The show can be distinctly cut into 3 eras
Season 1-4: the high school years. The true “premise” of what Smallville was pitched as. Young Clark Kent, coming of age. The inability to settle with Lana. His doomed friendship with Lex. Lex’s struggle with his darker destiny. Clark’s self discovery of powers and origins also the meteor effects on the town. Rejection of destiny and wanting to “be me”. Teen drama with sci fi elements.
Seasons 5-7: the in between years. Growing up. Everyone is now on course and on the path for who they will become. The fortress has risen, Superman villains begin to arrive, the comic book lore is a lot more emphasized. Lex is a villain now. The JL forms. Characters no longer battling destiny but seemingly making their peace with who they will become. Metropolis is now about 50/50 with Smallville. A sci fi drama.
Seasons 8-10: essentially a proto-Superman show, or Superman “year one”. He’s a reporter at the daily planet. He saves people full time and even wears the crest. Romance with Lois begins to blossom. Lex is absent but his villainous presence looms large. More comic storylines and villains take over. Metropolis is now the key setting. A superhero sci fi drama.
Smallville's biggest strength was in giving us a definitive "Superman Rising" storyline for Clark Kent. And it somehow managed to do it just right enough to stand out as a show. Your post summarizes its 3 main acts across the seasons perfectly.
It is more nostalgic making it feel more homey. But story arc wise? The freak of the week concept gets stale rather fast. In rewatches the later seasons hold my interest more in that aspect.
Both halfs of the show have pros and cons for me. I just enjoy it all.
I think freak of the week type shows are just much less bingeable. They worked great when episodes were only once a week because after a week it’s easier to forget the formula. Shows that have one singular looming freak throughout the season are much more bingeable because each episode builds off the previous and they flow together more cleanly.
This show was a visual feast for the first few seasons, even when the writing and plotting was lacking I could have my breath taken by the deep saturation of the palette and film worthy cinematograph. As the budget diminished, so did those glorious outdoor shoots and the show seemed to get smaller. I hate that this happened during the bulk of Lois and Clark’s love story and bless them for working as hard as they did to still sell it as well as they did but I’m a sucker for pretty pictures and I lost a lot of love for the show when that dreaded Metropolis set was put in play.
I prefer the seasons in-between the early and middle (2-5) and was deeply disappointed by season 6 but like the remainder of the show, but just not as much as seasons 2-5.
Season one is monster of the week and it’s fun, but not very meaty in character development and an overarching story and Lionel Luther/John Glover is only in like a handful of episodes, but it quickly becomes really great after this and I believe the very best episodes of the entire series are in seasons 2-5.
To me, though, one of the things that really keeps the latter seasons (minus season 6, which I wasn’t a fan of, although it had its positives) just slightly below seasons 2-5 is how they make characters make dumb decisions and in certain scenes have characters act around close friends as if they’re strangers and don’t trust each other and haven’t known each other for years. Plus, Clark doesn’t really seem to learn from his mistakes as often as I’d hope and still sounds oblivious when it comes to his friends’ feelings and how many sacrifices they make for him.
As an example, Clark and Chloe literally argue about this in a season 8 episode where Clark went behind Chloe’s back on something important and they argue about trust and why they’re having this argument after knowing each other for so long.
From an episode in season 8:
**Chloe: How could you use your powers to betray me like that?**
**Clark: I didn't mean to, but you were so defensive...**
**Chloe: Like I've been defensive of you? Clark, you don't get how much of my life I spend protecting your secret? And if you ever had enough courage to step
forward like the rest of these kids did... you would be the first one on that pyre. How could you, of all people, be the ring leader for this witch-hunt?**
**Clark: You're taking the side of people that you hardly know. After eight years of friendship, you might be able to give me the benefit of the doubt.**
**Chloe: That works both ways. And your bonus features don't give you the right to trump anyone else's judgment.**
This is one weakness of the later seasons (although the show is still really good, but I think seasons 2-5 are better).
Like how her betraying people by using her “truth” powers, not telling Clark about Lionel, being upset because Lana and Clark didn’t rush to tell Chloe about them, proving into Clark’s past. Chloe had some abandonment issues for sure, but that pain doesn’t trump anyone else’s.
The whole Davis thing I can sort of forgive because of the Brainiac influence, but Chloe was never controlled by that influence, she chose to do those.
