S04.E06: When The Lights Come On

[scarynikki12]

Quote

Luthor plans to move LuthorCorp to Smallville, but finds opposition in Lana; Sarah faces a difficult decision; Clark confronts Luthor face-to-face.

 

 

[Galileo908]

So Lex is taking last week's episode well. That powerless fight at the end was a long time coming.

And of course Jonathan became Superboy. And it's the worst kept secret in Smallville. Well, everyone put two and two together that Clark is Superman, too. That might've explained why the citizens grew a spine to convince Aidy not to sell her farm to Luthor. Clark was there.

[scarynikki12]

It just occurred to me that my new friend AMAZING WIG may not be seen again and I'm sad.

Meanwhile Lex is having a tantrum. Oh, good, he's burning Liz's picture. That's healthy.

There's something about how the CW does those banana curls that makes even the healthiest hair look dry.

I like Jon annoying Jordan with his super speed. I think this will be good for him and their relationship. But, yes, Jon does need to slow down.

Hee, Clark's gong a bit gray and now he's having a (minor) complex.

THEORY TIME! I think having Lane's heart will give Clark a more human lifespan. I think he'll get most/all of his powers back but will also be able to grow old with Lois rather than stay physically young long after her natural death.

Amanda's all in with Lex but even she's having a hard time selling Smallville as the new headquarters for the League of Doom or whatever he's planning.

Denise being nervous around Clark is cute. And he bought hair dye, hee.

"You know you can breathe right?" I like when powers are treated with humor. To be fair, hero-ing has to appetite stimulating.

Of course Coach no longer hates Jon now that he knows about his powers. And the woman whose property Lex wants to buy knows about Clark as well. Is there anyone in town who doesn't? Did the people who watched Dooms kill Superman do that thing where they turn to a family member/friend/neighbor and say "you have to PROMISE not to tell but..." and thus everyone knew in an hour? Small towns are a great place for gossip to spread quickly.

Ok so Frog Boy was chasing an ego boost while Toad Boy is chasing an adrenaline high. They each need to go to the fortress for weekly therapy sessions.

I'll be honest and say I'd probably take the money Lex was offering so I'm impressed seeing Aidy and the others stand firm against him. Of course, knowing Lex, he'll find another way to get the land and it'll probably be bloodier but we'll enjoy the moment.

Being an exchange student is a good idea. Jon and/or Jordan could fly Sarah wherever she gets accepted so they'd save on airfare.

I love storm footage but my brain instantly starts wondering if Lex caused it and his big revenge is sending a tornado to destroy all the Smallville properties.

Or he'll send Otis to kill Lana and Sarah.

I said this back in season 1 but I'm so happy they wrote Lois and Lana as friends. They could have done the typical CW bullshit but instead wrote such a good friendship that Lana calling the Kents for help and Lois offering comfort is the most natural thing.

Oh, Lex. Yes, turning on red sun lights removes Clark's powers but it just means he's willing to put his weight behind that punch. With his powers he'd hold back so as not to kill you. He doesn't have his powers but he still knows how to throw down.

Clark feels bad about the fight because he's a good person. That's why he's Superman. 

So is Amanda his wife? Girlfriend? Biggest fan? I don't get why she's so far up Lex's ass.

[cdnalor]

First thing I thought of

[Galileo908]

47 minutes ago, cdnalor said:

First thing I thought of

That had to be deliberate.

[thuganomics85]

Heh, I love that pretty much everyone in Smallville has now figured out Clark is Superman (and that Jonathan and Jordan have powers), and are just rolling with it.  Complete with Coach Gaines suddenly being cool with the boys again and wanting them to come back to the team.  Dude wants his trophies!  I'll giive them credit for standing up to Lex and refusing the 10s of millions of dollars.  I've had issues with the town-folks at times (happens a lot with citizens in superhero shows), but they came through tonight.

Looks like this might be the last we'll see of Sarah going forward, as she is off to study abroad.  I guess it is possible she might pop back up come finale time, but it's a solid enough of an exit for the time being.  Expanding her horizons and being out of Smallville will probably do her good.  Especially if the Lex issue isn't fixed...

