Smallville "Odyssey" 9/18/08

[WinBear]

Several new cast members! I was glad to see Justin Hartley as a season regular, but the new Luthorcorp CEO Tess Mercer (Cassidy Freeman) isn't doing anything for me yet. New regular Sam Witwer is in the credits, but hasn't appeared yet.

I'm hoping the writers have an ending planned for this season. Both Tom Welling and Erica Durance are looking their ages in this episode. In fact, I kept wondering if that was indeed Lois every time she appeared. The limited Justice League made me wonder if "Cyborg" and "Impulse" were unavailable or there were budget considerations, although I have to admit I liked seeing Black Canary and Green Arrow together.

Chloe's power change is curious. It makes me wonder if this is what was originally intended and they just needed the healing power as a deus ex machina.

What's with the blue shield gem? Is it blue Kryptonite or is it the result of Lex's action in the finale?

[JimSpence]

It's about time that Clark starts doing everyday hero stuff.

BTW, is there any reason why The CW Washington doesn't letterbox their SD broadcast? I get it via Ch 385 on DirecTV. Too bad DirecTV doesn't offer the HD channel for us as DNS.

[Graymalkin]

Once again, they do a decent season opener. And they'll probably have a great season finale.

If only the episodes in between were any good! :(

Still, I'll be watching until I get really tired of the hooey. Lasted only until episode 8 last year. But if they start making serious movement toward his emergence as Superman, I'll go with 'em.

[gchance]

It's about time that Clark starts doing everyday hero stuff.

I was reading an article the other day where the producers said something like this is the season of "Superization".

Aha, found it. :) There are some spoilers, so beware.

http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/watch_with_kristin/b26247_smallville_whats_in_store_season_eight.html

And I was wrong, "superization" is Kristen's word, not the producer's, hehe.

Greg

[gastrof]

...is there any reason why The CW Washington doesn't letterbox their SD broadcast?...

How does it air? Fullscreen 4x3? What does the opening credits look like?

A couple times over the last few weeks I accidentally recorded SMALLVILLE (off our CW affiliate's digital channel) with the recorder set to "pan'n'scan".

Ended up losing the left and right edges of the picture for the whole episode, and during the opening credits the "S" and "E" were missing from the word "SMALLVILLE". :)

No joke.

Our analog station runs it letterboxed, and has for several years now.

Originally the WB ran it in fullscreen 4x3, except for the opening credits, but maybe as of year 3 or 4, they went to letterbox all the way.

Odd if your station doesn't letterbox. Seems careless. I'd phone them. Seriously.

[gastrof]

...New regular Sam Witwer is in the credits, but hasn't appeared yet...

A very bad choice, in my opinion, was introducing his character at all.

Supposedly he's going to be a version of the DOOMSDAY character, but it seems they're making him like the Hulk, switching back and forth between his monster form and a human.

TOTALLY different from how the character works, and how he was introduced in the comics. Ruins the whole concept. *sigh*

[EvilMidniteBombr]

What's with the blue shield gem? Is it blue Kryptonite or is it the result of Lex's action in the finale?It was the seed crystal for the Fortress of Solitude. It was shown very briefly in the "previously on Smallville" right at the beginning of the show.

I too am glad to see that Clark is taking more interest in the JLA. Hopefully we'll see more of him helping them and vice versa. I'm glad to see him starting at the Daily Planet. Not so happy about Chloe and Jimmy. I like her more as still loving Clark but knowing that they'll never be together. Either because of Lana or his greater calling.

[JYoung]

Looks like they've totally written off Kara and Clark doesn't seem to be one bit concerned that she's missing.

I am glad to see that Clark is making steps toward his destiny as a hero but I don't if it's enough to offset his previous whinyness.

[atrac]

http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/smallville/images/d/df/Arctic_update.jpg

Hey Clark (and Smallville writers), don't forget! :)

I also missed seeing Impulse/Bart Allen as part of the JLA!

[wprager]

For the first half we couldn't figure out what happened the previous season. I'm beginning to wonder if we'd missed watching the finale (would be sad if we missed it and didn't even realize it) or just completely forgotten it.

Well, at least it got moved to a different channel here in Canada, and I can once again watch it in HD.

[TIVO_GUY_HERE]

The whole "Supercomputer Chloe" came on pretty fast.

[busyba]

Once again, they do a decent season opener. And they'll probably have a great season finale.

