Superman & Lois S1: Spoilers, Discussion, & Speculation

[kidfresh512]

One thing that is standing out to me is how badly both Lois and Clark are treating Jonathan as opposed to Jordan. I mean they are completely over reliant on him being compassionate and willing to give up personal happiness and success FOR Jordan. And it is obvious.

From only taking Jordan to the Fortress and not Jonathan. I mean why? He's your son too why wouldn't he want to go spend time at the fortress and learn about Krypton etc.? More about his father? It didn't make sense to me.

Its clearly going to come to a head at some point he even mentions some of the frustration to Clark and Clark just says you still can step up on the football team even with your brother there. That's all?

It is so obvious that they are taking him for granted and it is going to blow up eventually or he will have to develop powers too to get "noticed".

The whole dynamic is just one thing thats been bothering me the whole show so far. I can't decide if I just don't like how obvious that storyline is. It isn't subtle that they treat them differently and they are both smart enough to know that.

[Nelliebly]

One thing that is standing out to me is how badly both Lois and Clark are treating Jonathan as opposed to Jordan. I mean they are completely over reliant on him being compassionate and willing to give up personal happiness and success FOR Jordan. And it is obvious.

From only taking Jordan to the Fortress and not Jonathan. I mean why? He's your son too why wouldn't he want to go spend time at the fortress and learn about Krypton etc.? More about his father? It didn't make sense to me.

Its clearly going to come to a head at some point he even mentions some of the frustration to Clark and Clark just says you still can step up on the football team even with your brother there. That's all?

It is so obvious that they are taking him for granted and it is going to blow up eventually or he will have to develop powers too to get "noticed".

The whole dynamic is just one thing thats been bothering me the whole show so far. I can't decide if I just don't like how obvious that storyline is. It isn't subtle that they treat them differently and they are both smart enough to know that.

I understand what you are saying but I also think the event with Lois last night is a good example of how someone who had it all together can fly under the radar with their own pain.

Jonathan was the star child for a very long time. I’m not saying it’s right but I do think sometimes the people who are very good at taking life as it comes and just being stars wherever they go are much harder to read at times when they are in pain vs the people openly speaking up. Lois was a great example of this as she was clearly in pain and Clark really didn’t know. It didn’t mean he was not a caring husband.

I think we are going to delve into Jonathan’s struggle next week based on the preview and I’m anxiously awaiting it.

[Frontier]

Clark can't be at all places at all times, so obviously concessions are going to be made when he has to juggle being a husband, father, and Superman all day and at all time because they're all basically 24 hour jobs. And I guess he's still got farming and assistant coaching to do on his "off hours."

So is Edge's plan to create an army of Kryptonian's? Is that what that Kryptonite is for? Are the people of Smallville genetically capable of getting Superman's powers from exposure, like that kid got his super-speed?

Sam's doing his best but Lois (and probably Lucy) know how much he bungled on the parenting front because he was too committed to his job and feels like Clark should do the same. It was nice to see Lois finally take him to task though. I wonder what games she had? Volleyball? Baseball?

Jon's trying to make his place but now Jordan is the big man on campus and feels like he can take on anything, and is relishing being happy and and having a place to call his own. Which is great, it just leaves Jon a little in the lurch and without much for him to do other than support other people to the best of his ability.

I love how Edge only took offense at Lois calling his accent fake .

Killgrave felt like a mix of Luthor, old school Emil Hamilton, and even a dash of Toyman. And now Supes has Intergang in the background to worry about and while he's not as present in Metropolis as he used to be.

Kyle's not completely awful. He does seem to care about Lana and his family, and obviously Smallville, even if he can be inattentive (and doesn't seem to realize how much Morgan Edge might want to get into his wife's pants). But he seems to be trying at the end, and Lana reveals that he even respects Lois despite how he acts around her. I have to wonder how rare a makeout session between the Cushing's is with their kids...

So, yeah, looks like the government had contingencies in-case they could never rely on Superman, at least on this Earth, because I'm assuming Captain Luthor is planning to use it as a way to kill Superman.

[Superlad93]

I understand what you are saying but I also think the event with Lois last night is a good example of how someone who had it all together can fly under the radar with their own pain.

Jonathan was the star child for a very long time. I’m not saying it’s right but I do think sometimes the people who are very good at taking life as it comes and just being stars wherever they go are much harder to read at times when they are in pain vs the people openly speaking up. Lois was a great example of this as she was clearly in pain and Clark really didn’t know. It didn’t mean he was not a caring husband.

I think we are going to delve into Jonathan’s struggle next week based on the preview and I’m anxiously awaiting it.

Very good point. And Jordan kind of dickish "he's been popular his whole life" comment articulates what's likely going through his parents mind. "Jon's always been a happy kid. What's he got to complain about?"

That face of perpetual confidence followed by an easy smile become so expected of some people who seem like they have it all that it can turn into a mask they wear or a mask people put on them unwittingly. I think both are true for Jon here given Jordan's comments and Jon never being too far from a smile and snappy one-liner.

