The Mannheims prepare to leave town, but the serum that cured Peia appears to have side effects.
Tropes:
- Accidental Murder: Peia kills Bruno's henchman purely by accident and seems horrified about it, though part of the reason is that her son just watched her liquify a man.
- Bullying a Dragon: Downplayed and in retrospect, but once Clark tells Kyle the truth about who he really is, Kyle is grateful to Clark for not "lasering my ass" when Kyle pantsed Clark back in gym class.
- Came Back Wrong: Bizarro has been fully revived by the serum, but given the fact that his skin is pulsating and he's yelling incoherently, it's debatable if he's the same man he was.
- Death by Adaptation: Onomatopoeia is still alive and kicking in the comics. However, Peia, this show's version of Onomatopoeia, dies in this episode after her powers spin out of control and she releases it all in the air after Superman takes her into the sky.
- Death Equals Redemption: Peia's death is treated as pure tragedy and her final request is for Superman to tell her husband and son that she loves them. Once it's over, nobody opts to bring up the fact that she was The Dragon to her husband and Intergang, and had killed numerous people during her time as his enforcer.
- Despair Event Horizon: Sarah starts to hit this after another fight with Jordan, worrying both Lana and Kyle.
- Gone Horribly Wrong: The serum momentarily cured Peia and amped up her powers, but Superman sees that her tumors have gotten even worse when he tries to help her. It's to the point that his only choice is to talk her into allowing herself to die, rather than holding on and risking the lives of everyone in the city.
- Heroic Willpower: Despite Peia's powers being stronger than ever, Clark manages to power through them at point blank to get to her. It helps that, unlike previous encounters, she isn't actively training her powers on him.
- Hidden Depths: Kyle talks to Sarah about his teenage troubles that led him to start drinking, and how he hit rock bottom before getting better.
- Ludicrous Gibs: When Bruno orders his right-hand man to get another dose of the serum, Peia shouts "No!" and accidentally releases a sonic blast that liquefies the poor bastard in an instant.
- Making Love in All the Wrong Places: After kissing, Chrissy and Kyle walk offscreen to have intimate relations inside the offices of the Smallville Gazette.
- Power Incontinence:
- The serum may have cured Peia's cancer and dramatically increased her powers, but it also seems to have made her powers that much harder to contain. She ends up releasing a scream that causes a city-wide blackout when she can no longer hold them in. A second dose of the serum makes it even worse, causing her to gib Bruno's right-hand man. The sheer force of her powers eventually kills her when she releases it in a single, massive burst.
- Jordan's X-Ray Vision comes in at the hospital and he briefly has trouble shutting it off. Jon is able to calm him down and help him focus.
- Rejected Apology: When Sarah decides to apologize for their fight at the party, Jordan refuses to accept it and states she's just doing so because he saved her and Junior from the car crash. Whether or not he's right, he maintains that while Sarah claims to not have meant what she said at the kegger, Jordan makes it clear that he did.
- Retired Monster: What Bruno planned for him and his family, wanting to get out of Metropolis to get halfway around the world to a house on the beach. Peia's powers going completely out of control ruins those plans.
- Small Town Boredom: Sarah is deeply depressed because her DUI will be on her record for five years, which she worries will prevent her from going to college and getting away from Smallville.
- Squee: Chrissy is super-excited to see that Kyle has been given The Reveal and talks with him about how amazing it was to be taken flying with Clark. Unfortunately, Kyle is angry about being kept in the dark and lied to and walks out on her after a tense conversation, harshing her buzz.
- Sympathy for the Devil: John Henry, notably, who previously only wanted to arrest Bruno and his family. He not only sympathizes with Bruno, but also promises him that Matteo will be looked after.
- Taking the Heat: In a sense. Bruno agrees to completely cooperate with the DOD on the condition that Matteo isn't charged with any crime.
- Took a Level in Badass: Peia's powers are stronger than ever after taking the cure, allowing her to project auditory illusions across the planet. Unfortunately, the cure is only temporary, so when her cancer relapses with a vengeance, her powers become that much more unstable.
- Volcanic Veins: Peia's skin begins to glow with orange spots from the force of the vibrations she's holding in.
- We Need a Distraction: Peia uses her powers to orchestrate fake attacks all over the city so that she and her family can leave it undetected.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Kyle and Lana give Sarah some much needed pep talk in order to deal with her problems. They convince her to get a job as a waitress at the restaurant so she has something to ground her.