If only the episodes in between were any good! :(

With Lana gone, the odds of that happening have gone up significantly. ;)

[busyba]

Looks like they've totally written off Kara and Clark doesn't seem to be one bit concerned that she's missing.
Wow... until I read this, I had totally forgotten about her. :D

[Northerner26]

With Lana gone, the odds of that happening have gone up significantly. ;)

and i thought i was the only one that noticed kristin is no longer in the opening credits. (where is the little depressed/crying smilie?) ((no more eye candy))

[dsmoot]

The whole "Supercomputer Chloe" came on pretty fast.

I have a feeling that Chloe's supper computer power goes back to when Brainiac tried to put her in a "coma" like Lana. However, Chloe was able to heal herself and gain the new "power".

[Graymalkin]

Chloe, meet Claire the Cheerleader! :D

[DevdogAZ]

http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/smallville/images/d/df/Arctic_update.jpg

Hey Clark (and Smallville writers), don't forget! :)

I also missed seeing Impulse/Bart Allen as part of the JLA!
Definitely hope they don't forget about Kara. Was she in the opening credits?

They mentioned that Bart and another guy were scouring the southern hemisphere. At least they acknowledged his absence.
The whole "Supercomputer Chloe" came on pretty fast.
Totally agree. I was wondering if I was forgetting something from the finale. So this is the first we've seen of it? If so, that was very poorly introduced.
and i thought i was the only one that noticed kristin is no longer in the opening credits. (where is the little depressed/crying smilie?) ((no more eye candy))
If you're serious, you'd better keep that bag over your head. ;) I'm pretty sure the prevailing sentiment around here is that Lana is universally despised and having her out of the show is one of the best things that's ever happened. IMO, she's never provided one bit of eye candy to this show.

Having said that, I don't watch the opening credits and hadn't read that she was out of the show. Is that actually true? She won't be back at all? I can handle losing Lex for the season if I don't have to put up with Lana either.

[Rob Helmerichs]

If you're serious, you'd better keep that bag over your head. ;) I'm pretty sure the prevailing sentiment around here is that Lana is universally despised and having her out of the show is one of the best things that's ever happened. IMO, she's never provided one bit of eye candy to this show.
Well, that's not true at all. It seems to me that TiVoCommunity is fairly evenly divided between those who think she's pretty but useless, and those that think she's just plain useless.

Oh, and that one guy who likes her character...

[DevdogAZ]

Well, that's not true at all. It seems to me that TiVoCommunity is fairly evenly divided between those who think she's pretty but useless, and those that think she's just plain useless.

Oh, and that one guy who likes her character...
That's why the portion of my post talking about whether she provided any eye candy was preceded by "IMO." However, I think most will agree that whether they find her pretty or not, the show will be better with her gone.

Except for that one guy...

[JimSpence]

I think that TJL will show up now and then, since they went their separate ways to go look for Lex. As this is the last season, I hope that each episode is a story of its own. We need lots of Clark doing Superman things. :cool: Will he fly?

How does it air? Fullscreen 4x3? What does the opening credits look like?

A couple times over the last few weeks I accidentally recorded SMALLVILLE (off our CW affiliate's digital channel) with the recorder set to "pan'n'scan".

Ended up losing the left and right edges of the picture for the whole episode, and during the opening credits the "S" and "E" were missing from the word "SMALLVILLE". :)

No joke.

Our analog station runs it letterboxed, and has for several years now.

Originally the WB ran it in fullscreen 4x3, except for the opening credits, but maybe as of year 3 or 4, they went to letterbox all the way.

Odd if your station doesn't letterbox. Seems careless. I'd phone them. Seriously.I get The CW as Distant Network Service (DNS) on ch 385 from DirecTV. They use the Washington DC station for the SD feed. It comes in 4:3 with piller boxes (on my HDTV). And I also notice that the left side is cut off because the letters are cut off. The right side is probably also, but I couldn't tell. When DirecTV used the Baltimore CW station it was letterboxed. I don't think my call from Binghamton will do much good. Maybe an email to DirecTV asking if they are doing a 4:3 crop is in order. In the meantime I think I'll start using bit torrent to get the widescreen version. In fact, I'll probably do that with Supernatural as well. Yup I now have the Torrent burned to DVD. It will still be better quality than what ch385 provides.

[gastrof]

Looks like they've totally written off Kara and Clark doesn't seem to be one bit concerned that she's missing...

He's had a few things on his mind...like escaping Russia.

As for Kara...

The official word is that Kara will be seen again, at least for an episode or two. They just feel there's not much more than can do with her.

