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For the eponymous Kryptonian city, see Kandor.

"Kandor" is the seventh episode in the ninth season of Smallville, and the one hundred-eighty-first overall. It aired on November 6, 2009.

Summary[]

Jor-El mysteriously arrives at the Kent Farm and meets Chloe. Convinced the Blur is Jor-El, Zod enlists Tess's help in finding him to force him to reveal the secret to his powers so he can kill him. Clark realizes Jor-El is alive and on Earth and races to find him before Zod does.

Recap[]

→ see also Category:Screencaps from episode 9x07

Jor-El and Zod flashbacks are in green text.

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Zod's blood sample almost taken.

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Kandor is destroyed.

Twenty years before the destruction of Krypton, at the Kandorian border, the civil war rages between Krypton's army and a rebellious clan known as Black Zero. A medic, sent by the Ruling Council, is taking blood samples from the soldiers. He is missing only General Zod's sample when Jor-El arrives and stops the medic, saying that the project cannot continue. With Zod's help, Jor-El manages to stop the medic from retrieving Zod's blood sample but, as this happens, Black Zero manages to destroy Kandor with a nuclear-like blast. Jor-El and Zod look on in shock, and Zod, whose wife and child were in Kandor, starts toward the city as the shockwave from the blast approaches. Jor-El restrains Zod, saying there is nothing he can do. In the present day, Major Zod tells his army that he believes Jor-El is the Blur leaving the Mark of El all over Metropolis, and promises his soldiers that Jor-El will pay for his treason and give them their abilities so Kandor can rise again.

At the Watchtower, Chloe is looking for more Kandorian symbols when Clark arrives. After a brief talk about Lois, Chloe informs Clark that Tess has sent teams around the globe to find the remaining Kryptonians. She says that she is currently searching in the Turkish desert and that Clark should investigate there, with Oliver's help to get there. Clark doesn't want to get Oliver involved and tries to slip off alone, but Oliver arrives at the Watchtower, ready to take Clark in his jet.

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Tess meets with Zod.

On the outskirts of Metropolis, Tess is talking to a man on the phone, complaining about the lack of results in the investigation in the Turkish desert. After finishing the call, she meets with Zod, who is looking at a House of El symbol on a building. Zod requests help from Tess to find Jor-El, and promises her that they will be equal partners. Tess, who already knows that the Blur is Clark, agrees to help Zod so she can have an advantage over him, and tells him that a team is already working on finding Jor-El.

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Clark and Oliver discover the House of El symbol in the Turkish desert.

Clark and Oliver are in the Turkish dessert, looking for the Kandorian mark. As they reach the correct coordinates, Clark uses his X-ray vision to see the mark below the sand and uses his super breath to blow away the sand, unveiling a giant House of El symbol. He also finds a dog tag on the ground. As he examines it, Clark discovers it belongs to his biological father.

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Jor-El arrives at the Kent Farm.

Back in Smallville, Jor-El arrives at the Kent Farm, and encounters Chloe. When they introduce themselves, Chloe realizes that he is Clark's father, which Jor-El doesn't believe, stating that he doesn't have a son. Chloe shows him a picture of Clark, saying his Kryptonian name is Kal-El. After realizing that he has a son, Jor-El asks why Kal-El is on Earth. Chloe explains that Jor-El sent Clark to Earth to save him from Krypton's destruction. Jor-El is saddened that his wife and planet are gone. Chloe tells him they need to find the rest of the Kandorians, but Jor-El says that it will be very difficult, because of the training they had under the great commander and his best friend: Zod.

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Jor-El stands before the Ruling Council.

Remembering past events, Jor-El is on trial by the Ruling Council of Krypton under the charges of treason, because he stopped the creation of the Orb, which would contain the blood samples of Kandorians in case of Krypton's destruction. Jor-El states that his inventions are to be used for Healing, not to resurrect the dead through cloning, and that if the Orb releases the Kandorians on Earth, the humans won't have a chance against them. As the Council is ready to sentence Jor-El to death, Zod arrives and interrupts the trial on behalf of Jor-El, stating that his friend is the greatest hero he has ever met because he uses his science for the good of others, not for war and destruction. The Council forgives Jor-El, but only on the condition that he finishes the Orb and includes Zod's DNA and his own, so that in case of Krypton's downfall, the Kandorians can rise again and be led by the two greatest heroes they have ever met. After the session ends, Jor-El tells Zod that he (Jor-El) is in his (Zod's) debt.. Back in the present, after hearing the story of how Zod saved Jor-El, Chloe tells Jor-El about the path Zod followed.

