It seems like it’s been months since there was a new Smallville … oh wait, it has been months! Was this a triumphant return? Yes and no. It didn’t have some of the jaw-dropping moments of some of this seasons’s better episodes, but it didn’t totally suck either. What it did have was Chloe, and that was nearly enough to make it a very good episode in my book.
The writers decided to go all Inception on us by twisting reality and dreams right from the beginning. I was about to call foul when the story picked up at the Kent farm and there was no explanation as to what happened to our heroes when we last saw them, lying unconscious in Carter’s tomb. Things got even crazier when Clark discovered they had been captured by the VRA and that they had taken his powers away, then Oliver somehow ended up in a straightjacket an observation ward. When Chloe walked through the wall of his cell, coupled with the flashbacks he, Clark and Dinah had been having, we didn’t know if Chloe had turned traitor or not. And I would have been really upset if she had, but it turns out she’s working with the Suicide Squad.
It turned out the Chloe everyone was seeing was an avatar that she had created to get into their minds because the VRA had them all connected to a main frame to experiment on their brains as a way of controlling their powers and loyalties. Chloe had to convince everyone that she was helping them, but Clark was being more stubborn than Oliver, Dinah and Lois combined. It was nice to see Oliver trust in her enough to jump off the roof of the Daily Planet into the real world and, again, I really enjoyed Erica Durance‘s performance as she tried to convince Clark that Chloe was telling the truth and that he had to trust her the same way she had trusted in him for all of these years.
The topper of the episode had to be Clark’s first successful flight. Even though it was only happening in the virtual world, it was a stunning and beautiful moment as he and Lois flew over Metropolis. I also loved when Lois told Clark how much faith she has in him, and that Oliver and Chloe are happily reunited. I hope Chloe keeps to her word and sticks around for a while … like to the finale! My only real nitpick is the “schwing” sound Black Canary’s blades made in mid air, not touching anything else even remotely metal. If there is one over-used sound effect these days, that’s the one, but the Lost-inspired music was a nice touch. Overall, this was kind of a languid episode for a series that should be barreling to its conclusion, so hopefully things will pick up next week with the return of Lionel and Martha Kent!
Clacked by Chuck Duncan 
on Feb 05, 2011 @ 09:02 EST5EDT
So with Allison Mack’s name returned to the opening credits, does this mean Chloe’s back, or will they be fiddling with the credits now for big-name returning guests?
(I ask because we’d previously been told Chloe would only be in a handful of episodes, but this would appear to be half a season now)
*POST AUTHOR*
My guess is she’ll be in the credits for the rest of the season whether she’s on an episode or not. Cassidy Freeman seems to get more screen time from her opening credit than she actually does on the show sometimes! I doubt we’d see John Glover or Annette O’Toole in the credits for a guest spot, but Chloe is a major part of the rest of the story so I believe she will stay in the credits. Plus, she’s gotten moved to the end of the cast with an “and” before her name which means Allison Mack has a really good agent and the producers feel she’s important to the show because anytime an actor can score an “and” or a “with” before their name in the credits, it’s a big deal.
The episode seemed to rip off The Matrix and Vanilla Sky more than Inception. I mean the multiple Agent Sullivans were straight from the mediocre Matrix reloaded. The whole need to jump off the roof of a skyscraper to wake up was the exact end of Vanilla Sky.
I think the inclusion of Allison Mack in the credits is going to be like how The X-Files handled Duchovney’s credit in the title. Just because she is in the titles now means she will be in every episode. She might disappear for a while again until the finale and her name will vanish from the credits again.