Superman and Lois: Season 2, Episode 15 - Waiting For Superman

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

The two Earths are merging and only Superman can stop it, yet he's been left powerless by Ally Allston. Only a miracle can save the world now, but will it come in time? Or will others rise up to save the day?


Influences

Superman: Our Worlds At War, The Final Night (Superman entering the sun to kickstart his powers) and Superman: Miracle Monday


Goofs

The episode doesn't make it clear what happened to Jon-El and Lana-Rho after their capture in the last episode. If they are locked up on the normal Earth, why doesn't it pain Jonathan Kent and Lana Lang? (Perhaps John Henry Irons got his device from 211 working?) Alternatively, they could have been sent back to Bizarro world, but then why wouldn't they separate the two Allys?

The revelation that Superman and Lois is not set on Earth-Prime and that there are no other superheroes creates something of a plot hole regarding John Diggle's cameo appearance in 112, where he mentions "...Doppelgangers, other worlds, glowing boxes, losing the people I love..." as well as someone named Oliver saying Superman is the best we have. (This could be a different Oliver than Oliver Queen, or the Oliver Queen of this world is an ARGUS agent rather than a vigilante.) 


Performances

With this episode, Tyler Hoechlin establishes himself as the Superman of a generation.


Artistry

The special effects work is fantastic all around as the worlds merge and shift at random, but the battle between Superman and Parasite is bar none the best use of CGI in the Arrowverse ever.


Super Trivia

The episode title comes from a song recorded by Daughtry in 2013. It is not to be confused with the similarly titled Flaming Lips song "Waitin' For A Superman.

The biggest revelation to come out of this episode was that it revealed that Superman and Lois is set on an alternate Earth apart from Arrowverse Earth-Prime and that Superman is the only superhero on it.

Chrissy Beppo's message, as relayed by the Department of the Defense, is almost a word for word copy of the episode's official synopsis as released by The CW.

Lana references Superman's revised motto in the comics from 2021 onwards: "Truth, Justice and a Better Tomorrow." Beyond referencing Superman's original nom de plume as "The Man of Tomorrow," the change also reflected Superman's status as a global hero rather than a purely American one.

The day Superman defeated Ally Allston is declared Miracle Monday. This was the name of a classic Superman novel written by Elliot S! Maggin. The story features Superman fighting a being of pure chaos, winning by virtue of simple goodness and establishes the titular holiday as being held on the third Monday of every May in the DC Universe.

This became the last episode of the series to feature Jordan Elsass as Jonathan Kent. He stepped down from the role between seasons, due to unspecified health issues.

John Diggle makes mention of Intergang and Bruno Mannheim. In the Superman comics, Intergang is a criminal group that makes use of advanced alien technology in their crimes. Bruno Mannheim is their leader. It is suspected that he will be the chief villain of Season 3.


Technobabble

General Lane makes reference to a DoD program that used bufotoxin secreted by toads as part of an experiment.

John Henry's plan is to explode X-Kryptonite inside the void between worlds, using it to destroy the portal to Bizarro World.

Natalie suggests that instead, the transfer the power of their suits into the pod and use that to disrupt the portal.


Dialogue Triumphs

Chrissy: With the authorization of the Department of Defense, today I can relay to you, not only is the merging of the planets real, it is happening, and Ally Allston, or whoever she is now that she and her Bizarro self are one, is responsible. If Ally succeeds in merging these two worlds, each of us will be forced against our will to merge with our other selves, turning us into... I don't know what. And I can also confirm that for the first time in 20 years we can't wait for Superman to save us. Our world's hero is now powerless because of this parasite twin. So I urge everyone watching this video, please stay home, be with your loved ones, and pray for a miracle. 

Superman: How do we stop Ally?
Tal-Rho: Well, brother, we aren't going to stop her. I am.
Superman: Tal, she drained me of all my energy, nearly killed me. I don't know that you alone is gonna be enough.
Tal-Rho: Perhaps, but what other choice do we have? Brother, for years I've watched you do things no other hero is capable of. It's rather inspired me to have a go myself.
Superman: So this time last year, you were trying to destroy the world, and now you're fighting for it.
Tal-Rho: I'm not fighting for the world, Kal. I'm fighting for you. You and your family. The only people on this planet that truly matter to me.

Sam Lane: Boys! I've been working for the DOD for a long time. I've seen things you would not believe. Glimpses of other worlds and the leagues of superheroes they have on them. And even though we only have your father on this planet, thank God that we do, because he's the finest of any Earth. So don't go losing hope yet. I sure as hell haven't. Your mother hasn't and I guarantee you, neither has Superman. 

Superman: Have some more.


Continuity

Chrissy is allowed to broadcast the truth about Superman being depowers and the worlds merging.

Kyle Cushing disappears as the worlds start to merge.

Lana takes her daughters to look for Kyle.

Superman says that he's never encountered something like this in his career. This is another major clue that the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths didn't take place in this reality.

Natalie's tablet begins beeping as the worlds start merging.

Natalie picks up a signal from John Henry and guesses that he is in the void between worlds. She makes out enough to hear him say he needs her escape pod.

Tal-Rho shows up for the first time since 212, having also been transported to Bizarro World. He says that since Superman is powerless, he figured he might be needed and possibly welcomed.

Lois is left behind on Bizarro World after the rest of her family is sent back to their Earth.

Sam Lane finds Lois, having been left on Bizarro World after his jeep disappeared while he was driving to the Kent Farm.

Sam and Lois go searching for Bizarro Chrissy Beppo, after Lois remembers that she helped Anderson find Bizarro Lois in 210.

Bizarro Lois appears on the regular Earth, which Natalie takes as a sign that she needs to help her father.

Jordan and Jonathan both acknowledge Natalie as part of their family and she says she liked having brothers.

Superman says that one year has passed since Tal-Rho tried to take over their Earth.

Tal-Rho goes after Ally, but she is too much for him.

Jordan saves Tal-Rho from falling. He thanks him and says he is in his debt.

Superman says the only one who can stop Ally at this point his him.

Superman asks Tal-Rho to throw him into the sun, hoping it will kick-start his powers again.

Superman affirms that Lois is the smartest person in the Kent family.

Natalie transports her pod into the Shuster Mines and through the portal into the void.

Lana discovers that Kyle vanished along with Mitch and Fuller from some of the other fire-fighters.

Lana tells the fire-fighters to go home and stay with their families rather than try and keep the peace in Smallville.

Sam and Lois find the Bizarro Chrissy, but she vanishes just as they start communicating.

Planes around the world start crashing as their pilots are sent to the other Earth.

Kyle finds Lois.

John Henry is in the middle of recording a final message for Natalie when she finds him. Unfortunately, she missed a part of his message - the one where he asked her to use the escape pod to bring him as much X-Kryptonite as possible.

Natalie and John Henry use their suits to try and disrupt the portal with an energy wave unleashed by the escape pod, even though this will leave them trapped in the void.

Kyle thinks that being taken from his family is karma for his cheating on Lana.

Kyle disappears after Lois tells him that she doesn't believe that.

Sam Lane goes back to Earth and finds Jonathan and Jordan after the latest world shift. They tell him about Clark's plan to kick-start his powers.

Sam Lane tells his grandsons that he and Superman have seen other worlds and the leagues of superheroes that exist on them. He also confirms Superman is the only superhero on their Earth. This proves conclusively that Superman and Lois is not set on Earth-Prime.

Superman's plan to be supercharged by going into the sun works.

Natalie and John Henry tell one another that they are their personal heroes, as they disrupt the portal.

Superman saves John Henry and Natalie from Ally.

The submarine with Superman saved in 201 crashes near the Kent farm as a side-effect of the Earths demerging.

Superman defeats Ally Allston by giving her more energy than she can absorb. This causes the two Allys to demerge.

Natalie and John Henry catch the Allys, as Superman demerges the Earths with a solar flare release of all the energy he absorbed.

A holiday is established in honor of Superman saving the world, called Miracle Monday.

Clark apologizes to Lana for not being there when she was running for Mayor. He also promises to be completely honest with her from now on about his life.

Lois says she needs to tell Chrissy the truth about Clark. Chrissy takes this to mean that Clark lied on his resume about working places beyond The Daily Planet. Instead, Lois tells her that Clark is Superman.

Lois apologizes for lying to Chrissy in the past, but says if they are going to be partners on the paper they will need to be able to trust each other completely.

Jonathan Kent is shown with Candice Pergande, with the implication they are dating again.

Sarah and Jordan make-up, agreeing to reset, be honest and talk to each other about their feelings as they figure out where they stand. Jordan apologizes for not telling her about his powers. She apologies for not talking about her kissing a girl at summer camp.

