Static

Overall

In Smallville, there are three kinds of filler. Bad filler ("Dichotic"), okay filler ("Aqua"), and good filler ("Thirst"). All filler is disappointing, but since it's apparently inevitable, a filler episode should at least have a) compelling characters and b) a good if self-contained plot.

This episode was okay filler. It had just enough substance to justify being made, and too little substance to make a good plot. It had enough character revelations to bring something interesting to the table, but nowhere near enough good character to make a compelling episode. In short, it was mediocre.

Which was a shame. This episode had such potential. Reading the episode description made a thousand possibilities run through your head – Why won't the security guards believe Lana? How will Clark juggle his responsibilities? Will Lex see Clark's powers? Not to mention the obvious – what will Clark and the Martian Manhunter say to each other? What will they find out about each other? I was looking forward to that conversation.

I don't know. He doesn't. Nope. They don't. Nothing.

Those aren't the right answers.

This episode had so many potential twists. With Lex in the static situation, there were innumerable opportunities to grab the viewers' throats and make them choke with anticipation. Smallville has done it before ("Shattered," anyone?), and I really expected them to do it again. So it was an immense disappointment when, instead, we were privileged to watch little more than a lengthened trailer. Here are the big events of the episode:

1) Lex proposed to Lana. After that trailer and the "last five minutes" promise, we could see that coming. Even if we hadn't, Lana's sobbing realization that she loved Lex made it almost inevitable. Not only was the proposal no surprise, but the answer is obvious: Lana will say Yes, and Clark will have some emotional turmoil on his hands. The climax wasn't climactic and the cliffhanger wasn't a cliffhanger.
2) Clark couldn't kill the Zoner. We knew that: Clark said it in the trailer. Clark was rescued by the Martian Manhunter. We knew that, too: the trailer gave us so much information that it was impossible not to go ahead and construct the plot. The question for me was, What would happen next? Was the Martian Manhunter a friend? How would he and Clark interact – would it be a cautious friendship between aliens, an aggressive rivalry like with Aquaman (please say No), a combative friendship like with the Green Arrow? Apparently, it will be a while before we'll ever know. This plot ended up being more bewildering than predictable, simply because we were left wondering what the point was. Why did they show us this in the first place?
3) Lionel returned to character. This really was a big event for me, because I couldn't have foreseen it and yet I'd been dying for it to happen. Lionel and Chloe sitting nicely at the Thanksgiving table seemed so wrong…Lionel and Chloe staring intently at each other over a computer full of controversial information was so right. This was the one big plus of the episode.

So there was one big event that surprised us. Aside from that big event, which was treated as a sideline next to the main plot…what happened?

Lana realized that she loved Lex. This was rather like a reverse "Lockdown". If they had spent the past several episodes communicating in any way other than cold and distant or angry and resentful, I could see this realization happening. And maybe I should blame the last couple of episodes, not this one. But whoever is to blame…the leap from "Why are they even together" to "They're madly in love" was too wide for me to cross. And Lana telling Lex that he was so honest with her was so uncharacteristic that I almost laughed.

Jimmy became Chloe. Not that I would have wanted him to remain virtually useless, but I thought his use would be rather different from Chloe's. I thought Jimmy would, if anything, be the one lurking and prying and taking the initiative while Chloe was tied to her Daily Planet desk. I didn't think he'd start making clever observations and offbeat deductions and save the day with some technical skills and out-of-the-box thinking. That's Chloe's role.

Level 33.1 returned and disappeared and returned. This was an interesting plot. The disappearing level plot has been done before, in "Jitters" and in "Shattered" – both excellent episodes – but it's been such a long time since both that this didn't come across as repetitive. Instead we all thought, "Lionel Luthor does it again. I should have known he'd be too efficient for them." Not only was this plot good, but the two characters that drove it were good. Bronson was the perfect character to conduct you through the passages of emotions. (To be honest, I thought Bronson was the most engaging character on the show. He, unlike most of the other characters, had strong motivation, consequent action, inner conflict, and a compelling story. As he talked in the elevator with Lana, you wanted the best for him…and so did Lana.) Lionel was mysterious and dark. His silence at the code 142, his confrontation with Chloe…it was like the Lionel of Season Three.

