OKAY OKAY SO thoughts on Lana????? Because my mom and I think she’s a whiny ass bitch that was just annoying bUT I don’t know anyone else who watches Smallville so I was curious if it’s just us 👀👀👀
Hey!
First of all I’m so sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner! I wanted to finish the series first and then share my final thoughts on Lana but never got around once I did (obviously!).
It’s not that I had nothing to say, it’s just that every time I sat down to come up with a good answer, I couldn’t articulate my thoughts.
With that, I’m referring you to a video who said things faaar better than I could have but with one or two disclaimers as I’m rewatching the series again.
1: First off, you’re not alone. As you’ll soon discover according to this video, Lana was one of the most hated character on the show. And while I think it’s mostly undeserved, I DO get where their coming from to a small degree. I think at least in the first and second season she was a bit harsh on Clark and wanted him to open up too quickly. As if she’s entitled to his deepest secrets all at once.
2: I personally like Lana and found myself relating to her so much, sharing the same temperament and persona even though I was faaar from being the popular girl in school 😆.
I related to people having a certain image of me that I ended up confusing or disappointing people when I stepped outside of the box that they put me in, as well as maybe a couple of other things. That being said I do think they strung her character out a bit more than was necessary, especially since he was supposed to end up with Lois, though I think their saving grace was that they introduced Lois early on in the series and just let the characters grow into each other.
3: if you want my honest opinion I think the actors for Clark and Lana had more chemistry than the actors for Clark and Lois. I know that’s more subjective but that’s how I feel. She was played a good Lois Lane don’t get me wrong! It’s just that whenever she was with Tom Welling, something was missing that wasn’t with Kristen Kreuk. Like I said before, subjective, but that’s how I feel.
4: this is a relatively new thought/theory, and it doesn’t make it necessarily true, but Lana’s character was created at a time where the “Not like other girls” trope was at an all time high. Lana was feminine and quiet while you had Lois who was loud and unapologetic, and could be considered a bit of a “boss babe”. None of these things are bad in of itself, but she was literally the embodiment of “not like other girls” so I think that’s why she was a bit more accepted than Lana.
But like I said before, nothing concrete.
The YouTube video is called “Why Lana Lang Doesn’t Deserve Your Hate”, and it’s by Rachel Macdonald. I hope this gives you some insight into what I think in a more concise and articulate manner.
Happy watching! 🙂
Whew. I don’t even post on tumblr anymore but this post is so factually incorrect and loaded with bullshit that I’m actually breaking my tumblr hiatus to correct it because this is a complete rewrite of what Erica Durance endured as Lois Lane on Smallville and I did not spend years of my life defending that woman and the character she played from RELENTLESS, ageist, misogynist abuse along with hundreds of other women in the Smallville fandom in real time for someone who was, admittedly, a literal KID when Smallville was as on the air to try and rewrite history now regarding what actually transpired. Holy shit. You clearly do not have even the slightest educated clue of how Lois was actually received by fandom and the public when that show was on the air and I will be damned if you are going to try to rewrite it now as some kind of “new thought” you just had and pass it off as some statement on feminism.
Erica Durance’s Lois Lane was not a “boss babe.” That’s not what a boss babe even is!! Like you aren’t even remotely describing what that term means and the kind of woman it embodies! You don’t even know what you are talking about. And she most certainly wasn’t beloved or accepted because she was extremely outspoken and loud and unapologetic! On the contrary, she was repeatedly called “bitch” “mean” “too harsh” “too masculine” and “too old” for him. Erica was personally stalked by legions of Allison Mack’s fans who, on the regular, said she was “nothing but tits and ass”, who repeatedly called her “old” and who said she was “too stupid to be the iconic Lois Lane.” FFS for years on end they actively campaigned for her death asserting that, one day, Chloe would reveal herself to be “the real Lois.” They stalked her personal assistant and tried to get her fired. They made fun of every outfit she wore. They commented daily on her breasts, her face and repeatedly tried to get her run off the show.
Craig Byrne, the guy who STILL runs Kryptonsite also actively participated in the abuse though he would love for people to forget that he did. He labeled photos of Erica Durance and Tom as “Clark and his grandma” which was ageist and misogynist. He actively allowed posters at Ksite to call her “Nois” and “Hois” with no moderation. He allowed people to call Lois “slut” and banned the women who reported the abuse. This went on for the entire 7 years she was on the show! This was still a regular occurrence in season 10!
