The road to this interview was long and arduous. It was like being on the road. A long, arduous road. And not only that, but the road that it took me even to get to this long, arduous comparison of written word to metaphorical road was (you guessed it) long. And arduous.

Nevertheless, I was in high spirits when I found out that, after six months of trying, I was going to get the chance to speak (by phone, at a safe distance) to one of the minds behind the WB hit, Smallville. And not just one of the guys who paints digital blurs on Tom Welling when he runs or who dabs extra makeup on poor Kristin Kreuk to make sure that her preternatural prettiness is sufficiently covered to ensure that she doesn't short-circuit the cameras used on the show. I was going to speak to one of the creators of the show.

Al Gough (rhymes with "cough") was charming, funny and very cool about letting his metaphoric hair down for the interview. It made up for the lengthy wait, and for having to see interviews granted to other media outlets like "John. B.'s website where he kinda likes Smallville and shit, but also has pictures of his band, The Nephilin Sniffers, and some links to Pamela Anderson porn," before us.

But I digress. On a late Friday afternoon -- on my birthday, in fact -- I got The Call From Gough. (which turned out to be even better than if Godot had shown up.) About midway through the interview, Al had to go to a meeting, and about a month later, we hooked up again, by phone.

Omar: Hi!

Al Gough: I love your site, by the way. I think your synopses of the shows are hysterical. I was talking to the president of Warners television. I was relaying to him that I surf the websites after episodes, and telling him about the site. [Chuckles.] They're very funny and you have very good nicknames. I like "Boobs McChesty." That's my favorite. [Note: Boobs McChesty is ™Wook from the forums.]

OG: I was going to ask. Is she coming back?

AG: No.

OG: [Laughs.] Wow. So, she won't return.

AG: She's done. If she comes back, she's dying.

OG: How did Smallville happen? Whose idea was it, and what were the biggest challenges getting it off the ground?

AG: The biggest challenge... It started with four of us. [Al Gough, Miles Millar, Mike Tollin, Brian Robbins as executive producers, and Joe Davola.] We were talking with Peter Roth, head of Warners Television. He'd been developing with Tollin/Robbins Productions a young Batman show that didn't go forward because they didn't get the rights. He approached us. We'd worked with him on another show. He told us about this. We said wow, this sounds great. It sounded like a cool idea. Smallville is a part of Superman's life you haven't seen a lot of. We found out later [that] the mythology there is squishy at best. We want basically no suit, no glasses. He can't fly, his powers are emerging. Our biggest change to the mythology was the whole meteor shower. It solved a few problems. It's 1989, so it was caught by a hundred satellites. It masks the entry of Clark into the atmosphere and also gave us stories every week. How do you build stories out of a small town? Kryptonite. Weird things happen. It's sort of Norman Rockwell and Blue Velvet underneath. It just went from there. The other idea was, what if Lex and Clark had been friends when they were younger? Out of that that incredible friendship grew this mythology. It was an interesting place to go. It's a story we've seen celebrated in story and in song.

OG: Not so much in song.

AG: [Laughs.] Right. There was that Superman musical.

OG: We're just jumping ahead in my list of questions. I was going to ask about music. Buffy did a musical episode this season. Will we see Lex Luthor do a song-and-dance number anytime soon?

AG: We'll break into song in Season Eight. We have a few rules. No dwarfs, no doppelgângers until Season Eight. You really have to understand the characters to have them break into song. I love musical theater. I was really excited to see that Buffy episode. I thought it was very cool.

OG: There you go, jumping ahead again. I was going to ask about future seasons. What happens after four years of Smallville? I'm assuming those first four years will be the high-school years.

AG: Obviously. Then the kids go to college. I'm sort of speaking a little off the top of my head. Some kids might go to K-State or the University of Metropolis. That's the natural progression, anyway. The way we built the show, you have seen Metropolis -- some a little more closely than I was hoping -- from a window. [Laughs.] We had some problems with the scale and I didn't make it clear to the designers how far it's supposed to be. Metropolis is supposed to be three hours away.

OG: Yeah, People on the forums caught that.