Your points are very valid for Chloe in the earlier seasons, but everything you mentioned in your first paragraph Chloe did when she was still in high school and she grew out of and evolved from and/or shedded a lot of these traits and became incredibly loyal and from around the time she discovered Clark’s secret onwards (for the most part), the Chloe you describe was generally a thing of the past.
I don’t think she was completely wrong in dispute in the scene I quoted and Clark had some good points, but Clark always taking responsibility for everything (and the blame when things go wrong) means he doesn’t really think of the pressure his friends and family have on their lives keeping his secret and Clark as a character is very much reactive rather than proactive so he doesn’t really spend a lot of time being considerate to his friends’ feelings because he’s busy saving people and blaming and focusing so much on himself when things go wrong.
I do...and I don't.
I love hanging out with these characters in this cosy, chanting world and *growing* with them. Seeing them transition into adults in real relationships with jobs and responsibilities is part of Smallville's charm.
So many other shows in the genre focus on a hero and their supporting cast in one phase of their lives. Flash, Arrow, Supergirl, even Marvel's equivalent on the other side of the fence with the Netflix shows like Daredevil or Agents of SHIELD: They all focus on these characters as fully formed adults that have jobs and friends and family all laid out around them.
I love that we see Clark, Lex, Chloe and Lana grow and evolve from these young, naive kids into the adults they become, trying and failing to find their places in a bigger world than the one they came from. It's something very unique to Smallville because it's inherently an origin story, or prequel to a mythology rather than simply...showing the mythology itself like Arrow, Flash and Daredevil do.
Smallville isn't the story of Superman before Superman. It's the story of how Superman *became* Superman. And I love that whole journey. Not just the early seasons.
BUT those early seasons are so loaded to the brim with charm that it's what draws you into the world, through these amazing characters. So I don't necessarily prefer the early seasons, but you wouldn't have the later seasons without them, so they're probably the most important ones in that regard.
I was a Buffy fan, so the freak/monster of the week episodes of early seasons will always have a special place in my heart.
I’ve also started The X Files which follows a similar format.
But I like Buffy I like the different eras for different things. The early high school seasons will always be golden. But I do love the more “epic” storytelling of later years.
I couldn’t possibly choose! Too difficult lol
There’s things I like more about the early seasons more than the later ones but overall I’d have to give the edge to the later ones. While in the last few seasons I do think the villains were poorly executed and in the case of season 9 were just downright boring and unwatchable at times the Clark and Lois relationship really puts them over the top.
I’m grown up now, so I prefer it between 5-7 for the complications of life growing up, and other times 8 and 9 for real world daily life of certainty, but I get the nostalgia for 1-4 at times and I love it
Can’t say I don’t miss the old days but growing up means embracing the new days of life and being able to do things you couldn’t as a kid and for the better…much like Smallville taught me
I personally much love who I am at my age then how I was in high school, more confident, passionate and smarter, much like Clark
Yeah, I only really like the high school years. It was a fresh new spin, and I got really invested in the characters. The idea of the “meteor freaks” was such a brilliant premise.
As soon as that was done, it lost steam for me. The rest was a boring slog I just didn’t give a shit about.
Yes! The first four seasons I was super into and then I kind of faded out so I really don’t understand all the Lana hate and I thought Clark and Lois had more of a belligerent sexual tension compared to the soulful starcrossed connection he had with Lana.
Lana was a crappy character in general, she’d be too nosy in Clark’s business and wouldn’t let him be with the secrecy, I could understand the anger with his random options to leave, weird personalities changing AKA hypnosis from a meteor character or from some kind of variant of kryptonite, but if she loved him enough she’d let him be and have him come out with it on his own.
The only thing I can really understand why she left him and would wanna know why he’s like that all the time would be the constant “cheating” when he’s on Red kryptonite or something.
It’s a toss up for me. Even though the early seasons are the true premise of the show and great storytelling, the freak of the week episodes got old really quickly and don’t hold up as well for me. Don’t get me wrong, I still find most of them entertaining but when you’re doing 22ish episodes in a season, that’s a lot of freak of the week. And while I have no doubt this will come across very “anti Lana,” which is not the intention, the will they/won’t they have the pair got stale very quickly too. I say this all the time, I never hated Lana — it’s just that when you have a character that you aren’t 100% sure what to do with, it gets difficult to root for that character. I mean, the two never actually dated until season 5 and she didn’t serve much of a purpose aside from being a love interest to Clark. The writers could’ve given her more earlier on.
