My Splinter Review

[triplet]

Here is my review...

http://www.kryptonsite.com/splinterreview.htm

Let me know what you think, I'm curious and would love to see how your opinion differs from mine.

[boonaducious]

Awesome review as usual!

The only thing I didn't agree with was your criticism of KK. I thought she did great in this episode. My heart broke for her when she looked freaked out as she was running from the man she loved. Other than that you and I are thinking alike.

[aqua]

I think KK needs a new angry face. It's really annoying.

I agree with really everything you said. Great job!

[sstray72]

Great review! Your entire article was in agreement with how I felt on the episode, plus I even enjoyed Lana's role in the episode. I think KK did a good job, and I really liked her evil look to Clark after the Lexana kiss. KK does evil well.

[constancelight]

I really liked this review. It is spot on on how I felt about it.

[triplet]

Originally posted by boonaducious
Awesome review as usual!

The only thing I didn't agree with was your criticism of KK. I thought she did great in this episode. My heart broke for her when she looked freaked out as she was running from the man she loved. Other than that you and I are thinking alike.

Well, I did say that her problems in this episode probably weren't her fault.

Her motivations were all over the place but I really thought it was the way Lana was written in this episode. The male writers don't really understand Lana, I don't think, as well as they should and her reactions weren't consistant.

First she was worried about Clark, suspicious of Chloe thanks to what Clark said about them all being against him (which she should know wasn't true), then all of a sudden she trusted Chloe enough to listen to her and then she runs off to have a confrontation with Lex. She's angry with him and then just isn't.

Maybe that's when her reactions were being seen through Clark's paranoia but then she didn't play that well enough for me to get that...

There was no moment when her reactions changed due to being seen through Clark's POV. If there had been one, maybe that woulda helped.

I did like a lot of what she did.

Her shocked surprise at Clark finding her so easily and then her fear when he was trying to kill her....

Man, how scary would that be... She doesn't even have a clear idea of what Clark is capable of but the fact the he actually enjoyed maybe hurting Lex and smiled about it with how strong she must know he is.... Yikes.

Scary.

And she played that fear very, very well.

But I can't say enough how excellent Tom did in this episode, I'm beginning to think I underscored it at 4.5, actually. I think Hidden is the only ep I scored higher this season at a 5... Maybe this one shoulda been a 5 too....

Anyway, Tom really hit this one out of the park and I think it's probably his finest performance to date in Smallville.

Excellent episode.

And the thing with Fine infecting Clark with a part of his body.... err... mechanism... err... whatever is just out and out creepy and about as duplicitous as it can get. Brutus had nothing on him...

He is truly evil.

Brainiac is such a fantastic villain. I can't WAIT until Thursday!

[LionelLuthor]

And I can't wait for your review of it!

Great 'Splinter' review- I agree, Tom outdid himself in the episode, especially when he confronts Lex and doesn't blink for like, 2 minutes!
And I loved how jittery and nervous he was when he went to talk to Fine in the class room and he was being told every thing that he thought had happened was false.
What a villian- he's one of those 'Love to hate' characters!

[Chloe fan1988]

I loved your review triplet; I completely agree with what you said. By the way, have you given an episode a rating of 5 yet?

[Watching Smallville]

Triplet, it seems the better the episode, the better your review of it. It's pretty easy for anyone to pick apart the flaws of an episode, but when a reviewer is able to describe in detail why an episode is superior, with illustrations and analysis, that's a good reviewer. I gained a lot of insight into why I liked this episode from reading your review. I don't think I liked Splintered quite as much as you did, but I was able to go back and appreciate it more after reading what you wrote.

Thanks for the great review!

[triplet]

Originally posted by Chloe fan1988
I loved your review triplet; I completely agree with what you said. By the way, have you given an episode a rating of 5 yet?

I think this season the only one I've given a 5 so far was Hidden, but like I said in my previous post I may have underscored this one...

I watched it again earlier today and I must say on mulitple viewings its easier to catch the nuances of both Tom Welling's and James Marsters' performances...

Excellent episode.

Tom's face when he had Kristin by the throat down in the wine cellar was amazing to watch....

He went from love to betrayed hurt to anger to a purely murderous fury during one line....

Astounding.

I was an actor in a previous life (that was a very long time ago) and let me tell you that's not easy....

Tom Welling is vastly under rated as an actor and that is an assumption that needs to be corrected.

He's absolutely stunning but that doesn't mean he can't act. He can and does it very, very well and makes it look so easy.

Tom Welling is more than just a pretty face... He was amazing in this episode.

[unPTC]

Originally posted by triplet
Well, I did say that her problems in this episode probably weren't her fault.


Her motivations were all over the place but I really thought it was the way Lana was written in this episode. The male writers don't really understand Lana, I don't think, as well as they should and her reactions weren't consistant.
I COMPLETELY AGREE WITH THIS, THOUGH I'M NOT REALLY SURE IT'S THE MALE WRITERS...SHE IS THE CHARACTER WHOSE STORYLINES HAVE THE LEAST CONTINUITY AND THE WORST LINES TO DELIVER...I THINK I LISTENED TO THE COMMENTARY ON SPELL AND HEARD KK SAY A FEW TIMES "THAT WAS A HARD LINE TO SAY"...THAT HAPPENS ALL TOO OFTEN WITH HER CHARACTER.

