Smallville (TV Series) Beacon (2011) User Reviews

Redeeming installment, refreshing mature guests, hopeful story mixed with dark elements, educative writing, well balanced production, jaw dropping cliffhanger

[igoatabase · 8/10 · 12 February 2011]

I have thought of giving up on Smallville so many times that I can't even count the number of times it happened. Homecoming, now Collateral. Damaged episodes are a recurring pattern on the show and season 10 is no exception. So we have get used to it and forgetting a poor installment is part of a long time fan's life. Should we blame the directors ? What about the episodic writers ? And the heads ? In the end we have no idea who pull the strings. Beacon's summary was reassuring because what Smallville needed was mature guests as at times it really feels like Super Pinocchio in Wonderland Turbo II. So once again they found a way to redeem themselves with a strong and heart-warming episode full of wisdom and mighty spirit. First the acting was solid and the intergenerational casting made the scenes more authentic. Second even if some scenes felt like déjà vu and featured warmed-up dialogs they can only move and inspire. I'll just never get tired of them because they give hope ! It leads us to the story because it was a lot about giving a sense to their life. What do they fight for ? Should we forgive the people who have harmed our soul ? Quite educative, as often, the writing was also served by a solid production. In fact I hate when an episode is heavy on cheap visual effects. I think it's wiser to only focus on one well executed intense action sequence. It's exactly what they did in Beacon and in the end you should find it greatly heating. Last but not least the ambiance was darker than in previous installments and a few twists should puzzle you. And as for the ending it made me swear because I didn't see it coming. Jaw dropping time ! Subliminal ad of the week : Your favorite wicked operating system next door.

Beacon

[Colcatron · 10/10 · 10 May 2011]

There is more going on in "Beacon" than almost any episode of Smallville. Martha Kent returns, while Alexander Luthor and Lionel both re-emerge. While these character make enough of an impact to carry the entire episode on their own, there's also the VRA story to be tied up, and an assassination attempt. Smallville often suffers when trying to tell multiple stories, but in "Beacon" everything is juggled flawlessly. Alexander, Lionel and Martha all have huge roles in the plot, and despite having to share screen time with a couple of side plots involving the VRA, none of the characters returns suffer.

Season 10 had a strong start up to episode 4, then hit a slump until the return of Lionel in episode 10. From this point on it's all one fantastic build up to the end. From Alexander's dramatic turn, to the destruction of the Luthor mansion, the show is taking huge gambles to set up the finale. The unpredictability alone makes "Beacon" worthwhile, but adding Martha and Lionel in there helps remind any viewer of the gap that was never successfully filled when they left. No matter what the writers tried to do with Tess, Doomsday, Zod or any other villain, nobody can top Lionel Luthor. It's a joy to have him back on the show.

Only minor complaint is that I would have liked a more extensive scene between Martha and Lionel. The home video clips in the end were a little corny, but it accomplished what it needed to in terms of pushing the story forward.