"Absolute Justice" Review!

Written by C.M. Houghton ("Triplet")

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NOTE: The spoilers in this review are HUGE. Don't read any further if you don't like to learn important plot details before viewing the episode.

NOTE: Since it's really two outings, not just a one two-hour episode, where it makes sense I will split my review up to cover each separately. FYI.

This was a fantastic pair of episodes. I absolutely adored 'Absolute Justice'. Both hours were written by well-known comic book author Geoff Johns, these episodes had terrific introductions for The Justice Society of America and Checkmate.

Although, I wasn't too happy with how it started out. Chloe lecturing Clark over the phone wasn't a good beginning, but I did like how what she was calling about tied into the rest of the episode. I also really liked the introduction of Sylvester Pemberton (or the Star-Spangled Kid). It was weird he knew exactly who Chloe was, but I was glad they gave the members of the JSA some menace.

I had no previous experience reading any stories with the JSA in the comics, most of my comic book reading is Superman- or Batman-based, but the start was intriguing. I didn't know who Sylvester was, but news of the attacks on his team, and warnings to Chloe about the safety of hers, just before he died set up the action for the rest of the two hours. It was a terrific tease.

As Clark and Chloe started to investigate, we learned more about Sylvester, his protégé Courtney Whitmore, and the past Justice League of America, including its most prominent member, Carter Hall, or Hawkman. Pushed underground by persecution, it offered a plausible explanation for why the JSA hadn't ever come up in "Smallville" before.

I liked the effect the investigation into The Justice Society of America had on Clark. He's always stood apart and had largely been isolated in doing his superhero job. Seeing the older men and women working together, fighting for what was right, trying hard to protect one another from a sometimes hostile public, helped Clark put into some perspective what he and the other members of the nascent Justice League had been doing.

Even though I doubt any print organization would have a 16mm film news footage in their storage closet (and I'm pretty sure TV news was using tape by the 70's, which is how old those events looked), I liked how the newsreel played out and was presented. It gave a visual history of the older group, which was tons better than having someone simply talking about it. And later some of the same footage came back into the episode when Clark was looking around the JSA headquarters. It was a nice touch: it was visual yet it also imparted a lot of information without an information-dump sort of expository dialogue.

I liked it when Chloe got Oliver involved and as soon as he was trying to work his part of the investigation he witnessed Kent Nelson (Dr. Fate) kidnapping Courtney and then went along with Chloe when she found Sylvester's car. The stakes rose considerably when Ollie's discovery of Sylvester's journal revealed that the JSA knew almost everything about Clark, Oliver, Chloe and the rest of their team.

It was a bit shocking that Clark got taken so suddenly and no one could find him. It added to the apparent menace the JSA had, although I wasn't really worried. Dr. Fate seemed like a good guy who really cared about finding the murderer, so I'm not sure how well that worked to build dramatic tension.

But it was great when Carter Hall (Hawkman) showed up, threw Oliver through a window and told him to mind his own business. So when Oliver met up with Carter again, I loved that they didn’t like each other at all. They got past it a bit, even had a bit of respect for each other by the end, but I like that they exhibited the animosity in "Smallville" that they also have in the comics. The two men do not get along.

From what I understand Dr. Fate's origin was a bit different here than it was in the comics and the burdens of Dr. Fate's abilities were harder on Kent. Yet, it worked well for "Smallville". It was a good choice of Geoff's to have Kent Nelson be so strongly affected by the powers the helmet of Nabu gives him, to be able to see everyone else's fate but still be blind to his own. That must be a tough power to try and manage…

Except for the end of the first hour that had Clark was looking around the JSA headquarters, the whole episode kept up a good steady pace. Every scene built on the previous one as the stakes kept rising. The episode was long, being two episodes strung together, yet it still maintained a pretty fast clip. Up until the ending, the pace was brisk the whole time.

I really liked the comparison between the JSA and the new nascent Justice League in regards to the feeling of family that Oliver, Clark, Chloe and Martian Manhunter lack. Except for John Jones taking a fatherly approach in dealing with the other heroes, there's nothing much touchy-feely about the group that Chloe's been 'shepherding'.

I LOVED how John Jones got his powers back. It's been so long that I had to think for a couple of minutes before I had remembered how he'd lost them: it had happened back in Season 8's 'Odyssey.' That's a long time for his story to finally get that payoff, but I don't have any complaints about how Geoff handled that. (I'm just sorry that Kent Nelson had to die.)

