I'm used to the men on Smallville kicking butt. Clark, Lex, Oliver, Davis, they've all, at one time or another, wreaked some carnage and opened up a can or two of whup-ass. But in last night's episode, the ladies got a chance to do the ass-kicking, and they did it well.

Lana went through her G.I. Jane phase and shot a guy, chopped off her hair, submerged herself in an ice bath and lifted a burning piece of metal with her arms. Meanwhile, Tess Mercer kicked a man to death, literally. These are two women I would not want to run into in a dark alley.

Lana in particular is an inspired story of a woman taking control of her life. She was wronged by a man, Lex, and she got herself into top physical condition to take him down. It's a bit sad that she only did this to get vengeance against a man, but still, Lana's transformation from a meek damsel in distress into a super-human killing machine was cool.

But it's Tess who is the real wild card. She is clearly a little disturbed, using various martial arts as exercise, and she's a little too eager to put someone in their place. This is a woman who is ruthless and will do whatever she can to get what she wants.

Last week I wrote about Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and that Tess would come back and kick some butt. That apparently didn't take long, and when one of Lex's goons threatened her, she used her martial arts prowess to disarm him then kick him repeatedly while he was down.

These were not gentle kicks. These were hard, punt a football, kicks. Blood splatters over her face, and while she looked slightly horrified once it was over, she simply wiped the blood away and went along with her business.

On a show about Clark Kent, who grows up to be Superman, saving Lois Lane from danger every week, it's nice to see some feminism on display. It should come as no surprise that this “I am woman, hear me roar” episode was directed by Smallville star Allison Mack. This was an episode made by women, for women, about women, and these ladies certainly kicked some ass.

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-John Kubicek, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image courtesy of the CW)