Best Penultimate Episode

[The Dark Knight74]

Obscura
Hostage
Prototype.

[Miray]

Hostage would be my favorite, though parts of it really bugged me. Prototype in 2nd (Lois had some very good scenes in that one.) Calling is also very exciting.

[ginnyfan]

It's between Calling, Oracle, Prototype and Hostage. Hostage is probably one notch below these three. These three were action packed and had me on the edge of my seat!

Honorable mentions to Obscura and Forever. Obscura because of Chlark and Forever because it's a hilarious message to viewers that the show can't stay in the high school years forever IMO.

[borednow]

Forever has a special place in my heart
Prototype was... an awesome episode... I think I'll give it to that...

[Greenarrowjustice]

Hostage is the best and injustice was easily the worst - what a boring episode injusitce was (despite such great potential)...

[badraven]

Well it is kinda tough since the penultimate episode has been in a few different spots over the years but here's my list:

1) Injustice: simply put one of the best episodes of the series IMO. And I think TW's best directorial outting.

2) Oracle: Great epi. I've always thought it makes a great almost two-parter with it's season finale.

3) Hostage: Really, really good. Great to see Martha back...and as the Red Queen no less. AO'T did an amazing job. Seeing Perry back was cool. The Clark-Martha, Lois-Perry and Chlark scene(s)...awesome.

4) Prototype: Funny thing about this episode- it had the lowest TV ratings for that season. Which is a shame because I think this is a very good showing for the season and the series. Also MUCH better than that season's finale.

5) Quest: Seventh season doesn't get much love IMO. I think the season is better than a lot of people think and I think this was one of the best episodes of that underrated season.

6) Calling: Really good, set up that's seasons finale very well.

7) Obscura: Torn on this one. It has IMO some the best Chlark scenes of the entire series. On the other hand the story itself is just OK. But the Chlark wins- still a good episode.

8) Forsaken: A good episode. Nothing more than that.

9) Forever: It's kind of hard for me to understand why this isn't at the bottom spot of everyone's list. It is just not that good. A barely OK episode IMO, second weakest of that season and one of the weakest of the series.

[Supsfan]

9) Forever: It's kind of hard for me to understand why this isn't at the bottom spot of everyone's list. It is just not that good. A barely OK episode IMO, second weakest of that season and one of the weakest of the series.

I don't think the episode is that terible(not that it's great either). In all reality was it any worse then any FOTW type stories from S1. Probobably not thre greatest setup for a final, but if you look at the episode on it's individual merits it ok.

[borednow]

It was a joke about not wanting the show to have to change... it was actually somewhat cleaver...

Also it holds a special place in my heart as the first episode of Smallville that I watched where I actually wanted to watch more...

[Clana Kent]

Quest, Calling, Hostage, Injustice, Forever, Prototype, Obscura, Oracle, Forsaken

[supercatmom]

I actually didn't mind the Lana part of the plot since I liked the portrayal of her character much better at that time. Plus, I like how Clark did his own research and found out that Lana had an amplified version of De Kretser syndrome (which I'm 99.999% sure is fictional). The Lex parts were my favorites, but I enjoyed the save at the amusement park and loved that view they gave of Lana seeing through Deputy Watts' eyes with the bullet flying right towards his face. And I loved how Nixon was there to see Clark getting shot in the chest by Watts.

One thing the latter episodes of season 1 did was build up the events of Tempest with Lionel firing everyone and set up Lionel's obsession for Clark, which officially began in Red:

Stray: Lionel's curiosity began when Lex refused to join him in Metropolis.

Reaper: Lionel sent Dominic to find out what Lex was spending unaccounted money on after Lex didn't join him, but Lex sent Dominic back to him in the trunk of the car.

Drone: Lionel sent Metropolis Journal reporter Carrie Castle to tarnish Lex's image to stop his plans & force him to join him in Metropolis, but Lex foiled his plan when he made Carrie Castle a better offer.

Crush: Lex was visited by his former nanny, Pamela Jenkins, and received stocks of Luthorcorp his mother owned & left for Pamela from her (something that would have a big role a little later).

Obscura: Roger Nixon, who had been working for Lex ever since Lex reversed Nixon's blackmail attempt on him in X-Ray, found Eddie Cole & introduced him to Lex. Cole told Lex that he used to cropdust the fields in his plane & saw a ship that crashed on Miller's Field, but Lex was skeptical about Cole's story. Lex had Dr. Hamilton, whom he met in Craving after first stumbling upon Chloe's meteor rock theory in articles of the Torch, set up an excavation where he found the octagonal disk that was determined to be extraterrestrial. Lex hid it in a compartment on his desk in his study & wanted to speak with Cole again, but he was nowhere to be found. Nixon wanted to find out why Lex was so interested in Clark so he went to the carnival & was a witness to Deputy Watts shooting Clark in the chest with bullets.

Tempest: Roger Nixon found the key & took it. After spying on the Kents, he heard them talking about the ship in the storm cellar & broke into it, inserting the key into the ship. Meanwhile, Lionel finally decided to close down the Luthorcorp plant to give Lex no other choice but leave Smallville for Metropolis & stop whatever he was doing with the unaccounted money he was spending, but Lex decided to fight him off & performed a leveraged buyout using the shares of stock his mother owned that he got from Pamela just a few episodes before in Crush (awesome subtle touch if you ask me). The tornadoes struck & Lionel promised to bury Lex, as he actually felt threatened by him since he wasn't goofing around at nightclubs anymore. Lionel was injured & blinded & the key & Clark's ship were lost.

Duplicity: Lionel decided to use his blindness as a reason to stay with Lex at the mansion when his real purpose was to find out what Lex was up to. Pete in that episode found Clark's ship, but Dr. Hamilton stole it from him & demanded the key back from Lex, who didn't have it. He took Lionel to his barn/lab & had Lionel trace the octagonal depression in the ship. Now, Lionel finally figured out what Lex was up to & by the end of the episode, decided to prolong his stay at the mansion. Duplicity was the precise episode when his obsession with aliens began.

Red: Lionel was a blind eyewitness to Clark shooting himself in the hand. His curiosity went through the roof after finding the bullets that were fired just lying on the floor, because under normal circumstances, he knew they should have been lodged in the floor or whatever they were fired into. So from here on out, he knew there was something special about Clark & Red is the precise episode his obsession with Clark started.

Thank you xrayvision for that walk down memory lane. It reminded me why I fell in love with SV. It was so much fun watching Lex and Lionel jockey around each other for power. In those days Lex was actually trying to protect Clark from his devil incarnated Father.
Of course that was all spoiled by having Lex fall madly in love with Lana.

[awehla]

To add to the comments about Veritas, I re-watched Legacy this week and Lionel referred to Dr Swann as his formal title (surely Virgil would have been more appropriate between friends) and it gave no indication they knew each other and were friends back in the 80's!

[JorEl23]

BEST TO WORST:

1) Season 2: Calling

2) Season 9: Hostage

2) Season 8: Injustice

3) Season 6: Prototype

4) Season 5: Oracle

5) Season 3: Forsaken

6) Season 7: Quest

7) Season 4: Forever

8) Season 1: Obscura

[Smokethatkryptonite]

My own list of Best to Worst (Quest and InJustice not included as I haven't seen either)

1.Calling
2. Obscura
3. Oracle
4. Prototype
5.Hostage
6. Forsaken
7. Forever

[smallville forever]

hostage the brilliant reveal of the red queen and shock ending with the book of roa