This season of Smallville was better than the last few - and yet the last few episodes were starting to force me to extend my patience bubble farther out than normal.  Stilletto?  It felt like it was trying to fall apart for me to some degree, yet I suppose what can you expect from a fantasy show that has inexplicable superpowered aliens?

This reflection on the Smallville season finale will have spoilers...

The Smallville season finale brought closure to some story lines, had some oddball hanging logic at spots, fulfilled some past tidbits on who was going to die and set us up for the next season.

Though I'm not sure what they intend to do with next season or if after this episode, they'll have viewers coming back.  I've already seen some comments about this finale and they haven't been pretty.

Clark, You Are Going To Die

The episode starts out with Clark learning from Cosmic Boy that he's going to die tomorrow.   Cosmis Boy also gives Clark another time travel ring, asking Clark that he send Doomsday to their time where they are prepared to deal with him.

Meanwhile, back at the super large mansion, Tess Mercer loses her Kandor Orb.  Here's the issue with the Orb... if Doomsday dies, something worse is released from the Orb.

Clark's big plan is to bury Doomsday but the Justice League double crosses Clark and dupes him into a trap where Green Arrow plugs Clark with a green arrow... really... a kyrptonite laced arrow.  It really was green.

The Justice League Thinks They Can Take Doomsday

Then the Justice League of mortals (Note the fragility of that word?) goes off to do kill the invincible Doomsday.  They walk away leaving Clark to lie in the street, subdued.  Nice, real nice, and real odd.

the justice league wrangles doomsday in smallville

The Justice League actually captures Davis but as they prepare to off him, Chloe gets in the way AGAIN and thrusts the black kryptonite at Davis, splitting him and Doomsday apart.  It's amazing how stupid this girl acts, and I mean it with the best intentions.

At one point Lois is snooping around Mercer's mansion.  How the hell do people keep getting in this place?  Later on Mercer confronts Lois at the Daily Planet and accuses Lois of stealing her Orb.

They get into a cat fight. (This was probably the best part of the episode folks.) Finally Lois clocks Tess out cold.  As this scuffle comes to an end, Clark's time travel ring that he left on his desk, falls off his desk and as Lois picks it up, she vanishes in a flash.  Obviously to the future.

jimmy olsen and clark kent on smallville

The near iconic character of Jimmie Olsen finds Clark and pulls the arrow from his back.  Suddenly it all begins to make sense as he pulls the arrow out of his back and watches Clark heal.  Jimmie is cool with Clark's secret.

Clark locates the Justice League battered and bruised by what was Doomsday, which really, they seemed less worse for wear considering they just went up against an unbridled, pissed off Kryptonian killing machine that had no human control.

It's back to the original plan and Clark engages Doomsday.

As they come together, Doomsday clocks Clark, sending him flying through several buildings.  As Doomsday comes after him, Clark does a leaping tackle where they land at the refinery where Clark had left the Justice League.  As they land there, it would seem that Clark packed Doomsday in one of the tunnels that he had first planned to put him in, where then Black Canary would set off this multitude of explosions to bury Doomsday.  There are big explosions but in no way were we shown that they were set off by Canary.

The next morning, Jimmy and Chloe have taken the humanity known as Davis to this loft Jimmy bought as a wedding present way back when.  As Jimmy and Chloe start to make amends, the jealous Davis stabs Jimmy with a pipe.  As Davis goes after Chloe in a jealous angry rage, Jimmy uses his last bit of energy to shove Davis into more pipes, killing him.  Jimmy dies. JIMMY OLSEN DIES (what?). So the monster was Davis.  Great.

After the funeral Clark and Chloe talk.  Clark doesn't know how he survived the explosion or seemingly what happened to Doomsday.  Clark is mad at himself for not seeing that Oliver was right about killing Doomsday.

tom welling as clark kent on smallville

Clark said he tries to forget he's an alien and yet, it's his human side that makes poor decisions based on emotion.  He decides that he is no longer going to be Clark Kent and declares that Clark Kent is dead and walks away.

Meanwhile, back at the mansion the Kandor Orb shows up and hatches a man on the front lawn, carving out a big Z in the grass.  Zod, has returned.

Where Do I Begin?

This episode had so many oddball illogical scenes that happenstance seemed more like logic than the situations that took place here.

Leaving a time travel ring on your desk at work.  Fine.  Clark has a lot on his mind.

A batch of humans with some powers, looking to take on Doomsday.  Fine.  They have to.  Right?

The fight between Clark and Doomsday was incredibly short and lame.  Two hits.  Three at the most?  This should have been the payoff for this whole season of waiting.  And it was two hits.  Gimme a break folks.

At Jimmy's funeral, we find out that his middle name is Jimmy.  Jimmy is not his real name.  Chloe gives "Jimmies" camera to his younger brother.  Head slap. So Jimmy Olsen did not die.  Just a guy whose middle name was Jimmy.

Clark saying that Clark Kent is dead - Is this what the showrunners meant when they tried to tease the viewers into any sort of anticipation about character deaths and the season finale?  You've lost your credibility with this critic because that was a hollow lie.  On both counts.  If it's not really Jimmy, then you've lied to us all along.  Clark "dies" by a decision.  I'm so over this it's not even funny.

Zod is back. Cool.  Sure.  Why not bring Darkseid in the action as some sort of midget horticulturist while you're at it.

Did I forget something?  I'm sure I did.  Are you as agitated as I am?  As a show goes and if you've put on a thick skin of anti-logic, the episode was fine but the convenient scenarios and situations that led to some of the story closures felt contrived.  Did someone quit and you had to get a fill-in writer?

I liked the premise that Jimmy found out Clark's secret.  Learning that information made a lot of things make sense to Jimmy and why he could start to forgive Chloe.  In fact, the forgiving had started and bam!  OK, you had me there.  Watching someone in a passionate make up kiss and hearing the shthunk sound of pipe going through their torso sucked.

Smallville Season 9 Spoilers

Erica Durance will be back for Season 9.  Sam Witwer may be continuing with the show as he might be playing Zod.  It's noted that Faora did say that Davis Bloome resembled his father.

Your Turn

Ok folks.  It's your turn.  You can either back me up and show me more moments of "huh?" or tell me why you thought this was OK in your book.  I'm totally open to any thoughts.

Now gang, I've asked for opinions on both sides, so this is my fault if you see things you don't like.  Don't take it out on each other.  This is a safe place to express your thoughts.

Images and Season 9 Info Source: Krypton Site