Smallville TV Show - Patriot - Smallville Recaps, Smallville Reviews, Smallville Episodes | TWoP

Recapped by Tippi Blevins · Aired 2010-11-21

Previously on Smallville: Clark told Lois that he's super, thanks for asking!; Lois's daddy, General Sam Lane, was trying to get the Vigilante Registration Act passed in the Senate; Sam softened toward vigilantes when the Blur/Clark saved Lois's life; Rick Flag has all the super team members tagged so that the Suicide Squad could track them; Warp blew up anti-vigilante headquarters; Oliver Queen came out of the superhero closet; Arthur "Aquaman" Curry showed up to take off his shirt, swim around a bit and make the other bad actors on the show seem a little better by comparison.

Currently on Smallville: We join a military cabal in a dark, flag-festooned room somewhere inside Fort Ryan, Kansas. "Liberty, freedom, equality," says an older gentleman wearing the uniform of a U.S. Army general. As representatives from the other military branches listen, he goes on: "These are the values that we have been charged with defending." He is played by Michael Hogan, whom some may remember as Colonel Tigh on Battlestar Galactica, but who is also kind of giving me a John McCain vibe. He says that these principles are being threatened as never before. The other military bigwigs don't seem quite as fearful. "With all due respect, Slade," says a naval officer, "our troops have worked hard to secure this time of peace." Slade fears that people looking for someone to rescue them will look to the vigilantes as heroes. He compares them to Stalin, Hitler and Saddam Hussein, all viewed as saviors by their countrymen until they turned out to be tyrants. The Navy guy scoffs. Slade, who must have skipped breakfast judging by how hard he's chewing the scenery, says, "The trust of the American people doesn't live in the Oval Office anymore." That... surely can't have been precipitated by the arrival of the vigilantes. Or did Nixon not exist in the DC universe? Anyway, Slade shows them a board with pictures of the show's heroes, past and present. There are photos of Oliver, Kid Flash, Kara and Clark's burnt S, along with a pencil sketch of Dinah. The other pictures are just black silhouettes; I think one of them is Zatanna. A woman in Army dress joins them and tells them about the act of terrorism against that anti-vigilante office. Slade says that the President has put him in charge of the Vigilante Registration Act. Surprisingly, none of the vigilantes have signed up. He swears that's all about to change.

By Tippi Blevins

We move to a deep-sea drilling platform off the coast of Florida. Two figures swim toward it at super-speed and then launch themselves out of the water. A young woman with auburn hair and a skimpily useless wetsuit lands on the platform. Arthur Curry lands beside her, in his immensely more practical wetsuit. He rips a door off its hinges. Alarms blare. "Make sure everyone's out," he says to his lady companion. Back at Fort Ryan, the bigwigs get word that there's been a breach at "Poseidon 3459." Slade uses the attack to prove to the others just how right he is about the vigilantes. "It's time we took these 'heroes' under our control," he says, "and proved who is really fighting for truth, justice and the American way." OK, Clark really can't use that slogan now. As the sun sets, A.C. and his companion are just walking up onto shore. They embrace each other and kiss. In the distance behind them, the platform explodes in a huge fireball. Somebody save all the damn poor fish and other creatures before they get boiled alive or choked with pollution!

Seriously, though. What a stupid, stupid way to shut that thing down. Isn't A.C. supposed to be a friend of the environment? He could have disabled it in some other way and then let the fishies and barnacles use the platform as an artificial reef! Blowing it up just makes tons of pollution! Then there's the fiery explosion itself turning the immediate area into a giant pot of vichyssoise. Dumb! DUMB! But I guess it wouldn't have looked as "cool" if they'd stopped to make out in front of a peaceful sunset. Nothing says romance like fiery doom.

