S01.E02: Heritage

[cambridgeguy]

5 hours ago, Paloma said:

Yea, I know the whole concept of Superman is fantasy, but since this show seems to be focusing at least in part on real-world domestic issues, I really want to see some explanation of the family's finances with Clark earning nothing and Lois working for a small-time paper that hasn't even been able to hire other staff.

If Lois is the world's most famous journalist then she could easily get some sort of book deal or have a bunch of other places clamoring to hire her, even on a part time basis.

As for Clark, well, it's a good thing he can make gem quality diamonds from coal.  Yes, I know that's a movie thing but Superman III has already been nodded to once.

[arc]

In most modern versions of Superman in the comics, Clark is a very successful reporter in his own right.

TBH I'm hard pressed to think of the real world's most famous print journalist. But then again I felt it was unlikely that Edge's ham-handed editing didn't cause a massive crisis at the Planet. If Bezos tried rewriting a star WaPo reporter, I hope that the senior staff would all resign in protest.

[Paloma]

1 hour ago, arc said:

TBH I'm hard pressed to think of the real world's most famous print journalist.

Maybe Woodward and Bernstein (together or separately as reporters and authors--they have written many best-sellers). I guess if Lois is supposed to be in that category, she could easily get a book contract with upfront money. But that doesn't seem to be what she is interested in doing. 

[Chicago Redshirt]

9 hours ago, Paloma said:

Maybe Woodward and Bernstein (together or separately as reporters and authors--they have written many best-sellers). I guess if Lois is supposed to be in that category, she could easily get a book contract with upfront money. But that doesn't seem to be what she is interested in doing. 

Seems to me that Lois would be more famous than Woodward and Bernstein combined and then squared. 

Putting aside all her other scoops over the years, breaking the news that there was authentic alien life in Superman form and basically being the go-to person to report his exploits for two decades would put Lois in a position to be a millionaire several times over in a world that is close to our reality. 

Google suggests that Woodward has a net worth of $20 million and Bernstein has a net worth of $16 million. 

Even if we accept for argument's sake that Lois alone didn't seek to branch out her talents beyond straight up daily news reporting, one would have to think that she's been earning upwards of $100k a year for most of the last two decades as the best reporter for the country's biggest newspaper. 

And Clark has a;ways been portrayed as a star reporter too. 

Which brings to a bone I have to pick with the show. 

I know part of its mindset is to be lionizing old fashioned Americana and all that. But really, there is no reason for Lois to be writing pieces for the Smallville Gazette or to answer to a reporter/editor (no matter how well intentioned) who is basically half her age, much less because Morgan Edge rewrote her story into a puff piece.

She is goddamned Lois Lane. The writers should realize how much shit Morgan Edge would get in when basically every other news outlet in the world saw that and wrote about Morgan Edge not just spiking her story but turning it into a puff piece. If he just killed the story, at least he would have plausible deniability about whether it was ready for prime time. By actually running a story that doesn't sound like Lois, he would bring far more attention to himself than just letting it be. Because at present (despite her rep) Lois literally has nothing that in the public record. Morgan Edge did some deals that didn't work out too well for at least one other small town and maybe some others. That's easily spun.

But killing her story not only incentivizes her to dig deeper, but also any of her colleagues in the media who don't work for Morgan's company.

Also, it's 2021 (at least here. Maybe this is taking place in our future to allow the boys to be 14). Anyway, it doesn't really make sense that Lois Lane, the world's most famous journalist, would hitch her star to the Gazette when (presumably) she could write for Catco or some other big paper/magazine, write books, blog, tweet, appear on the Arrowverse equivalent of CNN/FOX etc etc. 

[Affogato]

1 hour ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

 

Also, it's 2021 (at least here. Maybe this is taking place in our future to allow the boys to be 14). Anyway, it doesn't really make sense that Lois Lane, the world's most famous journalist, would hitch her star to the Gazette when (presumably) she could write for Catco or some other big paper/magazine, write books, blog, tweet, appear on the Arrowverse equivalent of CNN/FOX etc etc. 

It supports the Smallville small business bureau though. And it is a platform to use her name to give what  is happening in Smallville a national platform. Also David and Goliath.
 

She doesn’t havr to work exclusively for the gazette. 
 

it also ovcurs to me that if Superman is seen it can be a cover for him. He was in town visiting her. Fixing the router as a favor. Etc. and the world will know she is in Smallville so it is all above board. 

