Summary
- Tom Welling's portrayal of Superman in Smallville showcased the perfect balance of power and comion.
- Smallville highlighted key moments that defined Superman, including his selflessness and sense of responsibility.
- Welling's Clark Kent demonstrated leadership skills and a profound love for Lois Lane, making him a true embodiment of Superman.
Tom Welling was the perfect Superman in James Gunn's Superman: Legacy could learn a thing or two from Smallville, as the long-running superhero series showed how to make the perfect Superman. Smallville ran for ten seasons, with the series starting as Welling's Clark was only a high schooler who knew nothing about his Kryptonian heritage and ending with the moment that DC fans had waited ten years for: Clark becoming Superman.
Throughout the show, Clark would come to learn to control and develop his special abilities, with Welling's Superman having several impressive displays of power in Smallville. While Clark was incredibly powerful in the series, his abilities were far from the only aspect of the character that made Welling's depiction of the hero a perfect showcase of what makes Superman who he is. Smallville featured quite a few moments where Clark showed trademark aspects of Superman, such as his courage and comion, making Welling's time in the role an all-around great Superman adaptation. Here are 10 Smallville moments that prove Welling was the perfect Superman.
Tom Welling Explains Why His Arrowverse Clark Kent Felt Different (Intentionally) To Smallville's
Tom Welling's Crisis on Infinite Earths cameo has become controversial over its changes, but the actor was the one who wanted Clark to be different.
10 Clark Comforts Ryan & Discovers He Can’t Save Everyone
Smallville Season 2, Episode 8
Ryan discovered in season 2 that he had a brain tumor and was going to die. Clark does everything in his power to save his life, including using his superspeed to go from Smallville to Hub City before a doctor who was an expert in brain tumors and people with mind-related abilities left on a plane for another country. The doctor operated on Ryan, but it only bought him a few more days. Clark then comforted Ryan by fighting his own fear of heights and taking the kid on a hot-air balloon, and he learned that even with all his power, he cannot save everyone, something Superman knows very well.
9 Clark Comes Back To Life And Shows His Sense Of Responsibility By Immediately Saving People
Smallville Season 5, Episode 3
While Smallville would go on for ten seasons, the series had a major twist in season 5 that saw Welling's Clark Kent die. The character was stripped of his powers by Jor-El after failing to show up at the Fortress of Solitude before sunset. As a normal human, Clark still showed his courage by fighting villains with no powers, which led to him getting shot and dying. After being resurrected by Jor-El, Clark wastes no time thinking about how he came back to life, going directly to stop a missile from killing people in Smallville. His courage and sense of responsibility are true Superman characteristics.
8 Clark Selflessly Sacrifices Himself To Send Zod & Other Kryptonians Away
Smallville Season 9, Episode 21
Welling's Clark Kent would often display one of Superman's most important features throughout Smallville's ten seasons, with the character's selflessness appearing as he constantly put the lives of those he was protecting above his own. In one of Smallville's best season finales, Clark allows himself to be stabbed with a blue Kryptonite dagger and falls from a building to get the knife away from Zod. As the villain recovered his powers due to being away from the knife, he was pulled by the Book of Rao to a new world alongside other Kryptonians.
7 Clark’s Resilience Is Spotlighted As He Resists Getting Pulled Into The Phantom Zone
Smallville Season 5, Episode 1
The Phantom Zone has played a major role in several Superman stories from the comics and other mediums, and in Smallville, it could not be any different. Clark managed to resist the strong pull of the Phantom Zone, recover his footing, and then overpower two Kryptonians. More than that, the hero was able to send both villains back to the Phantom Zone and escaped relatively unscathed from the ordeal as the portal to the other dimension closed. The image of Clark standing tall as he watched the Phantom Zone portal close in front of him without getting pulled into it shows just how resilient Welling's Superman was.
6 Clark’s Leader Ability Is On Display With The Justice League
Smallville Season 6, Episode 11 & Multiple Other Episodes
Superman has interacted with countless heroes across his long history, with the character being a constant of DC's premiere superhero team, the Justice League. Smallville recreated that, and though the series never properly named its superhero team, it was clear that the show was doing a version of the JL. Justin Hartley's Green Arrow started as the leader of the team. However, over the years, Clark would get to become the leader of Smallville's Justice League as he embraced his moniker as the Blur before becoming Superman. Leading characters like Green Arrow, Aquaman, and Impulse showed that Smallville's Clark Kent had the leadership skills that Superman needs to have.
5 Clark Professes His Love For Lois And Starts Levitating
Smallville Season 10, Episode 4
The relationship between Clark Kent and Lois Lane is crucial for a good Superman adaptation. Smallville did right by one of the most iconic couples in comic book history, with Welling and Erica Durance having impeccable chemistry as the characters, and the decision to make the romance a slow burn adding to the excitement when the couple got together. Smallville even shows how much Clark's love for Lois affects him, with the character being able to levitate, which he hardly did in the series, after professing his love for her. Clark and Lois dancing in the air with their eyes closed is a peak Superman moment.
4 Clark’s Comion Comes Out Even For His Damaged Doppelganger
Smallville Season 10, Episode 17
Clark Luthor was the Earth-2 version of Welling's character who, instead of being found by the Kents, was taken in and raised by Lionel Luthor, growing up alongside Lex. The doppelganger was accidentally pulled into the world of Welling's Clark Kent, which led to a series of issues. Despite having murdered many people in his world, including his brother Lex, the main Clark still reached out to Clark Luthor in an effort to get him on a road of redemption, showing that he could be comionate even for an evil version of himself, which has Superman spelled all over it.
3 Smallville’s Clark Kent Changing In A Phone Booth Is Classic Superman
Smallville Season 10, Episode 18
One of the most classic Superman scenes is when the character rushes into a phone booth to change from normal clothes into his costume. Smallville featured Welling's Clark repeating that trend. The character ran into a phone booth and switched from his Daily Planet attire to his the Blur suit, which consisted of a red jacket with the House of El crest. The moment took place late in Smallville's final season, feeling like the appropriate epic setup for Clark to finally become Superman in the following episodes.
2 Superman Shows His Resolve By Single-Handedly Pushing Apokolips Away From Earth
Smallville Season 10, Episode 22
Superman is known for having one of the biggest amounts of willpower in the universe. That was represented throughout Smallville, with Clark never letting insurmountable odds damper his resolve. Smallville's series finale was the clearest example of that. The episode saw Welling's Clark Kent finally become Superman, and as the Man of Steel, the hero had his biggest feat of the series. Superman managed to push off an entire planet, saving Earth from Darkseid's Apokolips and sending the planet flying back into space.
1 Clark Rips Open His Shirt To Finally Become Superman
Smallville Season 10, Episode 22
Finally, Smallville's last episode offered the anticipated payoff to a ten-year journey that led to the most developed version of Superman in live-action. While the show had to deal with comments over the years that Clark's journey to becoming Superman was taking too long or that Smallville was not really a superhero series because Clark was not Superman, the DC TV show saw Welling become Superman once and for all in its series finale. Clark opening his shirt to reveal the Superman suit before flying away is a classic Superman move, and as a perfect version of Superman, Welling's Clark repeated the gesture to end his time in Smallville.