I also liked how team work was a theme for the episode and at the end it took all of them, young and old, to take down Icicle. It was a wonderful way to take him down.

I liked all the oblique references to the comics that were inserted in the episode, references to Golden and Silver Ages, for example. I also liked how much he'd left hanging. There were so many teases of things that might potentially come. Why is Lois the 'key'? The key to what? What is Tess' relationship to Amanda? Was what Tess had been doing with Zod (which built from what she'd done last season with the Injustice League) tied to Amanda Waller, her Suicide Squad and Checkmate? When will Clark and the others learn about Checkmate? The closest they came to finding out was Sylvester's dying attempt to let Chloe in on who's after them. And what had Dr. Fate referred to when he said Chloe walks the same path he does?

Talking about Chloe, what I didn't like was that somehow Chloe acting as the glue that's holding Clark's little group together (which, on a whole I agree it is probably what she does, she's more than just a human Google search engine) has somehow turned her into a nag. Yeah, let her be the touch-point for the heroes she's working with, Chloe gives them help and support and information, but I hated the nagging. She nagged both Oliver and Clark and then told them what they needed to do. It puts Oliver and Clark into a more passive role, at least initially, which isn't good. You should always have the protagonist driving the action, not just reacting to the bad guy's villainy. Maybe it sorta worked here, given the circumstances and what else happened in the episode, but do they really need Chloe to tell them what needs to be done? I hope this isn't something that will be happening a lot.

But I really liked Oliver in this more than I have been lately. I'm not sure I can characterize what's different, maybe it's because he wasn't pouty as much, but I like how Geoff wrote Ollie in this pair of episodes. I hope he can write for the show again if there's a tenth season (and he's not too busy with his new increased responsibilities at DC Comics).

Tom Welling did a terrific job as Clark. He played Clark as so sure of himself, even when confronted by Hawkman and Dr. Fate. As confusing as it was to be kidnapped, he didn't have Clark get angry. Clark wasn't being hurt at all, so Tom played him as very calm and even tempered as he tried to figure out what their plan was in taking him back to the JSA Museum. I think that is probably the perfect reaction for Superman. I'm glad that Tom doesn't let his directing gig overwhelm him when it comes to his acting and still turns in very strong performances.

Allison Mack was terrific as Chloe. I'm not quite sure what the motivation was for Chloe cutting off Dr. Emil when they were discussing Wesley Dodds' wounds. It just seemed like an awkward moment and it was never explained, maybe something got cut that would have explained that, but other than that I thought she was wonderful. Although I didn't like some of what Chloe did, I have no complaints about what Allison did with what she was given. I especially liked the scene in Watchtower between Chloe and Courtney. Even though Chloe is the elder, Courtney still had a few things to teach her I liked how Allison had Chloe deal with that situation.

Erica Durance was perfect as Lois. I liked how determined she played Lois as she pursued the story, even when facing the somewhat scary looking Dr. Fate, yet still brought in some skepticism when dealing with Amanda. I'm looking forward to when Lois finally finds out she's being played by Amanda. I want to see how Erica has Lois handle that.

Cassidy Freeman was wonderful. She wasn't in the second hour very much, but she was wonderful in what she was in. I wouldn't have guessed that Tess was involved with an organization like Checkmate (it is a pretty serious retcon), but it works with what she'd done before and Cassidy helped make that work. And I loved the way that Cassidy had played Tess as so cool and business-like with Amanda. When she met with Amanda at the end it was almost as if she was doing a chore, like she was taking out the trash: a dirty, unpleasant task, but one that had to be done. That was beautifully well-done.

Justin Hartley delivered another strong performance. Like I said, I liked Oliver here more than I have lately. I'm glad he's out of his funk and actually had a thing or two to show Hawkman. I love it when a hero shows how capable he is and Oliver proved that he can be and Justin made me believe that.

It was great to see Phil Morris back. He did an outstanding job. I loved the final scene when he had faced down Icicle. He plays a bad-ass alien very well. I hope Martian Manhunter regaining his powers means he'll be back again this season.

