Superman & Lois Continues To Be The Superman We Need

 The fanboys were in a tizzy this week as it was announced that David Corenswet will play Superman in James Gunn's upcoming Superman: Legacy. People online debated whether Henry Cavill should have stayed or whether audiences will even turn out to see this newest interpretation of the Man of Steel on the big screen.  Meanwhile, on the small screen, we have continued to get a solid Kal-El for three seasons in the form of Tyler Hoechlin on Superman & Lois.

The CW series was on the rocks as to whether it would return for a fourth season. The show is CW's #1 show, but also its most expensive. With The CW cancelling shows, and knowing an integrated DC Universe was coming, I knew this series would not have a long run, but I was hoping for another season before we get a new live-action Superman in Corenswet. And then word came down from high that we will get a shortened season four with a smaller budget, and possibly losing some supporting characters because of the money constraints. No matter what, I am excited for this show to return for one more season. Since the season one episode where Clark tells his son about the struggle he faces every time he puts on that suit, and the complete control he must have every time he does, I knew the people making this series get what Superman truly is, and where the character's strengths lie. 

Season 3 gave us a great Superman story. People say the character isn't interesting because he's too powerful and perfect.  But that is what makes a good Superman tale. In this season, his wife, Lois Lane, is diagnosed with cancer.  This isn't some villain trying to take over the world or destroy Metropolis. This is something Superman can't fight.  The most powerful being in the world is helpless to save his wife. That is a good Superman fable. You give him something he can't fight, like his father having a heart attack.  You make this alien human.  And then you have a scene where his sons argue with him about using Kryptionian technology to help, but come to find out Lois and Clark have made the decision not to use it, because it wouldn't be fair to all the other millions of people who have cancer.

My favorite scene this entire season was the diner scene. Clark is frustrated with his wife being sick and comes to find out a man hit his son and pulled a gun on his wife. He walks into that diner, knowing he could kill this man with his pinkie.  But he doesn't. He barely touches him. The control Clark has to have in that moment is remarkable. 

As good as season three is, it does have a few faults for me. Lex Luthor came into the season with two episodes left.  Instead of focusing on Bruno Mannheim most of the season I thought Lex should have been brought in sooner. Although the idea of a man just trying to save his wife from cancer by using any means at his disposal was interesting. The new actor playing Jonathan Kent took some getting used too. But now I think I like this actor better than the other. As for Jordan, well, I've always thought Jordan was a little bitch, and when he started to disobey his parents, I would have taken him to the Fortress of Solitude and put him in a crystal like in Superman II until he gained some perspective. John Henry and Lana hooking up I called back in season 2, and I could care less about Kyle and Chrissy.

They brought back Bizarro in the season finale and did something interesting. The season two premiere saw a beast coming out of the ground, which I thought was Doomsday, and I thought it was too early to bring that character into the series. But the creators tricked us when under the suit was Bizarro. But now, they've almost walked that deception back, and turned Bizzaro into Doomsday. Honestly, I'm not thrilled with it. I think fighting a newly brain-washed Bizarro would have been sufficient. Plus, less costly to the budget. But that last shot of the two characters about to rumble on the moon was cool. My favorite live-action version of Doomsday is still from the Syfy series Krypton.

This season of Superman & Lois gave us a very human story. And that's what this series continues to do. It tells the tale of a man who is burdened with being the most powerful being in the world, but can't save everyone, even those closest to him. Clark is constantly being told by people what he should do but tries to continue to do what he feels is right, and protect all life, not matter how hard it is. I'm going to miss this Superman, and I can only hope James Gunn is going to give us one who, as Mark Waid once wrote, doesn't make the 'Super' more important than the 'man'.

The Problem With Doomsday

WARNING:  This post contains SPOILERS for the season 2 premiere of Superman & Lois!

I would like to think of myself as a bigger Superman fan than the average Joe.  I've been following/reading Superman comics since The Death of Superman event that started 30 years ago this November. This storyline introduced us to a villain known as Doomsday. It was later that we would find out this creature had Kryptonian origins and would be responsible for the death of The Man of Steel.  It is arguably the biggest event in comics history.  Since then, Doomsday has been used in DC Comics in many ways as the big boogie man for not only Kal-El but also other heroes in the DCU.  Doomsday has also been used in other mediums. Superman/Doomsday, Justice League Unlimited, Smallville, Krypton, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a just some of the times Doomsday has shown up on screens big and small.  But with a character like this I feel like he is a crux that some creators lean on too quickly when making a Superman story.  I was quite shocked when Zack Snyder put Doomsday in the second installment of a new Superman movie franchise.  Doomsday is a third, fourth, or even fifth film villain I believe.  It's not a second film, or even second season, villain for The Man of Tomorrow.

