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Smallville
Episode 1.10: "Shimmer"
Air Date: January 29, 2002
Written by Michael Green & Mark Verheiden
Directed by D.J. Caruso
Guest Stars: Kelly Brook (Victoria), Azura Skye (Amy)
After Rogue, the notch for Smallville is just one more... uh, notch higher. This week we're treated to true stalker power. If you thought the superpowered mutants chasing after Lana and/or Chloe were tough (odds are you didn't), then you haven't seen anything until you've seen Lex's crush. The previous statement is made all the more ironic since this episode features a villain that can't be seen unless there's mist or smoke available.
In an odd bit of casting, Michael Rosenbaum's fellow Duncan, Zoe, Jack, and Jan alum Azura Skye (Amy) pops up as a nubile young high school student after Lex's shiny bald head. She's got all the signs of a true stalker: love shrine to Lex, steals Lex's things, hates Lex's girlfriend/whore. The show goes to great lengths to fool the audience into thinking that it can't possibly be Amy's silent and rarely seen brother who's terrorizing Luthor Manor. Of course it is. That wasn't really a plot twist so much as a plot shiver.
As usually, the best portion of the episode revolved around Clark's growing relationship with Lana. Whitney's pushing Lana away, and Clark is stepping in to take his place. Lana seems pretty damn receptive to his advances. Even to the point of encouraging them. Clark finds out why Whitney's being such an ass, and ends up coming down with a bad case of the guilts. He pulls back from Lana, and spends a tear filled evening staring at the couple on Lana's porch with his telescope. That last part is really sad when you stop to think about it.
Smallville didn't disappoint me tonight. Not at all. After Rogue, though, this show has more to live up to. Fortunately, we didn't really get a reference to Kryptonite. The Invisible Boy used a substance he cooked up from a Kryptonite-laced plant. That's weak, but fortunately they didn't really try to explain it.
It's still difficult to tell whether or not Lex is evil. He talks about how Clark is special, but he doesn't seem too overt or curious about what he's hiding. I'm glad the producers of the fine program aren't pushing things too hard too fast. I'd be seriously disappointed if they actually went with the overrated "big bad" scenario. I like this show when it's more serial, but I know it can't stay that way.
I give "Shimmer":
Episode Rating: 8 out of 10
Steven "Drenball" Dougherty likes kittens and puppies, especially Extra Tasty Crispy Style. Mmmmm.
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