Smallville: Dragon by Alan Grant

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Smallville: Dragon by Alan Grant

pub: Orbit. 244 page paperback: Price: £ 5.99 (UK). ISBN: 1-84149-247-7.

Check out website: www.orbitbooks.co.uk

'Be careful what you wish for...'

When a small town murderer is released from prison on parole, he heads back to his home hoping to start afresh. Hard luck then, because his hometown is Smallville and for that read Weirdsville.

Smallville Dragon This week's monster is...well the title gives it away. So the effects of kryptonite continue to influence life in Smallville. It's a bit like living in Sunnydale - the mortality rate is very high but close friends are usually saved at the end of every episode.

To complicate matters further, Clark Kent loses his powers. After visiting a quaint gift shop he becomes a normal boy. He does not remember his powers or origins, leading to some curious conversations with his parents who are, he thinks, slightly loopy. Clark gets everything he wanted including Lana Lang, the girl of his dreams but, with his friends in danger, he is no longer able to protect them.

This novel uses the characters as set up by the television series 'Smallville' and is unlikely to be read as a standalone work. One of the main problems with these books is trying to insert the backstory unobtrusively.

Consequently, both in this and in 'Stranger Visitors' (see review elsewhere this month), there is an enforced re-run of various parts of the plot from Season One. This is true in any sequence of novels whether a TV tie-in or not and has been rather noticeable in such esteemed works as 'Harry Potter'...

The plot and sub-plot pretty much deal with issues of the series; Lex Luthor continues to be convinced that Clark has hidden depths, Clark only has eyes for Lana and his parents continue to worry what will happen to him. The addition of another Krypton hyped-up monster allows some examination of all the above.

I have a problem with the 'monster a week' scenario within the series itself. It seems that it is OK for Clark to have super-powers but anyone else always goes bad. I'm also getting more than a little fed up with characters that are introduced to become monster-fodder.

This particular story has been influenced by 'Superman II' where Clark voluntarily gives up his power to be with Lois and then finds he is still needed. There are also certain legends invoked and some 'Magick' seems to have crept over from Sunnydale.

If you can't beat 'em join 'em I say.
Although in places rather predictable the pace picks up towards the end but I found myself skimming through the descriptive passages where they got overly intense. The problem is that so much can be visualised in the series but it amounts to at least thirty words description in a novel.

It's a light read and probably aimed at the younger reader anyway - not that they don't deserve the highest standards too. There is nothing particularly offensive in it, apart from the desire to kill off the 'crewman in the red uniform' a'la every series in this genre but at the end of the day I would prefer to watch 'Smallville' than read about it.

Sue Davies

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