First she was worried about Clark, suspicious of Chloe thanks to what Clark said about them all being against him (which she should know wasn't true), then all of a sudden she trusted Chloe enough to listen to her and then she runs off to have a confrontation with Lex. She's angry with him and then just isn't.

I COMPLETELY DISAGREE WITH THIS. I THOUGHT THIS WAS ONE OF HER STRONGEST MOMENTS IN THE EPISODE. OF COURSE SHE'S GOING TO BELIEVE CLARK --SHE'S IN LOVE WITH HIM AND IS NATURALLY GOING TO BE SYMPATHETIC TO HIM ...I THINK CHLOE MADE A PRETTY CONVINCING CASE TO LANA AS TO WHAT WAS GOING ON SO I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THAT SHIFT IN WHAT LANA BELIEVED TO BE TRUE..

[Small2]

Not to over-analyze this, but I thought Kruek did make the reactional change you were looking for. I also agree the writers had her motivation all over the place.

The example I'm considering was with her discussion with Lex. She starts the scene angry with Lex for purposefully sending the Silver K, and then quickly turns worried, after Lex tells her, convincingly, that he knows nothing about the rock, then turns trusting when she feels Lex will try to help her help Clark.

It's after the dialogue:

Lex: "I promise we'll find a way to help him."

LL: "Thank you"

It's at this point that both Lex and Lana make the change. The camera stays on Lex's face a bit longer than normal, and he changes his expression as does Lana, (MR is more subtle than KK's change) with the next dialogue:

Lex: You're my partner now."

LL: "Sorry I didn't trust you".

The next scene, which is from Clark's viewpoint, both Lex and Lana are clearly quite friendly towards each other, ending with that famous Look from Lana.

Not bad, I thought.

What I found unsettling, is how the writers have brought Lex all the way back to being friendly/concerned with Clark, along with Lionel being the good father in this ep. At this point in the story, everyone close to Clark including the Luthors, knows there is something special/weird about Clark. The writers have been incredibly inconsistent with these two characters this season.

Overall good review.

[vanilla_bandit]

I agree with everything you said in your review, minus the Kristin criticism. I thought her acting was quite good. Perhaps Hidden and Splinter should have both have been rated fives. IMO they are tied for best episode of season 5 so far.

[triplet]

Originally posted by Small2
The next scene, which is from Clark's viewpoint, both Lex and Lana are clearly quite friendly towards each other, ending with that famous Look from Lana.

Not bad, I thought.

What I found unsettling, is how the writers have brought Lex all the way back to being friendly/concerned with Clark, along with Lionel being the good father in this ep. At this point in the story, everyone close to Clark including the Luthors, knows there is something special/weird about Clark. The writers have been incredibly inconsistent with these two characters this season.

Overall good review.

You see, maybe that change was too subtle for me... I can kinda see where you're coming from though....

I do think they've been inconsistant with Lex and Lana both, they're trying to take them in certain directions yet it's inconvenient for some of the story lines so they change horses in mid-stream, it seems to me....

Lex, I think, they're justifying becuase he's got other agendas he's following, but what's the deal with Lana?

Is she going to trot out the old "Clark, you aren't being honest with me" card again?

That one's been dealt too often, IMO. They need to come up with something else for her to be mad at him about...

Yeah, the not telling her he's an alien is a pretty big secret but in his defense he has a lot of reasons to believe she won't take hearing about that truth too well...

Anyway, I like Clark and Lex not getting along, tension is good for a drama (or else it wouldn't be.... like... you know... dramatic) and it reveals a lot about their characters and allows for good character development. So I hope the detente between them isn't a long one.

I dunno, I guess we'll see how things go.

[KristinIsAwesome]

I just wanna throw this in there...

Your reviews are very detailed and very helpful.. I watch every episode, but you still point out things that I might have missed or overlooked.

You do a great job. Keep up the good work.

[Small2]

To have any hope for the character Lana, I don't believe they will have her trot out "Clark you aren't being honest with me," as I agree it's been done way too much. I hate the continual use of the line "No more Lies".

My take is, she has simply accepted that to be in a relationship with Clark, she is going to have to accept the secret part.

She damn well knows he's not being honest with her even though she pretty much knows what's going on. She also knows she loves the other parts of him enough to take the whole package at this time.

What I like about where it appears the writers are taking Lana, is having her taking some initiative, studying Astronomy, and trying to figure it out herself. Not to use against Clark, but to help in either their relationship or in Clark better accepting who is is.

While not in Seasons 1-2, I think Lana has matured enough to handle the alien part.

Now to keep some dramatic elements, I wouldn't put it pass the writers to also lead the viewers on as to where her loyalties lie. Clark or Lex.

In the end will the lies from both parties lead to their eventual falling out? Most likely.

I agree with you that the storyline is better served with Lex and Clark not getting along. I see no reason to have Clark still going over to Lex's every five minutes for either a favor, or ask some question. It's time for Clark to begin dealing with it all sans Lex. You could still have Lana see Lex, as they have established their own relationship, and it would add even more to the dramatic tension.

Thanks for the comments, and keep up the good work.