Smallville Season 9: “Rabid”

“Smallville” meets “Supernatural” is how I describe “Rabid” which is the third episode of the season. Lois and Clark fighting against zombies? It kind of reminds me of the first season of “Smallville” where Clark would have to face a new meteor “freak” every episode, “freak of the week” if you will. I must say, I was expecting a little more from this episode because the “Rabid” promo implied that Lois and Clark would go on a date, but sadly that did not happen. However, the episode further explored the Lois/Clark/Red Blue Blur love triangle that is still unfolding while Oliver Queen and Major Zod have returned in this episode as well.

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

Lois and Clark are in for a long night at The Daily Planet. Lois awaits hearing about the Red Blue Blur’s next save in order to write her next byline and she secretly hopes that the Blur will call, while Clark speeds away and into Red Blue Blur action while Lois isn’t looking. Lois prepared an all-nighter kit for herself which included comfy slippers, snacks, and music for the occasion. Clark hears on the police scanner that there is a high speed chase and when Clark stops the motorcyclist, he discovers it is Oliver. Clark chats with him and tells him that he needs to find his inner hero again because that is who he is. Oliver continues his dark downward spiral and it doesn’t seem like he is going to snap out of it. Meanwhile everyone seems to be contracting a virus which is turning people into zombies. Here are the rest of the episode highlights:

• Tess is actively searching for Zod and his crew and she actually sends a team of ex-navy seals to find them. All of a sudden she is attacked at the Luthor mansion by zombies. She puts up a good fight but she gets bit by one of them in the process and gets knocked out.
• Lois and Clark go to the hospital because they heard about the Luther mansion attack and when they go see Tess, she has turned into a full fledged zombie. Yikes!
• Lois goes back to the Daily Planet to write the zombie story while Clark and Dr. Hamilton find out from the rep. from the board of health and disease control on what is happening.
• The rep., Dr. Coats (Cameron Bancroft) tells Dr. Hamilton (while Clark is listening from afar) that the virus is air born and they have already begun quarantining the hospital. Also before Tess became a zombie, she stopped by the Daily Planet. Dr. Hamilton and Chloe work on trying to find the cause of the virus from a sample of Tess’s blood.
• Clark heads to the Daily Planet to find Lois. Meanwhile Lois has discovered that a few of the Planet staff have turned into zombies and she starts fending them off. Clark comes and helps and they kick their zombie butts although one of the zombies bites Lois in the leg. Clark gets Lois to safety somewhere in the Daily Planet.
• Clark dresses her wound and he and Lois have a moment. Lois shifts gears and starts to discuss her fears and regrets and she also talks about how she feels that helping the Blur is the only thing she felt that had importance in her life. She also discusses her crush on the Blur and she shares with Clark that that she doesn’t want to be alone anymore. Before Clark has a chance to talk about his fears and regrets, some zombies crash their safety zone but Oliver comes to the rescue with a shotgun and kills the zombies.
• Dr. Hamilton discovers that Tess’s blood has an enzyme which he has only seen in one other individual, and that person is Davis Bloom (aka Doomsday). Also he and Chloe have determined that the virus incubates while you sleep. Chloe calls Clark with their findings and he leaves Lois in Oliver’s care and he tells him to make sure that Lois doesn’t sleep or the virus will take hold of her. Before Clark leaves, he and Lois share a longing look which Oliver catches. Oliver and Lois take refuge in one of the Planet’s elevators.
• Lois comments on Oliver being a mess and he doesn’t disagree with her. Then Oliver starts to tell Lois that he still has feelings for her but when he turns to see her reaction, he realizes that she fell asleep. He tries to wake her but it is too late, Lois is already becoming a zombie and she leaps out of the elevator car.
• Clark heads to the watchtower and Chloe deduces that Clark’s blood can be used to formulate a cure to the virus. They dip a needle in liquid kryptonite in order to withdraw blood from Clark’s arm.
• When Clark wakes up, he gets a text message on his phone from Oliver stating that he lost Lois. Clark goes out to look for Lois. He finds Lois in the Daily Planet making copies, she turns around and she’s a full-fledged zombie. Zombie Lois is SCARY!
• Zombie Lois attacks Clark and they wrestle and they wind up outside. Clark manages to restrain Lois all the while she is snapping at him and he just holds her tight.
• Meanwhile, Dr. Hamilton and Chloe are in an airplane flying above the city. They deposited a little of Clark’s blood into the city’s water supply but in order to spread the cure to more people they deposit a little of Clark’s blood in the clouds and generate precipitation.
• It starts raining and Zombie Lois slowly calms down and then the old Lois is back. Clark continues to hold her and she continues to just stay in his arms. Other people start emerging on the street so the cure has effectively worked!
• Later Dr. Coats heads to a warehouse and he is greeted by Zod. Dr. Coats is a kryptonian! Zod is furious with Dr. Coats for releasing the virus because it threatened to expose their kind and the act was reckless. Dr. Coats says that he did it with good reason. He shows Zod a piece of paper. It is the Superman “S” and Zod recognizes it as Jor-El’s family symbol. Dr. Coats explains that a member of Jor-El’s family is here and that his (Clark’s) blood was used to formulate the cure. Coats further explains that Jor-El’s heir is using the sun to generate powers. Coats hands Zod a vial of Clark’s blood. Zod is still perplexed on why his crew are still left without powers but Jor-El’s heir seems to have powers.
• Nevertheless, Zod is still upset that Coats disobeyed him and risked their exposure but yet he is pleased with his findings. He asks Coats to kneel and he kills him.
• Back at the farm, Clark looks at a photo of Lana and then puts it away in a scrapbook. I really like this action because it shows that Clark is moving on with his life. Lois drops by just then and they have a moment. She shares with Clark that she saw a different side to him, which “starts with a H and ends with ERO”. Before she leaves she goes to hit Clark’s arm, but he catches her hand. They say their goodbyes and as Lois stands on the porch she remembers more images from the future. The images she recalls is her and Clark in the throws of passion, Chloe’s death, and Oliver digging a grave. Lois snaps back to the present and walks off the porch as Clark watches her leave.
• Clark and Oliver have another conversation and Clark is upset with Oliver because he wasn’t able to protect Lois. Oliver then tells Clark that he is sorry and that he took a long look in the mirror and has found himself. Clark basically responds with “you know what you have to do.” Later Oliver takes out his Green Arrow costume and burns it.

Next week’s episode is titled “Echo” and it marks the return of The Toyman! Here’s the synopsis via CWTV.com:

Tess (Cassidy Freeman) forces Oliver (Justin Hartley) to come to a Queen Industries gala to put the Board at ease, but things go awry when the Toyman (guest star Chris Gautheir) shows up with a bomb and a plan to take revenge on Oliver. The Toyman tells Oliver he must confess to murdering Lex or he will blow the place up. Meanwhile, as part of his training, Jor-El gives Clark (Tom Welling) the ability to hear other people’s thoughts.