I'm going tonight to get weighed in for the Navy, so no fair posting spoilers until I've had a chance to watch it! Just kidding.

Marc

Marc,

Congratulations on your service. I salute you!

The above is meant seriously. No sarcasm at all is intended.

Thanks ScottN

I figured it was

Marc

Good luck, Marc. And Godspeed.

Then again, Clark’s father used to fly through the air in an orange Dodge Charger…
The sequence in which Eric Marsh, disguised as an alien, knocks Clark around in the teaser by hitting him with one of the car doors was really weak. We see the Eric rip the door off, and then we see Clark flying through the air, but we never see Eric hit him with it.
Looks like Eric Marsh isn’t the only one with a hole in his head
Clark tells Jonathan that he didn’t go to the police because he didn’t want to get back on Sheriff Adams’ radar. Anyone else have a problem with this logic? If anything, not going to her would put him back on her radar if she somehow finds out later that he was present but didn’t report the crime. Clark points out that he wouldn’t be able to tell her about the plate he saw in Eric Marsh’s head, but what Jonathan should’ve done was tell Clark to go to her and tell her what he witnessed, but omit the part about Eric’s cranial plate. Instead, Jonathan seems to accept Clark’s reasoning, and only decides it’s necessary to make an anonymous call after Eric tries to kill Clark.
I hear many of the residents are packing up and moving to South Central L.A. to get away from all the crime
Isn’t it amazing how so many residents, and for that matter—so many students at Smallville High alone—are not only troublemaking bullies, and even thieves, but murderers as well? What’s with this town?
So maybe Clark should bite Eric on the ear?
There is no way that Eric hitting Clark with a pipe, as he does when Clark jumps out of the hijacked truck at the end of the second to last Act, will cause Clark to fly through the air. If Clark still has his invulnerability, the pipe should simply bend, because it’s not as stronger than his body. At best, it should repel him or knock him, down, but not make him go sailing through the air. If he doesn’t have his invulnerability, getting hit with it that hard should kill Clark.
---Think of it this way: Mike Tyson hits Evander Holyfield. They’re both human, and both of more or less equal strength and durability. Is Tyson’s strength so great that a punch will cause Holyfield to fly through the air, even if Holyfield just stands there and doesn’t try to evade the punch? No. At best, he’ll be knocked down. And if Tyson hit Holyfield with a pipe made a material much denser than Holyfield, Holyfield would be knocked down, possibly unconscious, and conceivably killed. If the pipe was made of a material weaker than Holyfield, like say, balsa wood, then it would snap when it hit him.

The plot thickens with Luthor helping Chloe to get a column at The Daily Planet. Peter David mentioned a theory of his in his December 6, 2002 But I Digress column, and I’ve been wanting to mention it, but kept putting it off. This makes as good a time to mention as any:

The sophomore season of the series has gone from strength to strength. Now, one fun wrinkle. Chloe. Thus far, the frustrated loser in the struggle for Clark Kent’s affections. Do a storyline in which Chloe endeavors to branch out in her journalism aspirations. But she is shot down, because “real world” editors know her as the girl who’s always sending in crazy stories about strange and bizarre occurrences. So she develops a pen name to attach to more “mundane” writing samples about city politics and such. She takes her previously unrevealed middle name, “Lois,” and pulls her last name off the first street sign she passes. Writing as “Lois Lane,” she starts getting noticed…by everyone.

I think it’s an awesome idea, and vintage Peter David. The only thing is, I think that they should save this until the series finale. It would be a perfect touch, but I wouldn’t want the creators to telegraph it by putting it anywhere in the series’ run except at the very end.

BAD LUCK OF THE WEEK: I told you this woman was the root of all evil. Wherever Lana goes, chaos and misfortune seem to follow. She's destroyed a marriage and ruined a friendship. She's also dumb as anything. She can't quite figure out that SHE is the problem with Clark and Chloe even though it's practically staring her right in the face.

MISPLACED LOVE OF THE WEEK: Clark is dumb too. He should just dump Lana (who is too absorbed with herself) and go with Chloe. Chloe would not be freaked out by Clark's powers. Chloe and Clark share the same interests. Chloe shares many of the same basic personality traits as future love interest Lois Lane (nosy, fearless, kinda eccentric, etc.)

LUIGI'S CONTINUITY PROBLEM OF THE WEEK: If indeed the creators decide that Chloe and Lois are the same person (which never occurred to me), how could this be accomplished? I think almost every incarnation of Superman (I've never read the comics though) has shown that Clark and Lois never knew each other prior to his joining the Daily Planet. (Despite this, I think it's a great idea, but I don't think TPTB would ever do it because of continuity issues.)

