Superman & Lois S2: Spoilers, Discussion, & Speculation

[titansupes]

If they are doing a full Death and Return I think they’ll keep Hoechlin as Cyborg. I’m sure his contract keeps him in every episode.

I'm sure it does, but there'd be a couple of options-- Clark's dead but we get a B-story of him being in the afterlife/limbo and finding his way back, or Anderson (or whoever) takes on his look for a few episodes etc.

[Frontier]

Maybe Faulkner is working for Hank Henshaw?

[Vordan]

It’s very amusing to me that Jon is on the upswing romantically as Jordan is on the down swing. People were worried about a sibling love triangle involving Sarah, they just got the wrong sibling . Faulkner huh? Another deep cut from the Triangle Era. Personally I think they’re going to not do a straightforward adaption of Death of Superman/Reign of the Supermen anymore than they have done a straightforward adaption of Rebirth.

[Vordan]

Lol I just realized something else. Is “Ally Ackson” meant to be a shot at Allison Mack? Sure feels like it, that’s one hell of a shout out if so.

[Frontier]

Lol I just realized something else. Is “Ally Ackson” meant to be a shot at Allison Mack? Sure feels like it, that’s one hell of a shout out if so.

The whole "Lucy in a cult" story felt like a nod to the whole Allison Mack in a cult thing.

[Vordan]

The whole "Lucy in a cult" story felt like a nod to the whole Allison Mack in a cult thing.

That’s how I took it. Excited for her to be brought in and see what her new backstory is. Man I was never a fan of Edge being Superman’s half brother and I still don’t like it but the actor is so good. His delivery is great, loved how he said “yeah I lied about having no powers”. He really brings out the best in Hoechlin, loved seeing Hoechlin go full papa wolf on Edge after he saw him choking Jordan. I was right about them bringing in Lara! Cool to see her, but man they really should not be leaving Edge’s Fortress out in the middle of nowhere like they apparently have been doing. Superman needs to disassemble that.

Another Triangle Era deep dive villain with that arms dealer. Apparently he was Barrage:


His comics costume sucks but I wish they did more to let you know he wasn’t just some rando.

Speaking of villains here’s an article that lists all the villains that have debuted or are being set up so far in S2

[Jabare]

This might be the best live action Superman show ever

[The Frog Bros]

That’s how I took it. Excited for her to be brought in and see what her new backstory is. Man I was never a fan of Edge being Superman’s half brother and I still don’t like it but the actor is so good. His delivery is great, loved how he said “yeah I lied about having no powers”. He really brings out the best in Hoechlin, loved seeing Hoechlin go full papa wolf on Edge after he saw him choking Jordan. I was right about them bringing in Lara! Cool to see her, but man they really should not be leaving Edge’s Fortress out in the middle of nowhere like they apparently have been doing. Superman needs to disassemble that.

Good article, interview with Adam Rayner. I guess he was rather surprised they brought him back so quickly.

https://www.cbr.com/superman-lois-se...ner-interview/

[greatmetropolitan]

So what do we think? Supermen of America exist as Doomsday cannon fodder. Clark dies at the hands of Doomsday, Steel and Jordan try and fill the void, Edge maybe becomes the Eradicator and Jon starts juicing on X-Kryptonite to get powers of his own to help out Steel and Jordan? Clark eventually comes back, helps Dig set up Justice U to prepare the future in case of other superhero deaths etc?

[Frontier]

So what do we think? Supermen of America exist as Doomsday cannon fodder. Clark dies at the hands of Doomsday, Steel and Jordan try and fill the void, Edge maybe becomes the Eradicator and Jon starts juicing on X-Kryptonite to get powers of his own to help out Steel and Jordan? Clark eventually comes back, helps Dig set up Justice U to prepare the future in case of other superhero deaths etc?

I think the Super Corp are definitely going to end up being cannon fodder, but I'm not sure Superman is going to literally die.

[The Frog Bros]

20220120_120113.jpg

So you're saying there's a chance...

[Vordan]

So what do we think? Supermen of America exist as Doomsday cannon fodder. Clark dies at the hands of Doomsday, Steel and Jordan try and fill the void, Edge maybe becomes the Eradicator and Jon starts juicing on X-Kryptonite to get powers of his own to help out Steel and Jordan? Clark eventually comes back, helps Dig set up Justice U to prepare the future in case of other superhero deaths etc?

Supermen of America are definitely getting killed at some point by Doomsday, but I don’t think Clark will. One thing someone else pointed out elsewhere is that S&L doesn’t do straightforward adaptions of the material as seen with Edge. Doubt Death of Superman would be the exception. Maybe we’ll have a better idea of the plot once we find out who Faulkner is taking her orders from, is that going to be the Lois villain? Or is the podcast that’s attacking Lois’ integrity the Lois villain? Doomsday may end up being a red herring.

[superduperman]

Lol I just realized something else. Is “Ally Ackson” meant to be a shot at Allison Mack? Sure feels like it, that’s one hell of a shout out if so.

I guess they just retconned the entire military history altogether. I think at some point they are going to have to just come right out and say that the entire Supergirl show as we know it never happened since they're changing so much of it, or have it take place in another timeline.

[OpaqueGiraffe17]

in Smallville Chloe and Lois were cousins, so when the Lane family member being in a cult was mentioned, I was wondering where they were going with that. Wouldn't be surprised if they're being meta about it.

