Lois & Clark Forums Forums General Discussion Off Topic Smallville: Mortal

Aaaaaggghhhh!!!!


Lynn

I did a lot of that too. I also kept chanting, "Alternate Smallville...alternate Smallville!"

I know this is gonna sound weird, but I actually thought this was one of the better episodes I've seen in a while.

*waits for the tomato-throwing to stop*

Okay, I know that there was no Lois, no Clark&Lois, and about a million times more Clark&Lana than anyone but the Smallville PTB could stomache watching, but the ep had it's good points too. Clark&Chloe, the Pete reference, Clark&Chloe, no whiney tears from Lana, Clark&Chloe, and did I menion Clark&Chloe? How cute were those two? It reminded me so much of our Lois & Clark, breaking and entering, using brains instead of always brawn, etc. And how cute was it that Chloe was kinda mad that Pete knew? I loved it!

As for Clark and Lana, I actually have two good things to say about them:

1) Lana didn't cry. She went the whole episode without a single angsty glance. If a little sex from Clark is all it takes to stop her whining and crying, I'm almost for it. Almost.

2) This is the beginning of the end for them. It's The WB. Teen couples don't stay together long. They'll be broken up as soon as Clark gets his powers back, which I'm guessing he's going to want back when he realizes that he can't always protect his loved ones without his powers.

All in all, this ep had an air of the first season in it. It felt like the show did back when it was a great premise that had the potential for being something really cool, but wasn't quite there yet.

~Anna

I have to agree, one of the things I did enjoy about this episode was the Clark and Chloe interaction. It reminded me a lot of Lois & Clark out investigating one of their stories.

Clark and Chloe sure had an amazing interaction and banter, seems like they're really on a good path despite Lana. Seeing them more grown up than in the past seasons is probably the onle good part in this episode.

Well okay, I found it interesting how Clark can be a hero despite his normalness; his whining was a good addition too (lol by the way - super-whining, great Chloe!).

The rest of the episode was boring as it falls back to known territory. Some meteor-mutant or -experiment finds Clark, attacks his friend(s) and family and he has to save them. Sure, there are storylines to follow up in the next couple of episodes like the quarrel with Lex or when James Marsters will be on screen. In the end, this episode showed nothing more than Clark and Lana smooching.

I'm pretty sure they only kissed for a tiny bit more, once the camera moved away and the soulful music stopped. Then Clark put his shirt on and went home to call Chloe.

Who's with me?

CC (back later when I've found a reason to live)

okay, I know Smallville is only a teen angst show

but

still it messes with the premise that Lois Lane is the great love of Clark Kent's life, ( a premise present not only in L & : TNAOS but also in the Chris Reeves movies and in the comics.)

Smallville does this not just by exaggerating the importance of Lana Lang way beyond what she ever had in the comics or the movies, but by introducing Lois Lane into the teen world. That Smallvile Boy is uninterested in her implies that she will never be what Lana was to him, something that the people who make Smallville have gone on record as stating. To make sure that viewers get this point, they even have Clark rejecting the Lois surrogate character - Chloe.

So Smallville Boy

{who, for some bizarre reason that has never been made clear, has looked like an adult since he was fifteen -- maybe some of the growth hormone stuff farmers use in cattle feed mixed with a bit of some trype of Krpytonite but I digress here on this puzzling point)

rejects as potential love interests the smart and the funny women and falls for the pretty in pink girl.

so not Clark Kent.

c (I know it's only a teen angst show, but ...

Well, it may be of help to view Smallville as nothing more than an alternative universe, as this was already introduced to the Superman-fandom. I for one do exactly that, because as enjoyable as having Chloe on the show is, characters like Lana, Lois and to some extent Lex are pretty messed up.

I haven't seen the episode yet -- it's currently on my DVR -- but I like to be prepared so I peeked in here. (And now I know to carry an airsick bag to the couch for the Lana scenes , but like CC, I want Chloe to be Lois because they *so* have the same dynamic as our L&C!)

But I did want to correct Carol's assumption above that Lois Lane is the one and only true love of Clark's life in every incarnation of Superman except for Smallville. Lois is clearly Clark's destiny, but L&C was actually the only one that emphasized Lois as Clark's *first and only* true love.

In both the CR movies and in the comics (both Silver Age and current incarnation), Clark had other loves before Lois. The comics, especially (which I consider to take precedence over the movies/television when it comes to things like establishing base canon) had Clark falling in love with, and even getting engaged to, other women before Lois. (Lori Lemaris, anyone?)

