Remember that line from Perry, when Perry pulls out the Torch and tells Clark "You know, your high school paper has developed quite a rep in the bug-eyed monster circles" and he asks about Chloe?

What I think would be great is if in Season 5, when Chloe moves back to Metropolis she meets a really hot nerdy guy at school that belongs to an internet group that talks about her work and she discovers that she has a geek fanboy following. In the casting ideas thread, I already suggested this guy could be a male version of Chloe, complete with his own wall of weird, but now I'm thinking how funny it would be to use the idea as a vehicle to 1) show the influence of Chloe's writing as mentioned in Perry, 2) parallel the transition from small town to big city and high school to college with the sudden acceptance, nay admiration, by Chloe's peers for her journalistic interests, and 3) to mock the online fan community's obsessive slantings.

If Chloe doesn't get all sorts of positive male attention when she moves to Metropolis, then I will be very disappointed.

Aw, that's sweet, Massena. :) Great ideas there for the Metropolis transition.

Massena1, I think you're going to have to be prepared to be disappointed. I think all the anvil dropping about Chloe's great future is designed to be ironic and therefore more tragic when they strip her of everything including her life. Just like Lana's thing about being a covergirl is ironic (at least I hope it is. I'll be royally pissed if Lana gets to be a cover girl on any other magazine than that stupid fairy princess thing ages ago and Chloe gets goose egg again).

There is nothing ironic about Lana being a covergirl. It's actually one of her defining character traits on the show. She is one. She was on the cover of Time magazine because of the loss of her parents. We've seen the issue many times on the show since the pilot, including in Perry.

And I understand your distrust of the writers. When they first used the word "destined" in relation to Chloe, I thought it was a sick joke. But, in my mind, they followed through with it in the subsequent episodes, including Lois' "kill me first" line which was very similar to Dawn's "kill me now" line in Spirit, in which the writers did, in fact, kill Dawn.

Additionally, the word destiny has been used very often in the show, but I can't think of a time, in which it was used in an ironic sense. If you know of one ntime they've used it in a clearly ironic sense, I would genuinely want to remember it. Lana's destiny really is beyond the limits of Smallville (per Covenant) and she keeps trying to leave but coming back. But, I do think she will ultimately leave town. Lana also had that lame Izzy destiny with the stones and the symbol on the wall. We know Lex's and Clark's destiny and they've never contradicted it by using it in an ironic sense with regards to them.

So, to me, one year from Spirit, I expect the Chloe abuse to seem like a lifetime ago.

Clark is going to be drafted into the big leagues. Lana is a covergirl. And Chloe is most likely to succeed. But, mind you, they screw Chloe over and make Lois a hot shot reporter out of nowhere and I dropping this show.

Agreed, although I'll probably be disappointed anyway. Actually, I don't even plan on watching S5 unless word at TWoP suggests a drastic change in the show's tone and direction. I'm still hoping that AM, along with several other cast members receive better material next season, even I don't plan on watching the show.

I'm going to the gym or watching my tape of House/Veronica Mars. Basically Omar would have to sing S5's praises in complete and utter sincerity for me for several episodes in a row to even consider trying one S5 episode. I just hope they don't bore the everliving crap out of their actors.

That's why spoilers are my friends.

I think she was actually a cover girl or fashion designing diva in the animated series? *sshh.. I had to get my supes fix* I thought that's where they got it from; either that or from the same crack they were smoking wrt Mary Jane's 6000 photos taunting Peter Parker. I agree that it is a legit Lana trait, but it was irritating how they invented the title just for her. There's "class cutie" and "most popular" or whatever...but I don't think there was ever something as corny as "most likely to be a cover girl."


Re: Chloe and the secret... mobiusklein, [whine]don't crush my last shred of hope[/whine] :). That's like one of the only two things left for me to hang onto the show. *blinds self with optimism* Of course, I'll have a can of lye handy in case they do have halo-ed Lana waltz in for a case of Spirit II, in that case I really will have to blind myself.