Kyle asks Lana to dance at the celebration. She turns him down and says she isn't there yet and doesn't think she ever will be. He accepts that.

Both Ally Allstons are revealed to be in DoD custody, kept in the same cell.

Lois interviews Ally to ask if she ever did get the "complete" feeling she was looking for while she was merged. It turns out she didn't.

Jonathan is still working at the general store and has to wear an apron to work.

Tal-Rho has matching work trucks delivered to the Kent farm as gifts to his nephews, with a card saying they came from "Uncle Tal." 

Tal-Rho is revealed to have made his way to Bizzaro World, figuring that it needs a hero now that its Superman and Tal-Rho are dead.

John Henry Irons meets with John Diggle, who last appeared in 112.

Diggle reveals that Bruno Mannheim, the head of Intergang, killed the John Henry Irons of this Earth and that he is investigating why.

Sam takes Lucy on a trip to Metropolis.

Clark takes the rest of the family on an ocean trip, where he build a new Fortress of Solitude using a crystal to create an island. He says that this one, however, will be a lair for the entire family.


Location

Bizarro World


Untelevised Adventures

At some point in the past, both Superman and General Lane worked with the superheroes of other Earths.


The Bottom Line

A fantastic episode, which has the unfortunate effect of starting to shut the door on the Arrowverse.  With Superman and Lois established as its own beast and The Flash's upcoming season 9 confirmed as its last, there's a sad sense of ennui to the episode despite the hopeful ending. Hopefully this will be the start of something big, much like how Arrow progressed from a Smallville spin-off into a fresh start for superhero television.

Superman and Lois: Season 2, Episode 14 - Worlds War Bizarre

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

Strange things begin to occur as Ally Allson's plan to merge Earth-Prime and Bizarro World rolls out. With Superman powerless, John Henry and Natalie Irons throw themselves into the task of understanding how Ally's powers work and finding a way to counter them. Meanwhile, Chrissy and Lois threaten to go public with the truth about the worlds merging, as Lana tries to keep the peace in Metropolis.


Influences

Superman: Our Worlds At War (partial title lift, idea of war between two planets)


Goofs

Why does merging Earth-Prime and Bizarro World change the sun? Is Ally merging whole dimensions rather than just a single planet? 


Performances

Tyler Hoechlin gets some of his best Superman speeches ever in this episode.


Artistry

The fight between Jordan and Natalie against Jon-El and Lana-Rho is fantastic.


Super Trivia

John enables something called the Vaporlock Protocol to prevent Natalie from following after him into the space between worlds. In the comics, Vaporlock was one of the codenames used by Natasha Irons as a superhero.


Technobabble

John Henry and Natalie guess that Ally can absorb energy from anything she connects with physically, based on the fact that his suit has no loose wires, no effective diodes and that his shields were up and running and yet somehow she was still able to stop his hammer and drain power from his suit.

The Lara hologram confirms that Clark's cells have been damaged and until they heal it will limit his ability to absorb solar energy at the rate to which he's accustomed. 

The DoD cover story for the double sun, also known as a parhelion, is an optical illusion caused by sunlight refracting off atmospheric ice particles.

John Henry determines that the red sun of Bizarro World outputs less than 3% of the total solar radiance of the yellow sun of Earth-Prime. However, that output is growing fast, as the sun phase-shifts into Earth-Prime's dimension. 

John Henry and Natalie believe the merging of people is a complete subatomic recombination.


Dialogue Triumphs

Sam: Clark. Clark. Hey. You gotta stop beatin' yourself up. This isn't on you.
Clark: Look, Sam...
Sam: And the only reason Ally can do this right now is because you stopped her from killing me. If you did anything wrong, it was saving me.

Clark: Saving a life is never a mistake, Sam.

Lois: (To Lana) There have been moments in my life and in my career where I have withheld facts from people because I thought it would protect them more than it would hurt them. Sometimes that was the right thing to do, and sometimes it wasn't. I am telling you all this so that you are armed with the truth. As mayor of this town and all the people in it who you love, it's up to you to decide what to do with it. 

Clark: Yeah, and I'm Superman. I'm supposed to keep people safe.
Lois: Okay. Then do that.
Clark: How? What am I supposed to do? I've never been like this.
Lois: You are more than just your powers.
Clark: (sighs) People look to me to save them.
Lois: No, people look to you for hope. That's what Superman does. He inspires. You inspire me and the boys every day, and it's not because you can fly or because you're strong. It's because of your heart.
Clark: I don't want to give people false hope.
Lois: That's not what I'm saying. The world needs you. You're Superman. Be Superman. 

Superman: I hope by now you all know me as a friend. It's as a friend that I've come here to assure you that your mayor is telling you the truth about everything, and that does not mean that all is lost. I saw what this town was capable of last year, the way you all protected each other. And I know you can do it again. That's starts by listening to your leader. Because I know she's here for you, not to serve her own interest.


Continuity

As the episode open, Clark wakes up in a military hospital, where Lois is sitting at his bedside, waiting.

When Clark and Lois return to the Kent farm, Clark is barely able to walk and trips on the porch steps.

According to the Department of Defense, Clark's cells were completely drained of solar energy.

Clark says that he can't feel himself recharging in the sun like he normally does and thinks they have to consult with the hologram of Lara to figure out what is wrong.

Jordan is nervous about trying to fly Clark to the Fortress, noting that he still can't control his landings.

Lois says Jordan doesn't have to fly if he doesn't want to and they can ask John Henry for help instead.

Sarah is uncharacteristically late getting ready for school, driving Lana crazy.

Ally Allston appears on TVs all across Earth-Prime.

Chrissy's computer at the Smallville Sentinel is glitching when Lois comes in to work,

Chrissy wants to report on everything they know about Ally, but Lois is afraid it would start a panic.

As the computer glitches, the text of it suddenly appears to be backwards.

John Henry takes Clark to the Fortress.

Lara says Clark's cells were altered during the fight with Ally and it may take time for his body to adjust and start absorbing solar energy at the same rate as before.

Clark didn't develop powers until he was four years old.

Clark asks if there is a way to speed up his energy absorption. Lara says there is one but it could kill him before she begins glitching.

Everyone goes outside and sees that a second red sun, shaped like a cube, is overlaying Earth's yellow sun.

Lucy Lane is reportedly working with some DoD analysts, but she only knows what Ally already told the world in her broadcast.

John Henry and Natalie plan to go into the stratosphere and gather data on the red sun.

Lois tells Sam that Chrissy and Lana are having a meeting to discuss what she knows at a town hall meeting in Smallville.

Lois has come around to Chrissy's way of thinking and believes they should be honest with the public.

Lois tells Jordan to listen for trouble and to stay with Jonathan.

The people of Smallville don't believe the DoD story about why there's a second red square sun.

Lana asks Kyle to take the girls and arrange for the firefighters to be at her town hall meeting to help keep the peace.

Chrissy and Lois tell Lana about Bizzaro World and Ally Allston's plan.

When Lana asks why Superman doesn't do something, Lois tells her that Superman list his powers.

Lois tells Lana that they are giving this information to her so she can decide what people find out.

Jordan tells Jonathan that he can hear how much weaker Clark's heartbeat is.

Lana-Rho shows up at the Kent farm.

Jordan moves to protect his father, but Lana-Rho is more powerful than him.

Clark tries to surrender to her, but Lana-Rho flees when John Henry and Natalie arrive in their armor.

At this point, John Henry estimates that they have less than 12 hours until the worlds merge.

John Henry decides to go into the space between worlds and confront Ally with every weapon he can, after tracking her energy trail to the mines.

Kyle senses that something has Lana upset but doesn't ask for the details. She asks him if he thinks it is better to know something terrible is going to happen or live in ignorance. 

Kyle says that the truth comes out eventually, but you have to be brave enough to tell it when it matters. He admits this is part of why he hid the truth about his affair with Tonya from Lana - it was easier to live the lie and hope he could control how the truth came out.

Lana says she wants to talk to their daughters before the town hall meeting.

Jordan is upset because he wasn't able to fight to protect Clark.

Clark is upset because he's not used to being powerless and unable to help, but Lois tells him he can still help by inspiring people.

Lana reveals the truth about Bizarro World at the town hall and tells people to avoid anyone who is acting strangely or looks like them. She also tells the public about Superman losing his powers.

The crowd turn on Chrissy and Lana after they reveal that Chrissy didn't publish the news before now at Lana's request.

The former mayor tries to turn the people against Lana, saying it is clear she doesn't know what she's doing and this is some desperate ploy to stay in power.

Clark shows up at the town hall as Superman and vouches for everything Lana and Lois and Chrissy say.

