S01.E01: Pilot

[scarynikki12]

Quote

Clark Kent and Lois Lane come face to face with one of their greatest challenges ever - dealing with the pressures that come with being working parents in today's society.

 

 

[scarynikki12]

The opening montage was really well done. It even prevented me from rolling my eyes at yet more CW pilot narration.

“Nice suit!” “Thanks! My mom made it!”

Tyler’s awkward heart eyes when Clark first met Lois was great. 

I like Dylan Walsh as General Lane.

Killing off Martha Kent in the first episode? Berlanti you rat bastard.

Lana’s husband is a douche but I like her and her girls. 

Lois Lane can find a big story anywhere she goes. I love her. Morgan Edge doesn’t stand a chance.

So there’s tension between the twins with Jon as the alpha but he has a caretaker quality to him. He made sure to bring food so Jordan could take his meds and didn’t hesitate before throwing his body on Jordan to protect him from the falling pipes. I cannot express how much I love that Jordan’s powers manifested as a result of seeing Jon get his ass kicked and wanting revenge/to protect him. We just need to squash the CW’s urge to do any brother swapping and I’ll be happy.

I love Lois putting her foot down when Papa Lane came by with a mission. And insisting on telling the twins the truth about Clark while recognizing that it’s his secret to reveal. 

Captain Luthor?!?!?!? Lex has a kid?

My overall reaction:

[Trini]

6 minutes ago, scarynikki12 said:

Killing off Martha Kent in the first episode? Berlanti you rat bastard.

Arrowverse hates moms. Y'all know this. 😢

[madhacker]

I'm totally in!!

The only thing missing in the end would be if Jordan said "Hey!! Does that mean Aunt Kara is.....?"

They'red better be a crossover this season just to see how the twins get along with her

[cambridgeguy]

So was Captain Luthor not cast when they filmed the pilot?  Or is there going to be some big reveal when he shows up in Smallville pretending to be someone else?

And Jon took the idea of moving back to Smallville really, really well.  You'd think he'd be more upset about giving up the QB job and saying goodbye to all of his friends, but maybe he's saving that for next week.

 

[Nostariel]

I'm in, I thought it was very good. I  liked the nods to modern small-town America, with everyone leaving and all the abandoned storefronts and the meth problem, etc. A bit darker than what I would expect from a Superman show, but good.
The twins bore me, but I'm not the target audience there lol. The Clark/Lois relationship is, as always, delightful. The actors are both great and their chemistry is lovely. Overall, an A+ pilot.

[mtlchick]

13 minutes ago, madhacker said:

I'm totally in!!

The only thing missing in the end would be if Jordan said "Hey!! Does that mean Aunt Kara is.....?"

They'red better be a crossover this season just to see how the twins get along with her

I’m watching this later but the chances of a crossover are slim at best. COVID knocked out the planned one with Batwoman and there was concern that the different film crews shouldn’t mix. Kara will probably show once the pandemic is over. 

[Jediknight]

23 minutes ago, scarynikki12 said:

So there’s tension between the twins with Jon as the alpha but he has a caretaker quality to him. He made sure to bring food so Jordan could take his meds and didn’t hesitate before throwing his body on Jordan to protect him from the falling pipes. I cannot express how much I love that Jordan’s powers manifested as a result of seeing Jon get his ass kicked and wanting revenge/to protect him. We just need to squash the CW’s urge to do any brother swapping and I’ll be happy.

Captain Luthor?!?!?!? Lex has a kid?

The boys truly are Clark's kids, despite the comments at each other they'll do anything to protect the other and make sure they're okay.

As for Captain Luthor, I'm guessing he's a Crisis remnant.  Lex from an Earth that was destroyed.

11 minutes ago, cambridgeguy said:

So was Captain Luthor not cast when they filmed the pilot?  Or is there going to be some big reveal when he shows up in Smallville pretending to be someone else?

And Jon took the idea of moving back to Smallville really, really well.  You'd think he'd be more upset about giving up the QB job and saying goodbye to all of his friends, but maybe he's saving that for next week.

I'm thinking it's gonna be a big reveal.

Jon was the starting QB as a freshman at one of the top teams there was, so he probably feels he's gonna have no problem winning the starting job in Smallville.  Also, we saw at his heart, that he's a good kid.  He can still talk to them online, and he might be more focused on the family getting better.

Good episode, although Sarah, you gave Jordan your number all sneakily and didn't give Jon your number.  That's a bit of a flirtatious move, but Jordan, dude, get consent for the kiss.  As for Sarah's boyfriend, dude was gonna murder 2 kids because Jordan kissed his girlfriend.  Sarah should probably dump him, so he can go hook up with Tory from Cobra Kai, they both have such rational reactions.

[madhacker]

6 minutes ago, mtlchick said:

I’m watching this later but the chances of a crossover are slim at best. COVID knocked out the planned one with Batwoman and there was concern that the different film crews shouldn’t mix. Kara will probably show once the pandemic is over. 

