Reviews 

Smallville Review: "Conspiracy"

By | February 28th, 2010
Posted in Reviews | % Comments
Oh don’t worry, I SAW you, don’t be so HOSTEL…

In this week’s episode, it was another bit of plot momentum along with some points to which I have to touch upon. Check them out after the jump.

Synopsis: Kandorians were being abducted under very mysterious circumstances, and they came to Clark for help, with Major Zod being a general pest and pissing and moaning that he didn’t have the powers he never had. But some of the Kandorians decided that they might be able to assimilate into Human Culture. This kidnapper, who has a surprising connection to the Kandorians, sees this as an invasion and does what he can to stop it.

What Worked: Bernard Chisholm (portrayed by J.R. Bourne) was portrayed well, as a paranoid and scared person who had terrible things done to him without his permission. The clone of Faora (Zod’s wife; played by Sharon Taylor) is a fantastic actress and I actually see her playing Renee Montoya if they ever decide to make a Gotham Central show or a Question movie. Callum Blue is still blowing it out of the water as the ersatz Zod and his perma-sneer is one of the best things about the show. The romantic tension between Oliver and Chloe works really well, even if it’s a little wonk for comic fans. The consequence of Clark saving Zod may bite him in the ass more than he might like.

What didn’t work: While J.R. Bourne played the character well, the concept of the character was weird, and the scenes in his lab played out like a deleted scene from SAW or Hostel. I’m not a fan of torture porn and it doesn’t belong in a show starring Superman. Batman…maybe, but definitely not Superman. There’s a scene where Zod goes undercover at the Daily Planet in order to find his missing soldiers, and everything is done in a slow mo shot that reminded me of one of those cheesy scenes from 300 (I DID like the movie mind you, but they were a tad cheesy). Zod getting healed by Clark’s blood struck me as a cheap plot device, as well as one stolen from Heroes. I actually found myself cringing seeing a single drop of Clark’s blood completely and utterly healing Zod’s wounds.

Things to Look Forward to: The blossoming romance between Oliver and Chloe, while it has zero chance of being permanent (unless they pretend that Black Canary doesn’t exist.) brings more to Chloe’s table than being the Oracle that can walk. And while I thought the plot device that gave Zod his new super powers was really annoying and stupid, the fact he HAS powers now makes things a lot worse for Clark in the near future.

Observation that really doesn’t fit anywhere but must be said: Poor Chloe, she’s like skirting the honor of being in-canon, while never actually getting there. First she’s in love with Clark (and we know how that went), then she marries Jimmy, who not only turns out to not be OUR Jimmy Olsen, but dies in the process. Now she’s dating Oliver, who we all know will marry Black Canary eventually. It’s a tough break for such a promising character that should end up in the comics sooner or later.

Overall: This episode was enjoyable, but not all that challenging for the actors involved. There was solid plot development but the hokey villain killed some of the excitement.

Final Verdict: Surf


//TAGS | Smallville

Gilbert Short

Gilbert Short. The Man. The Myth. The Legend. When he's not reading comic books so you don't have to, he's likely listening to mediocre music or watching excellent television. Passionate about Giants baseball and 49ers football. When he was a kid he wanted to be The Ultimate Warrior. He still kind of does. His favorite character is Superman and he will argue with you about it if you try to convince him otherwise. He also happens to be the head of Social Media Relations, which means you should totally give him a follow onTwitter.

EMAIL | ARTICLES


  • Reviews
    Smallville – "Finale" Review

    By | May 17, 2011 | Reviews

    I am not a Smallville fan. As odd as that may be to say when beginning a review of the Smallville review, it’s the truth. I have watched a handful of episodes (three of which were written by Geoff Johns), and all my interactions with the show have pretty much been by proxy. I am only really […]

    MORE »
    Reviews
    Smallville Review: Shield

    By | Oct 2, 2010 | Reviews

    This week on Smallville, we saw the appearance of Deadshot and the return of Carter Hall, better known as Hawkman. No pleasantries today, how did I feel about it?There’s no getting around this, this episode was utter crap. There wasn’t one bit of decent in this show at all. It was SO bad, as a […]

    MORE »
    Reviews
    Smallville Review: "Lazarus"

    By | Sep 25, 2010 | Reviews

    Smallville is back! 10 years later, they’re back airing their final season. This is it. This is the season he finally flies. It’s the season the suit finds its way onto his body. Here he finally faces…Darkseid?YES, Darkseid seems to be the big bad of the ultimate season of the show about the big blue […]

    MORE »

    -->