Smallville (TV Series)

Ambush (2010)

Michael Ironside: General Sam Lane

Photos 

Quotes 

• Clark Kent : We look after each other.

  General Sam Lane : Good. Because if Lois is going to spend any time around here, I've had a look around, and there's a few things that are gonna have to be brought up to code.

  Clark Kent : Like scrubbing the bathroom tile with a toothbrush?

  General Sam Lane : That's number 17 on the list.

  Clark Kent : [looks at list]  I guess you're not kidding.

  General Sam Lane : No, I never do.

• General Sam Lane : I owe you an apology. I'm not so set in my ways that I can't appreciate the way you stood up to me earlier. And you were right. I have not always been a perfect father.

  Clark Kent : No, sir, I...

  General Sam Lane : Ah. I needed to hear that. Nobody's had the guts to talk to me like that since my wife passed away.

  Clark Kent : You must really miss her.

  General Sam Lane : Every day. But, thankfully, I can see my Ella in our daughters' faces. Can I give you some advice, Clark?

  Clark Kent : Yeah.

  General Sam Lane : Going to war, having to deal with the... rush of battle and the struggle to save lives... it made coming home and doing the simple things difficult. But, you know, it's... it's funny. It's the simple things, like taking a walk or... dancing with your wife, tucking in the kids, that... that make us human. Now, don't get me wrong. I-I've loved serving our country. I even got to be a hero a couple times. But if I had to do it over again... I'd spend more time with the family.

• Clark Kent : Your girls love you, sir. You're their hero.

  General Sam Lane : But I think Lois has got herself a brand-new hero now. Huh? I almost lost her tonight. But by the grace of God, we're all gonna get to have ourselves a home-cooked Thanksgiving meal. And that's all thanks to the Blur, hmm?

  Clark Kent : So, Lois being saved by a vigilante, that will change your mind on the bill?

  General Sam Lane : Well... I got to admit, I kind like her having her own private guardian angel. But not every hero has the Blur's code of honor.

  Clark Kent : Not all politicians have yours. Some will use the law to destroy people.

  General Sam Lane : I'm a military man, Clark. I have to believe that when push comes to shove, America will do the right thing. Kind of like Lois did the right thing by you tonight. For years, I've been giving her boyfriends an impossible list of chores to do. Not to test them.

  Clark Kent : To test Lois?

  General Sam Lane : Yeah. Those poor bastards, I put them through hell. Lois never said a thing. That's how I knew she didn't love them.

• General Sam Lane : Trust me, Clark is not who you think he is. Now, a couple call to the NSA, and we'll find out what he's hiding.

  Lois Lane : It doesn't matter! Because I love Clark. Everything you need to know about him is standing right in front of you. Talk to *me*. The only thing that matters is how *I* feel.

  General Sam Lane : Lois...

  Lois Lane : I appreciate that you like straight talk, so I will give it to you in one razor-sharp line. I'm staying with Clark, and if you love me, you will respect that.

• Lois Lane : Please, dad, go back and talk to him. It's Clark, you know him.

  General Sam Lane : I can't do that, Lo.

  Lois Lane : Why?

  General Sam Lane : Because he's in league with masked vigilantes. When he finally pays the price for this, I do not want you to get hurt.

  Lois Lane : Not all of your vigilantes are bad. Why do you have to go to DEFCON 1? You haven't met a single one of them.

  Lucy Lane : Lois, can you stop running damage control long enough to see that we are just trying to protect you?

  Lois Lane : Back off, Lucy, or do you happen to have some compromising photos of me that you'd like to share with the class?

• General Sam Lane : Lois likes to date men of action, men who make the news. Now, you, Clark, you just report the news. Why would she be possibly interested in you?

  Clark Kent : Why don't you ask her, sir?

  General Sam Lane : I asked somebody at the Pentagon instead. Guess what he came up with. Nothing. Nobody's record's that clean. Unless they had somebody higher up wipe it out.

• Clark Kent : Excuse me, sir, but what gives you the right to spy on us?

  General Sam Lane : Well, I'm a four-star general, Clark, and a war hero. I know a smokescreen when I see one. Now, nobody could've done this list by themselves.

