Smallville S3 E21 – Forsaken

Hey there, fellow Smallville fans! Welcome back to our rewatch journey. We’re sliding into the penultimate episode of Season 3, and man, the stakes are finally catching up with the drama. It’s “Forsaken,” and honestly, the title doesn’t even begin to cover how much everyone is going through right now.

TV Guide Preview

Clark Kent is finally ready to take the leap of faith he’s been avoiding for three years: telling Lana Lang the truth about his alien origins. With Lana’s bags packed for Paris, Clark realizes that if he wants a future with the girl of his dreams, he has to stop the secrets. But just as he’s about to spill the beans, a ghost from the past returns to snatch Lana away, and a rogue FBI agent puts Pete Ross in the ultimate crosshairs.

Meanwhile, Lex Luthor finds himself backed into a corner by the feds, who give him 24 hours to turn on his father or face the music for LuthorCorp’s dirty laundry. As Lionel’s empire begins to crumble, an unlikely alliance between Lex and Chloe Sullivan might be the only thing that can finally bring the “Magnificent Bastard” to justice. But in Smallville, every victory comes with a price that might be too high for Clark’s best friend to pay.

Episode Review

Stars: Tom Welling, Kristin Kreuk, Michael Rosenbaum, Sam Jones III, Allison Mack, John Glover, John Schneider, and Annette O’Toole.

The “Freak of the Week”: Emily Dinsmore (played by Amber Rothwell). You might remember her as the creepy little girl from Season 2’s “Accelerate.” Well, she’s grown up—literally, thanks to some accelerated cloning tech—and she’s still 100% obsessed with being Lana’s BFF. Amber Rothwell does a solid job playing “unhinged clone,” even if the character is a bit of a repetitive plot device to keep Clark and Lana apart. She kills in the show open so you can be sure they aren’t holding back.

Special Effects: This episode is a bit of a mixed bag. Emily’s “phasing” through walls looks decent for 2004 TV budget standards, though it still has that slightly blurry, “we’re just layering two shots” feel. The real standout (or stand-under?) is the “Pete being tortured” scenes. They don’t use much CGI there, just good old-fashioned practical lighting and sweat, which makes it feel way more grounded and grittier than the usual meteor-power flashiness.

Music Track Listing:

1. “I Don’t Know What You’re Thinking” – Christopher Jak
2. “When the Sun Goes Down” – Charlie Mars
3. “La Fille Du Regiment (Convien Partir)” – Gaetano Donizetti (The opera Lex listens to)
4. “Messa Da Requiem” – Mozart (The chilling music during Lionel’s arrest)

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4/5 Stars)

This is a high-octane episode. While the “Lana gets kidnapped” trope is wearing a bit thin by now, the Lex/Lionel/Chloe subplot is absolute fire. Seeing Lionel finally get those handcuffs slapped on him is one of the most satisfying moments in the series so far.

Lessons & The Superman Path

The Lesson: You can’t protect everyone by keeping them in the dark. Clark thinks he’s saving Pete by letting him in on the secret, but this episode proves that knowing the truth is a heavy burden that can literally get you tortured.

Becoming Superman: This is a huge turning point for Clark’s maturity. He learns that his “gift” is a magnet for danger, not just for him, but for anyone close to him. The choice Pete makes to leave Smallville is a crushing blow to Clark, but it’s a necessary step in his journey toward the isolation that often defines the Man of Steel. It teaches him that being a hero often means standing alone to keep others safe. However, it feels a lot of times like he is becoming too isolated which could have its own negative side effects.

Synopsis & Plot Breakdown

The episode kicks off with Emily Dinsmore (now a young adult) escaping her “lab-room” by walking through walls. She heads straight to the Talon, kills the new owner by reaching through his chest (yikes!), and starts “redecorating” to lure Lana back.

Clark is finally done with the “will-they-won’t-they” and decides he’s going to tell Lana everything so she won’t move to Paris. But before he can, Pete is snatched up by Agent Loder, who is obsessed with Clark’s secret. Loder beats the living daylights out of Pete, but Pete stays loyal—seriously, Pete is the MVP of friends.

Lana gets kidnapped by Emily and held in a glass room (because Lana hasn’t spent enough time in cages this season). Clark eventually tracks her down, saves her, and manages to avoid getting “phased” to death.

The real meat of the episode is the Luthor takedown. Chloe manages to get a recording of Lionel admitting to killing his parents. Lex uses this to finally have his father arrested. The scene of Lionel being hauled away while Mozart plays is peak Smallville.

However, the win is bittersweet. Pete tells Clark he can’t handle the pressure of the secret anymore and decides to move to Wichita with his mom. Clark goes to see Lana one last time to tell her his secret, but after seeing what the truth did to Pete, he loses his nerve. He lets her leave for Paris without telling her a thing. Talk about a “forsaken” ending.

Photos

Review Notes

One of the funniest lines I have heard on Smallville is when Pete calls Lex Uncle Fester.

Emily is all grown up and even creepier. Just killing folks left and right.

In my mind I just think Lana will be gone the same amount of time as the between seasons.. so a summer in Paris.

Lionel’s sneer when he talks to Lex and is mad is soooo uncomfortable.

Clark: You tell me Lex… they are still going at each other verbally. Don’t sound like friends at all.

Lionel’s hair sucks this week. (Chloe scene) he actually looks like Gene Simmons 🙂

That was an early finish for Emily… 11 minutes left. Oh shit Pete pulled over by Lionels bought off FBI dude.

Chloe trusts Lex.

Lex saves Pete from the FBI guy and gives him the recording of Lionel and tells him to get back to that…

I teared up when Pete left him standing there, so isolated. Pete and Lana leaving… ??? I think I know Pete really is leaving just from the surrounding later news etc. I think he and Chloe are Clarks only real friends, Lana is different doesn’t count. I hope someone else comes in and befriends Clark, no one should be this lonely.

Lionel arrested and compares Lex to Judas….

One episode left and no Pete or Lana so it has to be something big. I am spoiler free and have no ideas as Covenant almost sounds religous so I am at a loss as to what it could be I guess well find out next week.

Next week we dive into the Season 3 Finale, “Covenant”