Deutsche Version | Season 3 | Season 5
Disc 1
Crusade
Synopsis: Lois Lane comes to Smallville to find out who killed her cousin but then she finds a guy in a field who doesn’t know who he his. Jonathan Kent lies in a hospital bed and is brain-dead. Lana is still in Paris and has a new boyfriend. Lionel is still in jail, waiting for his trial. And Lex – who has survived the attempt to poison him – travels around the world to find objects that are connected to the symbols in the Kawatche cave.
My Opinion: Sorry, but that went a bit too fast. Within half an hour Kal-El was Clark again. I am sure that if the writers really wanted to, this could have been an arc that lasted at least 4 episodes, even more. Just because it was a cliffhanger doesn’t mean it has to be resolved in the very first episode of the new season.
But I like the arrival of Lois, she is refreshingly blunt. And I liked the appearance of Margot Kidder (Lois Lane in the Superman movies), especially her remark regarding Dr. Swann and a “former life”. She’s now the third person from the movies to appear in the series (Annette O’Toole [Lana Lang in Superman III, now Martha Kent] was obviously the first).
Gone
Synopsis: After they’ve found out that Chloe’s grave is empty, Clark and Lois investigate her disappearance, but there are several obstacles: For one, Lois’s father is a three-star General who doesn’t want his daughter digging into that mystery. Secondly, he is in league with Lex. And thirdly, there’s a T-1000 meteor freak who works for Lionel and wants to kill Chloe for real this time. And Lana has returned to Smallville.
My Opinion: That was a really obvious Terminator 2 rip-off, especially with the end. But I still liked it, the scenes in the Kent house were really funny. Lois’s great advantage is, that she has no history whatsoever with Clark. For her, he’s simply “Smallville”.
Facade
Synopsis: Clark is now in his senior year at high school and he’s trying out for the football team against the wishes of his father (again). The new assistant coach is none other than Lana’s new boyfriend. It’s a relationship they must keep hidden because he could get fired for it. But there’s something else that has changed: A student nicknamed “Scabby Abby” is now a real beauty but when she kisses people they get delusional and land in the hospital. While Lois is stuck at Smallville High (she needs a few additional points to get accepted to the university) she helps Chloe and Clark to investigate.
My Opinion: What I liked about the rescue was that from Lois’ point of view it didn’t appear as if Clark was rescuing her but that she was rescuing him (which is also true). It establishes their routine that she doesn’t see the hero in him like Lana and Chloe do.
Devoted
Synopsis: The cheerleaders of Smallville High are using meteor rocks to create a love potion. When the football team drinks of it they all become aboulic slaves with the exception of Clark who gets ill from it. Chloe drinks from it, too, and soonafter a new cheerleading star is born.
My Opinion: This was a very funny episode, especially the parts where Chloe hits on Clark and where Clark had to pretend that we was under the love spell. I had a great time.
Disc 2
Run
Synopsis: There’s someone who can run faster than Clark! But unfortunately he is also a thief. Clark tracks him down in Metropolis but he won’t listen to him. Then he steals a priceless page from a book from Lex, but Lex isn’t someone you steal from and get away with it. Lex also know how to track down people but he does something stupid and Clark has to save both of them.
My Opinion: The Flash! Cool. I’ve known the Flash since the short-lived TV show The Flash with John Wesley Shipp. Back than I didn’t know that he belonged to the DC universe nor that he was a member of the Justice League. He also happens to be one of the few people (but their number will increase) who has special abilities that aren’t derived from the meteor rocks. I really liked it that they referenced the different Flashs by giving him these fake driver’s licenses.
Transference
Synopsis: Another stone is “calling out” for Clark and he finds it in the hands of Lionel Luthor who is just about to do a body-switch with his son. Due to Clark’s interference he lands in Clark’s and Clark in Lionel’s. Lionel is free and he discovers the abilities of Clark’s body. And Clark is dying because Lionel’s body is dying unless they switch back.
