“ | Give it up, Clark. You can't fight natural law. Only the strong survive. | „ |
~ Greg taunting Clark, "Metamorphosis". |
Greg Arkin, also known as Bugboy, is a recurring villain on the WB/CW television series Smallville, serving as the main antagonist of the Season 1 episode "Metamorphosis".
He was portrayed by Chad E. Donella, who also played Rob Roberts in The X Files.
Personality[]
Greg studied and loved to play with bugs and insects when he was younger, and he had such a crush on Lana Lang that he spied on her, recorded her, and gave her gifts. Greg became incredibly domineering after being bitten by kryptonite-infected bugs, going out of his way to injure Whitney, attempting to mate with Lana, and even killing his own mother. He somehow got a normal and regular personality when he returned to the five-year high school reunion. Clark appears to have taught him a lesson, as have previous persons Clark has taken care of.
History[]
Early life[]
Greg was childhood friends with Clark Kent and Pete Ross, but he stopped hanging out with Clark and Pete after his parents divorced. He lived with his mother, who placed strict limitations on him, and he developed a fascination with insects, collecting them and keeping them in his bedroom, much to his mother's disgust. Greg also developed a crush on Lana Lang and began stalking to videotape her from afar.
Metamorphosis[]
Greg returned home after leaving a present in Lana's bedroom, a box of butterflies, only to be confronted by his over-bearing mother, who searched his bedroom and found his footage of Lana. After his mother threatens to ship him off to a military academy, he gathers his pet bugs, loads them into his car, and drives off, only for the bugs to get loose and attack him.
Greg's bugs, as it were revealed, were irradiated with meteorites; their attack on Greg thus gave him insectoid characteristics and abilities, including the life cycle of an insect (eat, molt, mate, die). The insects' bites also improved Greg's physical appearance, making him handsome.
The next morning, Mrs. Arkin enters his room to find all the cages were empty. She doesn't notice her son stuck to the ceiling with a web-like material. Greg, wearing a black ensemble and acting more confident, walked up to Lana at the farmer's market and talked to her, only for her boyfriend, Whitney Fordman, to walk up and tell Greg to stay away from Lana. Later, Greg attacked Whitney as he was driving, causing his truck to crash; he flees the scene moments before Clark rescues the football jock.
Sometime after that, Greg appears behind his mother as she looks for him to confront him about the mess he left behind in their house, and he tells her what's happened to him before attacking his mother and apparently killing her. He wrapped her body in his webs. Greg is next seen molting in the shower, tearing his old skin off his face. After Lana blows off a study date with him and he suspects it's because of Clark, Greg goes to the Kents' barn, where he attacks Clark and then his father, Jonathan, but flees.
Chloe found an article about Amazonian tribesmen who take on characteristics of insects after being bitten by them. She deduces that meteor rock-infected bugs must have bitten Greg and turned him into a "bug-boy." Clark, Chloe, and Pete go to Greg's house to investigate and find a mess: pieces of Greg's skin in the shower, a video of Lana and the corpse of his mother. They deduce that Greg will come after Lana next and Clark left to try and save her.
Greg kidnaps Lana, intending to mate with her, and keeps her captive inside his childhood tree-house. At the tree-house, Clark finds Lana in a cocoon. Clark and Greg battle from the tree house to the Creekside Foundry. Clark confronts him and tried to talk him down, but Greg insists he's been freed from rules.
After a scuffle, Greg then flees to the abandoned Creekside Foundry, where Clark is weakened by the Kryptonite fragments found all over the area, giving Greg an advantage in their fight. Clark manages to ward off the Kryptonite radiation and sent Greg flying across the foundry. Greg recovers, only to accidentally get squashed by causing something to fall on him. A swarm of insects are then seen scurrying away. It was revealed later that one of the bugs that appeared after Greg was crushed was being held in a lab by an evil doctor named Donovan Jamison.
Homecoming[]
Greg later appears in the Season 10 episode "Homecoming," where he is now an adult and attends the class reunion at Smallville High School. He somehow regained his human form and sanity. When Clark is crowned Homecoming King, he notices Greg staring at him. During his time travel trip with Brainiac 5, Clark sees Greg approaching Lois Lane and, fearing that Greg has sinister intentions, tries to intervene, only to end up in the year 2017. After returning to the present with Brainiac 5, Clark observes Greg talking to Lois, commending Clark as a hero who freed him from his villainous ways and obsessive web. Greg then asks Lois to give Clark his thanks, then leaves.
Powers and abilities[]
After being bitten by swarms of insects that were exposed to kryptonite, this altered Greg's body, increasing his physical attributes and giving him a number of insect-like powers, including being able to project webbing from his mouth, crawling walls, and even being able to turn into a swarm of insects.
Quotes[]
“ | Hey, who's gonna take care of my bugs?! | „ |
~ To his mother after she threatens to send him to military school |
“ | Yeah, well, just remember, sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug. | „ |
~ After being threatened by Whitney, "Metamorphosis" |
“ | Nature's already taken its course. First I'll eat, then I'll molt, then I'll mate. | „ |
~ To his mother, "Metamorphosis" |
“ | Mom, did I ever tell you about the Pharaoh spider? It's a fascinating creature. See, after it hatches, it kills its mother. | „ |
~ To his mother, before killing her, "Metamorphosis" |
“ | Then you know that I've been freed. [...] I have no rules, Clark. I eat what I want I go where I want, and I take what I want. | „ |
~ To Clark, "Metamorphosis" |
“ | Clark is the reason a lot of us are still here. [...] I kind of got caught up in my web of obsession. He set me straight. It's not every place that has a hometown hero like Clark Kent. [...] Just tell him...tell him "Thank you." | „ |
~ To Lois, "Homecoming" |