Hothead

How to play sports and have an overly self-valued coach who gives the biggun you get this episode. It's mostly centred around the Football team which is an interesting premise, because Clark wants to become like every other person and wants to be normal. He has his chance to finally get into the Football team. However his father is reluctant and is worried for his son because he does have strange powers, and possesses them throughout Season 1. That's why this episode works.

It could be consequential and possibly dangerous if he plays because of his super powers and his abilities he has. So, that's the reason, but the coach sees potential. So he opts him to play, regardless of what his stubborn father says. And because Clark doesn't want to stand out so much, he decides to do things his own way.

Same with Lana. She is more integral in this episode, she wants to be a different person then a cheerleader girl and gets herself a Job as a waitress. I like the jokes when she is one, she is very bad at it. And the Lex Luthor's drink that wasn't even close was the best. And she also gets some more backstory when it comes to her mother.

The villain is very powerful and it does create tension, when important characters feel his power and his overall dangerous side. Any shift in tone and he gets angry, he then possesses and controls the fire. He was on one of the better villains in the early run. It is quite interesting how he manages to do things, and very little people could stop him.-7/10.

Most of the reviews so far were pretty thorough, but one issue I noticed that wasn't mentioned was whether or not using superhuman abilities to win at sports should be considered cheating. I know Clark's main interest was in impressing Lana, but whether or not he loses control of his powers in the heat of the moment and accidentally kills, or badly injures someone isn't the only issue here. If it isn't fair for an athlete to use performance enhancing drugs because it gives them an unfair advantage against other athletes, then how is it fair for someone who has superhuman abilities far and above what is possible for any human using PED's? It could have been a nice opportunity to address the rising use of PED's in competitive sports.

This episode is bound to interest viewers from comic-book readers to avid sports fans. This show involves both the adventures of a younger hero while at the same time concerning football, a team, and its mad coach.

Clark Kent stops the high school football coach from unleashing "flames" of fury on the community in order to achieve his 200th victory and all the glory that comes with it. The coach has found himself with a new ability to be able to unleash fire as his anger mounts. He will go to desperate measures for success on the field, but so will Clark in his attempt to stop the coach, despite wanting so much to be on the football team.

This is another good episode proving that Season 1 has its best yet to offer.

Clark has joined the football team? Yes. He joins so he can spend more time with his crush, even though Lana wants to do different things. This episode is just building more from the pilot and the second episode in terms of relationships. Lex faces a dilemma in which his father (played by John Glover) wants him to fire 20% of his workforce. Lex does something which strains their relationship even more and the threat Lionel gives Lex is frightening.

Clark seems like he will be caught with his abilities soon because in every episode so far he uses his gifts to save people. I understand the struggle Jonathan has with Clark wanting to play football and I think the writers did an excellent job with that building on the father/son relationship.

It seems that by the end of the episode, Lana will try something entirely new besides cheerleading and a job. Whitney and Lana's relationship seems to be straining each episode with her discovery of what he did to Clark in the pilot episode and what happens in this one.

And again Clark only wants to do things which bring him closer to Lana so he quits football. Maybe he'll come back?

"Hothead" continues a thrilling beginning to Smallville. This week's villain is the high school's football coach who is given the power of kryptonite but also has a quick fuse of a temper which creates all sorts of issues. Characters are developed further...especially those of Chloe Sullivan and Lex Luthor. At least to start, the younger Luthor is not pure evil as he shows some empathy towards his employees. There is also the father versus son dynamic at play here. Clark wants to play football...but he is hardly human so you cannot blame Jonathan for wanting his son to take it easy and not reveal who he really is to the world. There are thrilling moments scattered throughout. The principal's car being blown up with flames comes to mind.

Walt Arnold, played by Dan Lauria, is Smallville's arrogant football coach coming up on two hundred victories. During a sauna bath, he is exposed to kryptonite and now is given the powers of creating flames at will. Principal Kwan discovers that seven of his players have cheated on a math test and forbids them from playing which incurs Arnold's wrath. He burns the principal's car and sends the man to the hospital. Against Jonathan's wishes, Arnold recruits Clark to play for the team. Once he loses control of his powers, Clark needs to save his father and his best friend. Meanwhile, Lana's relationship with Whitney is becoming strained to the point where she quits the cheerleading team and Lex's father, Lionel comes to Smallville with the orders for Lex to fire 20% of his staff.

Overall, a great third episode. We see Clark show off with his football skills. The cast does a great job throughout. I was most interested in the family dynamic with Clark and Jonathan. The visuals and effects continue to be really good, especially for a television series.

My Grade: B+