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Smallville Season 2 Episode 6

Redux

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8.8

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Episode Summary

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AIRED: 10/29/02

Martha's father William comes to town after many years of estrangement due to his disapproval of Jonathan. Meanwhile Clark must deal with a series of old-age deaths at Smallville High, and the new principal puts his foot down.

FAN RECAP

Fan Episode Reviews (12)

this was a good ep

8.0

By cube2k8, May 10, 2010

in this ep of smallville its spirt week and there is a girl that is sucking the life out of people to stay alive. and clark meets his grandfather grampa kent johtans dad . who him and grampa kent dont get along that much and feaud with each other for ages. and there is the new principle in smallville that has things aginst clark and no suprise has things against lex luthor. and clark must figure out whats happening to people when he finds them and there life is sucked out of them completely this was a good ep i thought and it was very ineresting.moreless
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Several story lines add up to a confusing episode with a new high school principal leaning on Clark, a coed who avoids aging by sucking the life out of others, a family revelation for Lana, and a hostile relationship between Jonathan and Martha's father.moreless

7.0

By cxtasy, Oct 22, 2008

Tom Welling demonstrates pretty good swimming and diving skills at the school pool, but in a practice heat, one of his rivals goes under, and Clark puts on the superspeed underwater to bring the victim to the surface, whereupon we find he has transformed into an old man. Bad water? This is story line #1.

At home, Martha and Jonathan are struggling with finances and the feed bill; even Martha's outside job with Luthorcorp isn't enough. When she suggests tapping her father, Jonathan goes silent; the two have feuded for years, and Clark has not even met his (adopted) grandfather. This is story line #2.

When Clark goes to the Talon delivering muffins, Lana has found photos of her mother with another man even after her parents had married. Story line #3. So far no one has mentioned the strange happenings at SV high. Lex gives Clark a lift to school in his silver Porsche 911 (Rosenbaum incorrectly pronounces it as one syllable; the man's name was Por-sche) with Kansas tags "LEX IV." Clark takes a load of grief from Principal Reynolds for being late - how many real Principals close the parking lot gates themselves? Lex and Reynolds have history - he was the headmaster at Excelsior Academy when Lex was a student there - but I doubt this subplot will go anywhere. Anyway, it's story line #4.

Coed Chrissy, leading Spirit Week, also has a run-in with Reynolds - she has no transcript on file, so she's surely the meteor mutant of the week. Only a few more scenes until we see how she can age other people. This is story line #5.

The swimming victim is finally mentioned - on Chloe's Wall of Weird, and we learn that Principal Reynolds had an impressive resume, until he abruptly left Excelsior, only to turn up at SV High years later.

Lana has a chance to quiz Aunt Nell about her parents; Nell is reassuring but vague. Back to #2, Grandpa Clark comes to the farm; his embrace of Martha is awkward and tentative, so we consider him cold and distant, and he's a judgmental and critical besides. So what's to like? He never could get over his daughter marrying beneath what he considered her station in life. Makes you want to slap him; he just won't get off the subject of what-Martha-could-have-been. Clark meets him for all of 10 seconds, then he's gone back to his motel. And Jonathan later loads grief on Martha too, just to show his disapproval of her actions trying to save the farm. The two never got over their hostility about Jonathan marrying Martha 20 years earlier.

On #3, Lana enlists Lex to help her identify the man with her mother. Back to #1, Chloe has a friend in the M.E.'s office; so she gets a death report on swimming victim - DOA on June 20, 2002. Uh, wouldn't that be well after the end of the school year? Are we in summer school? Swimmer's pituitary gland was drained (they found that on an autopsy?) - the youth was sucked right out of him. Sort-of-story #4, Principal Reynolds calls Clark into his office, calling him a slacker, no extra-curriculars etc. So Clark gets an essay assignment - what will he be doing in five years? That would be Season 7 of Smallville, hope he's out of high school and working as a mild-mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper!

