Kinetic

## "Kinetic"Season 01, Episode 13

"*Son, becoming an adult means learning difficult lessons, one of which is you can’t save everybody, no matter who you are.*"
—Jonathan Kent to Clark Kent

**"Kinetic"** is the thirteenth episode of Season One of The CW's *Smallville*. It was written by Philip Levens and directed by Robert Singer. It is the thirteenth episode of the series overall, and premiered on February 26, 2002.

## Synopsis

Chloe is seriously injured during a robbery at Lex’s mansion that is perpetrated by three masked young men who can pass through walls. Meanwhile, Whitney’s personal problems make him a target for the three bandits.

## Recap

At the Luthor Mansion, Clark is helping Chloe interview Lex Luthor by operating the video camera when Wade Mahaney, Derek Fox and Scott Bowman walk right through the walls wearing ski masks. They enter the vault and fill their bags with cash, coins, precious artifacts and a computer disc. On their way out they are able to put Clark in a headlock before hitting him in the gut and putting him on the floor. Chloe tries to run away but they push her out of a fourth story window. Fortunately, she lands in soft grass, but Clark is devastated that he couldn't get there in time.

At the Smallville Medical Center Clark is sitting with Chloe when Lex arrives. He has called in the best doctors from Metropolis. She has a broken arm and a concussion. The police think that these same bandits are responsible for a dozen robberies throughout the county over the past six months, including the Smallville Savings and Loan, but for some reason, Lex has decided not to report anything stolen. He is only interested in finding the people who hurt Chloe.

At the Kent Farm, Clark is angrily splitting firewood with his bare hands. He's actually making quite a mess of it, creating toothpicks. His parents find him and try to convince him that Chloe's injuries are not his fault. His mother even encourages him to go out and investigate what happened. Clark goes to the bank and when he uses his X-ray vision, he sees the remains of a human arm inside the door of the vault.

Outside the flower shop, Lana meets Whitney who seems distant, distracted and depressed. At the Talon, Aunt Nell is packing some things when Lana arrives to ask who the buyer is in hopes of convincing him or her to renovate. Lana is disappointed when Nell tells her that she is selling the building to Lex.

At the gang's loft, Wade is disappointed that his heist wasn't even on the news. Scott guesses that Lex has so much money that he hasn't missed the stuff they took, but Derek figures out that Lex probably didn't report the robbery because he doesn’t want anyone to know about what is on the disc they stole. They check out the disc, and discover Lex is stealing money from his father to fund a personal project involving a particle accelerator. They decide to blackmail Lex with the disc. Derek reminds everyone that the tattoos don't last as long as they used to, and they need to find a new member for their gang.

At the mansion, Lex is on the phone giving his security firm a hard time when the burglars show up again demanding a million dollars or they will upload the disc to the Internet.

At Fordman's Department Store, Whitney tells Clark that he lost his scholarship to Kansas State. Wade is there also, and Clark notices his bright green tattoo. Wade, also a former football player, recognizes Whitney from the football games, and asks about his future. Whitney tells him the truth, and Wade commiserates, saying he lost a scholarship due to an injury. Wade invites him to a party at their place that night. At the party, Wade shows Whitney their tattoo machine, and talks him into getting one. The tattoo ink is a bright, meteor rock green. Later, while walking through a traffic tunnel, the gang throws Whitney in front of a truck. The truck passes right through him.

Back at the medical center, Clark visits Chloe again, who has awakened. Clark feels extremely guilty, but Chloe tries to lighten the mood with good-natured sarcasm. Chloe then remembers that one of the guys that grabbed her had an octagon tattoo. Clark goes back to Fordman's to ask Whitney about the guy with that tattoo. He discovers that Whitney has a new tattoo and warns him to stay away from those guys. Whitney doesn't want to hear it.

At the Talon, Lana makes an impassioned plea to Lex to renovate the old theater, but he is unmoved by sentiment. He plans to turn it into a parking garage to service downtown. Later, Lana meets up with Clark in his loft. He tells her that Whitney has lost his scholarship. He also tells Lana that he discovered that the new guys he's hanging out with used to be great athletes in high school before it all fell apart for them. Lana tells Clark about her meeting with Lex. Clark suggests that maybe Lex didn't reject her proposal, but challenged her to come up with a better one.

That night, the gang picks up Whitney at the store and Clark follows. They meet Lex Luthor in a meat locker, but Lex didn't actually bring the money. Whitney starts to panic when they threaten to kill Lex. Their time is running out and they have to leave. When Clark arrives, the meteor rock in the tattoos has rendered him helpless and the guys hit him in the head with a meat hook, but he manages to call out Whitney's name before they all disappear through the wall.

Back at the gang's loft, they give Whitney a hard time about his performance. They argue about keeping him in the gang, but they need new blood. The meteor rock tattoos work by speeding up their metabolism, and they are burning out.

The next morning, Clark meets Pete and Chloe at the medical center. Chloe has done some research and guessed how the gang is walking through walls. Later, Whitney tells Lana and Clark all about the plan to kill Lex. They formulate a plan to sneak into the gang's loft and get the disc back.

The loft seems deserted. Clark uses his X-ray vision to find the disc hidden in the ventilation ducts, but then the gang returns. When Clark crushes the disc, Wade sticks his hand right into Clark's chest. They leave him reeling and take Whitney out back where they have dozens of junk cars stacked up. Wade holds Whitney under one car while Scott is set to drop it on them. The plan is that the car will pass right through Wade, but it will crush Whitney. Then Lex sneaks up behind him and zaps him with a stun gun. As Lex calls the police, Clark rushes off to find Whitney. Scott releases the car just as Wade's tattoo fades from bright to dull green.

Clark rushes in and grabs Whitney just as the car falls on Wade, crushing him. Scott tries to run away just as the sheriff arrives. As the police take Scott and Derek into custody, Lex promises to keep their secret as long as they keep his, and he threatens them that if they don't, he'll be able to get at them no matter where they are.

The next morning, Lana makes another presentation to Lex. This time, Lana has researched tax breaks and historical sites, and proposes to turn the Talon into a successful café, bookstore and venue for local bands and art house movies. Impressed, Lex accepts the idea. Lana is elated until Lex uses the word partnership, then she seems a little worried.

## Cast

* Kristin Kreuk as Lana Lang
* Michael Rosenbaum as Lex Luthor
* Eric Johnson as Whitney Fordman
* Sam Jones III as Pete Ross
* Allison Mack as Chloe Sullivan
* Annette O'Toole as Martha Kent
* John Schneider as Jonathan Kent
* Kavan Smith as Wade Mahaney
* David Coles as Scott Bowman
* Sarah-Jane Redmond as Nell Potter

Co-Starring* Kwesi Ameyaw as Lex's Security Guard Darius

## Trivia

### Behind the Scenes

* From this episode, the budget overruns on special effects were dramatically reined in as The WB was very unhappy with the amount of money being spent on CGI.

### Goofs

* When the thieves look at the monitor and the one with the plastic arm says "Check this out", they walk to him. While they come to him, the guy's lips move again and form the "Check this out", but you can't hear any voice.

## References

1. ↑ http://www.smallvilleph.com/2002/02/kinetic/