Sarah figures out that Jordan knew about the Bizarro World crisis and guesses that is why he was acting so weird and wasn't there for her the past few weeks.

Natalie reinforces John Henry's armor with the X-Kryptonite polymer she created that made her armor stronger than his.

John Henry activates a protocol, Vaporlock, which keeps Natalie from activating her armor until ten minutes after he leaves. He says she needs to stay behind to help protect the Kents, because they are their family in this new Earth.

Lana-Rho and Jon-El arrive on Earth-Prime.

Jon-El uses a Kryptonite inhaler to boost his powers.

John Henry confronts Ally Allston in the space between worlds, using missiles rather than his hammer. Unfortunately, they have no affect on her and she sends an energy blast back at him that sends him flying, When we last see him, he's flying through space, unconscious.

Sarah seems ready to forgive Jordan, but asks why he didn't just tell her the truth. Jordan says he wanted to but it wasn't his decision and there was something else.

Lana interrupts them before Jordan can tell Sarah about his powers, but then Lana-Rho arrives.

Jordan reveals his powers to Sarah as his eyes glow red, when he tells her and Lana to run.

Jon-El goes after Superman and starts strangling him.

Natalie decides to join the fight against Jon-El rather than go after her father.

Jon-El and Lana-Rho are taken into custody by the DoD.

Sam goes off to manage the crisis management at the DoD.

Natalie tells the Kents that she lost her dad's signal and she's afraid she'll never see him again.

Sarah figures out that Lana knew Jordan had powers and that the reason she disappeared for six hours in 211 had something to do with her finding out his secret.

Sarah is furious with Lana, but before they can discuss what happened, the world changes around them.

The episode ends with the Kent Farmhouse becoming the rundown house on Bizarro World.

Location

The new Fortress of Solitude.



Untelevised Adventures

Lana's talk with her daughters about the crisis takes place off camera.


The Fridge Factor

Lois turns into a damsel in distress when Jon-El goes after Superman.


The Bottom Line

A great episode with an epic cliffhanger heading into the finale.

Superman and Lois: Season 2, Episode 13 - All Is Lost

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

John Henry makes a surprising discovery, as Lois sets about tracking down her missing sister, Lucy, while Clark takes some time to bond with his boys.


Influences

The Superman: Lois and Clark comic (Clark and Jordan's training resembles the training regiment Clark ran Jonathan Kent through in the comics) and Star Wars (Clark calls his favorite flying obstacle course The Kessel Run)


Performances

The moment where Clark and Jordan get excited about Jordan's first controlled flight is a great moment for ,Tyler Hoechlin and Alex Garfin.


Artistry

The effects on the sequence where Clark teaches Jordan how to fly are great.


Super Trivia

Clark makes reference to a flying course he dubbed the Kessel run. This is a reference to a particularly difficult smuggling run from the Star Wars universe, which Han Solo apparently broke the record on running.


Technobabble

John Henry determines that, for some reason, his armor protected him from Ally Allston's energy draining powers. He also believes that she absorbs life energy as well as the superpowers of metahumans and aliens she encounters.

Natalie created a special lacquer made from X-Kryptonite, which she applied to her suit. This makes it stronger than John Henry's armor, despite being made of the same base metal.


Dialogue Triumphs

(John Henry has ordered Natalie to destroy her suit.)
Natalie: I've been helping you with your suit from day one. I'm the reason it withstood Ally, and now I'm too young to wear one?
John Henry: You can die in that suit.
Natalie: I almost died in jeans and a jacket two days ago when Mrs. Cushing's killer clone tried to murder us. And I saved your life, by the way.
John Henry: That is not fair.
Natalie: I am qualified to do more than sit on the sidelines. You need me.
John Henry: I need you alive.
(There is a log pause as Natalie scowls at John Henry.)
John Henry: You gonna take this thing apart, or am I?
Natalie: (bitter) I build things. I don't destroy them.

Clark: Think there's anything I can do to make things better?
Jonathan: You really want my advice? I mean, I'm the lying son that let everyone down, remember?
Clark: That's not who you are, Jon.
Jonathan: Really? Look at the other Jon. I messed up on two worlds.
Clark: No, you're just kids dealing with circumstances the best you can. And it's not too late for either of you to make things right.
Jonathan: You really believe that?
Clark: (sighs) Anyone can make a bad decision. The true measure of someone's character is what you do afterwards. And you've been putting in the work to make amends.
Jonathan: So does that mean... does that mean you're not mad at me anymore?
Clark: I was never mad, Jonathan. It's just... look, as a parent, you care so much about your kids. And I wanna protect you from everything, but I have to learn to let you make your own mistakes. Just like everyone else. And that's really hard. But I promise you, I will always be here for you when you do.


Continuity

The episode opens with a flashback set "Five Years Ago" showing how Ally Allston met Lucy Lane at one of her book signings.

Ally guessed immediately that Lucy was Lois Lane's sister and began building on Lucy's resentment of her more successful sister from their first meeting.

Ally's followers have been revealed to have been waiting for her to return for the past month, but most of them are abandoning the cult's compound. Lucy stays behind with the ones who remain loyal.

Clark wants to return to Bizarro World to see if Ally returned there, but Lois refuses to let him go due to the time difference that already caused him to lose a month with his family.

Lois suggests he might spend some time with Jonathan and Jordan, unless there's some disaster that really needs his attention. She also says they need to talk to them about Lana's decision to keep their families separated. 

John Henry discovers Natalie's secret suit after he asks her AI, Hedy, for the latest file regarding "the suit" and she asks him to specify which one he means.

Lana overhears Sarah as she's watching a video Kyle shot of her performance in 212. She compares her to Alanis Morrissette. (Sarah has no idea who that is.)

Lana becomes angry when she realizes where Sarah was playing, though Sarah tells her that Tonya was not there and made a point to not be there while they were there.

Clark tells Jordan and Jonathan about Lana's decision to keep Sarah in the dark about their family. Unsurprisingly, they both think Sarah has a right to know the the truth about Jordan.

Clark has a full day of farm chores planned for them. The boys are less than thrilled..

Chrissy Beppo reads Lois the riot act because Lana Lang apparently asked her about the month-long assignment Clark was working on and Chrissy had no idea that Clark was apparently working for her now.

Lois lies and says that Clark wants to get back into newspaper writing again, but he wanted to have a big story to come to Chrissy with so he could prove himself and not just be hired as Lois' husband. 

Lois and Sam get a lead on former First Sergeant Erin Wu - a former member of Lt. General Anderson's staff who is part of Ally's cult. 

Chrissy demands to come along as Lois and Sam go to talk to Lucy, saying she has a stake in this after nearly getting killed by Ally and her cult. Lois agrees and Sam eventually lets her come along as an extra set of eyes.

On Bizarro World, the Bizarro Lois Lane and Bizarro Sam Lane watch Ally give a speech in Paris, telling her followers that they are going to merge their world with Earth-Prime rather than merge individuals a few at a time.

On Bizarro World, The Eiffel Tower is made up of two towers, joined at the top, resembling a giant hour glass.

John Henry tells Natalie to disassemble her suit and threatens to do it if she won't, despite her protests that she can do more to help him than sit on the sidelines fixing his tech.

Chrissy acts as the look-out while Lois and Sam go inside the cabin Ally's followers are using as a hideout.

Sam and Lois tell Ally's followers that Superman destroyed Ally's pendant, so now she can't merge anyone else.

Lucy refuses to believe Lois and Sam.

Sam handcuffs himself to Lucy.

Jordan refuses to come out of his room, while Clark and Jonathan fix the tractor.

Clark asks Jonathan for his advice on getting to Jordan. This surprises Jonathan, who thought Clark was still mad at him about covering for Candice. Clark says he was never mad at Jonathan and says he has a hard time not trying to protect his children from their own mistakes.

Jonathan feels like everyone hates him and he's afraid he'll never play sports again and that he doesn't have a future.

Jordan confronts Lana at her office and asks her permission, directly, to tell Sarah the truth about his powers and try to explain why he was so distance.

Lana refuses and tells Jordan that he's endangering Sarah by being around her. She specifically makes reference to Tag Harris kidnapping Sarah in 106 to try and get to Jordan. 

At some point in the past, Ally helped Lucy move into her own apartment. She spoke to Lucy about trying to win Lois over to her philosophy, but Lucy believes Lois will try and destroy her instead because she can't accept being wrong about anyone. 

Sam Lane is searched and he doesn't have the key to his handcuffs. All he has in his pockets are the device he uses to call Superman and his car keys.

Lucy complains that Lois has viewed her as a problem to be fixed ever since their mother left and that Ally is the only person who has ever shown her any real love or respect.

