#6.16 “Promise” Review

NOTE: What follows will totally spoil you, so if you don’t want to be spoiled stop right now and go watch this episode and come back when you’re done. Otherwise, read on and be spoiled.

I’m not really sure this episode was really what I expected, but it was totally awesome.

The writing by Brian Peterson and Kelly Souders was excellent. The device of seeing the pivotal wedding day from the viewpoints of the three leads was a brilliant choice. It revealed a lot about the characters of Clark, Lana and Lex.

Clark was first up and in his nightmare he dreamed of killing Lex. Clark approached the day at times angrily, like when he smashed the railing while putting the hay away, and then later he was melancholy and broody. The way they followed him like that I think helped me better understand Clark’s thinking on why he felt he was ready to tell Lana the truth about himself. It was clear that it was finally time to tell her. It was “speak now or forever hold your peace” time for Clark.

He still loves Lana and wants to save her from a life with Lex. He knows who Lex really is and his desire to save her from that isn’t just him being selfish. However, the tragedy for Clark and Lana is that we all know that ultimately it won’t work out. He’s destined to fall for Lois later; he just doesn’t know that yet. Clark loves very deeply and, even though he isn’t very good at always sharing his feelings, he has always loved Lana and probably always will to some extent. So, the hope he felt when she told him she wasn’t going to marry Lex was touching and sweet. However, that later was countered by the hurt and confusion he felt when she went through with it anyway. He was understandably angry, assuming the worst about Lex about why Lana changed her mind. What a tortuous episode for Clark.

Lex was next and act two opened with him dreaming the baby had turned into a monster. What does that mean? Is Lana carrying a baby that is a monster? Or did Lex dream that because he feels the baby will be a monster like his father is? Or is it because he fears he’s not worthy of Lana’s love and whatever he’s done to the baby, and to Lana, proves that?

Later in the act, he proves just how unworthy of Lana’s love he really is by murdering to protect the secret of whatever it was he’s done. The messy nature of the murder was highly indicative of Lex’s state of mind when it comes to Lana.

He beat brutally beat Dr. Langston to death almost as much for reminding him of how tenuous his relationship with Lana is, as for the ill-conceived attempt at blackmail. The good doctor knew, probably better than anyone, how desperate and scared Lex was that Lana doesn’t really love him. Lex didn’t like being reminded of how fragile her love for him really is, so he brained the guy. The way he beat him, the intense single-mindedness of it, reminded me of the flashback scene in “Reunion” when he beat his friend in the school yard as a teen. He just kept hitting the doctor over and over with a fierce determination that was shocking in its savagery.

Later, Lex looked seriously relieved when Lana actually showed up and exchanged vows with him. I can understand his (correct) assumption that his father had something to do with it, and was willing to give him anything to pay him back. How ominous is it that Lionel will wait and collect on the debt later? Lex will have to wait for the other shoe to drop. What is Lionel up to? What will he ask of Lex? I can’t wait to find out, now that the Magnificent Bastard is truly back.

However, Lana’s dream that opened act three wasn’t so much a nightmare but a memory a nightmarish trauma. It served to remind her how Clark had rescued her so dramatically from a tornado so many years ago, way back in the second season premiere, “Vortex.” Her dreaming about that was a nice touch. I believe that was the first time she’d been conscious and seen him do something so inexplicable in order to rescue her. Well, without losing her memory of it later anyway.

He had told her that he hadn’t been in the truck and that he had found her at the side of the road. She didn’t really buy it then, she had told Chloe her living through the tornado was impossible. I guess with everything that has happened over the last few episodes, she knows now Clark had lied. Her dream reminded her of the impossibility of her survival and gave her another clue to the extent of Clark’s powers.

Clark hasn’t really been trying very hard to hide his powers from her lately, but her forcing him to show his powers by trapping Chloe in the cooler was something I’m surprised Lana would do. I suppose her questioning of Aunt Nell about bending the rules to find out for sure laid the foundation for her reasoning, but it was a bold move; a deception that was worthy of a Luthor. Maybe it’s understandable, she’s seriously questioning whether being with Lex is the right thing to do, baby or not. Why wouldn’t she do whatever it takes to finally know for sure what it is, exactly, that Clark can do? Maybe this once the ends do really justify the means for her. She learned so much from what she’d seen down in the wine cellar, so maybe she isn’t wrong.

