This is again a splendid part, Rac. It felt quite hopeful after the darkness of part four. I loved how the hope seemed to come from three sources: first, from the young people, from the new generation. The youthful providers of hope in this part were the wounded young soldiers, as well as little Thia and Talan's little baby niece. All of them gave new hope, new strength and, well, just a new or renewed reason to live and struggle on for the older ones around them.
Then there were old friends, who also shone a light of hope in the darkness. Talan may have shocked Clark when she spoke so bluntly to him. But she probably got through to him, at least so that she opened a crack in his armour of self-pity. Ching managed to make Clark open up even further, so that he could voice his darkest fears about himself: that his belief in the sanctity of
all life had been a childish pipe-dream which had caused almost 700 innocent people there lives. Now he despises himself for being a killer, and he also despises himself for not having been a killer before. But Ching counters his argument:
Clark frowned, his eyes narrowed. "So what are you saying, that knowing how many people were going to die, you still wouldn't have killed Nor back when he was caught?"
"That isn't the question, Clark. We couldn't have known a year ago what was going to happen. You had every reason to believe that Nor wasn't a threat any longer. You did what you could with what you knew. No one can ask more of themselves than that."
Clark tried to muster up the will to argue with him, but it wasn't there. He was just so tired of it all. "It's not that simple…" he began pathetically.
His own logic and self-hatred crumbles before Ching's argument. And after that, he is ready to thank the young soldiers for their brave fight and sacrifice, and he can apologize to Tao Scion and Enza.
The third thing that brings hope to this part is love. Whatever Clark is, whatever he has lost, he is still the man who loves Lois. That is so beautiful. But love is such a powerful force between Enza and Lok Sim, too:
He held her just a little bit tighter, hoping somewhere deep inside that if he wrapped himself around her and kept her close, he could keep her safe. "When I saw that room, my heart stopped beating," he said softly, swallowing hard as he blinked back tears. "And it didn't start again until your eyes opened and you looked up at me. My life stopped without you. The only way it goes on is with you."
So beautiful.
I am very well aware that this is not the nfic folder. But I would love to see a scene, obviously very carefully told, when Enza and Lok Sim are going to make love again for the first time after Enza lost her leg. Most people who had been similarly crippled would feel physically unattractive. What is it going to be like for Enza? Is her faith in her husband's love for her so strong that she won't feel nervous and awkward about offering her broken body to him?
I would like to comment on another aspect of this part, namely the fact that Sur Ahn wasn't given the death penalty. Let me quote a passage from the Bible, 2 Kings 9:30-37:
30And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her face, and tired her head, and looked out at a window.
31And as Jehu entered in at the gate, she said, Had Zimri peace, who slew his master?
32And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs.
33And he said, Throw her down. So they threw her down: and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses: and he trode her under foot.
34And when he was come in, he did eat and drink, and said, Go, see now this cursed woman, and bury her: for she is a king's daughter.
35And they went to bury her: but they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands.
36Wherefore they came again, and told him. And he said, This is the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, In the portion of Jezreel shall dogs eat the flesh of Jezebel:
37And the carcase of Jezebel shall be as dung upon the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel; so that they shall not say, This is Jezebel.
This is the story of how Jehu punishes Queen Jezebel, who was considered an evil worshipper of pagan gods, and who was seen as the person most responsible for bringing down God's wrath over Israel. To make her pay for her crimes, Jehu orders her to be thrown down from a window, and then he runs her over with his horses. Finally he leaves her lying on the ground, where dogs eat her flesh. Jehu, who is portrayed in the Old Testament as a faithful servant of God, certainly shows Jezebel no mercy.
Ah, but Jesus repeatedly told the people around him to show each other mercy. This, for example, is what he taught people to say when they prayed:
"And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us"
So should the people of Krypton forgive Sur Ahn, then? No, I don't think they have to. They have a right to be heartbroken, devastated and furious, and to blame Sur Ahn for their pain. For their own sake, I hope that people who have suffered so much can find a way to look ahead instead of dwelling on their grief, but I don't think they have to forgive the person who caused their pain. But if these people are to help build a society of mercy, then I hope they will refrain from demanding the ultimate penalty for the guilty ones: I hope they are willing to spare the lives even of people like Sur Ahn. I, for one, found it very hopeful that Sur Ahn wasn't executed: to me it means that the society that Clark and many others fought so hard to save has proved itself worthy of saving.
Ann