Smallville Tuesday

[fajrdrako]

Because it's rerun season, we decided to watch the Pilot of Smallville on the DVD, rather than the aired episode, which was "Visage". I remembered disliking "Visage", more in retrospect than the first time through, but I'd forgotten exactly why. I was reminded because we actually did watch it again, on the 9 p.m. showing on the WB channel.

Keep in mind that I can usually find something to love in all Smallville episodes. I think "Visage" and "Dichotic" are the only exceptions.

I had said to Angela on the phone that "Visage" was gross and disgusting. "And it has too much Lana," said Angela. "Exactly - gross and disgusting," said I.

But it isn't Lana that's my problem with it.

Problem #1: The Evil Lesbian thing. I don't want to see another nasty sadistic Lesbian killer in TV or movies. I just don't. I don't care if it's Tina or Sharon Stone or whoever. I just don't want to see it.

Problem #2: The scene where Tina, pretending to be Chloe, comes on to Lana and Lana is horrified and disgusted. Intellectually I can handle it. Emotionally, my heart bleeds for Chloe (even if she isn't Chloe, she looks like Chloe) and Lana, not knowing what is going on, is so cruel. This is a totally irrational reaction, but it's a reaction I can't help having. My heart bleeds, and not in a good way.

I remembered both of those points. What I had forgotten was problem #3: The "wall around my heart" speech Lex delivers to Helen. Perhaps this was the moment I was absolutely sure that Helen was evil - actually, I was sure from the beginning of the episode, but this is where I wanted it to be true. Anyone who can make Michael Rosenbaum act so badly and deliver such lacklustre lines has to be a supervillain in disguise.

In this episode, Tom Welling actually acts better than Michael Rosenbaum does, and I never thought I'd see that.

Ah well. It was... interesting... to see it again. In many ways, I think it is a very good episode: but it makes my skin crawl.

Before that, and in contrast, we watched the Pilot and Metamorphosis, two of my favourite episodes. Angela had never heard the director's commentary so we warned her to be prepared for the many remarks about Lana Lang and the 'magical' Kristen Kreuk, not to mention Tom Welling's hair, and listened to the commentary right through.

Then we played with languages. We checked out the Inu subtitles, trying to figure out why there don't seem to be spaces between the words in Inu.

Then we listened to the Portuguese version. None of us speak any Portuguese; we all thought Lex had a really nice, sexy voice in Portuguese.

Then we decided to check out the dubbed French version. We loved it. We howled with laughter every time Clark or Lex opened their mouths and came out with Canadian French with a decidedly Canadian accent. Okay, why not? It's a Canadian DVD. "C'est une jolie boite," says Clark, in the Trojan scene, and we couldn't contain ourselves.

Occasionally we couldn't catch a word clearly so we turned on the French subtitles. That was even worse: we could understand every word, yes, but the subtitles and the actual French translation were totally different. Different words, different phrasing - presumably two different translators did the work from the English and used distincly different approaches. I even wondered if the subtitles were European French while the dubbing was Canadian French, but we didn't read enough for me to be sure. (Subtitles don't show regional accents, however attractive.)

Damn, I wish there was an Esperanto version, either dubbed or with subtitles. Or that I knew how to make subtitles myself. I know fans do it for anime. But how?

It was particularly fun watching "Metamorphosis" again. I realized again how much I love that episode. It usually, in my memory, suffers from being on the same DVD as the Pilot, which is probably my favourite Smallville, ever. But Metamorphosis is full of joys:

(1) The apple scene in the farmer's market;

(2) Most appearances of Greg Arkin (Chad E. Donella), who is my favourite Smallville meteor-mutant monster;

(3) The "Clark as unappreciated hero" theme;

(4) The Trojan war scene;

(5) The congratulatory dialogue between Whitney and Jonathan, and between Whitney and Clark, and Whitney's feeble attempts to apologize for the cornfield incident;

(6) The scene in the stables between Lex and Lana, which is, in my opinion, Lana's best scene ever;

(7) Lex's plotting in various directions.

That episode put me in a great Clexy mood.

