Season 8

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[edit] Official Write-up

This season, Clark Kent moves closer than ever to embracing his calling as the iconic superhero he is destined to become. Spending less time in his hometown and more time in the big city of Metropolis, Clark will encounter new challenges and new faces – both friend and foe – as he begins his career at the Daily Planet.

Last season came to a stunning conclusion with a confrontation between Clark and his longtime nemesis, Lex Luthor under the frozen columns of Clark's Fortress of Solitude. Years of secrets came to a head as Clark's former friend finally discovered the truth about Clark's alien heritage. Clark's world soon came crashing down as the fortress crumbled in an icy avalanche, leaving both characters' fate a mystery.

Lex's moment of truth didn't come without a price. He murdered his father, Lionel Luthor for information about the legendary Traveler. Clark also had to defeat Brainiac, who had banished Clark's cousin Kara Kent to the Phantom Zone. Though Brainiac's demise ultimately lifted their trances, Chloe was soon arrested for hacking into federal databases – just as she was about to respond to a marriage proposal from Jimmy Olsen. Meanwhile, in a tearful, videotaped good-bye, Lana told Clark that she was leaving Smallville and his life forever, encouraging Clark to fulfill his destiny – something he wouldn't be able to accomplish with her in his world. While one chapter of his life seemingly came to an end, another was about to begin. With fewer commitments tethering Clark to the farm, Lois Lane asked him to apply for a job opening at the Daily Planet.

Season Eight begins a few weeks after the Fortress' icy collapse, as a LuthorCorp Arctic excavation team investigates Lex's whereabouts. Members of the Justice League reunite in the search for Clark, who has been rendered powerless by the fall of the Fortress. As the season unfolds, Clark's new position at the Daily Planet will mean working across the desk from Lois. The two will be forced to team up to cover Metropolis' most pressing goings on. Sometimes it's Lois herself who becomes Clark's biggest obstacle, especially when he's on a deadline. But with Clark and Lois thrust into such close proximity, sparks are bound to fly, and feelings will start to surface that come as a surprise to both of them. At the same time, Clark begins to discover the balancing act he must perform as he explores his dual identities as both reporter and superhero.

Even with Lex gone, the Luthor Mansion isn't vacant for long. Its newest resident is the beguiling Tess Mercer, who, according to Lex's written instructions, has been placed in charge of LuthorCorp and all of its projects, including oversight of the Daily Planet. Tess proves to be as inscrutable as she is cunning, and is an enigmatic new presence in everyone's lives. It won't be long before Tess' attention turns to Clark. But Clark is wary of her intentions, and as the layers of her past are peeled away, new mysteries surface. Through it all, Tess' resolve remains unshakable – to find Lex Luthor, as she is convinced he is still alive.

Clark isn't the only one who will face formidable challenges. Oliver Queen returns to make Metropolis his home. He finds himself at a crossroads, forced to travel through some dark terrain – especially when demons from his past are reawakened. Oliver ultimately begins to question his role as a superhero, just as Clark is embracing his own.

Clark starts to get a lot closer to the one and only Lois Lane just like his destiny in the superman films and the tension between them humors the audience!

With a new fiancé and puzzling new abilities that intrigue her as much as they frighten her, Chloe decides to turn her attention toward helping others. She takes over where Lana left off and reopens the Isis Foundation to provide counseling for those with meteor-powered abilities. She soon finds just how tricky the meteor-powered can be. Chloe's life is further complicated when she meets Metropolis paramedic Davis Bloome. A tireless public servant, Bloome strikes up a fast friendship with Chloe. Soulful and mysterious, Bloome has demons of his own. He is troubled by large gaps of time that he can't remember, and as he comes closer to the answers, he must confront his own worst fear – that at his core he is pure evil.