RUBBERNECKER OF THE WEEK: Clark did something very smart in this episode when he phoned in an anonymous tip to the police. Then he went and bungled it up by standing there smirking while the kid was being taken away (thus making the "anonymous" tipper less anonymous).

FORGOTTEN POWER OF THE WEEK: Clark doesn't think to use his heat vision until the very end of the episode. I thought for sure he was going to use it to blow up the Kryptonite in the melting room. It couldn't have been his proximity to the Kryptonite because his veins weren't popping out of his skin.

VILE SNAKE OF THE WEEK: Lionel Luthor is one of the best villains on television right now. Whenever he and Lex are in the same room you can practically feel the evil oozing out of them. The best villains will make you go "You lying evil sonuvabitch" and that happened at the end of this episode whenever Lionel tells Chloe about his "search for the truth."

BROTHERLY LOVE OF THE WEEK: Well we had Jonathan Taylor Thomas earlier in the season and now we have Zachary Bryan in this episode. Once we get that other one (his name escapes me) on the show in some capacity, the Home Improvement chain will be complete.

WRONG POWER OF THE WEEK: Whenever Clark gets caught in the melting room, the bad guys slug him in the face a few times. After they throw him in the furnace and he emerges, they show the cuts on his face disappear. I never knew Superman had this ability. This seems more in line with Wolverine's mutant abilities. Maybe TPTB are getting swept up in the excitement for the new X-men movie.

ALIEN BLOOD OF THE WEEK: Speaking of Clark's cuts and blood, this doesn't seem to disturb him at all. Unless I'm mistaken, Clark has never seen his own blood before. In the first Superman movie, whenever Clark gives up his powers and gets into a fight at a diner, he is somewhat disturbed by seeing his own blood. (This can probably be easily explained, but I just watched the first two Superman movies this weekend for the first time and was very impressed. I guess I'm on a Superman kick now.)

LAZY SCHOOL SECURITY OF THE WEEK: How is it that the entire newspaper room at Smallville High School can be vandalized and ripped to shreds and no one seems to notice?

LAZY SCHOOL JANITORS OF THE WEEK: Even worse, after the vandalization, they show Chloe cleaning the place up. Given that these vandals ripped down wires and damaged electrical equipment, that room should be repaired by the janitors or other maintenance people, not by students.

I still liked the episode a lot. We got a lot of updates on some of the relationships that we haven't seen in a while. Even better was the return of Lionel, whom we haven't seen in awhile.

TUE

I hear many of the residents are packing up and moving to South Central L.A. to get away from all the crime

LOL, Luigi!

TUE: [Lana’s] destroyed a marriage and ruined a friendship.
Luigi Novi: I’m sorry, but that’s a load of bunk. It was Clark and Lana’s father’s inability to live up to their obligations that put those relationships in jeopardy. Lana didn’t do anything of her own fault.

And nice use of David Sluss’ style, TUE. Since he’s no longer reviewing stuff right now, it’s a nice way to pick up his torch.

TUE: If indeed the creators decide that Chloe and Lois are the same person, how could this be accomplished? I think almost every incarnation of Superman (I've never read the comics though) has shown that Clark and Lois never knew each other prior to his joining the Daily Planet.
Luigi Novi: True, but then again, no incarnation of Superman has ever depicted Jonathan and Martha having a biological child. And I don’t think that Pete and Clark were best friends in high school in any previous incarnations either. Given how well the creators have adapted the material, some tiny deviation from the source material is forgivable, especially if it’s made rarely, and in the service of a cool story.

TUE: It couldn't have been his proximity to the Kryptonite because his veins weren't popping out of his skin.
Luigi Novi: True, his veins weren’t bulging, but then again we know that he was weakened, because Eric was inhaling that Kryptonite liquid, and that’s why his thug henchmen were able to hold Clark down. Also, when it does happen, his veins pop on his hands, but do they bulge on his face too? I ask, because we didn’t really get a good shot of his hands when the thugs were holding him.

TUE: Well we had Jonathan Taylor Thomas earlier in the season and now we have Zachary Bryan in this episode. Once we get that other one (his name escapes me…
Luigi Novi: Taran Noah Smith.

TUE: Whenever Clark gets caught in the melting room, the bad guys slug him in the face a few times. After they throw him in the furnace and he emerges, they show the cuts on his face disappear. I never knew Superman had this ability.
Luigi Novi: Given that every basic metabolic ability of humans is accelerated in Clark, it makes sense that his healing ability would also be accelerated, once the kryptonite is removed from the area.

TUE: Speaking of Clark's cuts and blood, this doesn't seem to disturb him at all. Unless I'm mistaken, Clark has never seen his own blood before.
Luigi Novi: Didn’t he see his own blood in Leech(1.12) when he lost his powers to that kid who plays Iceman in X-Men?

