As in seasons eight and nine of "Smallville", this tenth season will appeal to fans of the "comic action-adventure" variety. Those looking for solid writing, richly developed characters, and legitimate, non-predictable "wow" moments have likely trickled off after seasons 5-6. I have been with the series for the long haul and, while thoroughly enjoying the first 5 seasons, liking 6-7, and despising 8-9, I cannot give the final season good reviews based on nostalgia perpetuated by the show's ending.
There are a few basic plotlines that run throughout this final season, all of which fall flat in one way or another:
-The U.S. government's reaction to superheroes: an almost blatant rip-off of many themes from "The Dark Knight".
-The Clark/Lois relationship: Should work, but (as writers) you can't have Lois be EASILY the most annoying character on the show for six seasons and then expect us to put all that aside and love her in the seventh.
-Clark Kent coming to terms with the hero he is destined to become: Pretty much every decision/conclusion Clark comes to this season in terms of embracing his destiny is watered-down due to botched attempts in previous seasons. Because the show was on a year-to-year basis for so long, the frequent stops-and-starts in Clark's transition to Superman rendered that penultimate transition without much drama.
Really, there are only three things that I enjoyed about this season (aka the reason I can give it 2 stars instead of just 1):
-The "Earth 2" plot arc, which allowed us to see some characters that hadn't been around for awhile. The alter-universe characters kind of muddy things up in the end, but it is nice to see them as "themselves" once again.
-The episode "Homecoming", where the Smallville writers give a not-so-subtle nod of acceptance to fans like me who became disenchanted after the season five episode "Reckoning" and the slow bleed that followed.
-The "Finale" episode, where us long-surviving fans finally get the payoff that we've all been waiting for.
Thus, it basically comes down to this: If you loved "Smallville" in the early goings and feel it has declined since "Reckoning", this season won't change that opinion whatsoever. However, if you still got enjoyment out of the later seasons, you'll probably like this one too.
There are a few basic plotlines that run throughout this final season, all of which fall flat in one way or another:
-The U.S. government's reaction to superheroes: an almost blatant rip-off of many themes from "The Dark Knight".
-The Clark/Lois relationship: Should work, but (as writers) you can't have Lois be EASILY the most annoying character on the show for six seasons and then expect us to put all that aside and love her in the seventh.
-Clark Kent coming to terms with the hero he is destined to become: Pretty much every decision/conclusion Clark comes to this season in terms of embracing his destiny is watered-down due to botched attempts in previous seasons. Because the show was on a year-to-year basis for so long, the frequent stops-and-starts in Clark's transition to Superman rendered that penultimate transition without much drama.
Really, there are only three things that I enjoyed about this season (aka the reason I can give it 2 stars instead of just 1):
-The "Earth 2" plot arc, which allowed us to see some characters that hadn't been around for awhile. The alter-universe characters kind of muddy things up in the end, but it is nice to see them as "themselves" once again.
-The episode "Homecoming", where the Smallville writers give a not-so-subtle nod of acceptance to fans like me who became disenchanted after the season five episode "Reckoning" and the slow bleed that followed.
-The "Finale" episode, where us long-surviving fans finally get the payoff that we've all been waiting for.
Thus, it basically comes down to this: If you loved "Smallville" in the early goings and feel it has declined since "Reckoning", this season won't change that opinion whatsoever. However, if you still got enjoyment out of the later seasons, you'll probably like this one too.