Ep 4.22 - Commencement

[Chiriru]

The season's storylines come together. Lana becomes free of Isobel after killing Genevieve. Lex takes her in to help, but really he wants her stone. Lana passes her stone along to Clark, who now has two of the three pieces. Jason goes after the Kents thinking they can lead him to the stones. The merging of the crystals summons a meteor shower on Graduation Day.

[Jlandsw]

Amazing episode.....nuff said!!

[OutlawAngel]

I really liked this episode.I still dont like what the wriiters did to Jason's character but this episode is one of the best of the series. Infact put Commencment and Arival together and they are the best IMO

[greggbray]

I was so happy to see the subplot die. :-D

Jason could have been a much better character. Does every one of Lana's boyfriends have to turn evil? Or dead?

Aside from that, it was nice to see the fortress forming, and I really loved Arrival--an episode that couldn't have happened without Commencement. So, ultimately, a pretty darn good episode. One of the best of Season 4.

[jdot]

If they had bothered to have an arc in place for Jason at the beginning of the season, his behavior in the last few episodes would have made sense. Heck, if they had let Jensen in on the secret he could have done something with the rest of his work in the season. It just seems like they decided midway through that he was going to be a bad guy for no real reason.

Overall, this episode was incredible. It's definitely the best season finale they've done.

[OutlawAngel]

This makes me wonder if Jensen was gonna be brought in as a main character for season 5 but then (maybe becasue of Supernatural) something happendso out of the blue they turned him evil.

I really liked Jason's character when he was nice. he was one of the best characters on the whole series. He was unique and witty and fun and darn it is Jensen is so very very hot. Just man that guy is smoking fine. And he made me like Lana's character because the chemistry between them was very cute and the actors worked very well together. and she seemed to jump off her 'lieth and secreteth' wagon. But now in S5 her character seems to be right where she was back to the old angry squirrel Lana :o

[UpandAtom]

I was really surprised by the way they ended this episode. I thought we'd finally get to see the Fortress of Solitude but we didn't.

Me: I've waited through 9 months of filler episodes but now I'm finally going to see the Fortress of Solitude.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Me: Do'h!

[greggbray]

Yeah, but watching the FOS' construction, and everything that followed in the first episode of Season 5 was absolutley wonderful.

[vyperman7]

This is an episode that has really grown on me. The first time I saw it I was not that pleased. I was really unhappy that Clark didn't find out what Chloe knew about him, as well as the fact that we did not get to see the FOS form. A much better cliffhanger would have been fading to black with the TBC after you see Clark enter. I also thought that Lex was lightswitched in this episode. The whole series he has fought against beoming like his father, and then all of a sudden he is his father's son?

But now that Arrival turned out so well, I am not bothered by my main complaints anymore, and this episode has become one of my favorites from S4.

[UpandAtom]

Yeah. Lex definetely changed too fast. Another thing I don't understand is why Isobel suddenly left Lana after killing Genevieve. What about the stones? and what about Jason?

[greggbray]

^ I think the writers realized they were striking out with the Isobel storyline. Outside of this forum, one would be hard pressed to find too many folks who enjoyed that subplot.

I think they just wanted to end the storyline and move onto the FOS stuff.

[IvanDA]

Not to get technical but it wasn't the merging of the crystals that caused the meteor shower. I believe Jor-El said that "human blood touching one of the crystals (Genevieve's blood in this case) is what awakened a danger" which I guess is the meteror shower and the disciples of zod.

Also does anyone know how Lana figured that the stone in her possession was meant for Clark. She said something like "I somehow know it's meant for you," when she gave it to him.

[brainiacowen]

I think it was just because of all the signs pointing to it. The burns on his barn...in the feild...everytime something with the crystals is going down, he's there...

The scene where Jonathan tells Clark that everything they have taught him his entire life was all for "This moment." gave me chills. So awesome.

Also when Lex tells Lionel that he did create the son he always wanted.

[Clark/Lois-fan]

I have seen this episode so many times. I just LOVE it!!! Lionel had the best line " For a woman without a heart- Genevieve Teague sure had a lot of blood..." I truly thought that when the helicopter with Lana crashed she was dead- but then I remembered Lex's planecrash in Exodus ;) Lex & Lionel were awesome and Lex telling his father he did create the son he always wanted- with the drums ( I think ) in the background. Jonathan & Martha were also awesome when Clark told them he had to stay to find the stones. Lois laying in the grass and saw the aftermath of the meteors was touching. The ending was AMAZING. Clark throwing "the thing" away ( I don't know what it's called :) ) and with the music and then it says TO BE CONTINUED.....

