‘Superman & Lois’ Season 3, Episode 2 Review
by Frank Martin
It’s very hard to deliver a solid episode of television regardless of the show or genre. Very rarely do shows focus on just one character. There are usually multiple characters, each one going through their own plot line for the episode. Superman and Lois is no different. Superman (Tyler Hoechlin) and Lois (Elizabeth Tulloch) usually each have their own storyline, and then the side characters have their own things going on, too. But this past week’s episode managed to have compelling storytelling for every single one of its plot lines — a rarity even for a show as good as this.
After the false alarm with Lois’s pregnancy last episode, this week’s hour revealed that she actually has cancer, but it was not said aloud until the episode’s closing moments. Instead, Lois goes through the episode hiding this information from her family. Meanwhile, Clark met up with Bruno Mannheim (Chad L Coleman), who is positioning himself as a Lex Luthor type character this season. Also, John Henry Irons (Wole Parks) and Lana (Emmanuelle Chriqui) spend some time together trying to uncover what led to the former mayor’s death. They were attacked by a mysterious foe, Onomatopoeia, who later on revealed that he was the one who killed the John Henry of Lois and Clark’s universe.
Two episodes in and there is already a lot going on. The above recap doesn’t even touch upon the growing relationships between the show’s younger characters. Onomatopoeia, meanwhile, is strange and unique, giving Superman a very different kind of battle to face in the future. But the super side of this show is often distracting. What makes Superman such a difficult character to write for is that he’s so powerful that people forget about the “man” side of his nom de voyage. That’s what makes this story great; it’s able to create great fantasy and also great drama that humbles Superman in a very relatable way.
Superman & Lois airs Tuesdays on The CW.