Smallville

Season 6 Episode 15

Freak

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A boy named Tobias was blinded by the meteor shower but given the ability to identify other meteor freaks. Lex is using Tobias to locate other people with abilities so that he can perform experiments on them. Lana learns of Tobias and is fearful that he will name Clark as a freak, so she offers him a cornea transplant to keep him quiet. But Tobias has some surprising news.moreless
FAN RECAP

Fan Episode Reviews (75)

SUBMIT REVIEW

  • I can't believe that Chloe is a meteor freak

    10
    By scillaward, Sep 11, 2010
    I was shocked to find out that Chloe was the one that Tobias was after and not Clark. It's good that Lana risked her life to protect Clark's "meteor freak" secret. I'm glad that she's not playing the dumb blonde and is still not believing Clark's story and is still determined to find out the truth. I find it very interesting to see that even though Lex loves Lana, he is lying and deceiving her. Lana looks like she doesn't believe him, but who knows. Secrets and lies are all what Lex is about and sooner or later Lana will realize that.moreless

  • The latest sinister plot by Lex involves using a meteor-infected young man to detect others with powers, whom Lex abducts for experimentation. Lana, Clark and Chloe investigate, leading to a life-changing discovery about Chloe.moreless

    8.5
    By cxtasy, Sep 28, 2008
    Chloe and Lana show their skill at bowling gutter balls at the Smallville Lanes, while one of the alley attendants, Daniel, watches them closely. He controls the ball with his mind, no doubt to curry favor with Lana, who starts rolling strikes. Chloe is much more observant - that gal can spot a meteor freak way off. But Lana cools him off by showing her engagement ring. A blind young man, Tobias, is escorted into the alley, and we soon realize that he can see people with powers - to him they have a bright, glowing aura - he identifies Daniel as infected. As Daniel leaves, a sinister figure approaches him outside, a van arrives and he's snatched. Chloe followed him out, but is nearly run over, and takes a fall as the van careens down the dark street.



    Clark and Chloe turn investigator, discussing first whether Clark will attend the Lex-Lana wedding. He is reluctant. But then Daniel shows up, appearing the same, but remembering nothing of his abduction.



    Lex is prepping for the wedding; he questions why Chloe left the bowling alley the previous night, expressing concern. The escort of Tobias, Dr. Bethany, talks to Lex; he is anxious for a cornea transplant for Tobias, which confirms that Lex is behind the abductions. Lex tells Dr. Bethany to be patient. At the DP, Chloe and Clark conclude that people with meteor powers are being abducted. She has a phone-photo of the alley, which shows Tobias, who was blinded in the first meteor shower, pointing at something. Why? They visit Tobias at his home, but he's not talking. When his glasses fall off, they notice that he gets raging headaches from the light. As they pause outside, Clark super-hears Tobias telling Dr. Bethany on the phone, "I found another." Is it Clark? Or could it be Chloe?



    Lana questions Chloe's purpose in leaving the bowling alley; Chloe covers her tracks by casting suspicion on Daniel as a stalker, and on Lex as being involved. Lana is skeptical.



    Clark sees Dr. Bethany at the hospital, but of course he won't talk about a patient. Clark asks if Daniel is also a patient. Clark nabs the doctor's laptop, and Dr. Bethany is alarmed, but can't detect Clark's action.



    Clark later tells Jimmy that he can't find Chloe, and heads back to see Tobias, who is trying to read braille with one finger. Clark accuses Dr. Bethany of kidnapping Chloe; Tobias admits it was not because she a witness to Daniel's kidnapping, but because she's a meteor freak! This is a major development in the series - one that will surely lead to numerous story lines in the future.



    Chloe is strapped down in a lab, surrounded by shrouded technicians, making it all look like an alien abduction scene. They are "beginning extraction" with an enormous syringe inserted into her. She screams, cut to another scene.



    At the mansion, Lana asks Lex about Tobias, telling him that Tobias lost his vision and now can see meteor-infected people. He denies knowing Tobias, and he's a pretty good liar, but Lana is getting pretty good at detecting evasion.