Now granted, this is why I vastly prefer L&C over any other incarnation of Superman. The fact that L&C have that great once-in-a-lifetime love is why I became so involved with the show. But it's just not true to say that Lois is Clark's "first and only" true love in all incarnations of Superman except for Smallville.

Believe me, there is plenty to dislike about Lana, and Clark's baffling obsession with her, without pulling out Superman canon. <vbg>

Kathy

First off, I agree with all of you in that I found the only redeeming quality of last night's epi to be the Clark/Chloe stuff. That was great. Loved their banter and her dismay over finding out that Pete knew and got to see Clark's spaceship. My favorite line: "I didn't know that super whining was one of your abilities." Excellent!

And for my friend CC, I'll say that last night's epi went a long way in moving me toward her belief that Chloe *is* Lois. Last night was pure Lois and Clark goodness only with Chloe.

As for Lana, my problem isn't so much that they've given Clark another first love besides Lois. As I've stated before, I can accept Clark falling in love with someone else first and even losing his virginity to a non-Lois as simply another incarnation of the Superman mythos. If it makes it easier to swallow to call it such, an alternate universe if you will. And since Smallville has already deviated so far away from canon, it's not a stretch to push things that extra bit.

My issue is that for four years they've shoved Lana down our throats without making her an appealing character. In the beginning, at least she was the pretty girl-next-door/Clark's high school crush. I could understand why he liked her, and I would have probably been okay if sometime in Season 1 or 2 they had Clark and Lana get together only to be torn apart by his secrets.

But that's not what they did. Instead they've *teased* us (and I use this word very lightly since I view a tease as showing people something they really want but can't have - I've never wanted Lana and Clark together) with the idea of this relationship. Except they've neglected to show us a Clark that really seemed to pine for Lana or a Lana that was worth pining for in such a way that we want these two together. They've not given us any reasons to feel badly for this couple because of how badly they want to be together but how tragically they cannot.

They've simply given Lana too much importance. She could have held her own as Clark's high school sweetheart. They could have had Clark dating her, hiding his secret from her, and even used her as the catalyst for Clark discovering his own sexuality and what being a super-powered being means in terms of a physical relationship. Instead they elevated Lana to a role in the Superman mythos that is beyond anything I can accept, even in this alternate universe.

Last night, when Clark and Lana finally got together, I felt not one iota of happiness for Clark. I didn't feel relief or even a "finally!" I just felt sad. What a waste.

But I think CC has the right idea. I'll join her in the land of Denial.

Lynn

Kathy wrote:
That's not quite what I wrote though What I said was that Lois was the "great love of his life", not that she was the "only one".

Yeah, i know that Clark, in the comics, was both emotionally and romantically experienced before he met Lois, although the comics never portrayed him as sexually experienced. iEven L & C: TNAoS didn't deny Clark's earlier relationships when they had Clark tell Lois that he'd "stepped up and taken a close look" (or words to that effect )

But, I'll respecftfully argue that the comics never portrayed the others as his "true" love. In the comics, Clark's realtionship with Lana was never depicted as anything more than a crush - adolescent love that has more to do with hormones than anything else (not dissing hormones here btw ) And Lori the mermaid was someone he fell for in college - how old was he - 20? Both of these relationships were before he met Lois Lane, as Kathy points out.

But what i object to in Smallwood is *not* that Clark has a crush on Lana but that the show implies through Clark's non-interest in Lois Lane, and also in Chloe who I see as a Lois- surrogate, that his future relationship with Lois Lane will be a tirvial one. I apologize for repeating this part of my argument.

Even in the CR movies, Lois is protrayed as *the* love of Superman's life (and such a sad love it is by the 4th movie ). It was only in the 3rd movie that lana was brought in, largely as a result of Margot Kidder's contract dispute with the studio which necessitated some quick rewriting. Although, like Kathy, I'm not sure the Reeves movies count too much as canon.

Sorry to be so long-winded but I did want to clarify what I meant in my earlier post. I don't express myself too well sometimes.


Lynn wrote:
Yeah, that too.

c.

Ok. I've had the chance to mull it over. And in a way, it makes perfect sense. (As much as Smallville ever makes sense.) So everything is fine.

Lana is who Clark has been pining for since she was the head cheerleader wearing the kryptonite necklace that made him fall over whenever she walked by. She is the Princess. All pink and pretty and often in need of rescue. (Though sometimes, out of nowhere, she gets possessed by various things and kicks people all around.) Mostly, though, she's your stereotypical, normal, average Object of Desire.

And Clark wants and needs- or so he believes- to be an average,normal, stereotypical smalltown boy who is only what he seems. In pursuit of that he plays on the football team, goes to the prom and dances with the Object, and eventually does that thing it looked like he might have been doing with said Object at the end of last night's episode.

