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Comment by Jose Antonio Rivera on June 7, 2010 at 6:42pm

Wow! I really missed a lot in the short time I was gone, huh?

Cat, you make a lot of really good points here. My favorite point of yours was one I never really thought about in terms of the writers trying too hard to focus on Lois and Clark's relationship. As a life long Superman fan, I'm kind of used to that by now but when I think back to all the potentially great stories they could have told in this show, a lot of them are side-stepped because we had to have 10 minutes of Lana and Clark scenes in the barn (seriously, how many times did we have that same damned ending over the course of this season) or another Clark/Lois date that didn't quite pan out?

I don't mind the romance angle to the story, but the problem is it's become so entwined with the formula of the show that we have to sit through those cringing moments to get to the the good stuff, which doesn't last as long as the romance we had to endure.

As for the idea of Lana returning...yeah...NO. No more Lana! You wanna talk about a character who went down a ridiculous path on this show? Perfect example! I liked that they tried not to make her a victim but honestly was a super suit really necessary? I might have even bought the whole Lana/Lex thing but even that wore thinner than an air mattress under Rosanne.

Staff Comment by Fungusmonkey on May 21, 2010 at 1:55pm

@Cat - I just proposed that length because it's been my experience that it's the perfect amount of time in which to tell a full story in a television series format. Sure, if the writers all kicked ass, they could go for longer, but the way that television studios work and the kinds of writers they have working in the industry right now... a short season could be better. UK shows have adapted that format as well - shorter series where a central story is introduced and completed, then moving on for the next series. One of the reasons I feel that the American "season" format fails most often is because they have 20 episodes to fill, and the result is a handful of good eps and just a ton of filler to take up time.

Comment by Cat on May 21, 2010 at 2:52am

You know, the idea of it being Lana had occurred to me, albeit briefly. I was trying to remember if the woman's hands looked old, or of an indeterminate age... (and I knew you were being silly about Lex in drag; but, like I said, what with the stupid stuff the writers have been doing, you never know...)

Comment by Denis McElwaine on May 20, 2010 at 9:26pm

I put put the idea of Lex in drag up there just because it is the sort of stupid thing that happens in tv shows. As long as it is not Lana. She reminds me of the wheelchair kid in Malcolm in the Middle too much.

Comment by Cat on May 20, 2010 at 12:54pm

@Denis Nixon jar head & @Jose: My money is on Granny Goodness. It would be silly for Lex to show up at the hospital in drag (though given the way the writers have been going lately...) Though there's always the chance that she was sent by him.

Comment by Cat on May 20, 2010 at 10:50am

@Pete: I disagree with the 11-hour format you'd propose. I think the final season deserves a full treatment, but it all needs to be focused on the main storyline. At this point, they have introduced so many characters that they could explore the main arc in every single episode, fleshing out different aspects of the storyline via those characters and, at the same time, indulging in some serious character development. They have been moving toward Metropolis and away from Smallville for three seasons now, and this would set them up perfectly for a spinoff.

As to Jose's comment, that the writers and producers need to make the show appeal to as wide an audience as possible:
True, but that doesn't excuse the bullshit they've indulged in this season. Good writing is good writing, and they don't need to pander to the stupidest common denominator in order to gain a larger audience. They can include those elements that are seen as drawing in the "wider audience," (by which they really mean the Gossip Girl demographic) without making them silly and derailing the plot. Plenty of story arcs in DC Comics superhero titles involve emotions and relationships; hell, just think about "Blackest Night:" it's all about the emotional spectrum and internal and interpersonal conflict and relationships. (Granted, I've only read the preludes so far, because I can't spend all that money on individual issues, and I get frustrated waiting for the next issue, so I wait for things to be released in trade. But this is what I've seen in everything I've read so far.) In fact, the writers and producers of Smallville would do well to remember that there is an entire spectrum of emotions to be explored, not just love.