Watchtower. I wonder who occupies the rest of the building? Maybe Oliver bought the whole thing. Dr. Hamilton drops a little red flap of something into a beaker full of orange liquid. It bubbles and fizzes. With the ultrasound scan of the Suicide Squad symbol on a nearby monitor, he explains how just a tiny bit of blue kryptonite was used -- enough to get through Clark's skin, not so much that it affected his powers. Whatever. Just chalk it up to magic or some crap. Clark is in the background, rubbing his own shoulder. Ew! That red flap was a flap of Clark! Hamilton also mentions Clark's secret meetings with Kara. "That's not exactly like you, Clark," he says. What, doing things off-screen? That's totally like him. Clark brushes aside Hamilton's concern. He keeps rubbing his shoulder. "You could have warned me this would sting a little," he whines. Big baby. Oliver shows up and tells Hamilton to give Clark a lollipop. Heh. Then he reminds them he's not supposed to come to Watchtower anymore, so what's the deal? Clark tells him about the tag removal. Oliver bemoans how difficult it is to stay out of the public eye. Debbie Downer Hamilton points out that the Vigilante Registration Act is just going to make things harder. "As much as I hate to admit it, Flag saw this whole thing coming," Oliver says. He grudgingly praises Flag for fighting against the VRA, but Clark's annoyed that Flag gets to stay hidden while the rest of them take the blame for the Squad's actions. "Oliver, the government thinks we're the ones retaliating," he says. Hamilton points out they're kinda right, given how A.C. just blew up that offshore oil rig. Oliver's not surprised, given A.C.'s tendency to "protect the Big Blue." By using stupid, stupid methods. Since the VRA, the team has stopped communicating with each other. God, this whole scene is just closeups back and forth as people talk. I'd ding Tom Welling's directing here, but there's really only so much you can do when the script is just a string of info dumps.

By Tippi Blevins

Anyway, Clark says A.C. is just feeding into people's fear about them. "We need to prove we're the good guys, not the terrorists," he says. Oliver doesn't see that happening, what with Godfrey turning people against them. He shows them a propaganda poster featuring a big, pointing hand in front of the American flag. "Come fight with the law, not against it!" it exhorts all who see it. Clark can see the other side's point: "We came in and took the law into our own hands," he says. "People need to believe in this country, and the systems that have been here for centuries." Oliver sarcastically tells him to sign up with the VRA. Clark gives it some serious thought. "Maybe it's time," he says. Damn, that was one effective poster! He thinks having the Blur sign up would prove that they're all on the same side. Oliver and Hamilton both look at him like he's nuts, but Clark is suddenly determined to carry through with this half-baked idea. Oliver volunteers to sign up instead, so that Clark doesn't have to reveal his identity when Oliver's already revealed his own. "You go rein in Flipper," Oliver says. "I'll go see if I can find what they have planned for us when we sign our lives over to good old Uncle Sam." Clark stares in mild confusion. He might be wondering how he's going to put reins on a dolphin.

By Tippi Blevins

Daily Planet. Lois shows up to start her workday and finds a box of chocolates waiting on her desk. "I miss you, too, Clark," she sighs. She hears from a radio on her desk that a "mysterious patriot" has decided to sign up for the VRA. She looks worried. "Psst, Lois!" a voice whispers from the doorway. She turns and finds Oliver, wearing a crap disguise of a baseball cap and sunglasses. For some reason, she makes a vampire joke. He explains that he had to go through a lot of trouble to get there (including using a body double, who I'd love to see someday) and asks if she's covering the vigilante signing. Of course she is! She rails about how stupid this mystery hero must be and Oliver's like, well, it's me! I'm the stupid one! She drags him off to a quiet corner of the office. "Are you out of your mind?" she asks. "The VRA is a steaming pile of Spanish Inquisition, served up with a side of fear and loathing!" But it comes with your choice of free toppings! Sadly, the toppings contain potassium benzoate. Oliver points out that they need to find out what happens to those who register. Besides which, he stepped in when Clark was the first one to volunteer. Lois is stunned, since Clark didn't even mention it to her. Oliver tries to calm her down, but she's not having it. "Here I thought Clark and I were finally driving on the honest relationship road, and then bam! Blindsided!" She keeps complaining about Clark's lack of disclosure. Instead of reminding her that they kind of have more important issues than her relationship right now, Oliver tries to assure her that Clark didn't purposely leave her out. That just upsets Lois more. "It slips his mind to mention something this big to me but he'll discuss it with you?" Oliver looks away. His silent guilt makes Lois realize Clark has talked about it with others, too. Oliver again tries to make her feel better. Clark is protective! You're important! She has tears in her eyes.