According to Kryptonsite.com, the series creators stated in an interview that Chloe was actually the cousin of Lois Lane, the same one she stayed with during her summer internship at the Daily Planet.

Luigi Novi: Didn’t he see his own blood in Leech(1.12) when he lost his powers to that kid who plays Iceman in X-Men?
TUE: Ah, I believe you may be right (told ya that would probably be easily explained)

Luigi Novi: I’m sorry, but that’s a load of bunk. It was Clark and Lana’s father’s inability to live up to their obligations that put those relationships in jeopardy. Lana didn’t do anything of her own fault.
TUE: I'm not saying Lana was at fault, I was just pointing out that a lot of bad things happen around her. And she always seems to be completely oblivious to her involvement with anything until it's blatantly pointed out to her.

Luigi Novi: And nice use of David Sluss’ style, TUE. Since he’s no longer reviewing stuff right now, it’s a nice way to pick up his torch.
TUE: Thanks!

Luigi Novi: his veins pop on his hands, but do they bulge on his face too?
TUE: I believe that they do, but I'm not entirely positive.

Brian Lombard: According to Kryptonsite.com, the series creators stated in an interview that Chloe was actually the cousin of Lois Lane, the same one she stayed with during her summer internship at the Daily Planet.
TUE: They can still change their minds if they choose to do so.

LOUSY WIFE OF THE WEEK: What is with Henry Small's wife? She's upset because her husband is spending TOO MUCH time with his daughter? That's one self-centered woman. She actually expects her husband to choose between his wife and his daughter?

TUE

TUE: I'm not saying Lana was at fault, I was just pointing out that a lot of bad things happen around her.
Luigi Novi: Oh, no you don’t, now you’re backtracking. You said that that she “destroyed a marriage and ruined a friendship,” not that she was “around” when those things happened. Moreover, you’ve now stated in your most recent posts that Henry’s wife is being unreasonable, as if to imply it’s her fault! Geez, TUE, make up your mind.

TUE: She always seems to be completely oblivious to her involvement with anything until it's blatantly pointed out to her.
Luigi Novi: She oblivious to Henry’s marital situation because she’s not there with him and his family. How else would she be expected to know that his marriage was crumbling before his wife told her? A Ouija board? Tea leaves?

TUE: What is with Henry Small's wife? She's upset because her husband is spending TOO MUCH time with his daughter? That's one self-centered woman.
Luigi Novi: I don’t think it’s self-centered for a wife to want her husband to spend a reasonable amount of time with her and the family.

TUE: She actually expects her husband to choose between his wife and his daughter?
Luigi Novi: No, she expects him not to spend a disproportionate amount of time with Lana to the exclusion of his other family.

Luigi Novi: Oh, no you don’t, now you’re backtracking. You said that that she “destroyed a marriage and ruined a friendship,” not that she was “around” when those things happened. Moreover, you’ve now stated in your most recent posts that Henry’s wife is being unreasonable, as if to imply it’s her fault! Geez, TUE, make up your mind.

TUE: Yeah, I'm kinda indecisive like that. I went back and read my original statement and realized my opinion was a little over the top so I tried to smooth it over with the second post. (I don't like to admit when I'm wrong)

Luigi Novi: She oblivious to Henry’s marital situation because she’s not there with him and his family. How else would she be expected to know that his marriage was crumbling before his wife told her? A Ouija board? Tea leaves?

TUE: Good point. I suppose I meant that to mean more for the Clark/Chloe situation. She asks about what the problem is SEVERAL times even though she saw in "Rosetta" that Chloe is still enamored with Clark.

Luigi Novi: I don’t think it’s self-centered for a wife to want her husband to spend a reasonable amount of time with her and the family.

TUE: I'm gonna defend my point here. I think Henry was just doing what most people would do if they discovered they had a child that they never knew about. He's trying to make up for lost time. Mrs. Small should have said something to Henry and tried to work out the problem, instead he's completely oblivious to any problems while she goes to hire a divorce lawyer.

Luigi Novi: No, she expects him not to spend a disproportionate amount of time with Lana to the exclusion of his other family.

TUE: But when Talking with Lana, Mrs. Small doesn't say "It's not you, it's him." She practically tells Lana "It's all your fault." Implying that she doesn't want Lana in her life at all. I really think Mrs. Small was being unreasonable about the situation.

TUE

Ok guys, I'm back. And I warned ya, no nitting until I returned, so what gives? :P

I am now officially in the Navy (after 8 months of them being imbecilles, but that's another story altogether). I'll be shipping out on June 17th.

Before I go into some of the stuff you've been saying, I'll give my impressions:

As always, I enjoy Smallville. It's well written and has good actors, and this one was episode exception, mostly.

