Originally aired February 2, 2006
Written by Turi Meyer & Al Septien
Directed by Jeannot Szwarc
Clark learns that Andrea Rojas (Denise Quinones), a mild-mannered Daily Planet intern, is secretly a vigilante whom Chloe dubs "the Angel of Vengeance." He and Andrea join forces to track down a thug who attacked Martha earlier, and Clark's bottled-up grief threatens to get the better of him. Lionel moves to re-take control of LuthorCorp from Lex, who introduces a shocking trump card.
Tropes present in the episode:
- Anti-Hero: Andrea is either a Type III or a Type IV.
- Badass Longcoat: Andrea wears one as part of her superhero costume.
- Clark Kenting: Andrea wears a pair of glasses in her civilian garb, alluding to what Clark would do later in his life.
- Cooldown Hug: In the final scene, Martha hugs Clark as he finally grieves for Jonathan.
- Cynicism Catalyst: The murder of Andrea's mother by gang members hired by Lionel serves as this to Andrea.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Andrea wears a mostly-black superhero ensemble, and while she's a bit misguided, she fights to protect people.
- Expy: Andrea could very well be a gender-flipped Batman.
- Happier Home Movie: In the final scene, Clark enters the house to find Martha watching a home movie of Jonathan teaching a young Clark how to drive a tractor. It becomes tragic when Jonathan in the video turns to the camera and says a spirited "Bye-bye" with a wave. Cue the wetworks...
- In a Single Bound: Andrea can jump very high.
- Manly Tears: At the end of the episode, Clark finally breaks down and grieves for his father.
- Mundanger: Snake is a normal human.
- Mythology Gag:
- Andrea working as a mild-mannered reporter at the Daily Planet while leading a double life as a vigilante. Sounds like someone else we know...
- The organization that Andrea's mother worked for is called "Acrata," Andrea's superhero name in the comics continuity.
- In a home movie, Jonathan calls a young Clark a "man of steel."
- Neck Lift: Clark executes this on Snake when he confronts him about Jonathan's watch.
- Product Placement: For Acuvue contact lenses.
- Rage Breaking Point: The episode deals with Clark holding in his grief over Jonathan's death. He comes close to killing Snake in a fit of grief-fueled rage, but backs down. Finally, he breaks down in tears after seeing a Happier Home Movie of himself and Jonathan.
- Shame If Something Happened: Lex threatens to reveal to Martha that Lionel met with Jonathan just before his death unless Lionel hands control of LuthorCorp back to him. It works.Lex: What good is having a family if they don't watch out for each other? On the off chance that unshakable family loyalty fails, there's always those Luthor closets to rummage through.Lionel: All right, let's skip the prologue, Lex. What ancient skeleton do you think you've dug up now?Lex: Well, it's not quite a skeleton yet; more like a freshly-laid corpse. I wonder how Martha Kent would feel if she knew you had a secret meeting with her husband right before he died. Now, a transgression like that would test the virtues of even the most forgiving woman.Lionel: What do you want, Lex?Lex: [takes the keycard from Lionel] I hope you enjoyed your stay. Sorry it was so short.
- Tattooed Crook: Snake has a tattoo of a snake on part of his face and neck.
- Tragic Keepsake: Jonathan's watch, which gets stolen by Snake, motivating Clark to retrieve it. By the end of the episode, Lana buys it from a pawnshop and gives it to Clark.