I'm guessing she gets rescued, possibly by the Legion (as they rescued Mon-El in the comics) and then tells Clark "I have my own life...I've got to leave Smallville to find myself..." and off she goes to become Linda Danvers.

[gastrof]

I have a feeling that Chloe's supper computer power goes back to when Brainiac tried to put her in a "coma" like Lana. However, Chloe was able to heal herself and gain the new "power".

Yeah, but Chloe's always been able to do stuff with computers where we suspected it had to be a meteor freak power.

When she turned out to be a healer, a lot of us sort of said "Huh?!?!"

Now, she may be mutating again.

As she said herself, "I've been exposed to more kryptonite than anyone else in Smallville".

Hmmm....a double meteor freak?

Besides, I'm still suspicious about her needing to heal Lex when he was shot. By rights he should have been able to heal from that himself. He's done stuff like that before. (And never been sick a day in his life since the day Clark landed?)

I wonder if you when you have a self-healer healed by a healer, if the two of them don't get something extra from the experience.

I did love even Brainiac being thrown by whatever it was he sensed in Chloe.

"What ARE you?"

Nice to see even he doesn't know everything.

**********


By the way-

Anyone notice that Chloe's mom's power went from being used to control meteor freaks to controling ANYONE? (Unless we're going to find out that Oliver is a meteor freak too?)

[Graymalkin]

Laura Vandervoot is not in the opening credits anymore. Neither are Kristin Kreuk and Michael Rosenbaum.

Alison Mack is now second in line, followed by Erica Durance, Shawn Ashmore, Cassidy Freeman, Sam Witwer, and Justin Hartley.

Interestingly enough, the official Smallville Web site at cwtv.com still has Kristin in the main cast listing.

[zordude]

Chloe's mom's power went from being used to control meteor freaks to controling ANYONE? (Unless we're going to find out that Oliver is a meteor freak too?)

He was injected with some green stuff before he was told what to do.

Z

[drew2k]

Why did the Mama Chloe Serum control Oliver longer than it controlled Chloe? She was injected, revealed the final three digits, and was back to normal in 60 seconds. Oliver seemed to be affected for much longer, 5 minutes at least, but what did the Bad Guy really expect Oliver to do to find Lex when even he knew that the control only was short-term?

Within the Smallville universe, what exactly are Clark's qualifications to be sitting at a desk opposite Lois at the Daily Planet? Did Clark even graduate college?

[gastrof]

He was injected with some green stuff before he was told what to do.

Z

As was Chloe.

The "stuff" came from Chloe's mom. (At least they learned how to make it by "examining" Chloe's mom.)

I don't think you get the point. Originally Chloe's mom could control METEOR FREAKS.

The stuff was able to affect Chloe, but it apparently affects EVERYONE, not just meteor freaks. That's a bit of a jump there.

[gastrof]

Why did the Mama Chloe Serum control Oliver longer than it controlled Chloe? She was injected, revealed the final three digits, and was back to normal in 60 seconds. Oliver seemed to be affected for much longer, 5 minutes at least, but what did the Bad Guy really expect Oliver to do to find Lex when even he knew that the control only was short-term?

Within the Smallville universe, what exactly are Clark's qualifications to be sitting at a desk opposite Lois at the Daily Planet? Did Clark even graduate college?


I noticed how long Ollie stayed under the influence too. Maybe it works longer on normal people than on meteor freaks? Or they sort of edited the time on how long it took Chloe to come out of it, and we didn't see how long she was actually zoned out?

Also, as for Lois, she didn't go to college for very long either, yet she's worked at both the Inquisitor and the Planet. As for Clark, he did work on the high school paper.

Come to think of it, Chloe began working at the Planet as an intern, and when the university had to shut down due to damage during "Black Thursday" (the day Brainiac's virus nearly destroyed all tech Earthwide), she just stayed on, eventually working there full time...until Lex fired her.

Hey...

This is a reality where the same Kansas town has been nearly destroyed by a meteor shower twice in less than 20 years, there have been a number of super-powered people identified by both Luthorcorp and the government, aliens have landed and killed nearly the entire police force of a small town, the above mentioned tech shutdown turned people all over the world into crazed mobs...

I think it's safe to assume that, like the comicbooks that spawned it, SMALLVILLE takes place in a reality that's a bit different than the real world. How things work, like how you get a job at a newspaper, can be different. :D

[gastrof]

I don't like to add a number of posts to a thread all in a row, but this was the original reason I returned here, before posting the two above-

Does anyone here think it's possible that Tessa could actually BE Lex?

