This episode has quite an intriguing concept. It is set up and mostly played out quite beautifully. The opening scene is somewhat risque (for early Smallville), with Clark and Lana getting all sexed up as they partake in the wonders of skinny-dipping, that is until we find out that it's all in Clark's head. The apparition has a fairly cool design, looking a lot like the Ghost of Christmas yet to come.
Katharine Isabelle is adequate in the role of the tortured teenager. Her character's predicament is constantly alluded to by the not-so-subtle choice of R.E.M. songs that pop up throughout.
One of the most entertaining parts of Slumber involves Clark having a nightmare in which Lex attacks him with a samurai sword. This reveals deep-seated fears he has about telling Lex the truth. He doesn't trust him because he is a Luthor.
One of my main gripes with this episode is the stupidity of certain characters, primarily Lana, but also Sara's uncle Nicholas. When Clark crashes his car, how is she possibly put at ease by his parents simply telling her that 'He'll be fine'. And what the hell was she thinking when she decided to just confront Nicholas on her own. At the very least she could have taken Pete or Chloe for back-up. I put it down to over-confidence after taking down Van McNulty in the previous episode, which was actually one of Clark's fears about Lana taking self-defense classes in season 2. Great foreshadowing or accidental narrative coincidence? I will leave that to you!
With regard to Nicholas, his plan to dispense with Lana was ridiculous. He sets it up to look like a car accident but then discards the petrol canister right at the side of the road with his finger prints all over it. Dumb!
Despite this poorly written final act, Slumber is a nice story about facing your fears, and sits among the finest of the lesser episodes of Smallville.
7/10
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