"Justice"
Review!
Written
by Triplet
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NOTE:
This review spoils major plot details so if you don't wish to
be spoiled, stop reading right now and go watch this episode.
It's terrific so I'm not sure what you're waiting for....
Wow... what
a great episode.
Steven DeKnight
wrote and directed this episode, and despite some slightly over
the top directorial decisions (I really hate it when the camera
moves around actors like it did in the first act with Lois and
Oliver kissing and he's too fond of slow motion), the episode
was terrific. It moved well right from the tease. DeKnight delivered
an extremely tight script. That's good since DeKnight had to
jam a lot into this episode.
DeKnight
(“Splinter,” “Mercy,” “Zod,” “Reunion”)
has always been one of the more consistently good writers for
the series and "Justice" was no exception. The action
kept up a good pace and the stakes rose with each act and kept
on rising until Clark rescued Bart and Oliver blew up the place.
As exciting as the action was, probably my favorite moments
were instead the humorous banter between the men of the nascent
Justice League.
The writing
was witty yet it packed in a lot of recapping of previous storylines
while still being fun. The humor of the comic book references
was genuine without feeling forced, like it sometimes can.
I LOVED
Victor's new abilities. Nice enhancements. It was very cool
when he jacked into the Luthorcorp computers. I hope we get
to see him again soon.
I thought
Clark and Bart had the best banter. I get the impression that
Clark genuinely likes Bart, despite his initial suspicion at
Bart's unexpected reappearance and his breaking into Luthorcorp,
so I loved the fact that it was Clark that saved his friend.
Unlike the other superheroes that have visited Smallville, I
haven't ever gotten the feeling that Clark is truly friends
with any of the other guys. The reestablishment of the friendship
between Bart and Clark in the first act made the fact that Bart
was the one in peril an important stake for Clark later in the
third act. It was very nice the way DeKnight established that.
DeKnight
also wrote some excellent evil Lex in this episode. I loved
the cool and casually evil of Lex in this episode. DeKnight
has a gift for that and it helped that Michael Rosenbaum delivered
the lines so well. (More about that later...)
Some fans
have complained that Lex hasn't clearly progressed toward his
evil criminal mastermind self in the series. I don't agree with
that and this episode has proof of how much Lex has changed
if you compare how he dealt with Bart now to how he did back
in "Run." Back in Season 4, Lex had actually felt
bad about the crooks having Bart in their clutches. If you remember,
Bart was out cold on the floor, knocked about by being pistol
whipped by the bad guys, when Lex pointed out that he was "just
a kid." He even asked them to let Bart go. Lex of today
gladly tortured the same kid in "Justice" in order
to get the information he needed. Lex has made real progression
to the dark side and it's good to see.
I can't
figure out Lionel, however. He's been eagerly helping Lex with
his 33.1 experiments yet he warns Clark to be careful and later
lies to protect him? Why? I was hoping we truly had the Magnificent
Bastard back, but now I'm not so sure. I hope they make the
reasons behind Lionel's contradictory actions clearer soon.
The opening
scene between Oliver and Lois was terrific and at the end there
was real sweetness in how regretfully he broke it off with her.
It would have been so easy for DeKnight to throw in some contrived
plot point to break them up, but the progression in the episode
toward the break up seemed realistic. It was very well done.
As good
as this script was, there were some things I didn't like about
it.
Chloe was
too passive guiding the guys back in the "watchtower"
(funny reference to the comics, by the way). I haven't been
in love with the writer's apparent fondness of the "Deus
Ex Chloe," but I'm not sure leaving her back at Oliver's
penthouse to help over the radio is a step in the right direction
for her character.
Later, I
was confused Chloe used Clark's name over the radio when everyone
else was being referred to only by their codenames. If DeKnight
wanted to save the reveal of Clark's codename for later comic
affect, and Clark's reaction to Oliver calling him Boy Scout
was funny, then why have Chloe say his real name making it obvious
she wasn't using his codename on purpose?
And, now that we're on the topic of Chloe spoiling reveals,
why did she talk about lead shielding back at the Daily Planet
yet didn’t actually connect that to the kryptonite refinement
until later at Ollie's? Wouldn't that reveal have had more weight
if Chloe had found out about the lead right before she realizes
the danger to Clark, even though it was too late to warn him?