I'd settle for a Skype or Zoom call just to establish the "Aunt Kara" cause they'res no way they'd call her cousin

[shapeshifter]

I loved the beginnings of many of the shows in this franchise, and this was a winner for me too.
I'll stick with it for now.

[Primal Slayer]

It was a great premiere. Definitely sets a new standard for the future of new DC shows just as Stargirl does.

The opening giving us a quick recap of Clarks life...great. Loved it. They even put in the original suit which was great. So Supes is on his 3rd official costume, I do love that Arrowverse has them change costumes and evolve. Killing off Pa Kent while in Clarks teens....ok...I know the showrunner is a MAJOR fan of MoS so Im assuming thats where that inspiration came from.

While The Dailey Planet looked bland (it was a real news office afterall), I hope this isnt the last we see of them, its a staple of Superman and Lois.

The teens...they didnt annoy me that much. While I wouldve preferred for Clark/Lois to have a boy/girl, in the end I dont mind since Oliver/Felicity have a son/daughter, Jefferson/Lynn have 2 daughters, and Barry/Iris will have at least 1 daughter so it does set them apart in that aspect as one of the few brother/brother duos. Jonathan appears to have latent super strength that he doesnt realize yet...somehow...and Jordan appears to be the more super twin with a degree of invulnerability and heat vision, wasnt surprised there but was surprised that they went with it so quickly. Figured they'd play it out longer.

Ma Kent....killing her off so quickly is not something I wouldve done! They really missed out on some good storylines with her and everyone and then having her die mid season when we are actually attached to this version. 

Was surprised that Lana wasnt in on Clarks secret and that General Lane IS...and that they are friendly. 

So we have a new Luthor who is Earth-less...he should call Laurel and they can start a support group.

The special effects were TOP notch for the most part besides them trying to de-age Tyler during the flashback. Hope they can keep it up throughout the season.

I know Lois moved to Smallville for her family but i want her to be a city girl at heart and just tolerate farm life. 

[Primal Slayer]

21 minutes ago, mtlchick said:

I’m watching this later but the chances of a crossover are slim at best. COVID knocked out the planned one with Batwoman and there was concern that the different film crews shouldn’t mix. Kara will probably show once the pandemic is over. 

Melissa wont be living in Vancouver anymore and may land something else so getting her back if this gets a S2 may be harder. I hope she does an episode or two next season (the likelihood of this being cancelled...ratings would have to be below All American) 

But I was hoping they'd throw in a Supergirl line "So wait...are we related to Supergirl?" OMG...what if they were crushing on Superigrl...yikes. Should've put a Supergirl poster in one of their rooms.

[legaleagle53]

6 minutes ago, Primal Slayer said:

 

9 minutes ago, Primal Slayer said:

I know Lois moved to Smallville for her family but i want her to be a city girl at heart and just tolerate farm life. 

Actually, it's canon (or used to be in the Silver Age, anyway) that Lois spent much of her early childhood on her parents' own farm, so living in Smallville wouldn't really be that big a deal for her.

 

 

 

[thuganomics85]

Definitely appreciate them blowing through the origin stories with a quickness.  Although I would have been perfectly fine if they want all meta and just had Clark say "Look, you've either read the comics, watched Smallville, or have seen one of my many films.  Do I really need to go through this, again?" and gone straight to it.

A solid pilot that was likely helped that we've already been introduced to this version of Clark and Lois, and that avoided some of the normal awkward exposition that weighs down pilots (and, again, most everyone knowing the origins of Superman/Clark and Lois, compared to other D.C. characters.)  Not wild about the kids yet, since they're pretty much cliches right now (the arrogant jock and the moody emo), but I will be patient.  It was pretty obvious though that it was actually going to be Jordan that had the powers instead of Jonathan, with all of the conflicts between him and his dad, and Clark/Lois assuming it was Jonathan.  That said, I wouldn't be surprised if Jonathan ends up having some kind of power also.

Hey, we're actually getting another version of Lana Lang too!  Too bad her husband is kind of a dick, but lets see if it can top the time she got married to Lex Luthor himself on Smallville!

I guess the Crisis is going to allow for some previous characters from the Arrowverse to be played by different actors now, since Sam Lane is now Dylan Walsh instead of Glenn Morshower on Supergirl.  And I'm guessing Morgan Edge won't end up being Adrian Pasdar again, sadly.

Mysterious baddie who seems to know everything about Superman is... Captain Luthor?  A relative of Lex?  Or a Lex from a different dimension?

Smallville seems to have fallen on hard times.  A lot of it has to do with meth?  Is Superman going to have to take on Walter White?!  Or maybe Gus Fring?!!

Kind of love that apparently the Injustice video game series is still a thing in an actual superhero world.  I hope the heroes (and villains?) at least got royalties for the games using their likenesses!

