Smallville - is it worth watching

[Pindar]

I watched a few episodes years ago when it seemed to be a freak of the week kind of show.

I gave up on it early in S1.

What is the best way to get into the show all these years later?

Just go back to the start or is there a later season where it's a good point to jump in?

 

[Hermiod]

For the most part, the show has a Buffy-like structure where you have a season long storyline that is often largely forgotten about by the next season. Some things do carry over between seasons but that's what the BBS is for.

 

[Trekker4747]

I watched a few episodes years ago when it seemed to be a freak of the week kind of show.

I gave up on it early in S1.

What is the best way to get into the show all these years later?

Just go back to the start or is there a later season where it's a good point to jump in?

The FOTW episodes are pretty pedestrian, and some even inane, but whenever they do an episode dealing heavily with Lex, Clark's origins/a "mythos episode", or Clark gaining a power it's worth watching.

You've just got a lot of fluff and mediocrity to get through in order to get to some good stuff.

 

[Pindar]

I remember reading (probably here somewhere) that Batman and the Green Arrow appear on the show.

Do any other DC heroes make an appearance?

 

[nx1701g]

^ Batman never makes an appearance on the show. There were plans to bring him in during the third season as Adam (named for Adam West) Knight (named for The Dark Knight) but DC and WB pulled the plug before filming the episode. There are embargos on the show that prevent them from using certain characters.

Characters who have appeared:
Aquaman
Black Canary
Cyborg
Green Arrow
Impulse (Flash)
Martian Manhunter
The Wonder Twins (later this season)

Many have been mentioned though on background props, but that was before the era of HD TV. Now they try to avoid their use.

 

[Starbreaker]

There needs to be a 'mythology' set. There are maybe 20 episodes worth watching.

 

[Hermiod]

I remember reading (probably here somewhere) that Batman and the Green Arrow appear on the show.

Do any other DC heroes make an appearance?

Green Arrow yes, Batman no. The show features a lot of other DC characters, however. They are limited in that they are often prevented from using characters Warner Bros has other ideas for - like Batman and Wonder Woman. As far as heroes go you've got:

- Green Arrow (Oliver Queen - played by Justin Hartley, a regular on the show)
- Aquaman (Arthur Curry)
- Impulse (Bart Allen)
- Cyborg (Victor Stone)
- Black Canary (Dinah Lance)
- Zatanna
- The Legion of Superheroes (specifically Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad)
- Supergirl (Kara Zor-El/Kara Kent)
- Martian Manhunter (J'onn J'onzz aka John Jones)

Clark is an on/off member of what he jokingly calls the "Junior Lifeguard Association" (JLA, geddit ?), a group funded by Queen.

Green Arrow, Aquaman, Cyborg and Impulse made individual appearances before showing up together in "Justice". Black Canary and Chloe Sullivan joined later. Chloe is given the codename "Watchtower" as she is the eyes and ears of the League. Clark is jokingly codenamed "Boy Scout" as he often clashes with Oliver over their respective methods.

The show has also featured numerous DC villains in addition to Lex Luthor such as Doomsday, Zod, Faora, The Toyman, Mister Mxyzptlk, Morgan Edge and Intergang, Brainiac (played by Buffy's James Marsters) and others.

As nx1701g alludes, there was a cheeky reference to a "Theymiscrian Princess" visiting Metropolis.

 

[Pindar]

There needs to be a 'mythology' set. There are maybe 20 episodes worth watching.

IMDB says there has been 180 episodes, so if 20 are worth watching is worth getting this show on DVD?

 

[Trekker4747]

There needs to be a 'mythology' set. There are maybe 20 episodes worth watching.

IMDB says there has been 180 episodes, so if 20 are worth watching is worth getting this show on DVD?

20 is probably a lowball-number.

There's plenty more worth watching but, like the X-Files, fewer still are "mythos" episodes.

 

[nx1701g]

There needs to be a 'mythology' set. There are maybe 20 episodes worth watching.

IMDB says there has been 180 episodes, so if 20 are worth watching is worth getting this show on DVD?

