"Duplicity" is the third episode in the second season of Smallville, and twenty-fourth episode overall. It aired on October 8, 2002.
Summary[]
After Clark's friend Pete discovers Clark's spaceship in the cornfield, Clark goes against his parents' wishes and reveals his secret, but is shocked when the reaction he gets makes him question his friend's loyalty.
Recap[]
→ see also Category:Screencaps from episode 2x03
Dr. Steven Hamilton arrives at the Luthor Mansion, twitching uncontrollably. He complains about the problems he is having doing his research. Seeming even more unstable, Dr. Hamilton leaves and causes a traffic accident in which a van goes off the road and overturns into a cornfield. Pete Ross comes upon the scene just as Dr. Hamilton speeds away. Pete runs into the field to check on the other driver and finds him bleeding and staring at a spaceship.
Clark is shooting hoops by himself when Pete pulls up and asks Clark to borrow his father's pickup to get the spaceship. Clark is unable to come up with a reasonable excuse to hide it in the Kent cellar and reluctantly agrees to store it in Pete's tool shed. Pete wants to call Chloe so she can write an article for publicity, but Clark convinces Pete to keep quiet until they investigate further, saying they would never hear the end of it from Chloe if the spaceship turned out to be man-made.
Lionel tells Lex that since his therapy is going so well, his doctor gave him a break, so he flew into Smallville to spend time with his son. Lex does not want his father there, but eventually gives in.
Nell looks dreamily after Dean.
At the Talon, Aunt Nell is with her new boyfriend, Dean, an insurance adjuster she met after the tornado. When Chloe Sullivan walks in, Lana has Chloe lie and say she and Lana were together the night before. In reality, Lana spent the night at the Talon because she did not want to be around Nell and Dean. Chloe assures Lana that she can come over any time she likes.
Jonathan suggests to Clark that they try to steal the ship back, but Clark wants to simply tell Pete the truth. Martha advises that the burden of his secret might be something Pete is not ready to bear.
Dr. Hamilton hears about a man who claims to have seen a spaceship in a cornfield - Ray Wallace, the same man he ran off the road. Hamilton knows the ship is no longer in the cornfield and demands answers from Ray. Ray tells him that Pete Ross pulled him out, but when he recognizes Dr. Hamilton, he kills Ray with a lethal dose of morphine. Clark and Jonathan arrive at Pete's tool shed but the ship is gone. Pete sees the two drive away.
Clark decides to tell Pete his secret
The next morning, Pete accuses Clark of stealing the ship and lying about it. Clark tries to make an excuse but Pete is unconvinced and drives off. Clark hesitates a moment and then makes a decision. Pete glances at Clark through the rearview mirror and suddenly Clark is right in front of him, stopping the car with his bare hands.
After Clark tells Pete his secret, Pete is hurt that Clark did not trust him and storms away.
In his barn, Dr. Hamilton is frantically trying to open the spaceship when he discovers a space which reminds him of a piece he found during the excavation of Miller's Field. He goes to the mansion to retrieve the disc from Lex, but Lex no longer has it. On his way out, Hamilton runs into Lionel in the corridor and persuades him consider funding his research. Hamilton takes Lionel to his barn and guides Lionel's hand around the ship, telling him about the missing piece. Lionel promises that when Hamilton finds it, he might get his funding.
Clark tries to talk to Pete, but he is still angry. Chloe wants to interview Pete for his heroic actions at the accident site. She asks if Pete can corroborate Ray's claim of a spaceship. Pete does so sarcastically, much to Clark's annoyance, but Chloe takes it as a joke. That afternoon, Clark finds Lex at the farm. Lex wants to be out of the house and away from his father; he also mentions the "paperweight" missing from his desk, to which Clark feigns ignorance.
In the evening, Clark finds Lana in his loft, spying on Aunt Nell and Dean. Clark tries to tell Lana about his fight with Pete but does not go into details since it involves his abilities. This annoys Lana, since she just shared with Clark personal information about her breakup with Whitney. Clark encourages her to tell Nell how she feels about Dean. Lana takes Clark's advice and meets with Nell to discuss her relationship with Dean. Nell seems sympathetic, but then she tells Lana that Dean has proposed to her and she has accepted.
