Smallville: Clark meets "Booster"

     The CW's Smallville is drawing to a close. The most recent episode, “Booster,” furthers the Superman mythology, bringing Clark Kent (Tom Welling) closer to his destiny.  Advertisements for this episode make it seem like a goofy side adventure, a weird way to go with only a few hours left in the series. That is not the case, as not only are both Booster Gold and Blue Beetle foils for Clark in different ways, but Clark gets even closer to becoming Superman. He changes in a phone booth for the first time (who even knew any still exist?), and refines the geeky demeanor he will use as his secret identity. Booster recommends Clark choose a cooler name that incorporates his "S" symbol, preferably something "super." These important touches make this episode better than the average one, and show it is worthy to be included this close to the end.

     In the episode, Lois (Erica Durance) helps Clark further build his geeky demeanor so that he can come out publically as a hero. Cat (Keri Lynn Pratt) is still not a supporter of The Blur, but she is taken in by a new hero in town: Booster Gold (Eric Martsolf), claiming his "openness" as the source of her attraction. Booster arrives to try to take The Blur’s place in Metropolis, but unlike Clark, he uses flashy commercials and events to get attention. Meanwhile, Booster’s presence has unexpected consequences when, during a rescue, an alien scarab is released, and it latches onto nerdy Jaime Reyes (Jaren Brandt Bartlett), turning him into the Blue Beetle.

     A major development that may be a tad unexpected: Clark's biggest worry about assuming his new persona is not about himself, but how it will reflect on Lois, who still plans on marrying him. He argues this will seems out of place, since she is now so successful, and he is... well, not. He basically gives her a pass, which she chooses not to use, because she doesn't care how it looks. She loves him. Score another point for the gumption of Lois Lane, a character trait found in virtually all versions of the character.

     In other Superman incarnations, Lois falls for the nerdy Clark before she realizes that he has super powers, though she also often has a thing for Superman. While Smallville did toy with a Lois / Clark / The Blur love triangle, before Clark even becomes Superman, this Lois alone knows all of his secrets. She knows the real him, not the made up persona. Because of this, this Superman is being shaped and grown with Lois's help. It gives her even more influence and praise for her role in him as a the superhero than before. She helps make him who he is. If anything, that makes this particular Lois among the greatest.

     Now, the question is, how soon until bumbling Clark can make it upstairs in the Daily Planet with Lois? She earns a promotion, but he stays in the basement. The Lois and Clark famous duo share many an important byline. Perhaps it makes sense that Clark's time to shine as a newsman will have to wait. His new faux personality lends itself to a slow climb rather than a quick blast off, unlike Lois. This also works better with the traditional tale, where Lois has already established herself an an anchor of the paper before Clark joins her.

     Clark has a very different encounter with Booster Gold than he has with other superheroes. Up until now, Clark has defeated many an enemy, but typically, the other superheroes he has encountered have been more put together than he is. Even as serveral begin to form a League, he stays on the sidelines for quite awhile longer, waiting to join them until after they've been established for awhile. Clark's evolution to Superman is a slow one, and at first, he doesn't want to get involved.

     But with Booster, Clark is able to serve as a mentor and inspiration. Admittedly, Booster already knows who Clark is ahead of time, so future Clark likely means as much to him as the present day one. Booster draws strength from knowing the effects Superman has had on his world. While he initially thinks he can replace him, as soon as he meets Clark, and stops to think about who he is by comparison, he begins to clean up his act. This is the first encounter a mature Clark has with someone in that regard, but those familiar with the Superman tale know it will not be the last.

     By extension, Booster decides to help Jaime become a good, just Blue Beetle. Knowing he cannot save everyone, as Clark will soon be doing, Booster focuses his efforts on one person he can positively influence. As Clark used to keep his activities small scale, so now does Booster, who is really just starting out. If his path to greatness is anything like Clark's, he will become much better than he is over time, with lots of hard work. As such, Booster Gold is able to put foolishness behind him and have a lasting positive affect on the world.

     Sadly, Tess (Cassidy Freeman) and Oliver (Justin Hartley) sit this episode out, as they have frequently done this season. Surely, they will be back before the finale, though it does look like the final episodes will be mostly about Clark. Which is appropriate enough, considering he is the main character and the only original full-time cast member left. Side characters have been invaluable on the series, but only Clark can become Superman.

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     Smallville airs Friday nights at 8 p.m. ET on the CW.

Article first published as TV Review: Smallville - "Booster" on Blogcritics.

