Saturday, December 8, 2007
Smallville
“Who would name a Tarzan movie Greystoke?”, Pauline Kael once asked.
Who would name a TV show about SuperBoy Smallville? Wrong title. In addition, Smallville had the nerve to diddle with the plot of classic pop mythology — like rewriting the myth so Minerva jumps out of Jupiter's nose. Then they miscast all the male leads except for Lex and Lionel. How wrong could the creators of this TV show be? If they had more time, could they be even wrong-er-er?
But the show, after a rocky start, has been great. The plots, special effects, the fun of the fantasy, are all intact and have been imaginatively expanded. They made all the right decisions; they removed the parents, played down the romance, made Clark a more interesting character, added new characters that have been a boon to the storylines.
I don't know why they won't let SuperBoy fly. When his cousin SuperGirl appeared — a great episode — she was flying with alacrity. Those shots of her hovering above the clouds, one leg bent, like a crane in a pool of water, are classics. Now I trust the show, and Clark will fly. You heard it here first.
Now if they could just call it SuperManChild or Super, The Early Years.