    Clark and Jimmy talk, wondering about Chloe, who suddenly walks in. She does not remember being abducted, only that she woke up in her bed. Why did they take her? Deflecting Jimmy's questions, Clark explains that she was a witness to Daniel's abduction. Chloe sets to work on the computer.



    Dr. Bethany informs Lex that sensitive information has been misplaced - his laptop. Lex threatens again, claiming he has nothing to do with it, but Bethany points out that Luthorcorp information may be on the laptop. Lex demands that he bring Tobias in. Lana goes to see Tobias, telling him she knows about his ability and that he he must stop - he's being exploited. She offers him a escape route - she'll help him get the corneal transplant surgery, telling him "You may be putting someone at risk who saves lives on a daily basis." She thinks Clark is infected, but Tobias says he is normal. Lana is taken aback..she was so sure.



    At the Talon, Clark and Chloe try to hack the Doctor's computer, while Clark doesn't tell Chloe that she's infected. Then she guesses - she's a meteor freak - it's upsetting news. The computer graphic shows that Dr. Bethany is tracking meteor freaks. Jimmy brings the news that Daniel was killed in a car accident, and his map plot shows a red x. The meteor-infected are being killed. One green dot is at the Talon - it must indicate Chloe - is she next? She sends Jimmy out, and asks Clark to x-ray her...he finds a subcutaneous object in her shoulder - she's being tracked. Terrified, she pleads with Clark to use heat vision to burn it out. It's painful, but he does it, and removes the device!



    Lana and Tobias are startled to find Dr. Bethany has entered the house - claiming that he's ready to perform the eye surgery on Tobias. Now aware of the danger, Tobias turns off the power, and Dr. Bethany pulls an electronic weapon. Tobias is also armed, and wounds the doctor, then they fight and Lana grabs the pistol. In some inventive stop-motion and superslow action, we see her fire at the doctor before he can shoot the beam at Tobias. Clark speeds in as the bullet speeds on it way, showing a reflection of the scene on the bullet's surface. Slick effect. Clark deflects it, and simultaneously stops the beam from hitting Tobias. Tobias and Lana are stunned by these outcomes. The doctor is downed by a reflection of the beam, but Lana finds that the bullet ricocheted. From what? Who was there?



    As the police clean up the scene, Tobias tells Clark about Lana's suspicions, and Clark asks, " What did you tell her?" Tobias replies, "The truth, that you're normal"...so Tobias cannot detect Clark's powers. Lana shows Clark the bullet; she fired the gun but the bullet hit the cabinet on the other side of the room. Clark suggests it was a simple ricochet, presenting just enough doubt to Lana. She tells him, "Even if you were meteor-infected, it wouldn't matter to me." Clark cannot play deception all that well.



    As Lana returns to the mansion, Lex questions what was she doing - she was trying to save Tobias. She saw Lex with Dr. Bethany; Lex invents another huge lie that he was merely talking to him about a donation. She wants to believe Lex, but she can't...fully.



    Chloe now has life-changing news. She can't sleep - all she can think about is her infection. Clark tries to downplay it, but she knows she is infected. Does she have powers? Is it latent? She feels like a walking time bomb - it's time for some reassurance, Clark. In the final scene, Lex the liar is alone, his experiment gone bad, the Doctor dead, Tobias has escaped his grasp. All is has is video of Chloe in the lab, as he tells a technician, " Keep a close eye on her."



    The Tobias character and storyline are better than in other episodes involving the meteor-infected, and the revelation that Chloe is infected can lead to big changes in her life, affecting all her relationships. Lana's suspicions grow, and Lex is seen as ever more sinister. An intriguing episode, with some really special special effects, and well-scripted tension. Good to see more than once. Re-run rating B+.moreless

  • You've Got A Freak in You!

    9.1
    By lenzinoH20, Apr 28, 2008
    Freak-A boy named Tobias was blinded by the meteor shower but given the ability to identify other meteor freaks. Lex is using Tobias to locate other people with abilities so that he can perform experiments on them. Lana learns of Tobias and is fearful that he will name Clark as a freak, so she offers him a cornea transplant to keep him quiet. But Tobias has some surprising news.