Just a regular Joe in love with a regular Jane. Light the candles, cue the music.

So you see how this is fine?

Because while we do know he <gulp> loves Lana, he also really loves What She Represents. Normal, Mortal, Average type things. And when he's with her, he can be that too. Rather than some guy ruled by a bossy, prickly Kryptonian Spirit-Dad who's always telling him to collect stones or crystals or climb into the cave wall and stop the
destruction of the human race. That's the kind of stuff average, normal guys almost never have to do!

If Smallville is the story of how he will come to know and accept that he will never be just Clark Kent, that he has to find a way to be CK and Kal-el, embrace who he is meant to be, then... this makes sense.

And really, it's good news.

Because Clark wasn't making love to Lana. He was simply making love to the very idea of being the kind of guy who makes love to Lana.

Which is an entirely different thing! Not nearly as personal or soulful, and it cannot get anyone pregnant.

All is well, then.

No worries.

CC

Oh, I'd be remiss if I didn't add that the Lex/Clark scene where the punches were thrown? Awesome!!

See, CC, this is why I know we were twins separated at birth. You have that same ability that I do to justify anything!! There simply has to be some explanation that we can come up with why Clark would ever do anything as bone-headed (pardon the pun) as sleep with Lana.

And this goes back to me saying that I would have been quite satisfied with a Season 1/2 Clark/Lana pairing. As Clark struggles to ignore all of these strange powers that keep cropping up, trying desperately to hold on to the idea that he is really "normal", he grasps on to Lana because she personifies the normal small-town, cheerleader dream-girl. She is apple pie-average, as anti-alien as you could get.

Then, as Clark comes to accept that he is not normal, he gives up on the things of his past, including Lana. And he moves on to the more complex world where Lois awaits.

So I'm riding the train right along side of you.

What makes this so incredibly sad is that the Clark/Lana deal could have been sweet. It could have been something that made me say "Aaaww! Look, how sweet they are together. I'm so glad Clark has someone..." Except they backed into this so slowly, so tentatively and after so much crappola, it just makes me roll my eyes.

So I guess that I'm with Carol on this point. They are trying to sell Lana as Clark's Great Love. But we all know that Lois is waiting for Clark in the future and that she's truly his soul mate, thus Lana is really no more than his high school crush/first boyhood love. To add insult to injury, if they want us to at least sort of buy the idea that this Clark/Lana relationship is True Love and Oh-So-Marvelous, they should give us something a heck of a lot better than zero-chemistry and flat motivation. If they want me to buy the horse, they'd better hide the fact that it's no more than a donkey.

Now all I want is for him to dump Lana's butt and for the sparks to fly with Lois. I'm the type that likes extreme passion and combustion for a couple. Since Lana and Clark have that in the negative - never have I seen two actors with less chemistry - I can only hope that before this is all over, something sparks with Lois. Even a hint would be okay.

Lynn

I agree with CC, I don't think Clark and Lois are ready for each other yet, Clark wants normalcy, he even got happy that he lost his powers (which, btw, I fount totally childish and selfish of him), and Lana represents this normalcy (I don't think Clark is in love with the real Lana Lang, he's in love with that picture, that dream that he has of her since met her, he hadn't talked to her before he was 15 and already claimed to love her since he was 5, in my oppinion he pictured her as perfect, as his dream girl, and fell in love with this picture), being with Lana for him is like forgeting about his origins and being just a regular guy (in fact, I think that if someone told him he'd have to choose his destiny right now he'd choose something close to what Lois described as his destiny in Commencement...) he's still not the guy who someday will become superman...and I think that's one of the reasons Lois is not in love with him yet either, she's one of the only people on that show who doesn't see him as a hero, she sees him as he wants people to see him...just an ordinary guy who wants to live an ordinary life...and we all know Lois Lane wouldn't settle for an ordinary guy with no ambition in life, it's just not her.

Hm, as this discussion is less focused on the episode, I'd like to respond to Clark's liking of Lana as well.

I can understand the need for some normalcy in a teen's life, there's nothing wrong with that. Truthfully, if you had been beaten, kidnapped, attacked with Kryptonite and tested on, wouldn't you like a quiet evening at home with a willing pink princess in your arms?

Sorry if that doesn't excite me that much But what I really wanted to talk about is the dilemma, our beloved SV-writers have walked into (or rather: created for several seasons). I'd like to use the LnC universe as an ideal comparison, as having watched the movies too long ago to remember any details and never having touched the comics at all.
In LnC, Clark had a long way to go until having finally accepted who he was and that didn't begin until he arrived in Metropolis. After having met with Lois, he was fed up with moving around the world and invented his secret identity. It wasn't until a bit later that he found out where he came from and why he was on earth.