Smallville episode "Booster" airs tonight at 8 p.m. ET

     Only a handful of episodes remain for the CW’s Smallville. Tonight’s entry, “Booster”, will further the Superman mythology, bringing Clark Kent (Tom Welling) to meet his destiny. In it, Lois (Erica Durance) helps Clark further build his geeky demeanor so that he can come out publically as a hero. Cat (Keri Lynn Pratt) is still not a supporter of The Blur, but she is taken in with a new hero in town: Booster Gold (Eric Martsolf). Booster arrives to try to take The Blur’s place in Metropolis, but unlike Clark, he uses flashy commericals and events to get attention. Meanwhile, Booster’s presence has unexpected consequences when, during a rescue, an alien scarab is released, and it latches onto nerdy Jaime Reyes (Jaren Brandt Bartlett), turning him into the Blue Beetle.

     The following contains light spoilers, meant to get fans excited about tonight’s episode, but refrains from revealing any big twists. If you’d rather go into the hour without knowing anything, please do not read it.

     Which advertisements for the episode make it appear that Clark will be encountering yet another superhero, like many before him, Booster helps Clark learn something about himself. Booster has a few secrets, such as where he came from, and which exactly he chose now, when Clark is on the verge of going public himself, to come to town. Booster actually serves a foil or cautionary tale, rather than just being a distraction. He also gives Clark the chance to demonstrate his saving power, and not in action sequences.

     Jaime / Blue Beetle is the other extreme from Booster. He does not have a secret agenda, but plays more to the other side of Clark, the persona Clark is creating as his secret identity. As such, Jaime also has something that Clark can learn from.

     Besides the main plot, several Superman staples are touched on, strengthening the mythology, and reminding us that the series is coming to an end, and Clark will soon be Superman. In this episode, for the first time, the Clark Kent known and beloved by comic book and movie fans makes an appearance. For anyone doubting that the Clark we’ve watched for ten years can be the traditional image, watch and be amazed. Also, a phone booth makes a quick cameo.

     If you like my reviews, please follow me on Twitter! Click here for all of my Current Season Reviews.

     Check back tomorrow for a full review of the episode and to discuss what you saw. Smallville airs Friday nights, including tonight, at 8 p.m. ET on the CW.

Smallville - "Luthor"

     Going in, I knew that this week's episode of Smallville, titled "Luthor", would feature the return of John Glover as Lionel Luthor, but I wasn't sure what that meant for the series or the plot.  I have long missed the complicated, often villainous, Lionel.  His untimely death mid-season years ago was hard to take, and I have wished for his comeback ever since that day.  Now that it's hear, I'm not sure this was the best Smallville episode.  It wasn't bad, but I was expecting more.  Hopefully, we'll get it when Lionel returns again early next year.

     Lionel himself was as brilliantly performed as he ever was.  Glover still inhabits the character like skin.  The alternate universe premise, though, is tired.  How many shows have used it over the years?  I get it; we get to see a favorite charcter in an evil incarnation.  In this case, there was also the nature vs. nurture argument, and once again glimpsing how Clark (Tom Welling) could have ended up evil if he was raised differently.  In Clark's case, we've already seen it before enough time that this was far from novel.  What was strange, as compared to most alternate universes in screen and literature, is that Lois (Erica Durance) and Oliver (Justin Hartley) seem to be the same people on both sides of the mirror.

     How big a presence the Luthor name will be in the final season of Smallville has been a topic of much debate among fans.  Obviously, for anyone who cares about the Superman character, Lex Luthor is the ultimate foil.  The character was so wonderfully handled on this series by Michael Rosenbaum, and the actor's reluctance to return has caused grief.  The show's writers have kept things under wraps, but a number of possibilities are brewing.  Tess (Cassidy Freeman), though not a surprising revelation, is fully out as a Luthor family member.  The alternate Lionel, still living long after he died off in the show's normal universe, secretly crossed over, unnoticed by the other characters.  He will be featured in at least one more episode early next year, the season's 13th, which also boasts returning former series stars Annette O'Toole and Allison Mack, according to the imdb page, even though there is no title assigned yet.  Additionally, a young reborn clone of Lex named Alexander is apparently grown and on the loose.  When he is next seen, will he be played by Rosenbaum, as fans long for, or someone else?

     The only character that got serious development this week was Tess.  Her secrets have been exposed to Clark, and although the beginning of the episode, when he initially found out, felt awkward and out of character for them both, the resolution at the end was sweet and true.  I am an ardent fan of Tess, and if anyone could succeed Rosenbaum, as regretable as it is that he needed a fill-in, it's Freeman.  Her struggle with humanity and moral goodness mirrors Lex's own, but unlike him, she seems to mostly be winning hers.  Her inclusion at Watchtower was one of the most emotionally rewarding of the series, and her final season arc has been fantastic.  I can't wait to see how it ends, and how the return of other Luthors will affect her.

