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"Warrior" is the twelfth episode in the ninth season of Smallville, and the one hundred-eighty-seventh episode overall. It aired on February 12, 2010.

Summary[]

Clark meets Zatanna at a comic book convention where she tells him her father charmed a copy of the comic book Warrior Angel and it holds magical powers. A little boy named Alec steals the comic book and develops super powers as well as gains a few years of age, transforming himself into Warrior Angel and saving Chloe from a horrible accident. Meanwhile, Lois becomes jealous of Clark's relationship with Zatanna.

Recap[]

→ see also Category:Screencaps from episode 9x12

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Alec finds the secret edition of the Warrior Angel

At the Metropolis WonderCon, a young boy named Alec Abrams admires a rare Warrior Angel comic book, and asks the worker if he can take a look at it, but the worker tells him that opening the book will lower its value. However, the worker then unlocks the case to check it, and when he is distracted by a man knocking over the comic display, Alec takes the opportunity to run off with the book. He bumps into someone dressed as a stormtrooper in the process.

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Chloe and Lois at the convention

Meanwhile, Chloe is also at the convention, and bumps into Lois, who is dressed as the stormtrooper. To Lois's dismay, she has been assigned as embedded journalist for the day at the convention, but she can't get anyone to talk to her. Chloe suggests that maybe it's her choice of outfit. Lois wonders if that is why Clark has been avoiding her, but Chloe assures her it is not. Chloe gets a text from Oliver, and Lois advises Chloe to let go of the tech world for the day and have some fun.

Backstage, Alec opens the comic book, and as he reads the first few pages, magical sparks begin to fly.

Meanwhile, back in the convention hall, the lights go out and a giant globe falls, directly above Chloe . A young man dressed as a superhero catches the globe and saves her, and he asks her if she's okay as the onlookers applaud.

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Chloe meets Stephen Swift

In Metropolis, Clark has stopped a couple of thieves when he gets a call from Lois. She wonders why he is so late, and Clark tells her that he will be right there. She asks him to pick something up from her apartment. With Clark still on the phone, a third thief tries to run away, so Clark picks up a can from the trash and throws it at the guy, knocking him out. He then proceeds to Lois's apartment, where she eventually leads him to the outfit she wants, though he first sees her Combat outfit and a French maid outfit that she refuses to explain.

Meantime, Chloe visits the new superhero, Stephen Swift, and introduces herself, explaining that she is in the business of helping heroes and she offers to talk some more over coffee.

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Zatanna appears at the convention

Clark arrives at the convention and asks Lois the point of the whole thing. Lois explains that it is fantasy and it is meant to take people out of their ordinary lives and give them a chance to see the world in a new way. She asks him what his dream is, but Zatanna interrupts from behind them and asks Clark if they can speak alone. Clark and Zatanna head off, leaving a clearly jealous Lois behind.

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Wonder Lois

Zatanna explains to Clark that her father went on a cursing spree when he was young, and that she has spent the last several months cleaning up his mess and rounding up all the cursed items, which include the Warrior Angel comic that was stolen by Alec earlier. She explains that she needs his help finding it before someone opens it and comes under the effects of the spell. Clark, using his superhearing, overhears Lois having an argument with a man, and heads off to investigate, only to find that she has locked herself in the men's room under the pretext that the line for the women's room was too long. She comes out wearing an amazon princess costume and smiles at Clark while the onlookers check her out. She tells Clark that a rare Warrior Angel comic book was stolen from the convention, and Clark tells her that he is helping Zatanna in tracking it down. A man dressed as a gladiator asks if he can take a picture with Lois, and she gets Clark to take it. She then suggests that she and Clark split up so they can cover more ground, and she goes off with the gladiator.

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Warrior Angel against a bully

On the other side of town, Chloe and Stephen talk about how he got his powers, when all of a sudden he hears a couple of bullies harassing a young boy in an alley way. He saves the boy while Chloe looks on in amazement. Chloe asks if his powers were from meteor rock exposure, or if he was born with them, "which would make you a metahuman."

Back at the convention, Zatanna uses a locator spell to track the book backstage, and Clark uses his x-ray vision to find it hidden underneath some boxes. Zatanna is impressed at his abilities, but Clark just dismisses it as another day of work. Zatanna can't help but agree with Clark, citing that as a magician, the idea of fantasy and make-believe doesn't have the same impact, and one must instead find it themselves. She then summons a room full of candles and proceeds to place a spell on Clark, convincing him to give into a fantasy and kiss her. Surprisingly however, Clark manages to break the spell, causing Zatanna to realize that one thing stronger than her magic is Clark's thoughts towards someone else... Lois.

