svreview: red, s2e4

Backdated entry from diaryland.

Added: 8/31/2004



Mmm. More logic now. Or at least, more words, no logic allowed, since Fangirl!Jenn is in complete control of all transmissions.

I never thought I'd love ANYTHING better than Heat. Whoa doggies.

And plot? Screw it. I'm allowed to wallow in the sheer sexiness of this one.

Eat Crow has the best and latest in episode reviews, including ones by LaT, Jack, Destina, VictoriaP, Hope, and Blunaris.

So. Thug Clark is hot. We've established this, I think. Thuggier the better. Petulant Teen Clark, adorably rebellious, thoughtless, materialistic, insensitive, dangerous, and violent is, frankly, the kind of boy we all crawl out of our bedroom windows at one in the morning to go out with. Pretty moment? The second the red metoer rock hit his eyes.

Just that EVIL glitter.

Guh.

Ah yes, moving on.

So, within twenty-four hours of exposure, we have--disrespect for authority figures (principal, Mom and Dad), credit card fraud, rampant materialism, loss of power inhibitions, voyeurism, irresponsibility, and serious teenage rebellion. Mmm. Yummy. Wonder if he was checking out Lex's juvie record for tips?

It was nice to see Clark with a backbone--a nice, serious, want, take, have, did I see this ep of Buffy backbone. Going after Lana was beautiful, aggressive, and one of the few times where the CLana did not make me want to hide, because, whoa.

Chloe has a birthmark. Tara, are you adding this to the site? *g*

Let's see....

Going for Lex's Ferrari. The cool confidence in Lex's office--for once, Clark seemed to be on Lex's level, dealing with him on equal terms. Blah blah blah, friendship cakes, two fun things.

One, Lex recognizes an expensive jacket on sight. Two, I don't care if you are a slasher or not, Lex was checking out Clark from the feet up. Total double take. A looong one. Entire cities were built in the time it took Lex to make it to Clark's face. A major ice age passed. Every fangirl in the world held their breaths.

Or maybe that was just me.

Lalala Clark flirts, Clark flirts OBVIOUSLY to get something he wants, Clark manipulates adorably, Lex likes it. Double entendre conversation everywhere you looked, Clark moving into some serious Lexian personal space, and then offers a blowjob for the use of the car...

Oh, no, that was just in the missing scene they didn't show. My mistake. *g*

Anyway.

Hmm. Bar with Lana. Clark the slut (see, his dating life is starting with a vengeance), perfectly willing to offer a threesome (Jesus, this boy's ambitious), that fight, and that thrilled, almost ecstatic look on Clark's face when he asks 'anyone else?'.

Hey, I didn't say I'd do a decent analysis here, did I?

Circle around, Clark getting his thuggish feet under him--all night out (and if he wasn't laid, he lost his blowjob virginity big time), nasty to parents, wanders off. Decides to reveal himself to the world and rule it with an iron fist....

Oh, right. My imagination again. Moving on.

Lana and Chloe. Huh.

Okay, so the slashiness has been there, but frankly, not terribly interested up until they throw it in our faces like confetti. Chloe's Jealous! And Chloe's not even sure who she is jealous of. Serious invasion of Lana's personal space, possibly checking for cologne residue on her girlfriend. Hmm. Yes.

(reminder to Andy here. *smiles* Me porn, su porn, chica)

We're back at the castle. Clark dressed like a very classy thug, Lex wishing he'd checked the website regarding age of consent in Kansas, complaints about parents, lots of innuendo (I need transcripts badly). Clark stating his future plans. Lex offers a penthouse escape. My boys are going to run off together to Metropolis.

And just for the record? Clark dressed like THAT? I'm not sure Lex was breathing through most of that interview.

Around that time, I wondered if the producers have been reading fanfic regularly. But. No matter.

*taking deep breath*

Lex goes to Jonathan (damn you for being responsible, Lex!), Jonathan's understandably distracted but still being a brat (yes, I know, he's having a bad time, but it never hurts to LISTEN). Lionel and Clark meet and you can almost see the lightbulb go off above Lionel's head as he meets his younger self. A less disciplined self, granted, but mmm. Yeah. I mean, look at them. Good hair, well dressed, manipulative, ruthless.... Love at first sight...

