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Smallville: Rush

Pete: "I figured it out. In your world, green means stop. And red? Red means go."

Why are episodes like this one so much fun?

A lot of it is wish fulfillment. Shows like Smallville work because there are rules about what can happen and what can't, and because the characters have well-defined boundaries. We all want Clark to tell his friends everything and do outrageous things with his powers. Shattering those boundaries and really going all out is just great... as long as they don't do it too often, and we still have that all-important re-set button.

Tom Welling again did a terrific job as scary, sexy, uninhibited Clark. I got this feeling of smugness from him, like he wanted to boast to everyone that he was superhuman and just loved demonstrating his powers for Chloe. Clark must feel just a little of that when he's not on red K; I mean, who wouldn't, no matter how good they are? Pete was also terrific, betraying and manipulating Clark with green and red K; this was probably Pete's best episode so far. I particularly loved him telling a crowd that Clark was an alien, and no one believing him.

But it was Chloe that I found most effective. Loved the attitude, the black streaks in her hair, the sex-pot thing with the lollipop. Clark and Chloe made a convincing couple, passionately making out in the back seat of a car and even at the Talon. Poor Chloe "finally made the Wall of Weird," and doesn't remember it. She would kick herself if she knew what she missed.

Clark and Lana decided to go on another date. Of course, everything went spectacularly wrong. Maybe if they made a pact never to try to date again, nothing would ever go wrong in Smallville. We can only hope.

Bits and pieces:

— It's too bad Lex didn't get bitten. How would he have reacted?

— Renowned linguist Frederick Walden is now on the case, deciphering the Kryptonian writing on the cave walls for Lex. And Lex has yet another piece of the puzzle: an alien parasite.

— I think seeing stoned Pete and Chloe driving off a cliff and Clark literally catching their car was a terrific stunt. Although it looked just a tad CGI.

— The sign on the Talon said, "Espresso for your morning rush."

— Did Pete get another car already?

— Why didn't Clark x-ray Chloe like he did Pete?

Quotes:

Chloe: "Isn't it awesome? A rave in a cave."

Clark: "We should go on a date. Together. (pause) In the near future."

Lex: "Now, you wouldn't be keeping secrets from me, would you, Clark?"

Chloe: "What orifice did you pull that one from?"

Chloe: "This is so cool. Can you fly?"
Clark: "Oh, wait a minute. I may be an alien, but I'm not a cartoon."
(This one was my favorite.)

Chloe: "I've always wondered. For a guy who has all the money in the world, you'd think he could afford a good toupee."

Gotta give it four stars because it was so much fun,

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.

3 comments:

  1. Agree that this episode is unbelievably good fun. But then, I love the bad boys and Tom Welling is quite good at being bad!

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  2. It was a really enjoyable episode but part of what makes it fun is that Clark doesn't become a bad guy when he loses his inhibitions, he just becomes reckless. Frankly, Clark's natural state is so repressed and angsty, it gets a bit tiresome. Whereas Lex...I have a feeling Lex unchained might not be a very appealing character at all.

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  3. There's something inexplicably funny to me about characters telling each other to get down from heights because it's dangerous, sometimes undercutting whatever they're trying to boast about if they're villainous, and this episode did that at least twice. lol

    ReplyDelete

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