Smallville 6.20: "Noir"

Written by Brian Peterson and Kelly Souders
Directed by Jeannot Szwarc

This episode appears to be the integration of two desires: first, to set up the situation for the season finale, and second, to let the cast play in a classic noir version of “Smallville”. Trying to appease both desires might have been a bad idea, because while the two eventually integrate, it seems a bit disconnected.

I watch “Smallville” after “Supernatural” each and every week, and this scheduling shuffle might have made this episode look less impressive in comparison. Both shows featured an episode that presented an “alternate reality” that was generated out of the wishes, hopes, and fears of a single character. The rest of the cast was rendered through the filter of the character’s dream world.

Comparing the two episodes, “Smallville” comes up a bit short. The cast of “Supernatural” had it a bit easier; they were playing a relatively normal set of roles, and only Sam had to act subtly out of his normal character. “Smallville”, on the other hand, asked its cast to portray noir-esque versions of themselves, and that was a tall order. Classic noir has a style and cadence that is distinctly different from modern patterns of speech and body language.

Some cast members were able to pull it off. Chloe and Clark were mostly up to the challenge, and Lois had it easy enough (once again used as eye candy). Jimmy was spotty, but he had a lot more material to cover and one could conceive a reason why he might slip between his true personality and his fantasy. Lex, Lana, and Lionel sounded and looked like people completely out of their element. In fact, Lana was the least convincing character in the fantasy world, acting more like someone trying to play the femme fatale instead of being one.

As mentioned, had this been a more serious attempt at such a departure, it would have been a problem. Because it was effectively Jimmy’s mind coming up with a way to communicate a subconscious piece of information (the cigarette case), the shortcomings are easier to overlook. It’s not unlike the “Roswell” episode “Summer of ‘47”, where past events were filtered through one character’s mental filter. Modern characterizations and nostalgic notions combined, and any inability on the cast’s part to lend veracity to the unfamiliar was easily explained. (It still doesn’t necessarily mean that this “alternate reality” revealed much about Jimmy himself, unless he really sees the women in his world in such an unflattering and archaic light.)

In terms of the “real world”, Lana is playing both Luthors against the middle, and it’s not going well for her. Her injury in this episode could be foreshadowing; if she continues to maneuver to protect Clark in her own way, she could end up dead in the process, especially if Clark isn’t there to save her. Chloe and Lois are squarely in the middle as well. The character motivations are still a bit confusing, but the bottom line is that Lex and Lionel are once again vying for control with everyone else in the killing ground.

Speaking of Lex, his current Project: Ares is an odd departure from the established Project 33.1. Like many of the Luthor schemes of previous seasons, having too many going on at once is a recipe for confusion and potential continuity errors. One can assume that Ares is the product of 33.1, but it would be better for the writers to clarify that upfront. Instead, it feels like a major plot thread disappeared, only to be replaced in the final few episodes. That’s exactly what happened at the end of the fifth season, and it would be a shame to see it happen again.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 7/10