The House of El: A Superman, Smallville & DCU Podcast

February 26, 2010 – Bernard Chisholm, a doctor who was experimented on by Kandorian scientists, begins kidnapping those same Kandorians in order to expose them to the world. Chisholm tries to persuade Lois to write the story, but when she refuses he kidnaps her and forces her to write it. Clark attempts to locate the missing Kandorians and is confronted by Zod, who knows that Clark destroyed the solar towers. Meanwhile, Oliver discovers that Chloe has been stealing money from his company in order to build kryptonite weapons to use against the Kandorians should they get their powers back. Oliver decides that Clark needs to know, but not until the time is right. Zod locates Chisholm, but he is shot in the stomach during his rescue attempt. Clark arrives and saves Lois and the surviving Kandorian, but watches as Zod dies from massive blood loss. Using his own blood, Clark resurrects Zod. The next day, Zod pretends to make a pact with Clark to help the Kandorians adapt to Earth, but once Clark leaves he reveals that he has gained the powers he was missing thanks to Clark’s blood. It’s going to be a long five weeks leading up to the next episode of Smallville, so let’s make the time go faster with a little SHoE. This week Derek and Joe from The 10th Wonder discuss the spring finale episode, ‘Conspiracy’. There’s also really big news involving Smallville’s 10th season return.

February 19, 2010 – Clark is unknowingly exposed to a new form of kryptonite that gives him the power of hypnosis. As a result, Lois quits her job at the Daily Planet and moves in with Clark after he tells her he wants a more traditional relationship. Once Clark finds out about his new power, he goes to Zod to see if he can force Zod to reveal who killed Jor-El. Zod tells Clark that Tess murdered his father, and tries to convince Clark to seek vengeance. After refusing to kill anyone, Clark accidentally hypnotizes himself into seeking revenge and he goes after Tess. Before Clark can kill her, Chloe uses green kryptonite to weaken Clark, which also removes the hypnosis from everyone, including Clark. Zod discovers that one of his soldiers, Alia, killed Jor-El for fear that he would destroy all of the Kandorian clones. As is Kryptonian law, Zod kills Alia for her actions. Clark learns the truth, but still does not trust Zod. As such, Clark destroys the LuthorCorp solar towers, which Zod hoped would bring him powers of his own. This week Derek and Media Junkyard co-host Robin (aka the boy wonder) bring you a look at what Kandorians do on their day off, in ‘Persuasion’. There is a LOT to talk about in this one.

February 12, 2010 – After stealing an enchanted Warrior Angel comic book, adolescent Alec is transformed into a super-powered adult. With his new abilities, Alec saves Chloe’s life. Thinking that Alec, who calls himself “Steven Swift”, is another superhero, Chloe tries to get to know him and recruit him to Clark and Oliver’s super-powered team. At the same time, Zatanna returns and informs Clark that her father was the one who cursed the comic book that turns Alec into Warrior Angel, and enlists his help to track down Alec so that she can reverse the spell. After finding the comic, Zatanna and Clark realize that the story is not about a young boy that becomes a hero, but about becoming a villain. When Chloe attempts to convince Alec to have the curse reversed, Alec turns on her and attempts to throw her off a building. Before he can, Clark saves Chloe and Zatanna reverses the spell, returning Alec back to normal. Steve and SHoEligan favorite Damian Holbrook, from TV Guide Magazine, take on the Allison Mack directed episode which was moved around a bit due to the earthquake in Haiti and Absolute Justice.

February 5, 2010 – After former superhero Sylvester Pemberton—also known as Star-Spangled Kid—is killed by supervillain Icicle, Chloe and Clark begin investigating the murder. The pair discover that Sylvester was part of a group known as the Justice Society of America, which was led by a man named Carter Hall who went by the name Hawkman. They also learn that Carter Hall and the rest of the Justice Society of America have been monitoring Clark and his super hero friends. Another member of the JSA, Dr. Fate, arrives and informs Clark that he will lead the new generation of superheroes, just as Hawkman led the JSA. After Icicle kills Wesley Dodds, whose code name was Sandman, Hawkman and Sylvester’s apprentice, Stargirl, decide to set a trap for Icicle. In the process, Green Arrow interrupts the trap, which causes Hawkman to threaten his life. Oliver calls in John Jones for support, who helps convince Hawkman, Stargirl, and Dr. Fate to work with Green Arrow, Clark, and himself to bring down Icicle. At the same time, Lois receives a package from an organization known as Checkmate, led by Amanda Waller, which leads her to discover the existence of the JSA. Split up into pairs, Dr. Fate saves John from Icicle’s attack, sacrificing himself and giving John his powers back at the same time. Banding together, instead of splitting up, Clark, Hawkman, Jones, Stargirl, and Green Arrow defeat Icicle. In the end, Hawkman and Stargirl decide to locate the other members of the JSA, their children, and their protégés to help organize a new generation of superheroes. Icicle is transported back to Agent Waller, who tells him he is part of the Suicide Squad and then shoots him. Afterward, Waller meets with Tess, who is revealed to be another agent of Checkmate. Here is the audio from our post-Absolute Justice live show this past Friday night.