     As final seasons go, this one has had far more hits than misses (this week's episode leaning slightly towards hit, despite its problems, because of what it set up), and I believe the series is having one of it's strongest years yet.  Smallville's fall finale will be next Friday night, and will feature many recurring characters including Cat Grant (Keri Lynn Pratt), the not-dead Slade Wilson (Michael Hogan, bringing back the eyepatch again, as he did in Battlestar Galactica), Stargirl (Brittney Irvin), Hawkman (Michael Shanks), and Black Canary (Alaina Huffman).  Plus, this week's Entertainment Weekly showed a picture from the episode with Clark on bended knee to Lois, holding a ring.  It will surely be amazing, and you won't want to miss it.

     Smallville airs Friday nights at 8pm on the CW.

For frequent mini-reviews and occasional tv news, follow Jerome on Twitter.

Smallville: "Abandoned" and the Seminal Season So Far

     The CW's Smallville is well into its final season, and thus far, it has delivered in a way it hasn't in a few years. Knowing that the end is near has given the writers the freedom to move forward with some long-simmering plots, and Clark (Tom Welling) has finally grown as a person and a hero. He's wearing more red and blue instead of black! Some fantastic guest stars have been brought, or brought back, into the mix, and there are plenty more coming.

     This week's entry, "Abandoned", dealt with the abandonment by their biological parents of two main characters: Clark and Tess (Cassidy Freeman). Each have been stunted in their emotional growth, and unable to fully develop into who they're going to be because of these dark moments in their past. Each had to come face to face with what they had buried, and see their parents in a new light in order to move on.

     Clark came out of the experience much better for it. He got to see, as more than a disembodied voice this time, his father Jor-El. The body was played by Julian Sands, as he was in a prior episode, even though he is usually voiced by Terence Stamp. Clark's mother, Lara (Helen Slater) was also there. Clark finally realized that they sent him to earth by himself out of love, not disappointment. They didn't wish to send their son away alone, but felt they had no choice. He also saw that they were proud of him and loved him, which healed Clark enough to consider taking his relationship with Lois (Erica Durance) to the next step.

     Clark and Lois's evolving romance has been a focal point of the tenth season so far, and is satisfying in a way it has never been. In a recent episode, Clark traveled to the future and saw himself with Lois, and it seemed to give him a new lease on his feelings for her.

     The same episode also showed Superman for the first time, even if it was just a brief glimpse. For fans who worried about the series getting the rights to the famous suit or the name, it appears that those issues have cleared up, and in the best way possible. Hopefully we will get a glimpse of this Clark as Tom Welling before the final credits role at the end of the year.

     Tess has much deeper baggage, which was not easily cleared up as Clark's. Tess discovered that her father is Lionel Luthor. Lionel used to be a series regular played by John Glover, but we only saw the back of his head this week, so it is doubtful that it was Glover. Glover will be returning to the show in a couple of weeks, although in what capacity is unclear, since Lionel was killed off a couple of years ago.

     The character of Tess was added to the series after the departure of Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) as a sort of replacement for Lex. Fan embracement of her has been slow, but I've loved her, and the wonderful actress that plays her, for some time, and I hope recent movements have been enough to win over most of the naysayers left.

     And going back to the episode's title, sure, you can argue that Lois was also abandoned by her mother, Ella, who was stricken down by cancer, but unlike the other two, Lois didn't seem to have deep-seated personal issues stemming from that abandonment. She had some regretful feelings, but not to the level of the other two plots, and her issues seemed done a third of the way through the episode. It's worth nothing, however, that Smallville scored a considerable casting coup by persuading Teri Hatcher, who is a series regular on a popular show on another network, to take the time out and appear as Lois's mother. Superman fans will remember that Hatcher played Lois Lane in the 90's series, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman".

     What I found a bit confusing was the absence of Oliver (Justin Hartley) this week. He has had a banner season, with important plot about revealing his secret identity to the public. It used to be that Smallville would try to juggle around ten main characters, and understandably, some of them would have to sit out for weeks at a time. Sadly, despite her importance to the overall series story, Lois was missing more often than most. However, there are currently only four main characters on the show. I love every minute of this week's episode, but with only four main characters, it seems odd to not use them all every week. Perhaps there was just too much rich plot to leave room for Oliver. Or maybe his contract allows for weeks off. I don't know, but he was missed.

     This episode was also surprisingly important to the Big Bad of Season 10, the super-powerful villain Darkseid. While Darkseid himself has not been seen, his three minions have finally come together. One was this week's featured baddie, Granny Goodness, played by the always wonderful Christine Willes (Dead Like Me, Reaper). Another was a recently possessed radio host, Gordon Godfrey (Michael Daingerfield). The last, Desaad (Steve Byers) has also appeared before this week. Now that they have teamed up, it will surely only be a matter of time before Darkseid himself fully comes into the picture. After all, November sweeps are already half over.

