It's no mean feat, but Smallville works both as a believable coming of age drama and an engaging science fiction drama. The stories thankfully moved away from the Buffy 'Monster of the Week' formula after the first season to provide more engrossing narrative arcs and better character interactions. Smallville provides a genuinely entertaining and increasingly compelling re-imagining of the Superman mythology.
Visually the show is always interesting to watch thanks to stylistic choices made early in production. No doubt attempting to bring the resonance of comic book tones to the screen, Smallville's color palette is always bold, bright and vibrant; Kent Farm with its bold red barn and green fields looks torn right off the page of a comic. This extraordinary use of color extends throughout all of the show's locations and onto the character's costumes too, even so subtly far as dressing Clark week-to-week primarily in the reds and blues iconic of his future hero costume. As far as production and style design go, Smallville succeeds admirably, and is especially refreshing after the rush of dark-themed series that followed The X-Files and Buffy.
To go along with the evolving sophistication of the show's storytelling and its excellent design, the casting is almost perfect. Michael Rosenbaum is a genuine standout; his portrayal of Lex is compelling at all times. This is the character everyone knows will mature into a man of evil and who will come to loathe Clark's alter ego Superman, but in the Smallville series - thanks in spades to Rosenbaum - he's the guy you can't help but feel an affinity for. The viewer sees equally two facets of his being; both the ruthless and underhanded Luthor we know him as from our 'future' experience of the character, and as a young man crippled by his tempestuous upbringing and equally ruthless father. Smallville's stories can only become more compelling as we witness Lex's journey into evil, and I assume the breakdown of his relationship with Clark and the rest of Smallville's characters. Not to sound sadistic, but it will be an absolute joy to watch.
Likewise, the rest of the supporting cast are sensational. Alison Mack is outstanding; her portrayal of Chloe is funny and vulnerable at the same time. Utterly believable as a girl who wears her heart on her sleeve, Mack is one of the most talented young actors out there at the moment. Unfortunately her position in the series as 'the other girl' means she doesn't get the recognition she deserves, but I certainly hope to see more from Mack in her career post-Smallville.
Kreuk is a woman you can't help but fall in love with and is luminous on screen. Fortunately in addition to her looks, Kreuk brings a genuine humility and warmth to to Lana Lang, and she feels a worthy object of Clark's affection. It's unfortunate that the overall story arc exploring Clark and Lana's relationship sometimes feels a little superfluous since we already know he ends up with Lois Lane, but Kreuk still helps make the stories compelling, and we genuinely want to see Clark and Lana together.
What's unfortunate is that with such a strong and capable actor bringing Lex to the screen, and two gorgeous and supremely talented women either side of him, Tom Welling in the main role of Clark Kent just doesn't cut it. He has a lot of natural charisma and brings us a likable, everyman Clark, but the shortcomings in his acting talent become fatally clear, almost to the detriment of the show from the second season onward. In the scenes where he needs to show some genuine emotion (Season 2 episodes "Ryan" and "Skinwalker" are a pair of prime examples) we get simply an emotional black hole from Welling; a lifeless semi-frown that brings no sense of impact to the screen. It's unfortunate, because Welling looks the part and most of the time his flaws aren't even apparent, but when they become clear on screen, it is PAINFULLY clear.
Ultimately Welling brings the show down a few notches from what it could and perhaps should be, but Smallville is still compelling, entertaining and gorgeously filmed. It's got the engrossing relationship drama of the early Dawson's Creek seasons (and thankfully not the try-hard edginess of the awful OC) with the mystery and intrigue of Roswell (without its writers obviously fumbling with the mythology). Smallville is certainly deserving of high praise.
Visually the show is always interesting to watch thanks to stylistic choices made early in production. No doubt attempting to bring the resonance of comic book tones to the screen, Smallville's color palette is always bold, bright and vibrant; Kent Farm with its bold red barn and green fields looks torn right off the page of a comic. This extraordinary use of color extends throughout all of the show's locations and onto the character's costumes too, even so subtly far as dressing Clark week-to-week primarily in the reds and blues iconic of his future hero costume. As far as production and style design go, Smallville succeeds admirably, and is especially refreshing after the rush of dark-themed series that followed The X-Files and Buffy.
To go along with the evolving sophistication of the show's storytelling and its excellent design, the casting is almost perfect. Michael Rosenbaum is a genuine standout; his portrayal of Lex is compelling at all times. This is the character everyone knows will mature into a man of evil and who will come to loathe Clark's alter ego Superman, but in the Smallville series - thanks in spades to Rosenbaum - he's the guy you can't help but feel an affinity for. The viewer sees equally two facets of his being; both the ruthless and underhanded Luthor we know him as from our 'future' experience of the character, and as a young man crippled by his tempestuous upbringing and equally ruthless father. Smallville's stories can only become more compelling as we witness Lex's journey into evil, and I assume the breakdown of his relationship with Clark and the rest of Smallville's characters. Not to sound sadistic, but it will be an absolute joy to watch.
Likewise, the rest of the supporting cast are sensational. Alison Mack is outstanding; her portrayal of Chloe is funny and vulnerable at the same time. Utterly believable as a girl who wears her heart on her sleeve, Mack is one of the most talented young actors out there at the moment. Unfortunately her position in the series as 'the other girl' means she doesn't get the recognition she deserves, but I certainly hope to see more from Mack in her career post-Smallville.
Kreuk is a woman you can't help but fall in love with and is luminous on screen. Fortunately in addition to her looks, Kreuk brings a genuine humility and warmth to to Lana Lang, and she feels a worthy object of Clark's affection. It's unfortunate that the overall story arc exploring Clark and Lana's relationship sometimes feels a little superfluous since we already know he ends up with Lois Lane, but Kreuk still helps make the stories compelling, and we genuinely want to see Clark and Lana together.
What's unfortunate is that with such a strong and capable actor bringing Lex to the screen, and two gorgeous and supremely talented women either side of him, Tom Welling in the main role of Clark Kent just doesn't cut it. He has a lot of natural charisma and brings us a likable, everyman Clark, but the shortcomings in his acting talent become fatally clear, almost to the detriment of the show from the second season onward. In the scenes where he needs to show some genuine emotion (Season 2 episodes "Ryan" and "Skinwalker" are a pair of prime examples) we get simply an emotional black hole from Welling; a lifeless semi-frown that brings no sense of impact to the screen. It's unfortunate, because Welling looks the part and most of the time his flaws aren't even apparent, but when they become clear on screen, it is PAINFULLY clear.
Ultimately Welling brings the show down a few notches from what it could and perhaps should be, but Smallville is still compelling, entertaining and gorgeously filmed. It's got the engrossing relationship drama of the early Dawson's Creek seasons (and thankfully not the try-hard edginess of the awful OC) with the mystery and intrigue of Roswell (without its writers obviously fumbling with the mythology). Smallville is certainly deserving of high praise.