Jonathan makes for a good Superboy.  Maybe too good since he's stretched himself thin and ended up not hearing the attack on Lana.  At least it led to Jordan entering back into the fray.  Having both of them out there will be helpful: especially with Clark still in a weaken state.

Speaking of which, Clark is going gray!  I do wonder if they are hinting that Sam's heart will shorten his lifespan to be similar to humans.  Would be fitting for him and Lois to grow old together in a similar fashion.

I can understand why Clark felt guilt over losing his cool, but Lex deserved it for sure.  He's back in Metropolis now and licking his wounds, but he'll likely get a second wind thanks to Amanda/Yvonne Chapman completely being all in on Team Lex, despite some initial misgivings earlier.

[baldryanr]

3 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

Speaking of which, Clark is going gray!  I do wonder if they are hinting that Sam's heart will shorten his lifespan to be similar to humans.  Would be fitting for him and Lois to grow old together in a similar fashion.

In the big reunion hug last episode you could see the gray in the back of Clark's head - I figured that was Tyler Hoechlin's normal hair, but I'm glad to see they made it a plot point.

But sorry Lois, there are many, many downsides to getting old, especially if you've been used to being at peak physical condition for your entire life.  Wait until Clark comes down with a cold.

[iarwain]

I was kind of intrigued with Clark buying the hair dye.  Denise, who was the cashier, was giggling about him buying it.  That doesn't seem very professional, does it?  And why is that so funny?  Women dye their hair at the drop of a hat.  Is it really that amusing that he wants to cover a little gray (not that I saw any)?  And Clark was embarrassed when Lana saw him with it (I guess that store doesn't give out bags).  Denise also knows he's Superman, by the way.

This is an interesting comment on male vs. female expectations.  Apparently it's okay for women to dye their hair, but not for manly men.  This interests me since, as a man, I've been prematurely gray for a good while now.  I've never seriously considered dyeing my hair, but I do confess I miss my dark hair now and then.  I guess men aren't supposed to be so vain about their looks?

Something still seems kind of off to me about Michael Cudlitz' portrayal of Luthor.  Maybe it's the beard, I don't know.  He's mean as a snake.  But he just seems like a brute and a bully to me, I don't get the impression he's a scientific genius or whatever.  Maybe some of that is coming with his "super suit".

[baldryanr]

1 hour ago, iarwain said:

I was kind of intrigued with Clark buying the hair dye.  Denise, who was the cashier, was giggling about him buying it.  That doesn't seem very professional, does it?  And why is that so funny?  Women dye their hair at the drop of a hat.  Is it really that amusing that he wants to cover a little gray (not that I saw any)?  And Clark was embarrassed when Lana saw him with it (I guess that store doesn't give out bags).  Denise also knows he's Superman, by the way.

??? She was super nervous about Superman being there, hence Clark hearing her rapidly beating heart.  Her laugh was an "Everything is totally normal, I'm just helping a regular old customer who definitely isn't the world's greatest hero", not a "what a doofus, worrying about dyeing his hair". 

[Quark]

This was a great episode. Loved Lana standing up to Lex.

[historylover820]

I kind of loved everything about this one.

That powerless fight at the end was brutal, and I loved every moment about it. And I also loved Jon and Jordan echoing me with their collective "That was awesome!" Mild mannered Clark Kent definitely can hold his own, powers or no powers.

I also noticed the gray flecks in Clark's hair in the last couple episodes, but I also thought that it was Tyler Hoechlin's natural hair. He's 37 now, so I didn't think anything about it. But, this is why I also love his Clark Kent so much. His Clark is such a dork. Of course he gets a complex at the thought of having gray hair! 

