What's up with Lana? Clark rescues Lana from the twister. She suffered a mild concussion, and thinks she saw Clark's face as she was trapped in the truck, whirling in the twister. Lana can't understand how she survived, and suspects Clark is keeping a secret.
What's up with Clark? Clark is frantic, searching for his dad. Clark avoids Lana's probing questions about her rescue, telling her he found her after the tornado.
What's up with Jonathan? Jonathan chases reporter Roger Nixon into the storm. After the twister, they are trapped in the underground crypt of an old church, with a trailer crushed above them. Jonathan has the chance to kill the reporter, but instead helps him from the rubble. Nixon challenges Jonathan with words about Clark. Jonathan demands the videotape from Nixon for a way out, he surrenders it, Jonathan destroys it. As they try to escape, they are buried in more rubble.
What's up with Martha? Martha remains strong, despite the disappearance of Jonathan. She even comforts Lana, sharing the story of her memory from the day of the meteor shower (from season 1 Pilot). Lana, a child playing make-believe, asked Martha to make a wish and Lana granted it with her magic wand. Martha wished for a child. "Soon after, Clark came into our lives," Martha tells Lana, confiding she's glad Lana and Clark are close.
What's up with Lex? Lex offers to help in the search for Jonathan. Lex confides in Clark that he hesitated saving his father Lionel when he was trapped. Lionel is in critical condition at the hospital. His doctors disagree on surgery. One wants to operate immediately. The other feels its too risky, and suggests waiting until Lionel is stable. Lex decides to have them operate immediately.
What's up with Lionel? Lionel survives the surgery, and will walk again. He thanks Lex for saving his life during the twister. Then he tells Lex he should not have allowed the immediate surgery, although Lionel would've decided the same if Lex had been injured. The surgery has left Lionel blind, and he tells Lex he should've let him die.
What's up with Chloe? Clark apologizes to Chloe for leaving her at the dance, and wants to make it up to her. Lana has already told Chloe that it was Clark who found her. Chloe tells Clark she just wants to be friends. Clark accepts this, and walks away. Pete finds Chloe crying.
How it ends: Clark finds Jonathan and Nixon, but cannot help them because he is weakened by kryptonite rocks scattered at the site. Jonathan tells Nixon of the kryptonite and its effect on Clark. Nixon stuffs a kryptonite rock in Clark's jacket, and pulls him outside. Jonathan runs out after Nixon. They struggle, and Nixon strikes Jonathan, threatening to kill him. Lex arrives and shoots Nixon dead. Jonathan thanks Lex for saving his life. They shake hands "to a fresh start."
Later Clark tells his dad "I felt like I was flying...as if I willed it..." when describing Lana's rescue.
We see the spaceship in the middle of a field, where it landed during the twister when the "key" was dislodged.
[back to top]

When last we left our leafy little hamlet, Lex and his dad were about to be impaled by a dangerous object; Lana was about to be taken for a wild ride; and huge currents of ravaging crosswinds were poised to wreak havoc and destruction. And all this was just inside Clark Kent's pants.

We begin Season Two ("Season of The Sexy") with a set of clips from last season. Clark's truck blows up. A sneaky reporter named Nixon found Clark's ship and its octagonal missing piece. Lex got all bloody-eyed. Jocko Whitney left the show to go be one of the few, the proud, the unceremoniously dumped by the WB. Oh, and this big-ass tornado was going to kill everything. Who wants pie?

