Originally aired January 26, 2006
Written by Brian Peterson & Kelly Souders
Directed by Greg Beeman
Clark tells Lana his secret and proposes to her. Jonathan wins the Kansas Senate race. A tragedy prompts Clark to beg Jor-El for assistance, leading to yet another tragedy. (100th episode)
Tropes present in the episode:
- Accidental Murder: Lionel's confession to Jonathan that he knows the truth about Clark is what makes Jonathan die from his heart condition.
- Death by Secret Identity: A non-villainous example. Lana dies in a car accident while being pursued by Lex, who correctly suspects she knows Clark's secret. It gets undone by Clark using Time Travel.
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Jonathan dies in the arms of his wife and son.
- Drowning My Sorrows: After he loses the Kansas Senate race to Jonathan, Lex is seen alone in his study, drinking a glass of scotch.
- Due to the Dead:
- Lex and Lionel attend Jonathan's funeral after losing the Senate race to Jonathan and instigating the confrontation that led to the man's fatal heart attack, respectively.
- Also, Clark sprinkles a handful of soil into his father's grave.
- Event Title: The titular reckoning is Jonathan's death, which settles Jor-El's debt once and for all.
- For Want Of A Nail: Clark reversing time and saving Lana leads to Jonathan meeting with Lionel and becoming enraged to the point of having a fatal heart attack.
- A God I Am Not:Clark: Don't make her pay for my mistake. If I hadn't told her the truth about me, she'd still be alive! You have to let me fix it.Jor-El: Your powers on Earth may seem extraordinary, Kal-El, but we are not gods.
- I Resemble That Remark!: When Clark begs him for a way to save Lana after she dies in a car accident, Jor-El says they are not gods. That's funny, coming from a guy who regularly does thing not even a super-powered Kryptonian is capable of doing.
- Mythology Gag:
- Making a diamond from coal in the Fortress is a reference to Superman III.
- After Clark reverses time and correctly predicts everything that happens at the Daily Planet, Chloe asks him "Okay, McFly, what'd you do—spin the Earth backwards on its axis?"
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Clark uses a Power Crystal to reverse time and save Lana from her car accident, but this results in Jonathan suffering a fatal heart attack.
- Power Crystal: Jor-El gives Clark one of these to use to reset the day and prevent Lana's death.
- Rage Against the Mentor: Clark's response after Jor-El gives a spiel about destiny.Clark: This is not her destiny! And YOU KNOW THAT!!!
- Reset Button: Clark uses a crystal from the Fortress to reset the day twenty-four hours so he can save Lana from dying in a car accident. Sadly, it results in Jonathan suffering a fatal heart attack.
- Screw Destiny: Jor-El tells Clark that they are not gods, but Clark's not hearing any of it. (See Rage Against the Mentor above.)
- Set Right What Once Went Wrong: Clark wants to avert Lana's Death by Secret Identity.
- Shout-Out: In the new timeline, Chloe calls Clark "McFly," referring the Back to the Future movies.
- Snow Means Death: Snow falls at Jonathan's funeral in the final act.
- Superpowered Date: Clark uses the Key to transport himself and Lana to the Fortress, then makes an engagement ring from a piece of metal and lump of coal. It gets undone by Clark hitting the Reset Button.
- Tantrum Throwing: Lex does this in both timelines after Lana leaves the study.
- Time Travel: Clark achieves this using a Power Crystal.
- Time Travel Episode: The show's first.
- Wham Episode: Clark finally tells Lana his secret and proposes to her, only for her to die in a car wreck. With Jor-El's help, Clark goes back in time and changes things, only for Jonathan to die of a heart attack in Lana's place.
- You Can't Fight Fate: Jor-El tells Clark such when the latter begs him to help him save Lana.Jor-El: [to Clark] The tide of fate is impossible to stop. Even if you are able to alter one course of events, the universe will find a balance.
