January 12 2006
(SPOILER)
The Lex is yet to come.
This is an extension of the TV Guide interview that Michael Rosenbaum gave recently. Very complimentary of James Marsters and we learn when he'll be back on Smallville.
This thread has been closed for new comments.
You need to log in to be able to post comments.
About membership.
Grrr. Supressing deep bitterness at writers for certain lightswitched characters and general crappy writing. Joss! take over Smallville! please save it!
[ edited by ladysorcha on 2006-01-12 15:03 ]
ladysorcha | January 12, 08:02 CET
rbt | January 12, 08:05 CET
Simon | January 12, 08:10 CET
ladysorcha | January 12, 08:13 CET
Yeah that's what annoys me too. It could have been something great. Mentioned in the same breath as Lost, Veronica Mars, Buffy and
Two Men and a Half MenAngel. But instead of developing the Superman story (which is one of the most fantastic mythologies to come out of America), the show's creators dropped the ball and a WB teen drama was born.Though I will say Lex and his dad are the best things in it.
Simon | January 12, 08:19 CET
The fact that they blaspheme the "Superman" mythology to offer up generic teen angst, or that they've cribbed from "Buffy" so much over the years (badly, by the way) that Joss should be entitled to a cut of the show's profits.
And, no, giving Marsters a job does not get you brownie points.
rbt | January 12, 08:28 CET
What a lovely interview. MR sounds like a total sweetheart. And hey, yet another co-star with much JM love. I do believe JM rocks. :0)
exoticmushroom | January 12, 08:53 CET
Giving him a job in a cool show that people like to turn their noses up at gets you more :-)
MR seems like a good sort, as well from being the major talent on the show. Good that he can amp it up with JM. Amped up Lex is a good thing.
JM always seems to bring out the best in anyone he shares a scene with. I noticed in the Macbeth DVD, the actor he was with was much better with him than in her solo parts, IMO.
vanity | January 12, 09:05 CET
'Smallville' is a great idea which unfortunately veers wildly from absolutely appalling throw-your-TV-out-the-window rubbish (e.g. the Steven DeKnight vampire episode or 'Spell' from season 4) to fairly well realised super-hero TV (pretty much any of the mythology episodes). Funnily enough, the episode mentioned here 'Lexmas' somehow managed to combine the two in the same hour with Lex's ghost of Christmas future thread being dark and ambiguous and sort of poignant and Clarke/Chloe's portion being pretty daft and pointless.
Agree tho' that Lex and his father are easily the most interesting characters (and the best actors, guest spots aside) on the show.
Saje | January 12, 09:06 CET
Oh and people are way harsh on Smallville. Maybe it's not great but it's entertaining enough. Just because it isn't fit to lick Buffy's boots doesn't mean it is't fun to watch
[ edited by Andy Dufresne on 2006-01-12 16:12 ]
Andy Dufresne | January 12, 09:12 CET
Couldn't agree more. I actually haven't watched any of this years episodes... Though I did catch one little clip with JM at the end of the episode set in Superman's Fortress of Solitude just because I wanted to see him.
I want to like Lois Lane... and in a way I do. But they could do so much more with her!
lyrabelacqua | January 12, 09:14 CET
I'm glad MR enjoyed working with JM. It seems everyone who works with him loves him.
killinj | January 12, 09:15 CET
By the way , I like Smallville. So there ner!
debw | January 12, 09:24 CET
zeitgeist | January 12, 09:39 CET
I'd only seen little bits of Smallville before and was unimpressed. This season I got on board to watch James Marsters, and I am finding the show is good enough to hold my attention. It's no Buffy (and the vampire episode was a stark reminder of that, what a terrible idea) but no show can be (well, maybe Veronica Mars ;-) ).
Anyway, I think Tom Welling is actually pretty good (if he wasn't, it would really stick out like a sore thumb). Maybe he doesn't have a lot of range, but he holds his own having to act with everyone in the cast. Michael Rosenbaum is indeed very good (nice to see a happier side of him in Lexmas). Actually, I think the worst actor on the show is Annette O'Toole.
