Let me start by saying that if Lana and Chloe don’t completely write off Clark at this point, they are just damn fools. I mean, how many times has he pulled multiple personalities on them, whether it’s Red Kryptonite, transformations into Kal El, or now, Lionel-possession. At least when it happens to the ladies, they can blame it on the Nicodemus flower, spiked Gatorade or cave bug bites. Clark has to keep his mouth shut about his personality switches. But, if this means that Lana and Clark will stop pining over each other, and Chloe will stop with her one-sided crush, then all the better. Sadly, I don’t think that’s gonna happen. But, hey another great episode. Two in a row. Now we’re talking.
Lionel, who’s dying from liver disease, requests to see Lex, but not to make amends with this son as he pretends to, but to attempt to do a body switch thanks to some (apparently) Kryptonian artifact. Luckily for Lex, the artifact calls to Clark, who shows up at the prison in time to separate Lex and Lionel. Unfortunately, that means Lionel and Clark switched bodies instead. Oops.
It doesn’t take Lionel long to figure out just how fortunate Clark’s intervention was. The discovery of his powers on the farm with Jonathan is quite the revelation for him. And let me say here that Tom Welling is to be commended for his range, acting as Clark possessed by Lionel. I had no doubts that John Glover (nice to see him again, by the way. He’s been gone too long) could pull off acting like Clark, but Welling impressed here as well. This will hopefully bode well for his post-Smallville career. Let’s hope it doesn’t lead to hosting Ripley’s Believe it Or Not.
So Lionel-as-Clark shows just how much of a crush he has on Martha (is that heat vision or are you just happy to see me?). He quits the football team, catches student Lana and faculty Jason in a compromising position in Jason’s office (OK, these two are TRYING to get caught) and pulls a major fast one on poor Chloe. For a second, I thought Lionel had a thing for teenagers, but then he show that he’s true to form and displays the ultimate cruelty, as he is fully aware of “Miss Sullivan’s” unrequited love for Clark. He takes to his new body and powers well, and is set to blow Smallville with his offshore account, but hits a few snags. First is the voice recognition problem, which he solves with some threats to the imprisoned Clark-in-Lionel’s body. The bigger problem if Lex figuring out how to clean out the account. Like father, like son.
Meanwhile Clark, stuck in prison in Lionel’s powerless body, finds himself on the receiving end of several beat downs, though he does manage to fight back with the fighting skills he’s picked up even without powers. Lionel’s nebbish little cellmate, who somehow helped with the switcheroo is a convenient exposition device someone for Clark to talk to, as well as a much-needed ally. Eventually he figures out how to clue in his parents to the situation, but Lionel is not ready to give up his power without a fight. He also visits Lex, surprising him with Clark’s new-found love of scotch. Lionel makes it clear quickly who Lex is dealing with though and goes for the kill until Martha shows up with kryptonite. Fortunately, Lionel-as-Clark doesn’t display superpowers, save for a really strong grip on his neck, and neither of them actually see the kryptonite Martha uses.
Eventually, thanks to the cellmate’s assistance, Clark manages to trick Lionel in the prison so that the switch happens again and all is seemingly back to normal. Except….
Chloe’s mad at Clark again; Lana’s mad at Clark again (for putting the moves on her AGAIN), but makes him promise to keep his mouth shut about her and Jason, which he is actually just hearing about for the first time. And he appears to be off the football team as well. Meanwhile…
Lionel seems to have no recollection of what happened, meaning Clark’s secret appears to be safe. But there are two interesting side effects – one, he is completely healthy again, and two, he is now “good,” as in no longer a conniving, scheming murderer, but that was a little unclear. Also, unclear was the ending. Lionel/Clark’s cellmate was released from prison (he claimed he was framed) and is picked up by Margot Kidder, Dr. Swann’s (her late former co-star, Christopher Reeve), to whom he turns over the body-switching artifact. On whose behalf, was the release-in-exchange-for-the-artifact arranged? Lionel, who promised to get the guy out and was shown previously to have a relationship with Swann? Lex, acting on his own, or in conjunction with Clark, who asked Lex to help get the guy out in the previous scene. But Clark wouldn’t want the artifact turned over to anyone. So what’s going on here?
Next week, a re-imagining of Mr. Mxypltlyk (whatever), who is not a 5th dimensional imp, but a mysterious European gambler with “bad luck” power.
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