Maybe I'm just being too too optimistic-- and maybe the look on Chloe's face in Commencement and her kick ass role in that episode is still fresh in my mind-- but they've built it up too. damn. much not to have him tell all, not to follow through on the storyline. I can't picture it. If they have Lana find everything out first, that will be the absolute last straw.

Ngh. I can just picture it now... It'll be handed to her and come across like she decided to take the job because she had nothing better to do. Besides that, it gives her a chance to razz Clark and leer at "Clark Jr." some more.

...You know what? I sometimes forget that Lois is supposed to be a hot-shot reporter. Jeez, this character sucks.

Yes but you have to remember that Lois is not the hot shot reporter yet. They are showing her before she becomes one. Yes this may not be the right way to go, but it's the way they have chosen. And I think that with some effort next year they can begin to show her genuinely starting to take a liking to it.

Yeah, no kidding Lois isn't a hot-shot reporter yet. I don't actually want to watch this Lois's progression into becoming that reporter, but I find it amazing that they haven't instilled in Lois ambition (towards anything), or a belief in the truth. That's what makes me pause for a second when I read some comment about Lois moving on to Metropolis and the Daily Planet in the future. The seeds for that person just haven't been planted on this show.

ETA: That first line wasn't supposed to sound as snarky as it may have come off. :)

LOL.. Thanks for clarifying that first line. I think your right about Lois. But I'm willing to give them the first few episodes of S5 to show the budding interest. They have shown that while she may not have an interest she does have a knack for it. Chloe even makes this observation to her(sorry can't remember the eppy). Clark mentions in the Season Finale that she should consider it, because of what she has done at the TORCH. She of course being Lois says no because she will have to sit across the desk from the worst reporter in the world. So as little as they have shown in regards to her progression, there is a very small seed that has been planted.

I think it's still a bit too early to say whether or not their handling of Lois has been a failure. Let's wait to see how it ends first.


ETA: because I can't really spell worth a damn,

It was suggested over in the Media thread that Season Five might open with the death of Johnathan. While his heart problems have been well foreshadowed, wouldn't a Season Five premiere death come from being smooshed by meteors?

So what do you guys think? Is Johnathan already off the show? Is he now a pancake? Will the meteors trigger a heart attack?

Yeah, I think that he's a dead man, and I'll tell you why: In the comics, wise, stubborn, old salt-of-the-earth Farmer Kent is vitally important to Clark Kent/Superman. He keeps him grounded; he gives him advice (and doesn't hate him when he won't take it) -- he provides a valuable example of the frailty and wisdom and preciousness of the human individual. This is Smallville. Of course they can't have that. In the movies, Pa Kent died of a heart attack, something that Clark wasn't responsible for and couldn't have prevented, teaching Superman the valuable lesson that human life is fragile and precious, and you can't save everyone, and that the inevitable loss of our loved ones is something we all share as humans. However, on Smallville, Bo's heart problems and the stoopid meteors are, in fact, all Clark's fault, and while he was moseying around in town and in the Arctic, he could theoretically have saved poor old Bo from being in the house with the target painted on the roof. (And there's also the report of JS complaining about TIIC.) In conclusion, it would be kind of dumb for Mr. Kent to be killed at this point in this way. Therefore, that's probably what will happen.

Considering that Chloe AND Lois had to endure their own version of meteor rock hell, Lana's little boohoo crapola isn't even special anymore since they too have had flaming crap from heaven rain down on them. They shouldn't treat her as special anymore considering they themselves were nearly pancaked as well and will understand it was a TOWN-wide disaster not just the pukey little pinched-face poochie's own private tragedy.

Of course the writers are neither sane or normal because something like this would never cross their damn minds.