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Zatanna tries to seduce Clark

Clark returns to the Daily Planet and finds Oliver and Lois speaking in apparently intimate tones. As Oliver leaves, he warns Clark that Lois may be a tad angry. Lois sarcastically informs Clark that she is not one to get jealous over someone like Zatanna and that she knew Clark would tell her if anything was going on between them. Taken aback, Clark and Lois share their information about the boy Alec.

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Chloe and Stephen fly over the city

Meanwhile, Chole takes Stephen to the Talon, where Stephen plays happily on Lois's Xbox, while Chloe, who appears somewhat frustrated by the childish behavior of someone she'd thought of as a possible love interest, attempts to interview him. Stephen counters that Chloe never lets herself have fun, and that if she joins him in playing, he will answer her questions. She agrees, and as he lists his powers, he rises slowly into the air, surprising both of them. Excited by the idea that he can fly, Stephen takes Chloe on a moonlight flight across Metropolis.

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Stephen turns evil

At the Watchtower, Clark and Zatanna use Chloe's resources to track down Alec, while Zatanna explains that she only used her powers to help Clark gain perspective on life and the enjoyment of fantasy. At that moment, Chloe arrives, and after Clark and Zatanna get her up to speed, she realizes that Stephen is really little Alec, so she rushes off to try and help him before Zatanna can reverse the spell. As she leaves, Clark and Zatanna discover that the comic foretells that Warrior Angel, upon being betrayed, will become the evil Devilicus.

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Zatanna defeats Devilicus

At the same time, Chloe confronts Stephen about the source of his powers, and explains that Zatanna plans to undo the curse. Feeling betrayed by this news, Stephen morphs from the sweet young man, to a demonic version of himself, and then proceeds to take Chloe to the top of a skyscraper. He demands that Chloe tell him where Zatanna is, so he can stop her, or else he will kill Chloe. But before he can carry out his threat, Zatanna's counter-curse goes into effect. Unfortunately, the force of the magical blast throws Chloe off the rooftop, but thankfully the Blur is there to catch her and the two return to the rooftop, to find little Alec huddled in tears.

Clark takes Alec back to the farm, where he explains that being a hero is not about powers, but rather doing the right thing. Alec feels guilty for becoming a bully, but Clark says that not all bullies are bad people, and can still have good inside them. Appreciating Clark's advice, Alec offers Clark a picture he drew when Clark was still the "Red & Blue Blur". The two smile as they mutually agree that the 'S' shield is a better design than the one on Alec's drawing.

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Zatanna tells Clark that Lois is a lucky girl

Clark returns Alec to the Daily Planet, where Zatanna has gotten the charges against Alec dropped. Zatanna then suggests that she and Clark date, but Clark replies that he has a different fantasy in mind. Disappointed, but not surprised, Zatanna tells him to make sure to tell Lois how lucky she is.

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Lois kisses Jeff

Clark then proceeds to admit to Lois that Zatanna kissed him. Lois is unsurprised, and informs him that she already knew due to his inability to make eye-contact before and the fact he smelled like a magazine insert. Lois then proceeds to get even by kissing a random passer-by. Thrown off but still intent on making it up to Lois, Clark offers to take her to the after-Con Costume ball. Lois accepts both the tickets and the apology, stating that she will pick out his costume.

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Chloe and Oliver have a "sparks fly" moment

Back at the Watchtower, Chloe arrives to see Oliver doing target practice with bow and arrow and admits to him that she had less than a smooth day, and she feels as if she is incapable of having fun these days. Oliver agrees that he seems to share that problem, and that they need to take their fun when they can get it, and "Sometimes, it's right in front of your face. You just have to want to see it." Sharing a look, Oliver then offers his bow for Chloe to shoot, and answers her question about knowing when to let go with "It's all about your heart. Just listen." With a look of fear and intrigue, like she's just realized something, Chloe releases the arrow.

Cast[]

Starring[]

Guest Starring[]

Co-Starring[]

Uncredited[]

  • Uncredited actor as Bill

Mentioned[]

Featured Music[]

  • Car Stereo Wars - "Smooth"
  • Justin Mather - "Miles"

Title[]

  • A warrior is someone who is experienced in warfare or one who has shown great vigor or courage.
  • The title makes reference to the fictional comic book and the hero in the Smallville universe, Warrior Angel.