Lex and Lionel discuss Hamilton's research.
Pete finds Hamilton searching his tool shed. When threatened, Pete accidentally implies he knows the ship's owner. Newly determined, Hamilton kidnaps Pete and hauls him back to his barn.
The Kents discuss ways to retrieve the spaceship and Clark admits that he and Pete are not speaking. Jonathan and Martha are shocked when Clark says he told Pete his secret. Jonathan says Clark has worsened the situation, when Martha gets a call from Mrs. Ross; Pete has gone missing.
Dr. Hamilton has tied Pete up in his barn. Pete tries to backpedal and convince Dr. Hamilton he was lying about knowing the ship's owner, but he does not believe him. Hamilton believes he is dying from prolonged exposure to the meteor rocks and is determined to establish himself as a credible scientist before he dies.
Lex walks in while his father is listening to Dr. Hamilton's research notes on the meteors, using a device that reads typewritten pages. Lex reveals that he spoke to Lionel's doctor, who in fact advised Lionel not to skip any more therapy sessions. Lionel speaks bitterly about the humiliation of being treated as a helpless object. Lex asks if this is also the reason behind his new fascination with aliens. Lionel tells Lex to go see what Hamilton has.
Dr. Hamilton threatens Pete
Chloe provides Clark with the link between Hamilton, the accident, and Pete, so Clark rushes off to investigate Hamilton. Hamilton is about to inject Pete with a green liquid, telling him that it will cause the same tremors that he has, if he does not reveal the owner of the ship. Pete refuses to say anything. Clark bursts through the door just as Hamilton lowers the needle.
Clark jumps over Pete for a slam dunk.
Using his heat vision, Clark destroys the needle then throws Hamilton across the room. He tries to free Pete, but the meteor rocks all around the barn overcome him. Hamilton overhears Clark tell Pete that he is allergic to the meteor rocks and grabs a beaker of the liquid. He screams for Clark to tell him how to open the ship and threatens to pour the contents of the beaker on him, when Pete hits Hamilton over the head. As he falls, he knocks some of the meteor liquid onto himself and begins to have a violent seizure. At Clark's request, Pete tries to help him but is unable to do anything before Hamilton dies.
After returning the ship to the Kents' storm cellar, Pete says he now understands why Clark hid the truth for so long and asks why Clark wanted to save Hamilton. Clark explains that he does not want anybody to die, even if they have bad intentions like Hamilton.
Lex and Lionel arrive at the barn, as suggested by Lionel, but find the spaceship gone. Lionel theorizes that it has been moved and tells Lex he plans to stay in Smallville - both Luthors now having an interest in meteor rock research.
Clark and Pete play basketball, with Clark free to show off his powers.
Cast[]
Starring[]
- Tom Welling as Clark Kent
- Kristin Kreuk as Lana Lang
- Michael Rosenbaum as Lex Luthor
- Sam Jones III as Pete Ross
- Allison Mack as Chloe Sullivan
- John Glover as Lionel Luthor
- Annette O'Toole as Martha Kent
- John Schneider as Jonathan Kent
Guest Starring[]
Co-Starring[]
- Andrew Jackson as Ray Wallace
- Michael Kopsa as Dean Winters
- Cam Cronin as Dr. Glenn
Mentioned[]
- Judge Abigail Ross
- Sheriff Ethan Miller
- Whitney Fordman
Featured Music[]
- "Southbound Train" - Travis Tritt
- "Ordinary" - Greg Jones
- "Goodbye" - Stephanie Simon
- "Leading With My Heart" - Alice Peacock
Title[]
- Duplicity means a deceitfulness in speech or conduct; speaking or acting in two different ways concerning the same matter with the intent to deceive.
- There are many examples of deceitfulness in the episode:
- Lana doesn't like her Aunt's new boyfriend, but she hides the truth from her.
