Season 4, Episode 12: Pariah

"Pariah"

Episode 12

Air Date: February 2nd, 2005

Ohhh this episode is painful and I mean that in an emotionally overwhelming way.  I really love Alicia and her mini-arc with Clark.  They may have not been soul mates but they were kindred spirits that desperately needed each other to fill that terrible void of loneliness and isolation from the rest of the world.  I'm glad that after last episode we see the two dating again but of course, that comes with cost of everyone assuming when a string of attacks start popping up in Smallville...behind locked doors; that the evidence points at Alicia being the culprit.  It really is hard watching the episode at the beginning with everyone hating on Alicia and sure they have more than enough reason to not trust her at all but it's Alicia and I really like her. :(  Sarah Carter once again does a great job in the role, especially opposite Tom.  I really adore their relationship and it's a shame they never even got a moment of true happiness as a couple before things spiraled out of control toward the end of the episode. .....I'm really going to miss Alicia....her death at the hands of the real attempted murder is beyond devastating, especially how worked up Tom gets in his performance when Clark finds her dead body hanging from being hung to death.  I never felt so sorry for Clark until this moment, finally finding someone to be with, being fooled into distrusting her and having to witness her dead body before even getting a chance to reconcile.

Ehhhhhh, I really HATED Tim but I must commend the writers for really making him seem completely under the radar until he accidentally gets too creepy on Lois during their date.  The final confrontation between Clark and Tim is oh so satisfying; only because we get to see Clark temporarily lose it and almost kill a guy.  And who can blame him??!! Ehhhhh, I'm getting all choked up again.  Sure everyone finds out that Alicia was set up and were wrong but I would have really loved multiple scenes of people telling Clark how sorry they were for not trusting her and being there for him after Alicia's sudden death.  Ehhhh that barn scene where Clark pours his heart out to his parents over feeling like he caused her death by not believing in her.  I just can't! I miss my Alicia already! :(  But while most of the characters hold off on telling Clark how sorry they were, Chloe by episode's end is the most genuine and supportive she has ever been on this show and there's a major reason for that.  With Clark so fearful of revealing his secret on behalf of making Alicia more acceptable despite being a meteor freak, she confronts Chloe and teleports away with her to set up Clark to reveal his powers in front of her.  While Clark catching a car like that is taking physics and crapping on it, it's one of the most memorable secret revealing moments of the season and Allison Mack's performance as Chloe can't believe what she's seeing is oh so priceless.  But I'm glad the moment isn't just used to have one of Clark's friends knowing his secret randomly as the writers use this as a big opportunity to really develop Chloe's character in a natural, mature way, even questioning how she's seen meteor freaks all along and her wall of weird the past 4 years so far.

While I hate how the writers have been using Lois after she went to college earlier in the season, her last scene with Chloe is excellently written as gives her some great advice on how to deal with knowing Clark's secret.  Not to mention, I LOVE how Lois says "a long time ago I learned that people keep secrets for a reason".  WOW...no wonder she's destined to become Superman's wife!!! She just gets Clark without even knowing she's talking about him.  Nice little touch there writers! Lastly, we get some more plot movement with Jason and his mother; who plots with Lex to get Jason and Lana to stop dating in exchange for telling him who got his father released from prison.  Hmmm...maybe that person is oh say...YOU!!? O_o But instead of following up on mommy dearest's offer, he decides to let Jason in on what's going on and offering a job for him if he helps him take down his mother.  Lex would have had me at 100,000 a year!!! Seriously, I need work for rich people! lol But honestly, this was a touching episode that is so tough to watch with lots of emotion, tension and drama that really hurts by the end of the episode. :(  Clark really goes through a journey here of love and loss that feels so much more real than anything with Lana (Yeah, I said it!) but luckily, Chloe gets to finally be a secret keeper in a way that helps evolve her character immensely and promises LOTS of support from her to Clark for once. Nice! :)

Final Kryptonite: A