DVDFile

Warner Home Video / 2007-2008 / 827 Minutes / Unrated
Street Date: September 9, 2008

Every time Smallville gets close to really pulling me in, it keeps me at bay. I don’t know whether it’s my love/hate relationship with the modern state of comic-book-turned-movie/TV material or what, but I can’t escape the mixed emotions I feel when I review the show. Don’t get me wrong; I’m a sucker for the Lex Luthor and Clark Kent push/pull in any form (with the exception of Superman Returns, the franchise has, at the very least, never left me bored). Whenever those two are in some kind of argument or fight, I’m ready to soak up the good vs. evil that they conjure up.

But this seventh season of the show is by far the worst I’ve seen. It’s a drag, too, because The Complete Sixth Season was a notable improvement over its predecessors. Yes, there were some lackluster he-loves-me-he-loves-me-not moments that hearken back to the comparatively silly Lois and Clark (when Clark’s ex-flame Lana Lang marries Lex Luthor, let’s just say that each member of that particular love triangle had some dialogue that would give Susan Lucci pause), but as a whole, that season wasn’t bad at all.

In season seven, though, times are tough. First and foremost, the addition of Clark’s cousin Kara (Laura Vandervoort) is truly uninspired. Sure, the concept of a Krypton family member coming to Earth is kinda interesting, but from the get-go, both Kara’s presence and Vandervoort’s performance seem way off-kilter from the show’s overall feel. That she’s actually Supergirl makes her humdrum presence that much more disappointing. And the season’s big finale featuring Brainiac (James Marsden), a psycho who wants to turn Earth into a second Krypton, careens effortlessly into silly territory.

We also get the return of the villainous hero Green Arrow (Justin Hartley); he’s a hell of a bully who continues to take no prisoners. And I never would have imagined that Jimmy Olsen (Aaron Ashmore) would become pretty much my favorite character on the show. I also don’t mind the devious Lionel Luther (John Glover), who is every bit as mean and grumpy as his son, Lex (and would grow up to be, for that matter).

But as a comprehensive whole, this seventh season of Smallville is a real step in the wrong direction. I don’t mind that the show is more fantastical than ever – you can be as crazy as you want in a sci-fi-flavored show (I don’t mind) – but it never really seems to completely buy into any of the new storylines. I was desperately ready to enjoy Supergirl, but she was a bust – and Brainiac was just too much for me.  

Somehow, I still enjoy Smallville, though. It’s more uneven than in any other season I’ve seen, but I’ve invested enough in the series that I want to see how it plays out. Sure, there will be some rough spots – consider The Complete Seventh Season a consistently underperforming rough spot – but with TV, it’s a marathon, not a sprint. And even a fair-weather fan like me simply has to see how these Superman stories play out.

The Video: How Does The Disc Look?

Keeping with the standards set by earlier seasons of the show on DVD, these 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfers are terrific. Balancing superb black levels with excellent control of chroma and finely grained detail, the presentation is a fantastic example of how nice TV can look on DVD when it’s treated well. Sure, there are a couple of examples of heavy grain here and there, but most of the time, these transfers will please fans of the series no end. [Produced for broadcast in high definition, the DVDs benefit from the existence of superior digital video masters – Ed.]

The Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?

These Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks are just as good as those on The Complete Sixth Season’s box set. The show has a surprisingly powerful musical score and it comes through not only in the front channels, but in the surrounds with virility and excellent fidelity. The show’s action sequences are mixed fantastically, with effects and atmospherics really giving all six channels a steady workout. Yeah, dialogue scenes are pretty simple and straightforward, but if those don’t impress, stick around until something explodes. You won’t be sorry.

A Portuguese Dolby Surround 2.0 track is included, as are English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese and Thai subtitles and English Closed Captions.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

The bonus slate on this seventh season is definitely a step down from previous releases. The two screen-specific audio commentaries (on Persona with executive producer Ken Horton, director Todd Slavkin, and actor John Glover, and on Siren with executive producers Al Gough and Miles Miller, writers Kelly Souders and Brian Peterson, and actor Justin Hartley) get interesting when the participants discuss the challenges presented by last year’s writer’s strike and how that affected the series, but for the most part, these are run-of-the-mill tracks at best.

Included are some deleted scenes and a pair of featurettes: Supergirl: The Last Daughter of Krypton (18:00) focuses on the addition of that character into the Smallville world; and, Jimmy on Jimmy (23:00) features comments from all the actors who have played Jimmy Olsen in all of Superman’s various movie and TV permutations. Rounding out this collection are six episodes of Smallville Legends: Kara and the Chronicles of Krypon and an interactive comic book.

Exclusive DVD-ROM Features: What happens when you pop the disc into your PC?

There are no DVD-ROM features on this DVD.

Final Thoughts

It took this writer a while to get through this seventh season of Smallville; it definitely showcases the series at its worst. But as uneven as it got, I still can’t shake myself of the show (the heart wants what it wants, I suppose). Bonus features this time around are a step down from usual, although the show looks and sounds as good as it did last time around. This is definitely not a place to start with the Smallville universe, but for fans, unfortunately it might be a tough leg of the journey. Good luck.