Aquarium of the Atlantic, Miami. A.C.'s hanging out poolside with some white-sided dolphins when Clark shows up. He wants to talk, but A.C. declines: "I've got greater responsibilities now." "Blowing up oil rigs?" Clark asks. "Is that responsible?" In his defense, A.C. says he didn't hurt anyone. You know, except the ocean that he's supposed to love. Clark accuses him of working with someone, so A.C. accuses him of not trusting him. The verbal slap-fight thus won, he turns his back on Clark. "You're not going anywhere," Clark says. Suddenly a wall of water pushes him into the pool. Oh, no! He'll be molested by bi-curious dolphins! Clark surfaces and sees the auburn-haired lass joining A.C.'s side. "Oh, and if you thought I was working solo," A.C. starts. She finishes: "You haven't met his wife." Clark fumes in the water over how dumb that dialog was. He didn't think you were working solo. That's why he accused you of working with someone! He's going to take the commercial break to figure out if A.C. hit his head on a coral reef. Repeatedly.

By Tippi Blevins

Fort Ryan. Lois waits in Slade's office, eying his board o' heroes with concern. Why would he leave that out in the open? Also, why is his office so dark? Maybe they spent all their budget promoting the VRA and didn't have any money left for light bulbs. "Paints a pretty scary picture, doesn't it?" Slade asks as he enters the room. Lois says it gives her a new perspective, and starts to introduce herself, but Slade already knows who she is. He gave her clearance because she's Sam Lane's daughter. They speak warmly of the General for a bit, then Lois presents Slade with gifts of bourbon and his favorite Cuban cigars. Having thus plied him with fodder for his vices, she turns on her voice recorder and asks him about the VRA. What happens when someone signs up? "They'll simply sign a declaration of intent to act only at the government's behest," Slade says. "United we stand, right, Miss Lane?" She just smiles while Slade goes on about the vigilantes and the people who support them. Lois, for some reason, turns off the recorder. She tries to play the military brat angle to convince Slade she'll give him fair coverage, but he knows about her pro-Blur articles. He says she's not playing on the right team. "We all must do our part," he tells her. She tries to make him realize that's what the vigilantes are doing. Slade thinks that's all the more reason for them to "suit up and fight with the good guys." She offers Slade a cigar in celebration of said good guys. While he turns around to look for something to cut the tip, she snaps pictures of a blueprint that's lying out in plain sight on his desk. Hearing the clicks, Slade turns back to her, grabbing her hand and threatening all manner of trouble. But when she shows him her hand, there's only a cigarette lighter in it. "I just thought you might like a light," she says innocently.

By Tippi Blevins

Aquarium. It looks like a lab or office... a laffice. Dolphins frolic and squeak in the pool beyond while Clark watches through an observation window. I bet they're totally talking shit about him. He turns to A.C. and his wife. "Considering your activist streak, I never saw you settling down," he says. Dude, activists settle down. Where do you think baby activists come from? "It was his passion and conviction that drew me to him," the little missus says. "They are qualities which we share, and on which we've built a partnership." Clark says the outside world sees them as terrorists. She would rather that than be seen as a victim. They're not going to let the government target them without a fight. Clark says they're just coming off like criminals, which is sort of rich, given how many buildings he's blown up. Mrs. A.C. says they're being the heroes that people hope for. She asks Clark if he has a hero, then launches into a somewhat flawed oral report about her own hero, Lucy Burns, and her fight for women's voting rights. A.C. says victory is won by fighters, not spectators. Unless you're having staring contests. Those are all about the watching. He says that he and Mera (thank you for finally saying her name) are fighters. Then he asks what Clark is doing to fight for them. Clark doesn't want to fight the government; he wants to protect people. Mera says they're the ones who need protecting and explains that the rig wasn't drilling for oil, and neither are the others being built around the country. A.C. says they're holding facilities. "And they're building them... for us," he says dramatically. Clark looks concerned. Maybe he's trying to figure out why A.C. and Mera would blow them up and destroy all the evidence instead of bringing these things to light.

