Summary: An enchanted comic book causes a young boy to transform into the superhero Warrior Angel. Clark reunites with Zatanna at a comic book convention.

Hey, this is a Bryan Q. Miller episode! Ugh, Allison Mack is directing. What did I do wrong? What?  
  
The theme of the episode is the tension between fantasy and reality, between fun and responsibility.  
  
The bad things in the episode:  
  
\# Zatanna almost rapes Clark. He doesn't want to kiss you, honey, he wants to kiss Lois. And forced sex is illegal whether a man does it or a woman does it. And why abuse one of the few strong female characters in comics? What has Zatanna ever done to you, Brian? She's been a total bitch. And what's this whole scene for?  
  
\# Zatanna behaves in a very predatory manner throughout the episode. She's bossy and rude and has absolutely no regard for anyone. I didn't get it. Why did Zatanna need Clark in the episode? She wasn't okay, and she's not apologetic either.  
  
\# That kid who becomes the warrior angel? He's a bully. There's no other way to put it. That's not how a hero behaves.  
  
\# Chloe is once again drawn to a hero. Now this is a complex issue. The last time this happened she was a girl and her hero was Clark. The hero this time is not exactly a bastion of heroism and nobility, and she is certainly not a girl.  
  
\# Chloe is attracted to a boy in a man's body. She may not know he's a boy, but he acts like one. Her judgment of people's character is really, really bad. Last season it was Davis \[especially after they took Brainiac out of her\] and this time it's this boy.  
  
\# Chloe doesn't recognize the name Stephen Swift? Hasn't she heard of Warrior Angel before? They filmed the first movie on the Kents' farm.  
  
\# And of course Chloe tells Clark and Zatanna everything. Right? Right? Wrong. She keeps making the same mistakes over and over again. How did Einstein define insanity?  
  
\# When has anyone ever told someone else to "Calm down" and it worked? Just curious.  
  
\# Chloe is lonely. Boho.  
  
\# A comic book that no one has ever read? So how did Zatara get it? It's like the screenwriter doesn't know how comic book publishing works. Someone had to read it. The writer, the proofreader, the artist, the one who draws the letters, the publisher. Even before the comic book is printed, someone reads it. And why didn't anyone read the comic book?  
  
\# If this comic is so rare, its price should be so high that armed guards will be on it at all times. Especially in a city like Metropolis, which they already referred to as the world's crime capital last season. There's no way this kid could steal it without anyone noticing.  
  
\# The boy stole the world's most expensive comic book. Was an alarm raised? No. Did muscular security guards rush to the booth? No. Did anyone call the police? No. And the convention continues as if nothing had happened.  
  
\# Metropolis Wonder-Con. Sigh. Yes, convention-going geeks will look on someone like Erica Durance in a Xena costume like that and worse, but there's no way no one would care about Lois dressing up as Stormtrooper. Oh, and it's a convention, but this kid knows the seller. They're good friends. And convention halls have a lot of dusty, dark rooms that no one goes into.  
  
\# Lois won't wear a Stormtrooper costume. She has more sense than that. Which is strange because she had the other costume, so why choose this one? On the other hand, Chloe spreads stupidity everywhere she goes.  
  
\# Lois kisses Jeff the intern. She didn't like it, Clark didn't like it. Jeff didn't like it. I didn't like it.  
  
\# The characters here serve the plot at the expense of everything else and it's not that the plot is amazing.  
  
\# The bumps in Lois and Clark's relationship. Don't get me wrong, every relationship has its bumps, but the ones in this episode are from a bad sitcom where the characters don't communicate and it's supposed to be funny. Hint: It's not funny. It's not cute. It's forced.  
  
\# Okay, this is getting silly. Everyone is flying except Clark.  
  
\# Alec is already listed as missing, his aunt is worried about him, why take him to the farm and not to the police? We can meet with him later and have this whole conversation. Maybe even without revealing Clark's identity?  
  
\# And I understand the desire to show the child's love for The Blur, but this drawing was completely not right.  
  
