Tragic,Ticklish and Totally Timothean!

A red caped letter to an unknown woman

Dear ………,

Do you watch the series Smallville? No? Well you know who Superman is right? And the characters in the comic series? Yeah well Smallville is the story about Superman, before he became the hero; when he was still just Clark Kent - a regular farm boy going though very human problems, facing regular human experiences.

I guess the reason why the show is so popular, is that while only fans of the comic find the story of the Kryptonian do-gooder so appealing, everyone, fan or not, loves to delve into the history of the hero and learn of the life, the experiences and the path which eventually led to his greatness. One reason is that we’re just ‘kay poh’. Another is that it’s human nature to want to know we share similar experiences and can therefore relate to characters we consider great and admirable (comic or otherwise). To some degree, we try to convince ourselves that at least a little part of us resembles ‘Superman’.

‘No man is an island’

The TV series Smallville also highlights the characters around Superman and not only reveals the impact they had on the life of young Clark Kent, but provides us with an interesting twist in their relationships with the budding hero. The barest fan of the comic legend will know of Lex Luthor - evil genius, ruthless criminal and arch nemesis of the red caped crusader. And while the original story speaks of heated and terrible battles between the 2, Smallville tells a very different tale in a different time. Before the red cape, before the blue spandex outfit and before our hero decided to don his underwear outside his trousers, Clark Kent and Lex Luthor were the best of friends. Lex, to some extent was the big brother that the teenage Clark never had. His eventual enemy even saved the super one’s life a few times and helped him out of numerous jams. The fact that they turned out very differently, and that their once brotherly bond transformed into such deep hatred and animosity is tragic, but once again, isn’t it human nature to crave the knowledge that things ‘weren’t always that bad’? Is it naïve optimism? Perhaps. But one thing for certain, is that Smallville allows us to find the silver lining in that proverbial dark cloud.

Then again, maybe it’s not so important (at least from the script writer’s end) how they turned out. Friends or enemies, it’s quite safe to assume that without characters like Lex Luthor in his life, Clark Kent wouldn’t have turned out to be quite the champion the world found in Superman.

"Behind every great man……"

Another huge part of the hero’s legacy has always been his love life. Perhaps even more familiar than the name Lex Luthor, is Lois Lane - Superman’s girlfriend, lover and (in some versions) wife. Lois is what we the general followers of Superman consider the love of his life, his destined partner, ‘the one’.

But just like most of us, mere mortals, we aren’t always blessed with ‘the one’ by our side from birth (unless of course you had psychic matchmakers as parents). Many years go by before we find ‘the one’ and then realize ‘the one’ really is ‘the one’.

Before Lois Lane, there was Lana Lang. The comics, the movie and even many TV series’ all portray Miss Lang as Clark Kent’s first love. Smallville details the relationship between Clark and the first female to capture his heart. You see young Clark loved Lana and she eventually came to love him. They were the Romeo and Juliet of comic folklore. Star-crossed lovers whom fate somehow never saw fit to give a break to. As strong as their love was, it just never seemed like it was meant to be. Somehow, some unfair circumstance, situation, and reason always cropped up to keep them apart. Indeed it is such a shame, especially when 2 people who loved each other so much seem perfect for each other.

Therein lies the tragedy which sometimes describes Kismet. Because as much as we root for Clark Kent and Lana Lang, as much as we love to see them together, as much as we cheered when he won her heart, the foretold story of Superman reminds us that she is not his future. She is not his Lois Lane.

Yet, as sad as that knowledge makes me, there’s always that minute glimmer of hope that they might just end up together after all. Although the legacy of Superman dictates that the hero ends up with Lois Lane, I wouldn’t mind if it didn’t.

You are my Lana Lang. You’re my ‘Shoulda’, ‘Woulda’ and ‘Coulda’. My first true love. The one that just wasn’t in the cards.

Just like the audience of Smallville, it’s sad re-running through a part of my life, seeing the intensity of our relationship, knowing how much I loved you, feeling that we might have made it but always being reminded that we didn’t. Still, revisiting those memories are like a mental playback of my own version of ‘Smallville’. You see I know how the story turns out, yet I can’t help but hold some hope for a different ending.

I’m not Clark Kent. God knows I’m no Superman. But I know what it’s like to love someone and lose her.

I don’t have a Lois Lane either. I don’t know if I ever will. But just like in the case of Lex Luthor, Clark Kent would not have been the same Superman today, the same Superman Lois Lane fell in love with, if it wasn’t for Lana Lang.

Smallville’s a great show isn’t it…..

With much love,

posted by Timmy Tim Tim @ 7:06 AM 1 comments