    Chloe has always been a head strong and free-spirited character out to live her dream as a first class reporter. But in the past 2 years, Chloe has become one of the strongest characters of the series. Her loyalty to Clark, not to mention, her computer hacking skills have become essential to the character and developed her emmensely. "Freak" sees probably the biggest development for Chloe as she is revealed to be a meteor freak. It's an ingenuis plot development as Chloe has been chasing after meteor freaks for years and there's a great sense of irony as she is now one of them. Allison Mack shines throughout the episode and gives one of the best performances of her career. One scene in particular where there's a tracking device inside Chloe and she panics by telling Clark to destory the device with his heat vision is a beatifully acted scene. It's a truly nail-biting scene with Allison as well as Tom Welling showing how unbelieveably close Clark and Chloe have become. Chloe trusts Clark will her life completely and it was very moving in the end.



    The whole storyline with Tobias is very well thought out and his ability to see other meteor freak makes for an impressive plot device. Greyston Holt (Tobias Rice) gives a subtle errie-ish performance and I love the look of his power as he sees another meteor freak. There are also some disturbing scenes like Chloe being experimented on by speciast in radioactive suits. The way they had Chloe strapped down and stabbing her in the chest with a huge needle looked very painful. Lana continues to become more interesting (what a shock!) as she gets closer to Clark's secret. Even when Lana is told by Tobias that Clark is normal, she still finds the bullet that bounces off him. Lana's speech to Clark about how she would accept Clark even if he was a metoer freak was very insightful. Lastly, I love how Lex was behind the whole thing and is now watching over Chloe. All and All, "Freak" is a stellar episode full of character development, intense scenes, an impressive directional debut by Micheal Rosenbaum and a skillful performance by Allison Mack.moreless

  • Sets the table for the bank shot!

    9.3
    By chazzanova, Dec 07, 2007
    This is simply a great Smallville episode. Not only does it stand on its own as an action packed story, but it really "sets the table," so to say for all the things yet to come... especially the formation of the Justice League (though they don't call it that... or even have a name for it yet!) and the interplay between the characters.



    I know when the show first started, the WB said they'd never have Clark Kent fly or team up with other superheroes, or anything like that, but the show's been so successful and on for so long, they needed new storylines. But instead of them being trite or farfetched... they all feel organic to the Smallville mythology. Bravo!moreless

  • Shocker!!!

    9.4
    By super_friend21, Oct 29, 2007
    What a jam-packed episode. First point: Clark used all his powers in this one even though it was strange seeing his super breath because he never uses it, second point: Chloe maybe a meteor freak, third point: Clark burning Chloe! Fourth point: Lex's dramatic warning on Chloe for his workers to 'keep an eye on her'. Lana still cares about Clark enough to 'protect' him from Lex. Just tell her already Clark, be a man! Great episode, made superb viewing and I look forward to where these storylines lead to. What's that coming over the hill, is it a monster?? No, its Lex...moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

Allison Mack

Allison Mack

Chloe Sullivan
Kristin Kreuk

Kristin Kreuk

Lana Lang
Tom Welling

Tom Welling

Clark Kent/Kal-El of Krypton
Michael Rosenbaum

Michael Rosenbaum

Alexander ('Lex') Joseph Luthor
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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

Greyston Holt

Greyston Holt

Tobias Rice

Guest Star

Adrian Hough

Adrian Hough

Dr. Bethany

Guest Star

Robert Gauvin

Robert Gauvin

Doctor

Guest Star

Aaron Ashmore

Aaron Ashmore

Jimmy Olsen

Recurring Role

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • TRIVIA (11)

    • When Clark and Chloe are in the Talon looking at the "map of Smallville with a GPS over-lay" (which looks more like an aerial photo), Chloe says that "there's a new red dot on the street just outside the bowling alley." The red dot however, is clearly in the center of the building, not on the street. There is also no alley next to the building.

    • This is the first time that Clark, uses his all of his (current) powers, in one episode.

    • Breaking and entering is bad enough. But why is Clark breaking into the bowling alley? Daniel was kidnapped outside the place, his kidnappers were never inside as far as anyone knows (and the place was presumably cleaned after it closed so no clues could be found), and any witnesses are long gone.