There was one potential drawback to this storyline, though. Lionel has the key to everything…yet both he and Lex are willing to cooperate. Last time they clashed, Lex held Duncan's death over Lionel's head and blackmailed him into giving him the files on Duncan (which, strangely enough, made Lionel smile). Now they're willing to compromise and work together. Time will tell whether this was a realistic and purposeful plot twist, or a filler one. But one hopes that this plot was for the purpose of setting up a tremendous father-son battle…not dabbling in some kind of abstract partnership the writers have no intention of following up on.

Looking back, there were redeeming elements to this episode. Lionel and Chloe butted heads. Lana didn't keep her secret for weeks. Lionel became the dark phoenix of Season 3, and viewers rejoiced. But these alone were far from enough. This episode needed Clark and Lex to support it, and instead they were the weakest links.

What exactly did Clark do? He wandered around Seattle asking questions, he saved one man's life by shoving him away, and he watched the Martian Manhunter fly away. Then he returned and acted drugged and dazed and wouldn't answer Chloe's questions – all for some reason unknown to us. We could assume that the Oreos radiated a brain-altering kryptonite-induced energy…but I think we're supposed to assume that Clark is awed at the idea of these powers, and still hasn't recovered enough to be normal. Either way, we're left with one thought: "Weird."

The writers could have played this so differently. Clark spent so much time wandering around the docks, he could have confronted Batista, elicited more meaningful dialogue than food-related comments, realized the futility of the crystal, fought again, watched the Martian Manhunter kill Batista…and then had the conversation we were waiting for. He could have even tried to superleap after the Martian Manhunter, which would have made for some great dynamics – the image of Clark desperately wanting to find someone like him, the need to connect, and Clark perhaps driven to make a greater leap than we've ever seen before. Or…he could go home and take care of Lana and Lex, which should have been one of his instincts all along. Either way, Clark could have been so much more involved in this episode.

And the Lex situation. The writers could have played with some of our questions, even if they didn't answer them. They could have had false alarms, close calls, mysterious hints…the static situation begged for them. Lex didn't have to see Clark use his powers – Clark could have raced to the mansion, intercut with shots of the surveillance screen documenting every move, and we could have held our breath and frozen in our seats and groaned when he didn't stop…and then been shown that the security team turned off the cameras to get the old footage. Or Lex could have seen Clark work with Lana to find him. That would make him think. Anything. Anything but having Lex learn nothing from the static situation, anything but having Clark do nothing in the Zoner situation.

The whole time, I was just waiting for something to happen. And it didn't. When the episode ended, my thought was, "That's it?"

Verdict: Disjointed. Confusing. Empty. 5 out of 10.