Her sacrifice later to save Clark from Lionel’s betrayal was heart breaking. So many times Clark has done the same for her, giving up what would make him happy in order to protect her. It was touching to see that Lana loves Clark enough to marry Lex. Lana’s a far stronger person now than I think she’s ever been before. So when she realizes how much Lex has been manipulating her, even to the extent of doing something to her body or her baby, her fury will certainly be an amazing thing to watch. I can’t wait to see what she’ll do, heart broken about marrying Lex to save Clark, when she finds out. It should make for some beautifully dramatic TV.

The plot structure of the script was elegant. The first three acts all started with dreams on a day that usually fulfills dreams. Each of the first three acts showed the events of the day through the eyes of Lex, Lana and Clark. The fourth act was the wedding itself and the fifth act was the aftermath. The title was about as appropriate as they ever come for Smallville as well. Sometimes the titles of the episodes don’t make sense. I loved the episode, but can someone please explain what exactly was hidden in “Hidden,” for example? However, this episode was all about promises, both ones kept and broken.

Lana’s broken promise that she would meet Clark at the barn, Lionel’s promise that he will kill Clark unless Lana marries Lex, Lex’s promise to not let anything get in the way of marrying Lana, Lionel’s promise to collect the debt his son owes him for forcing Lana to honor her commitment to Lex, and the promise of an escalation in the level of animosity between Clark and Lex as the two men looked at each other afterwards.

The episode was as well written as almost any other one this season. Kelly and Brian did an excellent job.

This is where I usually gush about the acting, but I think I’ll give it a pass this week. This review is already long enough, so let me just leave it at they all did a wonderful job. How many times can I say that Tom was perfect? Probably not enough, but I’ll restrain myself and only say that this is probably some of the best work the actors have done all season. Tom, Kristin and Michael were all terrific and I was glad to see the Magnificent Bastard back in Lionel. It’s always a treat to watch John Glover do his thing.

The episode was beautifully shot by Director of Photography, David Moxness, perfectly designed by James Phillpot and gorgeously costumed by Caroline Cranstoun. Everyone looked wonderful, especially the big three: Tom, Kristin and Michael. Probably the only complaints about that I had about the look of the actors was the fact that it looked like Tom should have worn a bigger shirt in the loft scene with Shelby. Also, Tom looked like he wore more lipstick in the final act than Kristin did.

Kristin was especially beautiful in this episode. Her hair and make-up were perfect as was the dress and veil. They made her even look more beautiful than she is already. She was a vision of the happy bride. It was ironic that she wasn’t at all happy to be getting married.

My favorite shot of the episode was Lex looking out onto the city from his office. His face was a bit diffused by the reflection of the cityscape on the window. I don’t know if that was done in camera, or whether it was a special effect, but it was gorgeous shot. Also, David did a brilliant job with the scene in the crypt. It was so dark and blue, yet was punctuated by the light coming in through the small rosette shaped stained glass windows. The scene being so dark made it almost feel like an old black and white gothic movie. It was just right for the scene and the fog resting along the floor helped support that, as did the organ music playing over top of the scene.

Speaking of the music, that was about as ideal as it gets. I don’t usually mention the songs themselves but the opening song in the tease, “You Could Be Happy” by Snow Patrol, was perfect. It starts with the sound that is reminiscent of a music box, which was wonderful considering Lex and Lana were looking at the images of their unborn baby on a sonogram. Later, in the scene in the crypt played underneath an organ playing. It supported the very gothic feel of the scene as Lex brutally murdered the doctor and was a terrific choice.I wasn’t sure what I was going to give this episode at first, it took several viewings before I could decide, but overall the strength of the script, acting, and design all worked together to make this the pivotal episode it was.

Smallville was in top form in this episode, so I give this 5 walks down the aisle out of a possible 5.

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