Michael Shanks was the perfect casting choice for Carter Hall/Hawkman. He's older than Clark and the other heroes on "Smallville", and that age difference added extra weight to his character. His age, combined with Carter's world weariness and cynicism, gave him a completely different take on the Superhero gig than Clark has. It was important for Clark to see and Michael was able to portray that part of the role perfectly. He made Carter seem so hard edged at first, his only soft spot apparently being Kent who he tried to protect from the world. Yet, by the end once he understood the type of man Clark was, and the type of team he had, he's proven that he'd changed and accepted the younger group. Geoff had written an excellent character arc for Carter Hall and I loved that Michael was able to successfully show that, Carter really did seem like a changed man by the end.

Physically, Michael's also a great fit for the part. He's a big guy with an intimidating screen presence, but he can act too. I don't know if he'll come back, we're starting to run out of fresh episodes for this season, but if there's a way for him to come back later this season (or maybe the next, if there is a season 10), I would love to see Hawkman make another visit.

Brent Stait was awesome as Kent Nelson, Dr. Fate. He did a great job playing Kent when he was falling apart, but also after he'd again taken up the helmet. That was largely a thankless task for him, acting with only his eyes showing, but he did a great job. Brent had managed to portray in his physicality and vocal inflections Kent's different emotions and I had no problem understanding what the man was going through. It's a shame Icicle killed Dr. Fate, I would have liked him come back too.
Britt Irvin, unfortunately, was the weak one of the new bunch. While I think she looked great for the part, she's physically fit and looks like Star Girl, she was a bit out of her depth acting-wise. She was a bit uneven. Although, I think she did a better job the second hour than she had in the first. Hopefully if she comes back, she'll turn in a more consistent performance.

Wesley McInnis looked good for the part of Cameron Mahkent, Icicle, but he lacked a subtlety that I think the part needed. He was a bit over-the-top, but it doesn't look like he's coming back either, so maybe it's just as well. Yet, he has an intriguing origin so it's a shame Icicle got his brains blown out by Amanda Waller. It seems like a lost opportunity to expand on her Suicide Squad. (In the comics the Suicide Squad is similar to what Tess had done last year with her 'Injustice League.')

Pam Grier was fantastic as Amanda Waller. If you've never heard of her, Amanda's a baddie in the comics. A government official, she had persecuted Superheroes and had even tried to have Superman killed at several points. It's unclear at this point whether this version of Amanda Waller has a different origin than in the comics, but her ties to Checkmate (a cover operations/intelligence organization similar to the CIA, which she founded) seem to be as strong as they are in the comics. I like her more in Smallville than I think I do in the comics. Maybe that's due to the strength of Pam Grier's performance. She didn't have much screen time, but she was clearly a great choice for the part. She has a commanding speaking voice, strong and clear, and has a very authoritative presence. I'm glad it seems she will be coming back.

Director of Photography Glen Winter again did an outstanding job sitting in the director's chair for the first hour, 'Society'. As always, his camera work is very dynamic when he's directing. Possibly one of my favorite parts was in the tease. I liked all the low angles showing Sylvester shadowing Chloe, then after he died, I loved it when the camera craned up over his prone form as Chloe knelt next to him. It made her look very small. It was a nice touch. She's small in the frame and next to Sylvester, but it also foreshadowed her position in the story (well, for the first hour anyway): small and largely helpless to affect the outcome.

I also really liked Wesley Dodds' dream sequence when he was dreaming about Sylvester's death. It was brief and sketchy, with a lot of quick cuts, but got across a fairly accurate feeling of what Sylvester must have gone through during the fight with Icicle that took his life. It was well-shot by the first hour's DP Gord Verheul and well-thought out by Glen.

Tom Welling did a fabulous job with directing the second hour, 'Legends.' While it wasn't quite as visually notable as the very mobile camera work in his previous directing effort, 'Injustice,' it still had some remarkable visuals.

I think the most striking bits were all the slow motion fighting scenes, almost "300"-like, with tableaus and pauses setup almost like panels from the pages of a comic book. It must have taken a lot to visualize and choreograph and then photograph. He must have worked closely with the second hour's DP, Barry Donlevy, on those sequences.

Tom seems like a real actor's director and it shows. He got great performances from all of his performers, including the day players, the guest stars and the regular cast members. I always enjoy it when he directs.

Gord Verheul did an awesome job with the Cinematography in the first hour. I loved how cinematic the feel was and I especially hazy and shadowy the Justice Society of America's headquarters were. The icy blue look to Cameron's room at Checkmate was also a good choice and I loved the way the camera pushed in on him low and then swung around him was terrific.