• Tag Archives Clark
  • Canister X TV Review #7: Smallville, Season 7 (2007 – 2008)

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    Smallville, Season 7 (2007 – 2008)
    4.5 out of 5

    Kicking the season off, Clark fights a bizarro version of himself, picking up the cliffhanger from the previous season. Great start. Then things get even more cool with the emergence of a super . . . girl? Yup, you guessed it, Supergirl herself has arrived on Earth. Her name is Kara. She is Clark’s cousin from Krypton and Laura Vandervoort does a fantastic job as the Girl of Steel, who not only proves that blood runs thicker than water, but also has no fear of heights like her farmboy cousin and does plenty of flying to prove it.

    Not only is there one Supergirl in this season, but two. Kinda. Helen Slater, who played Supergirl in the 1984 movie of the same name, made an appearance as Clark’s Kryptonian mother, Lara, in the episode that shared her namesake.

    Season Seven was a load of fun and was one of the best ones of the series so far.

    The only episode I didn’t really like was “Wrath,” where Lana gets Clark’s powers and uses them to get her revenge on Lex. Again, this kind of thing was done before in Lois and Clark (the power transfer), and I was getting tired of seeing these repeat ideas as they had done Lois and Clark-type episodes in the past. Speaking of which, the Dean Cain episode, “Cure,” made me feel like I was watching Lois and Clark all over again and though this episode was more filler than moved the Season Seven story arc along, it was cool to see Dean Cain back in the Superman universe. They even called his character Curtis Knox (see the initials?).

    The last thing that bothered me about this season, more specifically the episode, “Quest,” was the major playing up of Clark being some sort of messiah. I’m a Christian, so this probably bothered me more than most, but that aside, it still was overdone. Okay. We get it. Clark’s going to save the world one day. Move on.

    This season was a step up from Season Six, so 4.5 stars out of 5.

    Recommended.


  • Canister X TV Review #6: Smallville, Season 6 (2006 – 2007)

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    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Smallville, Season 6 (2006 – 2007)
    4 out of 5

    This Season Had Me Seeing Green . . . Green arrows, that is.

    Justin Hartley joins the regular Smallville cast as Oliver Queen/Green Arrow, billionaire business tycoon by day, daring Robin Hood do-gooder by night.

    At first I wasn’t sure what to think when I heard Green Arrow was going to have a place in Smallville‘s continuity. Of course, I was, like, “Hey, cool, another superhero joins the show and this one actually wears his costume!” Whereas the other part of me was, like, “What does Green Arrow have to do with Superman growing up, again?” All I can say without giving anything away is having Green Arrow join the show was a brilliant move. Not only does he demonstrate a good example for Clark, but his past and present conflicts with Lex Luthor also add a nice twist to the storyline.

    Of particular note this season was the episode, “Noir,” where everything was in black and white and took place in the ’30s. Reminded me a bit of the Lois and Clark episode that did the same thing, but Smallville‘s was much better written and not as cheesy.

    The over-arcing storyline of the phantoms that escaped from the Phantom Zone was cool and gave Smallville its trademarked horror-esque twist, but without continually going into Twilight Zone territory like it usually did.

    I should add there was one more green element to this season: Martian Manhunter, played by Phil Morris. The only downside, though, was no alien visage but rather his shape-shifted human form instead. Oh well. The budget can only go so far, I suppose. Still, would have been cool if Martian Manhunter had more screen time, but this isn’t his series.

    The only thing that I didn’t like about this season was Lex and Lana getting together. It really bothered me and didn’t make much sense when looking back over the first five seasons. This is the reason I give it 4 instead of 5 stars.

    Recommended.


  • Canister X TV Review #1: Smallville, Season 1 (2001 – 2002)

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    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Smallville, Season 1 (2001 – 2002)
    5 out of 5

    When I heard they were coming out with a new Superman television show back in 2001, I was thrilled. I had watched Lois & Clark religiously, so to learn that Supes was back, but this time exploring his pre-Superman years as a mild-mannered teen in Smallville, well, needless to say I was pumped, and Season One of Smallville didn’t disappoint.

    We got our first glimpses of Clark’s developing superpowers, how he and Lex met and the friendship that would later help forge the greatest archrivalry of all time, Clark’s Kryptonian heritage and more. Likewise, to meet Lana Lang for the first time and not just as a mere movie character but someone who—if you know even a chunk of the Superman backstory—made a huge impact on Clark as he grew up was especially interesting.

    I remember watching the season finale and flipping out over the cliffhanger ending.

    I’ve been watching the series ever since, every week, barely missing an episode.

    Check this series out if you haven’t already. This stuff is good. Real good.