Since, as mentioned, I turned off the comment feature due to way too much spam getting through even with filters, I asked you to send me your comments to my e-mail address at guardian@redboots.net and you did. Thanks!

I’m going to post and comment on some of your e-mail. I’m not posting all of the e-mail since many are simply one liners like “I agree” or “I disagree” or “Loved your post” type of comments. Believe me, I love getting them, both positive and negative, but in this column I’ll be addressing comments, questions, critiques, etc. so let’s get started.

Superman:Doomsday

Justagigalo wrote:

I thought the movie was fine, but it wasn’t the Doomsday saga without the Reign of Supermen and the other heroes showing up in the funeral arc and why no Jonathan?

Personally, I think there’s just too much back story non-comic book readers would need for the Reign part to work. How would even a two hour movie explain Cyborg Superman and Eradicator? And considering the Superboy lawsuit, he’d be out in any case.

Though keep in mind the real reason for the Reign of Supermen was basically padding in preparation for Superman’s return. The comic had to keep storylines going in the Superman comics until he got back. That’s part of the same deal when you get to the Funeral for a Friend section with all the other superheroes. They were helping fill comic space in the Superman titles.

I think they were also telling the story from a different point of view than the comic continuity of the Doomsday era since Jonathan, as you said, was gone. They were going with the movie view of Superman where, in his adult life, Pa Kent is gone. Also, like the movies, Superman is the only hero. Not to mention Lois dating Superman instead of Clark.

Gomez wrote:

My big problem was Superman’s face. He looked really old.

I didn’t like the lines they put on his face either. He looked tired and I agree not terribly youthful.

Is Chloe Sullivan Really Lena Thorul?

Terry_Vecki wrote:

No, no a thousand times no! I don’t want Chloe related to Lex Luthor EVER!

Fear not, I doubt the producers of Smallville have ever heard of Lena Thorul, but I found some of the similarities interesting, hence the theory.

A Many Splintered Thing

Angie wrote:

I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed reading your review. I think it was very accurate, and it showed how this show has lost complete direction. As a Superman fan, it’s truly a shame to see what they’re doing to Clark Kent’s character here.

You’re rare. Not many Superman fans tune in anymore except for mythos type episodes. Mainly those that involve other heroes. I think that’s why we have Kara this year. Perhaps also to offset the third or fourth return of the doomed Clark and Lana relationship. It doesn’t matter to me that the relationship will allegedly be angst-free and that Lana is in on the secret, because it’s like throwing good money after bad since their relationship ultimately goes nowhere.

I ‘m not looking forward to it, but Lois Lane’s arc seems interesting, so there’s some compensation that points to the future and isn’t mired in the past like Clark’s storyline.

Hils wrote:

I just wanted to thank you for writing an article that expressed so eloquently how so many Smallville fans feel about Season 6 of the show.

I can only pray that the writers and/or producers of the show get a chance to read it so they can see exactly how and why they went wrong.

A couple of people, myself included, have linked to this in our blogs so that as many people as possible can read it. You never know it might, eventually, make its way to the powers that be.

Thanks for the good thoughts and the link. I’d like to think all of this will make a difference, and though I’m not completely pessimistic, I believe the producers mapped out how they want to end the show and have decided to follow that to the letter. My guess is that they want it to end with Lana making a noble sacrifice by letting Clark go off and fulfill his destiny. That’s not the true story, but it is the one the Clana fans (Clark/Lana romance fans) have been feeding the powers that be, along with custom M&Ms stating ’save Clana’.

Ashley wrote:

Thank you for this article. It says everything I’ve been ranting about for the past six years. Perhaps love-seeking teens adore the show because of its Forever Revolving Around Lana theme, but I, for one, expect so much more from a Future-Superman show. It is truly sad that Smallville has become Lanaville. I’m staying until there’s Lex, however, who seems to be, so far, the true hero of this perverted tale.

I’m kind of at a loss as to what they plan to do with Lana. She can’t replace Chloe in terms of being his researcher, she doesn’t have the skills. The funny thing about Lana is that she always begins as the ideal and idealized girlfriend. She’ll do just about anything for her guy, at least until she rebounds to the next guy and then the pattern repeats.

If that holds true to form this year, then Lana will probably help Clark by getting the information he needs, but not in the manner Chloe did and unlike Chloe, Lana will get fringe benefits.

Liz wrote:

I just finished reading your blog and had to say that: A) it was wonderfully written and B) I agree with everything you wrote.

I admit to starting to watch Smallville only with the advent of Lois Lane, so I haven’t been faced with the Clark/Lana saga for the entire history of the series, but what I have seen of it does make one want to “retch or strangle” someone, preferably Lana. Or the series writers.

The thought of this upcoming season bringing back the dead horse of the Clark/Lana storyline makes me wish they’d bring back Oliver with an engagement ring for Lois, have her marry him and become the top reporter on the “Star City Gazette” and wash her hands (and a lot of viewers hands as well) of Clark and his obsession with Lana.

I figured out why Lana has been given more importance than the character should and it has to do with confusing Peter Parker with Clark Kent. You’ll recall his narration line from the first Spider-man movie:

“…this, like any other story worth telling, is all about a girl … the girl next door, Mary Jane Watson, the woman I loved since before I even liked girls…”

However, the reason it worked with Spider-man is because the writers/director decided to go with Peter’s destined love Mary Jane Watson rather than his doomed romance with Gwen Stacey, even though she was his first true love in the comics.

You can tell how Smallville tried to duplicate the Mary Jane scenario with Lana. The problem, of course, is that Lana Lang is not the destined love interest in the myth. Superman’s romance with Lois Lane is so legendary that the audience of any generation is well aware of that fact and so they begin to feel progress won’t be made. They don’t see the point of investing in the story any longer.

And by progress I don’t mean Clark leaving Lana and hooking up with Lois, or anyone else for that matter. The audience has to believe that the myth is evolving, but as long as Clark is with Lana, it doesn’t matter what else Clark does, or what he accomplishes because it feels like he isn’t moving toward the future.

None of this means the show is in any danger of cancellation, however, because Smallville has a loyal core of between 5.5 and 4.5 million viewers who’ll watch no matter what. While those numbers would get a show canceled on a big network, they’re more than high enough to keep Smallville on the CW. Now whether the CW itself can survive as a network is a different matter.

In short, I don’t think the return of Clana will cause a problem in the ratings and since baseball is not on a major network this season like it was last year, the ratings could even prosper, at least within the parameter of that loyal core. On the other hand, attracting new viewers, or viewers who gave up on the show will be the hard part.

Again, I want to thank all of you for your comments and insights and keep writing. Each time I gather enough e-mail, I’ll post another Metropolis Mailbag column and respond.

Tags: comments, mailbag

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 10th, 2007 at 9:25 pm and is filed under Buzz. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.