Returning home, Clark and Oliver discuss the discovery that Jor-El is on Earth. Clark tells Oliver that he doesn't know why the Jor-El A.I. at the Fortress of Solitude didn't tell him about this; angry, he suspects that there is a part of the Jor-El A.I. that doesn't want Clark to meet his flesh-and-blood father. Oliver, listening to this, tells Clark to think about it.

Back at the Kent Farm, Jor-El is going through some of Clark's belongings in the loft, saying that he is sad that his son didn't grow up on Krypton, but Chloe assures him that Clark has had a great life on Earth among friends and family. Jor-El remembers the time his father sent him to Earth and how he met Hiram Kent, believing that he had sent Kal-El there because of the love he felt in that family. Hearing a noise in the barn, Jor-El knocks Chloe out to protect her and manages to subdue one of the intruders, but is tasered by another intruder and captured.

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Tess talks with Jor-El.

In the Luthor Mansion's wine cellar, Tess greets Jor-El, and tells him that she has brought him there to protect him and Kal-El, and that she released the Kandorians to save Earth. Jor-El tells her that she shouldn't have done so, and states that she is mistaken to believe that Kryptonians are so different from Humans. Tess says that Zod doesn't know about Kal-El and therefore Kal-El is safe. Tess asks Jor-El to pretend that he is the Blur so that Clark continues to be safe, and hands Jor-El a black T-shirt with the House of El crest on it. Jor-El agrees.

Clark returns to the farm, only to find Chloe unconscious. After she awakes, Chloe tells him that Jor-El was there, and that Zod also returned from the Orb.

Zod is waiting for Tess in the mansion, and asks for an update on the search for Jor-El. Looking at an image of Jor-El's arrival in the Turkish desert, he celebrates and cheers with Tess. They talk and Zod reveals that his men already managed to find Jor-El in the wine cellar. Tess, enraged, throws her glass at Zod, only to reveal a smile after Zod leaves.

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Clark, Chloe and Oliver search for Jor-El.

Clark realizes that Chloe set up surveillance cameras in the farm after his battle with Doomsday, and is angry that Chloe didn't tell him. Searching the footage, they discover that Jor-El was kidnapped. Realizing that the only person capable of locating him was Tess, Clark decides to go confront her. Chloe and Oliver try to dissuade him, but Clark super speeds away.

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Jor-El irradiates the Orb with blue kryptonite.

Alia, Faora and Basqat bring Jor-El, wearing the T-shirt with the House of El symbol, to Zod. Zod salutes Jor-El and demands that he gives them their powers, stating that it is the least he can do after what happened the last time they met. On Krypton, Jor-El finishes constructing the Orb, and secretly irradiates it with blue kryptonite, so that the clones will be powerless on Earth. Zod arrives and Jor-El shows him the Orb and the Stones of Power containing the knowledge of the 28 galaxies; the only thing missing is the DNA samples of Zod and Jor-El. Zod asks his friend to re-create his son from a braid of hair he has kept. Stating that there could be deformities or mutations,

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The Orb and the Stones of Power

Jor-El refuses. Zod, angered, lets Jor-El take his blood sample, but tells him he is dead to him, ending their friendship.

Zod tortures Jor-El in an attempt to force him to reveal how he obtained his powers. Jor-El tells Zod that he used blue kryptonite to nullify the Kandorians' powers so they couldn't rule Earth as gods. He also reveals to Zod that Krypton was destroyed, and that Zod helped in its destruction by beginning a war against the Ruling Council. Jor-El tries to convince Zod to start over, saying he feels his pain and that maybe if he had agreed to give Zod his son, he would have never turned into a monster. Zod, intrigued about this information, manages to deduce that Jor-El has a son who is the one leaving the mark of El in Metropolis and saving the humans. After realizing this, he orders his soldiers to release Jor-El and begin searching for Kal-El.

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Clark chokes Tess.

Clark arrives at the Luthor Mansion, where he finds Tess and asks her about Jor-El. She denies knowing him, and Clark, enraged, grabs her by the neck, demanding to know where Jor-El is. Tess reveals that Zod has him, but that she put a tracking device on Jor-El's clothes. Clark forces her to search for Jor-El, so Tess looks on her computer and discovers that Jor-El is at the Kent Farm.

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Jor-El dies in Clark's arms.

Clark super speeds to the Kent Farm and sees Jor-El on a hill, staggering. He super-speeds over to Jor-El just as he falls to the ground, and is shocked to find that Jor-El is beaten and mortally wounded. Jor-El tells Clark that he is proud of him and asks him to save Zod. After saying this, he dies in Clark's arms and Clark cries over his body.

