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Episode Summary

A serial killer is on the loose in Metropolis, but Clark and Chloe find themselves on opposing sides when Clark believes that Davis Bloome is responsible, while Chloe defends her new friend.
8.7
out of 10
EPISODE RATING: Great
507 votes
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  • Chloe's meteor-mutant support group harbors a ghostly killer. Clark and the disempowered Martian Manhunter work to find the killer, while Jimmy vows to identify the Metropolis superhero.

    7.5
    "Good"
    This episode demonstrated how important Erica Durance has become in the Smallville universe - she's off at "a tractor pull in Lubbock," according to Clark, so the script is limited to Clark, Chloe, Jimmy and Davis. Sometimes stories work better with a limited number of players, particularly if the plot is complex and exciting. Chloe is finally working her way into a meaningful counseling session with young people with special abilities, but a series of murders in Metropolis leads to suspicion that one of them is behind it.

    Paramedic Davis is featured again, suspecting himself as the possible assailant after he is found unconscious at a mass murder scene covered in blood - not his own. While he and Chloe continue to have inadvisable private meetings, she finally realizes that he has more than a friendly interest and decides they should not see each other for awhile. This makes good sense in the Jimmy-Chloe story - she would have a tough time explaining to him why she was alone with Davis so much.

    Clark gets close to damaging his relationship with Chloe by tracking her private list of clients and subjecting them to investigation by John Jones in his new temporary role as a police detective, but it's all resolved before the end, thanks mostly to Chloe's maturity.

    Little time is spent on the young killer, but Clark manages to discover him and get him confined, but (no surprise here) a Luthorcorp staffer approaches the youth with an offer to join the new "Injustice League" being formed by Tess. While the little ego-maniac claims credit for all the recent murders, the staffer points out that he could not have been responsible for all of them, and a telling clue is left for the last scene, casting suspicion back on Davis.

    Clark does better with Lois around. Mr. Welling's performance in this episode is a little wooden, and lacking any humor or flash. The absence of a sinister force, like Lex, is also apparent, and Cassidy Freeman and Justin Hartley are also out of the script. Almost looks like it was time for cast vacations - no significant developments, no big ongoing stories, with the slight exception of Davis, and nothing compelling to get me to see this one again. It's a slow week. Re-run rating C.moreless

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    0 1
  • Gives insight into Clark's character

    7.0
    "Good"
    I love this show, and I love the characters, but this is one of this episodes that shows the somewhat darker side of Clark Kent; the man who is quick to judge and a bit of a hypocrite. He is beginning to lose faith in the people who aren't his friends - or at least in the people he doesn't know - which is not helping his innate hero complex. See how he instantly doesn't believe that the people in Chloe's "group" could be innocent despite Chloe vouching for them. A younger Clark would have taken Chloe for her word and continued to search for the truth without biases. Clark getting is certainly losing his naivet but he is also growing more cynical each episode.moreless

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    0 1
  • I'm starting to adore Chlavis in this one.

    10
    "Perfect"
    In Plastique, Davis and Chloe have just met and they've hit it off pretty well. The chemistry between them is practically off the hook.

    I loved Prey because it looked like for the first time Davis was able to really connect with someone in his entire life. "so you've closed yourself off to everyone." Sam Witwer has become my favourite actor and Davis Bloome my favourite male tv character ever. I must admit that I am writing this review late, so I do know what happened already but it never stopped me from supporting this character. I love how he's so blunt without being malicious. Chloe is absolutely amazing in standing up for him against Clark. Even though Clark was right about Davis (well not Davis, but the beast who wants control really) I hated the fact that he just decided to act as though he knows everything. Clark is getting a bit too arrogant for my liking. Don't get me wrong, I adore Clark of seasons 1 to 7 and now 8 and 9, well we'll see how that goes. Then there is Jimmy and Chloe's relationship which I don't believe really has anything in it that screams to me "Omg this is awesome." Jimmy is great but sometimes he is portrayed as too soft or too mean. I know there are supporters of Chimmy and I mean absolutely no offense but I just don't see a solid relationship here. I may have been open to the relationship more if I understood what drew Chloe to Jimmy in the first place. Everything with Davis is so easy and Chloe had felt this way once before, not Jimmy (may I assume, Clark?). But so far Chloe looks like she is committed to her relationship with Jimmy so time will tell how these two work out.moreless

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    0 0
  • "Descent" Davis Bloom style.