Edited March 5, 2021 by Affogato

[arc]

3 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

Anyway, it doesn't really make sense that Lois Lane, the world's most famous journalist, would hitch her star to the Gazette when (presumably) she could write for Catco or some other big paper/magazine, write books, blog, tweet, appear on the Arrowverse equivalent of CNN/FOX etc etc. 

Hell, real world fired/quit high profile columnists (I realize that's not exactly the same thing as journalists) are making mid six figures just on Substack. Lois absolutely cannot be both the world's most famous journalist and scrabbling for money.

[Chicago Redshirt]

4 hours ago, Affogato said:

It supports the Smallville small business bureau though. And it is a platform to use her name to give what  is happening in Smallville a national platform. Also David and Goliath.
 

She doesn’t havr to work exclusively for the gazette. 
 

it also ovcurs to me that if Superman is seen it can be a cover for him. He was in town visiting her. Fixing the router as a favor. Etc. and the world will know she is in Smallville so it is all above board. 

The economics of journalism mean generally it's not going to make much short-term difference to the Gazette that they are now featuring Lois Lane. Most of the money in journalism comes from ad sales rather than readers. More readers does ideally translate into both more ad sales and higher rates. But any boost by Lois's jumping aboard is likely to be a degree or two too removed to getting more advertisers, higher rates, etc.

Meanwhile, to effect change, getting published in a medium that has (let's say) 50k readers is obviously less desirable than going out to a million-plus Twitter followers, subscribers to a big paper, or viewers on the Arrowverse equivalent of Anderson Cooper. 

Lois could obviously do multiple things in addition to writing for the Smallville Gazette, but the problem is she's not likely to do any of those things. She is going to be just writing for the Smallville Gazette because that is the story TPTB want to tell. The Kents will be just getting by or may even have financial trouble instead of being millionaires because that is the story TPTB want to tell. I just have to get over my issues with these things and enjoy the show for what it is.

[Chicago Redshirt]

On 3/2/2021 at 10:07 PM, shapeshifter said:

Dear Show, please don't fall down any love triangle manholes. 
I loved the first few seasons of Smallville, and a couple of seasons of Arrow, and at least a season of Supergirl, and the first (most recent?) season of Stargirl. 
Just give me a couple of good seasons of this show.
Okay? 

Sadly, I think the best we can hope for given the track record of the WB/CW is a couple years without TOO many love triangles or with them not being too central to the story. 

Let's run down most of the main superhero fare:

Smallville started off with Clark/Lana/Chloe and Clark/Lana/Whitney. Over the next few seasons, it progressed into variations including Clark/Lana/Lex, Clark/Lana/Adam Knight, Ma/Pa/Lionel, Clark/Lois/Ollie, Jimmy/Chloe/Doomsday and probably a few I'm forgetting.

Arrow started of with Ollie/Laurel/Tommy and you have to throw a nod to Ollie/Laurel/Sara.

Flash started off with Barry/Iris/Eddie and also had hints of Barry and Iris seeing other people before the settled down.

Supergirl  had Kara/Jimmy/Winn.

Batwoman had Kate/Sophie/Sophie's husband.

Then again, Legends has been pretty OK at avoiding actual love triangles for the most part. Recently, though, they have been having some sort of Constantine/Zari/Steel thing. Black Lightning has been 100 percent triangle free? I remember Jeff had a sexy assistant principal who seemed interested but I don't think anything developed. 

With Superman & Lois, it is pretty unlikely that they will ever introduce a character who represents a real serious temptation for either Clark or Lois. Yes, Lana is an ex but I don't think that they are playing it as though she still has feelings for Clark, and they definitely don't seem to be showing Clark as having any residual romantic feelings for her.

So that leaves the twins. I assume we are destined for at least a few more episodes of Sarah/Jordan/Sean. I just hope that we never get a Jordan/Jonathan/X triangle.

[kirkola]

On 3/2/2021 at 11:27 PM, Jediknight said:

Yeah, Jonathan and Jordan's relationship is a highlight.  It's clear they've always had each other's backs, and always loved each other.  And I'm gonna say it, that's the reason Jordan failed his test.  His powers were unlocked protecting his brother, they both have powers, but they're the key to each other's powers.

Sarah, your boyfriend isn't sweet.  He was willing to seriously injure Jordan over a kiss, and wouldn't let go of his drive for revenge even after you told him to knock it off.

You never go to war with Lois, that's just a losing battle.

As to Jonathan & Jordan, I actually said "they must be the wonder twins" to which my siblings graciously knew I meant "they need each other" and not "one turns into water and the other into animals".  (I really ought to read more comics and not just rely on the history of TV/movie superheros).

