Spell (10 Nov. 2004)

In 1604, in southern France, Lana Lang's distant ancestor Countess Margaret Isabel Tharow and two other evil witches are condemned to be burned at the stake by Magistrate Wilkins, but ... See full summary »

Director:

Jeannot Szwarc

Writers:

Jerry Siegel (character created by: Superman), Joe Shuster (character created by: Superman),

Stars:

Tom Welling, Kristin Kreuk, Michael Rosenbaum

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Tom Welling	...	Clark Kent
Kristin Kreuk	...	Lana Lang / Margaret Isobel Thoreaux
Michael Rosenbaum	...	Lex Luthor
Jensen Ackles	...	Jason Teague
Allison Mack	...	Chloe Sullivan / Madelyn Hibbins
John Glover	...	Lionel Luthor (credit only)
Annette O'Toole	...	Martha Kent
John Schneider	...	Jonathan Kent
Erica Durance	...	Lois Lane / Brianna Withridge
William S. Taylor	...	Mr. Jacobson (as William Taylor)
Mark Acheson	...	Magistrate Wilkins
Lara Gilchrist	...	Madelyn Hibbins
Melanie Papalia	...	Brianna Withridge

Storyline

In 1604, in southern France, Lana Lang's distant ancestor Countess Margaret Isabel Tharow and two other evil witches are condemned to be burned at the stake by Magistrate Wilkins, but Isabel manages to spit her blood on a symbol on a page of their mighty book of spells. In the present day, Lana buys the book on eBay, and by touching the blood-spotted symbol, resurrects the evil countess who possesses her body. Isabel/Lana uses a spell to let the other two witches posses Chloe and Lois. The powerful trio vows to pursue its quest for the three (actually Kryptonian) magical stones which can bring them unseen power. The trio enters a 'surprise' birthday party for Chloe in the barn of the Kent Farm and Isabel throws a spell to make the spectacle really hot, so Clark is one of many boys dancing and drinking in boxer-shorts when his appointment arrives, a representative from Princeton University, who is impressed in a way which can't amuse Clark's parents. The vicious witches cast spells ...

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Plot Keywords:

blood | torture | bare chested male bondage | bare chested male

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 November 2004 (USA)

Filming Locations:

University of British Columbia, Robson Square Campus - 800 Robson Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Smallville Films, Tollin/Robbins Productions, Warner Bros. Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

42 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Castelnau-de-Montmiral is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France which also happens to be the village of Isobel and that of Lana Lang's ancestors.

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Goofs

Lois hands two boxes of decorations to Clark for Chloe's party but in the next shot he is holding just one box. The box reappears when they turn to go into the barn.

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Quotes

[Lana, under the possession of an evil witch, has brought back the souls of her two friends into the bodies of Chloe and Lois]
Madelyn Hibbins: Ah, the woods of France. I'd know them anywhere.
Margaret Isobel Thoreaux: [rolling her eyes] We're in Kansas.
Brianna Withridge: Where?
Margaret Isobel Thoreaux: The Americas.

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Connections

References The Craft (1996)

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Soundtracks

"We Might As Well Be Strangers"
(uncredited)
Written by Tim Rice-Oxley, Tom Chaplin and Richard Hughes
Performed by Keane

User Reviews

Another dose of beefcake bondage

This marks the second time in the series in which Clark (Tom Welling) winds up bare-chested and in painful bondage. The first occurred in the opening episode when Clark, stripped to his undershorts, spends the night "crucified" in a cornfield as part of a "scarecrow" ritual. That bondage reeked of homoerotic undertones since fellow high-school males kidnapped Clark, removed nearly all of his clothes, and tied him in that torturous position. These acts aren't actually shown but one can easily imagine the groping and grabbing which must have gone on during the disrobing process, as well as the lewd comments which must have come from those excited males as more and more of Clark's bare flesh was revealed.

These homoerotic undertones are largely missing in "Spell" since it's three women -- the witch-possessed Lana, Chloe, and Lois -- who strip Clark of his shirt and tie him up in a barn, hands stretched above head. Unlike those high-school boys, they leave on Clark's pants, but there is a shot of Clark sprawled on the floor prior to his bondage, shirt ripped open, in which his legs are spread wide apart, thus emphasizing both his sexuality and his vulnerability. The women then look admiringly at Clark's torso after he's put into bondage, but no sexual byplay results, though Chloe does rake her long fingernails down the front of Clark's chest.

Tom Welling's hairy armpits are much on display in this scene. By now his Clark character is probably considered old enough to have such lush growths of hair whereas in the opening episode, in which Clark was still a mere high-school freshman, his "scarecrow" bondage tended to downplay any armpit exposure.