    10
    "Perfect"
    The only thing this episode needed to be perfect was Lois, but it's still a 10/10! It was a great episode alltogehter. As I have already mentioned, I just love Sam Witwer's acting. He's doing a fantastic job! And it's obvious that Doomsday isn't going to be one of those appeared-out-of-nowhere-died-in-a-single-episode villains. The fight between Chloe and Clark was a very smart thing. I loved what Chloe said about not saving the meteor infected and the whole Meteor Infected Anonymus thing. Clark really needs to find some balance. He goes from being completely passive in the previous seasons, to completely over active this season. He still has a lot to learn. Jimmy is a lot more interesting when he isn't just Chloe's boyfriend. They should separate them a lot more often. The only thing I didn't like was the Chloe-Davis liking each other scene at the end, because it makes all the Chloe-Jimmy drama in "Commited" pointless.moreless

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    2 0
  • Smallville meets X-Men

    9.0
    "Superb"
    This is a great episode in that we finally begin to see Clark taking on the Superman mantle. There are no tights, no flights, nor yet a balanced attitude, but these are all to come. He still has to learn that the most important part of his destiny is as a beacon of hope to awaken people's hearts in a dying world, not a hidden crusader who has to carry the whole world on his shoulders. (Jonathan Kent told him this during his near death experience in season 5, but he clearly hasn't understood it yet) It will thus be fascinating to see how he discovers the best way in which to serve the world around him as he matures into his destiny.

    But back to the current episode; once again it was a delight to witness the fine acting in the character of Davis Bloom. He can come across as such a nice guy but then suddenly in his interaction with Clark you felt a real menace and perverted evil in him. This character both excites and unnerves me. It's a real shame that many reviewers on this site have given away his alter ego, so I hope that the writers have some surprises in store that go far beyond whatever was written in the comics.

    I really appreciated Jimmy's role in this episode - he really comes into his own when his reason for being in the show has nothing to do with Chloe. I felt that his character was most interesting when he was seperated from Chloe in season 7 and was pairing up with Kara. The rest of the time his character is restricted solely to the emotional boyfriend and he feels like only half a person.

    I agree with one of the other reviewers that the Martian manhunter should have a greater role because of the warmth he brings to the show. With Johnathan and Martha both gone, and even Lionel to an extent, the show has lost the good old American warmth of character that reminds us all what Clark is actually destined to save. We now rarely see the bright colours of the Kent farm, the rosy tint in Lex's castle has gone, everything has become dark and sombre. Remind us what Clark is fighting for!

    All that said, this episode in particular was meant to be dark and it worked a treat. Good tension, good conflict, interesting and complex storyline. But let's have a more cheerful and uplifting one with Identity!moreless

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    3 0

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • Trivia

    ADD TRIVIA
    • At the beginning when Clark is rescuing people in Metropolis, at the jewelry store where a robbery is taking place, Clark pushes the robber flying through a window but you can clearly see that the glass breaks before the the robber is even thrown through it. Edit
    • Before Davis and Jimmy start riding in the ambulance (about 27 minutes in), there is a cut scene of the city. The clip is played in reverse, as shown by the cars moving backwards. Edit
    • The jewelry store Clark rescues at the beginning of the episode is the same one featured in the previous episode "Committed." Edit
  • Notes

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    • Detective John Jones is the same identity Martian Mahunter adopted at his first appearance in Detective Comics #225. Edit
    • International Air Dates: Norway: Saturday, February 7, 2009 7.10 pm on TVNorge Sweden: Friday, June 26, 2009 on TV6 Czech Republic: March 22, 2010 on TV Nova Turkey: April 11, 2010 on CNBC-e Edit
    • Injoke: Jimmy's line about the rumored killer being a "monster with bony eyelids" refers to the appearance of Doomsday in the Superman comics. Edit
  • Quotes

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    • John: We can't save everyone, Clark. Clark: The moment I believe that is when I stop trying. Edit
    • John: I didn't realize that photographic memory was among your abilities. Clark: It's more like speed-reading, but let's not split hairs. Edit
    • Chloe: (to Davis) Chance meeting in a moldy basement over a corpse. Will the romance ever end? Edit
  • Allusions

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