  Clark Kent : You're searching for enemies where they don't exist. Just like your vigilante witch hunt.

  General Sam Lane : I was talking about you, Clark. Why would you bring up vigilantes?

  [handing him a folder] 

  General Sam Lane : Lucy found this in your loft.

  [opening it, Clark sees surveillance pictures of him with Kara] 

  General Sam Lane : Ah. You're in league with them, aren't you?

• Clark Kent : I'm not on trial, Sam. You want to protect the United States, but as soon as you're threatened, everyone else's rights go out the window? It's no wonder Lois is too afraid to be herself around you.

  General Sam Lane : Are you questioning my relationship with my daughter?

  Clark Kent : You have been questioning me all day.

  General Sam Lane : It's my right to protect my family!

  Clark Kent : It may be your right! But you're wrong to think that we don't belong together. I love your daughter, and I don't want a day to go by where I'm not with her.

  General Sam Lane : Well, I hope you enjoyed today, because it's the last day you'll ever spend with her.

• General Sam Lane : Your friend Clark is a dishonest man. And he has dangerous friends. And when the vigilantes try and take over this country with anarchy, he's gonna go down with them. So come on, now. Let's go.

  Lois Lane : [reluctant to stand up for herself]  I am sorry, Clark.

• General Sam Lane : [seeing a news report of a fire]  Clark should see this. Remind him what a real hero is.

  Lois Lane : Mm.

  Clark Kent : [entering with groceries]  Hey. They were out of cranberries.

  Lois Lane : The store must have had a *fire* sale, huh, Clark?

  [she indicates the TV; behind Sam's back, Clark whooshes away] 

  General Sam Lane : Where's Clark?

  Lois Lane : He... went upstairs.

  General Sam Lane : Leave you holding the bags? What happened to being a gentleman, hmm?

• General Sam Lane : Leave it to the Blur to turn a fire into a photo op.

  Clark Kent : [entering]  Found the cranberries. They were in the... truck.

  Lois Lane : [surreptitiously wiping soot off his face]  Where were they, honey, under the hood?

  General Sam Lane : Hmm. I thought you said that Clark went upstairs.

  Lois Lane : [awkwardly covering]  Yeah. He was upstairs, outside.

  Clark Kent : Checking the chimney.

  Lois Lane : Thanks.

• Clark Kent : It's good to see you, sir.

  General Sam Lane : Mm. So... not much has changed around here. Your mother still own the place?

  Clark Kent : It is in her name, but I...

  General Sam Lane : I see. You live in your mother's house. And you work in a basement. Is that correct?

  Clark Kent : Well, it is the bullpen at the Daily Planet. I work side by side with Lois.

  General Sam Lane : Ah. She seems to write more articles than you. What exactly do you do with your time, Clark?

  Lois Lane : [eavesropping]  Hey! Daddy, uh, Clark and I work together a lot. He just, uh, gives me the byline sometimes. That's just how sweet he is.

• General Sam Lane : I'm the senior military advisor on a new bill, the Vigilante Registration Act.

  Clark Kent : And by "vigilante", you mean...

  General Sam Lane : Vigilantes, weekend warriors in masks who run around inciting anarchy.

  Clark Kent : Well, I don't think they incite anarchy. They stop crime, protect people.

  General Sam Lane : And they commit acts of terrorism. Like the RAO tower in Metropolis. Blown to kingdom come. No evidence of explosives. You want to know why? Because one of them superfreaks did it.

  Lois Lane : Hmm. You know what? Hey! Daddy, since we're pretending it's a holiday, what say we make it official and... take a furlough from work?

  General Sam Lane : Clark, do you know who the real heroes of the world are? The men and women of our armed forces. They have to enlist, go through background checks, training, through our rules, be held accountable for their actions. People start believing in these so-called superheroes, pretty soon the superheroes form cells, start taking the law into their own hands. No, I will not let them compromise our national security. Mm.

  Clark Kent : Lois, what do you think?

  Lois Lane : [wanting to stay out of it, a pair of potatoes in hand]  I think we need some veggies with our starches. Baked or mashed?

  Clark Kent : [insulted by her neutrality]  Whatever the General would like, of course.