Daily Planet. Tess gives Lois grief for writing about the VRA against her wishes. "Your father worked on the bill, Lois," she reminds her. "It's a conflict of interest." Suddenly these people are worried about conflicts of interest? Lois is determined to let people know what's really going on. Tess thinks Lois's interest sounds a bit personal. Lois lays it out for her: "I just found out that the 'mystery hero' registering is Oliver." Tess is stunned, but recovers quickly. She asks if Clark is working with her, since they share so many bylines. Tess follows Lois onto the elevator. Lois says that Clark has jury duty and he's such a good guy that he didn't even try to get out of it. Tess finds this all pretty tasty, but does her best not to give Clark away. Instead, she asks Lois about her big scoop on the VRA. Lois thinks it's going to be "less above-board and a lot more waterboard." Why is everything I recap all about the torture? She tells Tess about Slade, and how he's rumored to have committed war crimes but has never been charged. "It gets worse," Lois says. "If I've got it right, he's building prisons." Tess realizes Oliver's about to be in big trouble. Their very long elevator ride finally comes to an end when the doors open and they step out into the crowded lobby. Slade and Oliver step up to a podium in front of the American flag. Slade speechifies while Tess and Lois look on in silent terror. This might be a good time to open that famously big mouth of yours, Lois. Alas, she watches while Oliver signs some documents. "Oliver Queen's registration marks a new day for this country," Slade says, "and the end of vigilantes working outside the law." With that, Oliver is escorted by several military types into the elevator and up to the helicopter waiting upstairs. Lois begs Tess to stop them, but they have military clearance. "Oliver's gone," she says simply.

By Tippi Blevins

Metropolis General Hospital. Hey, long time no see! People haven't been getting hurt that much lately. Dr. Hamilton walks into that one all-purpose room we always see and finds Lois waiting for him. "I need to know where Clark is," she says. "Oliver's in trouble, and Clark could be, too." She knew to come to Hamilton because Clark has mentioned his name before. He plays dumb so she grabs a pair of really long forceps off a table. She grabs him from behind and holds the forceps up to his neck. They're not remotely sharp, but Hamilton looks pretty nervous anyway. "I know you're in his superhero club," Lois says, "so unless you want a sudden tracheotomy, you will tell me where he is, ASAP." Hamilton instantly squeals like a pig. Wuss. Now armed with the info she needs, Lois releases him and hands over the forceps. "For the record, you knew I was bluffing, right?" He just smiles like he admires her gumption. I'd punch someone for grabbing me, bluffing or not. Maybe he's a masochist.

By Tippi Blevins

The permanently full moon has taken up residence over an "oil rig" that looks just like the one that got blown up earlier. A.C. hops up onto the platform, wearing an orange and green hoodie. Was his wet suit at the cleaners? The hoodie doesn't seem very hydrodynamic. Clark lands beside him. They're both damp from their swim, but perfectly coiffed. They skulk about the rig, which A.C. says Mera found because of its seismic activity. "She's pretty amazing," he says. "Smart, passionate, fiery... even helped me understand my true origins." "Sounds like you really went off the high dive for her," Clark says. Why are they loudly discussing relationships right now? The place could be crawling with anti-vigilante troops! But they needed a segue so that Clark could talk about Lois, and it's A.C. telling Clark than he's more with Mera than he is without her. Clark wonders if A.C. worries about putting her in danger. A.C. says Mera can hold her own, but he knows Clark is really thinking about Lois. Clark thinks about that for a while, then looks around. They both recognize the layout from one of Lex's old facilities, but dismiss the possibility that LuthorCorp is behind it, since Tess and Oliver would have known. They figure the government stole the plans. Or maybe the show recycled an old set. Why any of this is important is a mystery at this point. He contacts Mera, who tells him that Watchtower has found eight more facilities that need to be checked out. A.C. and Clark decide to split up to cover more ground. Er... water.

