Smallville (2001–2011)

A young Clark Kent struggles to find his place in the world as he learns to harness his alien powers for good and deals with the typical troubles of teenage life in Smallville.

Creators:

Alfred Gough, Miles Millar

Stars:

Tom Welling, Allison Mack, Kristin Kreuk

Won 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 30 wins & 146 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Tom Welling	...	Clark Kent (217 episodes, 2001-2011)
Allison Mack	...	Chloe Sullivan (202 episodes, 2001-2011)
Kristin Kreuk	...	Lana Lang (158 episodes, 2001-2009)
Michael Rosenbaum	...	Lex Luthor (154 episodes, 2001-2011)
John Glover	...	Lionel Luthor (144 episodes, 2001-2011)
Erica Durance	...	Lois Lane (141 episodes, 2004-2011)
Annette O'Toole	...	Martha Kent (135 episodes, 2001-2011)
John Schneider	...	Jonathan Kent (114 episodes, 2001-2011)

Storyline

The numerous miraculous rescues by the local wonder boy Clark have aroused suspicions amongst colonials of Smallville. Interestingly, the boy has managed to downplay his acts of various heroic egresses in the past. They say he's either too fast or has a penchant for finding trouble. He was found by Martha and Jonathan Kent on the day of the Meteor Shower, and subsequently adopted. Clark's friend Lex Luthor, the only heir of Luthorcorp, has been secretly investigating grounds for Clark's outlandish valor. However, on the face of it, Clark just seems a normal boy who's slightly more secretive than usual.

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Plot Keywords:

smallville | meteor shower | power | kansas | best friend | 

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Taglines:

His journey, their battle, our future.

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Official Sites:

Channel 4 [uk] Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 October 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Smallville Beginnings

Filming Locations:

Aldergrove, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Tollin, Robbins Productions, Millar Gough Ink

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min 60 min 45 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sarah Douglas and Jack O'Halloran, both of whom appeared in Superman and Superman II, lobbied for guest appearances but never got to appear on the show.

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Goofs

It is incorrect to say that Kansas is almost devoid of hills. Only western Kansas is almost devoid of hills. The Flint Hills are located in eastern Kansas.

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Crazy Credits

The credits style changes in the season 5 premiere.

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Connections

Referenced in Chuck: Chuck Versus the Mask (2010)

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Soundtracks

"Save Me"
(Main Title)
Performed by Remy Zero

User Reviews

An intriguing and realistic portrayal of Clark Kent's teenage years

When I first heard that the WB was doing a show about Clark Kent in the days before he became Superman, I honestly thought it was going to be an animated series, but when the first episode was first broadcast on October 16, 2001, I was instantly surprised.

The show starts in 1989, where a meteor shower bombards the small Kansas town of Smallville, leaving lots of people with scars and secrets of varying degrees; as such, it has certain emotional impacts on four characters: it leaves young Lex Luthor bald (I would say it traumatized him, but that's more or less mentioned already), it leaves three year-old Lana Lang orphaned, and it brings childless couple Jonathan and Martha Kent (John Schneider and Annette O'Toole) the child they always wanted. Fast-forward 12 years, and Clark Kent (Tom Welling) is just starting to experience the usual troubles of teenage life, something that will be especially difficult since Clark has superhuman strength and abilities that no ordinary teenager could only dream of having. Clark soon learns that he arrived the same time as the destructive meteor shower that besieged Smallville inside a spaceship as a toddler. Now Clark is left with questions about his birth parents and home planet, and manages to start a friendship with Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum), who--unknown to Clark--will ultimately become Clark's arch-nemesis.

I can easy say that "Smallville" is an immensely intriguing and highly realistic sci-fi/teen drama. To make things all the more interesting, "Smallville" blends the teen angst-meets-supernatural circumstances theme of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" with the "monster-of-the-week" trend of "The X-Files." Apart from dealing with personal and emotional crises, Clark has to use his powers to battle an endless slew of Kryptonite-mutated villains, much like Buffy and the Scooby Gang battle demons that are sometimes drawn in by the mystical energy radiated by the Hellmouth.

Tom Welling is superb as teenage Clark Kent, both in physical and personality-wise ways. He looks almost like Chris Reeve, so much he could easily be Reeve's son. The rest of the cast is fine: Kristin Kreuk as Clark's love interest Lana Lang, Allison Mack as Clark's Lois Lane-type pal Chloe Sullivan, Sam Jones III as the Xander-like Pete Ross, and John Schneider and Annette O'Toole as Clark's adoptive parents, but it is Michael Rosenbaum and John Glover who steal the show as Lex Luthor and Lex's father, Lionel. You can easily tell just by observing Lex and Lionel's rocky relationship that Lionel is the one who will ultimately make Lex evil.

All of the episodes have their ups and downs, but I like to name two episodes that will keep you glued to the screen: the episode guest-starring the late Christopher Reeve as a scientist who reveals the truth about Clark's home planet, Krypton, and the second season finale where the "spirit" of Clark's Kryptonian father Jor-El urges Clark to get ready to conquer the world, but I don't want to spoil anything, so you'll have to watch the episode to find out what happens next, and why.

In conclusion, I give "Smallville" a 10 out of 10 on a scale of 1-10.