My Opinion: This was a great episode. I liked the acting of Tom as well as that of John Glover.
But I also have to admit that I get a bit uneasy when it comes to these stones and their abilities. They’ve been lost for centuries, if not millennia, nobody has ever mentioned them before but suddenly they are reappearing. It wasn’t even mentioned before that the symbols of the Kawatche cave have been found on other places on Earth, too.
Jinx
Synopsis: Clark is still playing football and he is the quarterback now. But in one game he stumbles and hurts another player. The real problem is: Clark never stumbles except when he is in close proximity to Kryptonite. As it turns out, there’s a strange bookie who can influence the game without leaving a trace.
My Opinion: Mmh, interesting. Yet another guy who can do “things” and wasn’t infected by meteor rocks. While I can understand that they get tired of inventing the next meteor freak, not to explain how he got his powers isn’t a good choice either. For me a fictional universe needs consistency. I have no problem in believing the weirdest things as long as it is consistent in itself. Up until now he have meteor freaks and Clark and other visitors from Krypton that have been on Earth. That might not explain how the cave walls can foretell the future, but they could invent a reasonable explanation. But now we suddenly have people that have powers for no obvious reasons and we have witches that were burned at the stake (I will continue this in the next episode review).
Spell
Synopsis: Lana has bought Countess Isobel’s spellbook but when she opens it, Isobel snatches her body. After that she uses Chloe and Lois to get two of her fellow witches back from the dead. Isobel is also on the search for the three stones and her magic can hurt even Clark. She defeats him and learns from him that one of the stones is hidden in a secret chamber in the cave wall. But even without his powers Clark doesn’t give up.
My Opinion: An out-of-character episode. That’s always a thumbs up for me. The three looked really cool (especially Chloe if you ask me) and they played really well.
I still have a problem with that entire Isobel arc. I don’t know how it fits in into the Superman mythology and I don’t care. I don’t like it. I consider Superman more fantasy than science fiction. But that doesn’t mean that witchcraft and wizardry fit into this world. Everything that we’ve seen so far was either caused by a mutation (caused by meteor rocks) or vastly superior kryptonian technology. Where do spells and enchantments fit in?
No, I am not really happy with that particular storyline and probably never will be.
Disc 3
Bound
Synopsis: Lex wakes up after a one night stand and finds her slain beside him. Naturally, Lex is the prime suspect but Clark starts an investigation of his own. And he has unexpected help in the form of Lionel who truly seems to have changed since the body-switch (from which he can’t remember anything).
My Opinion: I liked the episode because Clark has to see what kind of character Lex is. Clark may have an influence on him but he also must not forget in what kind of environment Lex grew up. I also find it interesting how Clark’s relationship both to Lex and Lionel is changing.
Scare
Synopsis: There’s an accident at the LuthorCorp plant and a gas is released into the atmosphere. Soon after, people (with Jason being the first) start to collapse and are falling into a “panic mode” coma. Before they fall into that coma they see their worst fears come true. If the doctors and Lex can’t stop it all will die when their hearts finally give up.
My Opinion: I always knew that Clark blamed himself for the death of Lana’s parents. I just didn’t know that he feared that she would, too. I also found the other insights interesting. The make-up of Chloe’s mother scaringly reminded me of Heath Ledger’s “Joker” make-up in the upcoming Batman movie The Dark Knight. I also found it fascinating that Lex has the same nightmare of what could become of him as the old lady in Hourglass.
Unsafe
Synopsis: Alicia has been released from Belle Reve and she is healed. Clark who hasn’t stopped being very fond of her, goes out with her but then she does something very stupid and it involves the usage of red Kryptonite. Meanwhile Lana fears to lose Jason and offers him to bring their relationship to a more “adult level”.
My Opinion: I still like Alicia, the episodes with her are very good because Clark can be different (even without red Kryptonite). He’s way more open and it seems that the weight of the world is falling off his shoulders when he’s around her.
