Scary Revelation...

[penemuel]

...about Smallville's Clark Kent as he's being raised on the show...

Okay -- I've had serious issues with Jonathan Kent for a while now. Okay, since the first episode...

I have problems with his transferrence of anger from the targets who truly deserve it (Lionel and himself) onto Lex. I have SERIOUS problems with his hypocrisy and situational ethics (Lying is bad, Son -- unless it's to protect your secret. Stealing is bad -- but break into that facility and steal your DNA sample back. And while you're at it, bring your best friend to make him an accomplice). And I'm furious at him over his callous indifference to the horrors Lex suffered in Shattered/Asylum (well, at least he doesn't remember your secret).

Many, many SV viewers have been wondering how on earth the Clark Kent of this show can grow up to become the Superman we all know, with this man as his father-figure.

leviathanmuse and I were discussing this last night, and we've realized that unless Jonathan gains some abrupt enlightenment, this Clark can't. What we're witnessing could very well be the adolescence of the man who's going to grow up to be the Superman of the Justice Lords, from the 'A Better World' episode of Justice League...

Comments

[barbary-coast.livejournal.com]

What I find interesting is that the producers of the show apparently do not appear to understand the murky moral nature of their Jonathan Kent. Likely they regard him to be a rock-solid bastion of goodness. It's easy -- far too easy -- to point a finger at Lionel Luthor and say, "Ew, corrupt," but not so easy to find his opposite in Jonathan Kent. Jonathan is as creepy in his own way as Lionel is. Maybe moreso. Lionel doesn't pretend to be anything other than what he is. He is Machievelli's Prince in the flesh. Jonathan pretends to be a good, moral man, but he isn't really. He's as self-serving as Lionel is, in his own way.

[penemuel.livejournal.com]

What I find interesting is that the producers of the show apparently do not appear to understand the murky moral nature of their Jonathan Kent. Likely they regard him to be a rock-solid bastion of goodness.

Which kinda scares me -- I seriously hope they do realize what they're doing, but I'm not so sure they do...

It's easy -- far too easy -- to point a finger at Lionel Luthor and say, "Ew, corrupt," but not so easy to find his opposite in Jonathan Kent. Jonathan is as creepy in his own way as Lionel is. Maybe moreso. Lionel doesn't pretend to be anything other than what he is. He is Machievelli's Prince in the flesh. Jonathan pretends to be a good, moral man, but he isn't really. He's as self-serving as Lionel is, in his own way.

Yes! Exactly! Lionel is completely self-serving (and now evil! :-) ), but Jonathan's supposed to be good. And he's not. He's definitely human, and completely flawed, and definitely an interesting character because of that, but I can't see him as the 'good, salt of the earth, moral father figure' that he's supposed to be. Creeps me out the more I think about this...

[ceruleancat.livejournal.com]

I absolutely agree with both of you. That double standard has annoyed me since the beginning. Jonno is human and flawed to the bone, just like Lionel, and as self-serving as Lionel (yes, on a smaller scale, but the same motivation is there). He is judgmental and intolerant trying to impose his own moral code on everything, and hypocritical to boot.

I still think this Clark has a chance to become Superman, but only if there's realization on his part (and on the writers' part, of course) that this is a double standard, and no moral superiority exists here, that the yardstick can't be one's own standards. He has to grow up and learn (like people often need to when growing up) that dad isn't perfect. Not everything dad does is good (just like lex needs to get out of the equally childish conception that everything HIS dad does is automatically bad). It's balance and tolerance that are lacking and have to be supplied, maybe from the broader minded Luthors. Clark will have to have an epiphany and see Jonno isn't such a paragon of good, by comparison to the not so hypocritical Luthors, or maybe Martha will give him a clue (I do miss the Lionel/Martha plot line). I'm afraid that can only happen in a fandom AU, though.
The JL Superman is always walking that thin line, and loses it at the moment he... (hmmm. can't spoil Kel.) You know what I mean.

[kelex.livejournal.com]

But if you watch the third season again, especially Shattered, Asylum, and Whisper?

Clark is starting to understand that Jonathan is basically a jackass.

At the end of Asylum? He basically shrugs off what Jonathan says about not taking Lionel down himself, and tells his mother to buzz off when she tries to shove him at Lana. He also ignore's Jonathan's whole "you can't break someone out of a state institution like that" line, and he goes to do exactly that.

