Superman & Lois
We are heading into the final stretch of "Superman & Lois" first season. It has kept me guessing so I'm very curious to see how things are going to end up. Let's get to it.
"Through the Valley of Death"
John Diggle: "So this is where you and Clark moved the family."
Lois Lane: "Yeah, we thought a slower pace of life might be good for us."
John Diggle: "Well, looks like that didn't go quite as planned."
Lois Lane: "What are you doing her? Is A.R.G.U.S. helping with the search?"
John Diggle: "I assumed you knew. Your father called Lyla, needed some tech delivered, so she sent me."
Lois Lane: "What kind of tech?"
Lois calls John Henry Irons to help with the Superman situation. He teams up with Sam Lane and the DOD to figure out how to take him down. Lois and the boys are convinced that Superman won't turn, but John Henry still wants to recreate a red solar missile he used on his Superman before coming to this Earth. At the same time, the Lang-Cushings are being ostracized and blamed for what Edge has done by their former friends and neighbors.
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| Alternate Earth John Diggle. |
I've been saying this since I started watching and recapping "Superman & Lois," but this episode continues to prove it. This show really should be re-named "Lois & Superman" because Lois Lane is really carrying. And if there were any justice in the world Elizabeth Tulloch would have been nominated for an Emmy for her work in this first season. Lois is on for almost the entire episode. She has to be so many things and first among them is strong. She has to be strong for Jonathan and Jordan. She tells them that Superman has been in worse scrapes than this and he always pulled through. Lois is very convincing but I am not sure that the boys necessarily belive her, but you know teenagers are maybe more perceptive than we give them credit for.
Lois works double time to convince people that she knows her husband better than other people. She appeals to John Henry Irons when she finds out about his red solar rocket. She reveals that Superman is actually Clark Kent in the hopes that will convince him that this Superman is not the same as his Superman and she definitely knows that. She sits down with Lana and Kyle to learn what it was like when they were subjekts. I love seeing Lois in reporter mode. Taking shorthand with her notebook. Leaning in. Asking the right questions. Being empathetic when needed. It's great to see and I kind of wish we got more of it.
Speaking of the Lang-Cushings, things aren't going great for them. It turns out the entirety of the town of Smallville blame them for what happened with Morgan Edge. This, to me, is a stretch. Lana has been an upstanding part of the Smallville community for her entire life. And, I recall those town hall meetings and it wasn't just Kyle who was pushing for Edge, even if he was leading the charge. It's just strange. I get that people look for others to blame, but this feels like zero to one hundred. I mean, people are spray painting get out of Smallville on their house. It's a lot and I'm not sure I'm entirely buying what the writers are selling me here. The fun water fight while they clean the vandalism off of their house is adorable, but it feels kind of odd, the placement of it.
We get a fun little cameo from "Arrow's" John Diggle. To make things extra confusing, this isn't the John Diggle that Arrowverse fans are mainly familiar with. "Superman & Lois" doesn't take place on Earth Prime, so this is the John Diggle from the "Superman & Lois" Earth, who seems to be virtually identical to his Earth Prime counterpart, married to Lyla and working for A.R.G.U.S. That's clear as mud, right? He's very unhappy that Sam Lane brought him here under false pretenses and so is Lois when she finds out.
Ugh. Sam Lane. Is he the true villain of "Superman & Lois?" At the beginning of the episode, he has a really nice tender moment with Lois. He is the person that she breaks down in front of, which makes perfect sense. Even thought they have had their moments, this is still her dad. It's her family. So of course she'll let her guard down with him. So, to then find out that he is planning on making something that will murder her husband, it's like a punch to the face.
We have to include the kids in these episodes, so Jordan finally makes himself useful and uses his super hearing to pinpoint his dad's location. This feels a little convenient but I'm willing to give it a pass. Like, Clark spent years training to harness this ability, but Jordan, who whines when he has to train for more than five minutes, masters it in like an afternoon. Sure show. We will buy that here. It's fine.
The showdown with John Henry Irons in his Steel costume and Superman who has finally been possessed by Zod works out the way you thought it would. It turns out that the pleading by Lois and the boys did work on John Henry who in turn pleads with Superman to fight. Of course, the memories of his family is what gets Superman to resist and expel Zod's consciousness from his body. This is also very convenient but it is also very Superman, so I'm not mad at it. Can I say that it is so nice to see John Henry Irons finally on the side of Superman. It honestly feels like everything is right with the world.
With Superman back, Steel and Superman take on Edge/Tal-Rho. He does something to the Eradicator but the solar missile seemingly works. It is so satisfying when Superman decks Edge/Tal-Rho at the end. The episode ends with Tal-Rho in a Kryptonite cell but with Leslie Larr still on the loose and three episodes left in the season, clearly there is more to this.