[memememe76]

I really enjoyed this. I watch all of these shows and the movies, but I don’t really follow them too intently. Is Lana’s husband someone we are supposed to know? There was that first boyfriend Lana had on Smallville, the blond guy?

Lois and Clark are both terrific. 

I will keep watching. 

[cdnalor]

God, I wish Tyler would shave!  A scruffy-faced Superman just doesn't look right.  He's supposed to be the clean-cut Boy Scout type.  I'm glad they gave him a different costume, I really hated the plastic cape anchors he used to have.  Does anyone else think the muscle padding is a bit much?  I think it gives him an overstuffed look.

So Lana is no longer a red-head, if she ever was in this version.  Color me disappointed.

I hope they didn't blow the whole SFX budget on this episode, the action scenes were pretty good.  I just don't want to see too much teen drama filling out the next few episodes.

This new version of Luthor had me fooled, I thought it might be Brainiac when he took off the helmet cause the lighting gave his head a bit of a greenish cast.  Maybe he's an amalgam of the two characters.

Despite my griping, I'm in for the forseeable future.  Anything Superman-related is must-see TV for me.

[Primal Slayer]

You know what I was so happy about and didnt miss? Some type of police unit and Superman not being part of a special agency. He works on his own but also partners with General Lane where they are very much equals.

[Primal Slayer]

1 minute ago, cdnalor said:

God, I wish Tyler would shave!  A scruffy-faced Superman just doesn't look right.  He's supposed to be the clean-cut Boy Scout type.  I'm glad they gave him a different costume, I really hated the plastic cape anchors he used to have.  Does anyone else think the muscle padding is a bit much?  I think it gives him an overstuffed look.

So Lana is no longer a red-head, if she ever was in this version.  Color me disappointed.

I hope they didn't blow the whole SFX budget on this episode, the action scenes were pretty good.  I just don't want to see too much teen drama filling out the next few episodes.

This new version of Luthor had me fooled, I thought it might be Brainiac when he took off the helmet cause the lighting gave his head a bit of a greenish cast.  Maybe he's an amalgam of the two characters.

Despite my griping, I'm in for the forseeable future.  Anything Superman-related is must-see TV for me.

Re shaving: Im so glad they arent forcing Tyler to be clean shaven. He is a HAIRY man like...he can grow a beard within 2 days so I can imagine how hard itd be on his face to be that clean shaven for so long. Its a nice change for a Superman.

Re suit: It definitely isnt perfect, I think the neckline is what really makes him weird. They need to open it back up. During the flashback to the OG suit, they had a cgi mishap where they cgi'd to much of his neckline and it looked so much better.

Re Lana: nope, not a red head. I doubt we'll be seeing a red headed Lana in live action for a very long time.

Pilot budgets are usually the biggest so I think they'll be fine.

[Trini]

I thought this was really good for a pilot; very cinematic, which they were clearly aiming for. Nothing wrong with family drama, but it's just not what I'm into. I prefer something more escapist. I'm still planning on checking out the next couple episodes, though.

Very curious about this new Luthor and what his deal is.

 

1 hour ago, Primal Slayer said:

... Killing off Pa Kent while in Clarks teens....ok...I know the showrunner is a MAJOR fan of MoS so Im assuming thats where that inspiration came from.<...>

Was surprised that Lana wasnt in on Clarks secret and that General Lane IS...and that they are friendly. 

....

But didn't they kill off Pa Kent while Clark was a teen (or under 21, at least) on Smallville too? That where I thought they got that from.

Yeah, I really thought if there was one person in Smallville who would know, it'd be Lana. But maybe Pete Ross? If they decide to bring him in.

 

34 minutes ago, cdnalor said:

...  I'm glad they gave him a different costume, I really hated the plastic cape anchors he used to have.  Does anyone else think the muscle padding is a bit much?  I think it gives him an overstuffed look.

 

Yes, agreed about the padding. Hope they can adjust that. And the neckline for the supersuit too.

[Primal Slayer]

7 minutes ago, Trini said:

But didn't they kill off Pa Kent while Clark was a teen (or under 21, at least) on Smallville too? That where I thought they got that from.

Yeah, I really thought if there was one person in Smallville who would know, it'd be Lana. But maybe Pete Ross? If they decide to bring him in.

I guess that is kind of true, Clark wouldve been around 19 after Clark graduates HS (still funny he was a freshman in S1...same age as the current super sons lol). 

[dwmarch]

3 hours ago, scarynikki12 said:

Killing off Martha Kent in the first episode? Berlanti you rat bastard.

Superman is going to be in some real trouble if Batman shows up...

Speaking of overpowered dudes in suits, Superman's nemesis here is a regular human being in a DC-painted Iron Man costume? I know he said he was from another world but from what little we saw of him he looked like a regular dude. So is this conflict going to be extended by Supes not fighting dirty? It would be a short fight if he took the dude's helmet and twisted it around 180 degrees.