Clark talks with Oliver at the farm, about how he wanted to know more about Jor-El. He also asks Oliver for help on finding the ones who killed Jor-El so he can to bring them to justice, as Chloe will check the farm's footage to find out what happened.

At the Watchtower, Chloe looks over the footage from the farm and sees Jor-El hiding a Kryptonian device in the Kents' house.

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Zod contemplates Clark in the distance.

Clark buries Jor-El and marks his father's grave with the symbol of the House of El, stating that he can't save Zod, knowing what he has become. As he says this, Zod watches him from a distance.

Cast[]

Starring[]

Special Guest Star[]

Guest Starring[]

Co-Starring[]

Mentioned[]

Title[]

  • The title refers to the Kryptonian city of Kandor, the previous home of the exiled House of El members.
  • Kandor is rumored to have somehow survived the destruction of Krypton. When last seen, Kara was actively looking for Kandor.

Notes[]

  • Antagonist: Major Zod
  • Clark used the following abilities in the episode: Super Strength, Super Speed, Super Stamina, X-Ray Vision, Heat Vision.
  • In Superboy #121, Superboy encountered a younger version of his father (a teen rather than a young adult). Unlike the episode, this Jor-El was briefly lost in time, but was sent back to his time and planet at the end of the story.
  • This episode features heavy references to the Superman film series created by Richard Donner.
  • Lois Lane does not appear in this episode, but all of the other main cast members are present.
  • This marks the second on screen appearance of Jor-El in person. It is also the second time he is seen on Earth. Jor-El's voice is different from the voice that appears in the Fortress of Solitude possibly because the Jor-El that appears in this episode is an "earlier" Jor-El. However, it's more likely that the voice difference is because one is artificially created and thus has undergone some sort of voice manipulation.
  • This is the second episode of the series to have on-screen appearances of Krypton after Season Seven's Apocalypse and Kandor after Lara.
  • This the first time that the Stones of Power and the Orb have been seen together.
  • There are parallels of Jor-El and Zod's relationship to Clark and Lex's relationship; both started as friends but became heated rivals due to betrayal.
  • The Stones of Power were last seen in Season Four's finale Commencement.
  • This is the first episode this season Clark hasn't been seen wearing his Blur costume. Instead, Jor-El wears a shirt resembling the Blur's outfit. It is unclear how Tess knew that the Blur wears a black shirt with a gray Mark of El on it.
  • This is the third time that Clark has lost a male figure in his life: Jonathan Kent in Season Five's Reckoning, Lionel Luthor in Season Seven's Descent, and now Jor-El. Each episode ends with him standing near their gravesites as they are buried.
  • This is the second time Clark's father has died in his arms: Jonathan back in Reckoning and now a clone of his birth father, Jor-El.
  • Both Jor-El and Zod, as well as the other Kandorians, are clones made from Jor-El's technology. This is the same thing that happened in Blue where Zor-El's technology created clones of himself and Clark's biological mother Lara-El.
  • In this episode Clark finds out that Zod is on Earth as a clone.
  • This is the first episode in which Clark uses his powers in front of Tess. Clark finally admits his Kryptonian heritage to her, though not directly.
  • Originally Jor-El was supposed to be played by Tom Welling (like in Season Three's Relic) but the end scene when he dies in Clark's arms would have looked too weird so they cast Julian Sands in his place. [citation needed]
  • Jor-El holds the same picture of Clark that Rachel Dunleavy held in Season Two's Lineage.
  • The "desert" scenes do not look remotely like any region of Turkey, and in fact, though some places in Turkey might seem desertic, there is no "Turkish desert"

In Other Media[]

  • The episode references Black Zero, which is known as the terrorist group who destroyed Krypton. The name Black Zero is a recurring name in Superman and Superboy comics. Black Zero was also the name of the man who "Destroyed Krypton"
  • Jor-El's death is similar to his final appearance in Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut. (Hologram) Jor-El gives up his existence to save/restore Clark's powers; to fight Zod. (Clone) Jor-El gives up his life, to protect Clark's existence from Zod.
  • Zod tells Tess about the "bottled-up hopes and dreams of Kandor," which is likely a reference to the city being shrunk and put in a bottle in the current comics. This also echoes a line said by Jor-El to Clark in Season Two's Exodus.
  • Chloe jokes that Clark and Lois's relationship began in the 1930s, referencing that Clark and Lois met in the comics in 1938 (when Superman debuted).
  • Jor-El's clothing and general appearance has a strong resemblance to that of Marlon Brando in Superman: The Movie.
  • The rings that surround Jor-El during his trial strongly resembles those from Superman: The Movie and Superman II. The whole scene mirrors the trial in Superman II, except that Zod and Jor-El switch positions.