The discussion here is all correct, but it fails to give Clark a brain of his own.

Even in Whisper, instead of just moping around the house, and giving in when Jonathan and Martha say that there's nothing he can do, Clark ignores them, and tries to harness his superhearing alone. The Kents help him ONLY after trying to stop him, and Clark *won't* be stopped.

Clark is obviously coming to the conclusion that Dad's not always right, and that sometimes, he has to do what HE thinks is right. Granted, he hasn't found that balance yet, but he's what, barely seventeen/eighteen? He's got twelve years before he picks up the cape.

[penemuel.livejournal.com]

Clark is obviously coming to the conclusion that Dad's not always right, and that sometimes, he has to do what HE thinks is right.

But that's exactly what's scaring me -- have you seen 'A Better World'? That Superman is doing what HE thinks is right...

With Jonathan's upbringing, whether Clark's starting to rebel against what he actually tells him to do or not, the foundation is there. The whole 'this is bad, except when you do it' guideline is what makes it so easy for that Superman to topple over the edge from hero to really scary super-overlord. It's all for our own good, so he'll just take care of everything for us... Eeep!

[kelex.livejournal.com]

No, I haven't seen it, but I understand the concept (what I'm thinking of is Jenn's Handful of Dust fic, and basing on what you described, the're about the same) and I'd agree with you if Clark showed any indication of actually having fun with what he was doing. But he doesn't.

He keeps hating his gifts, he keeps feeling helpless cause there's nothing he can do, he keeps feeling *guilty* because he can't save everyone and has to pick and choose what he does and hurt people in the process.

If Clark *didn't* have that reaction, then yes, I'd agree with you that he is far more of a danger than I think he is, at this point. But as it is, (to me, anyway) Clark reads as a very reluctant hero, being pushed into his destiny by his guilt over the meteor rocks that came with him to Smallville. And I don't think a very reluctant anything can later, in turn, become a deadly anything, because he doesn't have the drive or the desire for it.

[penemuel.livejournal.com]

No, I haven't seen it, but I understand the concept (what I'm thinking of is Jenn's Handful of Dust fic, and basing on what you described, the're about the same) and I'd agree with you if Clark showed any indication of actually having fun with what he was doing. But he doesn't.

Ah. I actually haven't read 'Handful of Dust' yet (it's on my storage card, waiting to be read...), but the Superman of the Justice Lords isn't really 'having fun' doing it. He got fed up one day with the bad guys always getting back out, beating the system, paying people off, whatever (okay, one specific bad guy was the last straw, and I'm sure you know who I'm referring to ;) ), and he finally decided that instead of just capturing bad guys, they were going to stop them with finality. And until the world is nice and orderly, the Justice Lords run things with an iron hand. Of course, humans being humans, things will never be 'nice and orderly'. The creepiest part is when we find out that after the somewhat messy way he stopped Lex, he's honed his technique and lobotomizes enemies with his heat vision. Neat, quick, probably not overly painful -- but creepy!

[They also get nice, sexy costume changes (except for the bell thing Hawkgirl uses as a helmet...), and Diana has a nice, practical, short hairstyle that looks DAMNED good on her.]

He keeps hating his gifts, he keeps feeling helpless cause there's nothing he can do, he keeps feeling *guilty* because he can't save everyone and has to pick and choose what he does and hurt people in the process.

If Clark *didn't* have that reaction, then yes, I'd agree with you that he is far more of a danger than I think he is, at this point. But as it is, (to me, anyway) Clark reads as a very reluctant hero, being pushed into his destiny by his guilt over the meteor rocks that came with him to Smallville. And I don't think a very reluctant anything can later, in turn, become a deadly anything, because he doesn't have the drive or the desire for it.

I don't think he's a danger at this point, but I can definitely see him growing up to be the Superman who gets fed up and takes that final step over the line. I don't see how his reluctance and guilt now will keep him from becoming disillusioned, weary, and finally just plain fed up with people 'using' the justice system to get away with crimes or just going out and committing them again once they serve their time. The Superman in 'A Better World' doesn't intentionally set out to be a world dictator, he just knows what's best for people, and has the power to enforce it...