Smallville finale coming - Catch me up?

Cafe Society
1

My TiVo recorded an episode as a suggestion and I liked it and watched further episodes for a while. I started somewhere in the first season (I think) and made it to, maybe the third?, before life circumstances caused me to stop watching.

Not my favorite show but I was pleasantly surprised at the mature, ‘not gimicky’ style they applied to it. Plus all the hot babes! :smiley:

Anyway, without revealing too many major spoilers (I would like to sit down and watch the whole series someday) can anyone tell me what I need to know to better understand the upcoming final few episodes?

2

Um, wow. you are very, very far behind. The show has become a different show twice since Season 3. (Seasons 1-4, 5-7, 8-10 are pretty different.) Very little of the show is the same, other than the premise of seeing Superman’s life before he was Superman.

Basically forget what you know. Clark is now almost Superman, currently being a costumed vigilante called The (Red and Blue) Blur. He has a bunch of superfriends, his cousin Kara (Supergirl) and Oliver Queen (retired Green Arrow) being the main ones.

Lois made it to Smallville early on, and Lana is finally history due to a plot contrivance. Lois and Clark both live in Metropolis now (where Clark can be a better hero), and are engaged. She has replaced Chloe as the reporter, while Chloe moved on to sidekick status, helping out the Justice League (the superfriends mentioned above), and, like everyone in this paragraph, knows Clark’s secret.

Lex is dead. Or, at least, that’s what he wants us to think. Currently alive is a clone of both him and Clark named Connor Kent, who is currently a good guy. Lex had went entirely evil before he was killed, and knew Clark’s secret. His father Lionel is dead, but a version from an alternate reality is back. He is currently plotting with a new villain called Darthseid, who is semi-corporeal shapeshifter who can possess the non-innocent. He feeds on fear and hate, and is trying to possess Clark to become all-powerful.

There’s a costumed vigilante registration act that was recently a big deal, but is now defunct. Clark and the JLA were all technically fugitives, other than Oliver who acquiesced. This was all led by a guy who Darthseid possessed. The act was defeated with help of Senator Martha Kent who took the job when Jonathan died (a death Clark blames himself for).

Lex was originally replaced by Tess Mercer, who is now a main character, but, like Connor, has also reformed to being good (we think). Lex, when just missing, tried to control her, but she broke free and has been helping Clark most of the time. She was raised back to life by Darthseid, and, while still trying to be good, is supposed to be his servant. We don’t know how that will play out.

The big things everyone expects to happen in the finale is that Clark finally can handle flying on his own, not in a virtual reality, and not as a different person using his body. We also expect him to wear the suit, which he has already seen, but it was taken by the AI copy of Jor-El that lives in the Fortress of Solitude, and is being held until Clark proves he can handle it. (Jor-El also told him when he took it that he will never become the Earth’s greatest hero, but we’re not sure what that means.) We hope that the original Lex may show up, as the actor has not confirmed nor denied his involvement, having left in season 7 after his contract was up.

And that’s all I can think of at the moment. My sister’s the real fan, and I should be seeing her some time today or tomorrow, so I’ll ask her for more information.

3

Oops: I forgot to mention how Chloe helps out the JLA: She is basically the show’s answer to Oracle. She’s become an elite hacker, albeit entirely human. She and Oliver are currently married due to some odd circumstances involving alcohol.

Also, the parenthetical “(we think)” in the Tess paragraph should refer to Connor, not Tess. We know Tess is good–unless her resurrection by Darthseid has changed something.

4

Wow! You’re right, it is a completely different show. I caught a later episode a while back and was confused by seeing seemingly ‘everyone’ as a costumed superhero now. Seemed a little silly too. And is ‘Tess Mercer’ just a play on ‘Miss Tess Marker’, Lex’s squeeze from the films (the films are about all I know, Superman-wise)?

Oh well, I guess I’ll just sit back and watch it all play out. Read an article that all but said that the actor who played Lex will be in the finale.

I’m wondering (and hoping) if they licensed the John Williams music to punch up him finally appearing in the red & blue suit (and flying)…

5

She’s actually a combination character. She’s a combination of Lena Luthor, Mercy Graves, and, yes, Miss Eve Teschmacher, the latter two being Lex’s female sidekicks in the movies. Her full name is Tess Lena Mercer.

I 100% agree. My sister says she’s heard bits of it earlier whenever they show the suit, so I’m very much anticipating that they achieved it.

You see, I’ve, for one reason or another, missed many episodes this season, but my sister, being the fan she is, can’t help discussing the show with me, so she catches me up.

6

I knew that I’d heard something in a preview, this clip from their website confirms that they’ve used some of Williams’ great score already!

7

Smallville was the cover story on last week’s TV Guide. You can read it here, and it says that:

What I want to know is when Clark is finally going to wear his eyeglasses!!! It’s already been mentioned a few times, including when Lois suggested it, and he agreed, but hasn’t actually worn them at all!!! (except for one episode set a few years in the future.)

8

Darkseid. Jack Kirby tended to keep things simple (his opposite was Izaya, aka Highfather).