I'm a little behind on my Superman lore... has he had kids in the comics before? The only thing I can recall on the subject are some crude musings about the logistical difficulties involved. Perhaps they'll explore the topic further on the show. I suppose it would have come up when discussing the potential latent powers of the boys if one of them had kicked a rib right out Lois.

Speaking of powers, I feel like both kids will end up having them eventually but the other's wont manifest until later.

When the doctor asked Superman how he got there so fast I was expecting him to ask how she got there from the 24th century. Edit: wait, is that Gates McFadden?

Edited February 24, 2021 by dwmarch

[Trini]

4 minutes ago, dwmarch said:

I'm a little behind on my Superman lore... has he had kids in the comics before?

Well, it's comics, so I'm sure he has, depending on which version of Superman. Maybe someone with a greater knowledge of Superman stories can give a better answer. However, I do know that in the current continuity, he has one son with Lois: Jonathan Kent.

[Jediknight]

1 hour ago, Trini said:

But didn't they kill off Pa Kent while Clark was a teen (or under 21, at least) on Smallville too? That where I thought they got that from.

Killing Jonathan before Clark goes off to college has happened in comics, and in Superman the Movie.  With the exception of Man of Steel, it's always a natural medical illness that Clark can't do anything to stop.  It's part of what drives him in some iterations to save as many people as he can, because he couldn't save his dad, and he wants to spare people from that same pain.

Edited February 24, 2021 by Jediknight

[Cthulhudrew]

Did Tyler Hoechlin pack on a ton of muscle for this role, or is his newest suit somewhat padded? Because he looks much bigger than his prior Arrowverse appearances. He was lean but fit before, but now dude looks ripped!

This was pretty good. I agree that it seems like Jon took things too well at the end, considering his stature in Metropolis and his girlfriend and all. Jordan also seemed way too upbeat at the end given his kind of emo attitude the rest of the show, but I'm going to chalk it up to "pilot" and the need to wrap things up nice and neat for the series pickup sell, and assume that both of these guys are going to get all dramatic again starting next ep.

[Cthulhudrew]

5 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

Mysterious baddie who seems to know everything about Superman is... Captain Luthor?  A relative of Lex?  Or a Lex from a different dimension?

Maybe that's his supervillain name. "Captain Luthor." Like Captain America, or Captain Boomerang. 🤣

[arc]

2 hours ago, Cthulhudrew said:

Did Tyler Hoechlin pack on a ton of muscle for this role, or is his newest suit somewhat padded?

It's way too padded. They don't make Hoechlin wear the padding as Clark. I guess it helps sell that no one would imagine Clark is secretly Superman, because Superman is like several inches wider across the shoulders than Clark. But it looks ridiculous.

Personal nitpick: shows, please stop using LA's* or Vancouver's Chinatowns to stand in for China. They don't look anything like China. (Given the faint clues, like the construction workers speaking Chinese, or that it's daylight over there while Jon and Jordan are getting in a fight at a nighttime bonfire, yes, it's China.) Hell, I would never have noticed except this show prominently featured Vancouver's Millennium Gate, the gateway into our Chinatown. And as the name suggests, it was built in 2002.

* Chuck did this with LA's Chinatown, BTW.

Those kids just don't look 14. I have a hard time suspending disbelief here.

The actual parenting stuff is promising though. 

[cambridgeguy]

8 hours ago, Trini said:

I thought this was really good for a pilot; very cinematic, which they were clearly aiming for. Nothing wrong with family drama, but it's just not what I'm into. I prefer something more escapist. I'm still planning on checking out the next couple episodes, though.

I think that's going to be the dynamic between General Lane and Lois.  He's going to want Clark to do more Superman stuff while Lois insists on him putting in family time.  Hopefully they don't go too overboard with that because the worst thing to be in the comics is the spouse/parent who insists on minimal hero time. 

Of course, Superman can't afford to be seen in Smallville since it's going to look way t0o suspicious if he starts appearing at the exact same time as Clark moves back.

Edited February 24, 2021 by cambridgeguy

[theschnauzers]

I think the Captain Luther thing, as is Clark and Lois having twin sons are the consequences of Crisis. But we’re getting the story of Clark as seen post crisis, and I assume Lois at well, but the ending of Crisis was sufficiently ambiguous that maybe Lois doesn’t know, just Clark. I expect we’ll be seeing more Crisis consequences as this season goes on.

As best as I can tell and remember all the Superman films, or at least the Reeve/Route ones are canon in the Arrowverse. And it’s still possible the dearly departed Krypton series is canon as well. I recall they wanted Cameron Cuffe to do a cameo, but he wasn’t available then. Maybe that can get fixed at some point.