Continuity[]

  • Kandor's first full on-screen appearance was in Season Seven's Lara.
  • This is the second episode in which Jor-El is seen in body form; the first was in Season Three's Relic. Jor-El also mentions meeting Hiram Kent, which also occurred in Relic.
  • Jor-El arrived on Earth at the same time as Zod in Doomsday.
  • The last time the Orb was seen was in Doomsday.
  • The Stones of Power were first introduced during Season Four and were last seen in Season Five's Arrival.
  • Jor-El uses blue kryptonite on the Orb, which was first introduced in Blue and last seen in Savior.
  • Krypton was last seen in Apocalypse.
  • Clark mentions the talk show and the kiss he shared with Lois in Crossfire.
  • It was revealed that the Orb had been irradiated with blue kryptonite. This might explain how Clark lost his powers when the Orb was placed into the Fortress in Arctic
  • Clark uses his super breath to reveal the House of El family crest hidden beneath the sand of the Turkish desert. The last time Clark used his super breath was in Rabid.
  • Tess mentions to Zod his deep cover agent's untimely death, which occurred in Crossfire.
  • General Zod was last seen in Season Six's Zod while possessing Lex Luthor's body.
  • The original Faora was last seen in Season Eight's Bloodline while possessing Lois Lane's body.
  • Alia was last seen in a video in Roulette.
  • Chloe showed Jor-El the same picture of Clark that Rachel Dunleavy held in //Lineage.

Discontinuity[]

  • The Stones of Power and the Orb were created around 1966, but in Season Four, it was mentioned several times that the stones have been sought after for centuries; the Orb was also hinted to have been on Earth since at least World War II, while the stones were found in objects ranging from a few hundred to thousands of years old. (Quest) This is either a discontinuity, different time on Krypton, or an example of time travel.
  • The Jor-El from this episode is just 5 years older than the Jor-El from Relic, yet he looks much older than this.
  • Kara was born a year after the destruction of Kandor shown at the beginning (she was 19 at the time Krypton was destroyed). However, in Kara, she told Clark she would sometimes escape from Kandor to see her aunt, Lara-El, which would have been impossible if Kandor had been destroyed before she was born - unless Kandor was subsequently rebuilt while she grew up, which is possible as the animated series Kara and the Chronicles of Krypton take place partially in Kandor just before Krypton's destruction.
  • Jor-El calls the blue rock that he used on the Orb, "Blue Kryptonite", however, he had no way of knowing that it would be called such a name, as Clark was the one who named it in "Visitor." Chloe could have mentioned it off-screen, but that is doubtful, and, also Zod did not seem at all confused about the name "Kryptonite."

Locations[]

Quotes[]

Chloe: If you raced here to see me, it must mean the 'I Love Lois' show was pre-empted this week.
Clark: Come on, you know I always speed over when you call - although I may be responsible for your cousin vanishing from prime time.
Chloe: I was wondering why she skipped town without saying goodbye. What's up?
Clark: I, uh... I kissed her.
Chloe: Oh, yeah, that would definitely send her packing! I mean, no offense to you, Clark, it's just Lois's typical response to intimacy is usually to blow outta town.
Clark: I just don't know what happened, I went over to talk to her and the next thing I know, I couldn't stop myself.
Chloe: Yeah, I'm not surprised, Clark. You've had feelings for Lois since, like, the 1930s.

Oliver: You know, Clark, if you wanna bury me in the desert for going on that date with Lois... you could've at least taken me to Nevada.
Clark: Oliver, let's not...
Oliver: I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm still gonna put up a fight. But maybe we could've hit the Strip before the main event, you know what I mean? Maybe a little Blue Man Group... maybe a little Carrot Top. You know, what I'm getting you next year for Christmas is a sense of humor.

Oliver: (to Clark about Jor-El) It seems to me like you're a chip off the old block. After seeing how he saved our spunky sidekick, I'd say you're both heroes.

1st Elder: It is agreed. Jor-El, the council will spare your life. But you are ordered to complete the orb. You must include Major Zod's DNA and your own. If that fateful day of judgement ever comes to Krypton, our survivors on Earth will be led by two of our planet's greatest heroes.

External links[]


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ComicsThe Comic · Season 11 · Miniseries


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