AG: [Laughs.] Exactly. When they're on the windmill, it looks like Metropolis is just over yonder.

OG: What's the relationship with DC Comics like? Do you have a Superman comics canon that you work from? How close will the series follow the comics? Will Pete marry Lana?

AG: Neither Miles nor myself were huge comic book fans. We were fans of the movies. For us, we're sort of not going to follow comics continuity in that way. They look at us as sort of separate from the comics. They look at Smallville as a different line, like they do their comic lines. They've been great. [President and Editor-in-Chief] Jenette Kahn and everyone at DC has been supportive about the show. They're the people who know Superman the best. To get their blessing was great for us. We're glad they've been so enthusiastic.

OG: There was an allusion to Lex being in the White House and some other comic-book touches.

AG: If you notice, we mixed continuity in the White House, and with the glove he wears, because of the radioactive ring and the infected hand. We merged a couple of things. We sometimes borrow from the comics, sometimes we throw lines to the fans. But we're following our own continuity.

OG: I think you made the comic-book fans wet their pants with that.

AG: [Laughs.] Well, we try.

OG: I just read today that you and your partner pitched an idea for the sequel to the upcoming Spider-Man movie. Are you and Miles Millar becoming experts on superhero adaptations?

AG: Yes. We're very excited. Columbia asked us to come in and talk about it. We think we're on the same page creatively and [psychologically] with Sam [Raimi, director of Spider-Man]. The first movie is fantastic. It's an honor for us. We were both big Spider-Man fans when we were kids. We loved the theme song.

OG: He was more celebrated in song than Superman.

AG: Yes, he was more celebrated in song. [Laughter.] Somebody said we've done the Marvel version of Superman. They said that to us a year or so ago, and I wasn't sure what they meant. When I thought about it, the Marvel universe has more flawed characters coming to term with their super abilities. We've got kryptonite making the mutation element of the show as well.

OG: How slowly will Lex's move to the dark side unfold? Will we ever see a truly evil Lex on Smallville?

AG: You know...it'll be a long, slow evolution with many twists and turns in the road. The fun is watching sort of this progression. If you turn him evil too early, the character becomes less interesting. We want to play it slowly. We want to watch the twists and the turns.

OG: What can you reveal about the rest of this season? What's the finale you're working on?

AG: Basically, we're leading up to the spring formal and playing out the Clark/Lana/Chloe relationship. Also, you'll start to see things come to a head with Lex and his father. It's all sort of leading to the spring formal dance. There will be twisters coming to Smallville.

OG: Not pigs' blood, then.

AG: No. [Laughs.]

OG: How have you been able to attract such great character actors like John Glover and Joe Morton?

AG: John we got in the pilot. We called him up and said [we'd] always been fans. In the pilot, you don't have much. We told him that Lionel is incredibly crucial throughout the course of the season. John came up and really took to the character and understood his place in our world. We love John. He's really enjoyed doing the show. Lex never had a father as far as I know; [Lex] may have killed [his father]. Lionel is kind of a mix of Donald Trump and Richard Branson. A buccaneer businessman. You can see who Lex became by who his father is and his [father's] influence on [Lex]. That's how we brought [Lionel] in. Joe Morton we called up. We'd been huge fans. We had him as a recurring role. We sent him the first script he was in. His kids had watched the show and enjoyed it, and he was a Superman fan. We loved him ever since Brother from Another Planet and T2. He's incredible. He'll be a part of the show. You'll continue to see him.

OG: There's been a lot of discussion of this on our message boards from nearly all of our readers. On a scale from 1 to 10, 10 being the most, exactly how homoerotic is the relationship between Lex Luthor and Clark Kent?

AG: You're talking to two guys who made their careers on buddy movies. Buddy cop movies are love stories with two guys who carry guns. It's really not supposed to be homoerotic at all. [Laughs.] I sometimes read your site and I think we're doing Kiss of the Spider Woman. [Laughs.] It's a little freaky. Lex is obviously older than Clark and lives by himself in this castle. It is genuine friendship. It's not supposed to be gay. It has taken on a life of its own. We don't sit down and try to find the Gayest Scene of the Episodes.

