PROTOTYPE and PHANTOM Official Re-Watch Thread, September 7th, 2012

[Arbar]

Wow, great idea! Can't believe they didn't do one of those. I guess the closest thing was Onyx.

You know what I always wanted in a similar vein? Clark gets a chance to see what life would have been like if he'd told both Lana and Lex when they were both closest to him. It seemed like it would be a 'given', but it never happened


Anyway, I watched the teaser for Prototype having not seen it before (brilliant opener btw), and didn't once think that those guards had been killed. Disabled, to me, meant they has been disarmed, maybe knocked-out...if he'd said eliminated, sure, I could see it. It was only afterwards that I realised that this scene was the one where Lex had supposedly let them be killed. So count me as someone on the 'Lex wasn't *that* cold' side (even though he was at other times)


Also: "You and Dad taught me to always put others first'

Heh

Hehe

Hehehe
Hehehehahahahahh
HAHAHAHAAHHahahahahahahahahaaaa
HahahahhaahWheeeeeHaaaheehehehehe!!

*wipes tears away*

Ah...that's was a good one Clark.


I did quite like the Clana barn scene, but the problem with the Lana knows arc is:

a). why does she immediately forgive Clark for not trusting her when she finds out? She was always so angry that he didn't trust her, but now...she finds out he didn't trust her *and* he's an alien. How did that change her feelings on that matter?

b). Clark abducted her, and assaulted Lex in Crimson, treated her really badly in Red, Exodus, Exile and Rush, and lied to her about things that had nothing to do with his secret....but apparently once you find out a guy has heat vision and super-strength, him randomly acting like a complete ass to you makes sense!

[MrsK]

Did he? Wasn't he betrayed by Nigel and left behind?

I'm pretty sure he died at he end of the clone plot in S3 when the underground lab was destroyed.

[MrsK]

There is one. Lana. Lionel made her do it. She was the mole Burke feared and he send a professional to track and kill in the last episode. Lionel took care of the professional to protect Lana.

Lana is definitely a mole, but Lex's security is notoriously bad. I hadn't thought that Lionel was responsible for the death of burke's man... but it is a pretty good theory.

By her own words it is the kind of situation Lois has lost several boyfriends - Ollie just being the last one in a row. And I think Chloe is struggling with her fear to become an insane meteor freak killer AND with the fear that Lex would kidnap her and put her into 33.1. I don't recall the ep but at one point she says to Clark "from one guinea pig to the other". It seemed to me that since she knew she was meteor infected she got the feeling that every day would be her last one and wondering if she was still herself when he would return.

Lois clearly has a bad track record with boyfriends, but Chloe... at this point she and Jimmy were going strong. I didn't really see her fear about her meteor freak status playing into this scenario.

And that is so un-Lex, isn't it? I mean, to order an execution without even knowing who it is? I think, his men just misinterpreted his order. Taking care of a witness does not mean to kill him/her to a Luthor, right? They have other means to do it.

I believe "taking care of the witness" meant exactly what Lex's men understood it to mean. Lionel has never hesitated to have people killed, and Lex is following in his footsteps. He considers his end goal to be more important, so the ends, whatever they may be, justify the means.

I got the feeling THIS was quite a distraction for him. The reason he was not asking for the identity of the witness for example. He was really busy with Lanalanalana. Lana really has a way to mess with the minds of men in the worst of possible moments.

She definitely does! Maybe it's a meteor power from all those years of wearing that kryponite necklace!

As far as I recall Lana's superskin came from Bizarro. He was growing stronger by absorbing kryptonite. And Lex had taken a blood sample.

That is a good theory.

Apparently, getting information about Project Ares was what Lionel wanted from Lana. She gave the DVD to him, or maybe a copy but Lex knew anyway.

Seems odd that Lana would do that in the study, since she is well aware of the security cameras there.

Yes. But I still think it quite insane that she tries to go against Lex if she assumes he is the bad guy here. It quite reminds me of her obsession with Green Arrow. She obviously never thought he would truely harm her.

Lois never looks before she leaps - never considers that there might be a risk involved. It's what makes her a great reporter, and it's also the reason Clark/Superman has to save her so often!

Actually, he should have. I mean, he obviously knew what that phantom was and what it could do. Why didn't he know about the kryptonite?

Good point. He should have known.

[Freawaru]

I would have thought he would have known since he was now an Emissary (and previously, oracle) of Jor-El. But either it was a mental lapse, Jor-El didn't actually know what green kryptonite would do to the phantom in a host, or Jor-El withheld that information from Lionel for one of Clark's 'trials'.

Good points. But if it was one of the trials why did Lionel try to prevent Clark from getting involved? I mean, he used Lana to spy on Lex so he could prevent Clark from getting into contact with the phantom. Maybe Jor El really didn't know this detail of the phantom.