    • Jimmy lives in Metropolis, except when he's in Smallville visiting Chloe or has some other business. But as Clark and Chloe check out the computer, he just comes in and says Daniel died in a car accident fifteen minutes ago... in Smallville. They've kept him in the dark about what's going on, so why would he be in Smallville, much less listening for suspicious deaths? Alternately, if he was in Metropolis and heard about it, that city is a three-hour drive away.

    • The zip code given on screen for Smallville, 35409, is not currently in use. However, if it were in use, that would place Smallville somewhere in Alabama, not Kansas.

    • Tobias turns off the electricity and (apparently) hopes that the doctor can't see him because it's too dark. But for the rest of the scene Lana and the doctor can see each other clearly enough to aim at each other.

    • The bullet that Clark deflected into a metal plate shows no indication of deformation on the tip, which would have to occur if it struck a solid object.

    • All the paparazzi that were stalking Lana last week are nowhere to be seen this week, even though she's at the scene of a mysterious death where EMTs have been called and detectives are taking her statement.

    • Trivia: The Talon Theater's address is listed as 220 Main Street, Smallville Kansas, 35409.

    • When Chloe and Lana were bowling and Lana threw her first strike, the gate was dropping before the pins started to fall. Since Chloe said it was her last frame, she had two more opportunities to throw the ball. She only threw the ball one other time, and it was an 8-pound ball, instead of a 10-pound ball from previous.

    • Chloe's photo of Tobias naming the guy at the bowling alley makes no sense. Tobias hadn't come in yet when Chloe took the photo, and in the picture itself, the doctor is nowhere to be seen, while in the actual scene he was standing behind Tobias.

  • QUOTES (11)

    • Chloe: Clark, I need you to X-ray me.
      Clark: What?
      Chloe: Clark, come on, we're both adults. Now just do it!

    • Chloe: Clark, there's something inside of me! I don't want to go to the ER and wait for the doctors to figure out what it's gonna do to me! How accurate's your heat-vision?
      Clark: Chloe, don't even go there.
      Chloe: Is it pin-point accurate?
      Clark: Chloe, I'm not gonna burn you!
      Chloe: Clark, Daniel Kim is dead! And every single one of those green dots is turning red one by one. I will not be the next red dot!

    • Chloe: With the wedding of the century coming up are you going to be renting a tux next weekend or a DVD?
      Clark: Chloe, what reason would I have to watch them get married?
      Chloe: Maybe because if you showed up it would send a message that you're actually moving on. You know, to Lana, to Lex, and more importantly to yourself.

    • Clark: So what does this guy look like? Your bowling buddy?
      Chloe: Ahh he's Asian, about six feet tall with an earring in his left ear...
      Clark: (sees a guy matching the description walking towards them) You mean like that guy?
      Daniel: Hey! What are you doing? We're closed!
      Chloe: What happened to you last night?
      Daniel: (rubs forehead to remember) Did... did you and me... did we hookup?
      Chloe: Ahh no. You were thrown in a van by men in black.
      Daniel: Damn! I thought I drank a lot last night.

    • Clark: So people with meteor powers are being abducted?
      Chloe: And then released with a memory wipe that reaches back before the abduction.
      Clark: The question is what's happening to them on the big night out?
      Chloe: I'm guessing not a pajama party.

    • Chloe: Face it, Clark, I'm a walking time bomb.
      Clark: Then consider me your own personal bomb squad.

    • Lex: Is it just me, or do I look like a waiter serving high tea.
      Lana: You look like the most handsome groom in the world.
      Lex: Good answer.

    • Tobias: When we were in high school I assumed the only thing Lana Lang cared about was lip gloss and pom-poms.
      Lana: You didn't know me very well.

    • Tobias: (to Lana) You must be talking about a different Clark Kent, because the Clark I know is the most normal guy I've ever met.

    • Lana: (to Clark) You know, even if it was true, even if you were meteor-infected, it wouldn't matter. You'd still be the same Clark Kent.

    • Lex: Glasses are misplaced--car keys. Not classified information.

  • NOTES (5)

  • ALLUSIONS (0)

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