In the season premiere of Superman & Lois earthquakes begin to happen in Smallville.  At the end of the episode, we see a hand punch out of rock deep beneath Smallville quarry.  Wearing a greenish outfit, and given that it's buried deep in the Earth, most people assume it's none other than Doomsday himself come to take on Tyler Hoechlin's Superman for this season of The CW series.  But my question is why introduce the biggest storyline in Superman mythology, his greatest battle, in just season 2 of a TV series?  I'm assuming since this is a more seasoned Superman that he's faced most of his rogue's gallery like Metallo and Brainiac (even though Supergirl used a lot of Superman characters and storylines) but it seems he has not yet faced his own death.  

My other worry is that if we're about to get Superman vs Doomsday it will need good special effects to do it justice.  Even though I thought Doomsday was used way too soon in the DCEU, Doomsday did look good, and its battle with DC's Trinity had an epic feel.  The series Smallville brought the character of Doomsday in on season 8 of the series and was played by Sam Witer with a dual identity plot.  But every time he fought Tom Welling it just wasn't satisfying on a CW series budget.  While Superman & Lois I feel has better effects than most Arrowverse series the creators would have to blow an entire season's budget to make it the epic battle it deserves.  To be honest, my favorite version of the fight between Superman and Doomsday is in the animated film, The Death of Superman. 

 The Syfy series Krypton also brought in the character of Doomsday in its second season.  The show was a prequel set on the not-yet-destroyed planet but saw Doomsday's Kryptonian origins.  Bringing in the creature that killed Superman is kind of top-of-the-hill as far as storylines go.  Something that can kill The Last Son of Krypton is the biggest challenge.  As excited as I was to see Doomsday brought to this series, I thought they were writing themselves into a corner much too soon. When Superman fought Zod and his gang of Kryptonians in his first film, Man of Steel, I thought they started too high on the difficulty level. Metallo, Lex Luthor, Parasite; these are more Earth-based smaller villains that can start a new Superman series and then you work your way up to the bigger villains like Zod, Brainiac, Darkseid, and Doomsday.  At least Smallville waited eight years. The last few Superman interpretations can't seem to wait till year 3.  

Now, personally, I don't see Doomsday as Superman's greatest villain.  To me, that title goes to Darkseid.  He's almost as smart as Lex Luthor, and almost as strong as Doomsday.  Superman stands for hope and freedom, while Darkseid stands for fear and oppression.  But Doomsday is a force of nature that (at first appearance) doesn't think, doesn't sleep, and doesn't tire. It just destroys.  Bringing in a force of nature like that so early in a fresh Superman TV (or film) series I feel like gives you little room to one-up the stakes for what we all would hope to be many more seasons. 

Showrunner Tom Belbing has confirmed we will get a full reveal of Doomsday by episode 3 this season, but where are they going with it?  One theory I have is that they may do the full Death/Reign/Return of Superman in this series.  In the comics, Superman's death brings four other characters in to try and replace him.  The phrase "Eradicator" has been brought up in the series.  John Henry Irons a.k.a. "Steel" is already here, and we have a "Superboy" as well. If they wanted to do a version of Reign of the Supermen all they would need to bring in is the villainous "Cyborg Superman". Tackling that three-part storyline over the course of one or two seasons of TV would be something I am interested in.  However, like I've said, a good budget (and story) is needed to do it right.  I just hope the super creators realize it.

Superman & Lois has been my favorite interpretation of the character in a while.  His speech to Jordan in episode 6 last season about the responsibility he feels every time he steps out as Superman was perfect! I think the writers really get what the Man of Steel stands for, and how his relationship with Lois fits into it.  I just hope they have the next three season already planned and bringing in Doomsday is the beginning of great foes, and not the best villain Tyler Hoechlin will have in this series.

5 Things I Want To See in 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice'

Yes, I know.  It's been a LOOOOOOOOONG time since I have written an actual blog on Blogger.  I hopped on the podcast bandwagon and have been riding that engine ever since.  But I felt like a topic such as this one deserved my special touch.  So, I guess that means that from time to time you still may see me write an actual blog.  But don't hold your breath on it.

I am only a few hours away from watching a film most fanboys have wait years, if not their whole lives, to see.  Anyone who knows me, or heard me talk about Man of Steel, knows I had some major issues with it.  Though none of them had to do with their pick of Henry Cavill as Superman.  It's Zach Snyder's style I thought ruined the film, and ever since I heard he was not only continuing with Batman v Superman, but Justice League as well, I've been afraid of the entire DC Cinematic Universe expansion.  I loved the casting of Ben Affleck and Jeremy Irons as Batman and Alfred.  I hated the casting of Jesse Eisenberg and Gal Gadot as Lex Luthor and Wonder Woman.  I want to like this movie.  I'm trying my best to walk into it with hope and an open mind.  But even today, as I see bad headlines online, I am preparing for the worst.

