#8.5 “Committed” Review

NOTE: You know the drill, if you read my reviews a lot that is. Here is where I try to come up with somewhat cute ways to tell you that what you are about to read will spoil you. Imagine this one was as cute as this episode was… Oh, and I should also warn you this review is going to be a tad on the long side. Just sayin’…

I had been looking forward to this episode. It had looked good from what I could tell from the preview trailer and the photos I’d seen on KryptonSite… However, when I saw it I was surprised. I didn’t realize just how much fun and exciting it was going to be.

Well, maybe I should qualify that a bit…. Rather, I should say that most of the episode was fun and exciting, but I’ll talk more about the unfun and unexciting bits later.

Writer Bryan Q. Miller evidently makes his professional writing debut with this episode. At least I couldn’t find anything else he’d written, or at least nothing else he had been credited for. His IMDB page is nearly empty and his entry on TV.com isn’t any more illuminating. However overall, especially for an apparent newbie, he had done a very good job.

The storylines in the episode all moved well. The stakes increased for all characters throughout, the pacing was good, and the act break cliff-hangers were all excellent. There is almost nothing that I like better than a good act-break cliff-hanger.

However, the best part of this episode was that the main storyline from this episode had tied in perfectly with what had happened in the last one. “Instinct” had dealt with the idea of soul mates, true love, doubt, and who the characters were destined to be with. And here in the very next episode the characters were forced to face the truths revealed in the last episode, and then admit to them, or cause the other person to suffer.

It’s an ultra-nice sense of continuity that also was, in a twisted way, very romantic. Yeah, the wrong answer got the other person in the room painfully zapped with electricity by the mad jeweler, but when they got the answers right it was so sweet.

When Jimmy had initially lied about “cheating” on Chloe with Maxima, the zap was almost more painful Jimmy to than it had been to Chloe, and she was the person who had just gotten electrocuted. (I’m not sure a kiss is really cheating, but he felt so guilty about the alien sex goddess kissing him that it makes sense he’d consider it to be.) He didn’t want her hurt and he apologized so sweetly, it was very romantic. He truly loves Chloe and was sincerely sorry that he had given into Maxima, even though it completely wasn’t his fault.

Then when Chloe had to tell whether she had cheated, she could speak without fear because she hadn’t. However, when their tormentor had asked Chloe whether she loved another, she had to think about it. Maybe she doubted what the truth was, or maybe she didn’t initially know, but when she answered ‘no’ and Jimmy wasn’t zapped, even though he had fully expected to be, it was a terrific affirmation of their relationship. They had passed his sick test and were freed.

Of course Lois at first didn’t realize that and had continued her search for Chloe and was kidnapped herself. Thanks to Jimmy’s and Chloe’s clues, Clark figured out that the kidnapper was the jeweler. He found Lois without too much trouble and was about to rescue her. Unfortunately, the jeweler (rather conveniently) had a wrist watch made with kryptonite and he was able to also capture Clark.

Impressed by Clark’s show of affection for Lois, him charging in and attempting to save her, the mad jeweler this time asked Lois the questions first. She failed the first question and Clark was painfully electrocuted. Why Lois had considered whatever she’d done before as ‘cheating’ on Clark, I’m not sure, but she felt bad about the lie causing Clark pain.

Clark just wanted her to tell the truth, no matter what it was, and then when she did, he was so surprised. What a terrifically acted scene for both of Tom Welling and Erica Durance, but the dilemma that the writer had posed for the characters was wonderful. The writer had done a tremendous job.

That said, however, Bryan might want to research lie-detectors before he uses them again in a script. Lie detectors don’t quite function the way he had written them in this episode.

Polygraphs don’t work well if the subject is already under stress (and being tortured, or watching a person you love be tortured, would probably be pretty stressful). The test results the guy was getting wouldn’t have been anywhere close to accurate, even if the machine itself was a reliable method of lie detection.