[Freawaru]

You know what I always wanted in a similar vein? Clark gets a chance to see what life would have been like if he'd told both Lana and Lex when they were both closest to him. It seemed like it would be a 'given', but it never happened

I suspect it would have been similar to Lexmas. He would have been very happy for several years until something destroyed the world. Something that can be prevented by him and Lex being adversaries.

Anyway, I watched the teaser for Prototype having not seen it before (brilliant opener btw), and didn't once think that those guards had been killed. Disabled, to me, meant they has been disarmed, maybe knocked-out...

Yep.

Also: "You and Dad taught me to always put others first'

Heh

Well, they taught him to put his parents first. For a long time, anyway. Until he was a rebel and joined the school football team.

a). why does she immediately forgive Clark for not trusting her when she finds out? She was always so angry that he didn't trust her, but now...she finds out he didn't trust her *and* he's an alien. How did that change her feelings on that matter?

I suspect that she knew he was an alien since Promise. She looked quite scared when she saw what he could do and as she anticipated him displaying superpowers it could hardly have been those. It must have been the fact that he was an alien, the same species as those from the Black Ship (and thus likely the Kal El they searched for). So when he finally told her she had had weeks to get used to the idea already.

Also, I am not sure how much Lana really considered spending her life with Clark any more. Sure, she loved him and liked him and desired him. But she had grown too independent for him by now. The farm would never have satisfied her any more. If you ask me the whole time she was still playing her Luthor game with Lex, just too scared of Lex now to enjoy it. And being with Clark was a hit against Lex and let her feel save from his next strike, too.

A random point:I thought it interesting that Lex closed the door when he and Lana had their break up in the mansion. When he went there, for a moment I was quite scared for Lana and wondered what Lex had in mind now. But he just closed it right before he brought Clark into the debate. Did he fear that a guard or somebody else might overhear something about Clark they should not know? He told Lana that "Clark is the greates liar of them all", right?

b). Clark abducted her, and assaulted Lex in Crimson, treated her really badly in Red, Exodus, Exile and Rush, and lied to her about things that had nothing to do with his secret....but apparently once you find out a guy has heat vision and super-strength, him randomly acting like a complete ass to you makes sense!

Yep. She is quite used to being mistreated and betrayed. One wonders why she was so scared of Lex because of the faked pregnancy. She should know by now that the Luthors don't hit hard as long as they have the upper hand, right? I really think she was scared of Lex finding out that she had betrayed him by wanting to return to Clark after Crimson.

[Freawaru]

Lana is definitely a mole, but Lex's security is notoriously bad.

I hadn't thought that Lionel was responsible for the death of burke's man... but it is a pretty good theory.

Except for Lex I don't see who could it have been. Maybe that is how Lex learned that Lionel was behing Lana's spying. He found out that Lionel was responsible for the death of the assassin, but didn't tell him.

Lois clearly has a bad track record with boyfriends, but Chloe... at this point she and Jimmy were going strong. I didn't really see her fear about her meteor freak status playing into this scenario.

I have no prove of course, but I thought it played into her paranoyed view of Lex. Clark wanted to go to Lex to confront him about Keenan (after Nemesis he had changed his opinion of Lex drastically, right?) But Chloe prevented it. Why? Made no sense to me. Clark ALWAYS used to run to Lex and accuse him of this or that, sometimes with cause and sometimes without.

I believe "taking care of the witness" meant exactly what Lex's men understood it to mean. Lionel has never hesitated to have people killed,

I think this is not right. Lionel uses methods like threat and blackmail and bribary before he decides to kill.

and Lex is following in his footsteps. He considers his end goal to be more important, so the ends, whatever they may be, justify the means.

Sure. But that does not mean that one has to do this stupidly. And if Lex had been wanting to kill the witness no matter what, why is Lois still alive in Phantom? Lex had a week to get rid of the witness by then. He does not need Ares to kill for him, the senator had been a test for Ares, not Lex's only option to get rid of somebody forever. So even without Ares he could have made sure Lois had a fatefull car accident or be robbed and killed in some dark street in the Suicide Slums or something.

She definitely does! Maybe it's a meteor power from all those years of wearing that kryponite necklace!

I have wondered about this, too. But with Lex being all obsessed with the meteor infection don't you think he would have tested Lana - and himself? It would only have been natural, most people worry about having a certain illness the moment it comes to their attention. And both had been there at the first meteor shower and had quite some extended exposure to meteor rock in the years since, too.

That is a good theory.

Thank you.

Seems odd that Lana would do that in the study, since she is well aware of the security cameras there.

I thought that, too.

Lois never looks before she leaps - never considers that there might be a risk involved. It's what makes her a great reporter,

And a danger to everybody else.

and it's also the reason Clark/Superman has to save her so often!

No doubt about that. He finally has found his pretty damsel in distress.