\# Poor Oliver, he stays with Chloe. We all know where that will lead.  
  
\# Chloe drinks whiskey. Is she 23 or 60? It's not really clear from her behavior.  
  
  
The good things about the episode:  
  
\# Clark sticks the bandits to the fence like flies to glue.  
  
\# Clark, while talking to Lois, throws a can at another robber, knocking him over. Oh, and luckily the can was probably empty, or this robber would have died.  
  
\# A visit to Lois' costume closet.  
  
\# Clark's reaction to the whole convention is so Smallville's Clark. He's never been one for dressing up and is usually dead serious \[unless Lois is around\]. Lois reminds him to have some fun.  
  
\# It was nice to see Oliver smile a little for a change.  
  
\# Lois was much more herself at the Daily Planet than at the convention.  
  
\# The boy is a bit reminiscent of Bart in season four in his attitude towards the powers. He enjoys every moment.  
  
\# Clark knows Chloe and her antics.  
  
\# The conversation between Clark and Alec was very important. Especially after Alec's superhero behavior but also because of Clark's sentence: "Not because I have to, but because I choose to.".  
  
\# I loved that Lois really knows Clark even if she doesn't know right now that he's the Blur.  
  
\# Lois can tell something has happened between Clark and Zatanna just by the clumsy way he denies it.  
  
\# Clark's dream is to be with Lois.

Notes:  
\* When you see Stephen Swift, now made evil, hearing Zatanna saying the incantation, you can hear her say what sounds to be " Ra's Al Ghul". Ra's Al Ghul is a villain in the DC universe, and also leads the League of Assassins.  
\* Chloe's text message indicated a "maniac with a boomerang". This could be a reference to 'Captain Boomerang' from the comics, ordinarily a Flash villain, and occasional member of the Suicide Squad.  
\* We had references in the episode to Spider-Man, Daredevil, Super-Man as a villain, and of course Captain Marvel.  
\* Carlo Marks, who plays Stephen Swift aka Warrior Angel, previously starred in the season 7 episode Apocalypse as Chloe's Fiancé.  
\* Right after Zatanna says bring our girl home, Clark rips open his shirt revealing his costume underneath. This is the iconic trademark Superman used in all genres of the character, (movies, TV, comics, etc.).  
\* When Clark is going the Lois's closet, three outfits are shown, all of which were worn by Lois in previous episodes; a red leather jacket from Combat (2007), a star-spangled bikini from Exposed (2005), and a maid's outfit from Odyssey (2008).  
\* When Clark first gets to the Con, he bumps into a guy dressed like the Red Blue Blur (red jacket, blue shirt, jeans). That same guy was walking with a group dressed like Smallville's version of the Justice League (Bart Allen, Victor Stone, and Kara Kent).  
\* Chloe draws a distinction between those infected by "meteor rock" and humans born with superpowers, whom she refers to as metahumans.  
\* Lois's jealousy of Clark's friendship with Zatanna is similar to that of Lois in the comics, although in the comics, Lois is normally jealous of Wonder Woman, who shares a close friendship with Clark.  
\* The coffee vendor who serves Chloe and Stephen is the same man who gives Clark a free newspaper when he reveals his identity in the Season 8 episode "Infamous". He is also the bowling alley janitor who gets shot in the Season 1 episode "Stray".  
\* This was the second episode of the series to be directed by Allison Mack. She previously directed Season Eight's "Power".  
\* Lois changes her costume in the men's bathroom. This is a possible reference to Kevin Smith, a big fan of comic books in general. Women coming out of men's bathroom's is one of his trademarks.  
\* In [*Harbinger*](https://smallville.fandom.com/wiki/Smallville_Special:_Harbinger), [John Constantine](https://smallville.fandom.com/wiki/John_Constantine) brings up the events of this episode and reveals that this is not the first time that a kid has been turned into Warrior Angel, after reading a comic book.

Rewatch diary: Smallville 912 Warrior