Lois: "Real heroes don't stop to strike a pose."One of the major things that has made Smallville unique is its emphasis on Clark, not Superman. Ten years in, and we really haven't even met the Man of Steel yet. We're invested in Clark as a person. And only Clark.
And now, in order to become who he must be, Clark has to remake himself into someone he is not: a clumsy, geeky reporter who would never be able to attract a woman like Lois Lane. Clark was finding "mild-mannered 101" more difficult than he thought it would be, even with Lois's help; it was like the reverse of coming out of the closet. When Clark said that he was turning into a man that Lois wouldn't want to be seen with, I just went "aww."
It didn't help that as Clark was deliberately subsuming his identity, Booster Gold was stealing everything he had left. I had no idea who Booster Gold was, but Dan was laughing before we even saw him. Dan did say, though, why are they doing him now, so close to the end of the series? I think I know why. The bumbling disaster that is Booster Gold is how Clark is seeing his new Clark persona, as well as exactly what he doesn't want his superhero self to be when he goes public.
Clark is afraid to fail. Of course he is. Who wouldn't be? But in the end, Clark helped Booster out of the limelight and into the shadows. Just like Clark is helping himself.
Another terrific season ten episode. I'm so glad the series is going out so well. I'm starting to really look forward to the finale.
Bits and pieces:
— The glasses were very much this episode's Most Obvious Symbolism. Blue Beetle was a metaphor, too. Clark can't stop what's happening; he's hurtling toward his fate.
— I really liked Booster's Nascar-like ad patches.
— Cat, this season's most pointless character, apparently likes superheroes now. And so does everyone else. No Darkseid, no VRA, no creeping Nazi darkness. Where's our big bad?
— Clark changed his clothes in a phone booth. They've done the phone booth joke many times now, and the Blur kept contacting Lois that way, but it was still a nice touch.
— This episode was directed by Tom Welling, who also did a good job with the traditional bumbling Clark Kent. Really good casting of Booster Gold, too; the smarm was so thick you could cut it with a knife.
Three out of four Legion rings,
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.
Awesome review :) I'm similarly glad they've been putting out great stuff for the final season, notwithstanding the now-absent Darkseid plot (I think Darkseid's just shoe-horned in to do something in the finale - but I wanna see what Lionel's been up to!)
ReplyDeleteActually though, I think the Clark we've seen all along *is* the Man of Steel - the righteous, honourable and wholesome Clark. He did say that 'Clark Kent is the mask' a few episodes back, if I remember. So we're only really seeing 'Clark' now. But of course if you mean Clark as in the personal man behind the suit then yes, it's what's always been great, and it took these 9 seasons to make the 10th great.
"Where's our big bad?"
ReplyDeleteWho caaaaaares!!! This show is doing something uncharacteristically smart in its final season, pulling a leaf out of the earliest seasons' books by not really doing much with the concept of one. Cram them to the ends of a season, I say.