Originally aired March 12, 2009
Written by Caroline Dries
Directed by Glen Winter
When Linda Lake returns and announces her intentions to reveal Clark's secret to the world, Clark decides to tell Lois and have her tell his story instead...with unforeseen consequences.
Tropes present in the episode:
- Alien Invasion: Linda claims Clark is the front man for an invasion.
- Alliterative Name: Linda Lake
- Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work: Naturally, ruining Linda and getting her sent to prison wasn't actually going to stop her trying to destroy other people anyway. Then she tries blackmailing Davis...
- Beware the Nice Ones: Clark uses the Legion ring to travel back in time and zaps her with electricity, having already figured there is no other way to stop her.
- Big "SHUT UP!": Davis to Linda as she provokes him into turning into Doomsday.
- Bullying a Dragon: Linda pulls this on Davis in the new timeline. She pays for it.
- Cassandra Truth: Lois initially doesn't believe Clark's claim he's the Blur, until he lifts up the desk she's standing on with one hand.
- Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: Clark refuses to let Linda be his "agent" because he knows she'll inevitably backstab him anyway.
- Continuity Nod: Among incidents Clark cites to Lois is the time he blew the barn door off with a sneeze, from "Sneeze".
- Crazy-Prepared: Clark goes to grab the Legion ring, only to find Linda has managed not only to beat him to it, she's left a chunk of kryptonite there for him.
- Did Not Think This Through: The knock-on effects of Clark revealing his identity become very apparent real quick; Martha's put on leave, the press hang outside the Kent farm day and night, and Metropolis General refuse to keep Jimmy because the constant intrusion trying to get a look at him makes it impossible for them to do their job.
- Easily Condemned: One day, Clark's a beloved hero. One news report from a muck-raking journalist is all it takes to have twitchy government agents out to shoot him on sight.
- Elemental Shapeshifter: Part of Linda's powers allow her to shift into water.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: In Lois's article on Clark, she splits the word as "new- spaper." She really can't spell.
- Holding Out for a Hero: A little girl jumps off a building just so Clark will catch her. It's one of the first signs that revealing himself was a terrible idea.
- Inspector Javert: The government agent who comes to investigate Clark refuses to believe him, then makes it clear he's going to have armed gunmen go after him and anyone associated with him. Lois even tries pointing out how they're breaking the law. They try to taze her.
- In Spite of a Nail: Clark also uses the Legion ring to pick Lois up from the airport. She still rags on him, just for different reasons (namely, thanks to the episode's shenanigans, Clark's clammed up).
- Killed Off for Real: Linda by Davis.
- Making a Splash: Linda Lake comes back with her water powers.
- Malicious Slander: Linda's article about Clark, painting him to be an evil alien invader.
- Never Be Hurt Again: At the end, Chloe suggests Clark doesn't want to tell Lois his secret because after what happened with Lana he's afraid of being romantically hurt again. Of course, standing Lois up clearly hurts him just as much.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Clark revealing he's a Kryptonian causes Davis to realize he's the one his parents sent him to kill, causing Doomsday to break out in full, and then kill Chloe.
- No Medication for Me: Davis has been trying to control Doomsday with anti-psychotics, but thanks to Doomsday's powers they're no longer working. In the altered timeline, after killing Linda, he just dumps the whole bag in the trash.
- Plot Device: The Legion ring that Rokk gave to Clark in "Legion."
- Pungeon Master: Linda cracks a few water-related puns in the opening scene.
- Reset Button: Clark uses the Legion ring to reset the day after things get WAY out of hand.
- Reunion Revenge: Linda comes back and is thirsty for revenge.
- Shooting Superman: A SWAT team opens fire on Clark, despite knowing about his powers.
- Status Quo Is God: Clark Kent reveals his identity to the world? Yeah, there was no way that one was going to stick, especially not mid-season. And Davis killing Chloe? Same deal.
- Time Travel: Clark resets the day using the Legion ring that Rokk gave him in "Legion."
- Time Travel Episode: Clark uses the Legion ring that Rokk gave him to reset the day.
- Too Dumb to Live: Linda thinks it's a good idea to get Davis to turn into Doomsday on the same room as her, while she's powerless and strapped to a gurney.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Clark doesn't seem too surprised when Linda pops up to torment him, nor does anyone else in Metropolis when she confronts him in broad daylight. Sure, Clark's an alien, but a woman just exploded into a stream.
- Villain of the Week: Linda Lake returns in this episode.
- Weaksauce Weakness: Electricity is Linda's.