Grade: A-
"Fail Safe"
Lois Lane: "Do you know what it was like when my dad gave John Henry Irons the go-ahead to fire the missile?"
Clark Kent: "I'm sorry."
Lois Lane: "Then why risk it happening again?"
Clark Kent: "I told you because it's..."
Lois Lane: "Because it's the right thing to do. What does that even mean anymore, Clark? I lied to Chrissy today to protect our family. I broke my sacred role as a journalist."
Clark Kent: "We both play fast and loose with journalistic integrity from time to time."
Lois Lane: "When it comes to keeping your secret, not the stories we investigate."
Clark Kent: "Yeah, but Edge is my brother. He's Kryptonian. This story is different."
Lois Lane: "Why should I be okay with the military having the secret code to kill my husband, given the countless psychos who want you dead? It just feels like a really bad idea."
Clark Kent: "Lois, will you please..."
Lois Lane: "No!"
Clark Kent: "... just listen?"
Lois Lane: "There's nothing you can say that I wanna hear, and now I'm angry, and I feel sorry for yelling at you, but I also have to stay angry so that I can scare the hell out of Jordan. so why don't you just stay here, and let's just both take a moment to think, and then we can talk about this later after I bail our son out of jail."
With Edge Tal-Rho in DOD custody, Superman is trying to get answers, specifically where Leslie Larr is and what happened to the Eradicator. Edge Tal-Rho is too busy having visions of his past with Zeta-Rho to give too many answers. The town is still reeling from what happened and that is especially true for Jonathan, Jordan and Sarah who skip school and an assembly about what happened. Superman is still struggling with having Zod in his head and how he felt which causes him to urge Sam to keep Project 7734 in place. When Lois catches wind of this, she is less than pleased and things are coming to a head for our favorite reporter. Not only is she dealing with marital strife, but Chrissy has lost trust in her when the DOD refuses to give a statement about what is happening in the town.
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| Friction. |
This feels like kind of a breather episode. There's been a lot going on, so this episode is sort of the show doing a little table setting as it gears up for the final two episodes of the season.
The thrust of the episode and where the fail safe of the title is Project 7734. Sam Lane is ready to put the project to bed after Lois was basically proven right, but Superman isn't so sure. He urges Sam to keep Project 7734 around as a last resort option in case he does lose control. This is an interesting plot point. It's clear that Superman felt that desire to lose control for the brief time that he was possessed by Zod. So, I can see why he has this reaction and why he goes to Sam Lane. It's great that Lois has so much faith in her husband. And it makes sense why she would think that and maybe have a blind spot to it, but it doesn't make a lot of sense that Superman wouldn't go to Lois about this before he went to Sam Lane. That is odd.
I do love that we see some friction in the Lane/Kent marriage. It does feel like sometimes that the relationship is too perfect so seeing them square off is great. And it feels very realistic. The fight they have, which I made this episodes opening quote is great. They both make great points and Lois can see where her husband is coming from, but sometimes you just have to remain angry. Sometimes that is good. Sometimes you need that anger. It's maybe one of the healthiest marital fights that I have ever seen on television.
The thing about this is that the solution to this issue is so obvious. As soon as Lois and Clark start having their conversation at the table, I was like, oh they are going to give this power to John Henry Irons. It makes sense. So, when Clark goes to John Henry it just feels right and it kind of feels like this episode long plot point could have been resolved within like five minutes. I'm kind of like what was the point of dragging his all out.
That is kind of how I feel about this episode in general. The boys skipping school is a big meh. I thought for a second it was going to get interesting when Jonathan realizes that Tegan just asked him to go with her to pump him for information. Maybe she was a secret Kryptonian. But no, she's just a regular, shitty teenager. When it comes to Jordan and Sarah, I really just can't bring myself to care enough about this relationship at all. Sorry 'bout it.
The stuff with Chrissy and Lois is interesting, but it's another thing that sort of feels like it is tied up in a little bow at the end of the episode. Lois gets the quote for Chrissy, has her write the story and that is it? I'm curious if this friction will carry over or if it's basically resolved. The same with the continued drama between the citizens of Smallville and the Lang-Cushings. I don't think anyone is surprised that the mayor is a piece of shit, but I'm still not super invested in this particular plot point.
We find out where the Eradicator went at the end of the episode. Tal-Rho absorbed it. It sets up a great last couple of episodes, but I'm not sure the flashbacks with Zeta-Rho really added anything that we hadn't already knew. It was just a lot of killing time, which this episode did.
Grade: B-
Next up, season one ends with Edge's final assault on Smallville.
"Superman & Lois" continues to be a showcase for Lois and a great Superman show overall. I'd love to hear others thoughts. Let me know in the comments.
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