TV guide Talks "Justice"
A League of Their Own – The JLA makes its explosive debut on Smallville.
It’s not quite as majestic as the Hall of Justice, but Clark Kent’s dusty barn seems as good a place as any for a historic gathering of novice superheroes. On the Vancouver set of Smallville, the five members of the Justice League are still basking in the proverbial glow of last night’s warehouse explosion, a fiery finishing touch to their inaugural mission.
In a fanboy’s dream come true, the January 18 episode features a reunion of past guest stars: the lighting-fast Impulse (a version of the Flash, played by Kyle Gallner), oceanic vigilante Aquaman (Alan Ritchson), human-machine hybrid Cyborg (Lee Thompson Young) and ace archer Green Arrow (Justin Hartley). For the first time ever, they unite-“an elite special forces team,” executive producer Al Gough calls them- to investigate Lex Luthor’s mysterious “33.1” project experimenting on people with special abilities. And like their comic-book counterparts, this Justice League does not initially include the young Clark. (The Justice League of America, or JLA , debuted in 1960’s The Brave and the Bold No 28 with Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter and Wonder Woman.)
Superman, as Gough notes, “is sort of the firefighter of the DC Comics universe…a very reactive character.” During the course of Smallville’s six seasons, Clark (Tom Welling) has wavered over his obligations beyond his corner of the world. But presented with Lex’s nefarious plans-and the capture of one of the other heroes-the future Superman joins the fray. “This is something we’ve wanted to do for a long time,” Gough admits. “We first started talking about it in Season 4, but now it seemed like Clark had evolved to the point where it was time to introduce the Justice League.”
In this episode, Clark embraces the notion that he should think bigger. “One thing weighing heavily on Clark is that he feels responsible for the world,” says Steven DeKnight, who wrote and directed the episode. “This was a chance for him to see there are other people out there fighting the good fight globally.”
And like his alter ego, Welling also benefited from the camaraderie, with lots of goofing off and male bonding in between-and during the numerous takes required for scenes with so many players. Though this made a long shoot a little bit longer, no one on set seemed to mind. “They say girls giggle a lot but these guys can’t stop laughing,” one crew member good-naturedly observed.
“That’s something Tom doesn’t get a lot,” DeKnight says. “He may have a scene with one guy every now and then, but he’s not surrounded by male friends on the show. So it was really nice, not just for the character, but for Tom to have that dynamic.”
Welling declined to be interviewed for this story, preferring, like Clark, to have his costars enjoy the limelight. “Because the focus [of this episode] was on everyone else, he was able to kick back and hang out with the guys,” says Gallner, who got a glimpse of Welling’s commitment to Smallville. “I showed up a day or two early to get a wardrobe fitting and Tom was directing the episode before and he was really happy about it,” I asked him questions and he would just go off. He’s very passionate and happy to explain everything.”
Though Clark can’t yet commit to full-time membership in the League, it seems a good bet that Welling will get more opportunities to bond with his buddies, including Hartley, who is winding down a well-received seven-episode arc on the show. “He may pop up in the last couple of episodes,” Gough teases. That’s good, because Clark could always use a little help from his superfriends.
TV guide scan
It’s not quite as majestic as the Hall of Justice, but Clark Kent’s dusty barn seems as good a place as any for a historic gathering of novice superheroes. On the Vancouver set of Smallville, the five members of the Justice League are still basking in the proverbial glow of last night’s warehouse explosion, a fiery finishing touch to their inaugural mission.
In a fanboy’s dream come true, the January 18 episode features a reunion of past guest stars: the lighting-fast Impulse (a version of the Flash, played by Kyle Gallner), oceanic vigilante Aquaman (Alan Ritchson), human-machine hybrid Cyborg (Lee Thompson Young) and ace archer Green Arrow (Justin Hartley). For the first time ever, they unite-“an elite special forces team,” executive producer Al Gough calls them- to investigate Lex Luthor’s mysterious “33.1” project experimenting on people with special abilities. And like their comic-book counterparts, this Justice League does not initially include the young Clark. (The Justice League of America, or JLA , debuted in 1960’s The Brave and the Bold No 28 with Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter and Wonder Woman.)
Superman, as Gough notes, “is sort of the firefighter of the DC Comics universe…a very reactive character.” During the course of Smallville’s six seasons, Clark (Tom Welling) has wavered over his obligations beyond his corner of the world. But presented with Lex’s nefarious plans-and the capture of one of the other heroes-the future Superman joins the fray. “This is something we’ve wanted to do for a long time,” Gough admits. “We first started talking about it in Season 4, but now it seemed like Clark had evolved to the point where it was time to introduce the Justice League.”
In this episode, Clark embraces the notion that he should think bigger. “One thing weighing heavily on Clark is that he feels responsible for the world,” says Steven DeKnight, who wrote and directed the episode. “This was a chance for him to see there are other people out there fighting the good fight globally.”
And like his alter ego, Welling also benefited from the camaraderie, with lots of goofing off and male bonding in between-and during the numerous takes required for scenes with so many players. Though this made a long shoot a little bit longer, no one on set seemed to mind. “They say girls giggle a lot but these guys can’t stop laughing,” one crew member good-naturedly observed.
“That’s something Tom doesn’t get a lot,” DeKnight says. “He may have a scene with one guy every now and then, but he’s not surrounded by male friends on the show. So it was really nice, not just for the character, but for Tom to have that dynamic.”
Welling declined to be interviewed for this story, preferring, like Clark, to have his costars enjoy the limelight. “Because the focus [of this episode] was on everyone else, he was able to kick back and hang out with the guys,” says Gallner, who got a glimpse of Welling’s commitment to Smallville. “I showed up a day or two early to get a wardrobe fitting and Tom was directing the episode before and he was really happy about it,” I asked him questions and he would just go off. He’s very passionate and happy to explain everything.”
Though Clark can’t yet commit to full-time membership in the League, it seems a good bet that Welling will get more opportunities to bond with his buddies, including Hartley, who is winding down a well-received seven-episode arc on the show. “He may pop up in the last couple of episodes,” Gough teases. That’s good, because Clark could always use a little help from his superfriends.
TV guide scan
Labels: Interview, Justice League
