SV Eppys: Upgrade and Charade...
Written by Drew Landis and Julia Swift, the pair who wrote “Pandora” which was my least favorite episode of this season (even though the season isn’t over yet, I’m calling it; I am sticking with “Pandora” as the worst episode to me). I really, really, really liked “Upgrade”. The only thing that kept me from loving it was that the “fight’ sequence played more like three boys play fighting in their backyard. It was cheesy. Like, stuffed crust cheesy. And of course the perennial “Chloe Gets Out of Jail for Free” scene.
What I Loved The Most
Zod: “You must have had a friend that you had a connection with, like you were opposite sides of the same soul.”
Clark: “I did once a long time ago.”
Wait. Was that affirmation that Clark and Lex were soulmates? Yeah? I flippin' thought so. Not that I needed the show to confirm it, but it's always nice to see we've been right all along.
What I Loved
John Corben
When did Brian Austin Green get to be so good? He broke my heart. I know as an actor you’re there listening to your scene partner’s line and awaiting to do your line, but you still have to be in the moment so maybe I’m just a big sap, but I don’t know how Erica Durance kept from crying because his earnestness in their final scene, his exposing his (kryptonite) heart to Lois was so beautiful and heartbreaking it got to me every time I watched it. Lois has to really love Clark because I would’ve jumped on the bus with him, moved to the sticks and wondering how I became Mrs. John Corben. Who knew someone with so many sideshow tats and a rap history could display such vulnerability?
Everything about John and Lois’ final scene was wonderful. From flirty:
John: “Isn’t the appropriate response, “Thank God, you’re alive? Too bad you’re wearing clothes this time?”
To heartfelt: John: “You know the first time I saw you I never thought you’d end up being my hero. Of course I was hoping to escape with a different heart.” “You’re the only chance I have of living an honest, honest life and if I’m going to disappear again, I would want to disappear with you.”
And what made the scene just that more bittersweet, as John was saying these wonderful words to Lois, the camera was incrementally closing in on the shot and when Lois tells him that she’s with someone and he’s “it”, as her words are sinking in, the camera does an incremental retreat; the moment’s broken. It was a nice little touch.
I loved the SV version of John Corben. In DC canon he’s either a grifter or a conceited showboat who’s trying to get into Lois’ pantsuit (as recently written by Geoff Johns), so portraying John in a sympathetic and kind light like in “Savior” and “Upgrade” is one DC character change up that I can get behind. It’s not as outrageous as having Mxyptlk as some Russian A&F model. What the hell was up with that episode anyway?
John Corben: Flasher Extraordinaire
The Little Things
~Hey there, subtle product placement.
Clark: (eyeing her arm) “Lois, what happened to you?”
Lois: “I was trying too hard to open up my “The Hangover” DVD with my dad’s Swiss army knife..”
Clark: I know all about it. I almost cut my finger opening my “Sherlock Holmes” DVD, special Blu-Ray edition.
Lois: Fine Warner Bros. movies.
Clark: The finest.
~Lois: “It could be the story of the century. I can’t risk a potential of coulda, shoulda, woulda..”
Clark: It’s okay. I wouldn’t want you to miss out on something big.”
Then why are you walking away with your pants still on? You always contradict yourself, Clark.
~Lois trying to get Not!Blur off the phone. I love that however committed she is to The Blur, she knew that she couldn’t let Clark walk away without being sure they were on the same page.
~The look on Zod’s face on the freeze frame surveillance of the Space Needle. I don’t know if my eyes were playing tricks on me but it seemed Zod had a look of, “Say whaaat? You have freeze breath? Freeze breath!!” on his face.
~Did Lois cause the death of a few scientists with her explosion? I think she did.
~I don’t know if Tom didn’t want to redo the take or they used the wrong one, but when Clark tells Chloe that Tess is going to pay for stockpiling kryptonite, as he walked away he bumped into the table and even steadied it as he walked around it. Damn sneaky tables trying to mess up Tom!
~Tess: “Speaking of being hidden in the closet, how is Oliver doing these days?”
That’s a bingo! I think sunsets weren’t the only thing Oliver was taking in in Santorini. You know what they say, what happens on vacation, in boarding school, in locker rooms, when you’re drunk and in the mens’ dressing room at Nordstrom doesn’t count.
~Zod remembering his relationship with Jor-El (although I am unconvinced that all they did was fight throughout the night. Unless they had make-up sex in the A.M.) It is the only thing I believed he meant sincerely, no hint that he’s using it as a way to pull Clark in-I viewed it as one moment where Zod let his guard down and is relating to Clark in a manner he has wanted to do all along-as a comrade.
~Clark throwing the crystals in the thingamabob like a child slinging stuff around in a tantrum. One day he and Jor-El will have their Cats and the Cradle hologram fishing trip moment, but I’m guessing it’ll take some time.
~Clark (re: Jor-El): “Trust me, I can live without constant lectures and mind games.” And you’re still friends with Chloe because…?