The series, based on DC Comics characters, was developed for television by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar and is executive produced by Kelly Souders, Brian Peterson, Todd Slavkin, and Darren Swimmer. Superman was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. (Source: KryptonSite)

[edit] Opening Credits

Season Eight credits mostly includes footage from Season 7 and the Season 8 episodes Odyssey and Plastique. The opening credits for each episode include the following:

Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Developed for television by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar.

[edit] Episode List: 2008-2009

Title	Writer(s)	Director(s)	Airdate	#
Odyssey	Writer: Todd Slavkin, Darren Swimmer, Kelly Souders & Brian Peterson	Director: Kevin Fair	September 18, 2008	#153 801
The Justice League, led by the Green Arrow, hits the Arctic in search of Clark, who disappeared after the Fortress collapsed. The team immediately has a confrontation with the new CEO of LuthorCorp, Tess Mercer. Meanwhile, Chloe is being held prisoner by a suspicious group who has discovered she has a new power, and Clark has been stripped of his powers by Jor-El.
Plastique	Writer: Holly Henderson & Don Whitehead	Director: Rick Rosenthal	September 25, 2008	#154 802
It's Clark's first day at the Daily Planet with Lois, and the pair are immediately thrown together on a story when a bus explodes outside the office. Clark rescues Bette, a young girl who bonds with Chloe over their shared meteor abilities, but Bette is hiding a big secret. Paramedic Davis Bloome arrives in Metropolis and is drawn to Chloe.
Toxic	Writer: Caroline Dries	Director: Mairzee Almas	October 2, 2008	#155 803
Oliver collapses at a charity event and reveals he only has 12 hours to live. Clark and Chloe call Davis for help. Delirious, Oliver flashes back to when he was stranded on an island and first learned how to use a bow and arrow. He also recalls meeting Tess on the island after she had been kidnapped by a drug runner. Meanwhile, Chloe decides to use her new powers to help save Oliver, shocking Clark.
Instinct	Writer: Al Septien & Turi Meyer	Director: James Conway	October 9, 2008	#156 804
Tess and her team perform tests on Clark's crystal that she had retrieved from the Arctic, which attracts Maxima, queen of planet Almerac, to Earth to search for her Kryptonian soulmate. Unfortunately, Maxima's power is too great for mortal men and her kiss kills them. The seductive Maxima begins her search, starting with Jimmy.
Committed	Writer: Bryan Miller	Director: Glen Winter	October 16, 2008	#157 805
After they leave their engagement party, Chloe and Jimmy are abducted by a serial kidnapper who is targetting couples and subjecting them to a lie detector that shocks them if they lie. Meanwhile, in an effort to find them, Clark and Lois pose as a couple and are kidnapped themselves, and then asked how they feel about each other.
Prey	Writer: Brian Peterson & Kelly Souders	Director: Michael Rohl	October 23, 2008	#158 806
Clark investigates a recent attack that may be the work of a serial killer. Suspecting it could be a meteor-freak, he demands that Chloe release the names of members of the Isis Foundation, which causes a rift between the friends. Davis fears that his blackouts could mean that he is the serial killer and collects evidence that may implicate him. Fearing the worst, he confesses his suspicions to Chloe.
Identity	Writer: Todd Slavkin & Darren Swimmer	Director: Mairzee Almas	October 30, 2008	#159 807
Jimmy snaps a picture of Clark super-speeding to save Lois from a mugger and manages to catch a red and blue blur on film. Jimmy shows it to Tess who decides to run it on the front page of the Daily Planet. Clark fears his identity will be discovered so he asks Chloe to run interference with Jimmy, but she refuses.
Bloodline	Writer: Caroline Dries	Director: Michael Rohl	November 6, 2008	#160 808
Clark receives an anonymous package containing the crystal that Tess found in the Arctic. When he removes the crystal, it activates and sends him and a visiting Lois to the Phantom Zone where they run into Kara. Kara opens a portal for Lois to return but Zod's wife Faora escapes with her and takes over Lois' body. A possessed Lois goes on a rampage in Metropolis.
Abyss	Writer: Don Whitehead & Holly Henderson	Director: Kevin Fair	November 13, 2008	#161 809
Brainiac begins removing Chloe´s memories one by one until the only person she remembers is Davis. Clark realizes the only way to stop Brainiac from taking over Chloe's mind is to rebuild the Fortress of Solitude and ask Jor-El to heal her.
Bride	Writer: Al Septien & Turi Meyer	Director: Jeannot Szwarc	November 20, 2008	#162 810
Chloe is excited that she's marrying Jimmy. Meanwhile, Oliver tells Clark he thinks he's discovered where Lex is hiding and takes off to Cuba to confront him. However, when he arrives, Oliver is shocked to find Lana instead. Clark and Lois grow closer but chaos ensues when Doomsday crashes the wedding and tries to kidnap Chloe.