But, yeah, I also beg to differ with Lois. There are some things about growing old that sucks. I'm a woman and I have decided to just stop dying my hair and let my gray out. I'm 46. I've earned it. But, my shoulder hurts, and I'm watching my parents become elderly and watching my father slowly die from cancer. I only got the diagnosis that I have cataracts. I feel changes in weather in my shoulder, ankle, and knee. Growing older does have things that SUCK about it. Of course, I have wisdom and life experiences that I didn't have when I was 23. And I know myself better. But, I can see where someone who has always been at his peak would be struggling with these limitations, and the gray hair is just a reminder.

You know, with all of Smallville knowing that Clark is Superman, which, yes, I'm also from a small Kansas town, and the best way to let everyone know a secret is to tell one person and say "Don't tell anyone." But I'm also wondering if they also put 2 and 2 together with the aftermath of Doomsday. Denise certainly did. But, they would have also had to have known that Clark died. I mean, what did Lois and the boys say while he was dead? That he's can't come to the phone right now? So, Clark suddenly appearing alive and Superman also appearing alive at the same time would have triggered some people to figure it out. (And I absolutely think that Clark is the reason that the bar patrons stood up to Lex. Superman is here! And that was also very awesome.)

[iarwain]

6 hours ago, baldryanr said:

??? She was super nervous about Superman being there, hence Clark hearing her rapidly beating heart.  Her laugh was an "Everything is totally normal, I'm just helping a regular old customer who definitely isn't the world's greatest hero", not a "what a doofus, worrying about dyeing his hair". 

Disagree, she was giggling about his hair dye, and they continued the joke with Clark trying to hide it from Lana.

[blackwing]

On 11/5/2024 at 10:33 AM, iarwain said:

I was kind of intrigued with Clark buying the hair dye.  Denise, who was the cashier, was giggling about him buying it.  That doesn't seem very professional, does it?  And why is that so funny?  Women dye their hair at the drop of a hat.  Is it really that amusing that he wants to cover a little gray (not that I saw any)?  And Clark was embarrassed when Lana saw him with it (I guess that store doesn't give out bags).  Denise also knows he's Superman, by the way.

This is an interesting comment on male vs. female expectations.  Apparently it's okay for women to dye their hair, but not for manly men.  This interests me since, as a man, I've been prematurely gray for a good while now.  I've never seriously considered dyeing my hair, but I do confess I miss my dark hair now and then.  I guess men aren't supposed to be so vain about their looks?

Something still seems kind of off to me about Michael Cudlitz' portrayal of Luthor.  Maybe it's the beard, I don't know.  He's mean as a snake.  But he just seems like a brute and a bully to me, I don't get the impression he's a scientific genius or whatever.  Maybe some of that is coming with his "super suit".

I agree with baldryanr, I don't think she was giggling about it.  I think she was amazed that the actual Superman was shopping in her store buying regular everyday items that everyone else buys, that's why her heart was beating so fast.  If she was having a laugh about it then her heart wouldn't have been beating so fast.

Agree with you about the portrayal of Lex Luthor.  I'm tired of him.  Maybe it's because of the actor's size, but he just comes across as a big bully to me.  Even the way he intimidated his girlfriend, he uses his size and menace to get what he wants.  Don't understand why he expects capitulation from everyone around him.  I kind of wish Jon or Jordan would just heat vision his head, like the way Homelander on "The Boys" arbitrarily does with people who cross him.

We need more of Luthor being an intellectual genius and less of him being a big brute.  This version of Luthor reminds me of the Kingpin from the Daredevil series on Netflix.

Edited November 7 by blackwing

[historylover820]

Yeah, pretty sure Denise was giggling at the fact that Superman was buying regular stuff from her like an everyday person. It was Clark that panicked and tried to hide the hair dye from Lana (and she was only like "OK, he's being weird.")

[MissLucas]

Shout-out to Kyle for insisting on those baseball bats!

I enjoyed Jordan having to deal with Jon's Superboy disappearances. And the boys taking Sarah to the Greek islands was fun. Those three together without any romance angstiness was great and I'm sad to see Sarah leave.

[Affogato]

Lex isn’t a scientific genius. He pays geniuses. He is ruthless and manipulative. 