Good/Bad Moments

1. I loved the music as Lex and Lana had their midnight conversation in Lana's bedroom. The composers have come up with a great Lex-Lana theme, a dark mysterious theme that echoes the Green Arrow theme perhaps a little too closely, but nevertheless captures the allure and darkness of their relationship.
2. "You have no idea how much you mean to me. (long pause) In an ideal world I was hoping for some sort of response, but…" That was a nice realistic touch, instead of keeping Lex monologuing.
3. "Lex – " Lex turns around. They are interrupted. This was a good setup for the later payoff. Lana is about to tell him something about how she feels about him…she never gets it out, and he disappears before her eyes. This set us up for the payoff later, when she emotionally told him how she felt. We knew that she'd been keeping this pent up emotion and these unspoken feelings all episode.
4. "Hey, Lana. Whoa, slow down. Are you all right?" Clark turns around. For one thing, I think Clark would have hesitated when he heard her name, then walked away. Chloe would have rushed after him and told him what was going on. This made him seem a little too invasive, a little too pushy. For another thing, if he was so concerned about her that he immediately stopped everything to hear about her phone call, why didn't he do a better job of balancing responsibilities so he could help her in some way? After this scene, he didn't show any concern for her. Bad continuity.
5. About 1:40 spent on Clark on the docks. Hm.
6. "We'll just have to upload the whole hard drive." Lex whirls around. His sudden reaction indicated that there was something incriminating on the hard drive. Interesting.
7. Lex dives for Bronson, who turns into static and disappears. This was an unbelievable reaction. I think Lex would want to talk, to reason, to threaten, even to beg…but I don't think his first reaction would be to dive for the guy. Lex is skilled in rhetoric, and has been raised in a cultured home. First he'd use his words, then his fists.
8. "I know that you feel sorry for the guy because he's always flying solo, but honestly. What can that guy do that I can't?" "You know, you're probably right." Chloe's laughter as she said this indicated that she wasn't serious – even that she appreciated the irony. At least, that's what it said to me.
9. "All so you can have the time to continue the hunt for a man that nobody misses. Well, maybe except – " "Lana!" "The hunt for Lex is on." Jimmy's candid moment followed by his sincere compassion for Lana made for a sweet character portrait. His straightshooting made him entertaining, his concern for Lana made him more human than he's ever been before. This side of Jimmy was good.
10. "Can I get you anything from the basement buffet?" Again, sweet moment. He's subdued, which we can tell is an effort, after his perky, saucy comments a moment before.
11. "If anyone knows we're talking, we'll both be in danger." Bronson was introduced to us in a very winning way – we see that he wants to do the right thing, despite the danger.
12. "I can take you there. You can see for yourself." He's not forcing her. He's offering. This endeared him to the viewer. He's not taking her captive in any way: he just wants her to know the truth.
13. 1:29 spent on Clark on the docks. So, basically, 2:10 altogether so far...and this scene could have been taken out.
14. There was no need to show the bone marrow everywhere – that didn't tell us anything we hadn't already picked up.
15. Similarly, there wasn't any need to show Batista pull the bones out of the guy. It was creepier when we imagined some creature sucking the bones out, human bodies standing there and then going limp, instead of seeing him physically tear the bone out. It took away the mystery and alien-ish-ness when they showed it.
16. Lana and Bronson talking about Bronson's abilities in the elevator. That was actually a very sweet scene. Bronson was humanized for Lana when he explained how he had been normal, how he was changed. Lana referred to the change as the acquiring of "an ability" and asked what it was. It seemed almost as if she viewed the ability as a positive thing. Bronson seemed to enjoy telling his story. He hadn't interacted with anyone on a social level in so long.
17. "Aren't you afraid they're just going to grab you the minute those doors open?" Lana has concern in her voice. Part of it is probing, trying to read him, but part of it is serious compassion. Something like that wouldn't occur to you unless you were looking at it from the other person's perspective. It was an interesting bond they formed during this short time.
18. "I've put him in a place where he can't hurt anybody else." The closed captions read, "But I can hurt him." Then he disappeared in static, which made Lana's shout of, "No!" more reasonable. I can see why they wouldn't use that line – Bronson isn't by nature a violent guy – but Lana's reaction should have been toned down in consequence.
19. "Normal life? You were never going to be released from Belle Reve. That was a figment of your fractured mind – I was just trying to help you." Lex said this with such conviction. He said it in the same way he said that he had not done anything with 33.1…which he hadn't. Was he telling the truth in this instance?
20. "My handle – Jimmy the Infuriator." "Why does that not surprise me?" I could see Jimmy contributing in this way. The ham radio contribution, and accompanying banter, was definitely within reason. It was when he started talking about triangulation that he became Chloe.