Remember he cloned his brother TWICE from "cord blood", each time implanting false memories?

Notice Tessa has red hair?

Could Lex have possibly gotten his own "cord blood" at the same time he got Julien's?

The clone would still have hair, the cord blood not mutated by "meteor rocks". What if he had the clone altered to be female (good disguise) and had his own memories implanted in it, with someone being told "If anything happens to me, activate the clone"?

It would have had to be someone he had absolute trust in, not easy for Lex, but then if she's not a clone, Lex apparently had that type of trust in Tessa. And WHY is she so loyal to him and determined to find him? Once in the position she's now in, would she even CARE about Lex any more?

There's more to this than we know...

[EvilMidniteBombr]

I don't like to add a number of posts to a thread all in a row, but this was the original reason I returned here, before posting the two above-

Does anyone here think it's possible that Tessa could actually BE Lex?

Remember he cloned his brother TWICE from "cord blood", each time implanting false memories?

Notice Tessa has red hair?

Could Lex have possibly gotten his own "cord blood" at the same time he got Julien's?

The clone would still have hair, the cord blood not mutated by "meteor rocks". What if he had the clone altered to be female (good disguise) and had his own memories implanted in it, with someone being told "If anything happens to me, activate the clone"?

It would have had to be someone he had absolute trust in, not easy for Lex, but then if she's not a clone, Lex apparently had that type of trust in Tessa. And WHY is she so loyal to him and determined to find him? Once in the position she's now in, would she even CARE about Lex any more?

There's more to this than we know...

I say she's a Terminator....



oops wrong show...

[gastrof]

I say she's a Terminator....



oops wrong show...


Wait!

Don't be so quick to dismiss such a possibility.

Just because it's not the Sarah Connor Cooking Bake-off, that doesn't mean Tessa can't be a Terminator. Look at all her dark eye makeup. WHAT is she trying to hide?

If she ever's heard saying the words "I'll be back"....

[zordude]

As was Chloe.

The "stuff" came from Chloe's mom. (At least they learned how to make it by "examining" Chloe's mom.)

I don't think you get the point. Originally Chloe's mom could control METEOR FREAKS.

The stuff was able to affect Chloe, but it apparently affects EVERYONE, not just meteor freaks. That's a bit of a jump there.

Well if I could make a serum that could control meteor freaks, I would make a cocktail with it that included some meteor juice, so I could control anyone.

OK, it's a stretch :D

Z

[Graymalkin]

Kryptonite -- it's a dessert topping! And a floor wax!

[gastrof]

Kryptonite -- it's a dessert topping! And a floor wax!

http://img397.imageshack.us/img397/8278/nsto6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[steve614]

Is Smallville made with a 5.1 soundtrack?

If so, the OTA CW station here in Dallas only broadcasted 2.0.
:(

[gastrof]

Is Smallville made with a 5.1 soundtrack?

If so, the OTA CW station here in Dallas only broadcasted 2.0.
:(


Be glad you have sound.

Earlier in the thread JimSpence said he gets The CW on an out of town channel thru DirecTV, and they're sending it to him in 4x3, no letterboxing.

Yes....

They're cutting off the edges of the picture.

He isn't sure if this is a goof on the part of the channel, or is something DirecTV is doing.

:rolleyes:

[DevdogAZ]

I don't like to add a number of posts to a thread all in a row, but this was the original reason I returned here, before posting the two above-

Does anyone here think it's possible that Tessa could actually BE Lex?

Remember he cloned his brother TWICE from "cord blood", each time implanting false memories?

Notice Tessa has red hair?

Could Lex have possibly gotten his own "cord blood" at the same time he got Julien's?

The clone would still have hair, the cord blood not mutated by "meteor rocks". What if he had the clone altered to be female (good disguise) and had his own memories implanted in it, with someone being told "If anything happens to me, activate the clone"?

It would have had to be someone he had absolute trust in, not easy for Lex, but then if she's not a clone, Lex apparently had that type of trust in Tessa. And WHY is she so loyal to him and determined to find him? Once in the position she's now in, would she even CARE about Lex any more?

There's more to this than we know...
So if that's the case, where is Lex? We know that he's not dead and that he reappears sometime down the road to become Superman's nemesis, so how does that fit in with your idea that something happened to Lex so the Clone was activated?

