Please be aware of plot spoilers in the article. If you have not seen the episode and do not agree to be spoiled, please do not continue reading.
introduce:
Episode three is the swansong for the character of General Sam Lane. Sam always does what he thinks is best for his daughter, and this episode reflects that very well.
Louis Lane:
Lois could barely cope with the loss of Clark, although she still managed to make ends meet by working as a journalist, writing an article telling the world that Superman was dead. Lois is truly her father’s daughter who tends to hide her feelings to show strength, and Clark is literally the only person besides her son that she allows herself to be vulnerable to. Since Clark left, she felt like she was putting up walls again because she didn’t feel like she would break down because her kids needed her.
Jonathan’s gift:
The stress of Superman’s death and his strained relationship with his brother ended up being the spark Jon needed to ignite his Kryptonian genes. The scene where Jon gets his powers is pretty cool. While I initially didn’t know what to feel when I saw the show essentially following Jon as he learns how to use and master his powers quickly, I feel like this could be a big source of long-term conflict between the brothers because Jordan felt like he had to work harder than Jon, while Jon had it easy, which is how Jordan felt about Jon before he got his powers.
The creative decision to give Jon this talent makes sense (Jon has always had natural athleticism, even without his abilities). Jon gaining powers subverts expectations by changing the dynamic between the boys, but it’s also unfortunate because this is the show’s final season and we’ll never see how having two Superboys will be in the long run. How to function in the play. Part of me feels like DC should reconsider keeping the show around, there’s still so much story to tell and looking at this season it seems possible to make the show’s budget work. If Superman Legacy is a hit, it might be another 2/3 years before we see a sequel to that movie. So Superman & Lois could easily last another 2/3 seasons before a sequel materializes. There’s still room for the Superman franchise to thrive.
General lane:
We see a lot of Sam’s flashbacks in this episode, and it’s interesting that the writers reveal the Superman glasses and Sam was in denial about Clark being Superman until he took them off like he did with Lana. It is also revealed through flashbacks that General Lane initially did not give his blessing to Clark and Lois’ marriage, but later changed his mind when he realized that Clark wanted to protect Lois. This makes sense, since at the beginning of season one, Sam and Lois seemed a bit distant. Their family, and this episode speaks volumes about that.
When Lois tells Sam that Jon now has superpowers, Sam offers to have Jon begin training, but Lois is hesitant to let her son do so. I understand her thoughts on this, Doomsday just killed Superman, so it would be very dangerous for Jon to be flying around with training wheels. He’s going to be two soon and he’s still too young. Sam suggests building a DoD team around Jon to train him (and keep him safe), and he assures Louis that he won’t secretly train Jon like he did with Jordan (a sign of the growth of stubborn Grandpa Sam). Sam’s story for this episode also involves a subplot of Sam’s search for the serum, which ultimately has surprising consequences in the episode.
Louis eventually changed his mind and decided to let Jon train. We have a scene with Jon and Lois where she admits to him that she regrets not telling the boys about their powers earlier. Sam was right, even though Jon was a natural leader, he assured Mom that he still had a lot to learn and wanted to learn. In that sense, Jon is a bit like Clark. Now more than ever, the boys must work together to defeat Lex, but Jon with superpowers may cause more conflict between them.
Louis’ choice:
Last episode, Lois made a rash decision under Lex’s duress when she chose to save one of her sons over another, only to have it come back to bite her. Lex goes into the Kent Farm barn and tells Jordan the truth, trying to turn Jordan against his mother by implying that Jonathan is her favorite son. When Louise makes this decision, she’s faced with a dilemma, how do you let parents choose which child to save? Lois made the most logical choice because she wasn’t sure if her two sons were in danger, so she chose to save her sons without the power in the hope that Jordan would be able to protect her.
Yet Jordan was still a bit immature and didn’t see this. He’s acting more naughty than Jon, and last episode he flew straight into Lex’s kryptonite trap, which he would do if Lex wanted to kill him, but he clearly doesn’t want to, at least not yet. Lex wants to isolate Lois by eliminating the people she loves, even if it means turning them all against her. Lex doesn’t care about Jonathan because he doesn’t think Jon has superpowers. Jordan is a teenage boy, so I can understand why he would be irrational about it and react the way he did, but it’s still annoying.
Henry’s house:
Natalie and John Henry make their first appearance in this episode, possibly due to budget cuts. Sam offers Natalie and John Henry a job with the Department of Defense, and Natalie is visibly annoyed that she has to put off going to the Department of Defense’s special school for gifted teenagers.
At the critical moment when Doomsday attacks the Department of Defense under Lex’s orders, the Henrys accept Sam’s job offer to work full-time for the Department of Defense. Henry’s family nearly dies in pursuit of the end of the world. Sam is accidentally shot by Jonel Jones (a DoD soldier working for Lex) and decides to sacrifice himself to save everyone at the DoD. Sam sets out to find a suitable donor, but when he realizes the apocalypse is going to kill him, he ultimately decides to inject himself with the serum (which Morgan Edge has used to inject the residents of Smallville since Season 1 Transformed into a Kryptonian), Doomsday is probably the most brutal villain on the show. When Sam refuses to tell Lex where his daughter is, Doomsday breaks his neck. John Henry flew to the Fortress with Sam’s body, and Laura performed surgery on Superman, transferring Sam’s heart into Superman’s body.
Final scene:
I’ve seen some discussion online about the season premiere, with some complaining that Taylor’s character may have been limited this season due to the budget, but he was in the first three episodes a lot due to the death of his character involved in the third The episode ends with Superman waking up, and we should be seeing a lot of Superman this season.
Other ideas:
1. Jon experienced accelerated healing, freeze breath, super hearing, x-ray vision, super strength, and flight in record time. Jordan looked really pissed that Jon was acting so fast.
2. We heard that Kyle Cushing bought Chrissy Beppo a car (Jon overheard it with his super hearing).
3. Jordan and Jon wore Sam’s Hawaiian shirts at the funeral, which was a cool, subtle way to honor their grandfather.
4. During Sam’s flashback, we get a sweet little moment with Clark and Martha. I wish we had gotten to see more scenes on the show before Martha died, although her death was the inciting incident that prompted the Kents to move to Smallville in season 1, so I understand why that didn’t happen.
5. I wish the Henrys had a bigger role in this episode, but I do appreciate that the show seems to have more purpose in how it uses supporting characters this season.
6. Sam’s holographic farewell to Louis was heartbreaking. All I can say is justice for Grandpa Sam.
7. Episode 3 of the show was written by Brett Fletcher and Todd Helbing and directed by David Giuntoli (husband of Elizabeth Tulloch).
judgment:
After four seasons of fans being divided over whether Jon should get his powers, the writers finally did it in this episode, which has a lot of big changes for the future of the show. I can’t wait for next week’s episode.
grade:
1. Story: 9/10
2. Visual effects: 9/10
3. Sound: 9/10
4. Performance: 9/10
5. Overall: 9/10
Join me every week for more reviews of the fourth and final season of The CW’s Superman & Lois.
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