The return of Clark Kent in Smallville season 11 will soon be upon us. Fortunately, you won’t have to wait until April 13th to find out what’s in store for everyone’s favorite Kansas boy, as series writer Brian Q. Miller has revealed some additional information about Smallville’s transition into comics.
Speaking with IGN at WonderCon this past weekend, Miller discussed the 6-month gap between the Smallville series finale and Smallville season 11; Clark’s space adventures; Chloe and Oliver trying to live in Star City; Lex being, well, Lex; DC guest stars, and more. Additionally, Miller revealed that the 12-issue Smallville season 11 will be equal in length (storywise) to a TV movie, or two to three television episodes.
Here are some excerpts from Miller’s interview:
The Plot:
We’re six months after Clark became Superman for the first time and pushed Apokolips out of orbit, because we had a proto-Darkseid causing some chaos and Apokolips was going to crash into Earth and people were not happy! Superman saved Air Force One with Lois on it and then he pushed the planet out of orbit. So it’s kind of Superman: Year One with a Smallville cast of characters.
Clark’s Storyline:
For Clark, it’s “We’ve saved the world, I’m an adult now, I have my ‘job’ as Superman, so what does that mean for my life now?” Does he ever get to sleep? Does he ever get to see Lois? Lois is busy; she’s a reporter on the rise. So it’s a lot of everyone figuring out in this post-TV series world what their place is.
Clark’s in space in the first ten pages of the first episode!
Once we get out of the first episode, it’s mostly tights and flights – which people have wanted for ten years anyway. So it’s giving Clark his due as Superman, but that’s not to say that we lose sight of Clark Kent.
Chloe and Oliver’s Storyline:
Chloe and Oliver, who are married, want to move to Star City and get on with their lives. Because of all the chaos in season 10, they didn’t have a chance to be married. It’s a lot of them figuring out what to do next. As it happens, things get in the way. For Chloe and Oliver, something happens in the first twelve weeks that very much gives them pause and they have to stay to figure it all out before they can leave.
Lex’s Storyline:
I would say that the situation you have is a Lex Luthor who has lost his memory after he killed his half-sister Tess. Whether or not he remembers that moment could be up for debate. He definitely came back into the world with Apokolips in the sky and a dead Tess on the floor in his office. Our cast knows that the last person to see Tess alive was Lex, so whether or not he remembers it, I think that is kind of a dark stain on Lex’s “new man” status. They all know that even though he may say it was just a suicide, they don’t really believe that after everything Tess went through she would do that. Whether or not there are consequences to it, even if she’s not there I think Tess is still very present.
DC Guest Stars:
There’s certainly a chance for lots of DC guest stars to show up, and lots of DC guest stars will show up. But the focus is primarily on Clark as Superman. So if they do come in, just like they did on the show, it would somehow have to inform what Clark is going through.
…there’s a DC guest star [in the second episode] that brings into the story some of the elements that lend themselves to bigger action, a little more outside-of-the-box stuff that you wouldn’t see on the show tonally. It’s a lot of fun, but it’s definitely a challenge.
A New Character (Cyborg Superman?):
In the first arc, we meet a former astronaut named Hank Henshaw. So Hank will be in the mix. He shows up in issue #2 print-wise.
And if that’s not enough information to help satisfy your Smallville appetite, here are two covers from the upcoming series: (click for larger versions)
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Issue #1 Cover
Issue #2 Cover
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Smallville season 11 premieres digitally this April and June in print
