Smallville 10-07-2004 [SPOILERS]

[drothgery]

Boring, I could have been playing Evil genius. Expect for Clark joining the team and Chloe last scene nothing new here. Oh can any tell me what happen to the black guy?

His parents seperated, and he went to live with his mother, who moved out of Smallville. It's strongly hinted that the major reason that he left town was that he was having too much trouble keeping Clark's secret while in Smallville.

 

[Gab]

Jonathan was right about football, and should have been firmer. Clark is going to be miserable having to hold back every second he plays - at best it will be like playing against two year olds and hoping for a real thrill of competition.

I thought in the comics that Clark did join the football team. To me, they're just following the comics. I thought the point of the football team, in the Superman mythos, was having Clark become accustomed to hiding his powers, holding back while he's not in Superman mode. Can anyone who's followed the comics enlighten me on this?

 

[Filby]

Blah, double post.

 

[Filby]

His parents seperated, and he went to live with his mother, who moved out of Smallville. It's strongly hinted that the major reason that he left town was that he was having too much trouble keeping Clark's secret while in Smallville.

He also got tired of being beaten to a bloody pulp by every psychopath with a gripe against Clark. Wise move on his part, if you ask me. Although this contradicts the comics, wherein he stays in Smallville and eventually marries Lana and becomes a politician.

Personally I was disappointed with this episode. Another freak-of-the-week, and no resolution for her besides a simple "She'll be fine" blurted out in passing at the end. I like Lois and Jason (as boring as Lana is, I'm happier seeing her with him than with Whitey or Clark), but giving them both these reasons to be at the high school seems a little contrived to me.

And poor Chloe. She just can't get any luck. I swear, she'll be dead by the time the series wraps. And it seems to me that she may find herself in the position of being the one Clark has to save week after week, now that Pete isn't around to be the damsel in distress anymore.

 

[Umbran]

I like Eraica Durance's Lois (a lot) but Lois in high school, or even sticking around in Smallville at all, now that Chloe's been found alive, makes no sense to me. Is there suddenly a big military presence here that keeps her father nearby?

If you recall the last episode, her farther was recently assigned to work in the Smallville area. So far as we know, it isn't a "big military presence", just a normal staffing change.

Dollars to donuts, the US army has taken an intereset in all the odd things that go on in Smallville...

Chloe is no longer as vital to Lex's plans as she is as an object of revenge for Lionel. Next time Lionel goes after Chloe, she dies.

Before the trial, Lionel had a lot to gain if Chloe disappeared. Now, he gains exactly squat. Lionel is many things, but he isn't stupid. He's not going to pursue revenge and threaten his tenuous grasp on events in the outside world. He'll hold a grudge, but he won't act upon it until such time as he actually gets something from it opther than emotional satisfaction.

Plus, Lionel has bigger fish to fry. He's dying of liver disease. Fixing Choe's little red wagon will take a very distant second place to that.

Jonathan was right about football, and should have been firmer. Clark is going to be miserable having to hold back every second he plays

Which is something Clark wil need to learn how to do if he goes out into the wider world. Plus, the Kents are in deep financial trouble. Something needs to pay for Clark's college education. And while I betcha Lex would happily foot the bill, I'm sure the Kent's wouldn't happily accept. A football scholorship would do the trick nicely.

 

[Lord Pendragon]

Is there some reason a public high school suddenly want to hire some twenty one year olds as football coaches and accept others as students?

Lois' dad mentioned that she didn't have enough credits to get into college, so that'd put her age at college freshman level, or 18-19, not 21. (Unless I missed some other tidbit that pegged her as older?) The coach, on the other hand, having graduated from college, is at least 21.

However, perhaps we should note something - In the mythology, Lois Lane has a big thing for Superman, but not so much for Clark Kent. The show has been pretty good at sticking to the basics of the mythology, and if they continue that trend, Lois and Clark are going to know each other for a long, long time before Lois really takes him seriously.

Yes, but I wonder if they aren't reinterpreting the mythology so that the entire mythology starts earlier. Originally, all the relationships, etc., don't begin to develop until Clark went to Metropolis. Now, Lex and Lois are both in his life while he's still growing up in Smallville. Given that they've opted to include Lex and Lois at this stage, it doesn't seem far-fetched that those relationships will grow from now, rather than remain in stasis for years until Clark joins the Daily Planet in Metropolis.

 

[Cthulhudrew]

Lois' dad mentioned that she didn't have enough credits to get into college, so that'd put her age at college freshman level, or 18-19, not 21.

How can you not have enough credits to get into college? All you need is a GED or high school diploma (and to be accepted). Or do you mean she was attending a community college, and doesn't have enough units to transfer to a university?

 

[Dreeble]

Heya:

In the current Superman mythology (and I could easily be wrong about this), there was no "Superboy"-phase for Clark. So, when he played football in highschool, he didn't yet have any powers. Or at least not completely. I remember a couple comic panels showing him leaping over defenders and another panel showing some sullen teammates sitting on the bench not so happy that Clark gets to shine and they didn't. But no issues with "holding back", since he apparently didn't really have anything (or much of anything) at that point to hold back.

Actually, now that I think of it, that's not really current mythology anymore. Current mythology was a series that either ended a couple months ago called "Birthright". I really got the impression they were using a lot of Smallville TV show ideas. Lex was in Smallville and was "friends" with Clark, who had powers.

So nevermind.

Take care,
Dreeble

 

[Umbran]

Given that they've opted to include Lex and Lois at this stage, it doesn't seem far-fetched that those relationships will grow from now, rather than remain in stasis for years until Clark joins the Daily Planet in Metropolis.

Yes. But if they start now, it shouldn't be instant romance. The romantic relationship takes some time. Clark can go ahead and yearn for Lois starting now, I suppose. But Lois shouldn't start reciprocating until Superman is also in the picture to complicate matters.

 

[Klaus]

In the Comics:

By the time he was in Junior High School, Clark had already developed all his usual powers (first to appear was invulnerability at age 5, then superstrength at age 8, then vision powers at age 12, then speed, then flight at age 17). He freely used his powers to become a powerhouse football player and to date the cheerleader captain (Lana), much to his father's disappointment.

After Clark single-handedly won the championship for Smallville High, Johnathan Kent took his son for a drive. He showed him the spot where the spaceship crashed (although the ship had been stolen by the man who later built Metallo). Clark realised that his true parents were out there (he didn't know he was adopted). By this time he still thought he was a human, perhaps a mutant. Only some years later, when he met the holographic image of Jor-El, did he learn of his alien heritage. Jor-El downloaded all kryptonian common knowledge into Clark's brain. Clark then decided that, while thankful to Jor-El and Lara for giving him life, he was son to Johnathan and Martha. Krypton mayhave made him a Superman, but Earth made him human.

(John Byrne's Man of Steel miniseries, 1986)