The end was interesting for me in a different way: His parents are disappointed because for them marriage is still something very sacred. Maybe that still true in the real Kansas as well but it doesn’t really reflect my reality of life where more couples get divorced than get married.
Pariah
Synopsis: Despite what has happened, Clark still cares for Alicia and he goes out with her (again). But them aside nobody is happy about it. Not his parents and certainly not Lana who was nearly killed by Alicia in the previous year. And then Lana is attacked again by someone who can enter and leave a locked room without being seen. Everyone suspects Alicia at once but Clark believes in her. Wouldn’t it be easier for her if people knew what Clark can do and has done?
My Opinion: One of my favourite episodes! Chloe finds out and Clark doesn’t even know it. I really like that scenario because it gives us a number of good episodes in this season. I like it how Chloe encourages Clark from now on.
Unfortunately Alicia is dead. 🙁 I don’t blame Clark that he began to doubt her, she was perfectly framed. Therefore I also liked the end fight including the fact that he nearly killed the guy if it hadn’t been for Lois.
And now the key scene:
Disc 4
Recruit
Synopsis: Clark is about to get accepted to the Metropolis University football team and he gets a scholarship. But there’s another player on the field who has an unfair advantage over his opponents. Meanwhile Lois is in serious trouble. After a drinking game she kicks a stalker to the ground but gets arrested the next day – the guy is paralyzed.
My Opinion: As I said, I love Chloe’s remarks and her nodding him in the right direction. But that aside the episode was average, they’ve invented a FotW that said all the right things to make Clark drop football (“In high school it was ok but this is another world …”).
Even so, I found it funny that Lois would compete in a drinking game while wearing her pyjamas and (bunny?) slippers.
Krypto
Synopsis: Due to the previous events Lois has been kicked out of the Met U and lives on the Kent farm again. But one night she hits a dog with her car. This dog was stolen from a LuthorCorp lab and has enhanced abilities. It was used for robberies until Lois had hit it and his “owners” want him back.
My Opinion: This was a funny episode with Lois being back on the farm and a dog with superpowers. The dog was of course a hint to “Krypto the Superdog” from the Superman comics.
Sacred
Synopsis: Dr. Swann has died but before that he has returned the octagonal disc to Clark. When he enters it into the cave table his father tells him about the three mystical stones. One of them is already in Clark’s possession (thanks to Kal-El) and no human must be allowed to put the three together. The map hidden under the page in Lex’s office points to the third stone. Soon Jason, Lex, Clark, Lana and Isobel find themselves on the hunt for the stone – in China.
My Opinion: Plans within plans within plans. While I like the hide-and-seek I still don’t like the fact that witchcraft is involved and that Isobal can cast a blade that is able to wound Clark. But Lana looked great in that chinese outfit. 🙂
Disc 5
Lucy
Synopsis: Lois’s younger sister Lucy calls in the middle of the night from Switzerland and heralds her in arrival in Smallville. But this isn’t a happy family reunion since Lois and Lucy have never gotten along so well since the death of their mother. Additionally Lucy is followed by a loan shark whom she owns $50,000. Lois and Clark try to help her but she isn’t completely honest with them.
My Opinion: Maybe I would care much about this episode and Lucy if I knew that we would see her again. But as far as my knowledge goes (to the first episodes of the seventh season) we will not see her again. Even though it wasn’t a regular FotW episode it felt like one because of this one-time-character.
Onyx
Synopsis: During an experiment green Kryptonite is transformed into black Kryptonite and then the entire lab explodes. Somehow the black Kryptonite tears Lex apart into two seperate beings, one that has all his good aspects and one that is purely evil. Evil-Lex imprisons Good-Lex and does all the things Normal-Lex wouldn’t do – or maybe he would?
My Opinion: It the classical Star Trek episode The Enemy Within, set in Smallville. But I liked it because Lex’s evil side is actually in him. There are few characters that can believably do such a split and Lex Luthor is definitively such a character. I also liked the analogy to The Man in the Iron Mask, it fits into Lex’s biography that this was one of his favourite books.