[DanaK]

Except for the younger son’s emo look and moodiness, I really liked this

[Primal Slayer]

7 hours ago, dwmarch said:

 

Speaking of overpowered dudes in suits, Superman's nemesis here is a regular human being in a DC-painted Iron Man costume? I know he said he was from another world but from what little we saw of him he looked like a regular dude. So is this conflict going to be extended by Supes not fighting dirty? It would be a short fight if he took the dude's helmet and twisted it around 180 degrees.

I'm a little behind on my Superman lore... has he had kids in the comics before? The only thing I can recall on the subject are some crude musings about the logistical difficulties involved. Perhaps they'll explore the topic further on the show. I suppose it would have come up when discussing the potential latent powers of the boys if one of them had kicked a rib right out Lois.

Speaking of powers, I feel like both kids will end up having them eventually but the other's wont manifest until later.

 

Lex has an exo-suit in the comics. Nothing different from this Luthor. Plenty of fights could be ended easily but it won't happen obviously. 

Clark has had plenty of children in the comics whether it be w/Lois or WW but all one off stories. Right now he has a son in main continuity for the first time and an active part of his stories.

Jonathan showed super strength as a kid. 

 

1 hour ago, arc said:

 

Those kids just don't look 14. I have a hard time suspending disbelief here.

Actor who plays Jonathan is 19. Actor who plays Jordan is 16. Far cry from Tom Welling who was 24 playing a 14 yr old in S1 of Smallville. 

[Paloma]

Old person here (I was a fan of the original Christopher Reeve movie and the series Lois & Clark): My husband and I liked the pilot, as much or more for the family drama as for the action. We haven't watched the shows that people here seem to refer to Arrowverse so I'm confused by a lot of the references here to other shows and characters. Hopefully this show will make sense on its own.  But I'd appreciate if you could clarify this reference to Crisis (if it is possible to do with a quick summary or a link to a plot recap):

1 hour ago, theschnauzers said:

I think the Captain Luther thing, as is Clark and Lois having twin sons are the consequences of Crisis. But we’re getting the story of Clark as seen post crisis, and I assume Lois at well, but the ending of Crisis was sufficiently ambiguous that maybe Lois doesn’t know, just Clark.

 It was cool to see Dr. Crusher briefly at the end--she doesn't seem to have aged much. I assume she will be in future episodes in Smallville.

[Primal Slayer]

7 minutes ago, Paloma said:

Old person here (I was a fan of the original Christopher Reeve movie and the series Lois & Clark): My husband and I liked the pilot, as much or more for the family drama as for the action. We haven't watched the shows that people here seem to refer to Arrowverse so I'm confused by a lot of the references here to other shows and characters. Hopefully this show will make sense on its own.  But I'd appreciate if you could clarify this reference to Crisis (if it is possible to do with a quick summary or a link to a plot recap):

They Crisis on Infinite Earths last year that ended up merging Earths and creating new ones.

Pre-COIE - Lois and Clark were newlyweds and just had 1 newborn son. Luthor is more Supergirls villain than Clark's. 

After COIE - pretty much everything Superman got moved to earlier in his life and now twins instead of 1 son. 

 

[legaleagle53]

10 hours ago, Trini said:

But didn't they kill off Pa Kent while Clark was a teen (or under 21, at least) on Smallville too? That where I thought they got that from.

 

They killed off both of the Kents in the comics until the end of the Silver Age. It was only after the 1986 post-Crisis reboot that the Kents were shown to be still alive after Clark reached adulthood. So for about half of Superman's existence, he  was a double orphan by the time he was 21.

[cambridgeguy]

56 minutes ago, Primal Slayer said:

They Crisis on Infinite Earths last year that ended up merging Earths and creating new ones.

Pre-COIE - Lois and Clark were newlyweds and just had 1 newborn son. Luthor is more Supergirls villain than Clark's. 

After COIE - pretty much everything Superman got moved to earlier in his life and now twins instead of 1 son. 

Also Pre-Crisis - Lois and Clark were perfectly happy to retire and move to Argo City for years to raise Jon while Kara and friends took care of things. 

Post-Crisis - The world will always need Superman.  Makes me wonder how Sam Lane would react to their original plan.

[Proteus]

As a huge Smallville fan, I loved this. I think it was an excellent pilot.

I'm real excited about Captain Luthor since Lex Luthor & SV version is one of my favorite characters ever.

Tyler & Bitsie really sold their version of Clois in the flashbacks.

Edited February 25, 2021 by Proteus

[Kromm]

13 hours ago, madhacker said:

I'm totally in!!

The only thing missing in the end would be if Jordan said "Hey!! Does that mean Aunt Kara is.....?"

They'red better be a crossover this season just to see how the twins get along with her

I'm thinking the show will pretend she doesn't exist. Even though Supes has been on her show. 