[norcalgal]

On 11/4/2024 at 6:00 PM, scarynikki12 said:

Yes, turning on red sun lights removes Clark's powers

I’m not familiar with red light in Superman lore. How can it take away Superman’s powers?  Wouldn’t Clark have “stored up” powers from being in sunlight? So red light can instantly remove all the “stored up” powers?

On 11/4/2024 at 11:56 PM, thuganomics85 said:

I'll giive them credit for standing up to Lex and refusing the 10s of millions of dollars.  I've had issues with the town-folks at times (happens a lot with citizens in superhero shows), but they came through tonight.

Yeah, small town folks are usually portrayed as unsophisticated yokels, so kudos when one of them chimed in that something seemed fishy with how OTT Lex was in wanting the land.  The townspeople turning down millions of dollars was a really heartwarming, endearing moment in the show.

On 11/4/2024 at 11:56 PM, thuganomics85 said:

Amanda/Yvonne Chapman completely being all in on Team Lex, despite some initial misgivings earlier.

There really was no good explanation why she chose Lex at the end. Working for him for 10 years doesn’t strike me as a good reason for sticking with him when she can see he’s making bad emotion-based decisions that could harm LexCorp. You’d think she could get another great job somewhere else.  (And if she’s staying with him for romantic reasons, the show hasn’t developed their romance at all for me to believe it’s due to her feelings for him.)
 

On 11/5/2024 at 8:33 AM, iarwain said:

Apparently it's okay for women to dye their hair, but not for manly men.  This interests me since, as a man, I've been prematurely gray for a good while now.  I've never seriously considered dyeing my hair, but I do confess I miss my dark hair now and then.  I guess men aren't supposed to be so vain about their looks?

Actually, I think society deems it perfectly fine for a man to go grey (adds character, makes him “distinguished”), while women have to hide their aging because society doesn’t like to look at old women. Older woman = no longer fertile, energetic so women feel compelled to hide their aging (hair dye, cosmetic surgery, makeup).

On 11/5/2024 at 4:23 PM, historylover820 said:

they would have also had to have known that Clark died. I mean, what did Lois and the boys say while he was dead?

Not just in this show, but also in the Justice League movie:  when both Clark and Superman died around the same time, wouldn’t more people be surprised/suspicious when both are alive again at the same time?  

Agree on the comments saying this Lex comes across as more a bully than evil mastermind/business genius. Really not enjoying this Lex Luthor.

As for Denise, I interpreted her reaction as this is her first time interacting with Clark knowing he’s Superman, and that makes her nervous and maybe even star struck.

Edited November 7 by norcalgal

[baldryanr]

7 hours ago, norcalgal said:

Actually, I think society deems it perfectly fine for a man to go grey (adds character, makes him “distinguished”), while women have to hide their aging because society doesn’t like to look at old women. Older woman = no longer fertile, energetic so women feel compelled to hide their aging (hair dye, cosmetic surgery, makeup).

Yeah, going gray for a guy is OK.  But losing your hair?  Now that's a different story unless you're one of those lucky guys who looks good bald.  Imagine Clark's existential conflict if his hair started falling out. 

[Affogato]

5 hours ago, baldryanr said:

Yeah, going gray for a guy is OK.  But losing your hair?  Now that's a different story unless you're one of those lucky guys who looks good bald.  Imagine Clark's existential conflict if his hair started falling out. 

It would destroy the vacuum. 

[Jediknight]

Lex is smart, but also an idiot.  Clark's fought numerous enemies, he didn't beat them with brute force.  He beat Darkseid, Zod, Mongul with his brain and knowing how to fight.  And he grew up on a farm where his parents wouldn't let him use his powers to take a shortcut on his chores.

I'm a fan of the people of Smallville knowing who Clark really is, and keeping his secret.  Martha, Jonathan, and Clark have spent decades in Smallville, helping people out and never asking for anything in return.  They know Clark and knew his parents, they know his powers didn't make him who he is, he's the nice son of Martha and Jonathan Kent.