n a very special episode of Smallville, former movie Superman Christopher Reeve guest stars as a mysterious scientist who
may just have some answers about Clark's past.
As the episode "Rosetta" opens, strange things are happening to Clark (Welling). He's been having dreams about the Indian caves and the symbols on
the cave walls. In his latest dream, he is flying over Smallville and ends up in the cave looking at the symbols on the wall. Suddenly, he finds the spaceship's octagonal key in his hand, and he puts it into an indentation on the wall in the center of the symbols. A brilliant light hits him, and Clark wakes up to find himself in the middle of the highway with a car bearing down on him. Lex Luthor (Rosenbaum) manages to stop his car in time, but the incident adds to his questions regarding Clark.
When Clark gets home, Martha (Annette O'Toole) and Jonathan (Schneider) are waiting for him. Clark reluctantly tells them what happened and that he believes the cave may hold answers for him. His mother and father believe the cave is dangerous and want him to stay away before something else happens.
As Lana (Kreuk) and Chloe (Mack) deal with their feelings about Clark, and Lex becomes even more suspicious of the future superhero, Clark finds himself drawn back to the cave. He may be unable to stop the bizarre things that are happening to him, but he doesn't really want to stop them. He wants to know who he is and why his parents put him in the space ship in the first place. That quest for answers will eventually lead him to a fateful meeting with Dr. Virgil Swann (Reeve), and that meeting will change his life forever.
Making the most of a casting coup
When The WB announced that Christopher Reeve would guest-star on Smallville, it was a casting coup that had plenty of possibilities. Many shows would have thrown away such an opportunity with a poorly plotted script or a bad characterization. But Smallville does everything just right. The action builds perfectly to create a wonderfully written episode that packs in plenty of surprises before Reeve arrives for the big climax.
"Rosetta" not only manages to give several of the characters special moments that evolve their characters, but the main story involving Clark's search for information about his past hits the right emotional cords, which makes the story all the more powerfully told. This story is about an adopted teenager who asks the same questions any other adopted teenager might ask, and it deals with the insecurities his parents might have regarding this quest. It scares them, and the fact that Clark is a teen alien with super powers is almost besides the point. That's what makes Smallville so good as a series that appeals to fans across the spectrum. The science fiction is there as it should be, and it's integral to the story, but not at the expense of the characters.
Beyond that, "Rosetta" happens to be a very special episode for many other reasons, too. Events happen in this episode that fans will not want to miss, not the least of which is Christopher Reeve's wonderful guest-starring turn. When Reeve shows up, we know that something big is about to happen, and fans will not be disappointed.
Since its beginnings, Smallville has been a bright, shining gem of a show with a talented cast, excellent writing and terrific production values. The really nice part, however, is that the creative staff of the series isn't afraid to take this series to new heights. And with "Rosetta," they prove the series is going to just get better and better.