Personally, I think that Smallville has messed up the timeline and storyline of Clark/Superman more than you think at first. Not only do they give him good friends, in the course of time two of them get to know his hidden side as well (remember LnC, at least I didn't get the impression that he was ever close to someone). All this time while Clark is using his abilities, he's hardly able to create diversions and that often results in him being in the spotlight, partnered with unsolved issues and unanswered questions. This is where Lex Luthor comes into the picture as a guy always on the brink of falling on the evil side (I forgot to cound how often he tried to expose Clark - if only to himself). No, please don't forget the weekly meteor mutant who's shipped off to Belle Reve ( I wonder if they're attaching new storys each season or if they're more into digging basements ) after they've wreaked (emotional) heavoc in town. If these wouldn't be enough problems, Clark also seems stuck in several love/jealousy-triangles for a whole lot of five seasons. Of course there's the great love of his teenage-life who he has lost several chances with because he rather lives in denial about his abilities. It might also be a tad unsettling that there's no gentle tone in his father's voice and demands, that Clark's probably doubting himself what 'ruling the world' will entitle.
If all this pressure on a teenage boy doesn't scream for the building of a Superman-persona (after all, LnC has successfully pictured how using his powers/Superman-identity can help him relieve stress), what else will? It's a pity that this gets him denied and probably won't change in SV at all (IIRC there's a comment very early on, that SV pictures the way of Clark becoming Superman, not being him).

In the meantime, I see a Clark Kent who seems stuck between the proverbial rock and hard place, trying to escape in ways that aren't healthy - and a displeasure to watch as well. It's actually a pity that the only two 'escapes' so far were using Red-K and being happy about losing his super-powers.

WHY DID THEY DO THAT clark was surpose to be with lois not lana please what is wrong . my feelings are hurt

Call me a cock-eyed optimist.

I see Clark and Lana gettng together as the seque that leads him to Lois.

Once you realize your fantasy, your dream, you realize it's not as good as you thought it would be.

Tom Welling said in an interview about Season Five that this year would be about bringing Clark closer to who he becomes. Why doesn't he end up with Lana?Why are he and Lex mortal enemies?

I'm going to try to enjoy the ride, knowing that Clark and Lois *do* end up together.

P.S. Maybe it's that lap dance that finally turns his head!

lol i hope the lap dance do the trick

Well, I just watched it ...

And .... ARGH!!!

OK, now that I got that out of my system, let me phrase that more accurately ... ARRRRRGGGGGHHHH!!!

This Clark Kent is an idiot. The idiot to end all idiots. As Lynn said so well in her post, I have no problem with Clark having another love -- or even another lover -- before Lois. What I have a problem with is WHO he has decided he is in love with.

What in the *world* has Lana ever done to earn this type of obsession? She drives me up a freakin' wall. Now granted, it's true, she didn't whine in this episode, and I appreciate the effort it must have taken from her three brain cells. But when you have Chloe *right there* ... so brilliant ... so funny ... so utterly adorable ... how can he NOT see that she is PERFECT for him?!?!

Yeah, yeah, Lois ... I know. No, really, I know. I mean, she's great -- when we see her -- and I was quite pleased to see they added her to the opening credits this season. (At least, I assume these are new credits ... I missed the end of last season and this is the first ep I've watched in awhile.)

But Chloe is just ... just ... gosh, she's just so wonderful! And so perfect for Clark! They *are* L&C. The banter, the inside jokes (especially now), the way he *needs* her to be a hero. Gah!! Who the hell cares about Lana???? What is the matter with you, Clark????

"So what you're saying is ... without super-powers, you have no useful skills?"

"I didn't know super-whining was one of your powers."

"You told Pete your secret?! Pete saw the ship?!?!?!!?"

LOL! Love them. To pieces.

Oh, yeah, and that fight scene between Lex and Clark at the end ... yowsers! I have to admit, I like how Clark can "be himself" now, even if "himself" isn't really what he needs to be. It's also interesting that they're letting this loss of powers thing go more than one episode. True, it's reguritated "Green Green Glow of Home" (and if I may say so, DC's Clark is just so much cuter swinging a hammer than TW's Clark is ), but I do appreciate that it's an arc rather than a one-shot like we got with GGGoH and UW.

Looks like it's going to be over next week, though. Seriously over, in fact, if that body bag was any indication. <g>

Kathy (who missed these SV episode chats )

I don't know if it has been posted before but I found a 5 minute Smallville(S1-S4) by Derek Dean , for all Smallville erm...fans??