SMALLVILLE “Dominion” Season 10 Episode 19 – Only one episode left before the double season finale and the end of Smallville. When Tess discovers that General Slade has been mysteriously released from the Phantom world she sends Clark, accompanied by Oliver, to see what went wrong.
This episode marked the return of Callum Blue’s Zod and the tying up of several loose mythology ends. The last time we saw Zod, he had taken some of Clark’s blood (hence his ability to remove the crystal). This leads him to make an offer of joint partnership, which Clark of course refuses and thus ends up fighting in various 300/Starz’s Spartacus-esque duels, climaxing in a predictable showdown with Oliver.
This episode also marked the directorial debut of Justin Hartley, AKA monsieur Green Arrow. He acquitted himself very well, handling domestic scenes and fight sequences deftly, and though “Dominion” probably won’t end up on the list of best Smallville episodes ever, it was still a very solid piece of work: the scene where Lois first confronts Tessa about the crystal sacrifices was wonderfully acted and featured superb music, heightening the suspense, transcending the odd cheesy line. It made me wish that Hartley had concentrated more on making the episode a suspenseful character piece rather than forcing in some awkward fight scenes.
Random Thoughts:
The Cain and Abel reference was rather bizarre, don’t you think?
The grimy palette of the Phantom World is a weird look: sometimes it is aesthetically dark, but often it just feels overly fake.
Tom Welling and Erica Durance have great chemistry and the relationship between Clark and Lois is one of the best parts of the show: watching Lois and Clark playfully arguing over hair metal is more entertaining and endearing than watching a million life-or-death situations with couples from other television shows.
I really enjoyed this episode of Smallville, and can’t wait for next week’s (sniff) penultimate showing.
What did you think of this episode of Smallville. Sound off in the comments below.
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