One of my absolute favorites in the series

[UpandAtom]

The only part I disliked was how Lex suddenly lightswitched.

Lex: "Before you leave this earth dad, I want you to know that you did create the son you always wanted."

[OutlawAngel]

Yeah I know. I thoght watching the re runs on DvD and i could figure out how and where that really happend but it does seem like one day the writters just said 'ok lets just make him evil right here'

[UpandAtom]

Is it just me or do the special effects of the meteor shower look reused? I mean, it looks like they took the same meteors from the pilot without creating new ones.

[OutlawAngel]

I thought that maybe some old footage was mixed in with some new stuff. I did notice that though.

[UpandAtom]

what scenes did ABC Family cut from this episode?

[Pal-El]

When put along side Arrival they form easily the 2 best episodes of the series so far.

I loved that the stupid witch story line was finished (albeit leaving a major plothole) even though everyone seems to completely forget about the stones in season 5

I loved the way they made lex's eyes glow blue when he crept up to the water stone. For me it was a very nice touch and gave the overall feeling that the stone had somehow seduced lex.

Also the last few scenes, as mentioned earlier in the thread, where Lois is lying on the grass & tears at all the destruction and Clark at the north pole (*COUGH vancouver mountains COUGH*) throwing the stone....

Goosebumps all over.

[sup3rp3t3]

well lionel lied about the stone he had been taken over by jor-el. cause in the 3rd or 4th episode of season 5 jor-el as lionel said "i have taken over a vessel in lionels body and i am its oracle".so in commencement it all started.

[sup3rp3t3]

oh yeah and here is a avatar:

[RedQ]

while talking to dad.

I Loved the summarized Exposition in a rush thru ^_^
Originally posted by brainiacowen
when Lex tells Lionel that he did create the son he always wanted.
Originally posted by UpandAtom
The only part I disliked was how Lex suddenly lightswitched.

Lex: "Before you leave this earth dad, I want you to know that you did create the son you always wanted." To me was Scary!
Originally posted by pal-el
I loved that the stupid witch story line was finished (albeit leaving a major plothole) even though everyone seems to completely forget about the stones in season 5

I loved the way they made lex's eyes glow blue when he crept up to the water stone. For me it was a very nice touch and gave the overall feeling that the stone had somehow seduced lex.

Also the last few scenes, as mentioned earlier in the thread, where Lois is lying on the grass & tears at all the destruction and Clark at the north pole (*COUGH vancouver mountains COUGH*) throwing the stone....

Goosebumps all over. Yeah i caught that eyes effect. the Lois scene to me wasn't hear aching cause I feel somewhat betrayed that she has no feeling to relate to. IF it was Lana It would have made more effect. Lois should be more in Shock and disbelief rather than realizing the loss.
http://www.kryptonsite.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=145

[christian_kryptonian]

This episode was one of the best in the whole series. They made up for the bad episodes that preceeded it. lol. I think I've seen this episode like 15 times. I think all my friends(those who do and don't watch Smallville) have seen it lol. It's a sweet episode.

[LuthorRequiem2]

Easily one of the top episodes of the entire show. An epic way to bridge the gap between the old "Smallville" and the new...the way the show changed in season five started to make it MUCH more like Superman.

The same goes for Lex Luthor. He has become much more like his comic book counterpart. And I disagree with peoples' opinions on him being "lightswitched", at least to some extent. I think that he has been slowly turning to evil all the way from season 1. The events of season three (Lionel's electroshock therapy, Lionel poisoning Lex, Clark finding the room and severing their friendship, Lex discovering his mom killed Julian) helped to make Lex a much darker person going into season three. He was still a good person at heart, as we saw, from the beginning of the season, because he still wanted the friendship with Clark, and not because he wanted to find out Clark's secret, but because Clark's friendship helps keep Lex's darkness at bay.

Then as the season progressed, Clark began to accuse Lex...more and more, until the point where it was almost absurd, and almost routine, that Clark would continue to accuse him. Like Lex says in "Jinx" (an episode in season four), "So today I'm the despicable, untrustworthy friend, and as usual, our hero is making the fatal flaw of jumping to conclusions".