~I guess I’m coming around because now I find Tess/Zod dirty in a good way.
Clark/Zod
Sometimes I cringe when I read someone rave about their favorite show/song/artist that I don’t particularly like and compare it to some great work of art. I’m can’t subscribe to the belief that “The Hills” is a modern, televised version of a Merchant/Ivory film. It’s because of that that I don’t want to make this comparison, but I’m going to be a shameless fangirl and put myself out there to be ridiculed and say that those scenes between Clark and Zod was Shakespearean. Now I haven’t read many works of Shakespeare and all the Shakespearean performances I’ve seen were high school plays, but it still stands that Shakespeare’s work are still held up as great insights about power and lust and jealousy and it gives actors so much to work with. I felt the same way in the Clark/Zod warehouse scene. How Tom and Callum played against each other in all their scenes was right up there with the parrying of thursting of Jude Law and Michael Caine in “Sleuth” (which is Harold Pinter, so there goes my Shakespearean analogy.)
But Smallville, Smallville…oh, you had me and then you lost me. Which leads me to--
Things I Hated
Clark and Zod
We know from previous RedK Clark episodes that what Clark says and does on Red K are Clark’s latent thoughts and feelings that he would never allow himself to articulate normally. No matter if the it’s an notion one may not support (Clark telling Zod with such superior surety, “I have no equal.”), it is still seeing this side of Clark. I watched the scenes unfolding and I took it at face value: This is Clark subconscious feeling (or maybe just unvoiced feelings) about Zod: he wants what I have, he wants to be me, so I’m going to show him that it’s just like what Kayne sang in “Stronger” ‘There’s a thousand you’s and only one of me.” Oh, you didn’t know Clark listens to Kanye West? He even met him at a Metropolis Generals game. It’s one of the perks of knowing in the biblical sense a local billionaire.
And even with Clark taking Zod on a jaunt to Seattle and to the Fortress, I still viewed it as Clark showing off. He was showing Zod who he was really up against, proving to Zod that he had one thing right: he has come too far to play the naïve farmboy anymore (another Zod first to me was that he genuinely looked afraid of Clark at one point. Not only afraid because he worried that Clark was once again going to shoot him down, but also because Zod learns about his enemy, he’s a strategist. He may have Clark Kent figured out, but he does not know this side of Clark. This is Wildcard!Clark).
Clark may have pulled Zod along with him and even gave a Kryptonian style armshake, but he never flat out said, “I’m with you, Zod.” At least Lex got a “Clark Kent and Lex Luthor? I like the sound of that,” showing that he was fully onboard to a partnership. These things all led me to believe that this was just RedK Clark showing off and he was in no way, shape or form interested in being anything to Zod, so imagine my surprise when it turns out that Clark was pulled to Zod because…..he wanted a brother.
By now I’m accustomed to SV focusing on paternal and fraternal relationships, but Clark acts as if he didn’t have his cousin staying with him for a year. Poor Kara is still flying out there in Daisy Dukes and a halter-top looking for Kandor and Clark is sobbing into his Ovaltine about missing out on having a brother. If he is this envious of Chloe and Lois’ relationship (where did that even come from?) to the extent it drove him into the waiting arms of Zod, he needs an outlet. Can we get this fool to sign up for the Metropolis Big Brother program? Maybe reach out to Henry James Olsen’s little brother? I don’t buy it. I don’t buy that Clark has in Vala and her sister someone who believes in him and listens to him and they share the same heritage, but in his heart of hearts he wants to be around someone like Zod?
Why couldn’t it just be Clark showing Zod that he is incomparable? That even if Zod and his army acquires abilities, they still do not offer what Clark provides Metropolis or the world? Why does all of Clark’s actions have to be intermingled with Chloe?
And by Clark’s motivations being reduced to wanting a brother, does that then means he’s not chuffed at Chloe for the Kryptonian cache of weapons? I mean this, “You think you’re better than Tess, at least she didn’t pretend to be on my side all these years.” still has to reside in his mind.
Chloe
I can’t even deal with her. Someone, please get her out of my face.
Thank you, woodland animals.
Am I supposed to accept everything Chloe does, well meaning or not, is right? She worked so well with Tess that I could easily see her being on the wrong team in all of this. Like, why did she tell Tess what Red Kryptonite does to Clark? Tess had people create a John Corben Wii, does Chloe not think they would want to use the RedK to get Clark to do their bidding? That is if they can be wiley enough to appeal to his baser instincts.
It’s not only her self-righteousness that galls me like in her telephone scene with Clark:
Clark: “I’m worried she’s holding something back from me.”
Chloe: “It’s kind of different when the control’s on the other foot.”
But it’s that she throws rocks and then hides her fist. She was quick to throw Ollie’s name in the mix when Clark found out about the weapons as if this was their plot from the get-go when it was her idea. And IIRC, Ollie was still holding out on the location of the deposits because he didn’t fully trust her thinking process.