The problem with the Smallville writers, however, is that they are focusing too much on the relationship between Lois and Clark, to the detriment of the story, and of the development of them as characters. I suspect that someone in this horde of writers and producers really wants to be writing or producing romantic comedies, and they're using Smallville as their testing ground. The relationship that is being written properly is the one between Chloe and Oliver. It is a part of their characters' storylines, but not the main focus. I think the way the Lois & Clark storyline is written is part of the reason that I've never really liked Lois. I absolutely hated her when she first showed up. I no longer have a strong dislike for her, but neither do I care about her as a character. She comes off as a nitwit, not someone with the smarts to be a star reporter. I am occasionally reminded of the only episode of Lois & Clark that I remember (I watched it for a while, but it was truly forgettable) when she's sent to the future where everyone knows that Clark is Superman, and that the question everyone asked about Lois was, "How dumb was she? [that she couldn't figure it out]" Lois is used far too frequently for comic relief, and far too frequently in the storyline as a whole.

The story of Clark becoming Superman is not the story of his romance with Lois. And it's the story of Clark Kent struggling with his identity and his destiny that Smallville originally set out to tell. They are coming to the end of this story, and if they want (and the Powers that Be at the CW grant the indulgence) they can take up the next story, of the Justice League. But they can't do that if they keep treating this show as if only three of its viewers care about how they treat the history and mythology of the DC Universe.

Comment by Jose Antonio Rivera on May 20, 2010 at 10:47am

All signs would appear to point to the first one, Denis. But, I think with it being so vague, if the writers wanted to, they could change who that was because we never saw a face. It's kind of like the end of last season when they introduced Zod, but never showed his face. This way, they have an established villain, but they could cast the role later. This is a little different in that we weren't told WHO it was, all we can do is speculate. But the evidence heavily suggests it's Granny Goodness.

Comment by Denis McElwaine on May 20, 2010 at 10:05am

Granny goodness, Lex in drag or some other unknown entity. If you saw the episode you know what I am talking about.

Staff Comment by Fungusmonkey on May 19, 2010 at 6:35pm

You make some good points. I'd say that Smallville is like 90% filler, though. Even the "important" episodes have a lot of whinging on about this or that. If I could control the next season, I'd drop the series down to 10 episodes - 9 hour long eps and 1 two-hour finale. Up the special effects budget and really polish the scripts. Then, I'd make the main story arc follow through EVERY episode because what keeps Smallville from becoming any good is all that lame crap you have to wade through for a few really awesome scenes. Then, I'd put him in the damn suit already (they should have done that back before all this "Blur" nonsense happened), have him learn to fly already (again, should have been done a long time ago) and finally sort out all this JLA/Watchtower stuff. End the season with Clark beating the big bad foe, and then deciding to leave Metropolis to save the world for a few years (so that he can come back afterwards as Superman and no one will recognize them as the same guy). The end.

Comment by Jose Antonio Rivera on May 19, 2010 at 3:02pm

I would like to chime in on this, if I may. I've left some of my thoughts on Cat's page, but I really wanna go more into smaller details.

The good thing about season 9 is that they built up Zod to the point where I really enjoyed the confrontation in the finale. Unlike Doomsday, which turned out to be a total dissapointment both in character and in the season finale, Zod was a threat throughout the whole season. They used him sparingly and when he was used, he was used to full effect.

I've also enjoyed the hints of what's to come. Doctor Fate clearly stated Lex is still out there. I couldn't be happier. I know we'll probably never see Rosenbaum as Lex again, but keep in mind we said the same thing about seeing Martha and Perry White's return. So, hopefully one day we'll see the return of Lex Luthor to the show.

The one thing I would urge the producers to do is to not only keep a steady pace, but continue getting strong writers. A lot of the time we deal with cringe-worthy dialogue. We also have writers who set up these big moments only to have the payoff not be what it should be thanks to budgetary restraints. If you're going to build a story, make it pay off. Don't cut corners, don't cheap out simply because you have 40-50 minutes to tell a story and you wasted so much time setting it up. Use the time to your advantage.

Have a set direction. That's the most important part. Over the past few years we've had a storyline that stretched through the entire season. For the most part, they've always stuck to that. What I'd like to see for their final season is to stick to whatever story they have and not do so many filler episodes. Especially with season 10 being the last season, you don't have episodes to waste. So, make them count.

All in all, I like what they've done with this season, but I agree with Cat in that we need stronger writing, less filler and more substance.