Clark finds Jordan in downtown Smallville. Jordan says he's come to accept that telling the truth to Sarah may be what is best for him but not for her.

Clark takes Jordan off to train his powers.

Sarah finds Kyle as he's grocery shopping with the other firemen.

Kyle says he will talk to Lana about Sarah singing in the bar and explain that she should be mad at him and not her and that he is not seeing Tonya again.

Lois didn't join any clubs or do any teams in school because she was trying to raise Lucy - a child raising a child.

San blames himself for that, because he didn't trust a sitter to raise his girls so he thought it best they raise themselves.

Lois tells Lucy that the reason she threw herself into mothering her wasn't because she wanted to control her life but because it helped her feel like she had control of her own life after their mother left them.

Sam releases the cuffs after Lucy and Lois reconcile, the cuffs apparently having an electronic release.

Ally Allston returns

Clark starts teaching Jordan how to fly by having him jump into a chasm. It works, but Jordan has a little trouble slowing himself to land properly.

Clark runs Jordan through a flying obstacle course he calls the Kessel Run, after a difficult path from the Star Wars movies.

Ally tells her followers that she can merge the two worlds with enough power, but she needs Superman's strength to start the process.

John Henry is not able to cut through Natalie's suit.

Natalie says that after having lost one world, she can't sit idly and risk losing another one. John Henry reluctantly agrees but asks her to walk him through every upgrade on her costume.

Lana's leg twitches when she is worried.

Kyle talks with Lana and she tells him, without going into detail, that she feels like a bad person because of a number of secrets she's been asked to keep. Kyle says she's the best person he knows and a good mom and he's sure she has good reasons for whatever she's done. He then offers to take her and the girls out to dinner.

Lana is suspicious of his motives, but Kyle assures her it is just about them spending time with their kids - not an effort to win her back.

Lana says they are still going to talk about Sarah singing in a bar.

Lucy uses Sam's ELT pager to call Superman.

Jonathan finished Clark's list of chores by himself.

Ally starts draining Sam.

Chrissy discovers that Clark listed himself as a reporter for the Smallville Sentinel on his social media.

Ally starts draining Superman as soon as he gets closer to her and seems to take all his power.

Chrissy calls the DOD emergency number Sam gave her in case there was trouble. The message also goes to John Henry.

John Henry and Natalie go to the scene in their respective armored suits.

John Henry tries to fight Ally, but she is able to catch his hammer telekinetically and throw it back at him.

Ally flees once Superman is drained.

Natalie is able to restart Superman's heart with a maximum force electrical blast acting as an improvised defibrillator.

In another flashback, we see Lucy's reaction to her first attempt to bring Lois into Ally's cult.

Sam is in the hospital, being held for observation.

Superman is still unconscious and is in such a bad state the doctors at the Department of Defense were actually able to take a blood sample from him.

Kyle says that Sarah got a standing ovation at her show. Sarah says that all of the crowd were drunk and there were only 10 people.

Lana demands to be at the next show.

Lois tells Jordan and Jonathan that the DoD Doctors say that Clark's cells look normal, but from what little they know about his physiology they shouldn't. She's afraid he may never recover to where he once was.

Back on Bizarro World, Ally tells Lana-Rho to go to Earth-Prime and finish Superman off.


Location

One of Ally Allston's book signings, sometime in 2017.
Lucy's new apartment, sometime in the last five years.
Paris, France in Bizarro World
Somewhere in the Arctic Circle, near the former Fortress of Solitude.
A cabin in Burnham Woods


The Fridge Factor

Lana and Lois are both oddly passive facing down Ally as she's killing their father and then Superman.


The Bottom Line

Another fantastic episode with one heck of a cliffhanger.

Superman and Lois: Season 2, Episode 12 - Lies That Bind

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

Lana is left reeling by the revelation of Clark's secret identity. as Superman turns to an unexpected ally for assistance in destroying the pendant he recovered from Bizarro World.

Influences

Smallville (Lana makes reference to the weird things that happened in their town when she and Clark were young.) and The Lord of the Rings. (The destruction of the pendant scene.)


Goofs

The series' refusal to acknowledge Supergirl's existence reaches new heights of absurdity with Clark going out of his way to get Tal-Rho to help him destroy the pendant rather than ask Kara for help. (Granting this is born of Clark just seeing a heroic Tal-Rho on another world and wanting to give his half-brother a shot at redemption, time is of the essence and there's too many steps to the plan.)


Performances

Adam Rayner has a subtlety hilarious and powerful performance as Tal-Rho here.


Artistry

The effects work of the volcano fight is great.


Super Trivia

The episode title is a play on the phrase "The Ties That Bind," which was also the title of 202.

This episode confirms that Natalie was working on an armored suit of her own. In the comics, Natasha Irons created her own armored suit and adopted her uncle John Henry's Steel identity.


Technobabble

John Henry and Sam Lane determine that Ally's pendant is nearly impossible to destroy in practical terms. It is not indestructible, but destroying it requires more power than even Superman has and it requires a level of energy that is dangerous to attempt with all the tech they have.


Dialogue Triumphs

Lana: Did you ever love me?
Clark: Lana, of course I did.
Lana: (bitterly) Just not enough.

(Superman is told he can't save the people of Bizzaro World.)
Superman: I have to try. It's the promise I made. The promise we made.

(Lana confronts Lois over Clark's secret.)
Lana: I don't blame him for not telling me the truth back then. It hurts, but I can't be mad about it.
Lois: Are you sure? 'Cause you seem kind of mad.
Lana: I'm mad at you.
Lois: Me?
Lana: When you moved to Smallville, we didn't have to become friends. We could have been neighborly, waving hello at the bus stop, but you sought me out, and I trusted you.
Lois: Lana, I understand how this must feel for you.
Lana: No, you don't, Lois, because I've told you a lot. After Sarah's quinceañera, when my marriage was falling apart, I called you. You've become the person that I call. And this whole time you've been keeping this huge secret from me.
Lois: It wasn't my secret to share.
Lana: But you knew, and I didn't, which means our entire friendship was built on a lie. There's nothing real between us.
Lois: Please don't say that. It's not true, and it's not how I feel.
Lana: Maybe not... but it is how I feel. And the worst part about it is that you've made me a liar, too.

Tal-Rho: Hello, Lois.
Lois: What the hell is he doing here?
Clark: (sighs) It's complicated, but if I'm gonna have any chance of destroying Ally's pendant, I need his help.
Tal-Rho: I've come to try and make amends.
Lois: Oh, really? Well, which part did you want me to forgive first... how you kidnapped my son? Or how you tried to eradicate all of humanity?
Clark: Lois....
Lois: Or was it when you rewrote my article in the Daily Planet?
Tal-Rho: (To Clark) I told you she'd bring that up. 


Continuity

The episode begins right where 211 ended, with Lana and Clark on the highway after Clark demonstrated his powers.

Lana asks how she never saw this before. Clark says that people see what they want to.

Lana makes reference to the car crash that she, Clark and Pete Woods somehow survived while driving back from a Soul Asylum concert in 101.

Clark explains to Lana that the reason he left Smallville so suddenly after that concert was because he needed to figure out exactly how to best use his powers. He also reveals that he came back for Lana, but she was already engaged to Kyle Cushing when he decided to rekindle their romance and tell her his plans to become Superman.

Jon is allowed to return to in-person classes.

Jordan wants to stay home in case Clark needs help, but Clark says he will get Jordan if he needs him.

Clark tries to call Lana to warn her about Lana-Rho, but Lana is not taking his calls.

John Henry and Sam Lane are reportedly running tests on the Pendant Clark recovered together.

Sarah says hi to Natalie in the hallway while she is with Jon and Jordan, but ignores the boys and doesn't stop to talk.

Jon is greeted by his former friends on the football team and given a hard time about getting the season cancelled. Jon counters by pointing out that he could have outed them all as X-K users and didn't.  He also dismisses high school sports, and high school, as unimportant because the world is coming to an end.

Jordan counters this by saying Jon has gotten into eco-activism and is worried about climate change.

There is a brief montage of scenes where Lana noticed clues that Clark was Superman. These include noticing that Clark has barely aged after he moved back to Smallville (101), her comment that Clark looked like he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders (102) and Superman telling Lana she is a hero (110) although this last scene is edited out of sequence, with the last line being Lana wondering if Superman just lied to her.

Kyle meets with Lana at the diner and asks her how Sarah liked the car they gave her. He quickly realizes Lana is troubled about something and asks what is going on. Lana dodges the question and asks him to pick up their daughters from school, after Lois texts her and says they need to talk.

This is the first time Lana has ever lied to Kyle about anything.

Clark visits Jon-El in custody and asks him for help in stopping Ally Allston. Jon-El refuses.

