Smallville: Escape
Sometimes I wish I were still spoiled. Because in cases of eps like this, I kept waiting and waiting for something, anything to happen - and well, for the exception of a couple of developments - nothing really did. It wasn't the worst ep, but just rather uneventful. And while there are aspects of it I thought were cute and/or funny, for every one of those moments unfortunately there was something or the other that happened to really annoy me too. However, that said, shirtless!Clark tends to make up for a great deal, heh. In fact, throughout the ep, Clark looked amazing. I mean, yes, he does every ep, every scene but he was extra, deliciously so, this ep. And so it doesn't seem as if I'm all about the objectification, I'll add that TW did a great job in the comedic scenes. Which, again, no surprise, but it never hurts to reiterate it.
I suppose I should start with what didn't work for me. For starters, the utterly insipid Banshee storyline. I get that it was quite literally supposed to be a plot mechanism to faciliate the Clois/Chlollie storylines, but rather a waste of a DC character, on the whole. Not to mention, boring.
Secondly, for the life of me, I can't figure out why in an ep that is so focused on relationships taking a step forward and sex in relationships, why it wasn't even addressed once that Clark has yet to come clean with Lois about his secret. It's all very wel and good that we finally learn that Clark has overcome his fears and anxieties (though even that explanation was quite on the lame side) and that emotionally too, Clois seem to be on the same page now, seemingly, wrt sex, but what about the fact that Clark still doesn't think it necessary to tell Lois about himself. Honestly, it baffles me, because Lois knowing at this point, would hardly distract, or jeapordize either the SV story or overall mythos in any way. In fact, far from it. Plus the fact that Clark is well aware of how incedibly well Lois has taken the news in every other instance she's known. So, then, what's stopping Clark? Is it that despite how clearly strongly he feels about Lois, he's still not sure if it's love? Because it can't be a trust issue, so I'm left to wonder, what else? I wonder if we'll ever get any articulation from Clark on this matter?
I don't mind a 'ship heavy ep every once in a qhile, especially if it's done well, so I'm certainly not averse to seeing 'shippy stuff. But when it's this excessively 'shippy and that too containing one particular 'ship I have little to no interest in - it 'aint the ideal scenario. I just can't get behind Chloe/Oliver. Primarily because of the sheer pointlessness of it all. And also because I'm just really not in a very good place with either of these characters right now. Plus, the Chlollie of this ep didn't seem to gel with the kind of vibe or tone I got from them in the earlier ep. The whole thing is just---wierd.
I sort of couldn't stand that post-awkward-meeting-breakfast scene shared between Clois and Chlollie. I found almost everyone and their reactions a little annoying, even my Clark (though him the least so) and it all seemed so forced, IMO. Chloe bugged, the most though. Right from her somewhat condescending tone towards Lois with Oliver on the top of the stairs tright down to when she's at the table with her getting snippy towards Clark for his supposed invasion of privacy wrt brochure. Really, Chloe? You, of all people. And Oliver' "context clues" remark bothered me too. I mean, how the fuck was Clark supposed to infer otherwise? Isn't is easier to imagine the brochure belonging to Lois, who is actually known to currently be in a relationship, rather than recently-lost-her-husband Chloe, whom no-one knew was seeing anybody? So yeah, Ollie? Shut it. The only thing I did get a chuckle out of in this scene was the "save-any-old-ladies-lately" convo between Clark and Ollie. Now that's awkward done right.
The Chlark scenes, while on the whole, were an improvement from previous eps, at the back of my mind, I couldn't seem to shake off the knowledge that Chloe is keeping that massive secret of the weapons behind Clark' back. And I also cringed, on her behalf more than anything, when she remarked to Oliver not to take advice about relationships from Clark. So says the woman who tasered her own husband, I thought. And in her whole "just want someone who gets me" speech, was it just me who thought how glaring the lack of Jimmy mention was?
Having said all of this, while this this ep on the whole doesn't quite make a strong impact, there are scenes that I appreciated, or bits and bobs, here and there that I did actually happen to really enjoy. I thought the opening scene, for one, was nicely done. Chlark worked in tandem, and the mention of MM also helped reflect a healthier and functional picture of their team than what we've witnessed so far.
Lois' suitcases were a nice callback to her overpacking tendencies from 'Justice.' And I have to admit, I laughed at her "twist---" upon first seeing Chlollie.
Also, much as it irks me that Clark doesn't feel the need to open up to Lois fully about himself, I do nevertheless appreciate an assertive, and moreover happy Clark in a relationship. I thought TW and ED sparked nicely in the ep, particularly that final Clark/Lois scene. Oh, and Clark, what was it - singing Lois' name in the shower? Totally WTF, but Hi-larious.
As was his reactions to Chloe walking in all unexpectedly nude and seductive. TW just does the best "OMG, shoo, woman!" looks and mannerisms.
And of course, then there was the meatiest part of the ep - the Tessod storyline. Of course Tess wanted to know if Zod got his powers back or not. What I didn't see coming was Teh Sex. Interesting. It's certain neither one trusts the other. But how far in Tess has exposed herself to Zod - and not in the obvious way of course, remains to be seen. II also thought it was a nice touch how even though Clark wasn't actually present in this storyline, their respective obsession with him was made abundantly clear. Right from their choice of place of meeting to the "even when he's gone, Clark rules your mind", "And yours" exchange. What I found most interesting however, was Zod' reactions to The Blur' impact on society. Is there an inherent need in him to want to be needed, on that high a plane, and therefore to be revered? I mean, obviously, we know this is Zod, megolamaniac extraordinnaire, but could there be more to it here, with this Zod? Him impersonating The Blur also came as a shock, and his using Lois like this, I can already tell, is so not going to end well.
