Smallville is coming to an end this week, but after ten seasons, the series has to qualify as one of the most successful comic book adaptations ever. What began as a simple story featuring a high school age Clark Kent and his friends has grown into something much larger. A decade later, the series has showcased dozens of the most famous heroes and villains in the DC Universe.

Naturally, some of these characters are more faithful to their original comic book counterparts than others. In this Smallville visual guide, we've selected some of our favorite heroes and villains from the past ten seasons. We compare their live-action appearance to the look of the comics, examining which characters succeed, which ones stumble, and why.Even with as many characters as there are in this list, we still didn't get to every single DC character that appeared on Smallville, and have mostly focused, with some exceptions, on the more outwardly super-powered characters (sorry, Ma and Pa Kent!). But if there's a favorite Smallville character you have that we didn't list, let us know, and we might just add them in a future update.

Clark+Kent

It's one of the most common complaints we hear about Smallville - "Why hasn't Clark put on the costume?". Yes, even after ten seasons and meeting countless other costumed heroes, Clark seemingly has been very reluctant to don the red and blue tights. In that sense alone he doesn't qualify as being completely faithful to the comics.But strictly comparing Smallville's Clark Kent to Clark Kent of the comics, there are definitely many shared features. Tom Welling has the bulky, chiseled features of a Kansas farmboy in a way other live action Superman actors haven't always managed. Clark's preference for red and blue clothes is also a continuous tease for the eventual costume change they may or may not ever come.One aspect of the Clark Kent look that was only recently introduced is the glasses. In the comics, Clark relies primarily on his glasses and subtle use of posture and body language to distance himself from Superman . The Clark in Smallville slowly adopted this same strategy, and thus the glasses made their long-awaited debut.Clark has so far worn two different costumes that blend the Superman design with a more street clothes inspired look. Instead of a cape and spandex, in Season 9 , Clark prefered a trenchcoat and a shirt with his trademark "S" logo painted on. In terms of color, this suit actually recalls the comics. Aside from the trenchcoat, the comic book Clark wore a similar "Kryptonian Life Suit" that helped restore his body after his near-fatal battle with Doomsday The more recent costume change involves a red leather jacket with the familiar S logo. This look reminds us a bit of current comic book Superboy Connor Kent's original costume from the mid-'90s.It's also worth pointing out that we have glimpsed the real Superman costume hiding behind ice in the Fortress of Solitude in Season 10. This suit looks to be the one worn by Brandon Routh in Superman Returns. Will Welling's Clark don this outfit, or is there another new costume in the works for the final episode?

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://stars.ign.com/objects/922/922093.html'>Lois+Lane</a>

As a non-costumed resident of Metropolis Lois Lane doesn't have much in the way of a defined look. As such, it's difficult to criticize Smallville for its portrayal of Lois. In either universe, Lois is a headstrong reporter who wears clothes that accentuate her beauty without flaunting it.In the comics, the one source of variation In Lois' over the years has been her hair color. She debuted with black hair, but during the '70s and '80s her hair lightened even as her personality became more forceful. Lois' is usually portrayed as having black hair in the current comics, though some artists depict her as a brunette instead. A similar shift has taken place in Smallville. Lois debuted in her earlier seasons as a brunette. However, more recently her hair has become darker, if not fully black.Lois is often known to briefly adopt costumed identities in the comics, particularly during the freewheeling days of the Silver Age. This too is referenced in Smallville in the episode " Stiletto ". In this episode, Lois adopts the identity of Stiletto and briefly wears a black leather costume that fits right in with Clark's own Matrix-esque costume. And we'll get to another DC-influenced alter ego for Lois later in this list...

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://stars.ign.com/objects/921/921082.html'>Lex+Luthor</a>

Lex Luthor is one of the more faithful characters in the show in terms of appearance. It's not hard to capture the look of the twisted billionaire industrialist. As long as you have an intense man with a completely bald head, you have your Lex Luthor. Lex's fine business attire only seals the deal.The comics have gone though a number of varying explanations as to Luthor's hair loss. Originally, Lex was a corpulent man who slowly lost his hair due to advancing age. However, the modern Lex is portrayed as much thinner and fully bald from a young age. Smallville established that Lex's hair fell out as a result of the meteor shower that brought Clark to Earth. That's a better explanation than some of the stories we've seen.The most significant difference between Smallville's Lex and the comic book Lex is that the latter prefers a green and purple ensemble when committing his villainous acts. Often he dons an armored battlesuit when combating Superman directly. The Smallville version seems content to stick to dark, well-tailored suits. With Lex set to return in the series finale, we don't expect this to change.

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://stars.ign.com/objects/923/923987.html'>Supergirl</a>

Clark's Kryptonian cousin shows many of the same predilections when it comes to appearance. On a basic level, Kara is similar to her comic book counterpart. Supergirl is usually portrayed as a tall, leggy blond with good looks and a love of halter tops and mini-skirts. Smallville has that much down pat.Like Clark, Kara initially showed little willingness to don a true costume. Instead, she favored a similar red-and-blue color scheme in her everyday attire. She also mixed in some white clothes as an homage to the Linda Danvers version of Supergirl. But when she returned in Season 10, including her final appearance in the episode "Prophecy," Kara sometimes wore a blue top and red skirt and boots, which left her but a cape and an S shield away from mimicking the classic Supergirl of the comics.