Craving (Episode) - SirJeffCena

"**Craving**" is the seventh episode in the first season of *Smallville*, and seventh episode overall. It aired on November 27, 2001.

## Summary

Jodi Melville, an overweight teen obsessed with losing weight, begins a diet plan of vegetables shakes. These vegetables were grown in meteor rock contaminated soil, and she is losing weight so fast that regular food doesn't fulfill her cravings. She must suck the fat out of others. Meanwhile Lex Luthor becomes interested in Chloe's theory that all the weird stuff that happens in Smallville can be traced to the meteor shower. He begins funding the research of a controversial mineralogist.

## Recap

At her family nursery, a chubby Jodi Melville is working in the greenhouse, harvesting carrots. There are several bright green meteor rocks in the soil in which the vegetables are growing. Her father complains that she doesn't want to eat his spaghetti, and she explains that her latest weight loss plan consists of eating only vegetables. She wants to look her best for Lana Lang's birthday party. Her father expresses concern that she is much too focused on this party.

At school, she is cutting the heads off pictures of supermodels and pasting their bodies into her scrapbook with pictures of her own head when Chloe Sullivan and Pete Ross approach and ask for help with their algebra assignment. Clark Kent is too busy with Lana. When they offer to buy her lunch, they are introduced to her vegetable drink. Dustin Crenshaw approaches and adds a cutting remark about her weight, and Pete defends her gallantly. Back home, after only a day on her new diet, Jodi gets dramatic results. She watches in the mirror as her double chin recedes. She checks her weight again and loses 29 pounds as she watches the numbers on the scale go down!

At the Luthor Mansion, Lex is just finishing up a physical examination. The doctor is surprised by an unusually high white-cell count, but he doesn't suspect leukemia. Lex explains that he never gets sick, but he used to have asthma until he lost his hair. The doctor says that he sees "a lot of this in Smallville." Some people think that it is because LuthorCorp's fertilizer plant contaminates the environment. Later, Lex checks out the *Smallville Torch* website and sees one of Chloe's stories about Smallville being one of America's strangest towns.

Aunt Nell is planning for Lana's birthday party while Clark and Lana study for the math midterm. Lana explains that the party is more than she wants. Whitney shows up to tell Lana that he got the chance to try out for the Kansas State football team, so he's going to miss her party.

Back at school, Jodi works up the courage to ask Pete to Lana's party. Lana arrives at the Kent Farm with the produce order for the party. While she is there, Clark offers to be her escort at the party. Lana accepts, but makes him promise that unlike last time, he will actually show up. Jodi makes herself another shake and checks her weight. She watches as her waistline melts away, and loses another 27 pounds in seconds. Initially, she is elated, but then she feels an overwhelming craving and rushes to the kitchen. She eats frantically until she's stuffed. She spies her vegetable shake and guesses that it is responsible for her insatiable appetite. She throws it against the wall in rage.

Jodi is eating hamburgers and milkshakes while driving her car in pouring rain. A deer steps out on the road. Jodi tries to stop, but she hits the deer. Unharmed, she gets out of the car and approaches the deer. Her stomach rumbles, her face contorts and she seems to uncontrollably devour the deer.

Clark is spying on Lana in his loft when Whitney gives her a book for her birthday. Chloe walks in and teases him about spying. Then she tells him about a mysterious story in the paper about a deer found dead on Route 5. They are listing the cause of death as "unknown." Chloe wants Clark to go down to animal control and help her check it out. They find the deer, take some pictures, and check the lab report, which says that it lost eighty percent of its body fat. They jokingly guess that it has been liposuctioned to death by a fat-sucking vampire.

Jodi hides from her dad in the bathroom, surrounded by hamburger wrappers and pizza boxes.

At school, Clark finds Lex reading the Wall of Weird. Lex explains that he stopped by to talk with the principal about a new computer lab. He says that since the plant manager, Gabe, is always talking about his daughter and her work at the *Torch*, he stopped by to check it out. Clark explains Chloe's theory that everything weird in Smallville can be traced back to the meteor shower. When Chloe arrives, Lex tells her that he likes her theory. Chloe tells him that only Dr. Hamilton shares her opinion, but he's been reduced to selling plastic meteor chips to tourists. Lex goes to visit Dr. Hamilton and offers to fund his research as a mineralogist. Dr. Hamilton refuses Lex's offer.

