On Mythos
I'm preparing myself for Friday and ultimately for the Smallville rewatch party, but I have a SERIOUS question.
In terms of Smallville, what exactly do we mean by "mythos" episodes?
I mean, overall I have an idea of what its meant by these types of episodes, or at the very least I can generally recognize one when I see it. For example, I'm pretty certain that Rosetta is a mythos episode, just as Kandor is definitely one, and those are two off the top of my head that I can think of. But when we say "big mythos episode", are we talking about mythos in terms of Superman uber-mythos, are we talking in terms of Smallville relation to Superman mythos? Both? Do episodes where Clark gains a new power considered mythos episodes, or just episodes that in particular help him learn more about his destiny or are significant to his path to becoming Superman. For example, is Identity a mythos episode? Are any of the eps from the Veritas arc considered "mythos"? Is it safe to assume that Arrival is a mythos ep considering the formation of the Fortress?
Help me out. Here's a list of the episodes I think qualify as "mythos". Please tell me if I'm wrong or forgot some eps.
Episode / Justification
1. Pilot - The meteor shower (which is pivotal to the entire series), the Kents finding Clark, Clark learning of his alien heritage, and Clark and Lex's first meeting.
2. Rosetta - Clark unlocks the message within the spaceship and finally learns the name of his home planet.
3. Perry - Dare I say? Not just because he meets Perry White, but also because Clark discovers the secret to the source of his powers.
4. Crusade - More than just Clark flying, this is the introduction of the Stones of Knowledge, and the one and only Lois Lane.
5. Arrival - I didn't know whether to include Commencement, but I think definitely Arrival with the formation of the Fortress of Solitude.
6. Veritas - In terms of Smallville as its own version of the Superman mythology, I think this episode counts as a mythos ep. It certainly counts as Smallville mythos if not Superman mythos. The events of seasons 2-4 come to a head in this story arc.
7. Identity - I absolutely think Identity should count as mythos because this is the first time that Clark saw the need for the people of Metropolis (i.e. the world) to have him as a symbol of hope. This was his official first true step to becoming Superman, IMO.
8. Kandor - Important to Smallville continuity/mythos. It had continuation from Relic, Arctic, and of course the entirety of Season 9.
I'm sure I'm missing a few, but I haven't seen episodes from anything prior to Season 8 in FOREVER so I can't recall too many minute details (and I went through every episode title just to recall what I DO remember. So please help me out or give me a better understanding of what is meant by "mythos" episode.
I want so very much to include episodes like Apocalypse, Legion, Infamous, and Absolute Justice, however in terms of Apocalypse and Infamous, they both got reversed, and if I include Legion and AJ, I'll have to include Run, Aqua, Cyborg, Arrow, Subterranean/Labyrinth, Justice, Siren, and Hex. And quite frankly, I don't know if they added to anything truly significant that was necessary for Clark to become Superman, although they did introduce him to his future JLA teammates and/or helped him see what it means to work with a team. And at least two of those showed him how important his future role as the leader of those teams/the world is going to be. But this is still based on the axiom that mythos episodes are those that put Clark on the path to becoming Superman or were important to the Smallville's mythos.