Noir - Recap

Jimmy pays a visit to the Daily Planet to surprise Chloe with a copy of The Big Sleep, starring Humphrey Bogart. Chloe is keeping up on the news story of the day: Senator Burke is in town, but is glad for the break. They hear a gunshot and run out to the main room. A man is fleeing up the stairs and Jimmy manages to snap a picture of him. They go to the elevator and find Lana shot. Clark arrives to find Lionel apologizing to the unconscious Lana, and promising that he’ll find the shooter. As Jimmy takes photos of the crime scene, Lex arrives and wonders if his father was involved. Lois, checking out the crime, manages to secretly pocket a cigarette case. Clark blames himself and Chloe tells him to check things out.

Later, Jimmy is busy in the basement downloading the photos he took, while the copy of The Big Sleep runs in the background. Someone sneaks up on him and knocks him out.

Jimmy wakes up to seemingly find himself in a black-and-white Daily Planet on May 30, 1940. He soon learns that Lex Luthor owns the paper, Chloe works for Jimmy, and Clark is a clumsy novice reporter. Despite the fact that Jimmy remembers his life, all of them believe he’s a 40s photographer. Jimmy gets a call from a woman who wants him to investigate a murder: hers.

The woman meets with Jimmy in an alley. She reveals she’s Lana Luthor, wife of Lex. She insists that Lex is trying to have her killed. Jimmy agrees to follow Lex and see what he can discover, and she gives him a silver cigarette case with a cash payment and a matchbox for a nightclub called the Talon. Jimmy goes to the club but can’t get past the bouncer. However, Clark arrives and no longer klutzy and awkward. The bouncer knows Clark as a regular and Clark gets Jimmy inside. Clark wants to know what Jimmy is investigating and doesn’t buy his claims of ignorance. The club owner approaches them: Lionel Luthor. He wants to know what they’re doing there but they’re interrupted when the club singer comes out: Lois Lane. As she performs, Lex arrives and talks to his father, warning him he no longer controls Metropolis. Clark spots Jimmy watching them and figure he’s investigating Lex.

After Clark leaves, Lionel tells Jimmy that Lex slips out of the club every night. Jimmy follows Lex when he does so and watches as he goes to an alleyway and meets with his lover: Lois. Lex promises that once his wife is out of the way, they can be together publicly. Jimmy snaps a picture of them and Lex notices. He goes Jimmy, who manages to lose him by going through a railway intersection right before the locomotive passes.

Jimmy goes to Luthor Manor to show the photos to Lana. Lana admits she has no way out and Jimmy agrees to dispose of her husband for her. Lana gives him a gun and kisses him. Jimmy then meets with Lex, who claims that he simply meant he was going to divorce Lana, not kill him. He reaches into his jacket and Jimmy shoots him. As Lex lies dying, he pulls out… a cigarette case. He mutters “gardenia” and then dies, and Jimmy runs off.

The police put an APB out on the shooter and Chloe figures that Jimmy is responsible. She finds him at the Talon and figures that he was set up. She’s learned that Clark has been calling Lana. As they leave to confront Clark, Lionel overhears their conversation and calls Lana. Lana is with Clark, and tells him that they won’t have to sneak around much longer. She puts a gun in her purse and leaves.

Jimmy arrives at the Daily Planet to find Clark but discovers Lana waiting for him. She admits that she set up the entire thing and then shoots him in the chest. As Jimmy falls, Clark shoots her from behind. As she lies dying, she says she did it for him. Clark checks on Jimmy, who is alive and well: the bullet hit the cigarette case in his jacket pocket. Clark explains that he was an undercover up assigned to Lex. However, he fell in love with Lana.

Jimmy wakes up to find Chloe hovering over him. The photo he took of the killer has been deleted, but Jimmy figures Lana had a reason for being at the Daily Planet when she was shot. Going over his photos of the crime scene, he realizes that the case is now gone, and figures it held something important. They go to the elevator where Lana was shot and check the computerized memory, and discover that Lana had visited the Planet’s political reporter, Brennan. He admits that he met with Lana before the shooting, heard the gunshot after she left, and panicked, running out of the building .He erased the photo Jimmy took, afraid that it would incriminate him. As he starts to tell them about the meeting, an unseen figure shoots and kills him. Jimmy chases after the man and Chloe calls Clark before following. They struggle in the stairway and Chloe is knocked over the balcony. Clark arrives below just in time to catch and rescue her, and Jimmy subdues the killer.

Lois arrives home to find Lionel waiting for her. He wants the cigarette case back, explaining it belonged to his wife. Inside it is a flash drive with a video of Lex meeting with Senator Burke about Project Ares. Lionel is surprised to see that Burke is involved, and warns Lois that whoever shot Lana would have no qualms about killing Lois.

Chloe visits Lana at the hospital and gets her to admit that Lionel was forcing her to spy on Lex. Lana believes that Lionel knows Clark’s weakness and is giving in to Lionel’s blackmail to protect Clark. She asks Chloe not to tell Clark that she knows his secret.

Later, Clark meets with Chloe and admits he hasn’t had any luck finding the killer, who was released on bail. He figures Chloe is hiding something about the killer but Chloe defends her decision, noting that he kept his secret to protect others, including Lana. They wonder who might want to harm Lana and admit that Lex wouldn’t want Lana harmed.

After visiting Lana, Lex is informed that it was his gun that was used to shoot Lana. Lex figures the attacker took the gun from Lana and used it to shoot her, and figures she was carrying it for protection. He wonders who she wanted protection against.

At the Talon, Jimmy tells Chloe that thanks to his breaking the case, he’s been promoted and is leaving Kansas for an assignment. He takes a picture of the two of them kissing before he leaves.

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