The way I see it, Bo's dying is in the game plan. From the start, they've been trying to show a Clark that becomes Superman not out of the joy of helping humanity, but out of guilt and a sense of inevitable responsibility, like he's doing penance for causing Lana and the town misery, not helping Lex stay out of the dark side, giving his dad heart problems, etc, etc. Bo's death would certainly help fuel Clark's guilt trip and lead to the most manic-depressive Man of Steel ever.

Except that he's only manic when he's hopped up on red!K.

I hate that they've gotten rid of Superman's joy in helping people.

Do you think we're ever going to get to see Level 33.5 (or whatever it was)? You know, his room of X-men. I'm hoping they'll do something with it (them) at least at the end of the series, and that they don't just forget about it like they do everything else.

Ah yes, his uncanny teenager habitat... I like to call them his LEX-Men.

Imagine Lex saying it... "To me, my Lex-Men!" :D

Now that I'm reminded of it, that one minute of story strikes me as the one Intriguing plot thread of the season! What's he up to? I imagine it as a version of the Xavier school, helping these kids with powers adapt and return to some semblance of a normal life.

Hell no. By S5, Lex will have them strapped up with electrodes with drills coming out of their brain. There will be Jacob's ladders sputtering in the background and variety of multicoloured fluids in beakers bubbling away in the foreground. There will also be puppy experimentation and little old ladies on the rack. Lex's own horrific experiences with brain shocks and nipple clamps will have been forgotten.

MR will be dressed totally in black and will have perfected his maniacal cackle.

I see them as Lex's own personal team of "troubleshooters," given the sweet life by Lex in return for occasionally doing him "favors." Imagine his enemies suffering "heart attacks" caused by Krypto-Freaks, all appearing completely legit. Imagine Magnet-Oh-Boy helping conduct experiments with magnetism. Imagine what else he could do with his own band of super-freaks? It'd certainly help him one-up his father.

Moreover, Chloe's experience with the Wall of Weird could prove invaluable in exposing this... must... control... urge to... fanwank!

Wow, Lex is kinky.

I'd be satisfied if in the final episode the last scene (after Lex evilly says goodbye to Clark) is someone just casually throwing out the number 33.1, Lex looks shocked then rushes up the elevator opens the door and a tired, angry Myxplxt says "Dude, a year and a half. What the hell?" <End of series>

Someone from K-sites actually speculate that someone's building a set for the Daily Planet for the show and guess who works there? Lois. He also went to speculate that Perry & Lois will meet midseason in S5.

Editor: Lois Lane? Nice job on the Luthor article!
Lois: Luthor article?
Editor: You're going to be our ace reporter. And who's this?
Lois: My cousin Chloe, she...
Editor: is our new intern! Get us some coffee, we have some hot leads to follow!
*Door Slams on Chloe after the editor pushes her out*

And Perry returning was supposed to be in S4...I'll hold out on that spoiler for awhile.

Massena1, another really cruel interpretation about how everything changes after high school. That might be saying that Lois WILL suddenly become canon!Lois while suddenly Chloe will become dead/insane/completely lose her interest in journalism while putrid!Lana will become less putrid though that's pretty nigh impossibility due to the fact they don't smell her stench. I think they're advertising a triple decker lightswitch.

Whoa. Sounds like they're investing in a Smallville fuse box.



*le sigh* So yet again, Chloe will see someone close to her get what she's worked so hard for?



Oh how I long to be this optimistic about Smallville, sevenless. Maybe all the forgotten people/storylines will be in there. And they'll all be irate.

No, they will be remembered ALL TOO WELL.
Imagine the bright neon rubber gripped nipple clamps, electronically and mechanically controlled to deliver a variety level of pressure, shocks, and pain. While Lex wears a leather nehru lab jacket and weird black rubber rimmed goggles for safety and effect.