Legion	Writer: Geoff Johns	Director: Glen Winter	January 15, 2009	#163 811
The aftermath of Doomsday's attack on Chloe and Jimmy's wedding leaves Clark in shock, but before he can search for the kidnapped Chloe, The Persuader appears and attacks him. Rokk, Imra and Garth, also known as The Legion, step in from the future to help vanquish the Persuader and the group realizes Brainiac has taken over Chloe once again. Meanwhile, up at the Fortress, Chloe, as Brainiac, informs Davis he is Doomsday and was created to kill “the other Kryptonian” and destroy the world.
Bulletproof	Writer: Bryan Miller	Director: Morgan Beggs	January 22, 2009	#164 812
Clark discovers John Jones was shot while working as a police officer, so Clark dons the uniform and goes undercover to find the culprit. Meanwhile, Lana confronts Tess and tells her Lex isn’t the man she thinks he is. Lana’s shocking news forces Tess to reevaluate her position as the head of Luthorcorp.
Power	Writer: Todd Slavkin & Darren Swimmer	Director: Allison Mack	January 29, 2009	#165 813
Clark finds Tess in Lana's ransacked apartment and realizes Lana is missing. Tess tells him Lex is still alive and may have kidnapped Lana and finally reveals the truth about what happened to Lana after she awoke from her Brainiac-induced coma. Meanwhile, Tess breaks into a secret LuthorCorp facility and is shocked at what she discovers.
Requiem	Writer: Holly Henderson & Don Whitehead	Director: Michael Rohl	February 5, 2009	#166 814
An explosion at LuthorCorp kills all the Board members and injures Oliver, who was there to announce the merger of his company with LutherCorp. Oliver believes that Lex is responsible for the blast, but Clark and Lana learn that the bomber is Winslow Schott, a toymaker and former Queen Industries employee with a grudge against Oliver.
Infamous	Writer: Caroline Dries	Director: Glen Winter	March 12, 2009	#167 815
Linda Lake returns to Metropolis and threatens to expose Clark’s secret unless he promises to give her exclusive information on the red-blue blur so she can become a star reporter again. Refusing to be blackmailed, Clark tells Lois his secret and asks her to write his story for The Daily Planet.
Turbulence	Writer: Al Septien & Turi Meyer	Director: Kevin Fair	March 19, 2009	#168 816
Tess invites Clark to a press conference out of town but when an explosion rocks the private jet they are on, Clark must figure out how to save them without Tess learning his secret. Unbeknownst to Clark, Tess orchestrated the explosion to get Clark to reveal his powers. Meanwhile, Davis discovers a surprising way to control the monster within.
Hex	Writer: Bryan Miller	Director: Mairzee Almas	March 26, 2009	#169 817
At Chloe's birthday party, a mysterious magician named Zatanna grants Chloe's wish to be more like Lois by turning her into Lois for the day. Zatanna asks Oliver for help to get her father’s book of spells so she can conjure up his spirit but not before also granting Clark his deepest wish.
Eternal	Writer: Brian Peterson & Kelly Souders	Director: James Marshall	April 2, 2009	#170 818
Tess tries and fails to kill Davis. In order to try and explain his destiny, she captures him and unveils his past with the Luthors. Meanwhile, Clark and Chloe discover Davis' secret.
Stiletto	Writer: Caroline Dries	Director: Kevin Fair	April 23, 2009	#171 819
Lois believes that she needs a big story to secure her reputation as a star reporter but the red/blue blur continues to elude her. After Chloe is mugged, Lois uses the opportunity to pretend a new superhero, Stiletto, has come to town and is giving exclusives to Lois. Clark is concerned Lois will hurt herself pretending to be a superhero but after he is captured by thugs with kryptonite, Lois saves the day.
Beast	Writer: Genevieve Sparling	Director: Michael Rohl	April 30, 2009	#172 820
Clark discovers that Davis is still alive and confronts Chloe about protecting him. Oliver discovers Jimmy breaking into Chloe’s apartment, but things get rapidly worse after Davis jumps from the shadows and attacks both of them. Later, Clark and Davis meet in the fortress and end up fighting each other.
Injustice	Writer: Al Septien & Turi Meyer	Director: Tom Welling	May 7, 2009	#173 821
Chloe returns and begs Clark to kill Davis, claiming he can no longer keep the beast under control. Tess has assembled a team of meteor freaks, including Plastique, to track down Davis so Clark can kill him. However, things get out of hand once Tess’ team discovers she is double-crossing them.
Doomsday	Writer: Kelly Souders & Brian Peterson	Director: James Marshall	May 14, 2009	#174 822
Oliver tells Clark he must kill Davis, as Doomsday is a serious threat and must be stopped at all costs. However, Clark struggles with taking a human life, so the Green Arrow and his team decide to take matters into their own hands. Lois takes on Tess, but the fight takes a shocking turn. Meanwhile, Chloe takes matters into her own hands by using black kryptonite to seperate Davis and Doomsday but Davis' human side proves to be just as evil. Jimmy and Davis died.

