Ep 2.19 - Precipice

[Zach]

He might be bigger than Clark, but he isn't exactly impervious to pain like Clark is.

[LucyLaneClarkKent4vr]

Somehow I liked this episode quite a bit. Y'know, with Lana being able to kick butt, and that aftermath that Helen Bryce had after her ex-boyfriend Paul Hayden had attacked and nearly tried to kill her. Though to be attacked like that, surely Helen would have felt traumatized, poor woman =( But yeah I really liked this episode quite a bit, and Emmanuelle Vaugier is so beautiful, so yup, loved this episode and I'm re-watching the ones with Helen in them =)

[Flowergirl123]

I watched this last night. I loved the part where Lana kicked that guys ass. And Clark's smile at the end was knee-melting.

[Sunny8]

The college kid in this episode looked like an old man. Also, I don't like that Lana went to the back of the Talon when Clark was beating up those guys. Why did she do that? She just caused problems for Clark.

[Clark/Lois-fan]

i love this new sheriff!!

[Supsfan]

i love this new sheriff!!

I liked the new Sheriff myself, sadly I can't say the same about the first episode she appeared in.

[Clark/Lois-fan]

^^ neither can i

[Nimkong]

ONE OF THE WORST EPISODE EVER!!!!No FOTW, plots were boring and weak, and lana just complains after clark saves her life.This would be my least favorite episode ever but S4s Bound sucked even worse

[Kris Winchester]

This episode is just a mess! A big mess that hardly is a Smallville episode! This is Smallville! Not Scream!

[vyperman7]

Re-Watch.

Good episode but not great. The Helen/Lex/Paul storyline was good. I also liked seeing Clark's human emotions come out with the fight and the intro of the new sheriff was well done (although Sheriff Adams always grated on me a bit). Finally I liked the symbolism of Clark being more powerful than a locomotive when he hip checked the train.

BUT.. This was the episode that started Lana on her girl power kick introducing Lana Fu. This would bleed over into her being a super hero down the road. Plus a major pet peeve of mine is that Lana never told Sheriff Adams about the assault on her when they initially talked. If Lana had told her about the attack and painted Clark in more of a protective light, she probably would've been more sympathetic .

[laurarawlins]

questionable tactics of Lana Lang

Re-Watch.

Good episode but not great. The Helen/Lex/Paul storyline was good. I also liked seeing Clark's human emotions come out with the fight and the intro of the new sheriff was well done (although Sheriff Adams always grated on me a bit). Finally I liked the symbolism of Clark being more powerful than a locomotive when he hip checked the train.

BUT.. This was the episode that started Lana on her girl power kick introducing Lana Fu. This would bleed over into her being a super hero down the road. Plus a major pet peeve of mine is that Lana never told Sheriff Adams about the assault on her when they initially talked. If Lana had told her about the attack and painted Clark in more of a protective light, she probably would've been more sympathetic .

that's what I don't get about Lana, why didn't she say anything about what really happened? she was there when it happened. she saw what happened. She even had it happened to her in her very own safe haven. Why did she put herself in that position to begin with? being alone with college guys like that? maybe that experience was just an unforeseen circumstance that wasn't expected to happen the way it did. So why did she not tell the Sheriff about it? when she had the chance? that is what doesn't make any sense. if something like that happens to you, you have to report it. it's for your own safety. it's for your own protection and for your own good. you can't sit back and just let it happen to you and not tell anyone, and causing problems for some one that you supposedly care about. That is just not right. Can Lana be any more stupid than she already is? honestly, Lucky for Lana, when it happens the second time around in this episode she actually stands up for herself for once instead of relying on Clark to be there last mintue, like she did the first time around and look how that ended up, on the floor scared half to death with broken plates after being forcibly shoved into the plate rack and resulting in Clark's throw down in the ally with the college guys having one guy send flying onto a police car and having Lana be right behind him without knowing she was there witnessing the whole situation with her very own eyes, only to turn around and see her right there not letting him get away and having him get caught by the police, talk about causing problems for Clark. but IMHO I always prefer self reliance over dependency, but that's just me.

[jon-el87]

Part of the plot revolves around Lana getting attacked again and decides to learn to defend herself, which could've made for good character development. She's been the damsel in distress for two years and now she's deciding to end it. Unfortunately, with the benefit of having seen seasons 3-8, we know that she quickly returned to this role, until she once more decided to end it (by getting super powers). So, in that regard, the episode becomes forgettable, in the larger context of the show.

The important part of the episode, to the show's history, is the introduction of the recurring Sheriff Adams, which was badly executed. The writer (who only wrote this one episode) didn't do a good job at selling this new character. First she goes after Clark, because he beat up three guys who tried to rape Lana, then insist that Lana's testimony would be heresay. It wouldn't. In reality, Adams should've charged the three guys with attempted rape, with Lana being the victim and Clark being the witness. Instead, she goes after Clark for beating up said would-be rapists and he gets sued, which strikes me as a non-issue. His reason for beating up that guy was him attacking Lana, while making threats to rape her. This would be brought up in court, likely freeing Clark from both battery charges and the lawsuit.

[Kris Winchester]

Just rewatched this episode... And I can't believe how bad it is.. No tact.. so many plotholes.. It is kinda really interesting, but I just can't understand it. Two major plots shoehorned into one episode. Must have been plenty of important scenes
deleted or something.

First we have Clark and the college jerks who harrassed and seemingly attempted to rape Lana, really dark. Then Lex and the creepy horrible selfish douchebag Paul who just attacks and nearly kills Helen for not wanting to be locked in with him in that dark and secluded lab. Almost hard to tell which is worse. Both plots drove Clark and Lex close to the precipice, hence the title, which is about the only clever thing about the episode. But otherwise they differ way too much to just fit in one episode.
The episode clearly means to teach us a lesson, but it fails just as much as it succeeds. Too many lessons at once! And I agree with what many says here, really annoying new sherrif that got a bad introduction. She only goes after the good guys. I also see in the comments that many focuses on just one of the plots, the Clark/Lana and the lawsuit one, which proves to me how much this episode fails.

[jon-el87]

Have started to re-evaluate the Lana story.

If we look at the history of these types of shows and movies, the female lead/love interest gets to often just play the damsel in distress, who is captured by villains, put in danger, and needing to be rescued by the male hero. On TV shows this could be week to week, for multiple seasons. Even Lana's contemporary, Mary Jane Watson in the Sam Raimi movies, needed to be saved in every movie. No matter how many times it happens, the female lead/love interest never tries to do anything about it. It never seems to occur to them to try.

Now here's Lana Lang in S2 of this show. She has had enough of often being the victim, who needs Clark to come and save her, and decides to actually do something about it. She starts taking self-defense classes, including martial arts (as highlighted when she takes out Van in "Extinction", or attacks Chloe in "Delete"). She breaks free from the norm of female love interests in superhero stories.

Sure, she still needs to be rescued on occasion, but she also lives in a world of super powered beings. Her knowing martial arts isn't going to help much against people with mind control, super strength, super speed, and energy blasts. What’s important is that she is at least shown attempting to break free from the formula of female love interests in superhero stories (often shown passively accepting their role as the damsel in distress, whom the male hero needs to constantly save).