It's just easier with the actress likely unwilling to appear as the character after this year. They may be able to recast Morgan Edge.... and apparently Lex Luthor (sort of) but I don't think they'd try that with Kara. So.... she's just the worst Aunt ever and never around. I mean heck, she wasn't even at Martha's funeral. 

[ukgirl71]

I’m hooked - what a great start!  I love Tyler and Bitsie’s chemistry, the writing was tight, the nods to earlier parts of the Superman mythology were pitch perfect, and the twins weren’t the whiny, unsympathetic teens I’d been wary of.

[norcalgal]

2 hours ago, Paloma said:

It was cool to see Dr. Crusher briefly at the end--she doesn't seem to have aged much. I assume she will be in future episodes in Smallville.

Wow - I totally missed this. If it was in fact Gates McFadden, I did not recognize her AT ALL.  

And I agree with @Paloma (or anyone else) who is confused about references to Crisis on Infinite Earth. I don't watch any Arrowverse shows, so I hope they will rarely refer to characters/events on other CW shows.

[Lady Calypso]

I actually thought this was a really strong pilot. I like it better than Walker, so this is likely the new show for The CW I pick up instead. It had some really, really strong family moments, which I enjoyed. I loved the cinematography and how they shot their fight sequences as well. They went all out and they delivered. 

I guess the only qualm I have is Jordan being the center and focus because he's the one with powers. They laid it on thick that he would be receiving powers, not Jonathan, so the reveal was mostly anticlimatic to me, but still shot in a cool way. Jordan is a bit too melodramatic, even if I understand why he's reacting the way that he is. I think I just need more time to get to know the character. Jonathan, as a character, was not developed AS well, but it was nice to see how protective he was over his brother. I'm kind of looking forward to more of Jonathan at the moment. I assume he will get powers either by end of season or several seasons in, depending on how much they want to milk the Supers (Clark and Jordan) vs the Humans (Lois and Jonathan) but I would genuinely be content if Jonathan either didn't get any powers at all or just one single power.

Tyler Hoechlin did a fantastic job as Clark for this. I mean, he did a fantastic job in the Arrowverse prior, but this was a very strong introduction to his own led show. Clark was bumbling and charming, but Superman showed an air of confidence and dominance. Bitsie Tulloch also did great with Lois. I really thought she showed the inner strength of Lois very well and how dedicated she was to protecting her family. And the Clark and Lois scenes were very strong.

And they set up the villain and overarching plots for the season fairly well. I liked the character of Sarah, though her parents need more development for me to really enjoy them. Overall, a solid B+ pilot for me.

[Paloma]

1 hour ago, norcalgal said:

4 hours ago, Paloma said:

It was cool to see Dr. Crusher briefly at the end--she doesn't seem to have aged much. I assume she will be in future episodes in Smallville.

Wow - I totally missed this. If it was in fact Gates McFadden, I did not recognize her AT ALL. 

IMDB says it was her (uncredited) as "Martha's doctor." But I recognized her immediately before looking it up.

[Primal Slayer]

Pilot brought in 1.7 million viewers/.4 demo.

Disappointed that it couldnt beat Walker who brought in 2.4/.4. I was expecting bigger numbers.

[shantown]

1 hour ago, norcalgal said:

I don't watch any Arrowverse shows, so I hope they will rarely refer to characters/events on other CW shows.

I don't necessarily need the big crossovers (I'm actually pretty burnt out on them) but I would like them to reference other people/things in the Arrowverse... it IS part of it, after all. And I like the idea that even though we're focusing on what's up with Superman, the other heroes/stories are still going on out there.

[tennisgurl]

I thought that was a really good pilot, it had a very cinematic quality to it and it did a lot to establish what the show is going to be about. I am really glad that we are skipping the early parts of the Superman story and went right to Lois and Clark already married with kids, Clark being Superman for years, and Lois already knowing the big Superman secret. The characters are already likable and I continue to love Bitsie Tulloch and Tyler Hoechlin as Lois and Clark. Lois has that steely core that makes her such a great reporter but also a real sweetness, and Clark is lovable and dorkily charming while also being dignified and strong. They have so much warmth in their scenes, they really do feel like they are a couple that have been together for years. The actors playing the kids look a bit old for fourteen, but they do at least look like teenagers more or less, which is certainly better than a lot of shows, like in this shows fellow Superman show Smallville. Every teen in that show looked like grad students, at least I believe that Jonathan and Jordan would get carded at a bar. 

The rest of the cast seem promising, I like that this version of General Lane has a good working relationship with Superman, and I like the actress who plays Lana. I like the daughter as well, but her husband seems like a real dick. I guess he will probably become less of a dick, but its a really bad look to show up at a guys moms funeral looking to start shit with him. It will be interesting seeing everyone in Smallville and that they will be exploring some of the issues that small farming communities are dealing with, like meth and losing land to big business, and of course there will be a bigger Evil Plan by Morgan Edge. I wonder if Lois will end up working for the Smallville paper? I am sad that Martha died so quickly, but such is the fate of moms in fiction land. Lois is lucky that her sons aren't the main characters...

