Episode Guide: Season Two:

September 24, 2002:
Vortex: The adventures continue for the Teen of Steel as the drama kicks off its sophomore season with Smallville still in the grips of a devastating twister. Faster than a speeding bullet, Clark rescues Lana from the storm and rushes her to a hospital before he races home to aid his folks. But Clark soon discovers that his dad is missing and was last seen chasing a nosy newspaper reporter off the farm. Elsewhere, millionaire Lex Luthor has his own problems when his conflicted feelings for his father cause him to hesitate in a moment of crisis.

October 1, 2002:
Heat: It appears that shrewd billionaire Lex Luthor has taken leave of his senses when he marries a woman he hardly knows. The new Mrs. Luthor is Smallville High School teacher Desiree Atkins (Krista Allen), who has the ability to temporarily control a man's mind by emitting a kind of pheromone mist. She and Lex wed shortly after they meet, and Desiree immediately sets out to steal the Luthor fortune by planning her transition from wife to widow. She tries to persuade Clark to murder her new hubby, but her powers don't work on the Kryptonian so she's forced to find another pawn. Meanwhile, Clark's troubles aren't over; he's struggling with his latest gift — heat vision.

October 8, 2002:
Duplicity: Clark tells Pete about his extraterrestrial powers after Pete finds Clark's spaceship and insists on hiding it in a shed in his own yard, but the craft is soon stolen by a scientist. Meanwhile, Lionel Luthor claims he wants to spend more time with Lex; and Lana is suspicious of her aunt's new boyfriend.

October 15, 2002:
Red: The Boy of Steel has his first run-in with red kryptonite in this exploration of classic Superman mythology. Clark's transformation begins after he gets his high-school ring. The memento's red-kryptonite gem insidiously begins to alter his behavior as his inhibitions melt away. The usually respectful teen starts mouthing off to his parents and friends, and the problems escalate when Clark's indifference causes him to slam his father against a truck during a scuffle. Elsewhere, a new Smallville student is pursued by a murderous U.S. marshal, who has already killed the informant who pointed him in the town's direction.

October 22, 2002:
Nocturne: A teen who is kept locked in the basement of his parents' house during the day sneaks out at night and leaves love letters for Lana at her parents' graves. Meanwhile, Lionel Luthor hires Clark's mother as his personal assistant.

October 29, 2002:
Redux: Family secrets abound as Martha goes behind Jonathan's back to ask her father for money after the family's bills pile up; and Lana finds pictures of her mother with another man that were taken after her parents were married. Meanwhile, a healthy high-school student dies of old age shortly after kissing his girlfriend; and Clark has a run-in with the new school principal.

November 5, 2002:
Lineage: A strange woman arrives in Smallville and tells Clark that she's his biological mother and informs Lex that Lionel is the father. And she wants Clark to take a DNA test to confirm her story. Meanwhile, Lana decides to meet the man who could be her biological father.

November 12, 2002:
Ryan: This taut episode illustrates why the Superman saga has soared in the ratings so far this season. The plot continues to develop the show's mythology, as Clark meets up again with Ryan, a teenage mind reader the Kents befriended last season. This time, Clark tries to protect the teen from a scientist who has been conducting cruel experiments on the boy. Meanwhile, Lex crosses swords with Smallville's corrupt mayor (The X-Files's William B. Davis) over a potential business deal that could have serious ramifications for the town.

November 19, 2002:
Dichotic: A Smallville honor student (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) who can clone himself at will kills a teacher to avoid a bad grade, then develops a romantic interest in Chloe and Lana. Meanwhile, Martha feels guilty about her career choices after Jonathan is injured in an accident on the Kent farm while she is at work.

November 26, 2002:
Skinwalker: Clark meets a Native American girl in a cave and discovers drawings on the walls from the girl's ancestors that tell a tale mirroring Clark's arrival in Smallville during a meteor shower. Meanwhile, Lana learns the results of a DNA test that could prove her kinship to Henry Small.

January 14, 2003:
Visage: One of Clark's former adversaries returns to Smallville and causes a rift between Lana and Clark. Elsewhere, Lex accuses a woman he's dating of spying on him for Lionel Luthor.

January 21, 2003
Insurgence: Tension rises as high as a Metropolis skyscraper when Lex Luthor's clandestine plan to bug his father's office goes horribly wrong. The caper begins to fall apart when Lex's hired thugs double-cross him and decide to rob the LuthorCorp vault instead of planting the listening devices. The situation worsens when the thieves discover that Lionel Luthor (John Glover) and Martha Kent (Annette O'Toole) are working in the building. The unfortunate duo become hostages when they get caught up in the intruders' nefarious scheme. Elsewhere, Lana (Kristin Kreuk) is feeling the strain when her biological father's wife agrees to meet, an encounter that proves a stressful one.

January 28, 2003
Suspect: The comic-based series takes a page from classic mysteries to ask the question, "Who shot Lionel Luthor?"
When the detested billionaire is felled by a bullet and left fighting for his life in a Smallville hospital, Jonathan Kent (John Schneider) is arrested after he is found with a gun and a bottle of tequila. The police quickly begin to build a case against their prime suspect---who unfortunately has no memory of the last few hours. Meanwhile, Lex (Michael Rosenbaum) does some digging of his own and begins to suspect that someone else pulled the trigger, but his reluctance to share the information puts him on a collision course with Clark (Tom Welling).

February 4, 2003
Rush: A strange parasite invades Pete's body and feeds on the teen's adrenal glands, causing him to shake off his inhibitions and engage in wild and dangerous behavior. Meanwhile, Clark gathers his courage and asks Lana for a date, which she eagerly accepts.

February 11, 2003
Prodigal: Lex finds his long-lost brother, Lucas (Paul Wasilewski), and tries to persuade his sibling to help him stage a financial coup against their father. Unfortunately, Lex's plan backfires. Meanwhile, Clark applies for a position at Lana's coffee shop.

February 18, 2003
Fever: Martha is hospitalized after becoming seriously ill from exposure to kryptonite spores in the Kent's storm cellar, and Jonathan learns there are complications. Meanwhile, Lex's girlfriend is offered a lucrative position at a hospital far away from Smallville.

February 25, 2003
Rosetta: Christopher Reeve returns to the Superman saga as a scientist with information about Clark's otherworldly origins. Reeve, who played the superhero in four theatrical releases in the 1970s and '80s, stars as Dr. Virgil Swann, a rich and reclusive physicist with an interest in extraterrestrial beings. The intrigued Swann asks Clark (Tom Welling) to meet with him after he sees a newspaper photograph of a Kryptonian symbol burned into the side of the Kents' farmhouse. “Every hero needs a wise man [to counsel him],” says co-executive producer Al Gough, describing Reeve's character. “It's sort of a passing of the torch from one generation of Superman to the next.”