Spirit
Synopsis: Dawn Stiles is bound to become the Prom Queen. But then she drives her car down a ravine and falls into a coma – sort of. Her spirit wanders around until she lands herself into Martha’s body and has control over it. From now on she switches bodies at will and tries to make her dream come true.
My Opinion: I loved to see Annette O’Toole as an adolescent teenager and the others were also great. I also liked the fact that Clark didn’t ran headless into the fight (as he often does; granted often he has less time than Jack Bauer) but was prepared for the possibilty that Dawn would take over his body. It was also good that Chloe found out about his weakness, she will need that knowledge later.
Blank
Synopsis: A young man who has been treated at Summerholt Institute tries to clean out the register of the “Talon”. When Clark tries to stop him, all his memories are erased and he has no clue, who or what he is and what he can do. With Clark’s parents being in Metroplis it’s now Chloe’s job to introduce him to his abilities and along the road she learns about some of them that she didn’t know before.
My Opinion: One of my favourite episodes. It’s so funny to see how Chloe teaches Clark about his own abilities. Especially funny was the scene when she learns that he has an X-Ray vision and she tries to cover her chest. But I also liked that she’s learned that it isn’t that easy to keep such a secret.
Disc 6
Ageless
Synopsis: Clark and Lana find a baby in a huge crater and they bring it to the Smallville Medical Center. Even though there wasn’t a spaceship Clark believes that this child is special. He takes it with him to the farm and he and Lana care for it. But then it suddenly ages into a 7-year-old and it doesn’t stop there. Lex tries to help them but only the biological father can prevent that this child dies within a few days.
My Opinion: Honestly: I loved to see Clark and Lana as parents. It was heart-warming. But I didn’t like the part where he met his father. This part wasn’t well written and a bad excuse for why he couldn’t be saved. Don’t get me wrong: I am not mad about the fact that he didn’t survive, just about the part where (and how) his father died.
Forever
Synopsis: A high school graduate wants to “freeze time”. He wasn’t accepted to a college and in his mind everything should stay as it is just now. For this he captures Chloe, Lana and a few others and imprisons them in a “Smallville High” copy. But he leaves too many traces and soon Clark and Lois are on the search for their friends.
My Opinion: Some people have weird ideas. While there are days that I’d like to relive again I wouldn’t give up the future for it. The porcelain effects were great, especially the one where Lois tries her karate kick. But it still was just an average FotW episode where the bad guy’s abilities mysteriously turn against himself.
Commencement
Synopsis: Lana has been taken over by Isobel and kills Genevieve Teague with one of the stones. As Jor-El has warned his son this sets a chain reaction in motion. The first link of this chain is the second meteor shower over Smallville in 16 years and it wreaks havoc in the city. And the gang is scattered throughout the scenery: Clark tries to put the three rocks together, Lana sits in a helicopter and crashes, Jason tries to kill Martha and Jonathan and Lionel is in some sort of coma.
My Opinion: Another great finale. There’s wasn’t the smallest space for any more action in it. And finally that “Isobel” storyline is finished (although without a satisfying conclusion). Now I am really eager to watch the continuation – the cliffhanger has done its job.
The Season – My Opinion: Hmm. Sorry, but I couldn’t make head nor tail out of this “Isobel” arc. What was the point of it? As suddenly as it arose as suddenly it vanished into nothingness. I am not entirely sure but apart from the mentioning of Jason that story will never come up again. Let’s imply forget about it.
But this season had some extraodinary developments. For one, Chloe’s discovery of Clark’s secret and how she influenced him afterwards. But I also found it interesting to see that Lex has also feelings for Lana. The relationship will evolve over the next seasons. From an outside perspective it’s interesting to see how simultaneously Clark and Lex drift apart and Lex and Lana get closer. I also liked to see how ambivalent Lionel behaves. It was never clear towards which goals his actions were directed.