Voice of Reason: Season Five: Void

Void

Overall

I could almost hear the sound of impact as we viewers were collectively slammed into the middle of the action.

After the first scene, where we witnessed Lana's first rush, I thought (reluctantly) that the next act would begin with "Two weeks earlier" and would explain how on earth Lana got in such a position. The fact that there was no explanation was almost worse than the flashback setup I'd expected. For the first twenty-five minutes of the thirty-nine minute show (if you subtract the credits), I was trying to figure out what the point was. The Lana we know would be unlikely to hang out with that crowd in the first place unless she felt sorry for them; she certainly wouldn't submit to being a guinea pig for their experiments; yet the first time we see her, she's just paid them two thousand dollars and placed her life in their hands. That's fanatical trust. She had never experienced the drug before – this is the first time she's seen her parents this way – so what induced her, unaddicted, to decide, "I think I'll let these comparative strangers kill me"?

It's almost like the Lionel-Martha friendship – we feel we must have missed something.

The story goes on, and we struggle to understand why they've made this Lana-episode. Because for the first twenty-five minutes or so, it is a Lana-episode. After the race to South America, Clark appears in brief fifteen-second updates, which increases our bewilderment. Martha also appears in two scenes that happen to be identical twins, the only difference being that in one Lionel sips from an empty mug and in the other Martha tells Lionel that she just wants to be friends. Since, if this line were true, the "I'm here for you" Martha-Lionel scene they've been replaying since "Fanatic" would be in vain, we know that this will do nothing to deter Lionel or their relationship; so these scenes only serve to remind us of the Senator's existence and assure us that she is actually doing something as Senator. ("Something" is left unspecified.) Neither Clark nor Martha tampers with the Lana focus of the first 5/8 of the episode.

At about this time, during commercial break, my brother remarked, "This is really bad." And I inclined to agree with him. The episode was based on a wholly unbelievable premise, Lana the junkie, and I kept wondering why the writers would choose to continue to mangle their characters.

However, toward the end, I understood why the writers wrote this episode. It was for Jonathan and Clark's brief talk, for Clark running home to Martha, and for Clark and Lionel locking eyes. The last fourteen minutes (excellently directed, by the way) did much to redeem the abrupt, unexplained beginning. I was immersed. And the surprisingly lifelike Clark-Lana exchange in the final scene, without any background music, any proclamations, any tensions – just Clark, subdued from the weight of the world, and Lana, subdued from illness but hoping to recover – became one of the best-handled relational moments of the season.

Still…the contrived ending - Clark coming home clueless, receiving a quick Chloe update, and racing to the rescue - wrote the epitaph of the plot. And in using Lana's character as a trampoline to the next step of plot, the writers have yet again put story before believable behavior. Contrived plots and out-of-character behavior? We saw what happened when they walked this road last season. The writers will need to proceed with caution.

Verdict:

Good/Bad Moments

Nice believable touch that Clark knocked instead of entering immediately.
Great, epic moment as Clark raced to South America (though see Details).
I couldn't stand the scene with Lillian. It would be one thing if this was all a hallucination, a projection of Lex's own state of mind, what he expected to hear from everyone, but it wasn't. It was supposed to really be Lillian in the afterlife. What was unclear was whether she represented heaven or hell. Her snarling condemnation was not the reaction of the tortured mother who couldn't stand to see her son suffer in "Memoria". And the exasperated "It's a rhetorical question" line almost sounded like they took a dialogue from a comedy and stuck it in. The only two things I liked: Lex's reaction to his mother's cruelty (he felt it, he was moved to emotion by it, whether for good or ill), and the glove on Lex's hand.
Neat camera shot as Clark stands by the door, right in front of that reddish bathrobe on the back of the door. I don't know if the director intended it, but it was perfect, blue shirt and all.

Details

Chloe's hair was much better this episode.
If Clark racing into Chloe's room scattered papers everywhere, why didn't racing into South America scatter people and debris everywhere?
Lionel's mug was clearly empty in the Talon. When he set it down on the table, it made a hollow noise, and his sipping was unconvincing.
Lana breaks the pane of glass with her fist…and no blood. I can understand the strength – she knows kung fu, after all – but the invincibility?
Death neutralizes kryptonite in his system? That seems contrived.




