Smallville 5.7: "Splinter"
Written by Steven S. DeKnight
Directed by James Marshall
In which Clark becomes infected by silver Kryptonite, which has the unfortunate side effect of making him intensely paranoid, all to the benefit of another Kryptonian in his midst…
After three less than inspiring epsiodes, the writers finally return to more substantial storytelling ground. Nothing that happens in this episode is particularly original, but it’s still a lot of fun to watch Clark go into Ultra Oliver Stone mode. More importantly, Professor Fine gets to put his Kryptonian origins on his sleeve and bring the apparent arc for the fifth season into sharper focus.
As usual, the first 6-7 episodes are the “introduction” phase of the arc, and the transition into “complication” begins here. I take the past several episodes within that context, and try not to worry over the course of the rest of the season. It should be more like this episode, if I have any sense of where the story is going. In other words, we ought to see a more direct exploration of Clark’s choice between taking control of humanity or serving as humanity’s champion.
We all know where it’s supposed to go, and nothing in this episode suggests otherwise. I actually hope against hope that the situation will be more nuanced; wouldn’t be great if Fine wasn’t quite the villain that everyone anticipates? It’s entirely possible for him to operate within the same morally grey areas as Lex, only on the Kryptonian side of the equation.
As it is, Clark gets to realize that being paranoid doesn’t mean that someone isn’t hiding the truth or out to get you. And for that matter, Lex has clearly been trying to get his hooks into Lana for years. One has to wonder how many of the paranoid delusions were fed by Clark’s secret fears, based on what his subconscious keeps telling him and he keeps ignoring.
The usual things were a lot of fun: Marsters did a great job with the role of Professor Fine (he seems more and more comfortable with every new episode), Lex and his use of Lana has some interesting possibilities, and Chloe’s revelation that she knows about Clark ought to shake things up. I’m a little worried about that whole “I’d die before giving up your secret” thing, because I still think it’s blatant foreshadowing.
Speaking of Chloe, I wanted to clarify a couple statements. I mentioned that the producers seem to want to have it both ways with Chloe. Often, she is portrayed as very conservative with her appearance. Yet quite often, she has a mow-cut top with cleavage prominently displayed. This is an episode with plenty of examples. Not that this is bad at all, but it’s a little odd for an outfit to be designed specifically to highlight Chloe’s chest if she’s supposed to be the conservative one!
Anyway, what else is there to say? I love how easy it is to figure out that Fine is behind the whole situation, and how the writers let the audience just go along for the ride as the truth is revealed. There were a few missed opportunities along the way, since I was waiting for more continuity references throughout, but there’s enough to keep me happy. In fact, that’s probably the best way to summarize my take on the episode.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
Directed by James Marshall
In which Clark becomes infected by silver Kryptonite, which has the unfortunate side effect of making him intensely paranoid, all to the benefit of another Kryptonian in his midst…
After three less than inspiring epsiodes, the writers finally return to more substantial storytelling ground. Nothing that happens in this episode is particularly original, but it’s still a lot of fun to watch Clark go into Ultra Oliver Stone mode. More importantly, Professor Fine gets to put his Kryptonian origins on his sleeve and bring the apparent arc for the fifth season into sharper focus.
As usual, the first 6-7 episodes are the “introduction” phase of the arc, and the transition into “complication” begins here. I take the past several episodes within that context, and try not to worry over the course of the rest of the season. It should be more like this episode, if I have any sense of where the story is going. In other words, we ought to see a more direct exploration of Clark’s choice between taking control of humanity or serving as humanity’s champion.
We all know where it’s supposed to go, and nothing in this episode suggests otherwise. I actually hope against hope that the situation will be more nuanced; wouldn’t be great if Fine wasn’t quite the villain that everyone anticipates? It’s entirely possible for him to operate within the same morally grey areas as Lex, only on the Kryptonian side of the equation.
As it is, Clark gets to realize that being paranoid doesn’t mean that someone isn’t hiding the truth or out to get you. And for that matter, Lex has clearly been trying to get his hooks into Lana for years. One has to wonder how many of the paranoid delusions were fed by Clark’s secret fears, based on what his subconscious keeps telling him and he keeps ignoring.
The usual things were a lot of fun: Marsters did a great job with the role of Professor Fine (he seems more and more comfortable with every new episode), Lex and his use of Lana has some interesting possibilities, and Chloe’s revelation that she knows about Clark ought to shake things up. I’m a little worried about that whole “I’d die before giving up your secret” thing, because I still think it’s blatant foreshadowing.
Speaking of Chloe, I wanted to clarify a couple statements. I mentioned that the producers seem to want to have it both ways with Chloe. Often, she is portrayed as very conservative with her appearance. Yet quite often, she has a mow-cut top with cleavage prominently displayed. This is an episode with plenty of examples. Not that this is bad at all, but it’s a little odd for an outfit to be designed specifically to highlight Chloe’s chest if she’s supposed to be the conservative one!
Anyway, what else is there to say? I love how easy it is to figure out that Fine is behind the whole situation, and how the writers let the audience just go along for the ride as the truth is revealed. There were a few missed opportunities along the way, since I was waiting for more continuity references throughout, but there’s enough to keep me happy. In fact, that’s probably the best way to summarize my take on the episode.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
posted by John Keegan | 11:38
1 Comments:
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