John Henry agrees the pendant is almost impossible to destroy. He suggests they use a controlled explosion to close the portal to Bizzaro World instead.

Clark refuses to consider this, since it will leave the people on Bizarro World trapped under Ally Allston's thumb.

Lana meets with Lois, but tells her off for not telling her Clark's secret and becoming her friend with that weight hanging over them.

Natalie, Jordan and Jon skip class.

Natalie shows Jordan and Jon the super-suit she's built after they promise not to tell their parents.

Natalie says she can refit the suit for Jon so he can protect himself from his doppelganger.

Natalie asks Jon and Jordan for help in getting some X-Kryptonite so she can power her suit.

Clark visits Tal-Rho in his prison, where he is reading a Pictorial History of Mines.

Tal-Rho makes reference to "The Fault In Our Stars," which is apparently in his library.

Clark tells Tal-Rho about the Bizarro Tal-Rho who helped him and suggests that together they could destroy Ally's pendant.

Tal-Rho asks what he gets in exchange for his help and Clark offers to get him more books. Tal-Rho says he knows he'll never be released and the only thing he really wants is a chance to be a brother to Superman.

Clark gets Tal-Rho out of prison and takes him to the farm house to meet with Lois and ask her forgiveness for everything he did as Morgan Edge.

Lois refuses to forgive Tal-Rho.

John Henry and Sam Lane are not happy with Clark's idea to work with Tal-Rho to destroy the pendant. Neither is Lois, but she agrees it is the best plan they have.

Jon, Jordan and Natalie go into the Shuster Mines looking for another deposit of X-Kryptonite.

Kyle picks up Sarah from school and starts asking her if she has noticed Lana acting strangely. Sarah tells him about Lana's lie that she went on a six hour walk the day before - her lie to cover up her kidnapping.

Jordan tries to use his heat vision to cut the X-Kryptonite out of the rock around it. This triggers a cave in.

Jordan is able to run Natalie and Jon out of the mines at super-speed. Unfortunately, he leaves all the X-Kryptonite they had behind.

John Henry confirms the theory proposed by the Bizarro Lara hologram - that two Kryptonians could destroy the pendant together.

Sarah has started writing her own songs in the wake of her break-up with Jordan.

Kyle overhears Sarah singing and says she is good.

Kyle starts grilling Sara for information on Lana's dating someone new and Sarah tells him she's having enough trouble with her own break-up without having to deal with his too. Kyle withdraws the question.

Kyle calls Tonya - the woman with whom he had the affair.

Lois confronts Lana at her office and apologizes for hiding the truth from her.

Lois says that she never really had a lot of friends in Metropolis, devoting herself completely to her work and her sons. Knowing how close she was to Clark, she really hoped they could become friends too.

Lois tells Lana that there's more she needs to know about Clark's life. She starts by telling her that Jordan has powers and that was why he wasn't there for Sarah.

Clark and Tal-Rho take the pendant into the heart of an active volcano to destroy it.

Ally Allston shows up and starts draining the energy from Tal-Rho and Clark as they fight to keep her from the pendant. 

Steel is able to save Superman from Ally, as her powers don't seem to work on him for some reason.

The pendant is destroyed, but Tal-Rho escapes in the confusion.

Superman notes that Ally was somehow able to siphon his power to make herself stronger. He felt the same sensation when trying to stop her from merging with her Bizarro self in 210 but this time it was 10 times worse.

Lois isn't worried about Tal-Rho being a threat, pointing out that he risked his life to help Superman twice.

Lois also notes that Tal-Rho brought her peonies, which are her favorite flower.

Sarah makes dinner for her mom - salad with hot dogs and pumpkin seeds.

Sarah tells Lana that Kyle knows something is up and asks if she is dating someone new. She says she doesn't care if she is, but that Kyle deserves to know if she is moving on.

Sarah also tells Lana that whatever is going on, she can be trusted. Lana agrees she can.

Lana offers Sarah an internship working in her office. She says she will consider it.

Jon and Jordan join John Henry and Natalie for dinner. He tells them that the pendant has been destroyed.

Lois and Clark ask Lana to speak privately.

Lana decided not to tell Sarah about Jordan or Clark because she can't ask Sarah to lie to her father or sister.

Lana says she isn't mad at Lois or Clark anymore but she wants their families to cut ties so she doesn't feel like she's lying to her family every time they hang out.

Kyle takes Sarah to Tonya's bar, revealing that he got her a gig playing her songs there.

Back on Bizarro World, Ally drains the Bizarro Tal-Rho ro death.

Location

The government facility where Jon-El and Tal-Rho are being held.
A government prison on Bizarro World.


The Bottom Line

Ignoring that Clark has a cousin he could turn to for help far easier than Tal-Rho, this is a fantastic episode that builds the stakes and develops all the relationships well.

Superman and Lois: Season 2, Episode 11 - Truth and Consequences

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

Jon-El's efforts to start paving the way for Ally Allston's invasion lead to a major change in the status quo between Clark and Lana.


Influences

Classic Superman comics and the drama and comedy that arose from Superman hiding his secret identity from Lana Lang.


Performances

This is another great episode for Tyler Hoechlin, who sells Clark's torment at the pain his secret is causing people.


Artistry

The final scene is one of the most beautiful in the show's history.


Super Trivia

The episode title is a take on an old gameshow, Truth Or Consequences.

In most iterations of the Superman story, Lana Lang was the first person outside of the Kent family to learn about Clark's powers. Superman and Lois is one of the more notable exceptions to this, making this episode's final revelation all the more notable.

This episode establishes that the Arrowverse version of Superman can still use his powers while suffering from Kryptonite poisoning. This is notable as in most Superman comic stories, his powers are completely negated by the presence of Kryptonite. The most notable example of this came in JLA #4, where Superman figured out the green Kryptonite being used to hold him at bay was a telepathic illusion based on the fact that he could hear billions of people suffering in the middle of an alien invasion.

Natalie is revealed to be working on something called the Pasiphae Project. In Greek mythology, Pasiphae was a witch and queen of Crete, who commissioned the inventor Daedalus to fashion an armored cow suit for her so she could mate with the Cretan Bull. She later gave birth to the Minotaur. The implication here seems to be that she is making her own armored suit to help her father, based on the fact that she makes reference to needing a power source.


Technobabble

John Henry describes the process linking doppelganger minds psychically as inter-dimensional kinesthesis. He's not sure he has the means to disrupt it.

Clark finds out that he's been gone for 33 days, but was only in Bizarro World for a day. This suggests that the time flows differently between the two dimensions or in the Negative Zone between rifts.

John Henry's Steel armor is powered by Kryptonite. However, he's been using X-Kryptonite as a power source since allying himself with Superman.


Dialogue Triumphs

Clark: Why didn't you just tell me those drսg belonged to Candice?
Jonathan: Dad, I thought you said that everything was cool between us.
Clark: It is, Jonathan, but I still want to understand what you were thinking.
Jonathan: Okay, well, clearly I didn't want Candice to get in trouble.
Clark: Well, maybe she should have. She was selling drսgs.
Jonathan: See? That's--that is exactly why I didn't say anything. Because you ask me a question and then you don't even listen to what I have to say.
Clark: No, don't make this about me. I'm the one who was lying.
Jonathan: (chuckles) Are you serious? You lied to me for 14 years about who you actually are.
Lois: No, Jonathan, that is not the same thing.
Jonathan: Yeah, it's worse. Because I lied to protect someone else and he lied to protect his own secret.
Clark: That secret keeps this family safe. It allows you to have a normal life. One that isn't in the shadow of me being Superman.
Jonathan: Okay, well, if that's what the secret's doing, it's doing a pretty crap job. 

(John Henry tries to calm Natalie down about the Ally Allston situation.)
John Henry: You cannot spiral out at the worst case scenario.
Natalie: You mean the one where your entire planet gets destroyed and you lose everyone you care about?

(Lana is driving down a country road. Clark is standing in the middle of it. She stops and gets out of her car.)
Lana: Clark. What are you doing here?
Clark: I, um-- I need to talk to you.
Lana: This really isn't a good time.
Clark: Lana, there's... There's something I've... (sighs) Something I've wanted to tell you my entire life.
Lana: How did you even know I was gonna be here? Oh, you know what? It doesn't even matter.
Clark: Lana...
Lana: Clark, listen, I do want to hear what you have to say, but I have had the longest day. You've no idea what I've been through.
Clark: Yeah, yeah, but I do, though, actually.
Lana: What?
Clark: I was there. Lana, I--I-- I was with you.
Lana: What are you talking about?
(Clark sighs and takes off his glasses and levitates off the ground. He uses his ice breath to freeze a tree.)
Lana: (awe-struck) My God... You're Superman. 