21. "Wait, wait – did you hear it?" "How could you not?" Jimmy's quirky dialogue here was cute.
22. 51 seconds. Adding up to about three minutes...
23. "You stole my food!" "Nice try, Krypton-man." All of Batista's lines were like dialogue from a children's story, and calling Clark "Krypton-man" made things worse.
24. "I think it must be some kind of a glitch, or – I don't know much about this stuff, but I do know that when you – excuse me – when you hack into a secure operating system, you can pick up some very nasty viruses." What did Lionel type on Chloe's computer? She seems to remonstrate. This moment was a bit unclear.
25. "Otherwise known as Meteor Freak Central? I was always under the impression that – " "Meteor freaks? You're not in high school any more, Miss Sullivan: this is the real world. Please." Lionel walks away. I liked this dialogue. It was like their dialogue in "Exile" in which they didn't say things outright, but executed a complex verbal dance. Lionel didn't say, "You're delusional." He didn't have to. Those statements should only come when the Luthors are trying to drive people insane. Meanwhile – he came pretty close to it.
26. The closed captions followed up with, "Grow up." But if he'd said that line, Chloe would have been after him. There would have been a major confrontation then, and that would have been too early and too messy. I'm glad they took that line out.
27. It was unclear why Lionel came to Chloe's desk in the first place. 1) He apparently had gathered that she had uploaded Lex's hard drive and was looking into it. 2) He said he was hoping that she could provide some help, being the "diligent reporter" she is. Yet the hard drive had already self-deleted when he arrived, and he didn't stay for any help or ask any questions. It could be that he intended to ask questions, but immediately decided to shut the conversation down when it turned to 33.1. Either way, it was unclear what exactly he was doing throughout this scene.
28. "The fact is, you're more honest with me than anyone's ever been." Lana knows better than that. It would have been better if she'd said that he's more constant. Nell left her, Whitney left her, Jason left her, and Clark often let her down. Lex always managed to be there for her. I could see her gratitude for that…but not for imaginary honesty.
29. Good camerawork, circling Lana – then revealing Lex standing behind her.
30. "Please – please don't leave us here. I don't want to have this baby without you." I was glad that Lana told Lex rather than Lex overhearing Lana. Huge revelations should never come from someone being under an influence or kryptoed in some way. At least the strange confession of his honesty was followed by some honesty on her part.
31. Beautiful music as Lana said, "I know I should have told you…" It expressed the pathos of the relationship.
32. The hand laid gently on her shoulder…we wonder if she'll feel it. She turns around…we wonder if she'll see him. We see that it's Bronson. This was the perfect short setup. I was waiting for them to have small deceptions like that throughout the episode. I liked this one.
33. "I'm sorry I have to put you through this." Bronson's such a tender-heart despite it all. I was glad they kept him in character even when he wielded a knife.
34. "You can see him?" That was a bad line. Obviously Bronson could see him. Lana knew his abilities. And that wasn't the question Lana would ask with a knife at her throat. The writers wanted to make it clear that Lana couldn't see Lex…but they should have had her say, "Where is he? Lex?!" and look around for him instead.
35. Somehow I found it hard to believe that, when Lana woke up, she paid absolutely no attention to the corpse behind Lex. On first viewing, this whole scene seemed extremely awkward. The second time around, it made much more sense…but this moment still jarred me.
36. Perfect, haunting music as Jimmy struggled to bring Lex and Lana back, while Lex and Lana whispered to each other on the floor.
37. It made me take the scene less seriously when Jimmy and Chloe listened to Lex and Lana's conversation on the radio.
38. It was extremely awkward when Lex and Lana appeared on the floor, making out. I understand what the writers were thinking – the conflict of getting them back to the right frequency was matched with the conflict between Lex and Lana. The question of whether they would return was joined with the question of whether their unlikely relationship would ever survive. The triumph of getting them back was merged with the triumph of their kiss. But, realistically speaking…it was pretty awkward. How did Chloe and Jimmy react? "Oh my gosh, I'm glad you're back!" Gushing? Making some ironic comment? Tiptoeing away? Imagining any of these scenarios reduces the scene to a somewhat comical level.
39. I lost track, but this Clark scene couldn't have been more than two minutes or so, making a total of about five minutes spent on his plot.
40. "Your blood must make you strong. I should taste it." Aren't all Kryptonians of strong blood? The writers seemed to be really running out of lines to give Batista.
41. Clark tries to punch Batista. Batista stops him. "Why are you doing this?" "Everyone's got to eat." Those two lines should have been taken out. The answer was obvious…one's not sure why Clark asked.
42. So…the Martian Manhunter disappears into the sunset before Clark has a chance to say good-bye? That's the climax? Thinking about it actually makes me laugh, because it makes no sense whatsoever.
