"Zod"
Review!
Written
by Triplet
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this review contains major spoilers.
REVIEWER'S
NOTE:
I know a
lot of people loved the episode recaps, but it's very time consuming
to do them. That combined with other people doing it so much
better elsewhere online than I ever did, I've decided to not
write them anymore. It'll allow me to spend more time on the
review itself.
Also, I've
asked Craig to stop creating a thread on the KryptonSite forums
specifically to discuss my reviews. Rather than having a thread
solely devoted to providing feedback on my reviews, I will gladly
welcome feedback via PM.
– triplet
REVIEW:
At the end
of last season everyone in Smallville was left in pretty tight
spots. So much so, I was wondering just how Smallville's producers
and writers were going to dig themselves out of the very deep
holes they'd dug.
Clark was
trapped in the Phantom Zone, with little likelihood that there'd
be a convenient nuclear blast to help him escape. (Zod and his
two minions were only able to escape from the PZ in Christopher
Reeve's Superman II, if you will recall, thanks only to a nuclear
blast.)
Lois and
Martha had been kidnapped by Brainiac and were unconscious in
a plane that had lost air pressure.
Lionel and
Chloe had been pulled into a riot.
Lana didn't
even know how much danger she was in but there she was snogging
with Zod (thinking he was still Lex) on the roof of the Luthorcorp
building as the world plunged into chaos.
To be honest,
I wasn't sure I was going to like what the writers and producers
would come up with. (Half expecting an all-too-convenient nuclear
blast, amongst other types of Deus-Ex-Machina style plot points...)
As good as most of Smallville's season openers have been, there
was a danger here that they wouldn't get it right. There was
just so much stuff going on....
So, even
though I looked forward to the season starting again, I also
dreaded seeing what they did if they messed it up. I shouldn't
have been worried. This was a fantastic episode.
Steven DeKnight,
the former Whedon-verse scribe, really hit it out of the park
with "Zod." The Teaser is close to being a masterpiece
and it might be the best tease of the series.
In about
two minutes and forty-five seconds, not only did DeKnight beautifully
introduce us to the Phantom Zone and the creatures that gave
the ghostly dimension its name, he also really upped the stakes
for poor Clark at the same time. I love how Clark is welcomed
by Raya (Pascale Hutton) to his new home with a kick to the
face and then she says sarcastically to his unconscious body,
"Welcome to the Phantom Zone." The heroine that saved
him maybe not being his friend was a terrific twist.
The rest
of the episode was also top notch. The story was tight, kept
on moving and the act break cliff-hangers were some of the best
ever.
The act
break cliffhanger at the end of second act, where Clark is seemingly
betrayed by Raya after being ambushed by the two Kryptonians
from last season's premiere, came totally out of nowhere. The
stakes were raised an unbelievable amount for Clark and it was
another great twist.
The dialogue
was awesome. It was especially strong in the scene between Martha
and Jor-El in the Fortress. Their interaction was at times confrontational
and at other times touching. Jor-El showed himself to be tough
and unemotional over the finality of Clark's fate at the hands
of Zod, yet was sincerely grateful at the wonderful job Martha
did in raising his son. It was a beautifully written scene.
I also loved
the scene at the end with Clark and Martha. He's been left for
the first time with no father figure to guide him. His adoptive
father is dead, the essence of his birth father appears to be
gone following the death of the Fortress, and even his father-figure-wannabe
Lionel can't be trusted anymore. Clark was understandably confused
by what to do next. Martha tried to console him and, in a very
touching moment, give him hope that he can rise to the challenge
despite his doubts.
The episode
had answered a lot of questions but created new ones as well.
Where will
Clark go from here?
What was
Lionel doing at the end with writing out the Kryptonian symbols?
He said his connection to Jor-El was gone. Why would he lie
about that to Martha and to Chloe if it isn't true? Is there
something else going on with him altogether?
And how
are the escaped Phantom Zone phantoms going to impact Clark,
and the planet, for the rest of the season?
DeKnight
gave us a terrific start to what's looking like another fantastic
season and I can't wait to see how they will deal with these
things as the season goes along.
The actors
did some of their finest work in this episode. It's probably
not surprising since one of their best directors was at the
helm. James Marshall always gets really strong performances
from the actors of Smallville and this episode was no different.
Tom Welling again has continued to improve as an actor. The
moment in the tease when Clark's looking at the earth below
him, unable to free himself from his crystalline prison was
outstanding. The pain on his face was heart wrenchingly evident
as he came to terms with the fact that he was trapped. Later
when Clark was willing to risk his life to try and protect the
people he loved, there was no doubt of his sincerity thanks
to Tom's perfect delivery. He was Superman being protective
of his adopted planet and his loved ones. The resolve in his
voice and in his bearing was wonderful to see. No moping superhero
here, thank goodness.
