 As Alfred Gough sees it , Lana is a by @-@ product of Clark and Lex 's decisions . She will always love Clark , and Clark will always love her , but it was Clark 's bad decisions , and Lex 's " basest instincts " that make Lana the " receptacle of all of these bad decisions " , marking her as a tragic figure on the show . While Lana was with Clark , Kreuk characterizes her as a " wimpy , whiny kind of girl " ; with Lex , Lana is " strong , powerful , and doesn 't have to question , ' What is going on ? What does he think ? Does he love me ? I don 't know where I stand . ' " To clarify , Lana 's relationship with Lex brings out a darkness that had not been seen in the character . This is evident in " Nemesis " when Lana manipulates her way into seeing Lionel , only to interrogate him about why he forced her to marry Lex , as well as leaving Lex to die in the underground tunnels . As Gough explains , by the end of the sixth season , Lana has shown that she can beat Lex at his own games . 
