I'm going to be sorry when this over. And I'm so indebted to you all; I think after we wrap this up, we should get together at my house for a bbq. How does that sound? Because have I mentioned...? I
love you people!
Ok. Here we go.
A major, recurring theme:
I have a feeling, though, that there's going to be *some* kind of reset button.
Of course I have no comment.
Actually, I'm wondering whether Lois and Clark will go home, forget everything, and still go on to create Utopia... They might not remember their stay, but their influence and / or involvement... or maybe the mere fact of their presence... will lead to the undoing of the worst of that society.
Ditto on the no comment. But so well put!
From Wendy and KathyB:
This made me laugh out loud. Why? Because in my last job I knew a Robert Smith, and this is him to a T!
Still think he might have some Lane blood in him, though. Eighteenth cousin, twice removed ... so he doesn't show up in the history books.
Love this! First of all, my apologies to any and all Robert Smiths. But when I was trying to think of the flatest, least interesting name a man could have, this was it. Though, given KathyB's brilliant Tempus-theories, he was very nearly Robert Brown. Robert Lane Brown, maybe? Kinda like it.
Speaking of
brilliant theories, this folder was full of them!
The world knows, through Family oral history, that Clark first emerges from seclusion after The Big Exposure because Lois makes him go and buy her a bagel. But history doesn't record where he went to get it - what matters is the fact that he got it, not the exact location. And so, when the Peacekeepers needed a cover for their real activities, they remembered the bagel story and chose a bakery business in honour of Clark Buying Lois The Bagel - after all, bagels are baked in bakeries, right?
Loooooove that. And you know, might try to work that in. In a few, very vague, toss away lines, because it's so good. Maybe just have a Revelation Bagel in the display case...
And, good heavens, this:
So, clearly, the best solution to the whole thing is to send the baby back to just that point I mentioned (when they're ready to have kids, but don't think it's possible) and leave it comfortably in a crib inside their home, wrapped in a Superman blanket with a note attached saying, "Lois and Clark, this is your baby."
Doing so might even manage to save Utopia from coming apart. You know, send the baby from a dying world to good parents who want a baby but don't think they can have one, secure in the knowledge that they will take care of him and he'll grow up to fulfill a great destiny.
Who else thinks we're might be staring at the sequel? Not written by me, mind you. But one possible sequel inside one time loop written by our Hatman. Run with it, Paul! Like the wind! I'll BR. It'll be fun!!
That little time-travel glitch and Madge's unwillingness to raise the dead:
After all... resurrecting the dead. In a way, Superman did it twice. (And, if you count the movie universe, and there's no reason at all why you should, he really did it there.
Ah. I thought of that Wendy. And I'm glad you did, too, since it gives me a chance to remark on this:
That calm statement for the holodisks. Did you mean to have that moment resonate with Jor-El's final verbal testament to Clark?
This made me smile ear to ear. Yes! In the Superman movie he did manipulate time to raise the dead, and when he did, it was Jor-el's voice telling him not to. In this piece, I've tried to draw as many lines between Madge and Jor-el as possible. Both of them watching over the end of their worlds, both linked to Clark, both burdened enormously.
Anyway, I liked the idea of Madge having her hands tied by ethics she just couldn't break. Also, I think this is what forever puts the Peacekeepers at disadvantage to Tempus. They may get wiser and better at handling him, but they are still good and ethical. They are handicapped in ways he is not.
Another really juicy one:
I know he has a problem with the Superman craze because it puts pressure on him and he's so humble and modest, but I'm suprised he wasn't worried about the fact that he has been pushed to the side in favor of his 'creation'.
Welcome, Kristen! And this is so smart. I've really debated this back and forth.
For early Clark Kent, the one who arrives in Utopia, this aspect of being Superman/CK hasn't really happened. Since he's only been Supes the one time, he doesn't have a sense of how the Supes persona will take over. That Lois will come to love the caped hero, in preference to her working partner. The dicotomy isn't there yet. So, that's one thing.
Also, I think this issue is resolved for him later in his life, when he knows he really is both.
And last, if I can ramble on a bit more, the final element is the idea that the family has taken pains to keep something of the man off-limits. Superman and his legend belong to the world, but Clark Kent was still a father, a husband, a person. Perhaps by his wishes, part of who he really was has been kept private.
Try that on and see if that works, though. Your point is really valid.
Last things because I've talked all day.
You would start off with a POV switch...
LOL! And yes. That's a pretty predictable pattern now, isn't it?
Only thing, Madge seems to be doing a lot of shifting uncomfortably.
She's got that 'The World's Ending and I Can't Quite Get Comfortable' thing happening. But I'll recheck that, rivka!
Thank you so much, everyone! I know I'm a broken record, but this is just the most fun ever. And I can't say how much I've appreciated your generous attention!
CC
