I think restorative nostalgia is the number one issue with comic book fans.
A fine distinction between two types of Nostalgia:
Reflective Nostalgia allows us to savor our memories but accepts that they are in the past
Restorative Nostalgia pushes back against the here and now, keeping us stuck trying to relive our glory days.
Thoughts of #SupermanAndLois (SAL) s2e3 "The Thing In The Mines". Spoilers follow ...
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1. Let me me hear you say
This shit is Bizarro: B-i-z-a-r-r-o.
THIS SHIT IS BIZARRO! B-I-Z-A-R-R-O!
What an absolute subversion of expectations.
I, and just about everyone else, had it wrong: we're NOT getting Doomsday after all (thank goodness), we're really getting Bizarro, a significant upgrade in terms of antagonist storytelling potential.
So happy with this bait and switch, which was masterfully misleading.
2. John Henry Irons transforming in midair into his Steel suit for the fight with Not-Doomsday was awesome.
The SFX on this show are used sparingly, but damn, when they show up, they show out. That scene was straight out of the MCU Iron Man movies.
Also, sounds like Natalie is going to upgrade the look and power of her dad's suit going forward. Tips: We gotta see his face (Magneto style helmet?) and get the S on his chest (diamond or hexagon shape will do).
3. Jordan again went through the emotional ringer.
From stupidly wanting to tell Sarah about his powers, to witnessing a glimpse of his alien father's / Bizarro's rage, to stupidly giving away his grandmother (Martha)'s locket to Sarah ... well, at least he listened to Natalie and Jordan's advice. Speaking of which ...
4. Loved all the interactions between Natalie, Jordan, and Jonathan.
Natalie actually seemed like a long-lost sister to the brothers here. Great onscreen chemistry. I'm all for the 3 kids becoming a team of siblings under one (or more) roof(s).
5. Sarah kinda sucks. She cheated, and felt entitled to forgiveness because she admitted the truth to Jordan. She's not worth Jordan's or Natalie's or the viewers' time, IMO.
6. Lana got taken down by the very first challenge to her mayoral campaign.
That cheeseburger-looking dude had her dead to rights: she can't use "I wasn't aware" as her go-to excuse everytime what she promises doesn't come to pass (like those reverse mortgages she sold in Season 1 that ended up costing Smallvillians their homes).
7. Kinda getting tired of Lois continually blaming Sam Lane for having been a bad dad.
Not that Sam doesn't deserve a lot of it, but it feels like we never get off this beat with them on this show. If he was truly all that terrible for Lois, then why has he remained an integral part of her life?
If nothing else, he's still The Parent Who Stayed.
8. Ally Allston is going to be The Real Big Bad of SAL Season 2.
Turns out she is definitely from the comix, and not just a direct play on the disgraced Allison Mack from the Smallville TV show.
I hope this rather frumpy look isn't her final form.
9. I didn't think the first storyline to focus on Jonathan this season would be him breaking bad.
Jonathan apparently trying to score performance-enhancing drugs (X-K) to boost his chances at football reads like something out of the early episodes of Smallville.
I just hope we're heading somewhere more original than a clichéd brother vs brother showdown in the future.
10. Clark is terrifying when angry.
I get that he wasn't quite himself due to the sudden psychic link to Bizzaro, but him yelling separately at both Jordan and Jonathan was startling.
11. Bizarro is an odd duck, both in terms of characterization and of popularity.
He's usually got a sympathetic side, far more destructive than he is malicious. He's the best parts of Frankenstein's Monster mixed with Superman. This Bizarro seems to only speak Kryptonian and has a glowing necklace. But I suspect that will change.
Bottom line: Better than both last week's ep and the s2 premiere. Thought we were getting Doomsday, and we got Bizarro instead. Great SFX where needed.
Bring on the next episode!
Grade: 9/10
Bizarro and Parasite? Didn't see either coming.
Really liking the show, just yeah hope Jon doesn't get hooked on drugs.