Clark being so distrustful of Lex helped make him into a more tormented person as the season continued. Then "Onyx" came. THIS was the pivotal episode in Lex's turn. It was not a "lightswithch," though, because he had been slowly turning on and off throughout the season to the darkside. The Evil Lex reunited with the Good Lex at the end, and Lex didn't remember what happened. But he DID feel that evilness inside him become more strong. If you watch the deleted scenes of "Onyx" on the DVD, Clark says that Evil Lex reminds him of his days as Kal-El, and how it was very hard to fight that side of himself once he went back to being normal. Jonathan says that at least Clark has a loving family to support him through the bad times, and Martha says, "All Lex has is your friendship. That might not be enough." Then we see Lionel...apparentally back to his MB self. THIS is the turning point. Lex sees how content Lionel is with being back to his old self. He feels a sort of freedom. He thinks why have I been wasting my time trying to be so good all the time, when all I get is accusations from Clark in return? He sees the evil alive in his father, and feels it in him too. When Lionel says, "A man can't deny his true nature, can he? No, we're Luthors," this makes Lex start to think, "Maybe I can't deny my true nature. Maybe I should just accept my destiny."

From that point on, throughout the season, he is acting ruthlessly, until in "Commencement", we see that his craving for power has really made him into "the son Lionel always wanted." That is why I feel it's not a lightswitch, but rather, something that has been in development for quite some time.

That's why I love that moment in "Commencement" so much. It's truly chilling, and it leaves us with a preview of the Lex we will see in season five.

Sorry about that long-winded speech. I just think people should understand the development of the character. If you feel inclined to disagree, that's fine. I just thought I should share my opinion. :)

All in all, this was the best season finale yet. As much as I loved "Covenent" (the head shaving scene) this tops it! Great stuff.

[RedQ]

3.19 Memoria and that Lex likes and treats Clark as a little brother in 2.07 Lineage.

Lex values Clarks opinions and the Kents, cause he ENVIES the Family the relationship they have and wanted from his father in 3.18 Truth.

and Clark is Lex's one True friend that he has experinced in his life time including Lana in the Talon Partnership.

[LuthorRequiem2]

Well put, RedQ, very well put.

[RedQ]

http://www.superdickery.com/images/dick/Action_Comics_No258_Nov_1959_DC.jpg

[Welling_is_pretty]

I thought Commencement was a pretty good episode. I liked all the Clark/Chloe stuff (although why our BDA hadn't figured out that Chloe knew was beyond me. She might as well have just told him, she was being so obvious about it!
I thought a great deal of it either didn't make sense or felt forced, however. It's just my opinion but the whole Lois leave taking, Jason going evil and Lionel finding his 'inner El' all seemed to come out of nowhere.
So many things were left unexplained at the end of Season 4 and they didn't get explained in Season 5.
But this episode has one of my fave scenes in it. Clark's dream and the 'aurora borealis'.
Dunno. *shrugs* I'm not as enthused as others but I did like it. Maybe I'll have to watch it again.

[CB2006]

This was my favourite episode of season 4. Jonathan's speech to Clark about everything that he and Martha taught Clark all his life was for that moment was my favourite. I especially liked it when Jonathan said "you go make us proud". The expression on John Schneider's face made it look like he really meant it, instead of it just being dialogue.

[Naman is 1#]

WOW! What a season finale! The best one yet(IMO)!

[rockchick900]

when lana kills jasons mum at the begining of this episode is she possossed by isobel?

[Nataku]

Originally posted by rockchick900
when lana kills jasons mum at the begining of this episode is she possossed by isobel?

Yeah

[rockchick900]

Originally posted by Nataku
Yeah


thanks

[silverfist]

Well put, LuthorRequiem2.
I agree that it was definetely not a lightswitch.

[hahahaha!!]

wow.

this episode rocked!!!
best finale EVER!!!

but the ending was kinda....i dunno..too much.

i thought they had to finish it like this:

Clark is putting all the elements together and his teleported

to the north pole.. hes looking around him..confused and scared..

TO BE CONTINUED. . . . . . .

[JNottle]

I liked the confrentation between Johnathan, Martha and Jason where Jason said about Clark having no record of being born etc, it proved with a little digging, people can find out about him, what I don't get is what gave him the idea to dig into Clark though.

[Stu.Kent]

i loved this episode, although i noticed the laziest use of telekenisis at the beginning when lana/isobel kills jason's mom, i mean the stone is like an inch away from her hand?!? :D

[zorasuperman]

lois ranting on about hte meteor shower and not panicking
clark
lois youre panicking
lol funny stuff

[Bilza]

WOW! Well where do I start? :p

The greatest season finale and one of my favourite episodes of smallville.