At the end
of the episode, Tom showed glimpses of his growing comedic skill
as well in Clark's fifth act scenes with Chloe and Lois. In
the scene at the Planet, he showed subtly how Clark's feelings
may have changed toward Chloe and his jealousy rise when it
was clear that Chloe has moved on. His reaction to a suddenly-off-the-market-
Chloe was skillfully humorous. In the scene in Lois' hospital
room, the uncomfortable pause when Clark unconsciously showed
affection for her was extremely well played and added some needed
humor to the scene. Also, it was a nice hint at the depth their
future relationship.
Kristin
Kreuk was terrific in this episode. She's getting better each
year. When Zod pinned Lana's hand to the wall, it was just...
wow. That looked really painful and Kristin really portrayed
that amazingly well. Playing pain convincingly like that is
probably extremely difficult to do but she did such a good job
making it look agonizing. Later, when Lana had to try and get
close to Zod to have a chance to use the dagger on him, she
portrayed Lana's intentions in that scene beautifully. She played
Lana with the right balance between anger and sensuality, resolve
and fear.
Annette
O'Toole was fantastic, especially in the Fortress scene confronting
Jor-El. She went through a huge range of emotions in that scene
and played each moment so powerfully and believably. The moments
she played were so specific, from fear for Clark's welfare to
anger at Jor-El's manipulations. I had no problem understanding
what she was thinking... It's always a treat to watch her work.
Michael
Rosenbaum didn't play Zod as an over the top hothead, as I think
would be so easy to do. His Zod was very different from Lex.
Zod's seduction of Lana was harsh and calculating, where Lex
in a similar situation would have had shown a far more tender,
even if a calculating, passion.
When Zod
pinned Lana to the wall, it wasn't because of hate or that he
was intentionally being cruel. It was simply a means to an end.
He wanted her to stay put while he went and got what he needed
from the Pentagon and Michael played it that coldly practical.
It was beautiful how casually evil Zod was, so totally unlike
the conflicted nature of Lex's evil-doing ways.
Allison
Mack did a great job. She played Chloe's wide range of emotions
in the episode expertly. From Chloe's fiery determination to
help do something to fix the chaos that Fine's computer virus
started, to flirting with Jimmy (Aaron Ashmore) in a very cute,
charismatic way.
Too bad
Erica Durance had the thankless job of playing Lois as unconscious
during most of this episode but I suppose she did well with
what little she had to work with. The scene between Lois and
Clark in the hospital was very nice and she played the uncomfortable
moment well and helped make it more humorous.
One of the
reasons I love Smallville so much is that it is such a beautiful
show. Its better shot and more attractively designed than many
movies.... This episode was no exception.
Director
of Photography Glen Winter did a beautiful job turning whatever
cold, wet location they filmed at in British Columbia into looking
like it was a dry, desert wasteland. I don't know how he accomplished
that, but whatever he did it looked great. The lighting in the
dying Fortress of Solitude was also gorgeous and really helped
reinforce the thought that it was dying.
I don't
usually mention the costume designs, but the costumes of the
people in the Phantom Zone were extremely well designed and
executed. The costumes were sort of Bedouin/Arabian looking
and they really tied in well with the desert-like environment.
I liked the textures in the fabrics they wore and the primitive,
distressed look to the costumes. Also, I liked the touch that
Raya's robes were all darker variations of Superman's primary
colors... It showed perhaps that she was truly an ally of Clark's,
despite her seeming betrayal of him at one point. Costume Designer
Caroline Cranstoun did an excellent job.
James Philbott's
production designs were great. The Phantom Zone set pieces had
a wonderfully organic feel to them. The tents and the gateway
looked like they almost grew out of the ground. The designs
in the Phantom Zone were beautiful but dark, unlike the more
bright and colorful designs usually used in Smallville, which
was exactly what a place like the Phantom Zone needed. Also,
I loved the updated, yet traditional, Superman Crest used in
this episode. The reverse relief of the Superman Crest that
Clark used to open the gateway was an especially nice touch.
The Special
Effects, which are usually high caliber in Smallville's season
premieres, were more impressive than usual. In the beginning
the crystalline prison Clark found himself in was especially
creative. I was surprised when it wasn't hard and gave a little
when Clark banged on it with his fists and pushed down on it
with his foot. The phantoms were also extremely creepy. And
I LOVED it when Zod was hitting Clark in the face over and over
and gradually smashed that granite boulder at the same time.
That fight scene finally gave Clark an exciting super-powered
fight that far exceeded anything we've seen thus far in Smallville,
especially given the underwhelming fight in last season's premiere,
and the F/X added to that.
Zod was
truly a stellar episode and probably one of the best single
episodes of the series. From the top down everyone put their
best work into this production and it showed.
I give this
episode 5 shiny Superman-Crest-shaped crystals out of a possible
5.
Note:
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