Remembering
Lionel
By
Craig Byrne
KryptonSite Webmaster
WARNING:
Spoilers for the April 17, 2008 episode of Smallville
are within.
If
you are reading this column you probably came
to KryptonSite after watching what many are
saying was one of Smallville's best hours,
"Descent." In addition to being a
well-written, well-directed, and well-acted
story, the episode also served as a goodbye
to one of the show's finest creations - Lionel
Luthor.
Watching
the Smallville pilot, I had no idea that
Lex Luthor's father would become such a big
and grand role, especially since Lex had mentioned
his father had never stepped foot inside the
Luthor mansion. But then, we started seeing
Lionel more... "Hothead" and "Jitters"
being two early appearances that I can remember.
Every time, John Glover knocked it out of the
park, becoming one of Smallville's most
consistent treats.
Even
when Glover was given confusing storylines (Blind
or not? Good or bad?), the truth in his performance
came through, and Mr. Glover always gave an
honest performance in what he believed the character
to be. Over seven seasons we've seen many sides
of Lionel - we've seen him evil, we've seen
him uncaring, we've seen him desperate, we've
seen him charmed by Martha Kent, we've seen
him taken over by Jor-El, and we've also seen
sides of him that, at times, believed he was
doing the right thing even when his actions
were dubious. Like some of television's great
villains, you could believe that Lionel Luthor
rarely felt he really was the bad guy - just
someone whose beliefs led him astray.
The
other truly amazing thing about Glover's performance
as Lionel is that John Glover the person is
so completely different from his television
alter ego. John Glover the person works tirelessly
to raise money for the Alzheimer's Association
in memory of his father. He is one of the kindest,
least evil people you'd ever meet, and fortunately,
unlike Lionel, he is still with us, having recently
been performing on stage in Los Angeles in "The
Secrets of the Trade."
I
understand the reasoning behind the character's
departure and what it will mean for the future
of Lex. I am thankful that Lionel went out with
a bang, with three very good episodes in a row.
A lot of Smallville's best hours - "Lineage,"
"Insurgence," "Shattered,"
"Memoria," and "Transference,"
to name a few - all had one thing in common
- a great presence of Lionel highlighted by
excellent performances by Mr. Glover. (A lot
of the greatness of "Transference"
could also be credited to Tom Welling, who did
a perfect imitation of Lionel which Mr. Glover
choreographed and worked closely with Tom on).
Smallville
was extremely lucky in having John Glover and
Lionel Luthor on the series for many years.
He will be missed. Thanks go out to John Glover
for a spectacular performance, and to the creators
of Smallville for giving Superman mythology
a new and enduring creation.
--
Craig Byrne
April 17, 2008
Note:
The views of Craig Byrne don't necessarily represent
the thoughts and feelings of everyone at KryptonSite.
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him feedback
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Smallville stars Tom Welling, Kristin
Kreuk, Michael Rosenbaum, John Glover, Aaron
Ashmore, Annette O'Toole, Erica Durance, and
Allison Mack.
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