I will continue to look at the character development of my favourite character Lex and this really is one of those defining moments in his life. MR's performance yet again was superb..so compelling.

From helping Lana after killing Jason's mum showing us that he was helping one of the very few people in his life that he deeply cares about... to then letting go of his deeply rooted rage that's been bottled inside him for a long time. What compounds his phsychie is the return of the intimidation by his father trying to test his character. Avoiding the obvious theory that he's obssessed just like his father in getting his hands on those stones and solving the mysteries to go with it. The rage was finally let go in the scene where Lionel is canatonic and collapses to the floor. Without showing any care or worry for his father he releases all that frustraion and rage assuming his father is dead..."Can you hear me dad?.....Before you leave this earth, I just want you to know......you did create the son you always wanted!" (chilling) This is one of the best and most chilling line delivered by MR on smallville let alone this brilliant episode. Lex luthor for now has accepted his destiny!

He had already reached breaking point during that scene with Clark in the barn when he notices that Clark was concealing things from him (i.e. the key). Not only that knowing full well he (Clark) knew about a concealed room behind a cave wall. Clark with memory loss admitted it in a drawing of the cave to lex in the episode "Blank". Lex was obviously trying to test Clark if for once he can tell the truth. Clark lied once again. Lex's reaction was priceless, the look of acceptance but clearly frustrated once again. His transparent furstration with Clark's lies has now reached breaking point and no longer feels that Clark is a true friend. Lex remained calm throughout this confrontation even when Clark reacted angrily, dismissive of the importance of those caves. In a way this scene was similar to Tempest the season 1 finale. The only difference is that Lex has changed dramatically since then with the dark force uncontrollably raging inside him...knowing full well that his friendship with clark is doomed. Lex is reluctant to go that extra further to forcefully find out the truth just yet.

Another priceless reaction is when Lana refused to trust him with the stone and Lex took his frustration out by taking her bag. Lex looks on to Lana regretably because of his feelings for her but then looks away in disgust and more frustration written on his face. To make matters worse, he returns to the mansion only to find one of the stones has been stolen from his library and Chloe refuses to tell the truth. Lex knows full well her very close friendship with Clark and he became suspicious and in Chloe's eyes paranoid that she was deliberately hiding the truth about Clark.

Lex has now taken a new direction and his life is about to become more interesting with new storylines and intriguing performances by MR. The conclusions some of you people about Lex turning like a "lightswitch" makes you wonder if you've really understood how this character has developed throughout the entire series.....that Lex just all of a sudden turned evil and turned on his friends like a "lightswitch" obviously have not been watching this character closely as he develops. There has always been a darknes inside him even since Season 1. Frickin watch the show closely before you judge and dismiss it...otherwise you'll look just stupid because you've simply haven't understood the plot throughout the whole series! You can see it almost clearly in his eyes particularly this season that he's turning bad and probably triggered the slow downward spiral in season 3!

It's great as an audience to witness another a spectacular meteor shower. This was one of the best decisions of the show by the writers in bringing in a 2nd meteor shower. Brilliantly written and the idea of human blood staining one of the elements awakening a dark force from krypton is genius. You cant have written it any better. Everyone thought the stones idea were to be kind "irrelevant" but now people have forseen the significance of these stones that form a crystal to open the fortress of solitude.

This episode, this season and perhaps throughout all those seasons has captivated us with the amazing action scenes, great special effects and a very dramatic end to the story of season 4 and ofcourse some special acting performances. "Previously on smallville"....those scenes just clarify how underrated this season is/was. A new/journey era of smallville is about to arise. We now move on to my favourite season ..Season 5 my favourite season that got me addicted to the show.

[Bilza]

Easily one of the top episodes of the entire show. An epic way to bridge the gap between the old "Smallville" and the new...the way the show changed in season five started to make it MUCH more like Superman.

The same goes for Lex Luthor. He has become much more like his comic book counterpart. And I disagree with peoples' opinions on him being "lightswitched", at least to some extent. I think that he has been slowly turning to evil all the way from season 1. The events of season three (Lionel's electroshock therapy, Lionel poisoning Lex, Clark finding the room and severing their friendship, Lex discovering his mom killed Julian) helped to make Lex a much darker person going into season three. He was still a good person at heart, as we saw, from the beginning of the season, because he still wanted the friendship with Clark, and not because he wanted to find out Clark's secret, but because Clark's friendship helps keep Lex's darkness at bay.

