The CW's Official Description:

CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED SINGER - SONGWRITER JOSH KELLEY PERFORMS - Clark (Tom Welling) is suspicious when Lana (Kristin Kreuk) suddenly becomes attracted to a fellow student (guest star Kevin Zegers) and begins to act rebelliously, which eventually lands her in jail. Clark’s suspicions are confirmed when he discovers Lana’s new boyfriend has magnetic powers that can move objects and alter human emotions, but when he tries to free Lana from the paranormal hold that is controlling her, she tries to kill him. Meanwhile, Lex (Michael Rosenbaum) discovers Chloe (Allison Mack) has been delving into Lionel’s (John Glover) past and tries to get her to join forces against his dad.

Sam Jones III, Annette O’Toole and John Schneider also star. Directed by David Jackson. Written by written by Holly Harold

Detailed Description:

By Nadine

Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk) and Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) are spending the day at the fair. Josh Kelley is performing. They are looking around the souvenir shop, when Lana sees a glass snowball that is supposed to represent Smallville. When she turns it upside down and back up again, instead of snow, pieces of green meteor rock fall onto the little Smallville houses in the ball. She finds it extremely tasteless, especially since it seems that they used real meteor rocks. Chloe explains sarcastically, "The American version of closure. You can only get over your grief when you figure out how to merchandize your tragedy.". They walk around some more, having fun and eating cotton candy. While they seem to be enjoying themselves, Lana suddenly wonders if Clark Kent (Tom Welling) wasn't right when he expressed his wish to leave Smallville behind. Chloe sarcastically realizes that both the girls nearly went through a whole day without talking about their "favorite farm boy". She then gets seriously for a second and reminds Lana that it is Clark's loss if he decided that they shouldn't date.

At that moment, their conversation is interrupted by Seth Nelson (Kevin Zegers), who calls out Lana's name, inviting her to try the Hover Ball game he's working at. As they walk over, Chloe teases Lana about Seth, who apparently has had a crush on her since the 6th grade. Lana tells Chloe that he's only her lab partner, and that he's into comics and game cubes and they would have nothing in common. Chloe does think he's cute and keeps teasing Lana. As Lana approaches to play, Seth tells her that he will let her in on a secret. He tells her the game is rigged with magnets, but that, if she throws the ball and it gets somewhat close to one of the prizes, he will give it to her. She has two attempts but doesn't do so well. Seth goes to the prize shelf and hands her one of the meteor snowballs. Lana doesn't seem to pleased and Seth is about to give her something else, when this huge bicker guy walks up to them and tells them that he'll take the prize. Seth tells the man that he has to win to get a prize, but the guy says he didn't see Lana winning anything. Seth asks the man to leave, but instead, the man steps over the desk to where Seth is standing and threatens him. Lana tries to avoid conflict by offering to give the man her snowball. "You're gonna let your chick do your fighting for you?", the man asks Seth. Seth gets angry and pushes the man to the ground, and then runs away. The bicker guy gets up and chases after Seth. Lana tells Chloe to call security, and she follows the two guys. They run through the crowd that is standing there listening to Josh Kelley. Seth thinks he's lost the man, but suddenly the bicker guy appears and hits Seth over the head with the snowball. The glass breaks into Seth's forehead, and Seth falls to the ground. We see the meteor rocks traveling through Seth's bloodstream. Lana yells for someone to call an ambulance, while she stays by his side. Seth stays awake for a few seconds then passes out.

Seth is in hospital, with a huge cut and stitches across his forehead. He is lying on the MRI machine, waiting for the scan to begin. The technician is in the control room and keeps talking to him to relax him. Seth is a little concerned. Suddenly, the MRI starts working and wheels Seth through the scan. But then, the whole machine starts shaking, and strikes of green lightning seem to be passing through the machine and through Seth's body, and Seth starts shaking too. Seth is screaming for help. The technician forgets all security measures and rushes into the room to pull Seth out, but as he touches Seth, he is thrown across the room and passes out. A doctor runs in, unplugs the MRI machine at the mains, calls for emergency assistance, and enters to room to pull Seth out. Seth is still awake, and tries to free himself from the restraints. Lana, who was waiting outside, hears the cries and walks in as Seth is getting off the bed. She seems concerned and asks him what happened. He touches her hand, and we see the green current running through them. Suddenly, Lana's worried look changes and she seems to see Seth in a whole new light. She tells him, "Chloe was right, you really are cute".

Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) is meeting with private investigator Mason (Tim Henry) again (see "Relic"), but he does not seem to happy with Mason's findings. He asked Mason to look into the fire that killed his grandparents, but instead Mason has brought him Lionel Luthor's (John Glover) childhood medical records. Mason shows Lex that it's not the records that are important, but the list of people who have accessed them. He says that it turns out that there are a lot of people interested in the Luthor family history. As Lex looks down the list, he sees that the last name on the list is Chloe Sullivan.

Seth is back in hospital room, staring at his tray of hospital food, when he realizes that he has powers. As he reaches out for the spoon in his jello, the spoon comes to him, as if he were a magnet. He struggles with controlling these newfound powers, when Clark and Lana walk in. The spoon drops. Lana comments on how Seth is looking better and that his scar has healed really well. Clark also jokes about the MRI machine being completely broken. Seth apologizes to Lana for ruining her day at the fair and thanks her for taking him to the hospital. She tells him politely that she was glad she could help. He tells her that he would love to make it up to her and asks her out on a date. Clark looks worried. Lana tells Seth politely that he really doesn't have to. Clark then looks relieved. But Seth then grabs Lana's hand, and without Seth even having to ask again, Lana changes her mind and says, "Well, ok, how about tonight?". Clark is shocked. Once they've left the room, Lana asks Clark what the problem is. She tells him that they are not dating, so she can go out with Seth if she wants to. Clark is obviously not happy with the situation, but he tells her it's fine, then leaves. Back in his room, Seth is practicing his powers again with the hospital cart.

Clark is home, and his parents Jonathan (John Schneider) and Martha Kent (Annette O'Toole) notice that there's something wrong, when Clark goes to the fridge, looks in it, but doesn't take anything out of it. Clark explains to his parents that he was surprised at how quickly Lana agreed to go out with Seth. But his parents tell him that Clark has taken a tough decision about not dating Lana, and now, she is free to do what she wants, and Clark needs to accept it.

Chloe is waiting for Clark to show at The Torch, but instead, Lex shows up. He asks her why she is looking into his father's records, and Chloe lies, saying she is writing a story for the paper. But Lex doesn't believe her. He tells her that he knows that Lionel pulled strings to make Chloe the youngest reporter working for the Daily Planet. He's curious as to what a high school student would want with Lionel Luthor. Since she doesn't tell him anything, he tells her he will just have to ask Lionel himself. She doesn't seem baffled, since she says that if he does, it will mean him admitting that he has been looking into his father's history too. But Lex is not impressed, telling her that at least he is prepared for what he is going to find.

Clark goes to The Talon to apologize to Lana and admit that maybe he was a little jealous. She explains that she shouldn't have acted the way she did in front of Clark, and also mentions that she isn't even too sure why she agreed to go out with Seth in the first place. She admits that while he is a nice guy, there aren't really any sparks. Clark seems happy with that. Clark tells her that he knows it is none of his business, but that if she doesn't feel anything for Seth, she shouldn't lead him on. At that moment, Seth shows up to pick Lana up. Lana thinks about what Clark told her for a second. She asks Seth to sit down. Clark watches on. She sits down and tells Seth that she can't go out with him. He tells her it's not a problem, but that she owes it to herself to take a break. He touches her on the shoulder as he says that. Clark watches them, as Lana changes her tune and again and tells Seth that she would love to go out with him. They walk off without a second look to Clark.