Also, I am loving this version of Lois.  Her superpower continues to be the pen...Morgan Edge doesn't stand a chance.  (Assuming the town doesn't metaphorically skin her alive before she finishes the job...)

[arc]

The shoulder muscle padding seems to have been toned down since the pilot but it's still a bit much. Meanwhile, Paul Bettany confirmed on Colbert's show that in WandaVision, he wears a padded suit as well, but it's so much slimmer that it's not nearly as comical. (pun not intended)

[Trini]

Not much commentary to add to what's already been said.  Lois' arc is starting out promising; hopefully Sarah's sister will get lines sometime this season; two Black antagonists is still not a good look.

 

On 3/2/2021 at 10:48 PM, Primal Slayer said:

It is funny that we have 3 shows that have reporters as major characters and only two episodes in an this show definitely showcases it best. Definitely better than The Flash writers handle Iris being a reporter.

It is 'funny', seeing as how the showrunner for this show was also a writer and showrunner for The Flash, but for some reason, couldn't manage any consistent reporting stories for Iris. Hmm.

 

On 3/3/2021 at 4:35 PM, arc said:

I think it’s ridiculous the bad guy sacrificed both his ship and his power armor for so little gain.

Why would they make him so powerful just to immediately turn around and nerf him? Yeah, it didn't make sense. At least he shouldn't have lost both in the same episode.

 

On 3/3/2021 at 8:37 PM, madhacker said:

... But I'm really disappointed in this version of the Fortress compared to Supergirl or even Smallville. C'mon this is the freaking Fotress Of Solitude.

I'm going to be so annoyed when Supergirl comes back, and their version of the Fortress is different, even though they're supposed to be in the same universe now.

[legaleagle53]

2 hours ago, Trini said:

Not much commentary to add to what's already been said.  Lois' arc is starting out promising; hopefully Sarah's sister will get lines sometime this season; two Black antagonists is still not a good look.

 

It is 'funny', seeing as how the showrunner for this show was also a writer and showrunner for The Flash, but for some reason, couldn't manage any consistent reporting stories for Iris. Hmm.

 

Why would they make him so powerful just to immediately turn around and nerf him? Yeah, it didn't make sense. At least he shouldn't have lost both in the same episode.

 

I'm going to be so annoyed when Supergirl comes back, and their version of the Fortress is different, even though they're supposed to be in the same universe now.

Superman and Supergirl always WERE in the same universe (Earth-38). What's changed is that that Earth has  now merged with what used to be Earth-1, so they now have direct access to the Flash and the Legends of Tomorrow from that Earth, and there  has also been some tweaking to their histories as they remember them (Superman and Lois now have twins, for example, whereas Jonathan Kent was originally an only child born in Argo City). So it's possible that the Fortress also changed to the one that Superman uses, so it is  now also the one that Supergirl has always known.

Edited March 7, 2021 by legaleagle53

[Trini]

2 hours ago, legaleagle53 said:

Superman and Supergirl always WERE in the same universe (Earth-38).

Right, all these Crisis changes are confusing everything, LOL! But my point still stands they're going to be different on both shows.

[Quark]

Good episode.

I have to say, Clark really is an appalling Dad.

Captain Luthor seems interesting.

Something seems really off with Lana.

[Nialla]

On 3/2/2021 at 10:27 PM, Jediknight said:

Yeah, Jonathan and Jordan's relationship is a highlight.  It's clear they've always had each other's backs, and always loved each other.  And I'm gonna say it, that's the reason Jordan failed his test.  His powers were unlocked protecting his brother, they both have powers, but they're the key to each other's powers.

I'm also enjoying the twin's relationship. I'm also thinking the powers thing is not only tied to Jordan protecting his brother, but perhaps because they're twins. Take both to the Fortress of Solitude and see what holo-grandpa says about them together.

It would be a twist to give them powers, but only if the other is within a certain distance or something along those lines. If they ever tried to use their powers like dead ole dad to fight bad guys, that could be a weakness greater than Kryptonite.

[AnimeMania]

I posted this in the media section and I just want to repost this here because it might explain why some posters are recalling scenes that others might not remember seeing. It would be good if people who has seen both versions might mention what was in the additional footage.

Superman & Lois Extended Episodes to Stream on The CW App

As they are added to The CW App, new episodes of Superman & Lois Season 1 will feature additional bonus footage not seen in the television broadcast. This starts with episode 2 and continues for the rest of Season 1. The amount of additional content will vary per episode. The extended episodes appear on the CW App the day after they are broadcast on the CW.

