Garth: "Where's your cape?"Smallville used to be about a young alien – one alien – trying to fit in on planet Earth, and about his personal journey toward his destiny as the world's greatest hero. Now it's superhero central. And how convenient that three alien superheroes from the future showed up with exactly the right powers that were needed to turn Brainiac into a big silver bocce ball.
I thought Allison Mack did her usual good job; her Brainiac was actually pretty scary, and all she had as props were a bloody wedding dress and silver contacts. I was also glad that they hit the reset button with Chloe's memories of Clark, because I really didn't like that plot development. But for me, the most interesting thing in this episode was the revelation that Chloe wasn't, or won't be, in the history books; the Legion had never heard of her. What does that mean? Will Chloe die at the end of this season? Or (my choice) will she become someone else? Take another name? Or was this just a fanwanking acknowledgment that Chloe wasn't in the original comic books?
Poor Davis Bloome, Kryptonian pawn, has emerged from his cocoon a total monster. Will he be reverting back to human form as a disguise, or is it a 24/7 change? Does this mean poor Sam Witwer gets to spend the rest of the season in a huge monster suit and horn face, unable to emote?
Davis was programmed to love Chloe only because of Brainiac. It made sense from a plot standpoint, but it also struck me as sort of sad, like Chloe herself isn't worth loving. And it got me to thinking about why I don't like Chloe and Jimmy as a couple. Chloe is a popular character, and the writers are finally moving Clark in Lois' direction, leaving Chloe permanently out in the cold. So I think they wrote Chloe falling in love with Jimmy so that the show doesn't end with her still stuck on Clark. And it feels like a pat fix. It doesn't fit Chloe as a character, and it just doesn't work for me.
Bits and pieces:
— Despite the futuristic leather and minimalist superhero emblems, I thought the Legion had a medieval Robin Hood kind of vibe. Maybe it was Rokk's hair and beard. Of the three Legion members, I liked Imra the best. She had an interesting quality.
— Dan, a comic book fan and reader, told me that the whole Legion thing was very fanboy and very well done, and that Clark getting the ring was a big deal. If he says so. He also told me that Brainiac is reprogrammed in the future and becomes a good guy. Like Spike, huh?
— Clark now has a magic Legion ring good for one trip to 3009. Hey, I have a thought. Maybe that's what will happen to Chloe.
— Barn go boom. I wonder how many times the Kent farm has been nearly destroyed in the past seven years?
— Lana was still around but mostly tucked away alone at the Isis Foundation, where she (fortunately) couldn't generate sexual tension with Clark. And apparently, Lana will go on to do incredible things that have nothing to do with Clark. Couldn't she just go and do them already?
— The moral of the story? Never kill the innocent. Especially if it's Chloe.
What did you all think?
Billie
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Billie Doux had a love-hate relationship with Smallville, which is why some of her reviews are briefer than they should be.
I find I'm always on the fence with Chloe and have a love/hate relationship with Smallville because of the writers need to do things differently with the Superman lore. Sometimes it works, other times it just doesn't. But I did dig this episode because of the Legion.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dan, the whole Legion thing was done quite well. I especially loved it when they gave him the ring. Your thought about Chloe and the ring is interesting. It made me think of what happened to Supergirl on Justice League. Maybe Chloe will fall in love with Brainac 5 like Kara did.
That would fit with how they like to change the lore.