43. Beautiful music when the Martian Manhunter opened his eyes and rose up and flew away…but the animation was very simplistic, almost cartoonish. That's from the perspective of an amateur, of course – but I wish they had spent more time on this. The silhouette against the moon, and then the red trail as he flew, seemed a bit pencil-drawing-ish.
44. "Well, it's just a matter of time before I get to the bottom of it." That was humorous. We needed to be reminded of Jimmy's ineptness, particularly after he jumped in and expertly saved the day, then made that comment on the wiring.
45. "Still wish Clark was here to help?" "Aw, come on. Clark Kent can't hold a candle to the Infuriator." Perhaps I don't know much about Chloe's type of romantic relationship, but it seemed like this comment was out of line. She's clearly flirting and babying – she always babies Jimmy – so her comment isn't to be taken at face value. Nevertheless, before this, she's had a conscientious feeling about Clark. She's his secret-keeper and she's always defended him…and taken him very seriously. This seemed too flippant.
46. "You don't know the Luthors like I do." That is the line of the season. Everyone seems to be saying it ("You don't know the Green Arrow like I do." "You don't know Lex like I do."), only Chloe's the first person who's really had justification. She has interacted on a close and dangerous level with the Luthors. Still, this wasn't the wisest remark to make. This line is never persuasive, however justified.
47. "Lana, you can't prove that 33.1 didn't exist." "And you can't prove that it did." Good exchange. It showed that Lana is anxious to avoid thinking the worst about Lex.
48. "Kudos, son." This is Lionel Luthor? Bad line.
49. "I'm proud of you." Once upon a time, this line would have meant the world to Lex. He would have either reacted with resentment or with more neediness. This time it didn't have much impact. After all his S4 and S5 flipflopping, I couldn't decide whether this newfound impenetrability was regression or growth.
50. "Make me your full partner. I want to know everything about this project. It'll give us a chance to spend more quality time together." Lionel's tone was so inoffensive during this whole scene – I couldn't tell if he was putting it on or not. His delivery was so different from the dark delivery of S3. Perhaps next episode he'll come tell Clark everything…
51. "I was preoccupied." "Sorry." "No it wasn't." "Someone else killed him. Someone who can do things I can only…dream of." "I'm not sure." Clark is dazed and slurring his words. It's been a while – he should be over the shock by now. Yes, he should be thoughtful, maybe preoccupied…but not to the point where you wonder if he has a concussion.
52. " Clark, it's me. Your most trusted friend and secret keeper. How about a few details?" "Believe it or not, there are some things you don't need to know." There was nothing Clark needed to hide from Chloe. Even if he wanted to have some time to think – even if he wanted to keep that strange image of an alien rescuer to himself – he could have said it less rudely. He could have said, "I really don't want to talk right now." They chose a strange and offensive turn of phrase for him.
53. "You feel the need to carry the world on your shoulders, and that's noble. But there are other people out there who want to help you fight the good fight, and you need to let them in." "Because sometimes even heroes need to be saved." It was as if Clark had a "Why?" in there and they took it out. But whether they did or not, this dialogue really didn't seem to have much to do with anything. At first Chloe seems to be referring to herself ("let them in") but then it becomes clear that she's speaking about other superheroes. Since she hasn't actually encountered other superheroes, at least knowingly, and since all she knew about the situation was what Clark told her in monosyllables, this was pretty abstract. How did she get into an inspirational speech about working with other superheroes from this situation? This moment felt contrived.
54. Clark picks up the Oreo. The first time I watched this, I was so busy thinking, "I hope they don’t have a dramatic shot of the Oreo" that I didn't notice the significance. The Martian Manhunter was in Clark's loft, briefly. Interesting.
55. "Listen, Lex. About this 33.1 place." "I already told you, it never existed." "But if it did. I'd understand why. These people who've been infected by the meteors are dangerous. They've hurt me, and they've hurt people that I care about. The more we learn about them, the better we can protect ourselves." "And there's something else you need to know." This made it seem as if he was going to show her 33.1. That, combined with the undeniably strange music as Lex opened the door, made the leap to the proposal harder to follow.
56. "The more we learn about them, the better we can protect ourselves." Interesting moment. It could have been planted for any number of reasons. The writers could want to throw us off the trail, as they did with the kryptonian box. Or the writers could be instilling in Lana an abhorrence for Kryptonian and meteor-related people, resulting in conflict when she finds out Clark's secret.
57. The contradictory music as Lex opened the door and they walked through the roses and candles made it hard to feel anything. Anticipation, dread…that's what we should have been feeling. Instead it felt like the sort of weird, creepy, abstract music we'd hear as someone walked into a krypto-villain's lair. It was almost like computer-generated music.