Yes, the obvious damage to his chest just screams "S shield" with the upgrade. I don't think we'll get any kind of helmet that shows his face - it's just a lot less expensive during fights for his face to be covered. He is one case though where I'm happy to see him take off his helmet the second the action is over.
I haven't been too happy with how this story is going. I don't mind teen drama, but this is bad drama because of how they're acting. Jordan just has zero chill, getting way too deep, which can be written well but here it just seems for the sake of creating drama. Same with Sarah - talk about mixed signals. I thought maybe she was just feeling ambiguous about their relationship which is why she was stand-offish, but the second the plot needed her to, she's declaring without equivication that she wants to be with Jordan.
Considering what a big deal they made about Natalie and Lois getting along, it seems to be overshadowed now by the Natalie/John tension and Lois's cult plot. I hope we see more Lois/Natalie growth and not just gloss over it like everything's fine now.
Even though everyone else was just as clueless, if not advocates for Edge it's realistic for people to find scapegoats. People just suck. ;p
Yeah, it's difficult not to feel uncomfortable thinking about her during this storyline. Is this show almost trying to atone for the sins of the "Smallville" cast member? It's almost too real.
Teenagers do dumb things. They are finding their ways as approaching adulthood.
There has been a lot of discussion regarding Jordan-Sarah. Personally, I don't blame
Jordan for being annoyed. IRL if this happened Jordan's reactions were pretty mild.
Jordan being annoyed, questioning their relationship isn't at all unusual.
I'm more inclined to be critical of Sarah, than Jordan to be honest. I mean Sarah is the one who strayed.
You do get the sense that it isn't completely settled between them. The locket seemed a way to get
them together, but it may not last.
Jordan does seem more confident this season.
My impression was that Sam has been enabling Lucy because he's so afraid of losing his tenuous grasp on her that he doesn't confront her and chooses to side with Lucy because he sees her as fragile as opposed to Lois, whom he sees as strong and doesn't need his support as much.(which has unfortunately damaged his relationship with her)
She's from the comics, but this version seems to be an "in name only" take on the character thus far.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parasi...xandra_AllstonAfter the villain Ruin (who was secretly Professor Hamilton) performed some experiments, two new Parasites debuted, one purple, the other green.[17] The two new Parasites were teenagers named Alex (the green Parasite) and Alexandra (the purple Parasite) who wanted to seek vengeance on the people who made their lives difficult. They were soon subdued by Superman after a battle. After attempting to escape from a metahuman prison, Alex was killed by an OMAC while his sister Alexandra escaped and joined the Secret Society of Super Villains under Alexander Luthor, Jr. (who was posing as Lex Luthor).[18] She is later one of the villains sent to retrieve the Get Out of Hell Free card from the Secret Six.
I just got caught up on the season. Watched all 3 newly available episodes and....they got me. Like everyone else it felt certain they were telegraphing Doomsday.
I do recall both Doomsday and Bizarre being words dropped into conversation so in hindsight the writers did throw a bone.
Very curious as to where/what this origin story is going to be. Is it tied to Morgan Edge? The DOD? Other? Why does Clark seem tied to Bizarro, that isn't something we've seen in print in any of the Bizarro iterations is it? Are they borrowing from a story I am unaware or just doing their own thing?
Jonathan....Just Say NO!
Jordan and Sarah putting things back together, well played.
Natalie and John look like they are getting out of the barn and that Natalie is coming around to "new normal".
Lana for Mayor seems to be the one thing to keep an eye on as far as "normal people drama", even more so than Jonathan.
Lois' meeting in the diner went sideways. That woman is looking to whip it out and do some measuring with her. That was clear.
"Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" - Optimus Prime
But is Bizarro World another universe? I know that they're not going to show a cube shaped planet at any point, so kind of misses the fun then.
I'm thinking it's somehow related to Krypton since he was in the X-Kryptonite mine. But beyond that, now clue. Still, mine full of rocks from Krypton, origin has to involve Krypton somehow right?