Originally aired April 29, 2003
Written by Mark Verheiden
Directed by Rick Wallace
Clark attempts to stop the robbery of a LuthorCorp truck, only to find that the robbers possess strength that closely matches his own. Lana is forced to make a difficult decision about her relationship with Henry. Clark and Chloe's friendship becomes strained.
Tropes present in the episode:
- Applied Phlebotinum: Eric inhales a Kryptonite mist to gain Super-Strength.
- Blood from the Mouth: Clark is left with a bloodied mouth after Eric punches him a couple of times while his goons restrain Clark.
- Clothing Damage: Eric and his thugs beat up Clark and throw him into a furnace. After they leave, Clark emerges from the flames naked but unharmed.
- Fanservice: Clark emerging from the furnace naked.
- Fan Disservice: The fact that Clark would have burned to death if it had been anyone else thrown into the fire, levels it out.
- Feud Episode: Clark and Chloe end up calling it quits in the friendship department because of Clark prioritizing Lana over Chloe as well as Chloe's jealousy of Lana.
- Forgot About His Powers: Jonathan has to remind Clark that Eric and his thugs don't have his other abilities.
- Genius Bruiser: Eric, though he was originally far more on the "genius" end than the "bruiser" end before he came up with a kryptonite steroid.
- Idiot Ball: Clark phones in an anonymous tip about Eric and watches him get taken away by the police in plain view of Eric with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. This comes back to bite him in the ass painfully when Eric's goons attack the Kents after being freed from jail.
- It's All About Me:
- Chloe gripes at Clark for always prioritizing Lana over her. This ends up putting a strain on their friendship.
- Henry Small's wife Jennifer expresses resentment and jealousy toward Lana's relationship with her husband, to the point where she confides in Lana that she's planning to divorce Henry.
- Jerk Jock: Eric
- Unskilled, but Strong: Eric and his gang have enough raw physical power to at least match Clark even without the kryptonite factor taken into account, but when Clark starts using his other abilities in a fight he turns the tables on them relatively swiftly.
- Villain of the Week: Eric Marsh, a Jerk Jock who inhales a Kryptonite mist to give himself Super-Strength.
