Previously on SUPERMAN & LOIS…
The showrunners for the latest entry in the ARROWVERSE have given themselves a very big task: balancing a show that features action with Superman fighting bad guys, Lois Lane doing honest-to-God journalism and high school drama with twin sons Jonathan and Jordan. It would be a tough ask for a lot of shows. Two episodes in, though, and it seems as though Superman & Lois has the formula down.
I can not express how happy I am that my excitement for a Superman property has paid off. Despite the continuity changes and taking the Man of Steel and his family away from Metropolis, I think this may be the best live action portrayal of my favorite superhero in my lifetime.
Following up on the drama of the pilot episode, Clark, Lois, Jonathan and Jordan have moved to Smallville and are trying to settle in to their new lives. For Jordan, whose Kryptonian DNA activated with some superpowers in the pilot, that means a trip to the Fortress of Solitude with his dad for some tests from a holographic Jor-El. His brother Jonathan, on the other hand, takes his licks on the football field from teammates who aren’t exactly welcoming.
It’s a lot of change for the two teenagers. Jonathan was the popular freshman QB for the varsity football team in Metropolis. In Smallville, he has to deal with the repercussions of his brother kissing his teammate’s girlfriend. At the Fortress, holographic Jor-El tells Jordan that his super-strength and heat vision from the pilot were just flukes and that he’d never fully display Krytonian abilities.
The biggest change, though, is reserved for Lois Lane. On a quest to take down Morgan Edge – new owner of the Daily Planet and the annointed savior of Smallville – she has a takedown piece completely rewritten, leading her to quit her job at the Planet and take a job as a reporter for the Smallville Gazette to give her more freedom to take down Edge.
Lane’s new “boss” at the Smallville Gazette is Chrissy Beppo, which is a really odd way to reference a silly Silver Age aspect of Superman – Beppo the Super Monkey. I wonder if we’ll get a Comet and a Krypto at some point, since Supergirl already had a Streaky…
As much as I loved watching Lois do her thing, and the parts of the show with the twins was also well done, I’m here for more Superman, and the second episode delivered on that end, too. The stranger in the battle suit from the pilot is now revealed as Captain Luthor from another Earth. His goal is to prevent our Man of Steel from bringing down this Earth like his Superman did. We get glimpses of a black-suited Superman taking down a platoon of men, including Luthor and the Sam Lane of that Earth, with his heat vision. Luthor was the only one to survive.
I feel like the Arrowverse has already established an Earth-3, though post-CRISIS it’s anyone’s guess. But an evil Superman and a Luthor trying to save the world will likely give us some Crime Syndicate references before the season is out. Or he could be from a Crisis-rewritten EARTH X, from an earlier Arrowverse crossover. Either way, it’s a smart way to give Superman a Luthor to battle while our Luthor continues to be a thorn in Supergirl’s side in National City.
Luthor’s attack plan is a little convoluted. On a world that’s dealt with aliens and strange events pretty openly, hiding in the shadows and searching for kryptonite seems silly when he could try to publicly besmirch the Man of Steel. There’s obviously more to his disdain of Superman – there always is with a Luthor – and Clark will have to figure it all out while he tries to be a better dad to Jonathan and Jordan.
Before the second episode even aired, the CW announced the network picked up the show for a second season. I’m psyched that we’re getting a lot more action in this world. There’s a lot to explore, and a second season will give the show a chance to grow. It’s a great time to be a Superman fan!