At school, Jodi isn't feeling well. When Dustin walks by, he makes another snide remark about her lost weight. Jodi takes the opportunity to seduce him. They sneak away to the football stadium and slip into a dark room. Jodi transforms again and attacks Dustin.

Also at the stadium, Lana is telling Clark that she hasn't had a happy birthday since her parents took her to a drive-in when she was three years old. Clark hears a noise and investigates with his X-ray vision. When he enters the boiler room, he finds Dustin in very bad shape. Back at school the next day, Chloe tells Clark that Dustin is in a coma. His body went into shock from the loss of all his body fat. He probably would have died if Clark hadn't found him when he did. They join Jodi in the cafeteria, who is eating ravenously.

Just as Clark is getting ready to go to Lana's party, Chloe shows up at the Kent Farm. She shows Clark a work order from the Smallville Body and Fender for bodywork done to Jodi's car. They guess that she probably hit the deer and her behavior must be related to her rapid weight loss. Pete arrives at the Melville house to pick up Jodi. Just as they start to leave the house, Jodi's stomach grumbles. Pete wants to take her to the hospital, but Jodi runs back into the house. She asks Pete to leave her alone, but he follows her into the house. She attacks him, knocking his head against the floor and rendering him unconscious, but Clark arrives before she can do him any further harm. She flees through the back door and hides in the greenhouse.

Clark follows her but finds the place full of meteor rocks. She bashes him over the head with a shovel. When she goes for the killing blow, she catches sight of her reflection and is repulsed by what she was about to do. She goes into a rage, bashing in what appears to be a gas line, and then smashing the lights, making sparks, which ignites the gas, creating a terrific explosion. Clark grabs her and protects her from the blast just as Pete comes to and joins them behind the house.

Meanwhile, at the Luthor Mansion, Lana is hiding from her guests. She is obviously disappointed that Clark didn't show up. Lex opens some mail from Dr. Vargas. He goes to see Dr. Hamilton and tells him that he has been given a clean bill of health. He gives Dr. Hamilton a check for $100,000, insisting that he continue his research regarding the link between meteors and human health.

Clark tells his parents that Jodi is on her way to the hospital, then leaves to visit Lana. Lana gives him a hard time for not showing up at her party, but she lets him give her his present. He has recreated her last happy birthday with a drive in movie, popcorn and Bugs Bunny cartoons.

## Cast

### Starring

* Clark Kent
* Lana Lang
* Lex Luthor
* Whitney Fordman
* Pete Ross
* Chloe Sullivan
* Martha Kent
* Jonathan Kent

### Guest Starring

* Jodi Melville
* Nell Potter
* Mr. Melville
* Dr. Steven Hamilton

### Co-Starring

* Dustin Crenshaw
* Dr. Vargas

## Notes

* Antagonist: Jodi Melville
* Clark uses the following abilities in this episode: super strength, super speed, and X-ray vision.
* It is not reasonably explained why Clark was able save the day after Jodi Melville ignited the gas pipe of the greenhouse. Normally, a prolonged exposure to meteor rocks results in Clark's incapacitation. The only speculative explanation could be that the heat from the explosion was able to completely destroy the meteor rocks, thus nullifying its effects on Clark.
* Lex and Chloe meet for the first time in this episode.
* This episode marks the beginning of Lex´s obsession with the meteor rocks in the series.
* According to the check that Lex gives Dr. Hamilton, this episode take place on 11-12-01, or November 12, 2001.

## Trivia

* Jodi Melville was portrayed by Amy Adams, who later played Lois Lane in the DC Extended universe including the 2013 film Man of Steel. This makes her the first of four actresses to appear on Smallville who portrayed Lois. The others are Erica Durance, Margot Kidder, and Teri Hatcher.

## Continuity

* Clark says to Lana, "It's not like I pulled you out of a burning building," self-deprecatingly. While he accidentally set the walls of the Talon on fire during *Heat*, he isn't actually shown rescuing her that time.

## Locations

* Smallville
	+ Kent Farm
		- Kent House
	+ Smallville High School
		- Smallville Torch
	+ Luthor Mansion
	+ Main Street
	+ **Dr. Hamilton's Lab**