Hmm, I have a sick comicbook geek imagination. =)>:::::::::

I know how they'll open the 5th season. They'lll have Lana in a skimpy bikini washing Jonathan's coffin with a super soapy sponge while Martha will praise her for being obsessed with cleanliness and how pure she is for doing that while horrible alt-rock plays in the background. Lana will then flick her hair around in slo-mo before copping Clark for a feel while wailing that Jonathan abandoned her and how much like a daddy he was to her. She'll then pout and scream about secrets & lies when they refuse to do an open coffin at the funeral due to the fact that he got messed up by being pancaked.

I actually think it would be a nice touch if they had Lana going through some PTSD flashbacks to her parents' death after this latest meteor shower.

I know they sometimes stress it too much, but it would be nice if they would make it more clear that what happened to her parents is actually a deep emotional wound within her and not just "woe is me" bullshit.

That could actually help turn the Lana character around.

eta: MobiusKlein, I see your point with this:



I hadn't thought about it that way. I was thinking about her actually getting help with her problem (not front and center, just as an aspect of the show), and that process building her character! Or something like that. No, that wasn't it either. Whenever I return to what state of consciousness I was in when I wrote this post, I'll return and try to explain.

The problem is that I don't care if it is a deeply felt wound or not because that's all she is: a big festering walking wound who feeds off the attention and abuse of others. It's a hand that's been so overplayed that it's completely lost its effectiveness. She's basically an oozing puss sore that never got treated.

Show me Lana having compassion/empathy for other people's suffering. More "I have flashbacks, you must drop everything and comfort my ass" is just par for the course.

Snerk. I've seen Lana described by many a foul metaphor in this forum, everything from the "pink pestilance" to "better off dead". But this has got to be one of the best.

Poor KK. It's a tough gig.

That's genius. Here's hoping they revisit that 33.1 storyline. They could have reworked that into the season long arc when the stones one fell apart but nnnoooo



And not only that....but they have her playing that sympathy card with the dude who was emotionally abused and electo shocked by his father and lost his mother to cancer, the girl who's mother (initially, to Chloe and everyone else seemed to have) walked out on her (now confirmed that she's in a mental institution) and who's father is struggling with prolonged unemployment, and the alien who's entire home planet blew the fuck up and gets nagged by his father's disembodied voice. So juxtaposed against everyone else who's had worse or at the very least, as bad and convouted a life-- you can't help but wonder why the writers or she thinks she's so damn special wrt tragedies/problems and can play that card ad nauseum.

The instance that took the cake for me was when she bitched that "Ryan is lucky. He got to choose his family." The kid who was *literally* abandoned by his guardian to an opportunistic scientist, has a brain tumor, was held against his will and experimented on, etc...has it better then her in her twisted mind. All because Nell wants to take her to Metropolis (and Lana herself fanatasized about a "real life in Metropolis") to finally start her own goddamn life after raising her neice for so long. But nooo. Nell's not allowed happiness. So Chloe opens her home aand heart to her, and how does she respond? She pity-me-me-s on multiple occasions that she's "just not family." You just. can't. win. with this kid.

That's why I think they should play it for trauma/horror and not sympathy. They have her *mentioning* that her parents are dead a lot, or acting like it has earned her some sort of get out of jail free for life card...

But the fact is that if she *does* remember that day at all, it's the sort of thing that might cause deep psychological trauma. She witnessed the violent death of her own parents.

I wish they'd let us see that side of Lana. The side that's not pretty or like she's some sort of little Precious Moments doll with a cute little tear falling down her face. The side that's freaked the fuck out, crying until there's snot all over her face, unable to function, scaring the people around her because she seems so out of control.

Lana has only ever been allowed acceptable, feminine displays of sadness.

The problem is radioreverie, it's not really canon she remembers because one episode she says I can't remember that far back I was three then in another episode, she remembers her parents taking her to the movies. She was 3 at the time, more than enough time to get the heck over it and I doubt she'd remember anyways. Clark sure as heck doesn't remember the day he came to earth. You'd think getting the heck out of ship would be like a big moment for him.

