Skip to main content

TV Snapshots: More on the choices we make

Lana, we all make mistakes. I’m living proof of that. It’s how we come back from our mistakes, that’s what matters.

--Clark Kent to his girlfriend, in the “Blue” episode of Smallville


We’re not defined by our parents, Kara. One of the most important things my adoptive parents taught me is that we shape our own destiny.

--Clark Kent to his cousin, from the “Lara” episode of Smallville

My husband and I are making our way through Season 7 of Smallville, of which most episodes we’ve stored over the last year on our DVR. One of the interesting things about watching several episodes back-to-back is picking up on the themes running through the season. This theme of our destiny or future being shaped by the choices we make versus where or who we came from is one of the themes I love about this series—and it’s playing throughout this season as well.

I also like the thread that it's not a single decision that defines our life, but a series of them. Over the last few years, I've come to embrace the idea that our decision to follow Jesus ("conversion") is not a one-time event but a daily, moment-by-moment thing; for most of us, conversion occurs over a lifetime, not in one moment.

This season also seems to be more pointedly exploring whether or not there is "a point of no return" (as Lana puts it during her conversation with Clark above)--a time when our walk down one path or the other is irreversible. Interesting.

(Image: CW) smallvillectgy