Smallville. Is it a decent show?
POSTED BY: OPPYH
UPDATED: Tuesday, September 14, 2010 23:34
VIEWED: 6824
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The comparison to BUFFY is definitely valid... and shows where the show fails. What ultimately elevates BUFFY to greatness (other than the quality of writing) is that the show is about a female character in a role that is traditionally male. Flip it back to a male lead and there's really nothing special about it.
Having said that, the show is decent overall. It has a lot going for it, including a fairly strong cast. Allison Mack, Jon Scheider, and Marc Rosenbaum are all amazing. Tom Welling does a solid job as Clark, and most of the others are strong. Kristen Kreuk, unfortuntately, is terrible, and the Lana/Clark relationship, which should be sweet and endearing, is consistently flat and empty. (In late seasons, Erica Durance, as Lois, brings the same "I don't quite belong on this particular show" feel).
The creators do a good job of making the Superman mythos interesting, which is hard to do in the long-term because he's so... super. Like BUFFY, each season has a season-long arc, but unfortunately, a few of the seasons fall totally flat, so when you start a new season, you never quite know what you're going to get.
The show relies fairly heavily on guest stars, both other characters from the DC Universe and "stunt-casting" stars. In general, there are more successes than failures in both cases, but when they fail, they can fail spectacularly. Some of the "guest" episodes are almost as painful to watch as Schwarzenegger in a Batman movie.
All in all, though, if you're looking to expand your geek empire, SMALLVILLE is a good, solid choice. I would recommend SUPERNATURAL first, however. The first season is a little spotty, but it gets consistently better with time.
www.stillflying.net: "Here's how it might have been..."
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Quote:
Originally posted by GWEK:
I would recommend SUPERNATURAL first, however. The first season is a little spotty, but it gets consistently better with time.
I have seen a few episodes of Supernatural and really enjoy it. I see they have the Blu-Rays out of most seasons. I am certainly going to get into that show also.
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70's TV FOREVER
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I couldn't get into it. I thought the pilot was surprisingly good, but the show got old quickly. I kept comparing it to Buffy and it just consistently fell short in the humor department, particularly.
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I stopped watching after season five, I was pretty annoyed by that point. The creators of the show promised that it wouldn't become a zombie, that they would end it after five years, and that they wouldn't leave Smallville and Clark wouldn't become Superman. They lied. They lied!
It did start out as a pretty fun show, though. I'd ask less whether you can stand Clark and more whether you can stand Lana. That girl really got on my nerves.
I also think it's funny that Tom Welling wouldn't even consider playing Superman in the movie, because he "didn't want to always be Superman." Well, guess what, Tom...
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Quote:
Originally posted by GWEK:
The comparison to BUFFY is definitely valid... and shows where the show fails. What ultimately elevates BUFFY to greatness (other than the quality of writing) is that the show is about a female character in a role that is traditionally male. Flip it back to a male lead and there's really nothing special about it.
I think it's all the writing personally. The Smallville writing has like zero wit to it. The only villainous character with any depth is Lex. The villains are all about build up and they never seem to pay off at all. It always seems like things are building to a big showdown. No, there's never any big showdown.
Really only the Lex/Clark relationship was ever any good. It could only stretch out so long though.
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Quote:
Originally posted by OPPYH:Quote:
Originally posted by GWEK:
I would recommend SUPERNATURAL first, however. The first season is a little spotty, but it gets consistently better with time.
I have seen a few episodes of Supernatural and really enjoy it. I see they have the Blu-Rays out of most seasons. I am certainly going to get into that show also.
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70's TV FOREVER
I just started watching that myself, after catching some re-runs over the summer. It hooked me FAST, now I'm tearing through the DVDs.
"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."
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Most points made (in favor) so far seem spot on to me: I say do it.
I only add, as it's been hardly brushed upon, LEX ROCKS. Remember how lamely Annikin sprinted from creepy/cute little kid, to arrogant teenager, to galactic, mind-killing bad ass? Well Lex goes insane, (ever so) slowly, for five long years. His path(y) alone is worth the price of admission.
Hope you enjoy!
--WhoDied
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Yeah, we're mostly just giving each other significant glances and laughing incessantly.
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