Oh, and Kristin Kreuk is soooooo purty... =)
jam2 | January 12, 09:43 CET
I do think that MR and JG are perhaps the best actors on the show, save for James of course, but TW has definitly improved over the last years, and I like him more and more. Chloe is also very good,and I can actually take Lois. Lana, though, grates on my nerves.
Even if James does not become a regular on SV, I do hope he will be appreciated by the WB and gets a role in another show. It does make me happy to see that everyone who works with James seems to genuinely like him- a lot!
[ edited by zeitgeist on 2006-01-12 18:51 ]
kathylovesspike | January 12, 10:12 CET
Luckily for me, James is both :)
anindoorkitty | January 12, 10:32 CET
I think some folks would argue he does.... :~P
BTW, do we know exactly when James will be back on? Not tonight, I'm assuming?
Rogue Slayer | January 12, 10:33 CET
Angelus came along and DB blossomed. Over on Ats when he was way more than the lead's boyfriend he grew as an actor and the subtle comedy bits he did manage to sneak into Btvs episodes showed themselves more readily.
TW is playing a young Superman. It's a very established character, so he has a very limited amount of wiggle room in his portrayal. It's only when you see him in episodes like this season's Splinter (an excellent SDK episode) or the one a while back where he swapped bodies with Lionel Luthor that you get to see a glimpse of what he could do if given the chance.
Incidentally, in that body swap episode I was suprised that JG seemed to be a little lacking when beng Clark. It was of course my mistake, he wasn't lacking he was being Clark and that's when is hit me that the character is very restrictive for even the best actor on the show.
Can't wait to see how they bring JM back on the show. *Spoilers! Here kitty, kitty.*
exoticmushroom | January 12, 11:11 CET
I'm going to fall into the category of wasted potential. And I didn't like Chloe character until she found out Clark's secret. Now I love her. (I always thought she was damn pretty though.)
war_machine | January 12, 12:37 CET
Miss Edith | January 12, 13:13 CET
James was really good on the show, I look forward to his return.
Ghost Spike | January 12, 13:50 CET
And another says,
This is such a good touchpoint for what's wrong with Smallville. You have a good writer, who has done good work on other shows (Buffy!), who can turn out good stuff (Splinter) and then later produce something appallingly terrible (the vampire episode). It makes me question how much agency the writers actually have on Smallville? Are there heavy, ill-advised editorial hands? Bad direction? What's going on here? And how does Drew Greenberg fit in?
Ever since I read that interview with Joss in which he said there were several (or one?) episode(s) of BtVS and AtS which he wrote entirely (or re-wrote after the writer messed up) but for which he gave himself no public writing credit at all, I've been really questioning how the TV writing process actually works. A certain writer or writers are listed in the credits, but how much of their actual work appears on the screen and how much is doctored, excised, and replaced?
chickenbird | January 12, 14:06 CET
Matt_Fabb | January 12, 14:40 CET
[ edited by Saje on 2006-01-12 21:59 ]
Saje | January 12, 14:48 CET
I didn't know we were supposed to take it seriously. That's probably why I've enjoyed watching it since season 1. ; -)
Ruadh | January 12, 15:44 CET
zeitgeist | January 12, 15:50 CET
Loved the MR interview, and I'm thrilled we have some confirmation that Marsters will, indeed, return this season. I never watched SV until we had news James was going to guest star, but I ran out and bought the DVDs to catch myself up on the story, and was pleasantly surprised to find it a fun, likeable show. And I think 'likeable' is what I'm going to have to settle for, at least until James has a new show or Joss has a new TV offering;-)
[ edited by lynnie on 2006-01-12 23:43 ]
lynnie | January 12, 16:38 CET
zeitgeist | January 12, 16:45 CET
lynnie | January 12, 18:47 CET