     Looking at the season as a whole, the casting lineup has been spectacular. Already we've been revisited by Jonathan Kent (John Schneider), Kara / Supergirl (Laura Vandervoort, V)), Braniac (James Marsters), and Carter Hall / Hawkman (Michael Shanks), among others. Next week will feature the return of Aquaman (Alan Ritchson) and Deathstroke (Michael Hogan). As mentioned above, Lionel Luthor will be coming back soon. And the addition of Cat Grant (Keri Lynn Pratt) to the Daily Planet has been a wonderful delight. Chloe (Allison Mack) is still missing. Plus, a Smallville icon, The Talon, was blown up into tiny pieces!

     If you haven't watched Smallville in years, now is the time to get on board. The coming end will surely not disappoint, if the beginning of this season has been any indication. Smallville airs Friday nights at 8pm on the CW.

For frequent mini-reviews and occasional tv news, follow Jerome on Twitter.

Article first published as TV Review: Smallville: "Abandoned" and the Seminal Season So Far on Blogcritics.

Smallville's final season and the return of Lex Luthor

If you have not watched Smallville's 10th Season premiere, "Lazarus", please watch it before reading this review, as it contains plenty of spoilers about that episode.

You may want to click here to read my review of Smallville's 9th season finale, "Salvation", last May.

     The single most important thing in Smallville's 10th season is this: Lex Luthor is back.  Michael Rosenbaum, the actor who played him for most of the series, is not, but the writers have gotten creative in getting around that absence.  In the first episode, Clark (Tom Welling) is told once again that Lex will be his biggest foe, but he wonders at that, as Lex was last seen blowing up two years ago.  Tess (Cassidy Freeman), who was seen dying the in the hospital at the end of season nine, wakes up in a lab miraculously healed.  She is surrounded by Lex clones, some closer to the real Lex than others.  The worst of the batch escapes, killing almost all of the others, except for a young child version named Alexander (Jakob Davies), whom Tess takes home with her.

     I don't believe that the bad Lex clone will be the true nemesis that Clark will have to face.   He's already dying, and he lis considerably older than Lex.  Even though the bad clone says that the creator died two years ago, I have my doubts.  For one thing, who was in the hood, rescuing Tess? Sure, there will be other villains besides Lex this season, but without a strong Lex presence in the series finale, the last episode is sure to feel off.  I don't know why Rosenbaum keeps resisting overtures, but his return would be much more satisfying than having another actor take over this late in the game.

     The most compelling plot in the premiere, and likely throughout the season, is Clark's battle with inner darkness.  In the premiere, we see both a supportive Jor-El (Terrence Stamp), who wants Clark to vanquish his foes, and one who has deep doubts about whether Clark will ultimately be a villain or a hero.  Because Clark's encounters with Jor-El are dream-like sequences, there is no real way to tell which, if either, actually happened.  However, as Clark's Superman suit ended up in the Fortress at the end of the episode, the disappointed Jor-El is more likely the correct one.  The nice one may well have been Jonathan Kent (John Schneider), who returned to tell Clark how proud he was of his son, and express his faith that Clark would do the right thing.  Jonathan died years ago on the show, but his trippy return may have been something real in some way.  If Clark can talk to his deceased Kryptonian father, why not his human one, too?  Whatever it was, Schneider's return was welcome.

     With only four and a half main characters this year, Smallville is spending the money saved on principal actors by bringing back plenty of important guest stars.  Besides Jonathan Kent, also set to return this season are John Glover as Lionel Luther, who is also dead, Laura Vandervoort (V) as Clark's cousin, Kara, and quite likely Kristin Kreuk as Lana Lang, at least in flashback.  I don't much care if the deal with Kruek is finalized or not, as Lana had a fine ending, and there is no real need to see her again.  Keri Lynn Pratt will be bringing to life the comic book character of Kat Grant beginning with next week's episode, "Shield".  As long as Momma Kent (Annette O'Toole) and Perry White (her real-life husband, Michael McKean) come back as well, everyone essential will be covered.

     It must also be noted that Allison Mack, who plays the only original cast member left besides Clark, Chloe Sullivan, is only doing a limited number of episodes in the final season.  She remains in the theme song, at least in the first episode, but she traded herself to save Oliver (Justin Hartley) from his torturers, so I think it unlikely we will be seeing her again soon.  She has promised to return, and we can only hope she does a sizeable arc that includes the finale, as Chloe is such an essential part of the show.

     And with all that going on, Lois (Erica Durance) discovering Clark's secret was actually played quite minorly in the episode.  It's a huge event in the Superman saga, so I was surprised at how little it impacted the main plot, though she did have to be saved by evil Lex, and it did spur her to leave for Africa.  Her discovery will surely have lasting effects, though, and I doubt that the meat of it has been played out.

     Smallville airs Friday nights at 8pm on the CW.