Continuity

This episode begins right where the final scenes of 209 and 210 left off.

Jon-El tries to merge with Jonathan, but Clark returns in time to stops him.

Jon-El is much stronger than Jordan.

Jonathan begins to experience visions like Clark had when Bizarro Superman first came to Earth-Prime. He describes the sensation as a "weird brain freeze feeling."

Clark says that Jon-El should start getting weaker on Earth-Prime, like Bizarro did, because the yellow sun drains his strength in the same way a red sun drains him.

Clark makes a point of telling Jonathan that he loves him and always will no matter what before going to talk to John Henry.

Jordan texts Sarah repeatedly, trying to talk to her about the break up.

Lois suggests that Jordan write Sarah a letter to get his feelings out in a clear way instead of sending multiple texts. He decides to try it.

Jon has a vision of Jon-El on the Main Street of Smallville.

Clark goes to confront Jon-El, but runs into Lana. Jon-El makes his escape while Clark tries to make an excuse not to stay and catch-up.

Clark is surprised to learn he's been gone for over a month and that Lois told everyone he was on an assignment.

Lois also didn't have the chance to tell Clark that Lana won the mayoral election and is moving into her new office the next day.

Lois also informs Clark as to Candice being the X-Kryptonite dealer Jonathan was protecting.

Clark isn't happy about Jonathan lying, but he defends his actions saying he was lying to protect someone and pointed out that Clark lied about being Superman to protect his family and it didn't work.

Natalie tries to help John Henry get his suit upgraded.

Lana tells Sarah about how Clark was acting weird when she ran into him the night before.

Sarah says that Jordan was acting the same way, as if he was hiding something and suddenly wanted to be somewhere else.

Sarah packed everything for Lana's office and offers to load them into her car. This leads Lana to surprise Sarah with a car of her own, revealing that Kyle finally got the car they were working on finished and they wanted her to have it.

Jordan shows his letter to Jonathan. He does not discuss what is in it, but is shocked by it.

Jon-El runs into Sarah, who mistakes him for Jonathan. He's rude to her about her car, saying he prefers Lamborghinis. 

Jon-El goes after Lana in her house and captures her.

Lois runs into Sarah at her mom's office, Lois wanted to talk to her, but talks to Sarah about Jordan. She doesn't go into detail, but tries to stick up for Jordan and says there's some family stuff going on.

Lois says Sarah is more mature than she was at her age and that she used to date bad boys purely to upset her father. One of them, Dave, was in a Primus cover band.

Sarah has never hard of Primus.

Lois hasn't told Clark about any of the men she dated before him.

Sarah tells Lois about Jon-El, saying Jonathan looked like he was dressed like he was going to "rave out in The Matrix."

Lois tells Clark that she thinks Jon-El went after Lana.

John Henry builds a device he thinks will prevent Jon-El from having headaches while Jon-El is on Earth-Prime but it will require more power than he has handy. This means he will have to go into the Shuster Mines to get some Kryptonite, which is also the source of power for his suit.

Jon-El chains up Lana with one of the pendants.

Sarah leaves the office to go back home and check on Lana.

Jordan is upset that Lois talked to Sarah without checking with him first.

Sarah later goes to Lois to tell her she thinks her mom has been abducted.

Lois promises to help, but sends Sarah back to her mom's office.

Jordan tries to give Sarah the letter he wrote for her, but she refuses to take it, being worried about her mom and in no mood to deal with Jordan's apology.

John Henry and Natalie see the dimensional rift to Bizarro World as they gather the X-Kryptonite.

John Henry says that Clark told him about the portal not going directly to Bizarro world and that there's some kind of Negative Zone between the dimensional rifts leading to the other planets. Natalie says this sounds like the space she was in before she found the way to Earth-Prime.

Lana thinks Jon-El is Jonathan Kent high on X-Kryptonite.

Clark has started questioning if his secret is worth anything. Lois says it is, but agrees that she felt bad lying to Sarah when her mother was in danger.

Jon has another vision of Jon-El in a place full of bloody meathooks, like a freezer. This is determined to be the old slaughterhouse on Kempsville Road. 

Jon-El sets an ambush for Clark, wounding him with Kryptonite shrapnel before stabbing him through the chest with a Kryptonite crystal.

The Bizarro Lana emerges through the rift while Natalie and John Henry are working.

The Bizarro Lana attacks John Henry, who tries attacking her with one of his red sun weapons. This heals her rather than hurting her.

Lana Lang picks the Kryptonite shards out of Superman's chest.

Bizzaro Lana is driven off when Natalie stabs her with an X-Kryptonite crystal.

Jordan confronts Jon-El but is able to fight back this time.

Jordan passes out trying to carry Jon-El closer to the sun, but both are caught by Superman.

Superman takes Lana Lang home but asks her not to talk about Jon-El.

She agrees to keep the secret - for Clark's sake, afraid of how he'd handle the news of an evil version of his son existing.

Clark almost seems ready to tell Lana his secret but decides against it.

Natalie is working on something secret called Project Pasipahe, which needs power source. She thinks X-Kryptonite may be what she needs.

Jon-El is said to have been taken to a Black Ops site and a special cell like the one for Tal-Rho.

Jordan lets Lois read his letter to Sarah. It is revealed that he planned to tell her about his powers.

Clark comes back to the farmhouse and says he wants to tell Lana his secret, but wants the rest of the family to weigh in on the decision. Everyone agrees it is a good idea.

Lana lies to Sara about having saved Superman.

Clark meets Lana out on the road and tells her he has to tell her something.

Lana shoots down hearing Clark's story. In response he takes off his glasses, levitates and freezes a tree.

Lana realizes Clark is Superman.


The Kryptonite Factor

John Henry really should know better than to use his Red Sun weapons on Bizarro Lana. (It's possible Clark didn't get the chance to explain that aspect of Bizarro World to him.)


The Bottom Line

A powerful episode, from beginning to end.

Superman and Lois: Season 2, Episode 9 - 30 Days and 30 Nights

  For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

It's Election Day in Smallville and Jordan Kent is absent. This leaves Sarah rattled, even before the revelation that her mother and John Henry Irons might be an item - a suggestion which floors Natalia as well, given that it is also the anniversary of her mother's death. Meanwhile, Jonathan continues to draw heat for his actions bringing about the cancellation of Smallville's football season, as the world wonders... where is Superman?


Influences

Superman: The Movie (Clark building up speed by flying in a circle) and the graphic novel World Without A Superman


Goofs

While the absence of Superman on Earth-Prime would likely draw attention, it is odd that none of the world's other major heroes (particularly Supergirl) are said to be stepping up to handle things in his absence, apart from Steel.

Jordan overhears an emergency call which reports a 10-41, Code 2, during a report of a fire. This may be different in the Arrowverse, but none of the real world Police 10 code systems used 10-41 for anything involving a fire.

Why don't Jordan's clothes catch on fire?


Performances

Wolé Parks gives a one-scene master-class in silent acting with the scene where John Henry watches a video of his Lois Lane and slowly breaks down.


Artistry

The montage showing the 30 days passing between Superman traveling to Bizarro World and the true "start" of the episode is beautifully shot and establishes the mood perfectly.

The special effects are great all around, from the fire in the first segment to Jordan's use of his powers in the climax.


Super Trivia

The action sequence in which Superman flies in a circle before entering the portal to Bizarro World was a visual tribute to the climax of Superman: The Movie and the moment in which Superman flew around the Earth to build up the speed to travel in time.

John Henry Irons' existence as Steel is revealed to the world as he saves an airplane from crashing. This is also how Superman was revealed to the world in the comics and how Supergirl was revealed to the world of Earth-38 in Supergirl.

Bizarro Jonathan Kent's costume, which features red trousers, a leather jacket, and a punk haircut, is inspired by the original appearance of the Conner Kent Superboy in aftermath of The Death of Superman.


Technobabble

The Steel armor has built-in fire extinguishers.

John Henry determines that the fire that almost killed Kyle Cushing used X-Kryptonite as an accelerant. 