[edit] Cast

Season Eight has only seven main cast members, including: Clark, Chloe, Lois, Jimmy, Davis, Tess, and Oliver. This season has the most cast changes with 4 cast members leaving and 3 new cast members joining, leaving only 2 of the original cast. Along with Season Six, this season has the least number of main cast members. All the other seasons had 8 cast members.
As of this season, Smallville loses half its cast. Lex, Lana, Lionel and Kara are no longer regular cast members. This is the first season where Michael Rosenbaum and Kristin Kreuk are not series regulars. Laura Vandervoort and John Glover also do not return as series regulars.
Season Eight has a significant change in the number of appearances of its main cast. This is likely due to the rumoured budget cuts. Previous seasons had the four lead characters; Clark, Lana, Lex and Chloe, appear in most if not all of the episodes, whereas secondary characters appear in anything from 13-22 episodes. However, as of this season, only Tom Welling and Allison Mack were contracted to appear in all episodes, whilst the remainder of the cast only appeared in 12-13 episodes, although Aaron's twelfth appearance in Hex was cut (something which also happened to him in Traveler last year).
Despite leaving the show as a regular cast member, Kristin Kreuk returned for five episodes starting with Bride and ending with Requiem.
Two new antagonists joined the cast: Tess Mercer played by Cassidy Freeman and Davis Bloome aka Doomsday played by Sam Witwer. Davis Bloome was written out of the series by the end of the season as he was killed after he was seperated from his kryptonian persona by black kryptonite.
Justin Hartley reprised his role as Green Arrow but this time he was promoted to series regular.
Despite Laura Vandervoort not being a main cast member this season, she returned as a guest star to tie up her storyline in Bloodline
James Marsters expressed interest in more appearances as Brainiac. However, to continue the storyline of Brainiac the producers explored the result of his confrontation with Chloe in Arctic, which resulted in her receiving his powers as he slowly took possession of her. This storyline was an ongoing theme in the first 8 episodes, but took focus in Abyss and was used as a mid-season finale in Bride. It concluded in Legion with Brainiac being sent to the future. Despite Allison Mack being used to represent Brainiac as Chloe, Marsters reprised his role as the voice of Brainiac in Abyss, but was uncredited.^[1]
This season featured the most recurring appearances of Justice League members with Alan Ritchson and Alaina Huffman reprising their roles in this season's premiere as Arthur Curry and Dinah Lance respectively. Alaina Huffman also reappeared for the season finale Doomsday.
Phil Morris returned as the Martian Manhunter for multiple episodes including Odyssey, Prey and Bulletproof.
Despite Michael Rosenbaum's departure, Lex remained very present in the show with Tess carrying out his orders for the first half of the season. He also reappears in Bride, as a silent, obscured character (explained by his injuries sustained after the Fortress of Solitude collapsed in Arctic) and is apparently killed at the end of Requiem. However, none of Lex's appearances in this season are played by Michael Rosenbaum. ^[2]
This was Aaron Ashmore's last season as a main cast member as Jimmy was killed in the season finale.