"Vortex" opens on a cloudy day with Clark's old spaceship hauling ass across green fields, toward a huge tornado. There's no rain right now, which seems to go against the whole dark clouds/big tornado scene. Rain must cost extra to animate. The spaceship -- which, I'm told looks just like a black ravioli -- sails into the funnel cloud and straight up. There's debris and lightning everywhere. The ship gets struck by lightning, loosening that little octagon piece, which flies away in a burst of cheap electrical fire. So, let me get this straight: This ship can survive interstellar travel, survive being co-pilot in a huge meteor attack, and make it through the perilous journey through Earth's atmosphere, but it can't survive a Farmer Ted-grade bolt of lightning? If we're ever attacked by aliens, all we'll have to do is rub our shoes on some deep carpet and touch them. More flying crap. I think I see some rejected second-season script pages in here somewhere. Suddenly, the red truck Lana was driving is sailing toward us. Lana is in the truck. The dumb-ass has her hands locked on the steering wheel. No, Lana! Don't steer away from the funnel! She ducks onto the floorboard, and a door suddenly swings open and flies away. And then, there's Clark! He's somehow gotten a haircut and a tan in the twenty seconds it took to get up to the funnel cloud (he's a super groomer, I suppose), and he's hanging from the truck's driver's-side door area like he's The T-1000 from T2. He climbs into the truck. No big thang. Lana watches him. Clark is making lots of f*ck faces as he struggles to hang on. Everything is shaky, and I get flashbacks to "Jitters." Clark climbs on top of Lana, who is lying face down, and it's suddenly oh so very wrong. The car is stripped clean of its doors, hood, and outer body. This would only be impressive to anyone who hasn't lived in a city big enough to support a thriving chop shop industry. Clark hangs on to Lana. He bellows. Lightning strikes. Better watch out, Clark. Maybe you've got the same crappy vulnerability to lightning that your spaceship did. (more...)
-- Omar G (TWoP)

After Clark rescues Lana from the eye of the storm, he discovers the storm's wrath has unleashed the spaceship into the fields and buried his father alive along with the unscrupulous reporter who has discovered Clark's secret. Meanwhile, Lex is wracked with guilt over his father. Sam Jones III, Allison Mack and Annette O'Toole also star.

Clark: Uh, Chloe? I've been wanting to apologize for leaving you at the formal.
Chloe: Oh, didn't I tell you that leaving in the middle of a tornado totally gets you off the hook?

Martha: How do you feel?
Jonathan: Kind of like a house fell on me, that's how I feel.

Clark: I never realized how strong you were until today.
Martha: Well, thanks, Clark, but I was terrified.
Clark: You didn't show it. You were like Supermom.

Nixon: Why don't you stop playing the protector and admit the truth? You and your wife kept him because you couldn't have children of your own.
Jonathan: We kept him because he is our son and we love him.
Nixon: He's not your son, you deluded hick! He's not even human.

Nixon: Do you have any idea what I would do with his abilities? The wealth, the power he could amass. It's unimaginable.
Jonathan: You're exactly the reason I keep his abilities a secret.

Nixon: I thought you were going to kill me.
Jonathan: You would think that.

Nixon: You have the most amazing being on Earth doing chores on your farm!

Lana: If it's any consolation, you guys look great together.
Chloe: It's not, but thanks.

Nixon: Dying in a tomb, that's ironic.

::: Kids Say The Darndest Things:::

Frankly, I feel frustrated being manipulated like this. Why must the formation of relationships be stunted just to prolong one of the few story arcs this show has?

I know that love triangles are a guilty pleasure for teen drama audiences. But whenever I watch a show with characters in relationship limbo, it’s just another reminder that without a love triangle there wouldn’t be much holding the show together. Considering the broad nature of this premise, the producers should be able to come up with a better story arc.

::: You Can’t Hide Forever :::

I really enjoyed the final scene with Lana and Clark. For most of season one, Lana was completely insufferable and uninteresting. But now that Whitney is gone, we no longer have the constant reminder how much of a skank Lana truly is.

Instead of Lana being an overly cheerful and smiling drama queen, it seems that she will now be making the transition into a more complex person.

Because of her experience during the storm, Lana has memories of Clark’s heroic rescue that defy belief. Yet, considering the numerous times she’s been saved by Clark, she is now much more suspicious of him. (more...)