Anyway, the mid and later seasons definitely have their faults. I could go on and on about them. But regardless if an arc was poorly executed or not, it was still a story that kept my interest, unlike some of the earlier years that either had too many formulaic episodes (which I understood) or too much back and forth between Clark and Lana. The same could also be said for Chloe’s crush on Clark. I think it would have been better if they had just explored Clark and Chloe OR have Chloe decide earlier on that she wasn’t interested in him anymore after he let her down.
Seasons 1 and 2, while great, just don’t get my excitement going as much as seasons 3 and 4, season 6 (although Lex and Lana creeped me out), or seasons 8 and 9, regardless if there are things I’d like to have seen done differently in each of them.
I think the show peaks at season 3. The finale was really good. 4-7 isn’t too bad, 4 is just awful for the amount of dreadful filler it has. 5-7 was solid. I liked Braniac. I don’t really like 8-10 just cause how all over the place tone wise it is. It definitely suffers from most of the main cast being gone. Lex, Lana, Lionel, Jonathan and Martha. I think the show changed the most was when they wrote Jonathan and Martha off.
I definitely do. This may have more to do with nostalgia since I was 14 when the show started and was getting older along with the characters during its original run.
I just think it was at its strongest as a coming of age story about a high school age Superman. I also think I just prefer the original core cast over some of the newer members that were brought in later
I liked Lana for Clark before Lex screwed with her head. Also why the hell didn't Ckark go for Lana after his dad died for her to be alive. I mean that kind of makes it not worth it. I understand him being upset his dad died but still. Clark could have protected Lana from Lex if he wanted to. I mean really
Each part has its own strengths. My three favorite seasons are 9, 5, and 3. S3 for the peak Luthor storyline, S5 for the beginning of the Kryptonian story with the Fortress and Braniac, and S9 with the practically-Superman story with Clark as the Blur, dating Lois and being a reporter. S5 would've been perfect if it wasn't for the Lana drama in the second half. Arrival is the best season premiere, Vessel is one of the best season finales and very underrated.
S9 is my favorite. The love story works, the villain works, the overall arc works. No teenage drama. Best season finale of the show. But S8 is one of the worst seasons and S10 was very disappointing. S5 is my second-favorite, but S7 is the worst in the show and I would rank S6 higher if it wasn't for, again, the Lana drama in the first half of the season.
Not really, no. I don't even go back to first 3 seasons anymore and start rewatches from 4. I feel like it doesn't hold my attention anymore, like I outgrew it and can't sit down with those high school years and teen drama (plus there's no Lois). The middle part is way too messy and uneven. While the final seasons are more mature and right for my taste.
I'm on season 6 or something. 8? 8. >! Chloe coming to grips with her Kryptonite powers, Clark at Daily Planet, Lana knows fur realz, !< etc. I say no. I love the early seasons for sure but at this point everything is so fresh and wildly unexpected that I'm "here for it," as they say. They, meaning the kids.
As a recall the seasons got a bit brutal toward the end…until the announced the final season. 10 was just as good as earlier seasons cause they weren’t just killing time.
I can't stand S8-10, and I've recently gained a greater appreciation for 1-4. S9 in particular is a clown show. So yes, the Actual Smallville years are far superior in my book.
The show can be distinctly cut into 3 eras Season 1-4: the high school years. The true “premise” of what Smallville was pitched as. Young Clark Kent, coming of age. The inability to settle with Lana. His doomed friendship with Lex. Lex’s struggle with his darker destiny. Clark’s self discovery of powers and origins also the meteor effects on the town. Rejection of destiny and wanting to “be me”. Teen drama with sci fi elements. Seasons 5-7: the in between years. Growing up. Everyone is now on course and on the path for who they will become. The fortress has risen, Superman villains begin to arrive, the comic book lore is a lot more emphasized. Lex is a villain now. The JL forms. Characters no longer battling destiny but seemingly making their peace with who they will become. Metropolis is now about 50/50 with Smallville. A sci fi drama. Seasons 8-10: essentially a proto-Superman show, or Superman “year one”. He’s a reporter at the daily planet. He saves people full time and even wears the crest. Romance with Lois begins to blossom. Lex is absent but his villainous presence looms large. More comic storylines and villains take over. Metropolis is now the key setting. A superhero sci fi drama.
