Episode 712 - Fracture Review




"Fracture" Review

Written by Scarlett

DISCLAIMER - Please remember that this review does not represent the opinions/viewpoints of everyone; it is the personal opinions of the reviewer only. Thank you.

Fracture explored Lex's psyche by having Clark enter his mind, in order to get information to save Lois and Kara. In the process, Clark realizes Lex has retained some memories of "little" Lex who represents Lex's good side, but also realizes that he can't save "adult" Lex from himself. Clark gets visual proof that Lana was a voluntary participant in her prior relationship with Lex, and Clark and Chloe's close friendship survives another challenge. Where are the flashback scenes for Clark, and what it was like for him growing up, being so different from other children? We also need more character development for the main character, Clark Kent.

The Good:

Tom's Performance: Tom Welling has great chemistry with his co-stars, and this episode illustrates once again that Tom is also great in scenes with younger actors. Tom conveys such tenderness in his scenes with children. This was shown in previous episodes, in his scenes with Ryan in Ryan, Maddie in Fragile, and now with young Lex. These types of scenes also help to illustrate the young Superman's compassion for humanity, by him recognizing the goodness in children, in the face of so much evil in the world. Tom really shines as an actor when he is given a chance to do different characters, or different types of scenes. It's too bad that Tom is so underutilized on his own show.

Clark and Chloe: As usual, there was chemistry between Tom and Allison Mack. Clark and Chloe's close friendship is the most positive relationship on the show. It's no surprise that Chloe would risk her life to save Clark, just as Clark has risked his life many times to save her. They share a bond that's undeniable, and that was reiterated again when Clark told Chloe: "Chloe, I appreciate what you did for me. It goes beyond friendship". It's difficult to see anyone else in the best friend role with Clark. Their close friendship has been developed and shown onscreen for several seasons.

Supes/Mythos Reference: Kara has amnesia, and she goes by the name Linda, which is a nod to the Linda Lee Danvers identity from the comic books about Supergirl.

Clark Inside Lex's Mind: Was this episode another attempt to try to generate sympathy for the murderous villain Lex Luthor? Or, was the purpose to set up the future dynamic between Clark and Lex? Hopefully, it was the latter. This episode was a way to visually represent Lex's psyche, by highlighting Lex's memories. It's clear that Lex is mentally unstable. And yes, Lex was abused as a child, but many people are abused, and they don't choose to put other people in cages, torture and experiment on them, commit murder, and engage in numerous other crimes against humanity.

It was symbolic that Clark could have escaped Lex's mind via the red door, but instead he chose to go back and try to save little Lex from adult Lex. But, Clark realized that he can't save Lex from himself after all. Instead, Clark told little Lex to "never stop trying". While Clark can save Lex from external danger, it is Lex's choice whether he listens to little Lex inside his head. Adult Lex has always had the power to change his own life. And, Clark should not be friends with Lex again, unless Lex really makes a sincere effort to change. This very important distinction could have been spelled out more effectively, but at least the writer tried to explain Clark and Lex's future complex adversarial relationship.

Many Superman fans have wondered: Why does Superman let Lex Luthor live? Why does Superman save Lex's life, when Lex is responsible for countless crimes? And, why doesn't Lex try to kill Clark, when Clark becomes a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist at the Daily Planet, exposing LexCorp? Again, this seemed to be Smallville's way of trying to answer some of these questions. So, this reviewer will ignore the inconsistencies inherent in this storyline, such as: Why couldn't Clark have just searched Detroit looking for Lois and Kara, using his super speed, or even his super hearing? And, both Tom and Michael did a good job in their scenes together.

Continuity: Lex made a comment that was a cute shout-out to Martha, when he said that the pie in the diner was the "second best" he's ever had. And, Lionel also mentioned Oliver's cure that was used in Rage.

Lex and Kara: Lex was at his devious evil best, when trying to manipulate Kara into trusting him. It's so obvious Lex is using Kara to try to get information about her background, and possibly also learn more about Clark. If anyone truly believes Lex is trying to help Kara, then have I got a deal for you! I have a Brooklyn Bridge for sale really cheap!

Writer Caroline Dries and Director James Marshall: Although there were plot holes, Dries gives Superman fans a glimmer of hope that at least one Smallville writer seems to be focused on writing episodes about Clark and Lex, rather than the never-ending soap opera storylines. Kudos to both Dries and Marshall for their work on this episode!

The Bad:

Lex and Lana sex scene: What was the purpose of this scene? Was it a bone to shipper fans, like the Bizarro and Lana sex scene in Persona? Lex forcing Clark to watch his memory of having sex with Lana is something that a mythos Lex would do to hurt Clark. But, hasn't Clark been tortured enough, regarding this topic? There must have been something more horrifying to show Clark instead. What about memories of Lex torturing Chloe, Bart, Aquaman, Cyborg, or his level 33.1 prisoners? What about Lex's devious plans for Kara? And, if Lex wanted to show something terrible regarding Lana, what about Lex drugging Lana to think she was pregnant? Mutual sex between two consenting adults is hardly criminal behavior. Showing Lex and Lana having sex is so anticlimactic (no pun intended) in relation to Lex's other, more evil actions.

Or, was there another purpose, perhaps for Clark to witness that Lana wasn't just an innocent victim in her relationship with Lex? Was this a follow-up to Lana's statement to Clark in Siren that Clark was the "only man she's ever really loved?" Clark now has visual proof that Lana lied, since Lana also told Lex she "will always love him". If this is the purpose, then hopefully, this realization will be a wake-up call for Clark, in regards to his dead-end relationship with Lana. It's difficult to know why this scene was included, unless something changes in subsequent episodes as a result.No Clark and Kara Follow-Up Scene: Kara had been missing for over a month, while Clark had been frozen in the FOS by the sadistic Jor-El AI program. Clark doesn't have to fill Kara in on her alien origins yet, but there should have been some type of scene between them.

No Clark and Kara Follow-Up Scene: Kara had been missing for over a month, while Clark had been frozen in the FOS by the sadistic Jor-El AI program. Clark doesn't have to fill Kara in on her alien origins yet, but there should have been some type of scene between them.

Kara and Lois in Offscreenville: When did Lois and Kara meet each other? And, when did they develop some type of friendship? Were there deleted scenes from prior episodes?

My rating? I give Fracture a 3.5 out of 5 stars.

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