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As Smallville is the origin story of Superman, the moments when teenage Clark Kent discovers his powers are important and compelling. Many actors have played the iconic character, and Tom Welling portrayed Clark in all 10 seasons of the WB series. While Clark's relationships with Lana Lang (Kristen Kreuk) and Lex Luther (Michael Rosenbaum) are the focal point of Smallville, most of Clark's storylines revolve around him discovering his abilities.
From the pilot episode to the series finale, there are many times when Clark Kent uses his powers, learns more about his backstory, and adjusts to the fact that he is a superhero. There's a lot to know about how this young character becomes the Man of Steel.
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How Does Clark Kent Learn About His Powers?
While Clark Kent knows that he has powers at the beginning of Smallville, he discovers more as time goes on. In the pilot episode, viewers learn that he ended up in this small town after his spaceship crashed, and his parents took him in. In season 1, he has X-Ray vision, which is exciting. In season 2, he has heat vision, and in season 3, he realizes that he has super hearing. Although Clark doesn't fly very often, he begins to fly in the first episode of season 4, although he truly leans into this ability in the Smallville series finale. By the end of Smallville season 1, Clark has come to terms with his true form, and he is used to employing his abilities to help people. There are a few times when Clark Kent loses his powers, and throughout Smallville, there are many threats to his abilities.
What Does Each Type Of Kryptonite Do To Clark Kent? |
|---|
Gold kryptonite: scars Clark |
Gemstone kryptonite: makes people do whatever Clark says |
Silver kryptonite: Clark becomes paranoid |
Black kryptonite: splits Clark into two forms, Clark and Kal-El |
Blue kryptonite: Clark loses his powers |
Silver kryptonite: Clark becomes paranoid |
How Does Smallville End?
Smallville ends with a two-part series finale and focuses on Clark Kent and Lois Lane's (Erica Durance) wedding. While Lois thinks that she will ruin Clark's chances to become Superman, he knows that they are meant to be together. As fans most likely predicted, Clark's powers are in jeopardy at the wedding. Oliver Queen (Justin Hartley) has been taken over by Darkseid and he tries to take Clark's powers away with a gold kryptonite ring. Clark's friend and former love interest Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) saves the day.
Like the reveal of the Red Queen in Smallville's later seasons, a big moment in the series finale is Tess Mercer's (Cassidy Freeman) death. Tess fights back and kills Lionel (John Glover) when Lionel wants to resurrect Lex with Tess's heart. Darkseid and Lionel negotiate and Lex survives. Clark and Lex have a moving scene where they talk about how they will oppose each other from now on, but they will respect each other.
When Smallville ended, Brian Peterson and Kelly Souders, two of the show's producers, were interviewed by MTV about the two-part series finale. Peterson talked about Lex coming back for these two episodes:
"What's funny is, you meet Lex before you really meet Clark in the pilot episode. You meet him in the helicopter with his dad, actually. That character's been such a huge part of the show, because the series shows the formation of a villain as much as the growth of a hero, so to cap that storyline off was hugely important for us."
There are many dark DC movies, and the Smallville series finale has some unnerving moments, like the battle between Clark and Darkseid, who has taken over Lionel's human form. Clark wins, begins to fly, and goes to the Fortress of Solitude. After Jonathan Kent's (John Schneider) ghost gives Clark the Superman suit that fans of course know, Clark flies and saves Earth from Apokolips. He also gets rid of Darkseid.
What Did Tom Welling Act In After Smallville?
- Lucifer (2017-2018)
- Batwoman (2019)
- Professionals (2020)
- The Winchesters (2022)
- Deep Six (2023)
The Smallville series finale begins and opens with the same scene: Chloe reading her child a bedtime story that happens to be a comic book about Superman. Clark and Lois are still together and say that they should finally get married as their wedding never happened. After viewers learn that Lex is now the President, Clark saves the day wearing his Superman suit when there is a bomb nearby.
The reveal of Clark Kent in his Superman suit was a big deal at the time. Tom Welling was interviewed by Entertainment Weekly in 2017 and talked about why Clark wasn't going to wear this suit on the TV show. Welling said:
"part of the reason being is that show is about a teenager trying to figure out who he is. They felt that once Clark put on the cape and the suit, life became too easy, in a sense. They wanted to focus on who this character was before that. And, at the time, because of where visual effects and special effects and stunts were, it would be too expensive. That's mainly why they save that for movies, more or less."
What Happens To Clark Kent After Smallville?
Since Smallville is Clark Kent's origin story, the events take place before the other versions of Superman. There are many TV shows in the Arrowverse, including Superman & Lois, which focuses on the relationship between these famous characters.
Clark's story keeps going in Smallville Season 11, the comic book series which also features Zatanna Zatara. When Smallville Season 11 opens, it has been six months since Clark stopped Apokolips from taking over Earth. In Smallville Season 11 Volume 1, Clark and Lois Lane are still together, and Clark keeps running into Lex Luther.
Smallville Season 11: What Happened To Lana Lang?
Lana Lang is found several months after the series finale of Smallville in the Season 11 graphic novel. So what has she been up to?
