Smallville: Ten things I loved about Fortune

[tariel22]

I should probably warn you that this entry isn't as complimentary as the subject line might suggest, and any Chloe fans will definitely want to scroll on by.

Comments

[audrey229]

Preach it. There isn't a word of this a disagree with.

Ollie and Lois were the highlight for me. Their friendship is more sincere and natural to me than Clark's friendship with Chloe and I find their friendship to be the most genuine one on the show at this point. Their intimacy comes from a sense of knowing each other in a way that clearly denotes that they used to be lovers; yet, their love has been transformed into something akin to family at this stage in the game. It's very believable. They are what Clark and Chloe could never be.....and what Clark and Lana SHOULD have been by the end.

[tariel22]

...and what Clark and Lana SHOULD have been by the end.

I almost said this in my review. I would have loved to see Clark and Lana have a relationship like the one Oliver and Lois share, and I think it should have happened by the end of S3, when it made the most sense, and before Lois ever came to Smallville.

I've always thought that the way Oliver and Lois broke up should have been written for Clana instead. What Oliver said to Lois in Justice, and what Lois said to Oliver (and later, to Clark) in Siren, were the words I had been waiting years to hear from Lana and Clark.

[jlvsclrk]

ITA! I really can't believe how much Chloe pandering went on here, and how she was allowed to totally skate on all the dodgy things she's ever done. Yuk!

There were enough fun moments for about a third of an episode, but the intervening moments were deathly dull for me. I prefer the Persuasion approach: as odd as the juxtaposition of the Zod versus Lois stuff was, there were certainly no pacing problems and no writing the episode off as useless filler.

[tariel22]

I fully expected them to deify Chloe on her way out, and I thought I was prepared for it. The combination of Martha fawning all over Chloe, and she in turn pretty much taking full credit for Clark being a hero, was bad enough, but when they had to give her Batman and Wonder Woman on top of everything else, I rolled my eyes right out of my head.

I remember in Persuasion I loved all the Zod stuff and hated most of the Lois stuff (I'll always enjoy that crazy dinner scene for the comedy, if not the plot), while other people had the exact opposite reaction. At least with the mix we all found something we liked in the episode. :)

[jeannev]

I applaude you for finding a way to showcase the Pretty, and finding some positive thngs to say. Thats why you're nicer then me, LOL

Now, me? I totally concede the Pretty, but then again, Tom brings that in every episode. But the episode itself was straight up awful. There are so many things I could say that I try not to get started, because it end up like a snowball being rolled down a mountain until its a freaking avalanche. So, so, so very much wrong with this ep.

And one of those things I can't even get started on? The Chloe stuff. So beyond my lowest expectations.

I do agree with you that Lois and Ollie have a nice friendship. But ya know, I have no investment there, so I don't care overly much.

[tariel22]

I watched the episode again tonight, and found some parts worse and other parts better the second time around. I think most of what worked for me was because of the actors, as usual. I was one of those who looked forward to seeing a "fun" episode, but the levity, such as it was, felt so out of place given where the continuity of the show is right now (just as you said it would) and the whole thing was poorly executed to boot.

I didn't even try to get into all the things that didn't make sense. Just thinking about it gives me a headache. The plot holes were bad even by Smallville standards. I still think better writing could have made a momentary escape from Lionel, Alexander, and Darkseid work, but the current writing team has never been equal to a task like that.

[jeannev]

I have to be honest, I thought there was no need for a "fun" episode. Especially when thats exactly how Booster is being described. So, we need 2 "fun" eps in the last half of the last season of the show? Why, so the cast could have "fun"? I don't know, but I'd think doing something you love, getting paid well for it, and trying to close out the show the best you can should be "fun" enough. Did we need a cast circle jerk?

The same show (cast?) who won't put bloopers on the DVDs, BTW

*bitter*

But all season long, its been really nice of the SS, and the VRA, and Lionel, and especially Darkseid, to just sit back and do nothing so SV could wallow in nonsense. You have to love accomodating villians.

*really bitter*

[tariel22]

I agree, there's no need for fun when it's just for fun's sake. And Fortune didn't even succeed on that level

[tasabian]

Comedies that aren't funny...are bummers. (Though this ep. didn't bum me out half as much as Requiem, I'll admit. Drag Queen Ollie > Killer Ollie murdering fake Lex.)

But I agree that Chloe's exit could have been handled MUCH better. Especially disappointing after the superior writing in Masquerade, the final scene between Chloe & Clark was a letdown.

Clark would evidently be nothing without Chloe, since she believed in him first, inspired him, protected him, and ultimately left him, to force him to finally stand on his own.
Would have been so much better if that speech had been reciprocal. IE Clark says "You believed in me. " and Chloe responds "You gave me something to believe in." Wouldn't it have been nice if the speech was at least partly about how she had benefited from knowing Clark? How he'd been a friend through good times & bad? As it was, we got mostly a monologue, with Clark nodding occasionally.

Justin was the only actor in Fortune who seemed completely comfortable in his own skin, even when it was covered by nothing

[tariel22]

After watching the show spend the past two years systematically destroying the relationship Clark and Chloe once shared, turning the faith she had in him to contempt, and the love between them to wary distrust, it's hard for me to imagine any conversation they could have had in Fortune that would have made me happy. I can't pretend all of that never happened just because Smallville chooses to retcon it out of existence. To be honest, I don't understand why Clark and Chloe are still friends, any more than I understood why Clark and Lana still wanted to be in a relationship together after the events of S6. I guess it's not you, Smallville, it's me

[tariel22]

I don't think Chloe's final arc was worse than Lana's but the fact that she met both Bruce and Diana - but especially Bruce - before Clark just ticks me off to high heaven.

For some reason this was the one thing that set me off and put me into rant mode. I think it's because I've been reading (and loving) a bunch of Superman/Batman graphic novels lately. I expected the Chloe worship, and I'm used to movie "homages" from Smallville by now, but the whole Bruce and Diana thing came out of left field, and was so wrong.

And Chloe being the first to inspire Clark is something I will half-let go because Clark didn't voice any affirmation of Chloe's self-important deceleration.Me, too. We were hearing all about Chloe from Chloe. Clark was mostly silent. It makes sense that she would see herself that way, especially after spending years with Clark as the center of her life (and heart). I see things a little differently, though

[tariel22]

Moreover, it means that, apparently, Chloe Sullivan is responsible for the DC Trinity meeting each other. There is just no amount how wrong that is IMO.

Exactly. TPTB putting that particular Smallville twist on DC canon was going too far, and proved to be my breaking point. >:(

You're welcome! :) I hope all your birthday wishes came true!