[Kromm]

Okay, I think we've got a pretty good idea which version of Superman this version of Luthor had experience with.  This is an interesting way to bring that to the CWverse, through the fear of Superman becoming that. 

[Kromm]

On 3/4/2021 at 12:05 PM, PAForrest said:

However, I do think the racism angle, intentional or not, with both Luthor and Sarah's BF cast as the bad guys of color was one big tone deaf misstep

The articles about that writer leaving all seemed hyperfocused on a disagreement about the possible race(s) of the Kents.  At the time I thought diversity with them might have been a missed opportunity, but not something to get that mad about. 

I think a lot was being left out of reporting on that conflict. That writer presumably knew there'd be two black antagonists and was looking for some balance. That's the missing piece that I didn't know, and I assume the same was true for most people. 

[arc]

Speaking of “heritage” per the episode title and taking (one of) the boys to see their holo grandpa, I wonder if Clark and Lois ever thought about giving the boys Kryptonian names. And that makes me think about what a shame it is that the boys don’t know the Kryptonian language. All because Clark was so stingy about his secret.

(which, BTW, was dumb. What if one of the boys had developed super hearing or x-ray vision or even just the ability to perceive his dad disappearing at super speed?)

[Parker]

So, Jordan goes from complaining that he might have super powers to angst that me might not.  There's no pleasing him.

The old trope of the cute nice girl having a jerk boyfriend has reared it's ugly head.   And why does a guy go after a guy kissing his girl and not say hardly anything to his girl?

Plus, after all of this, Jordan, the next day, is talking to and wants to spend time with the girl, like the previous event didn't happen to either of them causing even more trouble.

The Superman stuff is taking a backseat to all this soap opera trope.

This show for me is rivaling Supergirl as the worst first season for a super hero show.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Chicago Redshirt]

On 3/14/2021 at 9:50 PM, arc said:

Speaking of “heritage” per the episode title and taking (one of) the boys to see their holo grandpa, I wonder if Clark and Lois ever thought about giving the boys Kryptonian names. And that makes me think about what a shame it is that the boys don’t know the Kryptonian language. All because Clark was so stingy about his secret.

(which, BTW, was dumb. What if one of the boys had developed super hearing or x-ray vision or even just the ability to perceive his dad disappearing at super speed?)

Minor possible spoiler in that I refer to things that were in episodes beyond 2 that have aired as of 3/22:

Clark tells Jordan he was named for Jor-El, while Jonathan was of course named for his adoptive dad. I don''t know if Lois was cool with not getting to name one of the kids for Sam or for some other relative (or even non-relative) of hers.

In a vacuum, not telling the kids anything seems reasonable. Clark claimed to have had them tested and the results showed they were unlikely to develop powers. So from the perspective of them finding out through suddenly having the ability to fly or something, they thought it wasn't a big chance.

On the other hand, could you really trust a 8-year-old, a 10-year-old, even a 14-year-old, to have a fully developed sense of judgment, to understand the ramifications of what it means that their dad is Superman, to not let the secret slip in a moment of weakness or stupidity or excitement?

 

 

8 hours ago, Parker said:

So, Jordan goes from complaining that he might have super powers to angst that me might not.  There's no pleasing him.

The old trope of the cute nice girl having a jerk boyfriend has reared it's ugly head.   And why does a guy go after a guy kissing his girl and not say hardly anything to his girl?

In fairness to Jordan, I think his original complaint was not so much "I don't want to have these powers" but "I can't believe you lied about us being half-alien, especially now that I know that's probably why I felt like such an outsider and I now feel like a freak."

Well, a lot of guys might give the girlfriend the benefit of the doubt as to her interest and involvement in a kiss in general. Jealousy, testosterone, wishful thinking and flat out denial will do that. But in this specific case, it seemed pretty clear that Jordan did in fact initiate the kiss with no prompting from Sarah. So Sean was justified at least somewhat in focusing on Jordan and not thinking that Sarah had tried kissing Jordan. 

Edited March 23, 2021 by Chicago Redshirt

[arc]

Nah, Jordan being sort of thematically named after Jor-El is simply not the same thing IMO. I was coming at it from my own perspective as a second-gen Chinese Canadian. I have a Chinese name (not legally, all my official given names are English) and an English name. And if my English name had been chosen to sort of sound like my Chinese name (it wasn’t, but I know people, including my dad, where that’s the case), it still wouldn’t full on replace having a Chinese name.