Come on Clark, I've seen this all before, you should never hide your mysterious past/powers/species/whatever from your kids, they will always find out anyway and it will always cause more harm than good. The boys finding out now is pretty much the best case scenario, as they have both parents around to explain everything and Jordan's powers only caused some minor damage, even if they feel lied to and betrayed for a bit. Usually in these situations, the parent who hid the big ass secret from their kids dies or disappears or the kid runs off to find out what's going on by themselves and everything just gets worse, so I am glad that at least the kids know now. 

I figured right away that the angsty anxious son would be the one with the powers, it seems like he is being set up as the more main of the twins, being the one who has tons of mental health problems and struggles with relating to his dad while the other son seems to be super happy and well adjusted. I wouldn't be surprised if Jonathan got powers later on, but I can also see him not getting powers and that being a source of conflict later on. He seems really cool about it now, but it could lead to some drama later on. I do like both of the twins, Jonathan is the outgoing jock but he also seems very empathetic and caring, especially towards his brother, and I love that Jordan's powers activated both times by trying to protect his brother. I like their relationship, they pick on each other and bicker but still clearly care about each other. 

Captain Luthor huh? I am guessing that he is a Lex from another Earth that was destroyed in the Crisis and he has ended up here. And like most Lex's, he immediately goes to start his favorite pastime of trying to destroy Superman. It will be interesting if they explore Crisis a bit here, I like some cross references to the other shows in this universe. Not everything has to be a big crossover, but it would be fun to get a reference to cousin Kara or even have her come by to visit. 

[Primal Slayer]

They made a big deviation from Clarks - Supergirl origin to his new origin...he was already born and a baby Pre-COIE and now he seems to have been born once he landed on Earth, with the pod as a kind of incubator. I wonder if they'll even address the change should they have Kara talk about her baby cousin once Supergirl returns.

[Paloma]

21 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

I wonder if Lois will end up working for the Smallville paper?

I can't imagine that a small-town paper would be able to pay Lois enough to meet their financial needs now that Clark has lost his job. And I don't know where the money is coming from to take over the farm. Maybe Lois could keep her presumably high-paying job at the Metropolis paper and work at least partly from home in Smallville? 

[Featherhat]

I liked it but didn't love it but I thought it was fairly strong. I'm glad we didn't have to sit through Supes origins again and that it moved forward quickly but some of TH's monologue delivery was a bit off for me. I do really like him as both Clark and Superman so that's a big positive. I'm still not 100% sold on Bitsie Tulloch as Lois but I think she will grow on me now they have a chance to actually flesh her out. I thought they worked well as a couple.

The boys are okay if kind of archetypes of teen characters right now. Although they really telegraphed that the angsty, stereotypical emo, anxious one was going to be the one with powers right down to him screaming that it was obviously going to be his all American, perfect brother. I suspect Jonathan might get powers later or have an arc where he has powers but realises it's not for him or something. No way they're not going to play with that. 

Jordan's hair in his eyes bothered me all ep and I used to love that look when I was a kid, I'm getting old! 

This is the first time I've ever liked Sam Lane so that was a nice surprise. I liked that he worked with Superman without trying to shoot him out of the sky or capture him and he was right in that falling in love with him is one thing but marrying Superman and having a family with him is quite another. Looking forward to how he fits in. 

Lana? Eh, she was fine. Her husband seemed like a dick but it does sound like it sucks to live in SV right now and be the one putting out exploding meth labs. That said I don't really want a focus on her difficult marriage and Kyle being jealous that the Kents are moving back. There's going to be enough romantic angst with the teens in that area. 

So the boys have never been told or found out about their Dad before but they find the pod the second they actually started looking for "something". Did Clark really think he could keep it a secret forever? Even if neither of the boys had had powers it's still a huge part of himself he was hiding from them. What about when he had to run out during family holidays or parties other special occasions? The therapy session can't have been the only time. Still it gives them an emotional scene I guess. 

So what's causing the sadness to settle over Smallville, it sounded more than just the natural consequence of people leaving farming communities and loss of jobs etc from what the daughter was saying. 

I still have something against the name, it just sounds awkward, I keep expecting it to be Lois and Clark or something. It's like calling a show Batman and Dick. That said I'm glad Lois's name is in the title and she should be too after they killed off almost every other parental figure. 

[opus]

Probably beating a dead horse at this point, but the kids never recognized Supes as Dad without glasses?

[arc]

1 hour ago, Primal Slayer said:

They made a big deviation from Clarks - Supergirl origin to his new origin...he was already born and a baby Pre-COIE and now he seems to have been born once he landed on Earth, with the pod as a kind of incubator. I wonder if they'll even address the change should they have Kara talk about her baby cousin once Supergirl returns.