Dialogue Triumphs

(Jordan enters the Kent farmhouse looking disheveled. Jonathan is sitting at the kitchen table, doing his homework.)
Jonathan: Yo, what happened to you?
Jordan: There was this crazy fire, and I had to save Mr. Cushing, and I got cornered, so... I flew.
Jonathan: What? You flew? No way!
Jordan: Yeah, not very far or anything.
Jonathan: Yeah, but who cares? That still counts.
Jordan: Yeah, and then John Henry showed up and his suit had this fire extinguisher, so-
Jonathan: Wait, he didn't see you, did he?
Jordan: No, no, he just saw some guy in a hoodie.
Jonathan: Yeah, but doesn't he have, like, facial ID and biometrics and... Jordan, look, I'm saying if John Henry saw you full vigilante mode, I mean, do you really want Mom to find out from someone else? Like, you have to tell her.
Jordan: What if I tell her and I blow my cover for no reason?
Jonathan: Take it from someone who's been on her bad side for, like, a month, it's not worth the risk.
Jordan: Hey, man, I'm really sorry about what happened at the auditorium.
Jonathan: It's whatever. Maybe I deserved it. Dad sure thought so.
Jordan: No, no. There's no way he would still be mad.
Jonathan: Jordan, you don't know that. Okay, Mom said that that was the most angry she'd ever seen him.
Jordan: Come on, man. I mean, you're working overtime at the store. You're doing online classes-
Jonathan: Jordan, none of that matters! None of it, okay? I don't know how to fix things with Dad, and I don't even know if I'll ever get the chance to. Speaking of, I gotta finish this up before tomorrow. (muted) Congrats on flying. 

(Lois enters the Kent farmhouse. Jordan is waiting for her expectantly.)
Jordan: Uh, Mom, I have to tell you something.
Lois: It is too late. I already know.
Jordan: Wait, you can't get mad. I didn't even have a chance to explain.
Lois: What about before you left the school?
Jordan: You were busy talking to Mrs. Cushing.
Lois: That is such a load of crap, and you know it.
Jordan: Fine, but I didn't have time to argue with you.
Lois: About whether it was okay to run into a burning building?
Jordan: About whether it was all right to save Mr. Cushing's life.
Lois: Did you know there was X-Kryptonite in there?
Jordan: So what? I couldn't just let him die.
Lois: If John Henry hadn't shown up, it could have been you who died.
Jordan: John Henry was late. He didn't save Sarah's dad. I did.
Lois: You are not a superhero, Jordan. You're a kid.
Jordan: Well, Dad's gone! And no one knows if he's coming back.
Lois: I know how hard this is for you. It's really hard for me too.
Jordan: Stop telling me to act normal. None of this is normal.
Lois: That's why it's not a very good time for you to start playing hero.
Jordan: That's exactly why it's the right time. That's why Granddad's been training me.
Lois: He has been what?
Jordan: Because people need my help.
Lois: That is not up to you to decide.
Jordan: Well, I don't need your permission.
Lois: Under my roof, yes, you do.
Jordan: Not when I'm the one with superpowers.

John Henry: I will never forget your mother, ever. But thinking about her constantly, obsessing over her death... you didn't see what that did to me. I became someone I didn't recognize.
Natalie: You and I are the only people that remember her. We're the only ones who know that our Lois Lane existed. You don't get to just run away from her memory.
John Henry: But I can't let it tear me apart either. I wanna be a dad. And I wanna be able to enjoy this life we have together.
Natalie: This life we have? It's because of her. And I don't want a dad who would ever forget that.

(Sam and Lois are tied up in the drug dealers' hideout. Sam begins to struggle against his ropes.)
Lois: What are you doing?
Sam: What's it look like?
Lois: Dad, stop. You're gonna give yourself rope burn. These are fireman chair knots. The harder you struggle, the tighter it gets. If it was a hobble knot, maybe you could wiggle out, but not this.
(There is a long pause. Sam is incredulous.)
Sam: How many times you been tied up?!
Lois: Better you don't know.

(Jordan is standing on the porch, looking depressed. Enter Lois, holding a large glass of wine.)
Lois: Find a new spot. Brooding on the porch is my thing.
Jordan: (looking at Ma Kent's necklace) Sarah gave this back to me.
Lois: I'm sorry, sweetie.
Jordan: I don't know what to do.
Lois: Sometimes, with heartbreak, you just have to feel it. On the bright side, you did kind of save your mom's life tonight.
Jordan: (without enthusiasm)Yeah, I guess.
Lois: Hold on. I think that warrants way more enthusiasm!


Continuity

First Sergeant Erin Wu, a DoD agent seen in previous episodes, is revealed to be part of Ally Allston's cult. It is she who gets a hold of Sam Lane's badge and uses it to free Ally from DoD custody. 

Wu is apparently not the only one of Allston's followers in the DoD as she makes reference to multiple people repairing the suit worn by the Bizzaro Superman when he traveled between worlds.

Wu inquires as to whether or not Allston will save Anderson. She says that she intends to save everybody.

Superman follows after Allston into the Bizarro world portal, despite Wu telling him that even he can't survive the journey between worlds.

The action picks up 30 days later.

The world has noticed Superman's absence and Steel has been recognized as a new hero, dubbed the new Man of Steel, though he has not spoken to the press.

Jonathan is shown to still be romantically involved with Candice.

Mayor Dean continues to try and paint Lana as an incompetent mother and leader given her family problems, but Lana continues to fight back against his slander.

Jordan is still training in secret with Sam Lane. This training includes working with a weighted punching bag (which Jordan eventually destroys), shooting cans with his heat vision and freezing a bucket of water with his freeze breath before any of it touches the ground.

Jordan spends so much time training in his father's absence that he ignores Sarah's phone calls and texts.

Jordan uses his super-hearing to search for any sign of the missing Clark.

Natalie is shown to not be a very good cook, as she has trouble making waffles for breakfast.

Lois has explained Clark's absence in Smallville by saying he's on a special assignment investigating something, suggesting it is as a journalist rather than as Superman.

Lois, Jonathan and Jordan show up at Lana's campaign headquarters to volunteer on Election Day.

Jonathan leaves to work with the street team after being confronted by the angry mother of a senior student, who missed out on playing football because of him.

Lana tells off the mother, saying this isn't the place for this.

Lois agrees to help Lana with her acceptance and concession speeches.

Jordan leaves after overhearing an emergency broadcast involving a fire off Highway 14.

Jordan intervenes to save Kyle Cushing from the fire and flies for the first time.

Steel arrives and puts out the fire, covering Jordan before he is seen.

Natalie sees John Henry and Lana talking and laughing in a manner that seems more than friendly.

Sarah is not overly concerned, until Natalie reveals that it is the anniversary of her mother's death.

Natalie is upset because the waffles she was trying to make that morning were from her mother's homemade recipe and John Henry didn't even notice it or seem to remember the day.

Sarah offers to make a Day of the Dead style memorial altar for Natalie's mom. She likes the idea, until she finds out she has to have a photo, since the alternate Lois Lane would be recognized.

Natalie lies and says she doesn't have any photos of her mom on her phone.

Natalie gets upset and goes home.

Lana is called about Kyle being in the hospital after the fire. She, Sarah and Sophie drop everything to check on him.

Kyle lies about being fine and says he'll be heading to his apartment to get cleaned up as soon as he gets the all clear from his doctor. 

Kyle says he will come by the election party later.

Sarah asks Kyle if he is sure he is okay, but he lies and says he'll be fine and she should be with her mom.

Kyle notes there was something strange about the fire.

Jordan tell Jonathan that he flew for the first time but that Steel saw him.

Jonathan encourages Jordan to come clean with Lois about his training before John Henry tells her.

According to Lois, Clark's anger with Jonathan over the X-Kryptonite incident was the angriest she had ever seen him about anything.

John Henry remembers what day it is after thinking about how Natalie had been upset ever since that morning.

John Henry tells Lois that he recognized Jordan as the stranger who saved Kyle. 

Jordan is ready to come clean to Lois, but she isn't in the mood to hear it.

Jordan defies Lois regarding it being necessary for him to help people.

John Henry apologies to Natalie but says he's been trying to move on from the day their Lois died. He agrees that they can't forget her but that he can't dwell on the past either.

Natalie goes to her father's apartment. She discovers that he is bleeding and he hasn't unpacked most of his belongings.

Lois confronts Sam over his training Jordan in secret, but he defends his actions saying Jordan needed help

Sam thinks the fire from earlier was meant to cover up an X-Kryptonite distribution hub.

Sam and Lois confront Jonathan over the X-Kryptonite dealer he was protecting. 

Jonathan agrees to see if the dealer is willing to help the DoD in exchange for a promise of immunity from prosecution.

Mayor Dean tries to shut down a ride-sharing program that is helping people to vote, accusing Lana of bringing in people from outside the county.

Sara tries to talk to Lana about how bad Kyle is doing and how he seems to be waiting for her to take him back, but Lana says Kyle has to learn how to take care of himself.

Candice reveals that she had ben selling X-Kryptonite for about fourth months and she got it from a man in her trailer park named Micky Jeroux.

Lois knows Micky Jeroux is a crook despite only living in Smallville for a year.

Candice says her father has a heart condition and treating it exhausted their savings. She also says the moved seven times in the last nine years.