So Lex Luthor is returning, as is Supergirl (though not in any scenes with Clark, from my understanding). Only 5 episodes left. They could do a comic geek justice to a Darkseid story in 5 episodes, or they could do all the touchy-feely crap that they are known for and rush the main story (glad I only started in season 8, and only backtracked through season 7). My bet is they spend too much time on all their relationships and not enough on being a superhero. Fortunately, I have a fast forward button on my remote and never watch the live broadcast.

As I comic book geek, I watch for all the comic references (the Legion of Super Heroes [LSH] crossover got me started). I’m not, however, a Superman fan, nor am I a Tom Welling or Erica Durance fan. I’m also not a fan of how they’ve changed things for the series (especially Superman’s Wolverine-like healing factor). Without the other heroes, I probably would not watch at all, but I loved the Justice Society story (which kicked off the current season), I liked the introduction of Connor Kent this season, and I like any time the LSH makes it to the boob tube. I bitch and moan everytime I watch, but I watch for everything comic-related that isn’t Clark Kent and Lois Lane (or Lana Lang).

9

Is it worth watching the series?

I watched the premiere and some of the first season and absolutely hated it. It seemed like every week, some piece of Kryptonite (which nobody seemed to notice despite its being radioactive and glowing) would turn somebody into a monster Clark would face.

Then I caught some of the later episodes (nothing else was on and I REFUSE to turn off my set) and the show had become supernatural soap opera like Dark Shadows or American Gothic. These episodes were about various forces shaping people’s destinies and seemed to be much better written.

I ask you fans who have seen nearly the whole thing, is it worth the journey?

10

Well, there’s a reason I didn’t mention that as a change in my response: by season 3, monster-of-the-week shows had already decreased tremendously. I don’t think it ever completely goes away (except maybe in seasons 8-10), but it becomes a lot less silly, and the stuff you do like starts being more important. Heck, they later mock the freak-of-the-week plots in show.

The thing is, all other Superman shows had pretty much been villain-of-the-week shows, so I don’t blame them for starting out that way. I think they specifically designed the meteor shower with tons of kryptonite so they’d have a ready made way of creating superpowered one-off baddies to avoid the pitfalls of Superman just saving the day.

Fortunately, they learned in the first season that freak-of-the-week stories wouldn’t carry them, even if they kept falling back on them as a crutch for a while. Honestly, I wouldn’t have minded a half-and-half show, as long as neither of those halfs were the “Clark and Lana show” that happened for a while. It’s supposed to be superhero drama, not teen angst.

11

Quick question - I’ve never actually watched this show, but I’ve heard that it’s basically Superman for girls.

Would I, a 30 year old male, enjoy it?

12

^
The last few seasons yes. The first few, hell no.

And Erica Durance is very easy on the eyes.

13

I agree with AK84 answer to fusoya. I’ve watched from the first season to the beginning of the eighth. Then I decided I would just wait until the dvds came out and watch the show that way. I’ve watched the eighth one but I haven’t gotten around to watching the nineth yet and I just now pre-ordered the tenth from Amazon.

In the beginning seasons it was very much a teen drama show that girls would love. Then it got all Clark and Lana drama which almost had me stop watching. Then it got good and the show got serious about how Supermans life might have actually been before he was Superman.

So I would say it is worth it but you can probably skip the first several seasons and not miss out on any of the good stuff.

14

Yes, but it is best to mute the TV when she is on.

15

The current episode is why I watch Smallville.Booster Gold and Blue Beetle! Blue and Gold reunitedNow if only they would have given Clark and Lois the week off, it could be a GREAT episode.

16

Don’t forget Skeets!

17

Darkseid.

18

Like I said, I heard it from my sister and I’m not really a comic book fan. It sure sounded like she said it with a TH.

19

WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT THE FINAL EPISODE OF SMALLVILLE

1. Two-hour episode
2. John Williams score from the original Superman film will be featured during two climatic scenes during the episode, and played during the show’s end credits
3. Martha Kent/Annette O’Toole returns
4. Lex Luthor/Michael Rosenbaum returns
5. Jonathan Kent/John Schneider appears in the episode
6. Kara-Supergirl/Laura Vandervoort appears in the episode
7. Perry White/Michael McKean appears in the episode
8. Chloe/Allison Mack does appear in the entire episode
9. Lois & Clark will walk down the aisle and marry
10. The wedding will feature a number of familiar faces from throughout the series (Justice League yes, Lana Lang no)
11. Granny Goodness/Christine Willes returns
12. Clark will battle Darkseid
13. Tess Mercer-Luthor/Cassidy Freeman finally appears with Lex on-screen
14. Supergirl & Tess will take on Granny Goodness
15. Tess Mercer-Luthor plays an important part in the episode, and in the end chooses to side with Luthor
16. Clark Kent/Tom Welling will wear the Superman suit (again) during the episode (he will wear it at the end of the episode “Prophecy”)

http://facebook.com/tomwelling4superman

20

Hi, Ripper777, and welcome to the SDMB. We do ask that you use spoiler boxes for, well, spoilers. I don’t watch this show so I’m not sure what is and what isn’t on your list, so I spoilered the whole thing. It’s easy to do [ spoiler ] blah blah blah [ / spoiler] (without the extra spaces).

twickster, Cafe Society moderator