~ ~ ~

I thought the trailer for "Fearless" looked interesting. Does anyone know anything about this show?

Comments

[isagel.livejournal.com]

I want to second everything you said about 'Visage'. Every aspect of that episode sickened me, from the bashing of the Evil Lesbian, via Pa Kent's war-mongering patriotism to Helen and Lex walking off hand-in-hand into the sunset. And you're right, this is the only time I've seen MR act badly. It's like all his spark is gone. I remember thinking, 'Was he ill when they filmed this? Did he have a bad reaction to reading the script?' And the 'wall around my heart' speach is just such drivel! It's out of character, and it makes absolutely no sense when Helen's reaction to it is to take his hand and lead him off like a little child. Any sane woman would respond to a declaration of that kind from a man as emotionally handicapped as Lex with at the very least an embrace, most likely a passionate kiss. It's ridiculous. Tina Greer should come back and kick the scriptwriter's butt for being a sentimental, homophobic creep.

There, now I've vented. *g*

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I felt better after venting, too!

I rather wish I could wave "Visage" out of continuity. Make Whitney still alive (tho' far away), Tina still alive (I like her powers and enjoyed her in "X-Ray"), Michael Rosenbaum still a strong actor, Lex still a cool guy, and Helen - well, she can carry on plunging him into the sea, I guess. As long as she doesn't turn out to be an Evil Murdering Lesbian, that's okay.

Save Me

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

My mental filters blocked all the unpleasant elements of "Visage," so I was actually looking forward to seeing it again. I'm trying to redeem it, actually. I too feel for Chloe, with Lana's shuddering reaction to being touched from behind... and I am using that very scene as the pivotal moment of focus in (even I still can't quite believe it) a Chloe/Lana story. I refuse to allow this episode to be the only statement of the issue.

But I remember, with pain, the two times during the episode when Tina is called a freak, at least one of them by Lana, and that pretty much enrages me. Or, at least, deeply disappoints me, and confuses me. How this sort of thing could have been done so casually in a series that seems to take such pride (no pun intended, believe me) in its homoerotic overtones... well, it's beyond me. I think it was a very unfortunate inclusion, and I certainly look forward to the DVD of the second season, to hear the producer's commentary -- what sort of excuse they can come up with for it!


Say what you might about Buffy's lack of realistic-looking actresses (too thin! too waifish), that's one show that never stooped to even unconscious fag-bashing, and I respect that. Well, okay, maybe there was that whole Warren-leading-Andrew-on-to-make-him-do-his-dirty-work-behind-Jonathan's-back thing, but even so...!

Re: Save Me

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I like the way freakishness and normality are subjects in Smallville - Clark and Lex both consider themselves to be freaks, and Clark longs to be normal, while Lex longs to be an exceptionally successful freak. Meanwhile other freaks abound - meteor mutants of many types, and people who are strange, some sympathetic, some not; some handicapped, some not. I like all of that.

I don't think the producers would try to justify the episode. I think that would be too close to admitting they were wrong (or politically incorrect) in the first place: they're going to tell us how terrific it was, what a great actress Kristen Kreuk is, and so on.

Listening to their commentary on the matter on the extant DVD, I had the impression that, in the matter of Kristen Kreuk's acting, they were simply protesting too much. Overcompensating.

Re: Save Me

[acampbell.livejournal.com]

they were simply protesting too much. Overcompensating.

Yes, and that in itself is enough to make me dislike her, and her acting. Anytime anyone keeps shoving someone into your face like that ("Isn't she great? Isn't she wonderful?")...well, I think it's human nature.

Re: Save Me

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Yes: the over-hyped is not attractive, usually. or rather - it raises an annoyance factor that shouldn't be there, especially if the subject of the hype can't live up to it. How many times did they use the word "magical" with regard to - well, many things - but particularly her unmagical acting?

Kept making me think of the fairy princess.

Re: Save Me

[acampbell.livejournal.com]

She surely waved that toy wand over M & G!

Re: Save Me

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

If I may say so, given their enthusiasm over her looks, I suspect it wasn't her wand that caused the interest.

Re: Save Me

[acampbell.livejournal.com]

ROTFL!!