Details

1. The security guard pulling Lana into the panic room clearly saw Lex disappear. Then, "Security refuses to let me see any of the surveillance footage. They tell me I was seeing things." Clearly security is involved in the coverup.
2. My personal theory: Code 142 meant that there was an escapee from 33.1. This explains the reluctance to explain the code, and Lionel's startled reaction to it. Then Lex says, "You're the 142." This could refer either to a security breach or an escapee.
3. Why couldn't Lex exit the room? I can understand why he couldn't touch things, but I don't get why he couldn't walk through an open doorway – or why the attempt would teleport him to the middle of the room.
4. Why did Lionel have a startled reaction to Code 142? He was apparently surprised when he found out how far the experimentation had gone, so he wasn't an insider. Yet as soon as he heard the code, he called someone working with genomes and figured it all out. How did he make the connection between 142 and 33.1? (Aside from the fact that in both numbers, all three digits add up to seven...)
5. Jimmy and Lana seemed to be on familiar terms. When did this happen?
6. If Bronson and Lana's meeting needed to be such a secret, why did they meet in a parking lot where people were milling around?
7. Clark tells Chloe he knows not to face the Zoner unarmed. Then he goes to face the Zoner in a warehouse…unarmed. He knows the crystal won't work. Did Clark have any kind of game plan here, or was he just going to keep playing hide-and-seek with the Zoner until he figured something out?
8. Incidentally, how did Clark locate the Zoner? This time he knows to go to a dark, empty warehouse. Was he following a trail of bodies?
9. The static plot finished up in about 30 ½ minutes. Which, since episodes are about 39 minutes long, was way too soon. Nothing happened afterward except the proposal, so they should have waited for this to wind up. The plot lost all its rhythm.
10. Jimmy is wearing Clark-ish clothing on Level 33.1. I wonder what the significance was. 1) Jimmy is trying to be Clark, 2) the writers wanted irony for the comparison between him and Clark, or 3) Pete wore Superman colors too…it's just an in-joke about the future. Either way, I liked it.
11. In "Reunion" and "Rage" Lionel was examining pictures of Kryptonian symbols on his desk. When Lex dug through the desk, why didn't he find the pictures?
12. "I hate to think of the legal repercussions if that clinic was discovered." So Lex's many dealings with Belle Reve have been illegal. This seemed to contradict Lex's assertion that he managed to get Bronson out of Belle Reve when they wanted to keep him. Or perhaps there was a mixture of truth in it - he used illegal methods to free or capture people. One wonders how Belle Reve fudged this one over...are the krypto-villains documented as released, as present and accountable, or...what? Not a problem, just a question.

Question

Where does Lionel stand?

I've been waiting for him to turn out to be evil...but now that it's seemed to happen, I've been having doubts. His voice, when he spoke to Lex, was far from the deep, ominous voice of Season Three. It was actually light and inoffensive. Plus he tells Lex he wants to spend quality time with him - trying to persuade him, trying not to push him away. Even though he has Level 33.1 already. I started wondering if, next episode, he's going to go to Clark and tell him that he's in a perfect position to spy on Lex. It would be like the writers to put Lionel in a position where he could double-cross whomever he chose. (And leave him in that dubious position for several episodes.)

His affection for Martha is real. And his apparent pride in Clark also seems real. But he's using someone. Whether it's Clark or Lex remains to be seen.

Another factor is the fact that he has been studying Kryptonian symbols...and doesn't want Clark or Martha to know about it. Twice Clark or Martha has walked in on him studying the symbols, and he's quickly put the pictures away. He wrote the word "power" in "Zod," and since it was a key word spoken between Zod and Lana, one started to wonder if he had been possessed by Zod. Yet he hasn't displayed any Zod-like tendencies, unlike when he was possessed by Jor-El and became tender and fatherly toward Clark. The motivation the symbols play is unclear, but it's obvious that this time he is trying to exclude Clark from decoding them. This supports the idea that he's not on Clark's side, at least in selfish matters of knowledge and information.

I don't know who Lionel is. I thought I did, but after this episode's Lionel-Lex conversation, I'm having second thoughts...