Voice of Reason: Season Four: Forever

Forever

Overall

This season has produced many great, unusual, and intriguing premises that turned out to be disappointments, and some apparently recycled premises that turned out to be the most original episodes of the season. "Forever" belongs in the disappointments category.

On paper, the episode looks so key to the arc that you assume it'll be irresistably exciting. On screen, it's so hastily executed that, if you could understand the events without it, it would be one of the most dispensable episodes of the season.

The episode was built on two main plots, both with weird sickos terrorizing the main characters. Although the arc plot barely had time to develop, they stuck in a third subplot, as if needing to fill time, with Jonathan getting "Insurgence-like" on us again...becoming very adamant and deeply moved over, apparently, nothing. The filler subplot's final scene, which at last explains Jonathan's behavior (thirty minutes too late), was fairly satisfactory and even touching. But if they wanted to address this Jonathan-doesn't-want-Clark-to-sacrifice-himself issue, they should have done it in a previous episode: now, on the brink of the season finale, when they should have been gearing up for Superman uniting the three stones, was hardly the time for an unrelated issue with no reference to the past and no effect on the future. It took valuable time away from the arc plot, which needed a lot more time than it got.

The content of this arc plot should have had an episode before it that prepared you for the battle that waged. Yes, "Ageless" had those two short scenes, but the confusion of figuring out where everyone stands has only been increased by the actions they take. (Who has what? Why does Lionel think Genevieve has it? Why does Genevieve think Lex has it? Where does Lex think it is, and what's he doing about it? Where does Jason think it is, and where does Jason's constantly-shifting allegiance stand now? Was it Lana or Isobel who hid the Stone of Transformation, and if it was Lana, then what was she doing? Why did she make that elaborate set-up to fool Jason after he gave her the stone to keep freely?) Impractically elaborate paths are taken to deceive Lex and Lana and Lionel; motives are left unclear; actions appear arbitrary and you've lost interest by the time they're explained. As it was, unprepared and un-filled-in as you were, this episode was too much to process. If you had a better understanding of what was going on, it would have been a thrill to know that the battle being waged had moved beyond games and onto the real battlefield. But the battle is random unless you understand the strategy; the war is pointless unless you understand the motivation.

Contrast this episode with "Shattered" and "Asylum". Lex was being tormented in both those episodes, but they forced you to feel strong emotion, to be unable to drag yourself away; at the end of the episode you had to consciously exhale and release all the stress and intense emotion. Conflict, increased conflict, climax, resolution. "Shattered" was like a growing unsettled feeling that something's wrong (missing in "Forever"), before the stunning ending (missing in "Forever"). "Asylum" built it up more with Clark's desperate effort to rescue Lex (Clark wasn't even involved in the arc plot), and the climax of the torturing memory-wiping scene (which of the many sudden events was the climax?) before gently winding down to a bittersweet, heart-wrenching ending (not the substance-lacking high-school ending). "Forever" gave you no emotional involvement. Even watching Lex get tortured, you felt passive...it was almost like you were watching another show, and because you were unfamiliar with the who and what and why, you just didn't connect.

The most obvious emotional hook - Clark - was missing. It's difficult to fathom why, in the second-to-last episode of the season, the episode before the finale, Clark would be completely unaware of the arc, completely detached from the serious action. While the war is being waged, the issue on his mind is regret about leaving high school and entering a new era... We all would have cared a lot more if Clark had been involved. (Besides, they are kinda his stones.)

The "photographer" subplot, or plot, was like this season's "Nocturne", with that creepy, weird sense that something's not right pervading the episode. Personally I wasn't a fan of "Nocturne", and this episode, with its mannequins, terrified people pretending to be happy, and sick krypto-villain, joins "Nocturne" and "Craving" on the Wall of Weird Plot Ideas.

There was something about the intended irony that didn't work - the idea that, on the brink of moving into a new Superman era, a lot of the episode takes place in high school...in fact, with the most high-school-ish content and high-school-ish ending since "Dichotic". Instead of being ironic, it came across as contradictory. The writers were sending mixed messages.

