I think Michael R. and John Shae are both great actors. I personally find it hard to compare the two since LnC's Luthor was evil, and so far, Smallville's Luthor is sort of decent...a few hang ups with some dealings sometimes (and here I'm thinking of his father getting involved and messing up his life) but nothing major.
Smallville frustrates me to no end when it comes to the ever present love triangle. If Clark just realized that Lana's not girlfriend material for him, and he started dating Chloe instead, the world would be a better place. As it is, none of them seem to be able to get their acts together. But hey, that's teenage life for ya.
