Did I really think Lionel was going to pull the trigger?

Dang, six weeks ago was a long time, and I must have been caught up in some pow'ful hoodoo to believe that would happen midseason. At least on Smallville -- this ain't Deadwood, you know.

Actually, I must confess I was so painfully out of stride that I didn't even remember about Lionel and his gun until the first close-up. Of course, there was no way he could go through with it, and it's a testament to the momentum of the last episode that I thought there might be a chance.

He is halted by a return to his favorite erstwhile obsession, the caves. And that accursed metal octagon. Which, along with Christopher Reeve's Dr. Swann, means that this is a mythos-heavy episode, so let's get right on with it.

"Fathers often want futures that their sons reject."

As if recovering from heart surgery wasn't enough, Jonathan is dealing with the emotional fallout from that ultimate price Jor-El was asking. The hidden octagon sings to him, passing along messages that may or may not portend doom for Jonathan, Clark, Clark's secret, Lionel or Dr. Swann. The meaning isn't clear, but it's clearly not good, if it leads Jonathan to brooding.

At first I took it for a sign of his impending mortality, but I think (and hope) it's something more complex than that. Especially in light of his repeated lectures to Clark about taking responsibility for his own actions rather than blaming the unseen evil that is Jor-El, I think Jonathan is annoyed at himself for interfering in Clark's path, making things unnecessarily complicated for everyone in the aftermath because of his own selfish concerns. But what's done is done.

What's done, in this context, includes taking a shotgun to Lionel Luthor's face, a ridiculous fist fight between the two, and a very well-done scene with Clark in a graveyard.

"Some things are too valuable to be the sole possession of any one person."

Ah yes, the octagon. After Jonathan takes it down to the caves, it does its miraculous thing in front of Lionel and everyone and disappears --sorta -- into the cave walls. Somehow, and please feel free to correct me if I really did just miss the method of delivery, it winds up in Dr. Swann's possession. Good. Now it might just stay put. Don't really anticipate him taking it on a world tour or anything. Or showing up for a guest spot often enough for it to be an issue.

Although Lionel did in fact mean the octagon, Jonathan knows that ultimately leads to Clark, and that goes again to the root of the Jor-El business. It hits a little too close to home for Jonathan, who does want to protect his son and keep him at home, as I imagine every parent does in some way. Jor-El, good or ill, is urging Clark to separate from his Earth parents and go out into the world and reveal himself.

Hence the secret identity, Superman, who is neither Clark Kent nor Kal-El, the compromise between both worlds.

Yes, I'm getting ahead of myself, and (good or ill) of this show. I might be reading into things a bit much, but that's the fanboy prerogative. Ask me sometime about R2-D2 and Obi-Wan Kenobi.

"Weakness isn't something you're born with, you learn it. And Clark learned his from you."

Begging the question, is this truly a weakness? Most Superman continuities posit Clark's humanity as one of his strengths, and while Lionel doesn't know the depth of this statement, it certainly drops yet another weight on Jonathan's shoulders -- should he let his son go to Jor-El to prevent human weaknesses from contaminating him further? Which of them truly would be the better father?

Yes, aside from the silly fist-fight, the showdown in the caves was fabulous. Of course, that's all in subtext, for which I credit the script's reasonably restrained dialogue and the understated, excellent performance of John Schneider. Please don't die, Pa.

Not that this show is really going to be in the running, but this episode was the equivalent of an Emmy reel for Schneider, so much so that not much else registered beyond the cursory: Lex is working with the FBI to bring down his father for some uncertain purpose, Swann is still reclusive, Lex and Lionel continue their standoff over who suspects Clark of what, and Lana...

Oh, lawd, not this again. When Clark, rather believably really, kisses Lana, he is mostly trying to cope with his emotions for his father's illness, erratic behavior and his own issues with Jor-El's role in the aforementioned. To her credit, Lana seems to realize that at the time. But that doesn't stop her from overanalyzing it and trying to pull away... again.

It could be interesting this time, if Clark would only follow her lead and get on with his life, or if she could be relied upon to not require rescuing in the the next two episodes which would probably just squeeze more blood from this stone... oh, no, wait. Nope. That's not going to happen, so it won't be interesting.

It's a bad sign that the inevitable backsliding into Clark+Lana=soulmates territory has sped up so fast, and I can't say I'm too excited to see how much more blatant foreshadowing of Jonathan's death they'll throw at us (remembering here that I am spoiler-free, and my apologies to the rest of you if I sound like a total moron) but I can say this: these next six episodes will make or break the show's future. I can feel it.

And on that slightly strange but sincere melodramatic note, I'll see you all next week.

 

Sarah Stanek