There were originally two potential plotlines for the episode before it was decided that one of the main characters would be killed. This concept was positively received by studio executives. Schneider compared his departure to that of John Wayne in The Cowboys. The theme of the episode was that Clark had to accept the consequences of his decisions. To keep the identity of the imminently deceased secret, the script was given to fewer people and the network issuing promotional trailers that featured the possible deaths of both Lana and Jonathan.