Edit: I'm pretty sure Jon's self sacrificing nature is being intended as a parallel to Sam's "needs of the many"/"duty first" mind set. It's also worth noting that it seems Jon looks like Sam more so than anyone else in the room (down to the close sides cut and lighter hair). Reminds me of how in the All Star Superman movie Kal Kent is said to look like Sam by Lois.

[raidensix]

Somehow, a Superman actively working with the military seems wrong to me.

Why is there still more kryptonite in Smallville? In Supergirl, I thought Superman was actively collecting all kryptonite which caused a rift between him and J'onn as the DEO had a stockpile.

Anyway, if Sam Lane becomes the antagonist, I hope it's more than because Superman is not doing everything he says.

[manwhohaseverything]

That bridge has been burned a long time ago.
anyways,if Jon is anywhere close to Hugo danner in characterisation(I have to believe there is a connection there).then the guy is supposed to be a tragic figure who smiles through all the tragedy that befell him.His powers actually caused his tragic fate.He was never going to be accepted by the Society.So, people feeling that Jon is being a martyr is on point.i suppose jon ain't going to die by being struck down by lightning.

[Ra-El]

Jonathan and Jordan relationship reminds me of a brazilin novel Two Brothers ( a graphic novel adaptation was made by Fabio Moon and Gabriel Bá). In the story two twin brothers are raised very differently by their parents, one is more responsible and put together and the other more problematic, the problematic one had health issues as baby, so the mother protected him more and continued to do so for her whole life.
The book basically is a story about how the parents choice of raising the twins differently created a rivalry between the brothers that tore their family apart. Great story.

And while I'm pretty sure S&L won't go to the same lengths and depressing path as Two Brothers, the show seems like it will explore how paying more atention to a kid over the other can create problems.

[PCN24454]

Somehow, a Superman actively working with the military seems wrong to me.

Why is there still more kryptonite in Smallville? In Supergirl, I thought Superman was actively collecting all kryptonite which caused a rift between him and J'onn as the DEO had a stockpile.

Anyway, if Sam Lane becomes the antagonist, I hope it's more than because Superman is not doing everything he says.

Didn't continuity all get shifted around because of Crisis? There's no guarantee that everything still happened.

[Frontier]

Somehow, a Superman actively working with the military seems wrong to me.

Why is there still more kryptonite in Smallville? In Supergirl, I thought Superman was actively collecting all kryptonite which caused a rift between him and J'onn as the DEO had a stockpile.

Anyway, if Sam Lane becomes the antagonist, I hope it's more than because Superman is not doing everything he says.

He said plainly that he doesn't work for Sam. His assisting the military is basically more of a courtesy than anything else.

[Matt Parker]

So, I feel pretty safe in saying that was the weakest episode so far. This isn't to say it was bad by any stretch. 5 years ago, when I was still in shock at how Zack Snyder turned one of my favorite characters of all time into a pseudo fascist (and the other one a psychotic murderer, but that's another discussion), I would have stabbed someone in a dark ally with a shiv to get something this good on a weekly basis (absolutely no disrespect to Snyder fans intended, just my humble opinion).

I think my biggest issue was that neither of the freak of the week plots were handled as well as they could have been. I was psyched to see Killgrave here, and I generally liked how he was portrayed, but he was underused and his hatred of Superman was never elaborated on at all. He was a plot device, essentially. Something to distract Clark from his family.

I enjoyed the Tag subplot just or the novelty of seeing Jonathan, Jordan, and eventually Superman, have to deal with a meteor freak (like father like sons!), but his development of powers felt out of nowhere to me on first viewing. On second viewing, I realize that the idea is that he likely got powers from the gold kryptonite, since he broke his arm at the mine, which is where Edge and Larr(?) are digging for X-Kryptonite, but that went right over my head the first time and I was baffled by the end. Even now understanding that subplot, I still think this could have been replaced with something a little more simple. Just have Jordan and John get in some kinda accident and resist calling Clark until the last minute. Maybe that would have given more time for Killgrave to be fleshed out.

Finally, what made Lana change her mind on Kyle so much by the end? That scene was cute, but I feel like they didn't earn her 180. Was there an extended scene on the app?

Finally, I take slight issue with how the super clap was handled. I actually don't mind the scene itself. Superman could have done it earlier in the encounter but held off doing so because he knew it would hit civilians. However, once he realized his kids were about to be toast (and that the other kid seriously needed medical attention), he decided knocking some civilians over was a necessary risk to stop Killgrave and get to his kids in time. Once the clap happens, he pauses to inform Sam that civilians are injured and need attention (possible fanwank, but I imagine he probably X-Rayed everyone and decided they were all free of serious injuries before leaving). All that makes sense and doesn't make Superman unlikable.

That being said, I needed a scene where someone calls him on that. Either a news headline that showed Superman in an unfavorable light because of how cavalier he would have come off to an outsider (even if we know that he just did what he needed to since other people needed him elsewhere), or for Sam to point out that Superman's responsibilities to his family threaten to strain his moral compass. I'm actually shocked that neither of these things happened, because what's the point of intentionally showing that civilians were knocked down by the clap if you're not going to call Superman out on his callousness? This is even more glaring because of how the main antagonist of this season is someone who sees Superman as a potential threat.