January 29, 2010 – After a date with Clark, Lois is shot with an arrow by a man dressed as the Green Arrow. Later, Chloe is attacked by the same individual. Oliver begins investigating and discovers that an old mentor, named Vordigan, is the one behind the attacks. Meanwhile, Zod tells Clark that the Kryptonians are waiting on Clark to help them all get their powers, and that they will resort to anything to get them. Oliver’s old mentor kidnaps Mia, Oliver’s new apprentice, and uses her as bait to lure Oliver in and force him to kill Vordigen, who believes that he must die at the hands of his own disciple. Instead, Oliver only injures Vordigen and leaves him for the police. After Clark discovers that Zod visited Lois in the hospital, Clark tells him that he will not help the Kryptonians gain their powers and threatens to destroy all of them if they go near Lois again. We’re mere hours away from the two-hour event that is Absolute Justice, and that leaves us a little time to see where we’ve been. This week Steve and Smallville director Mairzee Almas discuss the first episode of 2010, ‘Disciple,’ and tell you what you need to take away from it.

January 2, 2010 – Welcome back! It’s the first SHoE of 2010 and we’ve got some catching up to do. First off, this episode was recorded before the disastrous earthquake in Haiti and the announcement of the Telethon that will take the place of “Disciple” on 1/22.

We’ve got a quick episode to give you all the details regarding the upcoming Charity Trivia Off between Kryptonsite’s Craig Byrne and Starkville House of El’s Derek Russell that will be moderated by host Steve Glosson next week.

It’s your official episode for the mid-season finale “Pandora” with Derek and Steve taking a look back at the episode a week later, to delve more into the questions we were left with and the answers you’re looking for.

November 20, 2009 – Tess kidnaps Lois and uses a memory reading machine from Sommerholt Institute to try to discover Lois’s lost memories. In order to see how Zod “saves humanity”, Tess synchronizes her brain with Lois’s so that she can live through the memories. In the future, the solar powered energy plant LuthorCorp builds is used to harness the solar radiation from the Sun—turning it red and stripping Clark of his powers—and provide Zod and his troops with all of their natural powers. Clark discovers that Tess has Lois, but when he attempts to remove Lois from the machine he inadvertently syncs his own brain to hers. Through Lois’s memories, Clark realizes that when he decided to fight Zod he pushed Zod down the road that led to Zod’s tyranny over Earth. As a result, Clark decides to follow his father’s dying wish and save Zod from himself by befriending him. In addition, he and Lois decide to start dating. We had a great time discussing the mid-season finale ‘Pandora’ last Friday night after the episode aired, and now you can join in on the fun! Derek and guest host Joe Hummrich of The 10th Wonder podcast led a live show with viewers mere hours after ‘Pandora’ aired to discuss it and all the questions it raised.

November 13, 2009 – In an attempt to fuel the legend of the Blur, twins Jayna and Zan — who have the ability to morph into animals and water-based forms, respectively—begin performing saves around Metropolis and painting Clark’s shield at the scene of the crime. Unfortunately, mistakes made by the twins push the Blur under scrutiny from the District Attorney, who challenges the Blur to reveal himself. Meanwhile, Lois accidentally hears Clark’s voice while talking to the Blur, and goes out of her way to convince the citizens that it is best if the Blur does not reveal himself. With help from the twins and Chloe, Lois is convinced that Clark and the Blur are not the same person. Clark encourages the twins to continue using their powers to help others, but to be more careful. Clark confesses to Lois that his “big secret” is that he is near-sighted, pulling out a pair of glasses. Lois responds by kissing Clark, but visions of the future send her into a seizure. It’s your next to last taste of Smallville for 2009, and Steve, Professor Bailey, and special SHoE guest Allison Scagliotti (aka 1/2 of the Wonder Twins) weigh in on the eighth episode of season nine, “Idol”. Lots of news coming in on this one, including the breaking news (while recording!) of Smallville: Absolute Justice.