The truth is that lie-detectors are such imprecise contraptions that their test results are not even admissible as evidence in most states (and in quite a lot of countries), but I’ll go with it this time. Bryan using what likely are very common misconceptions about how lie detectors work served the story well, so I can’t complain too much.

It tied in well with the general theme of the episode, love and commitment, since a lie detector essentially, like the crazy jeweler had said, “…listens to your heart.” It’s very touching actually, since what was in the heart (how people truly feel each other) was the central theme of the episode.

I loved the way that Clark and Lois worked together to try and save Chloe and Jimmy. They were particularly humorous at the jeweler’s shop and trying to convince Oliver they were getting married. The elevator scene was also terrific. Clark’s and Lois’ teasing banter has probably never been better.

However, maybe Bryan needs to work on his Oliver/Tess banter. (If he ever gets hired to write for Smallville again, that is.) I found my eyes almost literally glazing over during most of the time they were on the screen because I was so NOT interested in what was going on with them. I actually like both characters, so I’m not sure why their scenes bored me silly in this episode.

Maybe it was because I’m not sure I completely understand what it was that Oliver’s storyline was trying to accomplish. Maybe Bryan didn’t do as good a job tying Oliver’s and Tess’ story into the A story as he did tying it back to the previous episode.

Yeah, we got a better idea of what had gone on between Ollie and Tess before, but why was Oliver even bothering trying to woo Tess anyway? Her close connection to Lex, and his 33.1 experiments, I would think might cool any ardor for his ex-flame. And what was the point anyway? I don’t think their side-story had a single thing to do with the main one, not even thematically.

There was no commitment for them to deal with. Unless it was their lack of being “committed” to each other that Bryan was exploring. I hope that was it because unless the Oliver/Tess storyline was intended to illustrate that, it didn’t really make any sense.

Another problem with it was that their storyline didn’t really leave us with much. Aside from seeing that Oliver hasn’t really changed much from the thoughtless ass he was when he’d slept around and seeing that Tess can be really cold hearted when she gets angry. She was actually cruel when she told him, “There was nothing romantic about last night, Oliver. I had an itch, you scratched it.”

Ouch!

I guess we also saw yet more proof that Oliver likes to take his shirt off. As if we needed more proof of that!

As much as I like the scenery when he goes shirt-free, I think it’s getting ridiculous. It’s sorta like when Lois had previously been in work out wear for no apparent reason. That doesn’t seem to happen as much as it used to, so maybe Justin is taking her place as the most objectified cast member.

Not that I can complain too much, I like gratuitously shirtless buff men as much as the next girl (well, the heterosexual ones anyway). However, maybe the next time they should try harder to make the storyline seem less like it was designed solely as an excuse to get Justin to take his shirt off.

Anyway, if the point of Oliver’s storyline in this episode was to learn more about him, they hadn’t really accomplished that. Oliver came off as a jerk and Tess seemed completely justified for treating him the way she did. I think Tess came out better than Oliver had. I actually liked her better at the end of this episode than I did in the beginning and I’m not sure the same could be said of Oliver.

One thing that was really odd about this episode was Jimmy’s revelation about the lies he’d told concerning his family. I guess I don’t understand the point of his “my dad isn’t as rich as I’d said” storyline.

The thing is when I first saw this episode, I wasn’t sure we’ve never heard a single word about Jimmy’s parents until the first few minutes of this episode. Although, I thought something might have been said about it in season 6.

So, I looked it up and I was glad that my Google-fu is still up to par. I found the line.

In “Rage” Chloe did mention Jimmy in that infamous Thanksgiving scene, more as a way to explain his absence than anything else (I think Aaron was filming something at the time “Rage” was shot).

She told Clark, “Jimmy says hi from his mom’s house…”

But, he had said he didn’t know his mom at all in this episode…

Oops.

I guess they should have checked for any previous references to Jimmy’s family before making them so totally dysfunctional. Although, I suppose it’s possible that maybe he had been lying even back then…

Anyway, I’m thinking that there must be some point to bringing it up now. Perhaps they’re trying to explain why Jimmy won’t have any parental units at the wedding.