What are we left with? Clark apologizing to her again, Clark telling her that it was her arsenal that was “the only thing that saved the world.” He doesn’t address the fact that by her amassing the weaponry in the first place under his nose, under Oliver’s nose makes her a hypocrite since she’s the one who’s quick to call someone out for not being on the team. If she’s on this “Go Team, Go” kick wouldn’t she then have discussed with the guys her plan on getting weapons instead of stealing Oliver’s money and completely leaving Clark in the dark? But keeping secrets is okay when Chloe does it.
Superman is fed up, horny, has bad penmanship
Next Up: Charade
Wasn’t there an idea across the years that the 19th episode of the season is the lackluster one? It’s held true for a few (“Blank”, “Stiletto”) even though there are notable exceptions (“Memoria”. I’m even giving it to “Mercy” for being a Martha/Lionel episode). If you separate “Absolute Justice”, “Charades” was the 19th episode of the season and for me it fell under the lackluster category. Although I was very pleased that it held a lot of lightness. Many people remark how it’s very early Smallville and the kitchen scene with Chloe and Clark at the beginning illustrated that. They actually bantered!
What I Loved
~The humor:
*Lois sitting before Franklin Stern with her bent bunny ear. And of course I am still in love with the fact that Lois has a wardrobe full of costumes for every occasion.
*Lois: “Clark and I don’t “spat”. There is no “spatting”. Which is why the guys in Metropolis’ bar scene loved Kal.
* Clark : “Looks like someone missed breakfast in bed with Oliver this morning.” Petty!Clark is becoming a fave of mine.
*Clark: “I didn’t want to use my abilities to spy on her. It’s been driving me crazy.”
*Lois trying to leave the Blur a message so many times that the elevator filled up by the time she finished it.
~Actually hearing from Ray Sachs mouth the kind of corruption that Clark currently and in the future as Superman will continue to rail against.
~Oliver being adorable even when he’s not onscreen. He’s really a goner for Chloe, emailing her pictures of sunsets. That’s a real departure for Ollie because he usually just texts pictures of himself shirtless (i, e, his natural state)
~Clark in wuv: flirty, touchy-feely. He seemed so light in the elevator scene that when he asked Lois what was in the box I was waiting for him to do Dean Winchester doing Brad Pitt in “Seven” “What’s in the booox?!”
~Tess: “Just remember, Chloe, out there I may be M.I.A, but in here I’m still C.E.O.”
I didn’t need any more reasons to love Tess, but there’s another one.
~Lois: “I am sure he is dying to tell me, but how could anyone who cared about me put me in that position?…He would never put me in that kind of danger just to get his secret off his back.”
Well shut me up. They did it; they gave reason on why Clark cannot tell Lois his secret. It may seem like a cop-out but there you go. It’s just like when they had Lex explain that he didn’t remember events prior to the meteor attack that way we could no longer question why he didn’t remember Jason Teague.
~I’m a mass of contradictions (hopefully not as bad as Chloe), but I did love the Lois/Blur scene at Maxwell’s lair. It was very touching.
What I Liked
~While I’m not overly impressed by Gil Bellows as Maxwell Lord just yet, I like that the writers seem to be dipping into the “The Blackest Night” with Maxwell’s lab. I’m glad they seem to just disavow his early incarnation and are sticking strictly to villainous Lord who battles Waller over Checkmate.
When Lord is first introduced in the DCU he’s a good guy; a financier of the JLA.
This has nothing to do with Lord and more about Clark's non-communicative lovers
~Red Queen? Isn’t that what Oliver calls Roy Harper when he’s mad at him? Oliver’s terribly insensitive.
What I Didn’t Love
~Clark using Chloe and Oliver’s relationship being secret free (which we all know it wasn’t at the start) as an example. They’re not the same thing: Chloe knew Oliver was Green Arrow before they began sleeping together. He employed her as Watchtower-no secret identities between them. Does Clark not remember that Chloe couldn’t even bring herself to tell Jimmy she had healing abilities. That’s a good ability to have! Who wouldn’t want to know someone with healing abilities? And she still kept it secret from him.
If you want to discuss openness, Chloe is not the one to discuss it with.
Chloe
This chick. “I understand the instinct of protecting those you love.” “As much as I don’t want to I have to say it’s pretty impressive how committed Lois is to protecting the Blur.” Why don’t you want to say it, because you’re the only one who can feel strongly about protecting someone? You have a patent on that brand of loyalty?
I don’t believe that Chloe honestly wants to see Clark and Lois together. Whether it’s because she still harbors feelings for Clark or because she thinks his being in relationship is too distracting, I wouldn’t trust anything Chloe says about their relationship if I were Clark.
Like I said, I didn’t hate “Charade”, but I take this one over it.
Click to view~On the "Supernatural" front, I was incredibly impressed by Eric Johnson Whitney. He played the hell (Oh, me.) out of that role. He was channelling Patrick Bateman hard, but not as showy as Christian Bale.
And to show my sleep deprived state, I heard dogs barking outside and my first thought was "Hellhounds are here!"