Kryptonite in Smallville

On the television series Smallville, Kryptonite is a fictional element originating from a meteor shower, composed of the remains of the planet Krypton. In Smallville it serves, as in the comics, as a toxic radioactive substance which is lethal to Kryptonians. In addition to this, Smallville reinvents Kryptonite as both a potent mutagen (the cause of many metahuman mutations, bestowing an assortment of superpowers in residents of Smallville, Kansas) and also a versatile substance in the development of radical new technology, specifically in the experiments carried out by LuthorCorp.

Most of the time, the acquired powers seem to mirror the individual's feelings or physical interaction with the environment at the time of exposure (similar to gamma radiation in Marvel Comics). For example: a man who lost a loved one developed power over life and death, and a man working in a glass shop developed the psychokinetic ability to manipulate glass. These mutations are permanent, often cause an associated psychosis and appear to pass on to children ("second generation meteor freaks").

Only Clark, after learning about the planet he came from, and those who know his secret, refer to it as "Kryptonite"; everyone else (such as Lex Luthor and Lana Lang) refers to it as "meteor rock."

Green Kryptonite

Green Kryptonite is the most commonly occurring form of Kryptonite appearing on Smallville, often used as a plot device to provide a rationale for a villain developing superhuman abilities, who must then be confronted by Clark. An exception to this motif was when Clark used Green Kryptonite to defeat Eric Summers in the episodes "Leech" and "Asylum", when Eric was temporarily endowed with Clark's powers.

Green Kryptonite radiation rapidly fills Clark's cells and drives out the solar energy stored therein; prolonged exposure to Green Kryptonite could be fatal to Clark.

Green Kryptonite seems to be a very versatile element in this series. It has been shown to be fatal not just to Clark and other Kryptonians, but to Kryptonian technology as well (however, Milton Fine is unaffected), as Clark used a piece of refined Green Kryptonite shaped like the octagonal Kryptonian key to destroy his spaceship (cf. "Exodus"). However, Green Kryptonite appears to only affect Kryptonians with powers, since the few times when Clark was powerless, the exposure did not harm him.

Other uses of Green Kryptonite

• Used to make people invisible
• Tattooed on to allow intangibility
• Increasing the power output of motor engines
• Inhaled to grant super-strength
• Used as an explosive
• Transferred a telephone call back through time
• Used to make a love-inducing potion
• Helped create super-canines
• Making a "vampire" potion
• Used to bring the dead back to life, and sustain that life
• Ingested to reduce body fat
• Used to give a person the ability to transform into the body of another person

Red Kryptonite

Red Kryptonite radiation rids Kryptonians of their inhibitions. The effects of Red Kryptonite are likened to that of being under the influence of too much alcohol. For instance, Clark, when under the influence of Red Kryptonite, becomes less inclined to care about the ramifications of his actions, and he is tempted to reveal his secret, because he believes that his superpowers will make him infallible.

Episode Appearances:

• "Red", Season 2, Episode 4

• "Rush", Season 2, Episode 14

• "Exodus", Season 2, Episode 23

• "Exile", Season 3, Episode 1

• "Phoenix", Season 3, Episode 2

• "Unsafe", Season 4, Episode 11

• "Crimson", Season 6, Episode 13

Black Kryptonite

Black Kryptonite seems to be the rarest form of Kryptonite yet, and appears to be created through intense heating of Green Kryptonite, meaning that it could be considered partially artificial. Black Kryptonite separates Clark and his Kryptonian alter-ego, Kal-El, into two separate beings.

The only time it was ever used on Clark was in the episode "Crusade", when he was re-programmed as Kal-El. Martha Kent placed a chunk of Black Kryptonite (given to her by Dr. Bridgette Crosby) on his chest and the two personalities physically fissured. Clark then used the Black Kryptonite to eliminate Kal-El.

During certain circumstances, Black Kryptonite can also affect humans, causing them to split into two different beings, one manifesting a good and pure personality, and the other an evil personality. The only case of it ever affecting humans occurred in the episode "Onyx", when an experiment with Green Kryptonite went awry and caused Lex Luthor to split into two.

Episode Appearances:

• "Crusade", Season 4, Episode 1

• "Onyx", Season 4, Episode 17

Silver Kryptonite

Silver Kryptonite is an artificial form of Kryptonite created by Professor Milton Fine (the human alias of the Kryptonian artificial intelligence known as BrainIAC) using a meteor rock and the liquid metal that his body is made of. When Clark is pricked by this artificial form of Kryptonite, he begins having paranoid delusions and becomes convinced that his friends and family are out to destroy him. Silver Kryptonite causes hallucinations, such as an imagined conversation between Clark and Professor Fine, and delusions that what is actually occurring is, in fact, something much more sinister.

Episode Appearances:

• "Splinter", Season 5, Episode 7