Spoilers "Superman & Lois": The Fourth and Final Season
- Thread starter The Realist
- Start date
I wouldn't go that far, but he does look reasonably like Lex Luthor now instead of an evil Jamie Hyneman from Mythbusters.
The show has really failed in its Lex versus Lois storyline. The whole view that Lois lied is utter hogwash or that Lois was responsible for Lex being charged, and convicted. Utterly hogwash.
Mannheim framed Luthor. Lois simply reported the incident. She didn't lie. She would have to be a knowing accomplice to the deception to be a liar. Its then the criminal justice system and a jury that would investigate, try, and then convict Luthor.
We know Lois discovers the frame job in season 3. She doesn't cover it up. She is ultimately the one whose work exonerated Lex and freed him from prison.
Yet that is not brought up in person, its not reflected in Luthor rage and revenge, nor is it brought up in public for her defense.
Now if we heard that somehow Mannheim has died in custody, that the judge had an accident years ago. That the detectives who would have investigated the crime, have all over time passed away. If the Jury have all died in that decade. Sure then Luthor going after Lois as the last remaining piece to his downfall, would be believable. But we don't see that at all. In fact nothing even remotely close to it.
Mannheim framed Luthor. Lois simply reported the incident. She didn't lie. She would have to be a knowing accomplice to the deception to be a liar. Its then the criminal justice system and a jury that would investigate, try, and then convict Luthor.
We know Lois discovers the frame job in season 3. She doesn't cover it up. She is ultimately the one whose work exonerated Lex and freed him from prison.
Yet that is not brought up in person, its not reflected in Luthor rage and revenge, nor is it brought up in public for her defense.
Now if we heard that somehow Mannheim has died in custody, that the judge had an accident years ago. That the detectives who would have investigated the crime, have all over time passed away. If the Jury have all died in that decade. Sure then Luthor going after Lois as the last remaining piece to his downfall, would be believable. But we don't see that at all. In fact nothing even remotely close to it.
We're not supposed to believe it. The point is that Luthor believes it and that belief drives his vendetta. And the point of this episode was to show how a person in power can use the media to advance a self-serving lie if media personalities like Godfrey prioritize a "both sides" mentality over actual fact-checking. (Which is why it was a mistake for Lois to accept a debate on their terms, because that gave them control of how the narrative was framed.)
I ... think mswood is trying to say that Lois shouldn't be the first or only person that Lex holds responsible? And it's true Mannheim is the (living) person who is most morally culpable, having actually perpetrated the frame-up along with his late wife.
But (a) Lex Luthor is not the soul of rationality, (b) Lois had probably been dogging him for a while before the Moxie incident, so Lex already considered her an enemy who was out to get him, and (c) Lex has said several times that he "told" her he was innocent, which in his twisted and controlling mind should have been enough for her not to report despite the evidence.
(This Luthor also strikes me as the type who would be especially enraged that a woman had dared to defy and damage him. Not only is he an overcompensating macho bully in general, but he also has mommy issues.)
So I don't think it's accurate to say that Luthor's targeting of Lois is a failure of the show's or that it's "hogwash" in narrative terms. It makes perfect sense in the context of these characters.
But (a) Lex Luthor is not the soul of rationality, (b) Lois had probably been dogging him for a while before the Moxie incident, so Lex already considered her an enemy who was out to get him, and (c) Lex has said several times that he "told" her he was innocent, which in his twisted and controlling mind should have been enough for her not to report despite the evidence.
(This Luthor also strikes me as the type who would be especially enraged that a woman had dared to defy and damage him. Not only is he an overcompensating macho bully in general, but he also has mommy issues.)
So I don't think it's accurate to say that Luthor's targeting of Lois is a failure of the show's or that it's "hogwash" in narrative terms. It makes perfect sense in the context of these characters.
Yes, exactly. Luthor blaming Lois is not the show's mistake, it's the character's mistake. Fictional characters are under no obligation to be correct in their beliefs and interpretations of events, or their choices of whom to blame for their problems. A lot of tragedies are driven by characters placing blame incorrectly, e.g. Othello or King Lear. A lot of comedies too, except there the truth comes out before it's too late.
I hadn't thought of the gender angle, but you might be right. It would explain why this Luthor, unlike most of his counterparts, is more preoccupied with Lois than with Superman as a target of revenge.
Tyler and Liz met with Marvel's Dan Slott recently, fuelling the recent speculation Slott has jumped back to DC to write Superman
Oh, fandom. Never change.
The last two eps have been bangers in an otherwise meh season.
Another very solid episode, about on par with last week's. The faceoff between Superman and Lex in Lex's office had a lot more juice and tension than the similar scene on the country road earlier in the season (which Lex references). Cudlitz also really lets fly in the scene with Amanda in the Smallville hotel; it would appear even she didn't realize the depths of Lex's vengeful insanity. He wants to wipe out all of Smallville for rejecting him. This is a Luthor whose rage and vindictiveness will ultimately leave nothing and no one standing, which Amanda must now realize will inevitably include her.
Chad Coleman's return as Mannheim was a total surprise, and a very welcome one.
Doomsday's attack on Smallville was pretty effective, especially the bit where Denise sees the airborne car headed straight for her, only to have Jon intercept it at the last moment. Guess maybe now she'll let him off the hook for quitting the convenience store on her.
