Descent (17 Apr. 2008)

Despite his father's warning, Lex still finds himself in a power struggle from within over the secret to The Traveler...with some deadly results.

Director:

Ken Horton

Writers:

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

Stars:

Tom Welling, Michael Rosenbaum, Kristin Kreuk

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Tom Welling	...	Clark Kent
Michael Rosenbaum	...	Lex Luthor
Kristin Kreuk	...	Lana Lang (credit only)
Allison Mack	...	Chloe Sullivan
Erica Durance	...	Lois Lane
Aaron Ashmore	...	Jimmy Olsen
Laura Vandervoort	...	Kara (credit only)
John Glover	...	Lionel Luthor
Anna Galvin	...	Gina
Connor Stanhope	...	Young Lex Luthor
Jill Teed	...	Detective Maggie Sawyer
Don Broach	...	Mysterious Attacker (as Don Broatch)
Shaw Madson	...	Lex's Henchman

Storyline

Now Lex is about to discover the secret of the Veritas society that Lionel Luthor and Oliver's father founded, Lionel implores him no to go and tells his son that the traveler is none other than Lex. Lex wrestles the locket (with the second key for the strongbox in Zurich) from Lionel's neck and pushes him down the Luthorcorp skyscraper to his death. Clark believed Lionel protected the secret for his Kryptonian sake, and finds confirmation. There are more murderers at work, notably Lex's assistant Gina who is specifically after the secret.

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Plot Keywords:

falling | fight

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 April 2008 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

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

Technical Specs

Runtime:

42 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Clark sees an original copy of Friedrich Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil in Lionel's safe. This is the third appearance of Nietzsche in the series. Clark was holding "The Portable Nietzsche" in Pilot, shortly before Lana asks him, "So what are you: Man or Superman?". In Suspect, Lionel is shown reading the same copy of Beyond Good and Evil.

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Quotes

Lex Luthor: It wasn't an accident we were in Smallville the day the meteor shower, was it? The factory was just a cover. You were really there to meet this Traveler that Veritas wanted to protect. I remember everything, Dad.
Lionel Luthor: Those are the memories of a small boy trying to cope with the trauma of a meteor shower.
Lex Luthor: A trauma brought on by his own father. My life changed forever that day. You sacrificed me for the Traveler. Why? Who is it, Dad? Who is it? Who is it?
Lionel Luthor: What if I told you now that you were the ...
[...]

User Reviews

Descent

As Michael Rosenbaum's final episodes as a regular cast member wind down, the show's main focus shifts to him in "Descent". The opening scene between Lex and Lionel is so strong, so powerful, so shocking that you'd think it would be impossible to keep the momentum going. The fact is despite "Descent" including possibly the greatest openings scene in Smallville history, the episode just keeps getting better as the story progresses. Lex continues his journey to the dark side, which includes it's most dramatic shift in this episode, and will come to it's climax in the season finale. I really have to give credit to Gough and Millar for making the choice to slowly and patiently build Lex's character instead of jumping into things too quickly. It's only because of the brilliant 7 year development off Lex's character that his story in Descent plays so well. If this episode doesn't convince anyone of Rosenbaum's unbelievable contribution to the show, the following season without him (season 8 with Davis Bloome and Tess Mercer as the main villains) definitely solidifies Rosenbaum's place as the one great villain of Smallville.