- Title: Smallville – Jitters
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Smallville Saturday takes us back to the time Earl Jenkins (Tony Todd) took hostages at the Smallville plant demanding LuthorCorp fix his deteriorating medical condition he blames on mineral poisoning caused by an explosion at the facility which Lionel Luther (John Glover) covered up. While Earl is correct in all his claims, there’s a lack of evidence to support them. That, and the worsening of his condition, lead to Earl taking matters into his own hands in a desperate search for a possible cure. While the meteor rocks do have an effect on the guest-star of the episode, the differences to the script involving a worker exposed to questionable scientific experiments (and in making Earl a Kent family friend) make it a standout from the other meteor-freaks the show introduced over the first-half of the season, most of whom revel in their new powers.
With Martha (Annette O’Toole) and Jonathan (John Schneider) out of town celebrating their anniversary in Metropolis, the episode is also notable for Clark (Tom Welling) throwing a “small” party that immediately gets out of hand, but also gets the Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) seal of approval. Earl showing up at the party is what makes Clark and Chloe (Allison Mack) aware of his jittery condition which gives the episode its title as his meteor-induced seizures continue to grow in length and intensity.
Earl’s return to the plant coincides with the field trip of Clark’s class to the plant putting the core high school students in danger while also giving Clark a chance to investigate Earl’s claims of a secret Level Three which appears to not exist. “Jitters” introduces Robert Wisden as Chloe’s father, the plant manager who was giving the student’s their walkthrough of the facility when Earl returned. When his father refuses to deescalate the situation, or admit to the truth, Lex enters the the plant in hopes of talking Earl down by offering to show him the laboratory that no one other than Earl believes exists (although Clark’s x-ray vision suggests otherwise).
The mid-season finale of the show’s First Season, “Jitters” highlights several aspects of the show’s first few episodes while laying the foundation for further exploration. Clark’s last-minute save of Lex and Earl is hampered, but not stopped, by the Kryptonite poisoning caused by his proximity to Earl. It also marks another time Clark remarkably saves Lex’s life (which only leads to more questions from Clark’s bald-headed friend). The episode also highlights the similarities, and differences, between Luthor father and son given Lex’s actions over the course of the episode. “Jitters” also offers the notable first meeting between Lionel and Martha, a pairing the show will explore in unexpected ways in later seasons.