A.C. super-paddles his way across the ocean to his destination. There's a loud clang while he's under water. Suddenly, he stops swimming. Did he hit his head on something again?

In a secret government facility of his own, Oliver undergoes a battery of physical evaluations. He runs on a treadmill, punches a heavy bag and rides a stationary bike while a cool blue spotlight beams down on him in an otherwise dark room. Rockin' music plays. His sweaty, naked torso is highlighted in a series of quick cuts that make the whole thing look like a fitness infomercial. He jogs and sweats some more on the treadmill while Slade and the Army lady watch him from an observation room. "Almost done, Mr. Queen," she says politely. Slade compliments Oliver's strength, agility, and coordination. And his sweat smells like daisies! Oliver, sensing where the discussion is going, assures Slade that he's human. Slade invites Oliver to join him, help bring in the other vigilantes. Oliver declines and makes a very nice, inspirational speech about heroes. Slade is impressed, but decides to try a different angle, like taking him to a room where A.C. has been chained up and roasted under heat lamps. While Oliver gapes in horror, Slade lightly punches Oliver in the back of the head. That must have been a helluva exhausting workout, because Oliver thuds to the ground without a fight.

By Tippi Blevins

Back in Florida, Mera is swimming around the dolphin pool instead of, say, doing something useful. Lois is waiting at the edge of the pool when Mera climbs out. Mera recognizes her, then peels right out of her wet suit. A dolphin laughs in the background. Lois averts her eyes for a about a second, but Mera just keeps standing around naked. "I am Mera," she says. "Wife of Orin, future king of the seven seas." When Lois looks confused, Mera explains that's Arthur's real name. Mera leisurely turns around so Lois can see her dorsal side. It must be jellyfish, because jam don't shake like that. She goes on to tell Lois about how Orin is leading his people. She puts on an itty bitty green bikini so that the camera doesn't have to keep finding ways not to show her boobs, then leads Lois into the aquarium. Lois has more pressing matters. "I need to find Clark," she says. Mera scoffs: "Certainly you are not a partner in his endeavors?" I... don't entirely understand what she's trying to say. Lois takes it as a jab at her relationship, which leads Mera to call her "someone who can be satisfied by a man of her own kind." The swimming, the nudity, the satisfaction talk... I feel like on another channel, this would be leading to soft-focus porn. "You desire those that are extraordinary," Mera says. "First Orin, then Oliver... now Clark." They all had super hot bodies! Who wouldn't go for that if given a chance? Lois points out that she only dated A.C. for, like, a day. Mera gets her bitch on, wondering why men would choose "someone of lesser ability." Lois is getting pissed. "Listen, squid lips, you don't know anything about me, or Clark." "I know you came here looking for Clark," Mera says. Possibly because Lois just told her that. She talks some shit about Lois being left out, then invites her to see what the guys have been up to.

Mera points Lois to the lab. She walks in, gazing at all the sundry tech things in wonder. Clark zips in, surprised to see her. In turn, Lois is surprised that Clark is already working on rescuing Oliver. She's even more surprised when Tess pops up on a monitor with information from Watchtower. There's a slightly funny moment of awkwardness as the two see each other. Lois is upset that she can't get hold of Clark, but Tess apparently can. She starts to wade into a relationship talk, but Tess blessedly cuts in: "Sorry to interrupt the 'Real Housewives of Metropolis,' but there's something you need to know about this alloy that we tested." Wait... what? What alloy? There must have been a scene cut out somewhere. Anyway, it's something the government's been developing and it can change properties. Tess calls it "multi-functional weaponry." It's made of titanium and plot holes. Mera starts to worry that her husband isn't back yet. Lucky for them, Lois shows them the handy blueprint she photographed in Slade's office. Even luckier, it's the only operational facility, which narrows down their search a lot. Clark looks proud of his girlfriend.

