Smallville: Season One

November 26, 2007 | In Movies & TV | No Comments

When “Smallville” premiered in October 2001 I was somewhat skeptical about this show centered around a young Clark Kent. It aired on The WB, replacing my then favorite show “Roswell” which had a very similar premise. While “Roswell” would make a return for its third season on another network, it was up against the new Superman themed “Smallville.”

While I was set up to dislike “Smallville” for bumping, and ultimately killing “Roswell,” in the ratings, I couldn’t help but have a healthy interest in the show. It was about a young Superman after all, and being my favorite comic superhero, I wanted to check it out. While I was watching “Roswell,” a friend taped episodes of “Smallville” for me.

I liked what I saw, but after a few weeks the show began to develop a formula. We would joke about the “freak of the week” story lines that began to develop. After about 8 episodes I slowly lost track of the show and gave up trying to follow it.

I would see an episode here and there, but never really got back into it – even after “Roswell” ended its third and final season. I always told myself I would watch “Smallville” when I got the chance.

I’ve been picking up the season sets for the last couple years, whenever they were on sale – never paying more than about $20 a pop.

Over the last few weeks, as the writers strike has begun to effect television, I decided to sit down and watch the first season. Making it through, four episodes at a time, I completed the first season a few days ago and I have to say, the show really grew up quickly.

While the early episodes of the show focused on the freak of the week premise, it quickly evolved and learned from early mistakes. Characters that were once minimal to the over-all story were given a chance to grow and change. The small town of Smallville became a lively location, not just a 5 line explanation of where Clark grew up.

Lex Luther, who in the series at this point is friends with Clark, has signs of his future. You know where he’s going and you can see him going there – but it’s hard not to like him. He’s a good guy at this point, just wanting to do right by his friends, and understand the world he lives in.

I’ll be watching the second season in the coming weeks and will continue to write on my experience with the show. If you haven’t checked it out, I would recommend seeking out the first season. There is a lot of content there that make it worth watching.