The entire TOWN had stuff fall on them. Other people other than her parents died as well. If my uncle Bo got pancaked and I saw all this crap showered on Lana, I'd say "You're not special, I lost people too." Aunt Nell doesn't use the card and she lost the exact same people.

I just think too much time has passed for your trauma behavior scenario to be believable anymore. If she had been allowed to be a cutter or a bulimic or a pill-popper from the beginning, I'd get that her trauma was real or at least damaging to herself and not some stupid game TPTB was playing to get people to give everything to their favorite blowup doll: admiration,pity, love, idolization, sympathy all at once. They've been greedy too long for it to work anymore. People would just view it as just one more pity party being thrown by TPTB instead of a possibly valid characterization decision.

If they go there, you just know that Lana's dead-parents-caused PTSD would end up being the season-long arc.

On second thought, bring it on! Then I could quit watching without looking back!

radioreverie, your suggested horror/trauma approach would have worked back in Season 1, where Lana was somewhat of a morbid teenage girl that talked to her dead parents, rested on their tombstone, or brought boys to meet said dead parents. And when there were cracks in the pink princess facade, like her dissatisfaction with cheerleading and Nell. Or when as she was trying to track down Henry Small, she became obssessed into making him into this real-life substitute of her parents. Or got pissed at him for screwing up her kiddie good memories of a perfect family.

The last time I could actually see it really happening is in Season 3, after she found out that Adam Knight was a walking dead man. They could have made her attracted to him even more then, and shown us that Lana was really fucked up and had a fascination with death or had a secret death wish or whatever. In fact, that fascination with the death of her parents could also, if done well, been her reasoning behind her various relationships. She gets attracted to people she feels safe with (parent-substitute!), then pushes them away and hurts them before they hurt her as secret revenge against her dead pancakes.

Even now, there's still some tie-in between Lana and death, like the fact that she's been taken over by a long-deceased ancestor, her dream in "Scared," and the fact that Auntie Nell is more or less no longer among the remembered. There's some interesting routes TPTB can take, but I doubt they'll follow up on it in the coming season.

MusexMoirai, I just like the idea that this latest meteor shower might dredge up long dead memories/feelings within her. The fact that the same event has devastated her life twice is (or would be, in real life) bound to force her to re-experience old emotions and fears. I realize that some people feel that the sympathy well is long dry for Lana, but I think her having no response at all to the event would be completely ridiculous. I don't want to see her grow or have her heart grow three sizes that day. I want to see her react like a human being. Terrified. Self-centered. Feeling utterly cursed.

I guess I'd feel more sympathy for her if she was visibly damaged, rather than just wistfully self-pitying.

Well, radioeverie, she did have a human reaction in telling Clark she loved him if she thought she was never going to see him again. Of course, she could just be yanking his chain. And she was bewildered in the last scene with Lex and scared in the helicopter.

But you're right. Lana's breakdowns do seem pretty self-contained (standing in one place, hands down by her side or at her chest). The problem may be with the way the actress approaches her scenes, because she decides how her character will react. You don't necessarily have to show hurt by crying, just like you don't have to show anger by yelling. And, depending on the intensity of the emotion, the reaction may differ. But inexperienced actors often don't know this and fall into traps. If no one tells these actors that you don't have to cry the same way every time, they won't change accordingly. And they may be unwilling to be more daring with their acting because they think that it's adequate. This may have happened with Ms. Kruek.

Or, it could also be, she thinks that Lana won't ever completely lose her dignity and is always holding a part of herself back.

edited.

Well, I wasn't thinking about it in terms of being her seasonal arc or anything, but I think an episode or two or even just a good scene of reaction are in order at the very least.

Double-post, but it's two days later and a different topic, so I think it doesn't count...