OG: Yet, it comes out. How hard is it to find a balance between tongue-in-cheek humor (like Bo hearing the Dukes of Hazzard theme on the radio) and sticking to the seriousness of the mythos?

AG: That's the chemistry experiment in each episode. Our theory is play it straight and then you can do a couple of winks. They always have to be playing it straight. We're not as tongue-in-cheek as other shows. It's a balance. The Dukes theme song, I was back and forth on it. I said we could do it if you played it as a throwaway. That's probably right on the line, though.

OG: One complaint we've had on the boards about the show is that actors like Annette O'Toole and Sam Jones III aren't used enough. Will they have their own storylines in future episodes?

AG: Both characters are going to have bigger storylines next season. They're both fantastic actors. We're working with the mix of shows, and it's a balancing act, getting people into episodes. Unfortunately, Sam has gotten the least screen time. He's definitely going to have a bigger role next season. They're both really terrific.

OG: There's been talk of having Bruce Wayne as a character on the show. Is that any closer to happening?

AG: Not in the near future. I think that's something that we could potentially see a little further down the road. That all has to do with issues, financial and rights control. It's an ongoing dream. [Laughs.] It's just hard when you cross those two worlds. It's difficult. You deal with Warner features and DC comics and other entities. If anyone doesn't like the idea, it's dead. It's just finding the right way to approach that.

OG: Do you feel the era of the Kryptonite Villain of the Week is over? We got some word around mid-season that there'd be less of that, but recent episodes have gone back to that well. Will we see that in the second season?

AG: You will. It's interesting. I see Buffy fighting vampires every week and nobody seems to mind if they're always vampires or demons. The last two weeks have been very much in that vein. They're fastballs down the middle with "Reaper" and "Drone." "Drone" certainly was a strong episode that had a lot going on. We tend to focus on the relationship elements of the show. The kryptonite-infected person is there, but obviously we're going to try to mix that up. We'll see more true crime next year, and more character stuff. A little less of the kryptonite infections, and then Clark throws them thirty feet. What worked really well, we'll try to bring back. We'll try to keep expanding the storytelling. I think we have done that since "Rogue." Next week, in "Crush," the kid doesn't have a kryptonite infection. In the finale, there's no kryptonite to be seen. And there's very little in "Obscura." We're continuing to try to branch out [in the] storytelling.

OG: "Stray" also didn't have a kryptonite element.

AG: The kid had powers, but not from kryptonite.

OG: In that episode, Edge City was mentioned. Going back to the Batman question, was that something that'll be brought back?

AG: We like to sort of keep to the DC world -- Metropolis and Edge City. We'll mention Coast City next season. We like to keep everything within the realm of the DC universe as much as we can.

OG: Obviously, Lana and Clark don't end up together. How do you keep that relationship from stagnating, since we all know it's not meant to be? Will Clark date anyone else?

AG: I think so. The thing with Lana is, yes, they don't end up together. What's interesting is, what effect does she have on his life? They'll always sort of be soulmates. Down the road, [Clark] ends up with Lois Lane. It's an element that works well. Unrequited love. Certainly, next season, we'll introduce a potential love interest for both of them, and then there's Chloe as well. We'll try to keep those triangles interesting. Sometimes that involves introducing a love interest down the way.

OG: But not Lex.

AG: [Laughs.] But not Lex. No. [More laughs.]

OG: Sorry to return to that.

AG: That's a constant theme in the [Television Without Pity]...

OG: ...oeuvre? There've been a lot of deaths on Smallville in the first season. Will that continue into next year? Will some of the villains come back?

AG: Bugboy is still out there, Shapeshifting Girl is still out there. They're probably all in a hospital together and will stage a big revolt together and come back to Smallville. Only a couple have died. Most of them have gone off to hospitals somewhere. The cop in "Rogue" died. The guy in "Hug" died. It's one of those things. It's not really a high death count. When you have a fight with Superman, how do you save the day without putting someone in a grave?

OG: I'd been speculating that when Lana visits her parents in the graveyard, she sees all the villains from past episodes. That's a whole other drama.