I guess they just retconned the entire military history altogether. I think at some point they are going to have to just come right out and say that the entire Supergirl show as we know it never happened since they're changing so much of it, or have it take place in another timeline.

crisis pretty blatantly retconned out entire seasons of Supergirl. Same thing with Arrow, a big chunk of their first show couldn't have happened. Or happened but didn't in the same way. So basically typical dc continuity.

[daBronzeBomma]

Thoughts on the #SupermanAndLois s2e2 "The Ties That Bind". Spoilers follow ...
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1. Clark takes a lot of Ls this episode : he got his ass kicked by a low-grade criminal hopped up on X-K, had to get saved by the military's knockoff "Supermen Of America",(where we see the return of Tag from Season 1), got cut off from government support, took an untested Jordan on a dangerous mission, and most stupidly, trusted Tao Rho to NOT stab him in the back.

Blame it on those psychic visions, I guess, but Clark is definitely not on his A game here.

2. Lois is finally getting some storylines not directly dependent on Clark: clashing with Chrissy over a brewing smear job, failing but trying at least to bond with Nat, working together with John Henry, and doing actual reporter work.

Also ... this may have been the first time I've seen Lois Lane actually cook a meal.

3. Mitch Anderson's "What can I say? Everybody wants superpowers" line is such blatant foreshadowing, even if you're not aware of his character's history in the comix.

Mitch is definitely joining Tag as a super-soldier before too long, IMO.

4. Tal Rho channeling Hannibal Lecter in prison was fun (even if we already got that vibe from him at the end of Season 1). I still dislike the show making Morgan Edge Superman's half-brother (human , but I also don't think he's surviving this season.

He is resentment personified now.

5. Jordan took even bigger losses than Clark this episode. He finally empathized with his dad having what look like anxiety attacks and actively wants to help, only get his ass kicked by his evil "Uncle Jerkface". Then he finds out that his girlfriend Sarah cheated on him.

All in one day no less.

6. Jonathan didn't have much to do except sulk in the locker room. Kid needs direction. Feels like if he's not going to follow in his father's footsteps as a superhero, then maybe he should try following his mother's.

What about investigating that "school"?

7. John Henry finally admitted it was not that easy being reminded of his dead wife every time he looked at "our" Lois. Felt like he had adapted way too quickly to being on "our" Earth in Season 1.

That scene with Clark, Lois, and John Henry trying to figure out the connection between the visions and the earthquake reminded me of high school students in study hall trying to figure out a question they KNOW is going to be on the next test.

Also appreciated the episode's mention of Amertek Industries from his own comic book Steel title back in the day.

8. Nat is going to disrupt things. She and Sarah had such immediate chemistry that IMO those two are clearly going to hook up very soon. And while that development would probably unsettleJordan for at least a little while, I do hope her and her alt-half brothers develop into siblings.

And Nat's hairstyle at school is so cool.

Also, Sarah's coming out in this ep is so markedly different from Alex Danvers' on Supergirl a few years ago. There it was loudly a huge deal, but here it's pretty much quietlyq matter-of-fact like.

Progress.

9. Lana Lang was always going to become mayor of Smallville one day on this show. Without the old-timey romantic triangle with Clark and Lois from the comix, adult Lana rarely has had any arc in any medium.

And Kyle (aka Modern Pete Ross) came up with the idea and actually wants to be Smallville's first "First Dude" ... ****, do I like actually Kyle now? Maybe.

Take a bow, writers.

10. Lara Lor-Van, mother of Kal and Tal (damn, I didn't notice the brothers' names rhymed until just now) makes a necessary appearance. Jor-El too often gets an unfair amount of the credit and appearances between Clark's bio-parents. And here she designed the Eradicator herself.

I dislike that this show's Jor-El is a much older-looking hologram husband with a much younger-looking hologram wife. Either make them look both grandparent-ish or both look the same age as adult Clark and Lois.

11. Lucy Lane was in a crazy cult under the leadership of an ...Ally Ackson? Maybe ... no,11 definitely referencing the Smallvilleactress Allison Mack (played Chloe Sullivan) who IRL helped lead a cult and is now in prison.

Yet another storyline for Lois this season!

12. Doctor Faulkner might be a deep cut from the comix. Especially if she goes by Kitty. Might be worth a Google.

Also, that scene where Lois and Chrissy interview Dr. Faulkner (and then that female miner comes in the conversation) passed the Bechdel test pretty convincingly.

13. Doomsday is in that containment suit.

Part of me was really hoping last episode's stinger was a fake-out and that we weren't really getting the most overrated Superman villain of all time for this season of SAL.

But nope, that's him. I'd recognize that bulky, wordless, pointlessly murdering style in any medium.

Sigh ... maybe SAL can somehow make Doomsday interesting. Maybe the fourth time in live-action (Smallville show, Dawn Of Justice movie, Krypton show) will be the charm.

I'd rather they revamp fricking Nuclear Man from The Quest For Peace movie.

Bottom line: Lots of moving parts this episode with a lot of setup aiming for a lot payoffs down the line. Some questionable judgments from Clark, Lois, Nat, Jordan, and Sarah. Not too much Superman action due to him constantly getting sidelined by the new psychic link to Doomsday. Overall, not bad but not great either.

Looking forward to the next episode!

Grade: 7/10.