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Smallville
TV Series

Smallville

2001Action, Adventure, Drama • 10 Seasons

Woke Score
1.9
out of 10

Series Overview

After a meteor shower bursts from the heavens, raining destruction on the unsuspecting citizens of Smallville, years pass, and the healing process leaves the town's inhabitants with scars and secrets. From the ashes of tragedy, a popular yet awkward teen attempts to decipher the meaning of his life and his clouded past. As he struggles with the transition from boyhood to adulthood, Clark finds that his strength and strange abilities set him uncomfortably apart from his peers.

Season-by-Season Breakdown

Season 1

2.2/10

Between the boy Clark Kent thought he was and the man he is destined to become lie the compelling stories of Smallville, the popular action series that reimagines the Superman saga from its roots.

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Season 2

1.4/10

The legend continues to grow stronger in the second super season of Smallville. Throughout the season’s twenty-three episodes, Clark Kent grapples with his calling as he explores his true origins: was he sent to Earth to save humanity or destroy it? Amidst all the chaos, Lana and Clark grow closer than before; Lex gets married; Lionel lures Chloe toward the dark side; the Kents receive miraculous news; and Pete becomes the keeper of Clark’s secret.

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Season 3

1.8/10

Everyone has a future. Clark Kent has a destiny — if he’s willing to accept it and to master all the awesome powers and responsibilities that come with it. In an event-packed third season, the fascinating reinterpretation of the Superman mythology and its classic characters continues as Clark embraces the dark side and Jonathan Kent strikes a devil’s bargain with Jor-El to rescue his son.

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Season 4

1.4/10

Clark Kent will have plenty of reasons to remember his senior year! Lois Lane — smart, opinionated, and entirely annoying to Clark — arrives in Smallville to investigate the death of her cousin. Lana gets a new older boyfriend. Clark decides to go against his parents' wishes and joins the football team as a quarterback. And while Clark sets off on a quest to find three mysterious Kryptonian crystals, Lex steps further from the light into darkness.

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Season 5

2/10

Clark Kent now carries a full load of classes at Central Kansas University, but that's not all he carries. He carries the full weight of his — perhaps the world's — destiny. In season five, Clark finally begins to accept his destiny and takes giant leaps towards becoming the Man of Steel. He also crosses paths with Professor Milton Fine, whose presence in Smallville will have a devastating effect on his already deteriorating friendship with Lex.

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Season 6

2/10

Clark manages to escape from the Phantom Zone with the help of an unexpected ally. He subsequently sets out on a mission to hunt down the dangerous prisoners who followed him to Earth. Adding to Clark's troubles, there is a new vigilante in town who goes by the name Green Arrow. Meanwhile, Lex and Lana take the next step in their relationship. As the season progresses, the rivalry between Clark Kent and Lex Luthor will explode into a fierce good-versus-evil battle.

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Season 7

1.8/10

When Clark's cousin Kara arrives on the scene, Clark advises her to keep a low profile and master her powers, but Kara has other ideas and becomes the focus of Lex Luthor's powerlust. And, there are two Clark Kents: one is the young man whose life in a tiny Kansas town sets him on destiny's path. The other is a Bizarro who shares Clark's DNA, but not his values. Lane makes a career leap and Chloe Sullivan finds that balancing a meteor power with a personal life isn't easy.

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Season 8

2/10

Last season, Clark Kent and Lex Luthor became sworn enemies and Clark discovered more about his home planet, who his parents were, what his future holds and why he was sent to Earth. In season eight, Clark Kent is now reporter at the Daily Planet who shares a workspace with Lois Lane. And there's a new hero in Metropolis - a hero everyone now calls the Red-Blue Blur.

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Season 9

2/10

Last season, the enticing Tess Mercer maneuvered her way through town, discovered Clark's true identity and unleashed a new world of danger. Clark, he also met his greatest match: Doomsday. When Clark wasn't busy battling the beast, he was knee-deep in work at the Daily Planet. As Clark's persona as the cub Planet reporter emerged, so did his feelings for Lois, the fated love of his life. In season nine, Clark Kent has to rise to the occasion as Zod and his followers scheme to take control of planet Earth.

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Season 10

2/10

As season nine drew to a close, Clark sacrificed himself to save the world from General Zod. In the tenth and final season, the timeless romance between Clark and Lois romance continues to develop, and Clark will come face-to-face with his destiny as he overcomes his final trials and forges the iconic identity that will be known for all time.

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Overall Series Review

*Smallville* is fundamentally a long-form origin story chronicling Clark Kent’s transformation from a high school student in rural Kansas into the ultimate symbol of hope, Superman. Across its ten seasons, the series remains firmly rooted in classic superhero mythology, prioritizing individual moral choice, destiny, and the eternal struggle between good and evil. The central narrative engine is the tension between Clark’s Kryptonian heritage and the strong, selfless values instilled by his adoptive parents, Jonathan and Martha Kent, who serve as the show's unwavering moral bedrock. The series consistently frames heroism around merit, personal sacrifice, and the content of one's character, contrasting Clark's path with the corrupting influence of Lex Luthor, whose villainy is consistently portrayed as a failure of personal will and moral character, often manipulated by his father, Lionel. A primary thematic constant throughout *Smallville* is the championing of the traditional nuclear family structure. The Kent household provides the essential guidance that anchors Clark’s immense power in human compassion, making the choice to embrace humanity over alien determinism the core conflict. While female characters are present and often competent—including Lois Lane, Chloe Sullivan, and Kara—their arcs typically complement the protagonist's journey or revolve around established relationships, avoiding contemporary identity politics in favor of narrative function within the hero’s journey. The show relies heavily on universal principles, often employing clear Judeo-Christian allegories to define Clark’s path toward self-sacrifice and salvation. Over its run, the show demonstrates remarkable narrative consistency, particularly in its resistance to modern cultural shifts in storytelling focus. The conflicts are overwhelmingly external (alien threats, villains like Brainiac or Zod) or internal (Clark's struggle with his identity and power). The messaging remains focused on transcendent morality rather than relative ethics. Even when addressing governmental scrutiny of heroes (as seen in the later seasons), the issue is framed as a question of principle and freedom, not systemic oppression. The ultimate message of *Smallville* is a celebration of the American heartland ethos, where humility, hard work, and unwavering commitment to doing what is right define the greatest hero.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics1.6/10

Oikophobia1.4/10

Feminism2.8/10

LGBTQ+1/10

Anti-Theism2/10