I know I sound super negative, but I did like the episode all in all. I like that Jordan finally took a break from yelling at his dad, I liked proactive hero Jonathan. Lois and Clark's marital spat was incredibly well handled and mature. I loved Tyler's delivery of "It's not a job. It's a call to responsibility". I could almost hear the John Williams theme when he said that. I also like the idea of Morgan Edge building a superhuman army. Edge himself is pretty cookie cutter so far, but his plan is fun in a big comic-book kinda way. And boy oh boy was it fun to see Killgrave, underwritten as he was. He was a spitting image of the comic book version and I really liked how there was clearly a prior history between him and Superman, and I hope we see more old villains that Superman has dealt with and thrown in jail over the years. It reminded me off how the Arkham games always alluded to an existing relationship between Batman and all of his villains. I'm completely ok if we ignore Supergirl's use of guys like Parasite and Metallo and just do them over here. No disrespect to that wonderful show, but this show deserves the A-list rogues. All the Superman action was still near movie quality. That claim was awesome, as was the shot of him flying tag into the clouds. They clearly know how to use the VFX budget far more effectively on this series.

Overall, I'm excited for next week. Having this show has been a nice gift after a really long year.

[Vordan]

Clark’s relationship with Sam is similar to the relationship the “Clark Kent” of Secret Identity has with his government contact (another example of how they’re drawing from Busiek/Johns). In return for helping them with some apolitical stuff, Sam keeps the government off Clark’s back. But the two, while have some respect for each other, clearly don’t see eye to eye and that’s starting to come to a head. The cracks are starting to form in the relationship and the rest of the military clearly doesn’t trust Superman.

[Frontier]

I enjoyed the Tag subplot just or the novelty of seeing Jonathan, Jordan, and eventually Superman, have to deal with a meteor freak (like father like sons!), but his development of powers felt out of nowhere to me on first viewing. On second viewing, I realize that the idea is that he likely got powers from the gold kryptonite, since he broke his arm at the mine, which is where Edge and Larr(?) are digging for X-Kryptonite, but that went right over my head the first time and I was baffled by the end. Even now understanding that subplot, I still think this could have been replaced with something a little more simple. Just have Jordan and John get in some kinda accident and resist calling Clark until the last minute. Maybe that would have given more time for Killgrave to be fleshed out.

I imagine they'll probably get more into it as they explore the mystery of what's going on in Smallville.

Finally, what made Lana change her mind on Kyle so much by the end? That scene was cute, but I feel like they didn't earn her 180. Was there an extended scene on the app?

I think it was Lois talking about the parts of Kyle that she actually likes and respects, plus Kyle trying to do a nice thing by making breakfast for everyone so Lana could sleep in.

Finally, I take slight issue with how the super clap was handled. I actually don't mind the scene itself. Superman could have done it earlier in the encounter but held off doing so because he knew it would hit civilians. However, once he realized his kids were about to be toast (and that the other kid seriously needed medical attention), he decided knocking some civilians over was a necessary risk to stop Killgrave and get to his kids in time. Once the clap happens, he pauses to inform Sam that civilians are injured and need attention (possible fanwank, but I imagine he probably X-Rayed everyone and decided they were all free of serious injuries before leaving). All that makes sense and doesn't make Superman unlikable.

That being said, I needed a scene where someone calls him on that. Either a news headline that showed Superman in an unfavorable light because of how cavalier he would have come off to an outsider (even if we know that he just did what he needed to since other people needed him elsewhere), or for Sam to point out that Superman's responsibilities to his family threaten to strain his moral compass. I'm actually shocked that neither of these things happened, because what's the point of intentionally showing that civilians were knocked down by the clap if you're not going to call Superman out on his callousness? This is even more glaring because of how the main antagonist of this season is someone who sees Superman as a potential threat.

I think, for Sam, he couldn't justifiably bring it up because his telling the kids not to call on their dad nearly got them killed, so saying Clark was in the wrong to rush to go after them would not have helped his case. I guess we could've seen a civilian response (and maybe we will?) but the focus was on the family.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I don't about the rest of you, but Tulloch is fast becoming one of my favorite portrayals of Lois Lane.

Looks like they're going for a Smallville Season One Redux in regards to the Shuster Cave bit, which I don't mind too much. I can't imagine the writers are going to over-do it as much as the writers on the old show did.

[StrikeJP]

Another great episode. It was probably my least favorite one so far, but still great.

I like how they pulled a "Spider-Man" and had Clark being pulled in 5 directions at once. I love when superhero stories do that. It really shows the tension/drama of having a secret identity (Thanks Bendis).

I am in love with this Lois Lane too. Her conversation with Edge was just pitch-perfect. Also, her argument with Clark that she knew was being irrational was also great. Last week I had mentioned that I think this version of Superman might be the best written Superman in at least a decade. I will say the same for this Lois.

Bonus points for not having Jordan tantrum in an episode for once. He's really starting to come off unlikable though. Jon is a saint and he's just taking advantage of that. Really curious to see how Jon's story plays out next week.

[Celgress]

Another great episode. I adore this show. The "X-Men" nod was especially sweet.