Which brings us again to this ageist nonsense. You are correct that chemistry is subjective. That’s true. But you know what’s NOT subjective? The fact that Erica Durance was the only actress on Smallville who was ACTUALLY Tom Welling’s peer and not several years younger than him and she received relentless abuse for “looking old.” You know what’s not subjective at all? That fandom literally always finds a way to “prefer” the chemistry of ships with younger women and pretend age had nothing to do with it. And the fact that you felt the need to say that the only woman who was actually Tom’s age was the one “missing” something next to him is a load of shady BS. There was no reason to say that. That’s all I’m gonna say on the chemistry thing because Tom and Erica’s chemistry is legendary among Superman fans and they don’t need my defense. I personally thought there was nothing between Clark and Lana after like season 3 but, frankly, that’s not even the point. Because I’m not here to insult Clark and Lana nor Lana herself. You never should have brought Tom and Erica up in your response to start with. There was no need. And you tried to pass it off as “subjective” while still getting a dig in. Completely unnecessary and rude. But like I said, Tom and Erica are legends as Lois and Clark and don’t need my defense. Their chemistry is legendary and nothing will change it.
Your defense of Lana is fine. I like Lana and I really really like Kristen Kreuk. But, to be frank, most of the criticism about Lana is warranted distinctly because Al and Miles were obsessed with her to an unhealthy degree and it had a negative impact on the way she was written. None of that was ever Kristen’s fault and she deserved BETTER than to be basically an object to male writers who treated her like nothing more than a pet. I wanted better for Kristen and I rooted for Lana plenty and still do. Although it’s RICH to me that Lois is apparently the “not like other girls” example when, in fact, it was LANA who the show treated as if she was so much better than every other woman and walked on water and could do no wrong and was saintly and perfect and she had trouble maintaining female friendships and every man loved her. Not Lois. Lois had a sister she loved and took care of. Lois had a female cousin she loved. Lois was very much not that trope of the lone woman that no other woman could live up to and was “not like other girls.” Lana was. That was Lana to a TEE. She had a new skill every episode, a new amazing accomplishment every damn season and rarely ever was asked to account for her sins. Unlike Lois who was asked to do it over and over again. So in addition to not actually understanding what a “boss babe” is you don’t seem to actually understand that trope either. But whatever. It’s just another way your analysis is full of shit.
But what is absolutely unacceptable and not ok is you rewriting history for Erica Durance and then trying to pass it off as some kind of feminist revelation about the show. Because it’s not true. Lois Lane has, as a character, been treated like trash from the minute she debuted in 1938 and Smallville’s version was no different. The character and actress were constantly harassed, treated horrifically, slut shamed, body shamed and constantly at the mercy of one of the most misogynist ass fandoms I’ve ever been a part of.
The acceptance you see of Smallville’s Lois Lane NOW in 2021 in places like tumblr and Twitter is literally only because, after all these years, it’s become clear to a lot of people that Erica was an extremely good Lois Lane—one of the best ever—-and that Tom and Erica were fire together. But that was a hard earned victory for this woman that, frankly, was partly influenced by some people, realizing and confronting, how completely misogynist it was that she was slut shamed so badly and treated so badly. Just as you are seeing people realize that Lana was often unfairly demonized, you are also seeing people celebrate Erica. And the misogynists have found a new target. They have Amy Adams and/or Elizabeth Tulloch to call “too old” and to harass now so, now, they leave Erica alone. And the cycle of abuse for whatever actress is currently playing Lois Lane continues. That’s how this rolls.
So, I mean, by all means share why you relate to Lana and defend her. But misusing terms like “boss babe” (are you kidding me with this shit? Boss babe does not even mean what you are describing) and pretending that Lois Lane was just completely accepted and beloved for all of these traits you describe when the exact opposite is true is not acceptable. This is not some kind of feminist manifesto you’ve come up with. Some of us were grown ass women when this all happened in real time and we were actually there and you do not get to rewrite our history. You should take down your post because it’s extremely misleading and disrespectful to what Erica went through from that fandom. Sometimes, if you were an actual kid when stuff was originally on the air, it’s across OK to just say that you don’t actually KNOW how a female character was treated and received in real time because you were too young to truly understand it as it unfolded and that’s what you should have done here rather than this disrespectful nonsense. Just say you like Lana and leave the rest of this shit out of it. Thanks.
@spectroscopes another person who wants to rewrite the Smallville fandom where apparently no one was mean to Lois!