But if this storyline was dished up as an explanation of why Jimmy’s parents aren’t around, they’re going to a lot of trouble for very little gain. I mean, does anyone really care why his parents are not around? I never even thought about it before this episode. It just seems weird they’re going out of their way to explain the absence of his ‘rents when the big question the writers and producers really should be addressing is why Gabe Sullivan’s apparently going to be MIA for Chloe’s, his only child’s, wedding.

Added to this, I would have thought that the Jimmy mea culpa about lying might have been the launching point for Chloe to reveal her own hidden truth. I was disappointed that she hadn’t revealed her new powers when Jimmy had finally come clean, but maybe that reveal is being saved for a future episode.

Those few things aside, if this episode is indeed Bryan’s professional writing debut, I think he did pretty well. It wasn’t a perfect episode, but it shows he can write very well.

Tom Welling did an excellent job as Clark. In fact, I think that this is his best performance so far this season. Given the events in this episode, I thought Tom had produced a remarkably subtle portrayal of the wide array of emotions that Clark had gone through here.

I absolutely adored the scenes Tom and Erica shared as Clark and Lois sought out clues to who had taken Chloe and Jimmy. Those scenes were the funniest in the episode. The way that Tom played Clark’s shock when Lois suggested they act as a decoy couple was hysterical. Then, later in the jewelry store Lois started calling Clark ‘pumpkin’ and ‘poodle’, the looks he had Clark give Lois were priceless.

Then there was the moment when the jeweler handed him the ring. It was sweet the way he looked at it so sadly, as Clark was no doubt thinking about Lana and the ring he’d given her. Then Lois joked about him having ‘performance anxiety’ to snap him out of his reverie, so Clark shoved the ring onto Lois’ finger with force. It was very funny. It only got better when Oliver showed up. What a wonderful scene for the three of them, actually. I laughed out loud at several points…

Then there were points in the dungeon scene where unspoken moments happened between Clark and Lois and Tom’s face had been so expressive that I could almost see what Clark was thinking. I would think that in a scene like that, where so much is going on in between the characters without a word being spoken, it would have been played more broadly. However, Tom was so restrained.

Another highlight for Tom was the scene in the elevator. Tom made Clark smug, as if he was very self-satisfied with his newfound knowledge of her feelings. Then when Lois shot Clark down, took his opening about lying and running with it, I loved the way that Tom had Clark cover so badly. Tom portrayed Clark as clearly disappointed that she had been lying, but he was just not quite convincing at pretending he wasn’t.

Lois was right, Clark is not a good liar and he never has been. And Tom didn’t make it too believable, just the right amount of playing it up for her benefit, while not too successfully covering up the hurt and confusion. Tom Welling had done a terrific job in this episode.

Erica Durance was completely adorable. The first scenes where Lois was drunk and then hung over were perfectly portrayed. And I LOVED her once Lois had talked Clark into her scheme as acting as bait for the kidnapper. She had Lois relish the ruse as a way to get more digs at Clark and make their pretense as painful as possible for him. That was awesome.

However, probably her best scenes were closer to the end. The scene in the dungeon was great. Lois was at first feisty and defiant, but only until the stakes rose and she realized she wouldn’t be able to talk her way out of the situation. Then Erica gave Lois a lovely vulnerability, added to showing a remarkable tenderness toward Clark when Clark got hurt.

However, when the torturer had the upper hand and pressed her on answering the question of whether she really loved Clark, her anguish was heart wrenching. When she said ‘yes’ with the camera pushed in so close, that moment packed quite an emotional wallop. It was very well done scene.

I also really liked Lois’ later scenes with both Chloe and Clark. The scene in the Isis Foundation when Lois was horrified by her drunken faux pas was terrific. Erica played Lois as direct yet remorseful. Then in the elevator with Clark, Erica played up the truth being a lie and she did a good job playing off of Tom and being convincing with the lie, but not completely. It was another wonderful episode from Erica.