Jonathan and Jordan are descendants of Krypton as much as Kal-El is. They deserve to know their heritage. And holo Jor-El is a colossal dick to effectively say Jordan doesn’t measure up because he doesn’t have significant powers. No Kryptonian had super powers on Krypton.

[Chicago Redshirt]

6 hours ago, arc said:

Nah, Jordan being sort of thematically named after Jor-El is simply not the same thing IMO. I was coming at it from my own perspective as a second-gen Chinese Canadian. I have a Chinese name (not legally, all my official given names are English) and an English name. And if my English name had been chosen to sort of sound like my Chinese name (it wasn’t, but I know people, including my dad, where that’s the case), it still wouldn’t full on replace having a Chinese name.

Jonathan and Jordan are descendants of Krypton as much as Kal-El is. They deserve to know their heritage. And holo Jor-El is a colossal dick to effectively say Jordan doesn’t measure up because he doesn’t have significant powers. No Kryptonian had super powers on Krypton.

Different versions of Superman have different interpretations of Superman's relationships with Smallville, Metropolis and Krypton and with what Krypton and its people were. Most of the cinematic versions of Superman have had Jor-El as a wise and benevolent person who seemed to have a basically human sense of morality. Smallville had Jor-El's motivations all over the map, including cultivating Clark as a potential ruler of all mankind. And similarly, Krypton has been depicted anywhere from Earth-but-with-better tech to a completely cold and sterile culture.

This Superman doesn't seem to think of himself as Kal-El primarily. And it seems to me that this Jor-El is at best insensitive and at worst a racist prick. They might not have the equivalent of Kryptonian second names, or Clark because of his own relationship with Krypton and Jor-El might have not seen fit to give them ones. Presumably, this show follows the common path where Clark was raised fully as a human until his teen years and basically as a young adult gets filled in about that part of his nature. 

[John Potts]

If Jordan only has 1% his dad’s ability to absorb the sun’s rays maybe stick him on a sunbed to boost the rate he absorbs sunlight instead of just writing him off as a useless non Kryptonian? It's not as if Kryptonians even have powers on Krypton, that's an artefact of Earth's sun (at least in most continuities). Stupid dead Krypto dad!

Didn’t Jonathan get hit by his own side when he was trying out as QB? It was hard to tell when they were both wearing the same uniforms (wouldn't the opposition wear a coloured bib or something?). I guess (if he was on Jonathan's team) the wide receiver(?) could argue “He didn’t know the play so he wasn’t where he was supposed to be”, but you’d think clocking somebody on your own side would get you benched pretty quick.

On 3/3/2021 at 3:00 AM, scarynikki12 said:

Captain Luthor is handsome. Just an observation. He doesn’t seem to know Kal-El and Clark Kent are the same person so that’s interesting. And comes from a world with evil Superman so I get it but some reconnaissance is your friend in this case Captain. 

Though perhaps his “Shoot first and ask questions… never” policy helped turn Supes evil? Also, not seeing him as the evil genius he’s supposed to be given he’s now lost both his ship and his super suit in his first two meetings with his nemesis.

On 3/3/2021 at 10:43 AM, arc said:

"You ruined their childhood, Clark." As if Clark had just told them Santa isn't real. How is this ruining their childhood? He told them why he ducks out of their lives every now and then: because he's Superman and he's responding to emergencies. That's way better than having a dad abandon you at random moments for bad reasons!

To say nothing of accidentally shattering somebody’s arm or burning somebody’s head off because you didn’t know you could do that. But Sam Lane is traditionally suspicious of Supes, so is in line with his usual personality.

On 3/3/2021 at 1:38 PM, cambridgeguy said:

Still better than Brando Jor-El, who insisted that he give up his powers (and I'm not sure why Clark needed permission from his holodad anyway).

Maybe he'd read Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex?

On 3/4/2021 at 2:55 AM, Snapdragon said:

I feel like Lana is going to turn out to be in on whatever Morgan Edge is up to.  She's just giving me really shady vibes and it seems like she's trying to re-direct Lois every time Edge's actions being suspect comes up.

I’m guessing she isn’t, but her husband is. That gives her the opportunity to be conflicted between supporting her husband and doing what is right for the town (the other way round is possible but unlikely, seeing as Lana is a legacy character and her husband isn’t).

On 3/7/2021 at 1:30 PM, Quark said:

I have to say, Clark really is an appalling Dad.

I'd say he was a flawed dad (just like every other dad).