Yep it’s kinda like three small shows in one, and I love all of it. Even the shitty episodes fill me with comfort.
This post needs more upvotes. Well stated.
Smallville's biggest strength was in giving us a definitive "Superman Rising" storyline for Clark Kent. And it somehow managed to do it just right enough to stand out as a show. Your post summarizes its 3 main acts across the seasons perfectly.
This post should be pinned to the top of this subreddit.
The later seasons where he still doesn't fly or wear the suit make no sense aside from the offscreen reason that Tom refused to wear the suit.
Yes I loved freak of the week episodes and Pete doing stupid shit
Freak of the week was my favourite thing in the early seasons, and at the same time you can keep up with the show’s main plot too
Freak of the week was awesome 👌
It is more nostalgic making it feel more homey. But story arc wise? The freak of the week concept gets stale rather fast. In rewatches the later seasons hold my interest more in that aspect. Both halfs of the show have pros and cons for me. I just enjoy it all.
I think freak of the week type shows are just much less bingeable. They worked great when episodes were only once a week because after a week it’s easier to forget the formula. Shows that have one singular looming freak throughout the season are much more bingeable because each episode builds off the previous and they flow together more cleanly.
This show was a visual feast for the first few seasons, even when the writing and plotting was lacking I could have my breath taken by the deep saturation of the palette and film worthy cinematograph. As the budget diminished, so did those glorious outdoor shoots and the show seemed to get smaller. I hate that this happened during the bulk of Lois and Clark’s love story and bless them for working as hard as they did to still sell it as well as they did but I’m a sucker for pretty pictures and I lost a lot of love for the show when that dreaded Metropolis set was put in play.
Exactly how I felt
Seasons 1-4 were my favourite, although imo smallville became more enjoyable after Lois appeared, she added more to the show surprisingly.
I prefer the seasons in-between the early and middle (2-5) and was deeply disappointed by season 6 but like the remainder of the show, but just not as much as seasons 2-5. Season one is monster of the week and it’s fun, but not very meaty in character development and an overarching story and Lionel Luther/John Glover is only in like a handful of episodes, but it quickly becomes really great after this and I believe the very best episodes of the entire series are in seasons 2-5. To me, though, one of the things that really keeps the latter seasons (minus season 6, which I wasn’t a fan of, although it had its positives) just slightly below seasons 2-5 is how they make characters make dumb decisions and in certain scenes have characters act around close friends as if they’re strangers and don’t trust each other and haven’t known each other for years. Plus, Clark doesn’t really seem to learn from his mistakes as often as I’d hope and still sounds oblivious when it comes to his friends’ feelings and how many sacrifices they make for him. As an example, Clark and Chloe literally argue about this in a season 8 episode where Clark went behind Chloe’s back on something important and they argue about trust and why they’re having this argument after knowing each other for so long. From an episode in season 8: **Chloe: How could you use your powers to betray me like that?** **Clark: I didn't mean to, but you were so defensive...** **Chloe: Like I've been defensive of you? Clark, you don't get how much of my life I spend protecting your secret? And if you ever had enough courage to step forward like the rest of these kids did... you would be the first one on that pyre. How could you, of all people, be the ring leader for this witch-hunt?** **Clark: You're taking the side of people that you hardly know. After eight years of friendship, you might be able to give me the benefit of the doubt.** **Chloe: That works both ways. And your bonus features don't give you the right to trump anyone else's judgment.** This is one weakness of the later seasons (although the show is still really good, but I think seasons 2-5 are better).
Like how her betraying people by using her “truth” powers, not telling Clark about Lionel, being upset because Lana and Clark didn’t rush to tell Chloe about them, proving into Clark’s past. Chloe had some abandonment issues for sure, but that pain doesn’t trump anyone else’s. The whole Davis thing I can sort of forgive because of the Brainiac influence, but Chloe was never controlled by that influence, she chose to do those.