- Lana lies to her Aunt Nell about having a sleepover at Chloe's house. Chloe plays along with the lie, and says they had a "Keanu DVD-athon"
- Clark lies to Pete about not telling anyone about the ship, and acts surprised when he discovers the ship has been stolen. He actually told his dad about the ship, and knew it had been stolen because he had visited Pete's tool shed with his dad the night before. Pete catches him in both lies.
- When Pete discovers Clark's powers, he realizes Clark has told many lies over the years.
- Clark lies to Lex about not knowing the whereabouts of the octagonal key.
- Lionel lies to Lex about why he left his therapists in Metropolis and was visiting him in Smallville. Lex discovers his lie and confronts him with the truth.
- Several characters talk about their attitudes toward lying:
- Lana tells Clark she's a terrible liar, so she's moved onto avoidance.
- Lex tells Clark that if a person has deceived him once, he finds it hard to give them a second chance.
- Lex talks about how his dad has a track record of lying, and it's hard to think he doesn't have an ulterior motive.
Featured Super beings[]
Notes[]
- Antagonist: Steven Hamilton
- Clark uses the following abilities in this episode: super strength, super speed, heat vision, and super leaping.
- Dr. Hamilton's spasms are similar to Earl Jenkins' in Jitters.
- Pete Ross is the only person that learned Clark's secret after he made a conscious choice to share it.
- While filming the shots in Hamilton's lab that involved kryptonite, the special effects team had to go in during post-production for "Duplicity" and make the kryptonite glow, because the material used in production to make the kryptonite glow did not photograph well.
- Pete tells Clark "It's not easy being you, is it?", paraphrasing a line from the song Superman (It's Not Easy) by Five for Fighting.
- When Pete talks about looking into the girls' locker room with X-Ray vision, it is likely a reference to a similar line from Superman: The Animated Series, The Last Son of Krypton, Part II, which is delivered by Lana Lang instead. Clark's response refers to how he (accidentally) did so in X-Ray.
- This is the first out of two episodes featuring kryptonite poisoning. The second, and last, is the episode Fever. Those are the only episodes in which this effect of kryptonite appears or even mentioned.
Spoilers[]
- Chloe Sullivan later found out Clark's secret when she witnesses him use his powers (Pariah), but he found out she knew later and admitted the rest of his secret (Arrival), and the same thing happened with Lois Lane.
Locations[]
- Smallville
- Smallville High School
- Smallville Medical Center
- Luthor Mansion
- Kent Farm
- Talon
- Dr. Hamilton's barn
- Pete's tool shed
Quotes[]
- Lionel: We'll have a chance for some father-son bonding. You've always told me I've been lax in that requirement, Lex.
- Lex: Are you sure you wouldn't be more comfortable at the beach house? I think the sea air would be invigorating.
- Lionel: I'm getting the distinct impression, Lex, that you don't want me here.
- Pete: This thing's got extraterrestrial written all over it.
- Clark: Yeah, I bet there's little green guys running around the cornfield too, Pete.
- Pete: I'm serious, Clark. Have you ever seen anything like it?
- Clark: If the aliens came to Earth, don't you think they'd find a place a little more exciting than Smallville?
- Clark: Hey, Pete. Look, man, I know you're freaked out. Don't you think I freak myself out sometimes?
- Pete: Sure, Chloe. I saw a spaceship. I even met an alien.
- Chloe: Really? Would you like to describe it?
- Pete: Actually, he looks a lot like Clark.
- Chloe: I thought aliens were little and green.
- Pete: I guess things aren't always what you think they are.
- Lex: I just needed to get out of the mansion. It's getting crowded.
- Clark: Doesn't it have like 75 rooms?
- Lex: Yeah, well, my father takes up a lot of space.
- Clark: (to Pete) I couldn't let you die to protect my secret, and I can't let anyone else die either. No matter who they are.
- Pete: (after learning about Clark's x-ray vision) So you're telling me you never once looked in the girl's locker room?
- Clark: Well, maybe once.
- Pete: That's my boy.
External links[]
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