The message that you wanted to receive, during a time of change that is unsettling for the viewer as well as the characters, was, "Don't worry. I know you're wondering what's going to happen when they all go to college, and trust me, it will be better than ever. These are the doors that are going to be opened...(let us see them) Here is a taste of how much is to come...(show us). It's going to be even better." But they did the opposite. Instead of enlarging on the possibilities ahead of the writers (and the characters), they ended on a bland, mildly depressed tone, dwelling on what the high schoolers were leaving behind without any clear indication of what they were moving on to. Take a look back at Season Two's second-to-last episode, "Calling", which was perhaps the most encouragingly awesome preparation for a finale and season to come in Smallville's history. They did the opposite with this episode, leaving the viewer saying cynically, "What on earth can they make good out of this?" Maybe it was intended to be irony. But to have all three high schoolers reluctant to move on, and to cling to the triangular relationship they've suffered from throughout high school, was extremely poor planning. At the end of a season you want to be looking forward, not backward.

Verdict: 3. One of the biggest disappointments of the season. They'll need every extra minute on the finale to make up for tonight.

Good/Bad Moments

Jason's death, like the rest of the arc plot, was far too sudden. It's barely three episodes since we found out he was working for the wrong side, and now he has an unknown amount of knowledge about Clark, is torturing Lex, shooting Lionel, sacrificing Lana, and dying an abrupt death which doesn't surprise you. Ending on this note made Jason this season's Adam, except in a lot of ways I think Adam's arc was better...less arbitrary, more human. Jason never really stepped beyond a sickly compound of borrowed stories, with Lex's background and relationships, and Adam's plot. As my brother graciously put it, when we found out Jensen Ackles was leaving "Smallville" for "Supernatural," "Good for him! We're very happy for his success." He deserves a better character to play than Jason Teague.
"She is the Chosen One!" Moments like this contributed to my utter bewilderment. And I have a feeling that they'll wait five weeks too long before filling us in.
I liked the moment when Lex saved Lionel. And I don't want to believe that his reasons were purely those of selfish instinct, though I can believe he wants Lionel to think so. It's the writer in me as well as the sympathetic nature: the writers shouldn't yet give up the repressed inner Lex craving Lionel's love. That is one of Lex's greatest lures to the dark side, and until he's well immersed in that dark side it would be unwise to free him of Lionel's peculiar influence.

Details

The "use Lex to get to Lionel" plot, which was used to test Lionel in "Lineage" and "Prodigal", usually confuses me, probably as it's meant to do. In "Jitters", Lionel was willing to shut the fire doors on him; in "Lineage" he declined to save him; in "Prodigal" he refused to kill him, but it's unclear what state of emotions led him to turn on Lucas instead; in the third season he seemed to be making attempts on Lex's life, with the plane crash, dangerous brain treatment, life insurance, etc. And now he sics Genevieve on Lana, and it's unclear whether it's "to save his son and heir" or to get the Teagues off his back. They leave Lionel's view of Lex in the shadows, and in some ways that's a good thing...I'm not sure how it would best be defined without losing a lot of potential.
Clark should have been accepted into a college by now. At this point, it's probably too late to get into a college in time for the next semester.
Sometimes the people encased in ice, or petrified (they never tell you exactly what's going on there), seemed to be aware that they were frozen, as their eyes were moving and they seemed conscious; but for most of the episode, the subjects, once restored, weren't aware of the passing time - just woke up and found themselves someplace completely different. (Some say that it's inconsistent that Lana knew that something had happened, and Chloe didn't; but Chloe remained in, to all appearances, the same setting - the Torch. Lana blinked and went from the parking lot to the fake Torch office, which would be a clue that something was wrong. Also, after krypto-villain died, they both woke up gasping and shrinking away from him, only to find that he wasn't there. That would be another pretty obvious clue that something had happened.)
Nobody attempted to explain how the krypto-villain got his powers, a point that's usually cleared up during or later. However I'm glad that they didn't add a second more to that plot, which shouldn't have been used in this episode anyway. If they had to use it, they should have done so before the arc progressed this far.
How did krypto-villain get Chloe and Lana to the simulated school? The assumption is that, once petrified, they are light and easy to carry; but even in Smallville I believe it isn't customary to march out of school with a stiff body under each arm.
There was something comical about that first glimpse of Lionel tied up. When I saw it, I couldn't help laughing. I knew it was a serious moment, but his half-grown hair made him look like a chrysanthemum.