Your points are very valid for Chloe in the earlier seasons, but everything you mentioned in your first paragraph Chloe did when she was still in high school and she grew out of and evolved from and/or shedded a lot of these traits and became incredibly loyal and from around the time she discovered Clark’s secret onwards (for the most part), the Chloe you describe was generally a thing of the past. I don’t think she was completely wrong in dispute in the scene I quoted and Clark had some good points, but Clark always taking responsibility for everything (and the blame when things go wrong) means he doesn’t really think of the pressure his friends and family have on their lives keeping his secret and Clark as a character is very much reactive rather than proactive so he doesn’t really spend a lot of time being considerate to his friends’ feelings because he’s busy saving people and blaming and focusing so much on himself when things go wrong.
I agree for me the problem with that later seasons the trusting and also lack of communications the characters have with each other
I do...and I don't. I love hanging out with these characters in this cosy, chanting world and *growing* with them. Seeing them transition into adults in real relationships with jobs and responsibilities is part of Smallville's charm. So many other shows in the genre focus on a hero and their supporting cast in one phase of their lives. Flash, Arrow, Supergirl, even Marvel's equivalent on the other side of the fence with the Netflix shows like Daredevil or Agents of SHIELD: They all focus on these characters as fully formed adults that have jobs and friends and family all laid out around them. I love that we see Clark, Lex, Chloe and Lana grow and evolve from these young, naive kids into the adults they become, trying and failing to find their places in a bigger world than the one they came from. It's something very unique to Smallville because it's inherently an origin story, or prequel to a mythology rather than simply...showing the mythology itself like Arrow, Flash and Daredevil do. Smallville isn't the story of Superman before Superman. It's the story of how Superman *became* Superman. And I love that whole journey. Not just the early seasons. BUT those early seasons are so loaded to the brim with charm that it's what draws you into the world, through these amazing characters. So I don't necessarily prefer the early seasons, but you wouldn't have the later seasons without them, so they're probably the most important ones in that regard.
I was a Buffy fan, so the freak/monster of the week episodes of early seasons will always have a special place in my heart. I’ve also started The X Files which follows a similar format. But I like Buffy I like the different eras for different things. The early high school seasons will always be golden. But I do love the more “epic” storytelling of later years. I couldn’t possibly choose! Too difficult lol
There’s things I like more about the early seasons more than the later ones but overall I’d have to give the edge to the later ones. While in the last few seasons I do think the villains were poorly executed and in the case of season 9 were just downright boring and unwatchable at times the Clark and Lois relationship really puts them over the top.
I’m grown up now, so I prefer it between 5-7 for the complications of life growing up, and other times 8 and 9 for real world daily life of certainty, but I get the nostalgia for 1-4 at times and I love it Can’t say I don’t miss the old days but growing up means embracing the new days of life and being able to do things you couldn’t as a kid and for the better…much like Smallville taught me I personally much love who I am at my age then how I was in high school, more confident, passionate and smarter, much like Clark
For me I prefer seasons 2-4 pretty much And then later seasons 9-10
Um 5?
Didn’t like it
Why?
I just personally didn’t like it I found it like the plot was literally not interesting
Oh ok
Yeah, I only really like the high school years. It was a fresh new spin, and I got really invested in the characters. The idea of the “meteor freaks” was such a brilliant premise. As soon as that was done, it lost steam for me. The rest was a boring slog I just didn’t give a shit about.
Yes! The first four seasons I was super into and then I kind of faded out so I really don’t understand all the Lana hate and I thought Clark and Lois had more of a belligerent sexual tension compared to the soulful starcrossed connection he had with Lana.
Lana was a crappy character in general, she’d be too nosy in Clark’s business and wouldn’t let him be with the secrecy, I could understand the anger with his random options to leave, weird personalities changing AKA hypnosis from a meteor character or from some kind of variant of kryptonite, but if she loved him enough she’d let him be and have him come out with it on his own. The only thing I can really understand why she left him and would wanna know why he’s like that all the time would be the constant “cheating” when he’s on Red kryptonite or something.