[edit] Notes

Miles Millar and Alfred Gough left Smallville at then end of Season 7 and have had no involvement with season 8. ^[3] Todd Slavkin, Darren Swimmer, Kelly Souders and Brian Peterson took over as Executive Producers after writing or producing for the show since Season 2.
From the first episode of Season 8, Clark and Chloe will be the only characters to appear as main cast members in every season, although Clark is the only one to appear in every episode as Chloe did not appear in Insurgence, Legacy, Memoria, or Sacred and she is only seen in Crusade in a video message.
With Kristin Kreuk's guest appearances this year, she is the third character to appear in every season.
Allison Mack and Erica Durance both portray 3 different characters this season. Allison plays Chloe, Brainiac possessing Chloe's body (Legion), and Eva Greer disguised as Chloe (Injustice). Erica plays Lois, Faora possessing Lois' body (Bloodline), and Chloe who has been transformed into Lois (Hex).
Allison Mack made her directing debut in episode 13, Power. Due to the writer's strike, she was unable to direct any episodes last season.
In an annual fashion, Tom Welling directed Injustice, his fourth time directing a episode after Fragile, Hydro, and Apocalypse. He was originally set to direct Hex but this was re-scheduled due to him being ill during the time he was given to prepare.
There are sixteen DC Comics characters that appear for the first time in this season, making a record: Doomsday; Bette Sans Souci (Plastique); Maxima; Faora; Persuader; the three founding members of the Legion of Super-Heroes: Rokk Krinn (Cosmic Boy), Imra Ardeen (Saturn Girl), and Garth Ranzz (Lightning Lad); Dan Turpin; Emil Hamilton; Winslow Schott (Toyman); Zatanna; Bruno Mannheim; and a proto-Injustice League featuring Plastique, Parasite, Livewire and Neutron. (However, Neutron's role is limited to a non-speaking part.)
A seventeenth DC Comics character could be said to appear for the first time this season: Jimmy Olsen. As the show's Jimmy Olsen is laid to rest following his death, his full name is revealed to be Henry James Olsen. Chloe meets Henry's younger brother at the funeral and gives him Henry's camera, alluding to the younger brother becoming the Jimmy Olsen known from the Superman mythos.
Chloe apparently died 3 times this season; in the alternate reality when she discovered Davis was Doomsday (Infamous), in Jimmy's drug-induced hallucination where he saw Doomsday killing her (Turbulence), and when Tess triggered the explosive chip in her head, however it was actually Eva Greer who had shape-shifted into the form of Chloe (Injustice).
Darren Swimmer and Todd Slavkin have confirmed that they will be leaving the series after Season 8. ^[4]
It has been announced that this season's finale will air on May 14 ^[5] but this will not be the end to the series as Season 9 was announced by the CW on February 24, 2009. ^[6]