I did feel that things happened way too fast this time. I can't pin my finger on any one thing, but it still seemed like they crammed too much into one hour.

Clark is definitely living up to Superman's reputation of just rushing into things headfirst instead of thinking things through, first. If it were me, I'd have X-rayed the building first to make sure it was empty before entering. Assuming you can manage anything the enemy throws at you is a good way to be surprised by Kryptonite and be thrown into a furnace. Just imagine, if the baddies had known ahead of time what would happen to Clark, they'd have thrown Kryptonite in with him.

Speaking of X-rays, why did Clark bother trying to see under the alien mask? He knows that he'd see through the face and into the skeleton. If he hadn't gotten the plate, then he'd have just seen a normal human head.

Secondly, I think Clark forgot the lesson he learned last week: Humans fragile, Clark really, really strong. Hitting your best buddy over the head to knock him out is a good way to split his skull with normal \i(human} strength, let alone superior Kryptonian strength.

I'll post this and then some responses to you guys next.

Marc

Luigi Novi: No, she expects him not to spend a disproportionate amount of time with Lana to the exclusion of his other family.

TUE: But when Talking with Lana, Mrs. Small doesn't say "It's not you, it's him." She practically tells Lana "It's all your fault." Implying that she doesn't want Lana in her life at all. I really think Mrs. Small was being unreasonable about the situation.

I have to agree with TUE on this one. Mrs. Small is being a drama queen. She never even tried to talk to Henry before getting the divorce lawyer.

Brian Lombard: According to Kryptonsite.com, the series creators stated in an interview that Chloe was actually the cousin of Lois Lane, the same one she stayed with during her summer
internship at the Daily Planet.

TUE: They can still change their minds if they choose to do so.

I'd still have a problem with it. As I mentioned in one of the other threads, unless the Smallvillains are really st*pid, there's no way they wouldn't know Clark Kent and Superman are one and the same. Chloe especially would have to be mondo st*pid not to have noticed that a)Superman's suit is identical to the one Smallville's mascot wears, and b)Superman looks identical to Clark Kent without glasses. Given that the two have been close friends since they were younger, she'd know how he looks without glasses.

Of course, the whole glasses thing doesn't really work these days anyways. Back in the past, Clark wore glasses with thick frames the could make him look different. Nowadays glass frames are thin metal, which really doesn't do much to disguise the face.

Back to Chloe: Don't forget also, Lois interviews Superman alot. Clark's voice wouldn't change all that much between the time they graduated High School and the time they meet up at the Daily Planet. Again, she'd have to be bordering on brain dead not to pick it up that they are one and the same.

LAZY SCHOOL SECURITY OF THE WEEK: How is it that the entire newspaper room at Smallville High School can be vandalized and ripped to shreds and no one seems to notice?-TUE

Well, given that it wasn't Eric (why admit to the big stuff and not the little), or Lex (nothing to gain), it's got to be someone else. Personally, I believe it to have been Lionel. #1, She's poking into his businees, and #2, he offers to rebuild the Torch, and in effect, pave her way to the Daily Planet, putting her in his debt big time.

Given that, do you really think it unlikely that Lionel Luther could pay off a couple of high school security guards (assuming there are any. My high school didn't, and it was almost as rural as Smallville).

There is no way that Eric hitting Clark with a pipe, as he does when Clark jumps out of the hijacked truck at the end of the second to last Act, will cause Clark to fly through the air. If Clark still has his invulnerability, the pipe should simply bend, because it’s not as stronger than his body. At best, it should repel him or knock him, down, but not make him go sailing through the air. If he doesn’t have his invulnerability, getting hit with it that hard should kill Clark.-Luigi

I forget, where does he hit Clark? If it's in the midsection, then yes, I'd buy him throwing him across the room. Assuming Clark recovered quickly (which is possible given that it's not direct contact with Kryptonite), he'd still survive the fall, and factoring in his fast healing ability, recover from the damage.

Instead, Jonathan seems to accept Clark’s reasoning, and only decides it’s necessary to make an anonymous call after Eric tries to kill Clark.

Actually, Jonathan doesn't suggest phoning in the tip, Clark does.

Marc

Back in Redux, the new principal of Smallville High, Mr. Reynolds, told us that he had a huge grudge against Lionel Luthor. It was Lionel who got him fired from an exclusive Metropolis prep school where Lex was a student.

Given this, and assuming that Reynolds is still the principal, I find it odd that he would a) let Lionel on the property (through the same gates Reynolds claimed would be locked during school hours), and b) would tell Lionel where he would be able to find Chloe.

Who says Lionel needed to ask anyone for anything? He could have simply instructed one or two goons to trash the place where the Torch was put together the night before.