Funniest line of the night, that too said with a straight face - "in every relationship, one person stands while the other kneels." Oh, show.
This was---slow. Not the best way to bring the show back from hiatus and probably would've gelled better elsewhere in the season line-up, maybe?
I suppose I should start with what didn't work for me. For starters, the utterly insipid Banshee storyline. I get that it was quite literally supposed to be a plot mechanism to faciliate the Clois/Chlollie storylines, but rather a waste of a DC character, on the whole. Not to mention, boring.
Secondly, for the life of me, I can't figure out why in an ep that is so focused on relationships taking a step forward and sex in relationships, why it wasn't even addressed once that Clark has yet to come clean with Lois about his secret. It's all very wel and good that we finally learn that Clark has overcome his fears and anxieties (though even that explanation was quite on the lame side) and that emotionally too, Clois seem to be on the same page now, seemingly, wrt sex, but what about the fact that Clark still doesn't think it necessary to tell Lois about himself. Honestly, it baffles me, because Lois knowing at this point, would hardly distract, or jeapordize either the SV story or overall mythos in any way. In fact, far from it. Plus the fact that Clark is well aware of how incedibly well Lois has taken the news in every other instance she's known. So, then, what's stopping Clark? Is it that despite how clearly strongly he feels about Lois, he's still not sure if it's love? Because it can't be a trust issue, so I'm left to wonder, what else? I wonder if we'll ever get any articulation from Clark on this matter?
I don't mind a 'ship heavy ep every once in a qhile, especially if it's done well, so I'm certainly not averse to seeing 'shippy stuff. But when it's this excessively 'shippy and that too containing one particular 'ship I have little to no interest in - it 'aint the ideal scenario. I just can't get behind Chloe/Oliver. Primarily because of the sheer pointlessness of it all. And also because I'm just really not in a very good place with either of these characters right now. Plus, the Chlollie of this ep didn't seem to gel with the kind of vibe or tone I got from them in the earlier ep. The whole thing is just---wierd.
I sort of couldn't stand that post-awkward-meeting-breakfast scene shared between Clois and Chlollie. I found almost everyone and their reactions a little annoying, even my Clark (though him the least so) and it all seemed so forced, IMO. Chloe bugged, the most though. Right from her somewhat condescending tone towards Lois with Oliver on the top of the stairs tright down to when she's at the table with her getting snippy towards Clark for his supposed invasion of privacy wrt brochure. Really, Chloe? You, of all people. And Oliver' "context clues" remark bothered me too. I mean, how the fuck was Clark supposed to infer otherwise? Isn't is easier to imagine the brochure belonging to Lois, who is actually known to currently be in a relationship, rather than recently-lost-her-husband Chloe, whom no-one knew was seeing anybody? So yeah, Ollie? Shut it. The only thing I did get a chuckle out of in this scene was the "save-any-old-ladies-lately" convo between Clark and Ollie. Now that's awkward done right.
The Chlark scenes, while on the whole, were an improvement from previous eps, at the back of my mind, I couldn't seem to shake off the knowledge that Chloe is keeping that massive secret of the weapons behind Clark' back. And I also cringed, on her behalf more than anything, when she remarked to Oliver not to take advice about relationships from Clark. So says the woman who tasered her own husband, I thought. And in her whole "just want someone who gets me" speech, was it just me who thought how glaring the lack of Jimmy mention was?
Having said all of this, while this this ep on the whole doesn't quite make a strong impact, there are scenes that I appreciated, or bits and bobs, here and there that I did actually happen to really enjoy. I thought the opening scene, for one, was nicely done. Chlark worked in tandem, and the mention of MM also helped reflect a healthier and functional picture of their team than what we've witnessed so far.
Lois' suitcases were a nice callback to her overpacking tendencies from 'Justice.' And I have to admit, I laughed at her "twist---" upon first seeing Chlollie.
Also, much as it irks me that Clark doesn't feel the need to open up to Lois fully about himself, I do nevertheless appreciate an assertive, and moreover happy Clark in a relationship. I thought TW and ED sparked nicely in the ep, particularly that final Clark/Lois scene. Oh, and Clark, what was it - singing Lois' name in the shower? Totally WTF, but Hi-larious.
As was his reactions to Chloe walking in all unexpectedly nude and seductive. TW just does the best "OMG, shoo, woman!" looks and mannerisms.
And of course, then there was the meatiest part of the ep - the Tessod storyline. Of course Tess wanted to know if Zod got his powers back or not. What I didn't see coming was Teh Sex. Interesting. It's certain neither one trusts the other. But how far in Tess has exposed herself to Zod - and not in the obvious way of course, remains to be seen. II also thought it was a nice touch how even though Clark wasn't actually present in this storyline, their respective obsession with him was made abundantly clear. Right from their choice of place of meeting to the "even when he's gone, Clark rules your mind", "And yours" exchange. What I found most interesting however, was Zod' reactions to The Blur' impact on society. Is there an inherent need in him to want to be needed, on that high a plane, and therefore to be revered? I mean, obviously, we know this is Zod, megolamaniac extraordinnaire, but could there be more to it here, with this Zod? Him impersonating The Blur also came as a shock, and his using Lois like this, I can already tell, is so not going to end well.
Funniest line of the night, that too said with a straight face - "in every relationship, one person stands while the other kneels." Oh, show.
This was---slow. Not the best way to bring the show back from hiatus and probably would've gelled better elsewhere in the season line-up, maybe?