Seth takes her to the fairground, but everything is closed. Lana is confused on why they are here, since the gates are closed. Seth asks her to turn around, and he uses his powers to break the padlock and open the gates. Lana asks how he did that. "I guess the no peeking rule wasn't very clear", jokes Seth. He asks her to keep a secret, and tells her about his abilities. She asks him if this happens all the time, and he explains that he actually has to concentrate to activate them. Seth is explaining all this as they walk to the Ferris Wheel. We see Clark following them, and he overhears the entire conversation. Seth wonders if he is scaring Lana. She tells him she thinks it's actually really cool. "Thanks for not thinking I'm a freak", says Seth. "Thanks for being honest with me, it really means a lot", replies Lana. Seth uses his powers to light up the Ferris Wheel and get it to start. They get on, and Seth puts his arms around Lana. She tells him how she loves this ride because it reminds her that there is a world beyond Smallville. He tells her that he's always felt that they had a connection, and touches her again to "refresh" his magnetism, and then they kiss. Clark looks on from below. Lana tells Seth that she never realized that their connection was so strong. They kiss again, and he uses his power to start opening her jacket. Lana pulls away, and Seth apologizes for moving to fast, and tells her he will stop. At the same time, however, he stops the wheel. Lana yells, but then just laughs. Clark gets to the wheel, and grabs onto it, to make it spin slowly, so that Lana's seat would come down. When they get down, Lana and Seth see Clark standing there, and ask him why he would come to a closed fair. He stutters and tells them that he heard Lana shout, and Lana wonders if he followed her and if he is stalking her. Clark is shocked and doesn't know what to say. Seth and Lana walk off, and Clark hears Seth saying to Lana, "You actually dated that looser?", and Lana laughs.

Clark confronts Seth the following day at school. He tells Seth that he knows he can control metal objects and that, somehow he is controlling Lana into being with him. Seth doesn't deny the magnetism accusation, but tells Clark that it doesn't mean he can control Lana, since she is not made out of steel. Clark tells Seth that he hasn't figured out how Seth is doing it yet, but he won't let this continue. Seth explains that he is just very persuasive and that Lana is on the rebound, so Clark only has himself to blame. "I'm warning you, stay away from Lana", threatens Clark. "And I'm warning you, leave us alone, you have not idea what I'm capable of". Seth raises his arms and swings them forward, and suddenly all the lockers in the hallway shut at once.

Chloe and Clark are in the hospital's medical records room. Chloe is trying to explain to Clark that his theory on Lana may not be quite right, and that it is possible that she might just be attracted to Seth. Clark explains that while Seth has always been around, they have nothing at all in common. To which Chloe comments that the same could be said for Clark until two years ago. They find Seth's file, and see that the electro-magnetic activity in his body is so much higher after the accident, and they are surprised that the doctors want to do more than just control it for a few weeks. At that moment, a doctor walks into the room. Chloe has great instincts, and pushes Clark against a filing cabinet and kisses him. The doctor sees them and asks them what they think they are doing. Chloe jokes about taking a break from candy-striping, and the doctor tells them that the file room is not a makeout room and tells them to get out. Chloe is obviously very proud of herself and tells Clark, "A good reporter always thinks on her feet", as she walks out of the room. Clark is still stunned.

Clark finds Lana waiting for him in the barn. She heard that Clark warned Seth to stay away from her and she is really upset. First he follows her to the fair and now this. Clark tries to explain to her that Seth is different, that he has magnetic abilities. She tells him she knows that, and that Seth has been completely honest with her about his abilities from the beginning, and she thinks it's great. Clark tries explaining to Lana that Seth is also affecting the way she things and feels. He explains that the brain is like a circuit board of magnetic impulses. He explains that Chloe and him think that he can control those impulses, making the brain create the chemicals that control her emotions. Lana laughs about Clark having discussed this with Chloe, and says they are being ridiculous and crazy. Clark tries explaining it further, but Lana is outraged that his jealousy would make him say such things. She tells him that it was his choice that they not date anymore, therefore who she dates is none of Clark's business. "Seth is dangerous", says Clark. "No, Clark, you are!", replies Lana. She tells him to let her go and she walks away.

It's late at night, and Chloe is returning to her office at The Torch. As she switches on the lights, she realizes that the whole office has been ransacked, and she seems furious. At that moment, Mason walks in and she goes to call the police. He warns her not to, since the first question the police would have is what Mason's business is in a high school office, and that would lead them to finding out about Chloe's research on the Luthors. Mason confidently walks up to Chloe's hard drive, unplugs it, picks it up and walks away with it. Chloe is powerless to stop him.