By Tippi Blevins

Columbia Glacier, Alaska. The facility is not out at sea like the others, but nestled in snow-capped mountains. Oliver's been rigged up to something like looks like part carnival dunk tank, part waterboarding torture device. Slade presses a button and he's dipped backwards into water. Justin Hartley's naked torso has been so thoroughly oiled that it's surprising a slick doesn't form in the tank. Oliver's brought back up out of the water. "Please tell me you're not the rescue party," he says to A.C., who's still chained up under the heater. A.C. chides himself for not being stealthier. Nah, it wasn't your lack of stealth. It was your crappy planning. Slade walks in to gloat over his victory. "Little heat and ya dry right up, don't ya?" Oliver assumes that the White House doesn't know about Slade's "glacial Gitmo." "Don't ask, don't tell," Slade says with a shrug. Slade plans to bring in many more vigilantes, with Oliver and A.C.'s help. "You're gonna need a bigger cage," A.C. tells him. Uh, he has seven the size of oil rigs. Slade's not worried. He has them all figured out. He starts to psychoanalyze Oliver, calling him lonely and powerless, but the therapy session is interrupted by a blaring alarm. Slade dumps Oliver in the tank and runs away. Mera jogs in and sees her beefcake hubby turning into jerky. She holds up her hand and the sides of Oliver's tank burst, splashing A.C. with water. Thus moistened, he has the power to break free of his chains. Slade activates the facility's self-destruct mechanism. Seems like kind of an overreaction, but whatever. Bars come down around Mera, emitting heat that instantly begins to dry her out. Oliver chucks a piece of glass from his tank at the control panel, freeing Mera. "We gotta go now," Miss Obvious says. "How long can you hold your breath?" A.C. asks Oliver. On another channel, this, too would lead to porn.

By Tippi Blevins

Out in the facility's corridor, Slade runs into Clark. A recorded voice reminds them that the whole place is going to self-destruct in 90 seconds. So don't dawdle or anything. "I'm not going to let you continue to destroy people's faith in justice," Clark says. Slade asks if Clark is man or steel, but instead of waiting for an answer he pulls out a gun and shoots Clark a few times. The bullets ricochet off his chest. One of them hits Slade in the arm. "So it is you," Slade says, just now realizing who he's dealing with, despite the fact that Clark is wearing his red Blur jacket. Slade presses a conveniently located button that drops a kryptonite cage around Clark. Clark instantly feels barfy, but his main concern is getting Slade out of there before the place blows. "This whooole place... was built... with the express purpose... of containing your kind," Slade says slowly, like he's got all the time in the world. He says it wasn't easy finding out the Blur's weakness, although how he found out is a mystery. Clark tries to reason with him. They can work together. "Let me save you," he pleads. Alas, Slade thinks it's worth dying if he can take the Blur down with him, such is his threat to democracy and understated leatherwear. The recorded voice begins to count down the last ten seconds. Clark, for some mysterious reason, decides to X-ray Slade and sees an omega symbol etched into his skull. Clark thinks for a second, then answers Slade's earlier question: "I am man and steel." Okie dokie, then. Kaboom!

Kent Farm. Clark is moving bales of hay from one stack to another stack about six feet away. A.C. walks in, glad to see Clark alive and well. Clark thanks him for uncovering the secret facilities, but... "Part of me wishes I could have kept on believing in... everything I was raised to believe in," he finishes weakly. A.C. tells him to stay optimistic. Not everyone's a zealot like Slade. He's come to the realization himself that his being as extreme as Slade wasn't the answer, either. They worry that they let the VRA make them distrust each other, stop talking to each other. A.C. agrees to try things Clark's way, which is "lead by example, not by resistance." Then A.C. brings up Clark's other "battle," meaning his relationship with Lois, because we haven't had enough of that this episode. Clark admits he thought telling Lois his secret would make everything else fall into place. A.C. tells him that Lois can handle it, then asks if Clark can handle Lois being a part of the team. Clark makes his confused Labrador puppy face.