Anyway, I was thinking about what will happen when Chloe goes to Metropolis next year. Who will she be interacting with when everyone else is in Smallville? Just Lois? Random corrupt people? Her own new Jason Teague type character? Or she'll realize she's into girls and get her own Tara? (Hee. No one has ever accused AlMiles of originality...) Her mother? I guess maybe the Luthors too... Or maybe if she finally tells Clark that she knows his secret, he can superspeed there for coffee every once in a while?

I've been thinking that Clark and Chloe will have the talk very early into Season 5, maybe by the 2nd or 3rd episode b/c otherwise, Clark and Chloe will be very cut off from each other and I really don't think that's their plan. I think they want Clark to stradle between the two sites, Smallville and Metropolis, for the season. Like he's caught between his past and his future. But, how could Clark explain his presence in Metropolis very often if it's a 6 hour drive each time he visits? Maybe they could get away with it for a couple of episodes, but by the 3rd it would be clearly ridiculous that Clark just happened to be in Metropolis.

At least that is my hope, b/c 1) the talk storyline has been delayed too long and 2) it would be a replay of the lame excuses they came up with for Lois to be in Smallville which insulted the audience's intelligence.

I think Massena's right. We know Clark's going to be in Metropolis a lot next season, and we know all his time in Smallville will be with Lana and his parents. S5 is going to all be about Clark realizing his destiny isn't in SV, and the two forces that will draw him away are Chloe and Lex (per early interviews).

I gather that, since we know Clark and Lana aren't going to be together, there's got to be some wedge that keeps them apart in Season 5 (besides Lana being annoying and Clark being gay)...Clark coming clean with Chloe about his secret and spending more time with her there (whether on adventures or something else) will probably be the wedge. I bet we get that development by the first hiatus.

This is all speculation, but I could see the Clark/Chloe/Lana triangle getting turned on its head once Clark and CHloe come clean about his secret to one another...possibly this coinciding with Chloe getting a boyfriend? As Clark starts realizing that Chloe is the better, more logical choice for girlfriend b/c he can be honest with her, CHloe finds a guy who loved her immediately and didn't require all this drama and heartache that her feelings for Clark caused. CLark fully realizes the limitations of a relationship with Lana becuase he can't/won't tell her, and starts to feel something for Chloe while she's moved on to greener pastures.

Or, you know...not, because Lana iz sooo wunderfool.

They could also have Lex, be like The Great Gatsby, and maybe Heathcliff and The Count of Monte Cristo (although the last two I'm not sure about because I don't remember them as well), and throw lavish parties in Metropolis and invite Chloe and Lois and treat them to lots of glamourous fun to show Lana what she's missing out on by not being with him. He could ask Lana "Having any regrets?....About deciding to stay in Smallville, I mean." with a little grin. Hee. I'd love for him to rub her nose in it a little.

Also, it would be great to see Chlex (my two favs) living it up together in Metropolis and it's consistent with Lex's character, as Lionel's son, to use his wealth to try to buy people's affection.

As for Clark, I don't know what to think about him. Part of me thinks he'll return from the FOS early in the season and go to college and we'll see him stadling bw the past and the future for the entire season as I speculated above. Another part of me wonders if they might have TW play the villain that exits from the ship in Commencement and introduce him as Zod or some other name or have him even assume Clark's identity while the real Clark is still in the FOS for half the season. Then the real Clark returns to challenge the other alien in a different spin on the Sageeth/Naman story. Then, Clark would have to question whether he is Naman at all - maybe it is someone else's destiny on that wall (or he forfeited his destiny by not taking control of the stones sooner) and a replacement was sent. Then, in a weird twist, Clark would be like Sageeth, a brother who turns upon the one who fell from the sky with the power of 10 men and who can shoot fire from his eyes. That idea came to me b/c I thought I read somewhere that Kryptonians are clones so wouldn't they all look alike? Also, I did think Lois' nightmare about a scary guy with a red cape wasn't totally a joke.

