Season 10, Episode 16: Scion

"Scion"

Episode 16

Air Date: March 11th, 2011

I have to say one of the greatest achievements of this season in terms of ongoing storylines has been the Lex clone arc with Alexander.  The writers definitely took full advantage by not only bringing back former young Lex actors to play the character by exploring the clone's downward spiral into madness and becoming Lex Luthor to core, they actually pull off the awesome and unforeseen twist of this clone turning out to be Smallville's own version of Conner Kent aka Superboy! :)  Never thought I'd see the "genetic love child of Clark Kent and Lex Luthor" make it to Smallville but it definitely make for one awesome treat of an episode.  At the heart of the episode is family, both the Kents and the Luthors, with Clark nobly taking over as Conner's big brother to train him in his new powers as well as teaching him the life lessons that his family bestowed on him during the early years of the show.  It's such a striking full circle moment with Clark becoming Conner's mentor and having to deal with the issues his parents had to when raising him with his various abilities.  I really enjoyed the writing here and once again, bringing the series back to basics with this storyline was the perfect way to execute by showing how much Clark has grown into that adult/parental role by inspiring the next generation of potential superheroes like Clark.  Tom Welling more than excels at the role, coming off more Supermanly yet paternal as ever while guiding Conner which isn't as easy as it look he quickly discovers. lol

Lucas Grabeel once again does a terrific job; going from the unpredictable psychotic Alexander with memories of Lex's life driving him insane to the newly amnesic Conner who is all excitable about being around his idol, the Blur but also being lured to the other half of his parentage by Lionel returning to once again calm his son.  Seriously, thank God the writers managed to bring back John Glover as Lionel is really the kind of tangible villain this season desperately needs.  With Darkseid being the big threat but looming in the shadows (but what until the end of the episode! ;) Lionel is the best antagonist against Clark and his team.  The way he is able to manipulated Conner when he runs off after learning that about his Luthor roots as well is masterful and compelling; not to mention bring in the use of Red K to corrupt him is a genius plot point that make sense in turning Conner away from his Kent nature and embracing his Lex Luthor lineage.  Once again, Lucas Grabeel is sensational menacing and the moment he goes after Lois is where I truly feared for her life.  Sure we get a cute callback to heat vision being activated by raging hormones when Clark must stop Conner from blowing a hole into Lois when he first meets her but when he's on Red K, he increasingly becomes more unhinged and aggressive to the point where I really thought he was about to rape Lois at the Luthor mansion before Clark showed up.  Ummmmm yikes! Never thought the show would have me feeling that way. O_O

But the conclusion of the episode is wrapped in classic Smallville style as the future Superman and Superboy duke it out in the remnants of the Luthor mansion with Clark taking some hard hits and throws from Conner.  Holy crap! But I love how he was completely in control the entire time and that moment he tells Conner "You're coming home with me!" before supertackling him to the wall and breaking the Red K ring is too touching for words.  That moment is one of the most memorable in the show's history when Jonathan was given powers to bring Clark home and he did the exact same thing back in Season 3.  It just shows the writers really care about the history of the show and making fans remember the best of the series before the last days of the show airing. :_)  Also, the sub-plot with Lois and Tess working together to discredit Lionel's takeover of Luthorcorp was great as it answered some nagging questions as to how Lionel managed to win back his company so fast despite his death. Luckily, Tess is able to use her birth certificate she recently got from St. Louis to show how mirror Lionel's fingerprints aren't a direct match but a reverse of them.  It's a genuinely smart tactical move that triumphantly gets Tess to get the Luthorcorp empire back; leaving Lionel with nothing left. :)  We even get a nice foreshadowing of Conner's future as Superboy by wanting to one day join Clark in his heroics but Clark sets him up as a student at Smallville High instead.  Seriously, why was a spin-off NEVER green-lighted from this!!?? O_O  Looking back, it just screamed "SPIN-OFF" as the heroic new adventures of Conner Kent at Smallville High would have made for a nice "Smallville: the Next Generation" type show.  But maybe that's why? Not wanting to do a spin-off that's basically how the original show began??? Hey, maybe a live action Young Justice show would have been better with Connor teaming up with other young teenage heroes like Mia aka Speedy and Blue Beetle??? (More on him later!) ;)

Either way, Scion continues the highly consistent streak of excellent Season 10 episodes.  The season is a lot less arc focused and much more episodic than last season, but the writers are still managing to make the show work by paying tribute to the series' memorable history and promising so much to look forward to even after the series is about to end.  :) Lionel maybe out of his company and desperately wanting the REAL Lex back but it looks as if Darkseid is willing to give him a deal he can't refuse during that haunting cliffhanger. :)

Final Kryptonite: A