While not a fan of the previous film it was not without merit.  Like I said, I liked Henry Cavill as Clark Kent, I liked Amy Adams and Laurence Fishburne as Lois Lane and Perry White.  And I loved the visual effects.  Seeing Superman and Zod fight, while very unnecessary, was cool to watch.  So in order to correct this ship that Man of Steel has launched I've thought of 5 things I'd like to see in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice to get me on board with the DCCU moving forward.

1)  Superman must feel bad about killing Zod

I get that Superman kills every once and a while.  I've read enough comics to know he avoids it at all costs, but sometimes, it happens.  My main gripe with him snapping Zod's neck in MoS was tat it was the first Superman film of the reboot.  The audience didn't even get one film to establish his rule on not killing.  In Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy the first two entire films established that Batman went out of his way not to kill because it separates him from his enemies.  Is Snyder and writer David Goyer saying Superman has no quarrel with it?

I want Clark to draw the line in this film.  I want him to have thought about his actions and realized that Zod is the last life he'll ever take.  Jor-El sent Kal-El to Earth to "give the people of Earth an ideal to strive towards".  Right now, Clark is down in the mud with the rest of us.  That isn't Superman.  Like Captain America, he is supposed to show us that the right thing to do is usually the hardest choice.

2)  Keep Doomsday's screen time minimal

When I saw that Lex was going to turn Zod's corpse into the villain known as Doomsday I was horrified.  And not by Doomsday's appearance.  It was that they took this iconic, powerful, villain and put him in the 2nd film of this cinematic universe.  Marvel has been teasing Thanos for 6 films!  In the comics, Doomsday took out the entire Justice League before killing Superman.  Now, it appears that a rookie Superman and Wonder Woman, along with Batman, can handle this force of nature.  Um.....no.  

However, if Doomsday shows up at the end of this film, and the Trinity realizes they can't take down this beast alone, so then they form the Justice League to help them.  I'd be on board with that.  If you're going to waste a good villain like Zod in the first Superman film, and then double tap that bad decision by turning him into Doomsday, at least make it worth our while. 

    

3)  Show me Darkseid

We've all seen the parademons and the Omega symbol in the Batman v Superman trailer.  So we can all guess that Darkseid will be the big bad guy in the Justice League film.  In the mid-credit scene for The Avengers we got our first glimpse of Thanos and had non-comic readers saying, "Isn't that Red Skull?"  I want a tease like that.  I've seen parademons; show me the big guy.  Show me the ultimate galactic villain that Warner Bros and DC thought it would be ok to have in the 5th film of their cinematic universe(Marvel is at 13 and still not fought Thanos).  I just wanna know what he looks like.  I figure the Justice League film will loosely be based on Geoff Johns New 52 storyline; Origin.  Or if you want to check out the animated film, Justice League: War to get an idea what the live-action film may be like, it's also based in Origin. 

4)  Lois supporting Clark

In several storylines we see that Lois is Superman's anchor to humanity.  I will also give some credit to Ma and Pa Kent.  Clark is a being who is so powerful he can take over the world; possibly the galaxy.  But his human emotions, like love, are what keep him humble.  Without them, he'd really think he was a god.  Governments and vigilantes are coming after Clark for the destruction of Metropolis.  He will feel ashamed.  He will feel like his mission is not worth it.  Lois has to be there to support him.  To know that world needs someone like him to give them hope.  And Lois needs to be there for him so that he doesn't have to be "Superman" all the time.  I love that Lois knows who Clark is right from that start.  So let's not waste it.

5)  Don't screw up Wonder Woman!!!!!

Ben Affleck has proven himself in recent years to be not only an accomplished actor, but a great film maker as well.  I have no worries that he will make a good Batman.  But giving the most iconic female superhero character in history to a model who is trying to start an acting career?  What were they thinking!!!!!  

Granted, I have been trying to hold off judgement on Gal Gadot until I see the film, but I have been VERY scared of this casting choice since the beginning.  The only thing I've seen Gadot in is the Fast & Furious films and I was not impressed at all.  Rumor has it WW isn't in the film enough to make or break it, but with her own solo film coming out next year I feel like the entire female superhero film sub-genre is on Gal Gadot's shoulders.  And those shoulders look like they can barely lift a lasso.