AG: [Laughs.] She brings them all back. We'll do a "Thriller."

OG: Clark hasn't really shown an aptitude for reporting yet. Will we see more of his journalistic side?

AG: Yes. You'll see more of that in Season Two. Absolutely. As he grows comfortable with it, he takes a more active interest in journalism because of Chloe. You'll see that interest grow. She tends to pull him into things, but he'll start to take his own initiative. He's definitely going to take a more active role

OG: What was Michael Rosenbaum's audition like?

AG: It was really...it was interesting. He was the last one cast. We'd seen him earlier on in the process. He was sick that day, and wasn't feeling well. When he came back in toward the end, the casting director had a video camera set up. It's amazing how adept they are at how to use this thing. They set it up and asked him to stay in one place, but Michael said, "I'm gonna move around, shake your hand." He moved around the room. It was great to sort of watch this audition tape when you see him. It was the scene from the pilot with the car keys and him asking Clark if he thought a man could fly. He really nailed the scene. We saw the charisma and charm and sense of danger the character has there. That's when we knew we'd found our Lex Luthor. It was the toughest role to cast. It's great when you find an actor inhabit a role and make it so. It's been fun to watch and certainly nice with Lex and his relationships.

OG: How soon might we see Smallville on DVD? We've heard the pilot may be released as early as June.

AG: The pilot and "Metamorphosis," put together as a movie. It's gonna be on DVD, I think, in June, and released in Canada. ["Woo!" -- Wing Chun] I don't know about the U.S. Europe will follow after. Also, the pilot and "Metamorphosis" put together -- we had put those together to get more money to make the pilot. We're trying to get word from Warners International and Home Video division to get a street date. The issue is they don't want to put things on DVD before syndication. The U.S. seems to be the last place to get seasons on DVD. In England you could have gotten Friends seasons years ago.

OG: Buffy is another example of that. ["And Futurama." -- Wing Chun]

AG: And X-Files. It becomes about these large entertainment corporations. They're trying to protect their investments. It's a shame. I'd like to get it out on DVD. They've certainly run the pilot on the air enough.

OG: And everybody's got it on tape.

AG: Sure, they have it on tape or TiVo'd.

OG: Is there a soundtrack in the works?

AG: There is a soundtrack in the works. It'll be out on the fall. We're working on that now. We're literally in the process of sitting down with record company and picking artists. Remy Zero's [theme] song will be on it, obviously. We'll put in music from shows and stuff we might put in shows next season.

OG: Is there any merchandise you're particularly excited about?

AG: There are action figures. There's something else: t-shirts. Property of Smallville High. I'm sure they have plans to do more of that stuff. There's a Smallville comic in the works. One of the writers here is working on that.

OG: Do you feel there was a moment or episode where the show really hit its stride this season?

AG: Honestly, for us, there were a couple of sort of points. "Hourglass," for us, was one where we felt we could do something. We were able to take the show to a different level. We sold the potential for the show to break out of the format we'd laid down for the first seven. Another big one was "Rogue." It was our first sort of kryptonite-free episode that stood alone. Those two episodes in particular. And then for us, "Leech" and "Stray" were two other sort of high points. "Nicodemus" as well. It was probably the most purely enjoyable episode of the season. "Rogue" was a real turning point for us. We were starting to hear online rumblings about the villains of the week. It goes back to the meteor shower -- that will always be there. It was interesting to introduce Metropolis, and also the idea that somebody without superpowers could really hold Clark's feet to the fire. It showed us that there are a lot of other stories to tell. Next year, kryptonite villains will be in the mix, but not the primary source of storytelling.

[At this point, we were told to wrap it up.]

OG: Have you all begun shooting Season Two? What might we expect next year? Is there an overall theme for the second season?

AG: Season One was sort of the discovery of power. Season Two is taking on that mantle. We'll see Clark starting to explore his origins, and also Lex and his father will be much more diametrically opposed after the season finale. We'll explore more with the Kents and Martha's family as well. Clark will get another superpower. We could see red kryptonite creep into the picture.

OG: Thank you Al. I appreciate your talking to me again.