There are a lot of good episodes - mainly the ones focusing on the Luthors make it worth it.

 

[Pindar]

I have just splurged a whole £10 on S1 from Amazon.

 

[Hermiod]

^Just skip the ones that focus too heavily on A) Lana (quite possibly the worst Mary Sue in the history of television) and B) Magic (the show has a really poor track record there) and you'll mostly be fine.

 

[Rowan Sjet]

I'd say it's worth watching, as there are some really masterful episodes, but it is really frustrating with how stupid it can at times as well.

 

[Nick Ryder]

Honestly, if you pick up the dvd sets on sale and watch them through, you won't be horribly disappointed. There are a lot of missteps and Kristen Kreuk goes from kinda cute to "just bash her frakking head in!" and you can have a drinking game with the number of times characters get concussions or end up at Smallville Medical (which seems to be the number one medical center in the midwest LOL)

But it seems to be more fun to watch when you can go right to the next episode. Seasons where I did actually catch it weekly failed to impress me until after I saw all the episodes in order and then the framing and such kind of made more sense. They do a lot of self references, like in episode 9 they'll reference something they did in episode 3, which in turn was a reference to something they did a season back.

I'd suggest starting from season 1 and keep going. Season 7 wasn't too bad, season 8 was interesting... the one that just came out on dvd. But I'd suggest going in order so you kinda see all the various plot threads that only in the past 2-3 seasons have been coming to fruit.

 

[CorporalClegg]

I have just splurged a whole £10 on S1 from Amazon.

If you can find all the subsequent seasons for that (or less i.e. used), I'd keep watching.

Other than the pilot (which is still the show's best episode IMO), the first season is pretty vapid and mediocre. It isn't bad, there just isn't much there.

Season two gets better--especially towards the end and season three is excellent.

The problem is, after season three, the show is the proverbial roller coaster in quality. Some of it is good, some of it is down right awful.

The problem is, it's one of those shows where you have to make a commitment. There are those of us who, for whatever the reason, have stuck with the show since the badness started (like most of season 4) despite knowing we could probably find better ways to spend our time.

 

[Aragorn]

It's a garbage show, completely representative of the CW. Characters never learn anything, the freaks of the week are pathetic and repetitive. Though you could turn it into a drinking game (and probably die of alcohol poisoning) if you take a drink anytime someone gets a convenient concussion, Clark defeats the superfreak with one punch, characters demand to know secrets they don't have a right to know, etc.

 

[Captaindemotion]

i used to quite like it. At one stage, it almost had claims to being the best live-action depiction of Superman. But it's gone rapidly downhill from about season 4 or 5, with its revolving door of characters, repetitive plots, turgid Clark-Lana storyline, lack of chemistry between Welling and the actress who plays Lois and numerous other faults. I struggled through a few years then finally gave up about season 6 or so. Now that Rosenbaum, easily the best actor on the show, has gone, I can't think of any reason for returning to it. Well, unless Lana starts getting naked every week or something.

I wouldn't buy it on DVD unless you can get the first few seasons for rock bottom.

 

[Nick Ryder]

Usually you can find nearly all but the latest season for about $20 bucks or less, so that's a do-able amount - probably even less if you go somewhere used, but I wouldn't pay more than $18 for a used copy of a season set since that's what you could probably get for it new and then at least its NEW and clean not all used and scratched.

I think the main reason WHY his chemistry with Lois sucks is because the writers are so damn hung up on Kristen Kruek and even when they did have her move on, they STILL. KEPT. BRINGING. HER. BACK INTO HIS LIFE! Buuuut at least in later seasons we see some scantilly clad Lois and Chloe and Lana to an extent... so...

But it still sucks you in somehow. Why... dunno... but it does.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

I've checked it out every so often. It never seems worth bothering with.

 

[RandyS]

Like any show, it has good episodes and bad ones. The "freak of the week" episodes in the first season were getting old fast, thankfully the second season stopped that and the show got better. Of course, Lana's constant whining got old fast too, but the show had Chole, and later Lois, so that made up for it.

Overall, I'd say the show is worth it.