I didn't say that, did I?

Ewww. But hmmm.

*shakes self*

Lalala plotcakes, Clark going into Evil Overlord Overdrive and breaking all the rules already established on that list, lalala Pete and Jonathan taking him on, and that was a damn powerful scene.

I'm pretty much ignoring the subplot, because frankly? Just not as interesting.

Normal Clark returns, makes mild peace with parents, Lana shows she's been sniffing red meteor rock and recieved the backbone without the evil side effects. I like her for that. I like how she sat on that horse and called him on it, because no one else will. Either it's him or it's not.

That's the question I, and everyone else in fandom, is pondering.

There's the string of opposites, of course. Obedient to rebellious, meek to aggressive, retiring to wanting to be the center of attention. Fear (or inhibition) of his powers flipped into casual and gratituous use. Dislike of violence replaced with a serious influx of testosterone. Quiet to loud, humble to not so much, lalala, I could keep this up forever.

Like Nicodemus, explosive change in sexuality, from near platonic to--not.

But, the interesting thing was there was a curve with this one. The first day or so was pretty mild--teenage rebellion against authority, realization that girls have parts boys don't while checking them out. By second day, rampant materialism had surfaced, along with narcissism, and by the time Clark got to school, the first big inhibition of his self had been broken--to wit, the thing against violence. Shock, surprise, a second of disbelief when he hits his father--then just newfound pleasure in power. He could HURT dad. Make him back down.

And right on the heels of that one, it probably hit him--he can do that to ANYONE, because who the hell is in his league? That was possibly the second the rebellion changed to confidence--witness that later this day, Clark pursues Lana with absolute determination, unlike his less successful efforts the night before. Later at the bar, utter confidence with the blonde chick, and oh hell yes.

Clark was totally laid THAT night. They can retro canon if they want, but that will be because Clark is in denial. Clark got laid. Big time.

To skip backward, just before the date, Clark and Lex. Clark, casually confident, utterly at ease in a way he's never quite been around Lex before. Which Lex picks up on--confidence is sexy. They negotiate for the Ferrari with more heat than the average Texas summer, and Lex is confused,but he definitely likes it.

Moving on.

By day three (or next day), that old thing about absolute power corrupting absolutely is in effect. Clark doesn't answer to anyone, not mom, not dad, not even Lex about the Ferrari. And Lex--responds to that. Again, confidence is sexy, and Clark is living, breathing absolute confidence he can have anything he wants. Even a billionaire best friend dropping everything to go with him to take over teh world.

Yeah, like Clark wouldn't have that in mind. *grins*

Lionel and Clark meet, and I"m telling you, Lionel was close to falling in love. Lalala plotcakes, but the only really useful part of this plot was Clark's reaction to the marshal guy's revelation about the money and the girl's father.

Absolute power corrupting absolutely? OH yeah. At this point, Clark is pretty much a very hot sociopath, though why he thought he needed money when billionaire best friend was gonig with him is probably best left to the Den of Plotholes. And we were about ten seconds from Clark making his first kill. And you know, despite all the gratuitious violence, he hadn't yet.

One inhibition left. A big one. One Jonathan and Lex both faced in Vortex with mixed results, and one that Clark would have done, and he would have liked it.

And what's tickling me, of course, is what would have happened if he'd just NOT hesitated with Pete and Dad--adn that was hesitation, he was still a kill-virgin for the most part. Or if Jonathan and Pete had arrived a few minutes later, because there's no doubt in my mind that the girl very possibly might have been dead, and Clark probably wouldn't have thought twice about killing his dad and Pete after that first time was out of the way.

I've read a lot about the plotholes in this one, adn yes, there were huge ones, but what attracted me was this was almost entirely a character story more than the average Smallville MotW. It was basically worst-case scenario, stating, you think Jonathan's too hard on Clark? Check THIS out.

Anyway. First impressions, definitely subject to extreme differences of opinion, and will possibly change the more I think on it and the more I read about it from others. And my libido pretty much has total control. I have a weakness for the dark side, always have, and this Clark was totally dark side in every way.

So. *grins* Happy. May the fanficsters write much in Redverse, where our happy Sociopath Clark takes over the world with a scary body count.

jenn