What's up with Lana? Nervous about acceptance and wanting an actual family to belong to, Lana meets her biological father's wife, Mrs. Jennifer Small. Mrs. Small warns Lana not to get too close to Henry Small, who has a lack of interest in his other children, and is known to change his priorities at whim.
What's up with Lex? Lex is beaten out of a $150 million deal by Lionel. Finding surveillance devices in the mansion, he decides Lionel is spying on him. Lex confronts Lionel about his "bug" problem, then gives the go ahead to arrange a bugging at LuthorCorp headquarters in Metropolis. When Lex realizes that Lionel and Martha are at headquarters on the day the bugging is planned, he tries to abort the operation. Greed turns the surveillance team on the boss. They've planned to break into the LuthorCorp vault.
What's up with Martha? Jonathan is planning a Sunday picnic to celebrate their wedding anniversary. Martha is expected at a meeting in Metropolis with Lionel Luthor. She leaves after an angry argument. At LuthorCorp headquarters, Lionel gives Martha a gift of a beautiful watch and offers a promotion and Metropolis office. As Martha tries to refuse, the surveillance team thugs take them hostage at gunpoint. Lionel uses his secret personal panic button to summon police. One thug kills the boss who refused to join their criminal plan, and all guns are drawn in a tense moment. Lionel and Martha talk regretfully about their last conversations with Lex and Jonathan. The thugs break into the vault, finding it filled with green kryptonite bars, confidential files, and the octagonal disk/key to Clark's spaceship that was lost during the twister. Martha notices a confidential file marked "Clark Kent" among those from the vault.
What's up with Jonathan? Lex calls the thugs, who still don't know his identity. They tell him what they've found in the vault. He says he knows a way out of the building if hostages are freed. Jonathan overhears Lex's conversation, suspecting and threatening him if he finds that Kex is involved in this mess.
What's up with Clark? In Metropolis, Clark is stopped from entering LuthorCorp by a cop. Clark gets into The Daily Planet building, and peers down from the roof. We know he's afraid of heights. Clark steps back, then takes a flying leap to the tall building across the street, LuthorCorp. He lands, breaking through a window. Clark bursts into the room where the hostages are being held, overtaking the thugs, then falling helplessly to the floor because of all the kryptonite bars in the room. At the same time, Martha screams at Clark to get out. She pushes the cart of kryptonite back into the vault, closing the door. A thug threatens Lionel with a drill to his head. Clark stops him, as Lionel shoots the thug dead. Martha whispers to Clark to burn the confidential files with his heat vision, protecting his secrets. The police burst into the room.
How it ends: Outside of LuthorCorp afterwards, Martha and Jonathan happily reunite and leave with Clark. Lionel has realized Lex's involvement, and bitterly tells him he'll move out of the mansion. Lex is left alone, realizing his blame.
Martha wants to resign from LuthorCorp. Now that the Kents know that Lionel may know too much about Clark, Jonathan thinks its best she continue working with Lionel to monitor his moves, in the interest of protecting Clark. We see that Martha has the spaceship key/disk, which she picked up in the hostage confusion. She hides it in a bin of flour without telling Jonathan or Clark that she has it.
[back to top]

Brooding Dr. Evil music plays as we open on Lex, sitting at his glass desk, his hands triangled at a perfect Mr. Burns pose in front of him. This show is broadcast in high-definition widescreen, and if I have my druthers (druthers donations accepted, by the way), I may be watching it that way by late spring. Lex -- still looking down at his "Here is the steeple..." hands -- says he was under the impression the deal had closed. A lackey, who looks like he could be the biologically impossible son of Nathan Lane and Hank Azaria, holds his briefcase in his arms like a baby and apologizes. Lex is pissed. He says he wants to know how his dad beat him out of a $150 million contract that he thought was a done deal. Nathan Azaria says the only way Papa Luthor could have pulled that off was with inside information. Lex says he and Nathan were the only two who knew about it, and since Lex didn't tell his father... "That leaves you in a very uncomfortable position." Nathan, who seems to be a total wuss, says that if he no longer has Lex's confidence, he'll tender his resignation. Aw. He'll "tender" it. See? Wuss. Lex stands and comes around the desk as the music continues to swell. Lex says his dad would have done more than just accept a resignation. He'd "hobble [Nathan] at the knees" and make sure the poor guy never had a corporate job again. That's fine. Nathan, a Good Samaritan at heart, has always wanted to teach the homeless. Nathan gulps and starts to walk away. "But I'm not my father," Lex says. Lex just wants to know how Papa Luthor found out, and how Lex can stop it from ever happening again. Nathan Azaria, shell-shocked, nods and exits. Lex has a really nice flat-panel monitor on his desk. Oh, wait, he did. He swings his arms and throws stuff off his desk, including the monitor. Lex bends down to pick stuff up and then notices a small white flower. It looks a bit like mistletoe. He pulls out what looks like a needle with some stuff on it: Ah, it's a bug. The Watergate kind. Lex looks around. This is not good. (more...)
-- Omar G (TWoP)

After Lex discovers that Lionel installed cameras in the mansion, he hires some thugs to bug Lionel's office, but things get out of control when Lionel and Martha surprise the thugs and are taken hostage. Clark must figure out a way to save his mother without exposing his powers and sees his chance on an adjacent tall building - if only he could make the leap in a single bound. Kristin Kreuk, Allison Mack, Sam Jones III, and John Schneider also star.

Clark: Just because you have a family doesn't mean every day's a picnic.
Lana: Unless you're a Kent.

Lex: With my father there's no such thing as a personal life.

Lex: I want you to know I was doing everything I could to secure your release.
Lionel: Oh I'm sure you did a great deal.

Lex: Big Brother is listening. Or should I say 'Big Daddy'?

The effects on everything but the end of the jump were very good. That last shot looked very fake, though. The reflection of Clark and the Planet globe in the windows almost makes up for it. I give it 5 out of 6.

The story was well done. Lex ends up looking like a greater bad guy than he is at this point, Lionel has even more reason to suspect, and the Kents are starting to take some pro-active moves towards keeping Clark's secret. If they're showing an episode like this now, I can't wait to see what's waiting for us during sweeps. I give it 5 out of 6, for three minor problems. (The first is in the Low Point, the second was when the first line of cops didn't stop Clark walking through the barricade, and the third was when Lex didn't question how Clark beat the helicopter to Metropolis when he'd been in Smallville just before that.)

The acting this week was mainly from Michael Rosenbaum, John Glover, and Annette O'Toole. That's a guarantee of some great stuff. The script and their acting work kept me so interested that I didn't even realize Pete and Chloe weren't on this week until after the show ended. I give it 6 out of 6.

The emotional response produced by this was lacking only in the first act. The teaser and the last three acts held me completely. I give it 5 out of 6.

The production was excellent. This was easily one of the most cinematic episodes of Smallville yet. (Tempest and Vortex are really the only other two options, in my opinion.) The crane shots over the crowds and rooftops were very well done. The vertigo was nicely handled. The music and cuts of Clark preparing to jump were perfect. (I think I heard a hint of a new Superman theme in there.) I give it 6 out of 6.

Overall, this was a great episode. It's set the standard for sweeps very high. I give it 6 out of 6.

In total, Insurgence receives 37 out of 42.
by fiziko