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!

In May 2003, while Buffy the Vampire Slayer was preparing to stake its last vampire and Angel was brooding through its fourth season, Smallville decided to try its hand at the supernatural horror genre with “Accelerate,” the 42nd episode of the series. What starts as a classic ghost story quickly morphs into something far more sinister – and much more aligned with the show’s mythology of meteor rock mutations and morally dubious scientific experiments.

The Ghost in the Machine

The episode opens with what could easily be mistaken for a scene from The Ring or The Sixth Sense – our heroes watching a horror movie at the Talon (because apparently nobody in Smallville owns a DVD player), followed by Lana Lang encountering what appears to be the ghost of her childhood friend Emily Dinsmore. It’s a masterclass in misdirection, setting up supernatural expectations only to pull the rug out from under us with a reveal that’s pure science fiction: Emily isn’t a ghost, but a kryptonite-enhanced clone with super-speed powers.

This bait-and-switch perfectly encapsulates what made Smallville unique in the early 2000s television landscape. While shows like Buffy and Angel were diving deep into supernatural mythology, Smallville consistently found ways to ground its extraordinary elements in pseudo-science (albeit the kind of science that involves green rocks that give people superpowers).

The Clone Wars

Long before Orphan Black made cloning its central premise, “Accelerate” tackled the ethical implications of human cloning with surprising nuance. The episode doesn’t just present us with a single clone but shows us multiple versions of Emily in various states of development, creating an unsettling image that forces us to question the moral implications of such experiments. The fact that these clones are of a child makes it even more disturbing – there’s something particularly unsettling about seeing multiple versions of the same little girl floating in green fluid (a visual that wouldn’t feel out of place in a James Cameron film).

The performance by Jodelle Micah Ferland as Emily deserves special attention. Child actors in science fiction often struggle with the material, but Ferland manages to be both sympathetic and terrifying. Her Emily is simultaneously a lost little girl and a dangerous force of nature, maintaining the perfect balance between vulnerability and menace. When she asks her “daddy” why Lana said she died, or when she confronts Lana about not saving her, Ferland delivers these lines with a complexity that many adult actors would struggle to achieve.

The Luthor Legacy

While the Emily story drives the main plot, the episode’s B-story continues the ongoing chess match between Lex and Lionel Luthor. The reveal that Lionel is funding the cloning research adds another layer to his characterization as a man willing to push ethical boundaries in pursuit of scientific advancement. John Glover continues to make Lionel one of television’s most compelling villains, delivering lines about “treating everyone at LuthorCorp as family” with delicious insincerity.

Michael Rosenbaum’s Lex, meanwhile, shows us glimpses of both the man he wants to be and the man he will become. His genuine concern for Emily’s welfare contrasts sharply with his father’s clinical detachment, yet his determination to uncover the truth about the project shows the obsessive tendencies that will eventually lead him down a darker path.

Clark and Lana: Horror Movie Edition

Tom Welling and Kristin Kreuk get to play their usual will-they-won’t-they dynamic against a horror movie backdrop, and both actors rise to the occasion. The opening scene at the Talon, with Lana grabbing Clark’s hand during scary moments (much to Chloe’s visible annoyance), could have been cheesy, but Welling and Kreuk play it with just the right amount of awkward teenage sweetness.

Their chemistry really shines in the episode’s more dramatic moments. When Clark has to convince Lana she isn’t going crazy, or when he ultimately saves her from drowning, we see why this relationship was central to the show’s early seasons. Kreuk particularly impresses in her scenes with Emily, bringing genuine emotional weight to her interactions with a character who is simultaneously her dead childhood friend and a dangerous threat.

2003: A Television Odyssey

To understand “Accelerate” in its proper context, we need to remember where television was in 2003. This was the era of mythology-heavy shows like The X-Files (which had recently ended) and supernatural teen dramas like Roswell. Smallville was carving out its own niche by combining elements of both genres with the Superman mythology.

The episode’s concerns about cloning also reflected real-world anxieties of the time. In 2003, the Human Genome Project had just been completed, and debates about cloning and genetic engineering were regularly making headlines. By wrapping these scientific ethics questions in a teen drama package, Smallville made these complex issues accessible to a younger audience.

Meteor Rock Mythology

“Accelerate” adds several important elements to Smallville‘s larger mythology. It introduces the concept of kryptonite-enhanced cloning, which would return in later episodes. The revelation that LuthorCorp is continuing its Level Three projects despite their official shutdown adds another layer to the ongoing conspiracy storyline.

Most significantly, Emily represents the first character besides Clark shown to have super-speed abilities, expanding the show’s understanding of what meteor rock exposure can do to humans. This sets up future storylines involving other characters with similar powers and raises questions about the full potential of kryptonite enhancement.

The Technical Side

From a production standpoint, “Accelerate” is impressive for early 2000s television. The super-speed effects hold up surprisingly well, and the clone lab scene creates a genuinely creepy atmosphere. The decision to shoot Lana’s near-drowning scene in a controlled tank rather than the originally planned river location (due to dangerous conditions) shows the production team’s commitment to safety while still delivering compelling visuals.

In Conclusion

“Accelerate” represents Smallville at its best – taking familiar genre elements and putting its own unique spin on them. It maintains the perfect balance between science fiction and character drama, all while advancing both the season’s ongoing storylines and the show’s larger mythology. The episode proves that even in its second season, Smallville wasn’t afraid to experiment with its formula and tackle complex themes.

Plus, any episode that features a creepy little girl, multiple clones, and Lionel Luthor being delightfully evil is bound to be entertaining. Just maybe don’t watch it right before visiting any bridges or hanging out with your childhood friends who may or may not be dead.

Fun fact: Keep an eye out for a pre-fame Evangeline Lilly in the movie theater scene. Before she was Lost’s Kate Austen, she was “Girl in Cinema” in several Smallville episodes. Hollywood’s gotta start somewhere, right?