The acting
wasn't as good, overall, as last week's. Maybe it does make
a difference when the director is someone you know really well,
as co-stars in a long running series probably would.
Tom's Clark
was very much like his comic-book self in this episode. He acted
without really thinking through things first and put himself
into danger in the process. He's bullheaded and doesn't always
listen to reason when someone is in danger so Tom played that
exactly right. I liked the way Tom portrayed Clark's resolve
to keep on fighting the Zoners in the face of Oliver's crusade
against Lex and his 33.1 program to build himself a super-powered
army. Clark seemed to really regret not being able to help them.
However, possibly my favorite moment was Clark's reaction when
Lois asked him "what if I'd been naked?" Clark's barely
disguised titillation at the thought of seeing Lois without
her clothes on was priceless. It was a small thing but it was
good continuity with Clark's realization from last episode that
he has growing feelings for Lois.
Michael
Rosenbaum really kicked it up a notch with this episode. Lex
was evil and it was almost like an afterthought to him to torture
someone to get what he wanted. He delivered some really funny
lines as well. The "And I want a ponytail line" was
hysterical, and Michael delivered it perfectly. His scene with
Lionel at the end could have been so over the top, but it wasn't.
Lex justifying his creation of an army of super powered people
by fighting for freedom against Green Arrow and his terrorist
friends could have seemed contrived but it wasn't. Michael played
it so well, I believe that Lex believes he is the earth's protector
rather than it's biggest threat.
It was nice
to see some of the guest stars return. They've previously guest
starred in some of the best mythos-centric episodes of the series.
Well, except maybe for "Aqua," an episode which was
largely something I'd rather forget.
I really
like Kyle Gallner and his "Impulse" is one of the
best takes on a DC Comic character ever written for the series.
His wit and the quick delivery of his lines made every appearance
in the episode a joy to watch. Kyle has a genuine charm that
I enjoy. I loved all of his scenes, but especially the ones
he had with Clark. The arrogant, sarcastic tone he had throughout
the episode was perfect.
Lee Thompson
Young's Cyborg was terrific. He wasn't in the episode as much
as I would have liked, but Victor handled himself well and his
one action scene was one of the better ones.
Alan Ritchson
hasn't learned much about acting since his less than stellar
appearance in "Aqua." He was best when he played off
others more than when he had to deliver his lines more on his
own. It's probably a good thing Aquaman's part wasn't really
that big in this episode, although I would have liked to have
seen him do something other than just swim and crack jokes.
The other guys all got some action but Arthur's happened off-screen.
Oh, well.
I love Justin
Hartley's Oliver Queen. I think he has a wonderful chemistry
with Erica Durance and their scenes were wonderful to watch.
He's sexy and charming and he's played Oliver so well that I'm
glad he'll likely be back.
Erica did
a wonderful job in this episode. She did an especially good
job in that final scene with Oliver. Erica played Lois' sad
resignation so well. That was a heartbreaking moment when she
kissed Oliver goodbye.
Usually
I love Allison so much, but there was something off with her
in the opening scene of the tease. Allison didn't play Chloe
up to her normally convincing best, anyway. She did really well
in the scenes with Clark and Lois, especially when she was playfully
talking with Lois about Oliver and him liking green. However,
I think the passive nature of most of the episode for Chloe
was a bit hard for Allison to deal with. This is not her best
episode ever.
The episode
was beautifully shot by DP Glen Winter. Probably my favorite
scene was the scene where Lex tortures Bart. The shot after
Bart wakes up starts behind Lex on the floor, the camera then
cranes up and reveals the rest of the lab as Lex walks toward
his captive. It was well done. The lighting was terrific in
that scene as well. I loved the deep shadows on Lex's face as
he taunted and interviewed his prisoner. It suggested just how
dark Lex has really become. I also loved the ending Justice
League moment with the five men walking away from the lab facility
as it blew up. It was a nice use of slow motion and the camera
zeroing in on Clark was a nice touch. It made me think how nice
a Justice League spin-off might be...
"Justice"
is probably one of the better episodes of the series and definitely
one of the top ones of the season, I give "Justice"
4.5 evil labs out of a possible 5.
Note:
The views of Triplet don't necessarily represent the thoughts
and feelings of everyone at KryptonSite. Send
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