Forever Overall This season has produced many great, unusual, and intriguing premises that turned out to be disappointments, and some apparently recycled premises that turned out to be the most original episodes of the season. "Forever" belongs in the disappointments category. On paper, the episode looks so key to the arc that you assume it'll be irresistably exciting. On screen, it's so hastily executed that, if you could understand the events without it, it would be one of the most dispensable episodes of the season. The episode was built on two main plots, both with weird sickos terrorizing the main characters. Although the arc plot barely had time to develop, they stuck in a third subplot, as if needing to fill time, with Jonathan getting "Insurgence-like" on us again...becoming very adamant and deeply moved over, apparently, nothing. The filler subplot's final scene, which at last explains Jonathan's behavior (thirty minutes too late), was fairly satisfactory and even touching. But if they wanted to address this Jonathan-doesn't-want-Clark-to-sacrifice-himself issue, they should have done it in a previous episode: now, on the brink of the season finale, when they should have been gearing up for Superman uniting the three stones, was hardly the time for an unrelated issue with no reference to the past and no effect on the future. It took valuable time away from the arc plot, which needed a lot more time than it got. The content of this arc plot should have had an episode before it that prepared you for the battle that waged. Yes, "Ageless" had those two short scenes, but the confusion of figuring out where everyone stands has only been increased by the actions they take. (Who has what? Why does Lionel think Genevieve has it? Why does Genevieve think Lex has it? Where does Lex think it is, and what's he doing about it? Where does Jason think it is, and where does Jason's constantly-shifting allegiance stand now? Was it Lana or Isobel who hid the Stone of Transformation, and if it was Lana, then what was she doing? Why did she make that elaborate set-up to fool Jason after he gave her the stone to keep freely?) Impractically elaborate paths are taken to deceive Lex and Lana and Lionel; motives are left unclear; actions appear arbitrary and you've lost interest by the time they're explained. As it was, unprepared and un-filled-in as you were, this episode was too much to process. If you had a better understanding of what was going on, it would have been a thrill to know that the battle being waged had moved beyond games and onto the real battlefield. But the battle is random unless you understand the strategy; the war is pointless unless you understand the motivation. Contrast this episode with "Shattered" and "Asylum". Lex was being tormented in both those episodes, but they forced you to feel strong emotion, to be unable to drag yourself away; at the end of the episode you had to consciously exhale and release all the stress and intense emotion. Conflict, increased conflict, climax, resolution. "Shattered" was like a growing unsettled feeling that something's wrong (missing in "Forever"), before the stunning ending (missing in "Forever"). "Asylum" built it up more with Clark's desperate effort to rescue Lex (Clark wasn't even involved in the arc plot), and the climax of the torturing memory-wiping scene (which of the many sudden events was the climax?) before gently winding down to a bittersweet, heart-wrenching ending (not the substance-lacking high-school ending). "Forever" gave you no emotional involvement. Even watching Lex get tortured, you felt passive...it was almost like you were watching another show, and because you were unfamiliar with the who and what and why, you just didn't connect. The most obvious emotional hook - Clark - was missing. It's difficult to fathom why, in the second-to-last episode of the season, the episode before the finale, Clark would be completely unaware of the arc, completely detached from the serious action. While the war is being waged, the issue on his mind is regret about leaving high school and entering a new era... We all would have cared a lot more if Clark had been involved. (Besides, they are kinda his stones.) The "photographer" subplot, or plot, was like this season's "Nocturne", with that creepy, weird sense that something's not right pervading the episode. Personally I wasn't a fan of "Nocturne", and this episode, with its mannequins, terrified people pretending to be happy, and sick krypto-villain, joins "Nocturne" and "Craving" on the Wall of Weird Plot Ideas. There was something about the intended irony that didn't work - the idea that, on the brink of moving into a new Superman era, a lot of the episode takes place in high school...in fact, with the most high-school-ish content and high-school-ish ending since "Dichotic". Instead of being ironic, it came across as contradictory. The writers were sending mixed messages. The message that you wanted to receive, during a time of change that is unsettling for the viewer as well as the characters, was, "Don't worry. I know you're wondering what's going to happen when they all go to college, and trust me, it will be better than ever. These are the doors that are going to be opened...