Lana Lang dies in ‘Smallville’ finale, or did she?

In the season finale of Smallville, Clark Kent (Tom Welling) loses his high school sweetheart when Lana Lang Luthor’s (Kristin Kreuk) car exploded in a blaze of glory.  Did Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) murder his wife because she threatened to leave?  Or did she fake her own death? 

Before the explosion Lana makes a point of telling Clark, Lex and Lionel Luthor (John Glover) that she’s leaving Lex.  Seems she wanted to make sure people knew.  And she went out of her way to tell Clark goodbye and that he would not see her again.  Although we saw her nearing her car before the explosion, we never actually saw her get in it.

I think she faked her death.  Call me jaded, but if her demise is real, I won’t be disappointed.  Since Lana hooked up with Lex, I’ve found her character annoying.  She’s become an opportunist who then pities herself for the predicament she’s gotten herself in despite all her friends’ warnings.  I can’t see what Clark sees in her except the memory of the once sweet girl next door.

But Lana’s fate is not the only one left in limbo at the end of this episode.  When a inquisitive Lois Lane (Erica Durance) gets into trouble, it’s cousin Chloe (Allison Mack) to the rescue.  Finally, we find out what Chloe’s meteor freak power is.  Talk about a really cool power.  I just want someone to explain to me exactly how it worked.  Chloe heals a dying Lois with a teardrop.  However when Lois awakes, Chloe is unconscious.  Did the healing just leave her drained?  Or did she trade her life for Lois’s?  What will Jimmy Olsen do if Chloe’s gone?

Meanwhile, Lex is in a bit of trouble himself.  His desire to capture the last phantom, which really isn’t a phantom but a Kryptonian experiment, backfires when the phantom escapes and comes after him.  He’s saved by Clark only to be arrested for Lana’s murder.  I think she set him up.  He seemed genuinely shocked by the news of Lana’s death.  But we all know he can be a convincing liar.

The cool news is that the Martian Manhunter (Phil Morris) returns and we learn that he worked for Jor El tracking criminals and that he’s been keeping an eye on Clark at the request of his father.  We also learned that Lionel is also a Jor El ally explaining why he blackmailed Lana to marry Lex so he could use her to get info about the phantoms.

Unfortunately, neither was able to help the Clark when the phantom attacked him, stole his DNA and created a body (a double of Clark) for himself.  Oh the symbolism as Clark must battle his doppelganger.  When the episode ends of the two are still battling it out. 

As the phantom Clark flies off, his face turns white and cracks — the birth of Bizarro Superman.  Mythology says that Bizarro is the exact opposite of Superman, which explains why the kryptonite energized him instead of hurting him.  I have a feeling we haven’t seen the last of him.  My guess is that the pursuit of Bizarro will be the overarching story next season.

Overall a very exciting episode.  I’m looking forward to its return in the fall.  CW announced that it has renewed Smallville and plans to leave it in its Thursday nights.

(Photo courtesy of CW)