Arrival

DVD, Smallville S5 (Arrival)

I have to say it's an impressive beginning to Season 5 that successfully works in Superman lore, contains some style, but also some substance thanks to Chloe's conversation with Clark on the subject of superhuman endeavours. It starts out with a pounding film-like narrative depicting scenes from the previous episode that rattles through the important points. I guessed (and it was exceedingly obvious) that the crystal was going to form the Fortress of Solitude and with that the series stakes out its new boundaries: what before could have been the early years of the popular Superman films (with judicious tweaking!) is clearly in a world of its own as Superman discovered the Fortress in the first film. This is cemented by the appearance of the two villains from 'Superman II' who arrived in the spaceship with no explanation for how they escaped from the prison in which the Kryptonians had incarcerated them. We even get a glimpse of Zod in a fleeting appearance at the very end.

Then again I could be completely wrong - it isn't stated that these are the criminals seen in the film and it may not be Zod (but let's face it, it's inevitable just like the crystal and the Fortress). The Fortress was created in a blaze of visual effects that works well and is brilliantly similar to the film Fortress. After a spectacular and speedy teaser we get an updating of the 'Smallville' titles which was overdue - while I'll always love the Season 1 design above anything (just as with the episodes themselves) the series has changed so much it needed a new look and this funkily-designed version works fine. One point that doesn't appear to have been cleaned up is what happened to Jason? Was he flattened by the meteor and Lex surreptitiously removed the body or is he still out there to cause menace in the future?

Chloe and Clark's truthfulness was a wonderful moment, I only hope that they don't become estranged as Pete and Clark did. I felt he should have cited this as one of the reasons he didn't tell her, but the writers probably felt that mentioning a character that hadn't been seen for over a year would confuse casual viewers. The opening of this season recalled the devastation and uncertainty left by the tornado in the opening of the second season, and the disruption is much the same with characters all over the place and in varying states of confusion. Lex is the only one who doesn't seem at all fazed or shocked by events, perhaps because his mind is full of seeing Clark disappear in a blaze of light. His unexpected arrival to collect Chloe from her distant hospital sends a sinister note of caution if his constant questions hadn't already.

Lois becomes a permanent member of the cast, though isn't featured a lot in this episode, the Kent's do their usual thing (Mr. Kent chucked against a wall, Mrs. Kent looking worried), but Lionel is a mystery. He looks a bit like that Doctor from Season 2 that became affected by Kryptonian tech. Is he blind again? Perhaps he'll be an important tool against any Kryptonians, after all, he did help Lana to set up a trap for the two visitors. Jor-el seems especially harsh this time, by saying that if Clark doesn't finish his training that very day before the sun goes down bad stuff will be sure to transpire! For a start how does a dead guy from a distant planet that was annihilated do all this stuff (best not to ask), and why would he strip Clark of his powers so arbitrarily? Jor-el has been shown to be nothing more than a megalomaniac in many ways, but it just seems wrong that Clark would have such a strict curfew. Not "Make sure you're in before sunset or you'll be grounded", but "If you're not, Earth will pay big time!"

As always the budget must have been enormous and the extra resources were well utilised. You get helicopter shots and lots of vehicles and explosions and it all becomes a little bit meaningless, so it's a good thing the character side of things wasn't forgotten. We don't need to revisit the Clark/Lana thing again because we know what always happens and I get fed up with having to watch the same conversations. At this stage of reconciliation it's fine, but I don't expect a happy ending. As is now traditional we're left wanting to slip the next disc in to see what happens. Inevitably the second episode is never as spectacular, but there are plenty of questions that must be answered, not least being Clark's condition, the depth of Lex' knowledge and the mysterious figure (Zod) and his intentions.

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