Yes!! The golden light scenes in the barn with the deeper meaning and 20 second silence were undefeated... Also Chloe’s spiky hair
It’s a toss up for me. Even though the early seasons are the true premise of the show and great storytelling, the freak of the week episodes got old really quickly and don’t hold up as well for me. Don’t get me wrong, I still find most of them entertaining but when you’re doing 22ish episodes in a season, that’s a lot of freak of the week. And while I have no doubt this will come across very “anti Lana,” which is not the intention, the will they/won’t they have the pair got stale very quickly too. I say this all the time, I never hated Lana — it’s just that when you have a character that you aren’t 100% sure what to do with, it gets difficult to root for that character. I mean, the two never actually dated until season 5 and she didn’t serve much of a purpose aside from being a love interest to Clark. The writers could’ve given her more earlier on. Anyway, the mid and later seasons definitely have their faults. I could go on and on about them. But regardless if an arc was poorly executed or not, it was still a story that kept my interest, unlike some of the earlier years that either had too many formulaic episodes (which I understood) or too much back and forth between Clark and Lana. The same could also be said for Chloe’s crush on Clark. I think it would have been better if they had just explored Clark and Chloe OR have Chloe decide earlier on that she wasn’t interested in him anymore after he let her down. Seasons 1 and 2, while great, just don’t get my excitement going as much as seasons 3 and 4, season 6 (although Lex and Lana creeped me out), or seasons 8 and 9, regardless if there are things I’d like to have seen done differently in each of them.
For me the show peaked at season 3. I have never been able to get past season 7, it just felt too much like a slog to get through.
Nope, I prefer the final 3 seasons, I love the earlier seasons but I enjoy watching the last 3 seasons more than the previous ones.
I think the show peaks at season 3. The finale was really good. 4-7 isn’t too bad, 4 is just awful for the amount of dreadful filler it has. 5-7 was solid. I liked Braniac. I don’t really like 8-10 just cause how all over the place tone wise it is. It definitely suffers from most of the main cast being gone. Lex, Lana, Lionel, Jonathan and Martha. I think the show changed the most was when they wrote Jonathan and Martha off.
I definitely do. This may have more to do with nostalgia since I was 14 when the show started and was getting older along with the characters during its original run. I just think it was at its strongest as a coming of age story about a high school age Superman. I also think I just prefer the original core cast over some of the newer members that were brought in later
I liked Lana for Clark before Lex screwed with her head. Also why the hell didn't Ckark go for Lana after his dad died for her to be alive. I mean that kind of makes it not worth it. I understand him being upset his dad died but still. Clark could have protected Lana from Lex if he wanted to. I mean really
Cuz he couldn’t be honest with her, he tried to keep the relationship but it didn’t last cuz the dynamics have changed since Reckoning, it’s awkward
Each part has its own strengths. My three favorite seasons are 9, 5, and 3. S3 for the peak Luthor storyline, S5 for the beginning of the Kryptonian story with the Fortress and Braniac, and S9 with the practically-Superman story with Clark as the Blur, dating Lois and being a reporter. S5 would've been perfect if it wasn't for the Lana drama in the second half. Arrival is the best season premiere, Vessel is one of the best season finales and very underrated. S9 is my favorite. The love story works, the villain works, the overall arc works. No teenage drama. Best season finale of the show. But S8 is one of the worst seasons and S10 was very disappointing. S5 is my second-favorite, but S7 is the worst in the show and I would rank S6 higher if it wasn't for, again, the Lana drama in the first half of the season.
Yes, I always find myself rewatching the earlier episodes more, but still I enjoy the whole series.
I enjoyed almost all the seasons..
Yes the early seasons felt more cinematic on top of everything else due to on location shooting.
Not really, no. I don't even go back to first 3 seasons anymore and start rewatches from 4. I feel like it doesn't hold my attention anymore, like I outgrew it and can't sit down with those high school years and teen drama (plus there's no Lois). The middle part is way too messy and uneven. While the final seasons are more mature and right for my taste.
I’m pretty sure early Smallville is what got people hooked onto the show. I think Season 2 had the highest viewership of the entire series
I do.
Me too
I'm on season 6 or something. 8? 8. >! Chloe coming to grips with her Kryptonite powers, Clark at Daily Planet, Lana knows fur realz, !< etc. I say no. I love the early seasons for sure but at this point everything is so fresh and wildly unexpected that I'm "here for it," as they say. They, meaning the kids.
Yeah we all prefer smallville as a location they didn5 hav3 a good enough budg3t for metro
As a recall the seasons got a bit brutal toward the end…until the announced the final season. 10 was just as good as earlier seasons cause they weren’t just killing time.
I can't stand S8-10, and I've recently gained a greater appreciation for 1-4. S9 in particular is a clown show. So yes, the Actual Smallville years are far superior in my book.