Smallville Goes Dark: 5 Brutal Deaths That Prove It Was More Than a Kids' Show

But there have been several scenes that prove it is not aimed at children.

Despite the tackling of issues that many teens experience, Smallville makes it clear that it is a very grown-up show with these five brutal deaths.

Lt. Ray McNulty Bashed to Death with a Baseball Bat

As far as horrible ways to die, beating savagely beaten with a baseball bat is definitely up there. It is so cruel and personal, but McNulty's murder is made even more horrific because there was no clear motive for it.

The killer was the shape-shifter Tina Greer, who seemed to kill McNulty purely because she could, and wanted to.

Lana Lang Dies Horribly in a Car Wreck

In what is probably the best unintentional warning of the dangers of using a mobile phone while driving, Lana suffers a nasty and shocking death while trying to call Clark when she is being chased by Lex Luthor in her car.

While her intentions were admirable, wanting to give Clark a much-needed heads-up that Lex had figured out his secret, using her phone while driving distracted her and caused the fatal accident.

Luckily, Clark was able to revive her, but it still does not erase the image of her gory demise.

Nathan Dean is Crushed to Death by Cars

The meta-human Nathan Dean found himself in a tousle with Clark in a car scrapyard. And just like Dr. Walden, he ludicrously ends up killing himself instead of his target.

Using his sonic scream ability causes a pile of cars to fall onto him, horribly crushing him to death.

Dr. Frederick Walden Blows Himself Up

Dr. Walden earns equal points for hilarity and viciousness by killing himself while trying to kill Clark.

The fool tries to stop Clark from getting The Key and to make matters worse, not only does the moron kill himself but he ends up with The Key engraved on his arm.

This lets Lex Luthor use it later and thus prevents nothing. But the notion of a man incinerating himself is definitely not something for children.

Zod Strangles his Pregnant Girlfriend

Fans of the Superman universe will be aware that Zod is a nasty piece of work who will not hesitate to murder if he feels it appropriate.

So, when his lover, Faora, betrays him, he responds as expected. By grabbing her by the throat and violently choking the life out of her.

But this death is made even more jarring by the fact that Faora was pregnant with Zod's child when he killed her, and Zod only learned this after it was far too late.