a pocket knife so sounds like a euphemism ).
Lex was evil and clever and sinister, especially with his commands to his underlings to keep a close eye on Chloe (and I love love the final close up shot of Lex's eyes). Clark was smart and actually manned up - great use of all his powers - and I can actually buy that this character will become Superman.
Chloe being a freak, I actually don't have much comments on. They've left the door open so it can go either way. I'm more in wait and see mode.
Finally, all the Chlark? Squish, squish. They're Lois and Clark before they got romantically involved - all the feelings, attraction, love, romance are just unresolved tension bubbling barely under the surface.