On the plus side, it would allow the writers to have fun exploring a bad version of Clark with this other alien - kinda like Angelus. They would have a lot of freedom to have him use his powers in malicious ways - which would explain Lex's hatred of aliens in the future. Also, they could give TW something totally different to play which might be a treat for the actor and they could get away with a lot of sexy stuff b/c it's not Clark - it someone else who just looks like him.

But, there would be a really big downside to this, b/c we're on a journey with Clark, and having his character (even if not the actor) absent from the action and not interacting with the other characters would make it seem a little pointless. If it doesn't change Clark, then it's not Smallville. And the audience is looking for follow through on Clark's reaction to Chloe knowing, to Lex threatening Chloe, to his parents' near death experience, to the destruction of their house, to the "I love you" exchange and the aftereffects of the meteor shower on the town. So, we'd be left hanging, waiting for it and maybe getting a little bored or disengaged if they went that route.

Just some random thoughts I had.

Masseena I love your thinking, but my only fear would be that if this came to pass, then Lana would know what is going on and you know he'll just have to tell her before he tells Chloe.

Otherwise, great idea.

I'm with you, Massena ... I like the idea. The easiest workaround for the problem you mentioned is to have the plot develop over the course of only 2-3 episodes instead of a huge chunk of the season. I'm quite sure they won't let anything like that go on any longer, for the very reasons you mention: so much of Clark's S.5 character development has already been set up, so it would just be bizarre to not give him the chance to deal with it.

Also, if Lana sees a Clark lookalike come out of the ship, they'll have to pull their usual bullshit memory wipe copout to keep her from realizing long-term that Clark is an alien too.

Nah, he's going to tell her in a nice, romantic dinner, and beg for her forgiveness for not telling her earlier, then he'll go to Chloe and pretend none of the things she saw ever happened, and hint that she might be going insane.

Glad you liked my random thoughts. But as coalhouse said, another downside would be that Lana would know the secret b/c duh! here' s a guy exiting a spaceship who looks just like Clark. And I'm sorry but Clark has to come clean with Chloe FIRST! That is non-negotiable to me as an audience member at this point. I repeat NON-NEGOTIABLE. If they have Clark tell Lana first, then they have wasted *my* time with all of this build up with Chloe finding out the secret and trying to earn Clark's trust by keeping it until he feels comfortable telling her.

Also, if Lana learns the secret, then they can't go with the storyline that, to me, hold the biggest excitement factor and that's Chloe moves on in Metropolis with another guy and after Clark tells Chloe his secret, he is jealous that someone else has her attention. If Lana knows the secret, then the logical thing would be for Clark to become increasingly romantically linked with Lana. But, that's the opposite of what should happen. Clark should feel continued hesitation to be open with Lana, see the problems in their relationship and move away from her emotionally.

I guess one way around this would be for a bright light ray to come out of the ship and conveniently knock Lana out. We, the audience, get to see the alien that looks like Clark, but no one else does. The alien moves the ship and when Lana revives she tells Chloe and Lex about the ship but there is no proof that it was there. On the surface, they explain it away as a side effect of the trauma - a hallucination, but each of them, deep down, still thinks it was real and related to Clark in some way. Then, the real Clark returns, comes clean with Chloe, finds out about the other alien and sets about to defeat him before he rules the world.

ETA
1. Maybe the alien could disappear from Smallville and Clark returns, talks to Chloe, come clean about everything and they both start wondering who was in that ship and where he is. Then, throughout the season, Chloe and Clark would periodically get clues that someone who looks like Clark is doing some bad stuff all over the world (which *we* get to see), but they don't know what his plan is. Lex, could also, start investigating these incidents involving someone who looks like Clark, but never get evidence that it is him and be mystified by what is going on, thereby prompting Lex to speed up his plans for Level 33.1 to keep this alien in check.

2. Don't have anyway to connect these thought to the deal with Lionel. There, I am at a loss.