Smallville#8-11: "Legion" Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS>

But it still won't make it the truth

 

Battlestar Galactica is the most overrated piece of crap ever conceived.

 

Watching it for the second time tonight, my opinion dropped a lot, and for me it's no where near as satisfying as "Justice".

Clark was, until about the 3/4 point in the show, perfectly willing to kill Chloe, until Lana talks him out of it. All the crap about how Clark inspires everyone at the end is just, well, crap.

Meanwhile, at the end when he decides there's no way Chloe's going to die, he has no idea how he's going to save her without killing everyone on the planet, with about twelve minutes to figure it out.

It would have made more sense if he was committed to saving Chloe all through the show, and he and Lana spent their time figuring out a plan, and he knew what he was going to do long before the last minute.

As it was, the only reason he didn't have to kill Chloe was because it happened to be Cosmic Boy and Lightning Lad that came back, not Bouncing Boy and Matter Eater Lad. Sheer coincidence and circumstance, or he would have had to kill her anyway. So his conviction doesn't really mean anything.

Now something I realized watching, there's no way that the Legion would be so personally familiar with Clark, to the point of calling him "Kal" like he was their best friend, if they hadn't met him before. Would I go back in time and expect to be on a first name basis like that with Charlemange and Roland, no matter how many miracles I was performing for them? If they come back in time and Clark is going by the name "Clark", then they would call him "Clark". It's a silly little nit, but their behaviour just doesn't seem right.

The details of Clark's history are a little too detailed, like his baseball, but I'll write that off to humour. But knowing the details of the exact date that Brainiac was destroyed? There is no record of that, it would only be what Clark decided to write down or speak of decades or even centuries later. It just wouldn't be that worth mentioning.

Moreover, the Legion wouldn't know anything about Brainiac that Clark didn't know, because what would be the source of the information? And how would Clark learn anything once Brainiac was destroyed? So how do they know that Brainiac's host being destroyed would even stop him?

Finally, Brainiac's master plan makes no sense. We've seen in past season what Brainiac would do if Clark never came to earth, and it isn't drain it of all knowledge and then let Doomsday destroy it. So the whole thing just seems made up for this ep, ignoring what happened the previous season.

This all stands out, and reading comments about how this is the best season ever, Smallville's finally on track, this is better than "Justice", etc don't ring true with this episode. It's a fun, easter egg filled episode with some cool guest stars, but it's hardly a "great" episode, and it's no more coherent than anything else in the series.

 

There are definatelly flaws in the episode...Justice had flaws in the episode, but I think overall that Geoff did a pretty good job attempting to Smallville-ize the Legion and incorperate some of the comic continuity into Smallville. I felt the Brianiac plan was a little off myself and that Johns was attempting to incorperate some of the Colun Brainiac into the Smallville version, we even got the "logo" on the computer screens that was cool.

As for the details of Clark's history...remember that in the 31st Century that Superman is a core foundation of the United Planet's belifes and a lot of his past would've been preserved, especially considering if Superman was still around. There was a Superman musuem in the animated LOSH.

 

Finally got though all 6000 posts...

I just had to quote this bit of dialog. Sorry guys, it's just too funny.

I don't know. I missed it. I'll have to catch this episode again tomorrow to make sure.

Definately have to check this episode out again.

Yes. Like the "O-face" and the afterglow face.

Good episode. Entertaining as usual. And yes, Chloe was hot and radiant and pretty as usual.

I have no idea why Chloe wouldn't be known in the future, but some of the theories posted here are good ones. For now, I'm just taking it as Smallville's nod to the fact that she's never been a part of the mythos before. That and the other Superman/Smallville's-take-on-Superman jabs were nice touches. That Lightening Lad fella should have mentioned the name "Superman" though.

Best part of the episode was the Legion giving Clark a ring. I hope they do indeed make an episode where he travels to the future.

 

I'm also glad that Chloe got her memory back. I knew it would happen, I just didn't think it would happen so soon.

 

The look on her face as BrainIAC is begining to be pulled from her has her giving a slightly orgasmic expression and then after it's over, or soon after when she's revived, she has a definite "afterglow" look about her.

Damn. *I* need to watch this again.

 

^ You're right. Though in some of the Doomsday/BrainIAC scenes she reminded me more of a zombie than anything.

 

Well if you'd ever managed to please a girl you might have noticed the difference.

 

^ I've done that (you do know I'm engaged don't you?). I need to quit scanning the posts that I read. The opening scenes of her awakening were what Trekker was talking about. For some reason I was thinking he meant the scenes between her and Doomsday. There she looked like a zombie.

 

Most of the time when she was up and walking around with the double blackeyes yeah she looked a bit like a zombie -thought it was kind of a cool look esp. when at one point her eyes were completely blacked out and you could really only see her (CGI enhanced) whites.

But, yeah, the "o-face"/afterglow look was when she was laying on the dais being "cured."

 

don't mind me, i'm just checking up on the last few pages

 

Like I say, things like "This is the baseball you hit...", there's no way that would be in a museum, unless they had the ball in the museum, but they didn't... But anyway that was just for fun and to emphasise Garth's personality, so I'm cool with it.

The thing I can't wrap my head around is the details they know about Brianiac. Up until Persuader arrives, Clark should have taken the crystal and zapped him and that was that. So at no time in the future does Clark ever learn more about Brianiac than he knows now, which is next to nothing really.

And up until now, Brainiac has been using human hosts for their trace metals (he'd be better off in the ocean, but whatever), killing them and jumping from host to host.

He could have been killed by that special Kryptonian dagger, but not, to our knowledge, by a letter opener.

He could not, to our knowledge, be killed by killing the host, he just oozes away and finds another.

This is what Clark knew about Brianiac up until now, and what he would have passed on in records and interviews. The Legion should have been convinced that Lightning Lad had to electrocute him.

The level of detail that the Legion had memorized, only makes sense if they are Star Trek geeks who argue about canon all the time... Well, like us really. Which could be true. Would have been funnier if they'd played that part up in the story.

 

I thought that was very strongly implied. They are superheroes due to the inspiration of Superman. Who lived a 1000 years in the past.

In the comics its usually said that there had been a significant drought of superheroes before the Legion appear in their time. It would be the equivalence of deciding to become a medieval Knight in modern times. Complete with sword and armor. Showing that level of interest in an era of the distant past suggests a certain level of geekiness!

The debate about the absence of Chloe from their historical records was a sign of this. They weren't just casually familiarly with Clark's life. But intimately aware of what info had survived to their time.

Clark and Lana's discussion about taking things at their own pace. Not rushing things because its written in some future book. Geoff Johns was using the Legion to take a slight jab at comic book fans. Who expect the show to follow the comic books closer. Being frustrated at Clark's slow path to becoming Superman.

 

That's about the only thing I really liked about this episode, well that and Chloe's hilarious "jilted bride" outfit.

 

I watched it, I'm giving it a SUPER!

What can I say, it was total fan wank. I'm in love with Saturn Girl.

 

Forgive my ignorance, but where is Superman in the 31st century? He should be around right?

 

"Should be" but maybe he's flown of to do other bigger and better things?

 

I didn't know. Congratulations.

I was wondering the same thing and I've been meaning to start a thread on it, so I did.

 

It wasn't shocking... but I wasnt majorly impressed or anything.

I thought the previous episode before it was very good, and I dunno...I just expected something more from this.

I think Season 8 has been very good on the whole so far... Heres hoping the rest gets better!