The flashbacks featured in Superman & Lois episode 5 showed how and when the Arrowverse’s Clark Kent (Tyler Hoechlin) ended up on a different path to Smallville’s Man of Steel. There are multiple parallels between the two versions of Superman, but there are plenty of differences as well, which makes it easy for The CW to toe the line of repetition.
Whereas Superman & Lois centers on an older Clark Kent who is the father of two boys, Smallville focused on a much earlier period in the character’s life. The Superman prequel series told the story of a young Clark (Tom Welling) and the trials he had to go through before becoming the Big Blue Boy Scout from DC Comics. It started with his four years in high school and progressed from there. The Arrowverse, of course, has skipped that phase, but flashbacks in Superman & Lois season 1, episode 5, “Best of Smallville” introduced viewers to his teenage self and shed some light on his relationship with his adopted mother, Martha Kent. Apparently, many of the problems that Clark is having in the present day with his own children reflect issues that his mother had with him when he was a teenager.
One interesting element of these flashbacks is how Clark’s story compares to the one that Smallville offered the character in the early seasons. It’s revealed in the episode that Clark, who felt trapped in Smallville, left home at a very young age and never looked back. He knew he was destined for something much bigger than the quiet and uneventful life he was living, and set off to change the world. That stands in stark contrast to what Clark decided to do in Smallville. Welling’s Clark put off fulfilling his destiny and hesitated to leave his hometown behind. In fact, he lived there until long after his father’s death, and even ran the farm when Martha moved away to become a United States senator.
Jonathan Kent’s death seems to have a lot to do with when their paths diverged. In Smallville season 4, Jonathan was suffering from heart problems, and that contributed to Clark wanting to remain home. Clark could have attended college out-of-town but enrolled at a local university instead, as he planned to help out with the farm and spend as much time with his father as he could. When Jonathan passed away in season 5, Clark dropped out of college to help with the farm full-time. Plus, other problems emerged in his life that he was forced to deal with. It was situations such as these that lengthened Clark’s stay in Smallville and extended his journey to donning the iconic red cape.
Superman & Lois episode 5 indicates that the Arrowverse’s take on the character wasn’t held back by the same problems. Once his father died, he was in rush to get out of Smallville and move on with his life. It’s for these reasons that Hoechlin’s Clark Kent likely became Superman much quicker than Tom Welling’s character, who spent ten years getting to that point. But, it’s worth noting that taking the fast approach didn’t come out without consequences. At the end of episode, Clark painfully acknowledged that by leaving Smallville, he missed out on many good years with his mother.