Seth and Lana are making out in The Talon. Seth reminds Lana about how she was wishing to get out of Smallville someday. He asks her to go with him today, and to go where the road leads them. After a quick magnetic impulse applied to her arm, Lana tells him she would go anywhere with him, and that she would take care of their need for cash. He tells her he has a surprise for her and to meet him outback. She goes to the register and takes out all the money. At that moment, Lex shows up and tells her to put the money back. She tells him she is just taking her share of the profits, that she is not joking and that Seth and her are leaving Smallville. Lex follows her out and tries to convince her to stay. At that moment, Seth comes screeching down the road in a bright yellow Mustang. "Pretty sweet ride for a sixteen year old", says Lex. He tries one last time to get her to reconsider, but she wishes him a nice life, and Seth drives off. Lex goes back into The Talon, where Clark walks in and asks where Lana is. Lex tells him that she's leaving town with her new boyfriend, and that she's cleared out the register. Lex dials the sheriff's number, telling Clark that the police will soon catch up with them, but as Lex looks up, Clark has already left.

Clark stands in the middle of the road, with Seth's car racing towards him. Lana and Seth haven't seen Clark yet. Clark uses his heat vision to melt a ditch across the road. Seth tries to brake to a stop, but can't avoid the ditch, and the front wheels get jammed into it. The car is stuck. They hear the sheriff's sirens getting closer. Suddenly, Seth sees a truck coming from the opposite direction. He kisses Lana and tells them they will be together, and he jumps onto the incoming truck, and hangs onto the back of it with his powers. Sheriff Adams (Camille Mitchell) tells Lana to get out of the car with her hands up.

Lana is in jail, and Clark is visiting her. She apologizes for everything, for being so mean to him, for not believing him and is so impressed that he is still trying to save her. He asks her if she knows where Seth went, and she tells him that she knows he has a brother in Grandville and that he probably went there to stay with him. She holds out her hand to Clark and thanks him, staring at him straight in the eyes, seeming obviously repentant.

Chloe barges into the the Luthor Manor, saying, "You're a Luthor so it's a given that you're unscrupulous, but I really thought petty larceny was beneath you, Lex". Lex looks down at her from the library and asks, "Can you be a little more specific with the charge?". She tells him about Mason. "I figured either you or your father hired him". "But you're accusing me", notices Lex. "You're what they euphemistically call the lesser of two evils", she replies. Lex takes Chloe to the morgue to show her what happened to Mason. Lex tells her that it says he died of natural causes, but given what he was looking into, there was probably nothing natural about his death. "Well, there's nothing in my files worth killing over", says Chloe. "We've got a corpse here that says you're wrong", answers Lex. Lex tells Chloe that he can protect her. "Like you protected him?", she asks, pointing at Mason's dead body. "Mason knew the risks tangling with my father. You clearly don't. I'm the only choice you've got", Lex replies. Chloe walks away.

Lana is sitting in her cell when she hears noises and someone shouting. Seth walks in, having knocked out the deputy. He opens her cell and she hugs him and tells him how happy she is to see him. Seth is concerned because he just saw Clark, but she tells him Clark is part of her past. They walk out, but another deputy shows up and points a gun at them. Seth throws him against the wall with his powers, and grabs the gun. The two of the run out.

Clark returns home to tell his mom that Lana was lying, and that Seth doesn't have a brother in Grandville. He's shocked that she could have lied to him right to her face. He tells him mom he is not angry, he feels that lying is what he's been doing to Lana all this time. "You're feelings for Lana are not a lie", says Martha. "Did I make the right decision pushing her away?", asks Clark. "I don't know", answers Martha. "I miss the days when you're answers were 'yes' and 'no'", jokes Clark. "Me too", agrees his mom. Pete Ross (Sam Jones III) walks in to tell them that Seth has busted Lana out of jail and that they're on the run. But Clark has an idea.