Chrissy of #5 talks to Clark at the Talon, but she's having a Jekyll-Hyde transformation, at least in the hand. Time for some juice from a fellow student? Lex explains further his past with Reynolds, and asking Clark about his concerns, "C'mon Clark, I'm the king of family dysfunction." He advises Clark to get Grandpops and Dad together to fight it out once and for all. Back to Chrissy, who puts a move on another male student - pretty good special effects as he ages instantly to a near-corpse as she kisses him.

Clark arranges for a meeting between Grandpa Clark and Jonathan; they're both stubborn and obnoxious, despite an offer of financial aid. Thinking only of themselves, they torpedo Clark's good intentions and split up.

Chrissy's latest victim has turned up dead behind the Talon; how many unexplained deaths has been suffered by this high school group? Clark suggests looking into her background; Chloe is on it. Lex sees Reynolds, offering to donate computers to the school - quid pro quo is to stop leaning on Clark. More history - Lex was close to expulsion from Excelsior; Lionel offered a new library if Lex stayed and Reynolds left. Bit of resentment there?

Switch to #3; Lana has more on the man in the photos; she's reluctant to open an envelope with details. In this scene, we see two young people expressing more maturity and common sense about relationships than any adults in the cast. Good for the writers; at least someone is a good role model. So Clark goes to see his grandfather, who is packing at the motel for departure, and gives Clark the cashier's check, and that's the end of that. Now Clark's peeved.

Chloe's progeria investigation of Chrissy (story line #5) has turned up similar deaths at her previous high school. A slight gaffe here - the web page Chloe found has the same text repeated several times in the four-column article. Other articles have the same Chrissy, same age, in different high schools decades earlier, and she's due for another infusion. That means a rescue by Clark. She's meeting Reynolds in the Talon, and is under the delusion that h.s. is the best years of one's life. A quick toss by Clark, and she begins the rapid aging process, cleverly depicted on a rotating mirror cube; each side showing her older, until she dissolves into digital ashes. How will Reynolds' period of unconsciousness and Chrissy's disappearance be explained? It won't, this is Smallville and we have to wrap up the five story lines, fast.

Back at the farm that night, the impossible moonrise is back again - moving from right to left on the horizon, which can't happen here in North America. This gaffe started in "Obscura" last season, when the film editors ran a moonset backwards. Clark's essay is done - he foresees himself in college studying journalism, he tells Lana - good guess. Her news about the man in the photo - it could be her real father. But that's for later, thank goodness we don't have yet another story line in this episode. Numbering them helped keep this one straight, but it also highlights the number of plot shifts in typical Smallville episodes - this one borders on the extreme as some scenes have only one or two lines of dialog before switching. Do the producers think our attention span is that short? Makes for choppy storytelling. Unless the Grandpa Clark story is continued later, this episode is a little below average for seeing again because of the unnecessary scene-switches. Re-run rating C-.moreless
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This Episode Takes "Ages" to End!

5.6

By lenzinoH20, Apr 13, 2008

Redux-Martha's father William comes to town after many years of estrangement due to his disapproval of Jonathan. Meanwhile Clark must deal with a series of old-age deaths at Smallville High, and the new principal puts his foot down.

Now you an episode is in trouble when the sub-plots not only are more interesting than the main plot but overshadow it. "Redux" would have worked better without the age sucking cheerleader storyline and focused on the Kent family drama the writers seem to do so well. I liked the introduction of Martha's father and the conflict he has with Jothnathan. It's rare we get to meet other family members outside the dominant family and it was nice development for Clark trying to mend the relationship between his grandfather and father. Also, the new principal giving Clark a hard time was decent little story and Lex invovlement was entertaining to watch.