Clark looked rough in that last scene. Lois and the boys think they're watching him die again, and he seems to think so too. Fortunately, the preview for next week -- the series finale, and it looks intense -- reveals otherwise.
Chad Coleman's return as Mannheim was a total surprise, and a very welcome one.
Doomsday's attack on Smallville was pretty effective, especially the bit where Denise sees the airborne car headed straight for her, only to have Jon intercept it at the last moment. Guess maybe now she'll let him off the hook for quitting the convenience store on her.
Clark looked rough in that last scene. Lois and the boys think they're watching him die again, and he seems to think so too. Fortunately, the preview for next week -- the series finale, and it looks intense -- reveals otherwise.
Iron-Man the movie did irrepairable damage to sci-fi powersuits.
Last edited:
Great episode. It got me super excited for the series finale. From the promo, it seems we are going to get a big boss fight with Luthor in the armor suit. This episode seemed to really emphasize the idea of the Jon and Jordan not being ready but also the idea that they need to work as a team. Clark says at one point that if they work together as a team they can be as strong as Superman by himself. So my guess is that we will see Clark, Jon and Jordan all work together to defeat Luthor. I also think we will see Jon and Jordan wear their own superboy suits. I also suspect we might see doomsday turn on Luthor and it will be doomsday that kills Luthor.
This was a pretty good one, though I was yelling through the whole episode "No, work as a team, all three of you!" and it took them most of the episode to figure out the obvious. Okay, it was justified in that Clark grew up working alone, but they were slower on the uptake than I would've preferred, particularly at the end where the boys were just standing there looking helpless as Superman faced Doomsday alone. Of course they're saving the full team-up for the finale next week, but still, I hate it when characters miss the obvious.
There were some terrific moments, though. Clark's optimism helping Lois through her despair was cool, and Jordan helping Ms. May through her panic attack was a magnificent heroic moment. Bruno Mannheim's return was fantastic; I confess I'd forgotten that he was still alive. Except the return of this rich, nuanced, multilayered antagonist played by such a strong, expressive actor just drives home how boring and one-note Cudlitz's Luthor has been in comparison.
I caught the purple and green color scheme on Fine's monitors, but I missed the bottle city. Anyone got a screencap?
That would be cool, but I suspect we may not see that until the tag scenes. Just a feeling.
Hmm, I could see that happening, but I'd be disappointed. I don't think a Superman story should end with the villain being killed, even if it's not by Superman himself. I'd prefer to see Luthor brought to justice the right way, through the exposure of his crimes and the workings of the justice system. I mean, even aside from general moral considerations, that's what Lois has been working toward this whole time, and she just took a big step toward succeeding with Amanda flipping. All that effort would go to waste if Luthor just died, so what would have been the point?
There were some terrific moments, though. Clark's optimism helping Lois through her despair was cool, and Jordan helping Ms. May through her panic attack was a magnificent heroic moment. Bruno Mannheim's return was fantastic; I confess I'd forgotten that he was still alive. Except the return of this rich, nuanced, multilayered antagonist played by such a strong, expressive actor just drives home how boring and one-note Cudlitz's Luthor has been in comparison.
Also, but unrelated, Milton got a bottle city on his desk.
I caught the purple and green color scheme on Fine's monitors, but I missed the bottle city. Anyone got a screencap?
That would be cool, but I suspect we may not see that until the tag scenes. Just a feeling.
Hmm, I could see that happening, but I'd be disappointed. I don't think a Superman story should end with the villain being killed, even if it's not by Superman himself. I'd prefer to see Luthor brought to justice the right way, through the exposure of his crimes and the workings of the justice system. I mean, even aside from general moral considerations, that's what Lois has been working toward this whole time, and she just took a big step toward succeeding with Amanda flipping. All that effort would go to waste if Luthor just died, so what would have been the point?
"All people want is a good story. Put it on a platform that reinforces how they see themselves and they'll believe anything"
You don't say...
Also spoiler for what was shown in the preview.
You don't say...
Also spoiler for what was shown in the preview.
Clark looked completely healed when facing Lex. He hasn't been able to heal fast with Sam's heart... So wondering if its a Doomsday heart or Luthor actually still had Clarks heart and Amanda gives up where it is.
Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised.
As I said at the time, it's implausible that Lex would've had Fine build a special container to hold Superman's heart if he'd just intended to crush it a few hours later -- not to mention that he shouldn't have been able to crush a Kryptonian heart, an obvious detail that the characters remain frustratingly blind to.
Although in a way, it would be disappointing if Superman got his own heart back, since that would mean all this storyline about Clark having to adjust to mortality and prepare his boys as his successors would just be a fakeout.
Although in a way, it would be disappointing if Superman got his own heart back, since that would mean all this storyline about Clark having to adjust to mortality and prepare his boys as his successors would just be a fakeout.
Good points. And bringing Lex to justice would also tie nicely in with Lois' plot. So after Clark, Jon and Jordan defeat Lex, he could get arrested, convicted and sentenced to prison for good. And it could be Lois' investigative journalism, with Amanda flipping and testifying against Lex in his trial, that finally exposes Lex's crimes and helps him get convicted. That would be a satisfying conclusion to Lois' story.
Similar threads
- Poll