Notes[]

  • Antagonist: Alec Abrams as Devilicus
  • This was the second episode of the series to be directed by Allison Mack. She previously directed Season Eight's Power.
  • 'Metropolis Wonder-Con' seems to be loosely based on San Diego Comic-Con.
  • Tess and Zod do not appear in this episode. This is the 5th and final episode this season not to feature Tess.
  • This episode hints that Chloe and Oliver spark a romance. As this episode was originally supposed to air before Absolute Justice, Part 1, this adds new meaning to Oliver's reaction to Chloe spying on his email: "Is that my e-mail? I'll have you know that those messages between me and Canary were purely platonic."
  • Chloe draws a distinction between those infected by "meteor rock" and humans born with superpowers, whom she refers to as metahumans.
  • Chloe's text message indicated a "maniac with a boomerang". This could be a reference to 'Captain Boomerang' from the comics, ordinarily a Flash villain, and occasional member of the Suicide Squad. Though, there is also an obscure Green Arrow villain named Martin Flint/Boomerang, who uses the same weaponry.
  • During the comic convention, there is a patron dressed the way Green Arrow currently dresses in DC Continuity. This costume may also be the same one that Oliver Queen wore as 'Robin Hood' in Wither.
  • Chloe almost dies twice in this episode, but is saved by two superheroes: first, Warrior Angel saves her at Wonder-Con, and then the Blur saves her after she's pushed off a tall building by Zatanna's counter-curse against Warrior Angel.
  • This is the first time that Clark Kent is shown opening his shirt to reveal the 'S' symbol on his chest.
The First S

The First revealed "S"

  • When Clark first gets to the Con, he bumps into a guy dressed like the Red Blue Blur (red jacket, blue shirt, jeans). That same guy was walking with a group dressed like Smallville's version of the Justice League (Bart Allen, Victor Stone, and Kara Kent).
  • When Clark and Alec are in the barn at the end of the episode, Alec shows Clark a drawing that he did before he knew what the Blur looked like. The drawing is an allusion to the future Superman costume Clark will adopt (except for the "RBB" on his chest). Alec comments that he likes the 'S' symbol better, and Clark agrees.
    RBB picture

    Alec's RBB picture for Clark

  • Lois's jealousy of Clark's friendship with Zatanna is similar to that of Lois in the comics, although in the comics, Lois is normally jealous of Wonder Woman, who shares a close friendship with Clark.
  • Alec Abrams wears a black shirt with Warrior Angel's Symbol in front; this is very similar to a young Cassandra Sandsmark as Wonder Girl who wears Wonder Woman's symbol instead.
  • Carlo Marks who portrays Stephen Swift in this episode had already appeared in Season Seven's episode Apocalypse as Chloe's Fiancé.
  • The idea of a Warrior Angel comic being cursed by its original owner was based on the alleged Superman Curse, in which some fans were rumored to have been sparked by creators Joel Shuster and Jerry Siegel, who sued DC comics for unfair compensation and credit. [citation needed] This is the first media adaptation of the franchise which addresses the Superman Curse.

In Other Media[]

  • Stephen's flight with Chloe is clearly a homage to some of the flights between Superman and Lois Lane in the movies.
  • The first appearance of Warrior Angel depicting him as a villain is similar to the first story to feature Superman, The Reign of the Superman.
  • While talking to Alec Abrams/Stephen Swift, Chloe refers to the superhero community as The World's Finest. World's finest was the title name of a comic that featured DC Comics' two leading superheroes, Superman and Batman. It eventually became the title team nickname of Batman and Superman.
  • The covers of the first issue of Warrior Angel and Action Comics #1 (where Superman first appears) are extremely similar. In both, the hero is holding aloft a car with his hands.
  • The idea of a young boy who becomes an adult superhero through magical means is similar to the DC Comics hero Captain Marvel. 13-years-old Billy Batson chants the secret word "SHAZAM" and transforms into an adult superhero.
  • Lois wears a costume similar to that used by Wonder Woman in the DC Comics Universe, although, with the use of a skirt, it bears closer similarities to the uniform used by Diana Prince's mother, Queen Hippolyta. It also can be said that it's similar to the outfit of Xena: Warrior Princess. It also bares a resemblance to the costume used by Gal Gadot in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016 film), Wonder Woman (2017 film), Justice League (2017 film) and Wonder Woman 1984, though these films were clearly not an influence on the Smallville costume designers.
  • The characteristic Lois displayed in this episode, in waiting until Clark confessed to what occurred between himself and Zatanna, is similar to how Lois Lane in the comics waited until Clark Kent revealed his secret Identity as Superman to her willingly.
  • Many costumes are shown in this episode:
    • Lois wears a costume similar to Wonder Woman's.
    • Several men are seen wearing Clark's original Red Jacket/Blue Shirt combination.
    • Several men are seen wearing the Green Arrow costume of the comic books.
    • A woman is seen wearing a costume similar to the Angel of Vengeance's outfit.
    • A woman with the faux Green Arrow is seen wearing a costume similar to Black Canary's traditional costume.

