Welcome back to Rewatching Smallville, my weekly dive into the iconic series that explores Clark Kent’s journey before becoming Superman. Whether you’re a long-time fan or new to the show, you’re invited to join in each Tuesday as I revisit episodes and share my thoughts and observations. Be sure to share your own memories and theories in the comments below!

If there’s one thing Smallville loves more than shirtless Clark Kent, it’s finding new and creative ways to make our favorite characters act completely out of character. “Rush,” the thirty-fifth episode of the series, gives us yet another excuse to watch our usually responsible teens throw caution to the wind and make questionably entertaining life choices. This time, the culprit is a mysterious cave parasite that turns its victims into adrenaline-seeking party animals with a death wish. Because apparently in Smallville, even the worms know how to have a good time.

The Setup

The episode kicks off with a rave in the Kawatche Caves, which is exactly the kind of respect you’d expect teenagers to show for ancient Native American historical sites. Our first victim is Travis George, Chloe’s chemistry lab partner, who goes from zero to hero in about five seconds flat before deciding that base jumping without a parachute is a brilliant career move. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t.

Pete Ross, ever the voice of reason, tries to protect the cave walls right up until he gets stabbed in the neck by what turns out to be a prehistoric party parasite. And thus begins our journey into what happens when Smallville’s most reliable character gets a taste of the wild side.

The Pete Problem

Let’s talk about Pete Ross for a moment. Throughout the series, Pete has been the dutiful friend, the secret keeper, the guy who’s always there to help Clark maintain his cover story. But give him one parasitic infection, and suddenly he’s doing his best Evel Knievel impression on Main Street and threatening to spill Clark’s secrets faster than you can say “alien spaceship.”

This actually raises an interesting point about the burden of keeping Clark’s secret. When Pete is in his right mind, he’s the perfect confidant. But under the influence of the parasite (or potentially any other mind-altering substance), he becomes a liability. It’s a sobering reminder that even the most trustworthy friends can become dangerous when their judgment is compromised.

The Chloe Conundrum

Not to be outdone in the “what’s the worst that could happen?” department, Chloe Sullivan gets her own dose of parasitic fun. And while infected Pete is entertaining, infected Chloe is a force of nature. She goes from investigating the weird and unexplained to becoming the weird and unexplained, all while maintaining her characteristic wit – just with an added dash of reckless abandon.

The parasite reveals something interesting about Chloe’s character: even with her inhibitions completely removed, her core interest in Clark Kent remains. The difference is that instead of pining from afar and investigating his mysteries, she’s now literally throwing herself at him and his secrets.

Red K Returns

Because one mind-altering substance clearly wasn’t enough for one episode, Pete decides to slip Clark some Red Kryptonite, giving us the return of Kal – Clark’s “no filter” alter ego. It’s a brilliant move from a narrative perspective, creating a perfect storm of bad decisions and revealing truths.

The combination of Red K Clark, parasitic Pete, and uninhibited Chloe is like watching a train wreck in slow motion – you know it’s going to end badly, but you can’t look away. It’s particularly interesting to see how Clark, even when freed from his usual moral constraints, still maintains some level of concern for his friends’ safety. It’s just that his method of “helping” involves a lot more property damage and public displays of affection.

The Lana Lang Factor

Poor Lana Lang. She finally agrees to go on a date with Clark, only to walk in on him playing tonsil hockey with Chloe. It’s the kind of timing that only exists in teen dramas, but it works because it feeds into the ongoing Clark-Lana-Chloe triangle that’s been simmering since season one.

What’s particularly interesting is how this episode handles Lana’s character development. Her comment about being a “spectator in life” shows some self-awareness, and her willingness to take a chance on Clark demonstrates growth. Of course, all of this progress gets derailed by the episode’s events, but hey, two steps forward, one step back is pretty much the Smallville way.

The Lex Factor

Meanwhile, in the B-plot, Lex continues his obsession with the cave drawings, bringing in Dr. Walden to study them. It’s a reminder that while our teens are out living their best parasitic lives, Lex is still playing the long game, gathering pieces of the Clark Kent puzzle one ancient hieroglyph at a time.

Technical Notes

The episode features some impressive stunt work, particularly the scene where Clark catches Pete’s car as it plunges off a cliff. According to production notes, this sequence required suspending a car from a crane with the actors inside and filming in a rock quarry. The footage was then reversed to create the falling effect. It’s the kind of practical effects work that gives Smallville its charm, even when the CGI hasn’t aged quite as gracefully.

Themes and Subtext

At its core, “Rush” is an episode about control and trust. The parasites strip away inhibitions, Red K removes moral constraints, and the results show us who these characters really are beneath their carefully maintained facades. It’s also about the responsibility that comes with knowledge – Pete’s possession of Clark’s secret becomes a liability when he loses control, while Chloe’s temporary knowledge of the truth is ultimately erased for everyone’s safety.

The Verdict

“Rush” is a classic Smallville episode that manages to be both entertaining and meaningful. It gives us the pleasure of watching our favorite characters cut loose while also advancing several important storylines and themes. The parallel between the parasites and Red Kryptonite is clever, showing how external forces can bring out hidden aspects of our characters’ personalities.

Sure, it relies on the classic “character acts weird but doesn’t remember anything later” trope that Smallville loves so much, but it uses this device to explore interesting questions about trust, responsibility, and the burden of secrets. Plus, it gives us some genuinely fun moments, like Chloe calling Dr. Walden a “cunning linguist” (how did they get that past Standards and Practices?).

While not a groundbreaking episode in terms of the overall series mythology, “Rush” serves as an important reminder that in Smallville, the real danger often comes not from external threats, but from the secrets and tensions within our core group of characters. It’s these relationship dynamics that give the show its heart, even when everyone’s acting like they just chugged a case of Red Bull mixed with meteor rocks.

In the end, “Rush” is like that wild night out that everyone pretends not to remember the next day – fun while it lasted, slightly embarrassing in retrospect, but ultimately revealing about who people really are when their guards are down. And really, isn’t that what high school is all about?