(let us see them) Here is a taste of how much is to come...(show us). It's going to be even better." But they did the opposite. Instead of enlarging on the possibilities ahead of the writers (and the characters), they ended on a bland, mildly depressed tone, dwelling on what the high schoolers were leaving behind without any clear indication of what they were moving on to. Take a look back at Season Two's second-to-last episode, "Calling", which was perhaps the most encouragingly awesome preparation for a finale and season to come in Smallville's history. They did the opposite with this episode, leaving the viewer saying cynically, "What on earth can they make good out of this?" Maybe it was intended to be irony. But to have all three high schoolers reluctant to move on, and to cling to the triangular relationship they've suffered from throughout high school, was extremely poor planning. At the end of a season you want to be looking forward, not backward. Verdict: 3. One of the biggest disappointments of the season. They'll need every extra minute on the finale to make up for tonight. Good/Bad Moments Jason's death, like the rest of the arc plot, was far too sudden. It's barely three episodes since we found out he was working for the wrong side, and now he has an unknown amount of knowledge about Clark, is torturing Lex, shooting Lionel, sacrificing Lana, and dying an abrupt death which doesn't surprise you. Ending on this note made Jason this season's Adam, except in a lot of ways I think Adam's arc was better...less arbitrary, more human. Jason never really stepped beyond a sickly compound of borrowed stories, with Lex's background and relationships, and Adam's plot. As my brother graciously put it, when we found out Jensen Ackles was leaving "Smallville" for "Supernatural," "Good for him! We're very happy for his success." He deserves a better character to play than Jason Teague. "She is the Chosen One!" Moments like this contributed to my utter bewilderment. And I have a feeling that they'll wait five weeks too long before filling us in. I liked the moment when Lex saved Lionel. And I don't want to believe that his reasons were purely those of selfish instinct, though I can believe he wants Lionel to think so. It's the writer in me as well as the sympathetic nature: the writers shouldn't yet give up the repressed inner Lex craving Lionel's love. That is one of Lex's greatest lures to the dark side, and until he's well immersed in that dark side it would be unwise to free him of Lionel's peculiar influence. Details The "use Lex to get to Lionel" plot, which was used to test Lionel in "Lineage" and "Prodigal", usually confuses me, probably as it's meant to do. In "Jitters", Lionel was willing to shut the fire doors on him; in "Lineage" he declined to save him; in "Prodigal" he refused to kill him, but it's unclear what state of emotions led him to turn on Lucas instead; in the third season he seemed to be making attempts on Lex's life, with the plane crash, dangerous brain treatment, life insurance, etc. And now he sics Genevieve on Lana, and it's unclear whether it's "to save his son and heir" or to get the Teagues off his back. They leave Lionel's view of Lex in the shadows, and in some ways that's a good thing...I'm not sure how it would best be defined without losing a lot of potential. Clark should have been accepted into a college by now. At this point, it's probably too late to get into a college in time for the next semester. Sometimes the people encased in ice, or petrified (they never tell you exactly what's going on there), seemed to be aware that they were frozen, as their eyes were moving and they seemed conscious; but for most of the episode, the subjects, once restored, weren't aware of the passing time - just woke up and found themselves someplace completely different. (Some say that it's inconsistent that Lana knew that something had happened, and Chloe didn't; but Chloe remained in, to all appearances, the same setting - the Torch. Lana blinked and went from the parking lot to the fake Torch office, which would be a clue that something was wrong. Also, after krypto-villain died, they both woke up gasping and shrinking away from him, only to find that he wasn't there. That would be another pretty obvious clue that something had happened.) Nobody attempted to explain how the krypto-villain got his powers, a point that's usually cleared up during or later. However I'm glad that they didn't add a second more to that plot, which shouldn't have been used in this episode anyway. If they had to use it, they should have done so before the arc progressed this far. How did krypto-villain get Chloe and Lana to the simulated school? The assumption is that, once petrified, they are light and easy to carry; but even in Smallville I believe it isn't customary to march out of school with a stiff body under each arm. There was something comical about that first glimpse of Lionel tied up. When I saw it, I couldn't help laughing. I knew it was a serious moment, but his half-grown hair made him look like a chrysanthemum. © Voice of Reason, 2007