I loved Allison in this episode. But, to be honest, before this episode I was like Lois when she said about Chloe and Jimmy, “I don’t know… I don’t see it.” I just wasn’t onboard with the Chloe/Jimmy love train.

And it wasn’t Chloe or Jimmy that was the problem. I love Chloe and it’s not like I dislike Jimmy, he is very cute and can be charming, but I just didn’t understand what she saw in him. Like ever. Even back to the fourth season when she had disclosed she’d dated another Daily Planet intern named Jimmy, I didn’t buy it. Since then, their on-again, off-again, on-again roller coaster ride of a relationship has had its moments, but could also be very awkward at times too.

However, the scenes Allison had with Aaron were all wonderful in this episode. She finally sold me on how wonderful her relationship with Jimmy is because of how well Allison played the completely besotted Chloe.

Probably her best scene was the second dungeon scene when it was her turn to answer questions. She played Chloe as anxious for Jimmy if she answered incorrectly and maybe she wasn’t sure if she could answer honestly, but when she was sure, the look of joy on her face as the realization hit was beautiful. It was a very moving scene. Allison had done a superb job in this episode.

I loved Cassidy Freeman, although I’m not sure I completely understood the point of her and Oliver’s encounters in this episode. I loved how physical Tess was and how complicated Cassidy had made some of her interactions with Oliver. When Oliver had come up to Tess the morning after, Cassidy played Tess as being a bit hopeful. He was just being so romantic, inviting her to join him to view the sunset in Malibu for dinner. She looked like she was going to take him up on the offer until he brought out the diamond bracelet.

You know the saying, if looks could kill, he would have been dead. She gave him a completely cold and chilling glare. Without a word spoken about I had no doubt how Tess viewed Oliver’s gift, like a payoff for services rendered. The line after that confirmed it, she’d told him to save it for the next waitress’ tip. Ouch. That’s cold and that’s an angry woman. I maybe didn’t like the side-story very much, but I can’t complain about how well Cassidy had performed her part. In fact, she completely saved those scenes for me.

Guest Star David Lewis was a terrific choice for the Jeweler. It was a largely thankless job, especially with him wearing a mask for most of the episode. However, they’d selected the right actor for this part. He was more than capable and even gave the relatively small part of a mad jeweler some depth. The way he explained how the ring is the symbol of love, no beginning and no end, was delivered perfectly I also loved his reaction when Clark had put the ring on Lois’ finger and he has said, “Perfect fit.” The way he delivered that line, it was like the character had decided at that moment Clark and Lois were his next victims. David did a wonderful job.

Director Glen Winter again did a magnificent job. He’s usually a Director of Photography with the show. So, this is just his sixth outing as a director, if I’m counting it up right. It might be hard to believe, but I think he’s getting better every go ’round.

I wonder if it’s easier to direct if you’re a DP to start with. His shot choices are always very good and the setups are usually out of the ordinary.

I adored the fight with the staffs between Tess and Oliver in the Luthor Mansion library. It was expertly choreographed. The very active camera work was perfect with them circling each other.

The circling camera is an overused device, in my opinion, but with the two actors circling in conjunction with the camera was terrific. It fit in well with what was going on with the characters in the episode as well, as they circled each other physically, they were doing it figuratively too in trying to figure each other out, so it was like a win-win.

The dungeon scenes were beautifully shot, but I’m not sure if this next part I’m going to talk about is more a directing choice or a DP choice… I think since it involves blocking (the location of the actors in the scene in relation to each other and the scenery) more than just camera position, I’m going with the director.

Anyway, I especially loved this one particular part in the dungeon. I looked at it several times and it seemed so simple, yet powerful at the same time.

The part I’m talking about was when the mad jeweler had both Clark and Lois chained to those chairs and Lois had just lied about “cheating” on Clark. Their torturer had asked her whether she truly loved this man, deep down.

She didn’t answer right away, so he had gotten down to Lois’ level in the rolling office chair and asked again. She didn’t answer, still, so he slid forward to get closer to Lois and he asked again. It was that shot which surprised me.

