SMALLVILLE Season 6 Episode 12
“Labyrinth”

Immediately following the Justice League episode, we have the Martian Manhunter episode.
This one though, was surprisingly far more watchable than “Justice.”
The premise, though not original, is still effective: after a brief sequence where Clark is struck down by an invisible force in the barn, he awakens to find himself in a mental institute. It turns out that the past 5 and a half years have been the elaborate fantasy of a paranoid schizophrenic, and the name “Jor-El” is a brand of liquid hand soap.
We, of course, know the truth, as does another loony (Phil Morris), who claims to be from (ahem) Mars. (If there hadn’t been so much press about this episode and who the guest star was going to be, I might have gotten a little fanboy thrill during the moment when a white-clad orderly waves a lighter flame in front of “the Martian.”)
The fact that it takes nearly 30 minutes of running time before they give up the game gives us enough of a chance to see this other world, where Clark and Lana have been sweethearts since kindergarten, where Lex lost his legs during the accident in which Clark should have saved him (way back in season 1), but didn’t, since he was really just a crazy who thought he was a superman, and where Martha has tied the knot with Lionel. Enough of a chance to see Michael Rosenbaum’s Moment, screaming legless from a wheelchair, as well as Allison Mack’s embarrassing death scene. Even Tom Welling manages to squeeze out some real emotion in a couple of scenes. (That’s one of the good things about these kinds of “alternate reality” episodes, as they give the actors a chance to explore their characters from some skewed angles.)
Of course, all this time spent in that false world leaves us just a smidgen of running time for the wrap-up, so the oh-so-brief appearance of the Martian Manhunter in the “real world” (indicating his impending return) will have to do for any J’onn J’onzz fans out there, as there has to be that final scene between Clark and Lana. And though I have made fun of Smallville’s tortured relationship hooey round these parts before, I must admit that this particular scene between these doomed lovers (`cause we all know he ends up with Lois, right?) struck just the right chord.
All in all, though light years from the best 40+ TV minutes I’ve ever seen, certainly a sight better than any of the season 6 Smallvilles I’ve seen thus far.