[EvilMidniteBombr]

Wait!

Don't be so quick to dismiss such a possibility.

Just because it's not the Sarah Connor Cooking Bake-off, that doesn't mean Tessa can't be a Terminator. Look at all her dark eye makeup. WHAT is she trying to hide?

If she ever's heard saying the words "I'll be back"....Not yet, but I'll keep a look out for it.

[atrac]

Is Smallville made with a 5.1 soundtrack?

If so, the OTA CW station here in Dallas only broadcasted 2.0.
:(

Same thing this week in the Los Angeles area (Channel 5).

[RGM1138]

This could have almost been the series finale. Clark leaves Smallville, (and Lana) behind, starts out as a mild-mannered cub reporter at the Daily P, firms up his JLA street cred and Lois has gone full-on brunette,

With Lex, and other nefarious types looming on the horizon, all Clark needs is some colorful tights, mebbe a cape and Superboy finally emerges as Superman. [cue music].

Boom.

Bob

[gastrof]

So if that's the case, where is Lex? We know that he's not dead and that he reappears sometime down the road to become Superman's nemesis, so how does that fit in with your idea that something happened to Lex so the Clone was activated?


A second clone (again with all his memories) later that's once again male? Then he simply murders the female one. Or, the real Lex is found, and he likewise gets rid of Tess. I mean, he killed both of Julien's clones, pushed his father out a skyscraper window, there's good reason to believe he also had other people murdered...

You really think he's above having the female clone killed once she finds him?

I'm figuring Lex wants someone on the job who he can trust. Who else does Lex trust but himself?

The only thing is, how does he prevent the female's memories including the fact that once she finds him, he's planning to kill her?

Besides, I'm sort of being fanboyish here, insisting that Lex HAS to be on Smallville, no matter what form he takes. :p

[TAsunder]

Didn't we see Tessa last season?

Chloe's power change is curious. It makes me wonder if this is what was originally intended and they just needed the healing power as a deus ex machina.

Like someone else mentioned, I think it's a brainiac thing. I suspect brainiac will emerge some time soon.

What's with the blue shield gem? Is it blue Kryptonite or is it the result of Lex's action in the finale?

It was the seed crystal for the Fortress of Solitude. It was shown very briefly in the "previously on Smallville" right at the beginning of the show.

I thought it was the crystal to control Clark?

[EvilMidniteBombr]

I thought it was the crystal to control Clark?According to the "previously on Smallville" recap at the beginning of the show, it showed the scene of Clark in the Arctic throwing an object. The close up that followed clearly showed the diamond shaped blue crystal. Also shown was that the Clark Kent remote control was some sort of sphere.

[TAsunder]

According to the "previously on Smallville" recap at the beginning of the show, it showed the scene of Clark in the Arctic throwing an object. The close up that followed clearly showed the diamond shaped blue crystal. Also shown was that the Clark Kent remote control was some sort of sphere.

OK, so that means Lex still has the sphere? Thanks for the info.

[EvilMidniteBombr]

OK, so that means Lex still has the sphere? Thanks for the info.I assume that the sphere is not gone. As to who actually has it? Your guess is as good as mine.

[dwit]

I missed the first showing on Thursday. On the Sunday replay, even though I recorded on the HD channel(cable), it seemed the playing wasn't really HD resolution, even though it took up 6gb space.

Anyone else notice this?

[TAsunder]

I missed the first showing on Thursday. On the Sunday replay, even though I recorded on the HD channel(cable), it seemed the playing wasn't really HD resolution, even though it took up 6gb space.

Anyone else notice this?

I recorded the re-run and it was in HD. However, what you described has happened to me several times in the past with other shows.

[jking]

This episode for me was the most obvious SD butchering of an HD broadcast that I have seen. As for the quality of the episode, I wasn't that impressed.

I really got a kick out of Green Arrow's comment that Clark wouldn't give up on them, so he wasn't giving up on Clark. Clark's whole personality to this point has been giving up on this person or that person, unless it's Lana. And it's still evidenced in this episode as far as I'm concerned, with no mention of where Kara is. Perhaps he'll be looking for her in the future, but he didn't seem as concerned with her at the end of the episode as much as getting a job at the Planet and maybe finding a new apartment in Metropolis. You have to have priorities I suppose.

I wonder how Chloe feels about dedicating her life to becoming a reporter, and then Clark and Lois just fall into the same occupation?

[EvilMidniteBombr]

Is she really going to be Mrs. Olsen? I hope not.