It’s where I would have expected a dolly shot to get the camera closer to the actor.

A dolly shot is when the camera is mounted on a small platform which is on wheels, and that is usually on a track. It’s a very smooth way to move the camera back or forth, and it is a pretty common way to physically zoom in, or zoom out, on an actor.

Instead of that, Glen had the actor get closer to the camera by rolling forward on the chair instead. The hand held camera was pulled back a bit and tilted up a tad, but the actor had done most of the moving.

Perhaps it was a subtle difference. I mean, the actor did the moving rather than the camera or having the cameraman do a lens zoom. All three would achieve the desired affect of getting a tighter close-up of the actor. However, using the lens to zoom flattens the image, which can work very well at times, but in this case I don’t think that would have totally suited the scene. A dolly shot would have been too smooth I think too. Again, that probably would not have been quite right. So, it was a subtle thing, and I have no idea how deliberate a choice it was, but it was a choice I loved.

For starters, it’s practical. It’s probably easier (read that as cheaper, it would take less time to setup everything and wouldn’t require any track) for the actor to move rather than for the camera to move, but it also fit in perfectly with the story. The jeweler was an in-the-face kind of guy. His torture of his victims was direct and confrontational. He challenged his victims and forced them to face their doubts and confess to lies they’d told each other.

The Jeweler wasn’t the kind of guy who would just stand still just when it was getting down the important bits. I completely buy that he would get closer, get in Lois’ face, as he pressed her for the most important answer he needed from her.

The kidnapper rolling on the chair like that, to get closer to the low angle camera (and Lois) was not only perfect for the scene, but it was also perfect for that moment and that character. The low level of the camera, putting the actor into a superior position in the frame, also added to the power of it. The jeweler had power over Lois and the low angle reinforced that idea visually. What a wonderful, and very visual, moment that was. This was a tremendous episode for Glen.

Gord Verheul, previously credited as Gordon, had previously worked on Smallville on another of Glen Winter’s episodes, “Traveler.” While I’m not sure this episode was quite as successful as that one cinematically, I still love that capture scene in the tease and the murder of Patricia later in that episode, but it was still beautifully shot.

I loved that opening crane shot where the camera started above the cake, rotated and dollied back above the crowd to go down and then show Lois getting drunk with Chloe and Jimmy by then far in the background. And it did all that in one take. What a great shot.

Probably my favorite shot though was a fairly intimate one, the opening of the first act when the camera opened on a hung-over Lois. Erica is, of course, beautiful so even “hung over” she looked awesome, but the close up as the camera moved set the stage very well for her slightly humiliating encounter with Clark.

I also like how the scenes in the dungeon were filmed too. The lighting was harsh and had a high contrast ratio (the brights were very bright, and the darks very dark), yet the scene still showed visual depth. I hate that TV shows can sometimes be too brightly lit, like they think we need to see everything even in a place that should be dark. That’s a pet peeve of mine, actually.

However, that can make darker places tricky to photograph. If you make it too dark, it’s harder to tell what’s going on. You don’t want to lose the background and foreground into the shadows.

Gord had added some color and some background light that gave the dark scene depth. It was dark enough to be menacing, yet there was enough light and color so you didn’t lose some of the nice details in the set. Gord shot a completely awesome show.

Melanie Williams probably redeemed herself in this episode, as had the Key Hairstylist and Key Make-up Artist, Sarah Koppes and Natalie Cosco. The costumes for everyone were all terrific and I’m not sure Erica’s and Allison’s hair has ever looked better. I loved the dress that Lois wore to the engagement party and her hair looked awesome the next morning.

Chloe looked fantastic too. The dress she wore to the engagement party suited her figure well and I like her slightly different hair cut.

This episode probably wasn’t perfect, I’m not too sure what Ollie was doing and why Jimmy’s absent parents were even brought up, but I loved this episode. I give this episode 4.5 polygraphs out of a possible 5.

Note: The views of Triplet don’t necessarily represent the thoughts and feelings of everyone at KryptonSite. Send her feedback.