On the latest episode of 'Smallville' (Fri. 8PM ET on The CW), Clark Kent (Tom Welling) attempts to save Chloe (Allison Mack) from the clutches of the evil super-group "Checkmate." Also involved in the episode: Amanda Waller, General Zod, and Oliver Queen. And if you recognize all these names and know their alter-egos, then congratulations! You are either a 'Smallville" super-fan, or have read a lot of comic books.

Watch the video after the jump.

(S09E15) I'm usually pretty critical of 'Smallville,' but tonight was a darn good episode. Pam Grier's character of Amanda Waller, taken straight from the comic books, showed the right amount of menace (albeit a bit comic book-y). The interaction between Tess, Oliver, Chloe and Clark kept my interest. There was even a new mystery relating to whomever Jonn is working for.

If there were any downsides to the episodes, they were minor and revolved around Tess. Her character seems all over the place and has had too many different roles in her history. First, she's Luthor's pawn, then she's a bad-ass corporate CEO, then she's in bed with Zod, then she's a Checkmate agent, and now she's a rogue agent with a price on her head. The writers need to decide who she is and be consistent about it. Or maybe the inconsistency is part of her character. But that gets a pass since the rest of the episode worked so well.

Pam Grier, famous for her appearances in '70s blaxploitation flicks like Foxy Brown and later for her appearances in Quentin Tarantino movies, will be stopping over in Smallville. She'll be playing the character of Amanda Waller for the upcoming two-part episode with the Justice Society of America.

Amanda Waller was created in the comics and has appeared on television already in the animated Justice League series. She was ... how shall I say ... bigger than Ms. Grier. To play the character as she was created, Grier would either have to gain a lot of weight or don a fat suit.

Actually, the creators will probably just leave her as she is. Smallville is something of its own universe (as proven by the appearance of the Wonder Twins). Her appearance is slated for the episodes written by comics writer (and writer of the previous Smallville episode "Legion") Geoff Johns, so I'm already convinced it will be a good episode. Pam Grier is just icing on the cake.

Blaxploitation heroine Pam Grier is about to face her toughest opponent yet: Superman.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Grier, who rose to fame on the strength of such underground action flicks as 'Coffy' and and 'Foxy Brown', has been signed to appear in several upcoming episodes of 'Smallville' as government agent Amanda Waller.

(S03E05) This episode switched things up a bit. Instead of the other way around, the models chose the designers they wanted. Of course, some of the designers were uncomfortable with the feeling of not being in control in this situation. Their anxiety was made even worse when the designers were challenged to re-create a look for a fashion icon... a fashion icon that they'd have no say in choosing. Their models picked from a selection of icons, ranging from Madonna to Katharine Hepburn to Twiggy. Some designers were ecstatic with their assignments, others were totally clueless (cough cough, his name starts with a "B" and ends with "Radley").

Marlee Matlin is joining the cast of Showtime's The L Word. She'll play "a fiery artist who catches the attention of Jennifer Beals' character, Bette Porter," according to Showtime execs. In 1986, Matlin won an Oscar for playing a deaf student in the movie, Children of a Lesser God. Lately, though, she has been doing all sorts of (great) guest appearances including Desperate Housewives and Law and Order: SVU, and she has had a recurring role as 'Joey Lucas' on The West Wing.

Season four of The L Word is set to premiere sometime early next year.

Writers of The L Word are including the show's fans in a very unique way. They've started a 'fanisode' contest where fans team up with writers to script an episode one scene at a time. Each week, the writers will announce a scene mission on their website and fans create it. Then fans vote on which submissions they like the best. It's a process that repeats itself each week until an entire episode is created out of fan-chosen and fan-created scenes. However, writers are not guaranteeing that the particular episode will air.

The fans whose scenes are elected will receive prizes, mostly in the form of gift certificates or a piece of schwag from The L Word set. At the end of the competition, which is March 31, one of the previous winners will be randomly chosen for e-mail mentoring from one of The L Word's writers and a $1,000 gift certificate to Saks.