via www.comingsoon.net
Smallville: The Complete Eighth Season (Blu-ray)
Reviewed by: Scott Chitwood
Movie Rating: 6 out of 10
Extras Rating: 7 out of 10
Rating: Not Rated
Starring:
Tom Welling as Clark Kent
Allison Mack as Chloe Sullivan
Erica Durance as Lois Lane
Aaron Ashmore as Jimmy Olsen
Cassidy Freeman as Tess Mercer
Sam Witwer as Davis Bloome
Justin Hartley as Oliver Queen / Green Arrow
Alaina Huffman as Dinah Lance / Black Canary
Kyle Gallner as Bart Allen / Impulse
Ari Cohen as Regan Matthews
Ryan Kennedy as Rokk Krinn / Cosmic Boy
Mike Dopud as Security Guard George
Dario Delacio as Doomsday
Special Features:
Cast/Creator Commentaries
Unaired Scenes
In the Director's Chair: Behind the Lens and Calling the Shots with Allison Mack
Smallville's Doomsday: The Making of a Monster
Other Info:
Widescreen (1.78:1)
Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound
Running Time: 1012 Minutes
The Details:
The following is the official description of the series:
"There's a new reporter at the Daily Planet: Clark Kent, who shares a workspace with Lois Lane. There's a new hero in Metropolis, too. No one knows who he is. But Jimmy Olsen was on the scene of one of the do-gooder's exploits, and he snapped a blurred photo of the hero in superspeed action - a hero everyone now calls the Red-Blue Blur.
Red-jacketed, blue-shirted Clark Kent draws closer to his Superman destiny in the exciting 22-episode, 4-disc Season 8 set brimming with high-definition excitement. Another Kryptonian destiny also takes shape. Davis Bloome begins to realize he is Doomsday. His mission on Earth: kill Clark Kent. So many new events (will Jimmy and Chloe's marriage last?), so many new faces (Tess Mercer, Saturn Girl and Cosmic Boy among them!), so many state-of-the-art effects - so don't miss a single thrill-packed moment! "
"Smallville: The Complete Eighth Season" is not rated.
Mini-Review:
I haven't watched "Smallville" in quite some time, so it was interesting to catch up with the series. After all, I'm a big Superman fan so I should be following this show more than I have.
First off, they should start calling this show "Metropolis" rather than "Smallville." The show is almost entirely set in the big city with Lois and Clark both working at the Daily Planet. The story also hops around the globe quite a bit and extends well beyond the tiny town's borders. The few times they do return to Smallville, it seems a bit forced into the story.
Second, each episode of the show looks more like a theatrical motion picture rather than a TV series episodes. The cinematography, sets, and effects look better than a lot more expensive shows on TV. I was definitely impressed.
I'm also amazed by how many characters from the comics have crept into the TV show. A few of them have appeared before, but they seem a lot more prominent now. We get numerous cameos by Green Arrow, Flash, Black Canary, and Aquaman. We also see Zatanna, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Martian Manhunter, and others. Brainiac and General Zod's wife come into play, too. But if that's not enough to blow your mind, they tackle Doomsday in this season, too. They took some liberties with the character, but they seem justified. Doomsday is not simply an enormous, mindless beast that kills Superman. He's more of an anti-Superman that has a human side. By day he's an EMT, at night a creature that looks fairly close to what's in the comic books. I think it was definitely a challenge to translate, but they pulled it off.
This season also marks the departure of Michael Rosenbaum as Lex Luthor. In his place is Cassidy Freeman as Tess Mercer, Lex's replacement. While you can't blame him for wanting to go and do other things, he's an incredibly tough act to follow.
This season also did something extremely odd in the season finale with Jimmy Olsen. I can't discuss it here without getting into spoilers, but it's probably the biggest departure from the Superman mythos they've done to date. Watch the show and you'll see what I mean.
If you're like me and you're a comic fan who hasn't watched "Smallville" in a while, this season may be where you want to jump back on board. The show is still continuing on strong and is more tied to the DC comics than ever.
The bonus features are a tad light this time around. There's a featurette on the development of Doomsday and another on Allison Mack's turn in the directing chair. You'll also find a couple of commentaries and deleted scenes.
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