In the comics, the 1986 reboot (the post-Crisis one) did that too. I believe the writer’s intention there was that Superman would thus be a natural-born American by birthright citizenship and thus eligible to be President. Not that he wanted a President Supes, though.

20 minutes ago, opus said:

Probably beating a dead horse at this point, but the kids never recognized Supes as Dad without glasses?

I genuinely laughed out loud when Clark took off his glasses in front of his sons with the most serious face possible.

[norcalgal]

2 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

I thought that was a really good pilot, it had a very cinematic quality to it and it did a lot to establish what the show is going to be about. I am really glad that we are skipping the early parts of the Superman story and went right to Lois and Clark already married with kids, Clark being Superman for years, and Lois already knowing the big Superman secret. The characters are already likable and I continue to love Bitsie Tulloch and Tyler Hoechlin as Lois and Clark. Lois has that steely core that makes her such a great reporter but also a real sweetness, and Clark is lovable and dorkily charming while also being dignified and strong. They have so much warmth in their scenes, they really do feel like they are a couple that have been together for years. The actors playing the kids look a bit old for fourteen, but they do at least look like teenagers more or less, which is certainly better than a lot of shows, like in this shows fellow Superman show Smallville. Every teen in that show looked like grad students, at least I believe that Jonathan and Jordan would get carded at a bar. 

I guess it's really about the role and the writing, but Bitsie as Juliette on Grimm was not great, but esp. once Juliette was resurrected as a superpowered being. Her default "acting" was to be sulky and act tough.  She's quite the refreshing revelation here, though. IIRC, she's credited as "Elizabeth" on this show, but on Grimm, she was always "Bitsie". I wonder why she decided to change that?

The rest of the cast seem promising, I like that this version of General Lane has a good working relationship with Superman, and I like the actress who plays Lana. I like the daughter as well, but her husband seems like a real dick. I guess he will probably become less of a dick, but its a really bad look to show up at a guys moms funeral looking to start shit with him. It will be interesting seeing everyone in Smallville and that they will be exploring some of the issues that small farming communities are dealing with, like meth and losing land to big business, and of course there will be a bigger Evil Plan by Morgan Edge. I wonder if Lois will end up working for the Smallville paper? I am sad that Martha died so quickly, but such is the fate of moms in fiction land. Lois is lucky that her sons aren't the main characters...

Come on Clark, I've seen this all before, you should never hide your mysterious past/powers/species/whatever from your kids, they will always find out anyway and it will always cause more harm than good. The boys finding out now is pretty much the best case scenario, as they have both parents around to explain everything and Jordan's powers only caused some minor damage, even if they feel lied to and betrayed for a bit. Usually in these situations, the parent who hid the big ass secret from their kids dies or disappears or the kid runs off to find out what's going on by themselves and everything just gets worse, so I am glad that at least the kids know now. 

I'm glad they didn't drag it out though. Yes, In-Universe, Lois and Clark hid the Big Secret for years, but at least we the audience were only subjected to it for half an episode.

I figured right away that the angsty anxious son would be the one with the powers, it seems like he is being set up as the more main of the twins, being the one who has tons of mental health problems and struggles with relating to his dad while the other son seems to be super happy and well adjusted. I wouldn't be surprised if Jonathan got powers later on, but I can also see him not getting powers and that being a source of conflict later on. He seems really cool about it now, but it could lead to some drama later on. I do like both of the twins, Jonathan is the outgoing jock but he also seems very empathetic and caring, especially towards his brother, and I love that Jordan's powers activated both times by trying to protect his brother. I like their relationship, they pick on each other and bicker but still clearly care about each other. 

Captain Luthor huh? I am guessing that he is a Lex from another Earth that was destroyed in the Crisis and he has ended up here. And like most Lex's, he immediately goes to start his favorite pastime of trying to destroy Superman. It will be interesting if they explore Crisis a bit here, I like some cross references to the other shows in this universe. Not everything has to be a big crossover, but it would be fun to get a reference to cousin Kara or even have her come by to visit. 

I just want to post a Big ITA to all this. 

In fact, @tennisgurl and others have convinced me that it's OK if the show mentions the happenings in the Arrowverse from time to time. That would be a nice reward to folks who watch all/most of the Arrowverse shows.

[tennisgurl]

12 minutes ago, norcalgal said:

In fact, @tennisgurl and others have convinced me that it's OK if the show mentions the happenings in the Arrowverse from time to time. That would be a nice reward to folks who watch all/most of the Arrowverse shows.

I totally understand the apprehension about references to shows you don't watch, but I am glad that your feeling better about it! I want this show to stand on its own, but I think having some ties to the greater universe can be a lot of fun. If you ever have any questions about Arrowverse references, I am more than happy to help as I have seen all of them. The good, the bad, and the confusing 🙂