By Tippi Blevins

Lois and Mera are having a little girl talk in the kitchen. For some reason, all of Mera's interaction with Lois is super slinky. She always looks like she's posing for a swimsuit calendar and Lois is the camera to which the photographer instructs her to make love. She admits she judged Lois too harshly. "You're not like us, not like Clark," she says, "but you are what he needs." She says that it took Orin time to accept her, too. That seems to make Lois feel a little better. The guys join them. "Hate to break up the party," A.C. says. "We need to catch the current." Ah, yes. The famous Trans-Kansa-Lantic current that connects Kansas to Florida. Happy swimming! Watch out for the wheat sharks! Mera has some nice words for Clark before they go: "Even when the tide is turning, you work hard to bring change by delivering justice, not bombs... as a patriot... to the country, not just the cause." Let's be generous and say she got her education from a school of fish and that's why she's so stilted. A.C. gives Clark a big smile and says, "That's our boyscout!"

Lois and Clark see them out the door. Lois thanks Clark for bringing her home in his arms, which were a lot better than flying coach. Riding a syphilitic porcupine would be better than flying coach during this time of year. Clark is sorry that Lois had to fly out to Florida in the first place just to find him. She tries to brush it off, but Clark is insistent. "The truth is, I rely on you more than anyone else," he says. "I trust you to know parts of me that I don't even trust myself." Lois positively glows hearing all this. Clark says she's the only one he's told about the "darkness" he's tried to fight. Lois wonders if they'll ever be able to work together like A.C. and Mera, considering how different they are. God, shut up about your relationship issues already! This all feels so forced. Lois worries they won't fit together properly, except she uses a metaphor about jigsaw puzzles and Picasso. Clark thinks none of that matters, but Lois thinks about how her mom used to look every time her father was deployed and how stoic she stayed until he left. She says her parents were in it together, and she is, too. But she's not the only one: "You didn't tell anyone about the darkness, because you think you're supposed to be invincible... and it terrifies you that you're not." Clark sighs. He doesn't think he can protect people if he can't protect himself... from THE DARKNESS. Lois reminds him he's not alone and that his team needs to know what they're fighting. Clark's eyebrows look thoughtful.

By Tippi Blevins

Watchtower. Clark brings Lois inside for the first time. "Welcome to Watchtower, the official headquarters of the home team." "Which you are clearly on now," Tess says from the stairs. Lois looks a little wary, but Tess smiles and says, "Finally." Lois smiles back. It seems like Lois would have questioned Tess's role in the team, but she must know that there are only three minutes left in the episode. That wouldn't be nearly enough time for Lois to work through one of her rants, even at top speed. When Oliver joins them a moment later, Clark gets down to why everyone is there: "We all knew what the government was up to, but those prisons were part of a much bigger threat. Hate crimes are up, people like Slade... they're getting more control, and Godfrey's anti-vigilante message is reaching more ears than ever before, and I don't think it's a coincidence." Tess chalks it up to good, old human frailty. Lois gives Clark an encouraging look, so Clark fesses up about THE DARKNESS that came through the portal when he sent the Kandorians away. He says it's the worst fight they've ever faced. They can't see it to fight it. "It preys upon the dark side we already have, it feeds on our doubts, our fears and our distrust." He tells them about the omega symbol he saw branded on Slade's skull. Tess compares it to the biblical "mark of the beast." "Which would explain why he veered so far off his marching orders," Lois says. That or he was just a zealous war hawk. We have those in the real world, too, and they don't need Darkseid to corrupt them. Lois remembers Kara saying it couldn't infect anyone who had a pure heart, but Clark says everyone has a weakness. "If we can't stop it," he says, "THE DARKNESS will infect everyone on this planet." Everyone looks worried.

By Tippi Blevins

The scene fades out, then the lights come back up on a series of X-ray films, showing sections of someone's skull. Scissors cut through the bandages wrapped around a mystery patient's head. As the gauze is unwound, Slade's face comes into view. He's remarkably unscathed for someone who just got severely exploded. The only abnormality is a metal patch riveted over his right eye. The omega symbol flashes. Meet Deathstroke, y'all. Roll credits.

Tippi Blevins is going to spend a couple of weeks being thankful that her carpal tunnels get a break. You can reach her at b_tippi@yahoo.com or http://twitter.com/tippib.

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