Hard to believe I would like to watch Clark's family issues and having trouble writing a essay than some blonde girl whose obsessed with staying young forever by sucking the life out of people. Maggie Lawson was awful in the role yet didn't have much to work with anyway. Also, the mystery of how she can suck the life out of people is never answered as it's obvious she wasn't meter infected which is also a plothole that is unresolved. All and All, a weak plot with some decent drama behind make this a dull episode.moreless
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Great Episode

10

By Beer75, Aug 22, 2007

When a student is pulled out of the school pool, having aged 60 years in a few seconds, Clark Kent and Chloe Sullivan decide to investigate. They discover an 80 year trail of similar events left behind by Chrissy "Missy" Parker, another student. Lana discovers a photo of her mother with an unidentified man. Learning that her parents were separated for a short time, she believes the unidentified man may be her biological father. Without a fresh victim, Missy's body begins to age rapidly. Clark manages to keep her from killing the new principal, which causes Missy to deteriorate into dust.moreless
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A youth sucking freak or Clark with his shirt off?

8.0

By sazloo07, Apr 04, 2007

A new student is able to stay looking young by draining the youth from other students, killing them in the process so as she can avoid the responsibilities of adult life. I hated this storyline again, i wanted to know more about Clarks background but info on his mortal grandfather was just boring. I really liked the shot with Clark in his swimming trunks! Also thought the special effects in the mirror as the woman was ageing were very good. I thought the action in this episode was really bad, but then what do you expect when the villian is really an old lady!moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Annette O'Toole	Martha Clark Kent
Michael Rosenbaum	Alexander ('Lex') Joseph Luthor
John Schneider	Jonathan Kent
Allison Mack	Chloe Sullivan
Tom Welling	Clark Kent/Kal-El of Krypton
John Glover	Lionel Luthor (Recurring Season 1, Regular Season 2+)

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Richard Gant	Principal Reynolds	Guest Star
Maggie Lawson	Chrissy Parker	Guest Star
George Coe	William Clark	Guest Star
Sarah-Jane Redmond	Aunt Nell	Recurring Role