Trivia[]

  • Carlo Marks previously appeared as Chloe's fiance in the alternate-reality episode Apocalypse back in Season Seven.
  • Owen Best previously appeared as Jason Teague when he was a young boy in a flashback in Veritas back in Season Seven.
  • Perhaps not coincidentally, two ideas that were mentioned at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con panel featuring the cast and producers (right before the start of Season 9)--Lois wearing the Wonder Woman costume, and Chloe and Oliver having a relationship--are put into play in this episode.
  • In the text message Chloe receives from Oliver in the beginning of the episode about the maniac with boomerangs, the word "acquired" is misspelled so the first line reads "Target aquired".
  • This episode is a commentary on the superhero genre. As noticable by Clark's comments on the true meaning of being a hero, while remarking that everyone at the comic convention has a popcorn image of what it means to be a hero. The episode's Alec and Chloe stories seemingly plays on clichés of the superhero genre:
    • Alec Abrams is established to be a bullied kid. Upon getting powers, one of his first actions is to roughs up a couple of bullies. This is similar to Spider-Man (2002), where the main character (Peter Parker) is introduced as being bullied at his school. Upon getting powers, one of Peter's first actions is to rough up his bully, Flash Thompson.
    • Chloe becomes infatuated with Alec/"Stephen", then shocked when she discovers that he is actually a 12-year-old boy. A common trope, seen in Superman: The Movie (along with many other Superman continuities) and Spider-Man (2002), is the female lead becoming infatuated with the mysterious hero, without knowing much about the person (specially, if he is single and is into women, or how old the hero is, or whether he is even a man or a woman disguised as one).
    • Alec/"Stephen" tells Chloe that he is an orphan, and notes that it is common to the (superhero) archetype. Clark Kent/Superman, Bruce Wayne/Batman, Dick Grayson/Robin/Nightwing, Billy Batson/Captain Marvel, Peter Parker/Spider-Man (to use a non-DC Comics example) are all orphans in the comics.
  • In Harbinger, John Constantine brings up the events of this episode and reveals that this is not the first time that a kid has been turned into Warrior Angel, after reading a comic book.

Continuity[]

Allusions[]

  • This plot, of a child growing into instant physical adulthood while remaining mentally a child, is similar to the plots of Tom Hanks' 1988 movie Big and Jennifer Garner's 2004 movie 13 Going on 30. In both, an adult is attracted to the physically adult but refreshingly innocent love interest. Chloe was attracted to an awkward, naive, but adult Abrams, much as she was to Clark Kent when they were young teenagers.
  • This episode contains numerous references to the Star Wars franchise. While in the convention Alec walks past a statue of Yoda and later a statue of C-3PO. Clark and Lois also talk infront of a statue of Palpatine/Darth Sidious. Also, Lois is dressed as a Stormtrooper while at the convention and says a famous quote from Episode 4: "I can't see a thing in this helmet."
  • While dressed as 'Wonder Woman', Lois gives the Vulcan sign for 'Live long and prosper' from the Star Trek franchise, but gives it her own twist by saying, "Stop gawking and prosper."
  • The game that Stephen and Chloe play on Lois's Xbox is part of Project Natal. Interestingly, Natal was announced at E3 '09 and was still in development at the time. Natal was later renamed 'Xbox Kinect' and released in the winter of 2010.[1]

Locations[]

Metropolis

Smallville

Quotes[]

Chloe: Slow night?
Oliver: Figured I'd squeeze in some target practice... and a single malt.
Chloe: Did you bring enough for the rest of the class?
Oliver: Help yourself, professor. You're running a little low on allegory tonight. Bumpy day?
Chloe: Not the smoothest. Someone asked me when the last time I had a good time was, and I didn't have an answer.
Oliver: I don't think anyone can fault you for being on the edge, Chloe. Hell, if anyone can relate it's me. I get it.
Chloe: Yeah, you can.
Oliver: You know... sometimes you got to take your fun where you can get it. And sometimes... it's right in front of your face. You just have to want to see it. Come on.
Chloe: How do I know when to let go?
Oliver: It's all about your heart. Just listen. Right there in between the beats. That's when you let go.

Clark: I guess you can't expect magic to be an exact science.
Zatanna: Was that a clever play on words? Wonderful wit and sparkling theatrics: Mr. Blur's really upped his game.

Steven Swift: Can you at least tell me which heroes you know? No, wait! Don't! That would compromise their identities. I can't believe I asked that.
Chloe: Let's just focus on what makes Stephen Swift so super. So, were you exposed to meteor rock? Or maybe you were actually born this way - that would make you metahuman. Or maybe you're from space. That last one was a joke. Kind of. Oh God. You're not actually from space are you?

References[]


Previous Story:
Absolute Justice, Part 2
Next Story:
Persuasion
EpisodesSeason 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · 10

Minor CharactersSeason 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · 10

Screencaps: Season 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · 10

CategoriesMain Characters · Relationships · Villains

ComicsThe Comic · Season 11 · Miniseries


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