Then as the season progressed, Clark began to accuse Lex...more and more, until the point where it was almost absurd, and almost routine, that Clark would continue to accuse him. Like Lex says in "Jinx" (an episode in season four), "So today I'm the despicable, untrustworthy friend, and as usual, our hero is making the fatal flaw of jumping to conclusions".

Clark being so distrustful of Lex helped make him into a more tormented person as the season continued. Then "Onyx" came. THIS was the pivotal episode in Lex's turn. It was not a "lightswithch," though, because he had been slowly turning on and off throughout the season to the darkside. The Evil Lex reunited with the Good Lex at the end, and Lex didn't remember what happened. But he DID feel that evilness inside him become more strong. If you watch the deleted scenes of "Onyx" on the DVD, Clark says that Evil Lex reminds him of his days as Kal-El, and how it was very hard to fight that side of himself once he went back to being normal. Jonathan says that at least Clark has a loving family to support him through the bad times, and Martha says, "All Lex has is your friendship. That might not be enough." Then we see Lionel...apparentally back to his MB self. THIS is the turning point. Lex sees how content Lionel is with being back to his old self. He feels a sort of freedom. He thinks why have I been wasting my time trying to be so good all the time, when all I get is accusations from Clark in return? He sees the evil alive in his father, and feels it in him too. When Lionel says, "A man can't deny his true nature, can he? No, we're Luthors," this makes Lex start to think, "Maybe I can't deny my true nature. Maybe I should just accept my destiny."

From that point on, throughout the season, he is acting ruthlessly, until in "Commencement", we see that his craving for power has really made him into "the son Lionel always wanted." That is why I feel it's not a lightswitch, but rather, something that has been in development for quite some time.

That's why I love that moment in "Commencement" so much. It's truly chilling, and it leaves us with a preview of the Lex we will see in season five.

Sorry about that long-winded speech. I just think people should understand the development of the character. If you feel inclined to disagree, that's fine. I just thought I should share my opinion. :)

All in all, this was the best season finale yet. As much as I loved "Covenent" (the head shaving scene) this tops it! Great stuff.


I'm glad both of us share the same points about the most intriguing yet so tragic character in Lex Luthor. We've fully understood this complex character more than any other fan of Smallville. Well said!

[MjLaDy08]

i love the Clois scene... here... the man in a red cape... and the neck tie scene...

funny!!!

[wendelboe]

Hmm the Crystal with a triangle and an 8 (Crystal Of Air) written on in is the "murder weapon" Isobel use to kill genevie, it's curios that Isobel was unable to touch that stone in spell (episode) because it burned her hand.
But in this episode she can suddenly touch the stone anyway

Oh never mind, I just looked closer and I was wrong - Isobel couldn't touch the Crystal of Fire then.
But now I'm talking about Isobel, I would like to know what she did in Paris when Lana couldn't remember the time from when she was at the tomb and until she woke up in her bed

[Nimkong]

This is my favorite episode of season 4 and my favorite season finale.Liked how clark merged the stones,no more witchs!,and lex finally turned evil!

[SGuthrie27]

BEST season finale of the series, bar none, and, in my opinion, best episode EVER on Smallville. 'Nuff said.

[darkphoenix21]

As something to do I've been re-watching the series season by season; not the entire seasons just the first/last few episodes of each season and some episodes in between "Commencement" has stuck out as the number 1 episode of the series....Salvation coming in a close second. Commencement had everything you would want....great scenes, special effects and a season finale that had you on the edge of your seat.

[Supermania]

I think that Commencement was a good season finale...it was very tense and the special effects were awesome. I think it also signified change in the show as it moved from its teen high school settings to mature adult settings. It definitely got me wanting more...

[KalEltheBoyscout]

For nine seasons this was probably the most epic 50 minutes of "Smallville" ever....and then a little episode called "Salvation" come along and rocked my socks off. But this is about "Commencement" and after rewatching that, it still has the same effect. They spent a lot of money making it look as cool as possible and they suceeded. I mean, the awesome shots of Clark saving the boy, the meteor shower tearing the town apart, the union of the 3 stones, and finally Clark being transported to the Arctic, it was all just mindblowing. And I loved how determined and heroic Clark was portrayed by Tom. Just flat-out amazing episode!!!

[CUDDYBUDDY]

Best Part:

"I Don't Have The Stone!"
*Noise*
(Oh S*** I do have it)

[SVFAN89]

This is my favorite episode of Smallville so far. Once the series finale rolls around, I'm sure that will become the best, but for now Commencement is still the most amazing episode IMO.
There are very few flaws with this episode. Season 4 went out with a bang! :D