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (16)
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- At 17:13 John tosses the roll of tape to Clark and walks away. But when the shot changes to Martha, for her reaction, John is standing next to her again.
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- When Clark goes to see his grandfather, he gives him the family album as a gift. His grandfather takes it and gives Clark the bank check. In the next shot Clark gets angry and walks out of the room with the check and the album in hand.
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- Why did Chrissy's uniform turn to dust like she did? It didn't change when she was aging.
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- In the last scene, just before showing Clark and Lana in his loft, we see the moon just rising over the trees. After Clark and Lana are done talking, the camera pulls back and the moon is high up in the sky.
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- Principal Reynolds mentions how Clark doesn't really have any after school activities, but on the Official Smallville High School Newspaper WebSite, they list Clark as being in Philosophy Club, Astronomy Club (editor's note: in-joke of sorts), Key Club (editor's note: probably another in-joke, given the spaceship key), and Computer Club. Go To: www.smallvilletorch.com, click on Student Directory, then click on Clark Kent to view this.
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- Just because Clark can blur-speed, doesn't mean he can swim fast. It's against the laws of physics to move as fast in H20 as in air. In order for Clark to move as quickly as he did, he would have to stir up a LOT of water.
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- On Troy's death certificate, it says June 20, 2002. Who is still in school that late?
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- Clark uses his powers to swim really fast over to the drowning competitor, in full view of everyone concerned. He was in a very clean pool, it's not like they couldn't see him.
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- So why can't Clark have a relationship with his grandfather? Jonathan says they didn't originally because he couldn't control his powers when younger. But Clark's fine now. Or is Jonathan just making excuses?
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- Clark says that his grandfather told him he wanted to get involved in his life, but Jonathan and Martha wouldn't let him. Ummm, when did he say that? There was no such dialogue in the hotel room between Clark and his grandfather - did they have another meeting later?
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- Who the heck put their yearbook online back in 1990? And yet Chloe looks up the Florida school's yearbook and Chrissy's picture. Do schools upload their old yearbooks to the Internet these days?
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- What happened to the other principal we saw in "Red," played by Daryl Shuttleworth?
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- Nell's boyfriend should be present or at least mentioned but is noticeably absent because, once again, this is a first season element before they introduced that subplot in the second season.
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- Why does Chrissy suck Turner dry in public, in front of witnesses? Okay, her power isn't obvious and apparently there's some kind of delayed reaction. Still, she seems to be deliberately sneaky with Russell later. Also, her power works instantly on her second victim, but takes a few minutes on her first one.
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- Note that Clark has lost his tan since last week's episode...because of course, this episode was filmed last year when Tom Welling didn't have a tan.
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- You can see those light reflector things in the reflection of Lex's sunglasses when he's talking to Principal Reynolds. They're the huge white squares.
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QUOTES (12)
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- Lana: All these years, I've had this image of the Kents as the perfect family.
  Clark: I guess we're just as dysfunctional as everyone else.
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- Lex: In some ways you're responsible for the man I am today.
  Principal Reynolds: I am not sure that's a responsibilty I care to take on.
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- Pete: (referring to Principal Reynolds) He obviously hasn't had his "Normal Meter" reset for Smallville.
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- Clark: The principal actually warned me about being late as they loaded him into the ambulance.
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- Chrissy: You will never be this young, or this perfect, ever again. But I will.
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- Principal Reynolds: Are your parents here, Chrissy?
  Chrissy: Actually, Mr. Reynolds, they died over a century ago.
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- Lana: A Kent, secretive? That's shocking.
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- Pete: Clark Kent's on the principal's bad boy list. There's a first time for everything.
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- Clark: What happened that's so bad? It can't be any worse than what's in the storm cellar.
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- Lex: I'm sorry being friends with me comes at such a high price.
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- Lex: The Count of Monte Cristo. Interesting tale. Classic tale of a man whose past comes back to haunt him.
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- Lex: C'mon, Clark, I'm the king of family dysfunction.
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NOTES (6)
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- Music: "Mickey" by B*Witched, "Can I See You" by Buva, "All My Life" by Foo Fighters, "Ivanka" by Imperial Teen, "Somewhere Out There" by Our Lady Peace, "I Feel Fine" by Riddlin' Kids, "U Girl" by Sophie Agapois, "Be Aggressive" by The Jockjam, "You Ugly" by The Jockjam, and "Boom Boom Boom" by The Outhere Bros.
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- Chloe makes a reference to Piper High in Florida. Real high school located in Sunrise, Fl.
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- The visual of Chrissy staring into the mirror cube is strikingly similar to the appearance of the Phantom Zone in the first two Superman movies and the Supergirl movie.
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- This episode was produced during the Season 1 production period. They do some tricky stuff like dub in Martha saying she works for Lionel when you can't see her face, because of course she didn't work for him at the point this was filmed in the first season. It also seems that Lana and Clark are a lot more comfy than the last couple of episodes before this would suggest. And they also kinda played down Clark's use of his powers in front of Pete (although it looks like there was some creative dubbing there to play things down too).
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- Coast City, the one-time home of Green Lantern, gets a mention here. It was destroyed by Mongul and Cyborg, who are enemies of an adult Superman in the comics.
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- Despite the use of the second-season credits with John Glover, Lionel Luthor doesn't appear in this episode.
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ALLUSIONS (1)
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- Lex: The Count of Monte Cristo. Interesting tale. Classic tale of a man whose past comes back to haunt him.
  Written by Alexandre Dumas and published in 1844, The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantès, a 19 year old sailor who is charged with treason and spends fourteen years in the Château d'If, before escaping and coming into possession of a vast treasure on the island of Monte Cristo. Dantès decides to exact revenge upon those who put him there, and assumes the mantle of a count to enact his scheme. The primary theme of the novel is that revenge is not justice, and that only forgiveness will bring us the peace we seek.
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