Void Overall I could almost hear the sound of impact as we viewers were collectively slammed into the middle of the action. After the first scene, where we witnessed Lana's first rush, I thought (reluctantly) that the next act would begin with "Two weeks earlier" and would explain how on earth Lana got in such a position. The fact that there was no explanation was almost worse than the flashback setup I'd expected. For the first twenty-five minutes of the thirty-nine minute show (if you subtract the credits), I was trying to figure out what the point was. The Lana we know would be unlikely to hang out with that crowd in the first place unless she felt sorry for them; she certainly wouldn't submit to being a guinea pig for their experiments; yet the first time we see her, she's just paid them two thousand dollars and placed her life in their hands. That's fanatical trust. She had never experienced the drug before – this is the first time she's seen her parents this way – so what induced her, unaddicted, to decide, "I think I'll let these comparative strangers kill me"? It's almost like the Lionel-Martha friendship – we feel we must have missed something. The story goes on, and we struggle to understand why they've made this Lana-episode. Because for the first twenty-five minutes or so, it is a Lana-episode. After the race to South America, Clark appears in brief fifteen-second updates, which increases our bewilderment. Martha also appears in two scenes that happen to be identical twins, the only difference being that in one Lionel sips from an empty mug and in the other Martha tells Lionel that she just wants to be friends. Since, if this line were true, the "I'm here for you" Martha-Lionel scene they've been replaying since "Fanatic" would be in vain, we know that this will do nothing to deter Lionel or their relationship; so these scenes only serve to remind us of the Senator's existence and assure us that she is actually doing something as Senator. ("Something" is left unspecified.) Neither Clark nor Martha tampers with the Lana focus of the first 5/8 of the episode. At about this time, during commercial break, my brother remarked, "This is really bad." And I inclined to agree with him. The episode was based on a wholly unbelievable premise, Lana the junkie, and I kept wondering why the writers would choose to continue to mangle their characters. However, toward the end, I understood why the writers wrote this episode. It was for Jonathan and Clark's brief talk, for Clark running home to Martha, and for Clark and Lionel locking eyes. The last fourteen minutes (excellently directed, by the way) did much to redeem the abrupt, unexplained beginning. I was immersed. And the surprisingly lifelike Clark-Lana exchange in the final scene, without any background music, any proclamations, any tensions – just Clark, subdued from the weight of the world, and Lana, subdued from illness but hoping to recover – became one of the best-handled relational moments of the season. Still…the contrived ending - Clark coming home clueless, receiving a quick Chloe update, and racing to the rescue - wrote the epitaph of the plot. And in using Lana's character as a trampoline to the next step of plot, the writers have yet again put story before believable behavior. Contrived plots and out-of-character behavior? We saw what happened when they walked this road last season. The writers will need to proceed with caution. Verdict: Good/Bad Moments Nice believable touch that Clark knocked instead of entering immediately. Great, epic moment as Clark raced to South America (though see Details). I couldn't stand the scene with Lillian. It would be one thing if this was all a hallucination, a projection of Lex's own state of mind, what he expected to hear from everyone, but it wasn't. It was supposed to really be Lillian in the afterlife. What was unclear was whether she represented heaven or hell. Her snarling condemnation was not the reaction of the tortured mother who couldn't stand to see her son suffer in "Memoria". And the exasperated "It's a rhetorical question" line almost sounded like they took a dialogue from a comedy and stuck it in. The only two things I liked: Lex's reaction to his mother's cruelty (he felt it, he was moved to emotion by it, whether for good or ill), and the glove on Lex's hand. Neat camera shot as Clark stands by the door, right in front of that reddish bathrobe on the back of the door. I don't know if the director intended it, but it was perfect, blue shirt and all. Details Chloe's hair was much better this episode. If Clark racing into Chloe's room scattered papers everywhere, why didn't racing into South America scatter people and debris everywhere? Lionel's mug was clearly empty in the Talon. When he set it down on the table, it made a hollow noise, and his sipping was unconvincing. Lana breaks the pane of glass with her fist…and no blood. I can understand the strength – she knows kung fu, after all – but the invincibility? Death neutralizes kryptonite in his system? That seems contrived. © Voice of Reason, 2007