Clark gets to the fair, and is holding a compass. The compass is swaying indicating where Seth is located. Clark walks to the ride called Sea of Love. Lana and Seth are inside, and she is thanking him for coming back for her. He tells her he would never leave Smallville without her. She wants to leave immediately, but he tells her it's too dangerous. He tells her they will wait till tomorrow morning, when the rides are being taken away from Smallville, and that they can hide on one of the trucks. Clark shows up and pulls Seth away from Lana. Clark pushes Seth against the wall, telling him he's not going anywhere. But Lana has picked up the gun and is pointing it at him. She orders Clark to let him go. She threatens to shoot. Clark lets go of Seth, and Seth attracts the gun to him. It floats towards him, and he grabs it. He then tells Lana that he can take it from here, and tells her to go wait outside. Once she has left, Clark tries to convince Seth that he needs help. But Seth doesn't listen and shoots at Clark. Clark ducks behind a car, but a few bullets have hit his shoulder and disintegrated. "Looks like I'm not the only one with special powers", says Seth. Seth ties to throw a car onto Clark, but Clark catches it and tries to use his strength to put it down, but Seth is holding it up and against Clark. It is a battle between Clark's strength and Seth's magnetic power. Finally, Clark grabs an electrical wire, and throws it onto Seth. Seth is electrocuted.

Lana is doing community service at the hospital, sweeping floors. Lex shows up. She apologizes for everything, and thanks him for his help. "What good are lawyers if they can't jump through hoops?", he replies. She apologizes for letting him down and asks for her job back. "Done", he replies. She is shocked at his quick response. "Seriously, the place needs you", he continues, "and I make a lousy latte. Lana, I did a lot worse things than steal a sports car when I was your age. And I'm the last guy to criticize someone for falling for the wrong person. But I'm sure the right guy is out there". Lana smiles.

Chloe is waiting for Lex in his office. She admits that she needs his help. She explains that it all started with the Wall of Weird, and that Lionel was interested in the effects of the meteor rocks. He started asking her to feed him information about the more bizarre incidents. She tells him that Lionel wanted her to spy of a friend. At first she is reluctant to tell Lex who, but she soon admits it's Clark. She tells him, however, that she didn't comply. She explains that he threatened to fire her father, so she figured that she had to find something on Lionel, something she could blackmail him with. Lex tells her how dangerous that decision was. He agrees to protect her, but he wants to know everything she has found out about Lionel. She mentions Morgan Edge, and gives him her file on Edge. Lex thought Edge had been killed but she shows him an article stating that Edge is missing. She also tells him that Edge was Lionel's closest childhood friend.

Lana goes to thank Clark and to apologize for not believing him. He admits he didn't like seeing her with another guy. She asks if he's sure he doesn't want to be that guy. She explains that she knows she was wrong with Seth, but that at least he had the courage to be honest. "Then he used his abilities to manipulate you", replies Clark. She explains that it still felt good caring for someone and having her feelings returned, and she wants that again. Clark tells her that he doesn't expect her to wait for him forever, and she seems happy to hear that, saying that one of these days she will find the right person and she will want to be with him, and Clark is gonna have to deal with that.

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Notes:

John Glover does not appear in this episode.

Lex admires Chloe for barging in. If he had security, maybe people wouldn't barge in on him so often...

So...is the existence of super-powered freaks in Smallville common knowledge? You'd think super-powered mind-control would make for some interesting twists on an insanity please, but apparently nobody tries to defend Lana that way.

We see another reference to Lowell County (on the fair sign), a fictional county in Kansas.

The MRI technician would have turned off the machine the moment anything appeared to go wrong. Those machines are very expensive and potentially dangerous. He definitely should have known better than to leave it running when he tried to enter the room.

If Seth is such a powerful magnetic that a compass can point to him from a considerable distance even when he's not actively using his powers, there should be other indications that he's a walking magnet, like the gun sticking to his hand, nearby metal objects moving toward him, etc.

They also probably wouldn't let Lana into the MRI chamber, particularly one that was malfunctioning when she might have metal on her. Even if she was nearby and happened to hear the noise, they usually have warning signs around.

This episode Clark claims he broke up with Lana to protect her. She was in plenty of danger before they started dating. She was in danger while they were dating. She's been in danger since they broke up. Is their being separate really somehow safer for her, as Clark seems to think here?

Season One  - Season Two - Season Four - Season Five - Season Six  - Season Seven - Season Eight

Season Three: Exile - Phoenix - Extinction - Slumber - Perry - Relic - Shattered - Asylum - Whisper - Delete - Hereafter - Velocity - Obsession - Resurrection - Crisis - Legacy - Truth - Memoria - Talisman - Forsaken - Covenant

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