All Of Smallville's Boldest Choices Eventually Backfired

screenrant.com:

Over its 10-season run, Smallville made a number of bold choices regarding its telling of Superman's origin story, and all of them were mistakes that eventually backfired for the show and its cast. Credited with inspiring the modern superhero genre, the Superman character is by far one of the most iconic figures in all of pop culture. As a result, his story has been rewritten, reimagined, and retold time and time again, making for a truly staggering depth to the character's mythos.

Smallville's central premise is that it was conceived purely to tell the story of Superman's younger years. This approach was risky, as it essentially robbed the character of a number of his most iconic elements, but ultimately, Smallville proved a perfect Superman origin story. Lasting for 10 full seasons, Smallville explored not just Superman's origins, but those of a number of his villains and allies, too, as well as establishing its own wider DC universe including a number of important Justice League heroes.

Related: Smallville Had A Unique Guest Star Problem

In its unique approach to Superman's story, Smallville made a number of bold choices. The show benefitted from a number of these, but in the end, each bold decision eventually backfired. How this impacted Smallville varies: some decisions hurt the show's story and credibility in the long run, and others presented behind-the-scenes issues for those involved with the show. Put simply, the same novel ideas that made Smallville so successful ultimately made it unsuccessful as well.

By having numerous characters discover Superman's secret identity, Smallville created a problem with its stories that would have made for a complicated and inevitably disappointing future.