All Candice knows about the distribution of X-Kryptonite locally is that Mickey picked up his supply from somewhere on Old McClellan Road.

Candice tries to apologize for getting Jonathan in trouble, but Lois doesn't want to hear it.

Sam and Jordan persuade Lois to allow Jordan to ride along with them to use his super-hearing to locate the X-Kryptonite distribution center. Lois only agrees with the understanding that all Jordan do is listen.

Sarah brings the rest of Kyle's belongings to his apartment along with everything she needs to cook a decent meal.  

Kyle says Sarah deserves better than Jordan after asking why he isn't there helping her deliver his stuff.

John Henry watches a video of his Lois just after Natalie was born.

Jordan reveals he has not gotten X-Ray vision yet.

Lois and Sam decide to scout out the X-Kryptonite lab before calling in the authorities, but are caught before they can do so.

Lois has considerable experience being tied up and can identify several kinds of knots and knows which ones not to bother trying to wiggle out of.

When a drug dealer emerges with a gun, clearly ready to shoot them, Lois speaks to the open air and tells Jordan he needs to come save them.

Jordan saves Sam and Lois.

Lana wins the election for Mayor, 57% to 43%.

Lois says the operation is clearly bigger than Smallville and has big money behind it.

Jordan goes to Sarah and tries to apologize for being gone the whole day.

Sarah dumps Jordan and returns his grandmother's necklace when he won't tell her where he was.

John Henry makes his wife's waffles for dinner and spends the evening watching old family videos with Natalie.

Sarah goes to stay the night at Kyle's place.

Candice talks with Jonathan and they agree to a fresh start with their relationship, after deciding they do want to stay together.

Jonathan gets a weird headache while talking to Candice, but he writes it off as a side effect of looking at a screen more than normal because of on-line classes.

The Bizarro version of Jonathan Kent arrives at the Kent farm and tells Lois and Jordan that Clark made it to his world but he was too late.


The Bottom Line

An amazing episode which proves that the show can tell a compelling story without Superman. It shouldn't do so often, but it can.

Superman and Lois: Season 2, Episode 8 - Into Oblivion

  For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

Clark is left struggling to find a way to make Natalie see him as something other than a threat, when it becomes clear John Henry is still suffering mental trauma from the fight with Bizarro. Meanwhile, Lois and Sam search for Lucy as Ally Allston moves forward with her plans for ascension and Jonathan confronts the consequences of his actions.


Influences

Crisis on Infinite Earths (the opening sequence and flashbacks involving how Natalie got to Earth-Prime) and Poltergeist (the crossing into Bizarro world sequence.)


Performances

Jordan Elsass has the hardest job in this episode, making Jonathan sympathetic and noble despite some patently stupid decisions. The fact that he's successful is a credit to his talent.


Artistry

The scenes with Jordan fighting to save Jonathan are fantastic, being cinematic while also evoking feelings of the old Smallville series.


Super Trivia

The opening sequence of this episode seems to confirm that John Henry's battle with the evil Superman of his Earth took place during the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths.

The AI in Natalie's escape pod is named Hedy. Presumably this is in honor of Hedy Lamarr, who invented frequency hopping, which lay the groundwork for modern portable phones.


Technobabble

Hedy detects a temporal anomaly moving through our galaxy, which is compromising the integrity of our dimension.

According to John Henry's doctor, confusion is normal with his type of brain trauma and temporary. He agrees to order a new wave of tests to check for infection or nerve or blood vessel damage at Natalie's urging. 

Thanks to John Henry's actions, the Department of Defense can track the Bizarro pendant using its unique heat signature.

Superman cannot see into the lead-lined Shuster Mines, but he can hear Chrissy Beppo's cries for help just fine.


Dialogue Triumphs

Clark: Natalie blames me for what happened.
Lois: Don't beat yourself up, Clark. You heard the doctor. John Henry's memory issue is temporary.
Clark: Yeah, but she's not wrong. He got hurt saving me.
Lois: She'll come around. They both need time to heal.
Clark: Ugh, I don't want to do this right now.
Lois: Neither do I, but we have to know what Jon knows about those drugs, Clark, or he is never getting back into that school.
Clark: Rochambeau?
(The two play rock-paper-scissors. Lois wins. Clark winces. Lois smirks.)

Jordan: I'm meeting up with Sarah and Aubrey.
Jonathan: No way. Like, the girl that kissed Sarah, Aubrey? Why? Why would you do that?
Jordan: Mostly 'cause of you.
Jonathan: What?
Jordan: (sighs) When Sarah asked me, I said yes, 'cause I was distracted by some townie yelling at Candice about money for X-K inhalers.
Jonathan: So you're gonna use your powers to rat me out to Mom and Dad now?
Jordan: No, man. I'm just trying to understand. You're doing all this for her? She's a drug dealer, Jon.
Jonathan: Jordan, she's doing it to help out her dad because he's broke, okay? It's just the two of them, and if they get kicked out, they'll literally have nowhere to go.
Jordan: And you care about her that much?
Jonathan: What, like you're the only one that can do something sketch to help their girlfriend?
Jordan: I guess you're right, but going on the most awkward date ever isn't exactly on the same level as, you know, breaking the law.
Jonathan: Hm...mm, yeah, you're right. Yours is way worse.

Kyle: So what would you say to people wondering how you'll keep scandal out of Smallville when you can't even keep it out of your own home?
Lana: I'd say that my personal life is none of their business.
Kyle: Well, that's not really an answer, Lana.
Lana: It's not really a question. It's a judgment from jerks with a question mark at the end. The moderator is Dean's hunting buddy.
Kyle: Right, so judgment is pretty much the only dish she's gonna be serving. So again, how are you gonna keep scandal--
Lana: I never brought scandal into our house! You did! But because I'm a woman, this is now a commentary on me. And that's not fair, and it's all because of your stupid mistake!
(There is a pregnant pause.)
Kyle: You're right.
Lana: I know. I know, okay? It doesn't make it okay to emotionally barf all over this room.
Kyle: Well, hey, look. Maybe you just needed to get that out of your system. Just take a breath, and, um, back to the question.
Lana: (sighs) Back to the question. Right. Okay. Unpredictable things happen in life. We all know that. The real question is how you respond to it in the face of a crisis. Is it with honesty and integrity? Because it's what I've tried to do in my personal life and what I promise to do as mayor of Smallville. I will never waver when it comes to trying to do what's right for my family and for this town.
(There is another pause. Kyle smiles.)
Kyle: Now, that's an answer right there. 


Continuity

The opening sequence is said to take place one year ago

As John Henry goes to face Superman, Natalie detects a temporal anomaly that is destroying reality. She gets into her escape pod to try and warn her father, who won't be able to pick up her broadcasts once he leaves orbit.

In the present, Natalie helps John Henry with shaving his head and notes he might get a scar on his scalp. He jokes that it will match the one on his face.

When Lois and Clark come into John Henry's hospital room, he is momentarily confused and thinks Lois is his wife.

Clark tries to comfort Natalie, but she refuses to listen to his assurances that her father will be okay.

Kyle picks up Sophie and Sarah and takes them out for breakfast before school.

Kyle offers to help Lana with her debate prep, but she turns him down.

Jonathan finds out that lots of parents called the Kents and told them they didn't want their son anywhere near their children.

Clark also tells Jonathan that the principal decided to cancel the entire football season and all of the team's wins had to be forfeited, since Jonathan refuses to tell anyone who was selling the X-Kryptonite and the sheriff is stone-walled on finding out which team members might have been using it.

Jonathan will be allowed to take classes on-line so that he won't miss a grade.

Jonathan has also been set up with a job at Brit & Dunn's general store and is forbidden from being anyplace else but work or home.

Jordan once again asks Jonathan who he is protect, but Jonathan refuses to speak.

Anderson speaks to the Bizarro World Ally Allston and tells her that they have both pendants on Earth-Prime. She gives him a message to give to her other self.

The message Anderson gives to Ally Allston is "Come here now."

Chrissy gets a call from Ally inviting her to cover something big. She calls Lois to tell her she's going in a van being sent by Ally's organization.

The people in the van are wearing strange outfits that resemble Hazmat Suits or Space Suits.

Sarah says it has been one week since her quinceañera in 205.

Sarah still hasn't forgiven her father, but he says he is trying to be there for her, which she appreciates.

Sarah tells Jordan about her meeting with Audrey in 207 and suggests they all hang out together. Jordan is uncomfortable with the idea, but agrees quickly after overhearing an argument between Jonathan's girlfriend, Candice, and a strange older man trying to get into the school.

Jordan overhears the argument with his super-hearing and that the man is asking Candice for money.

Jordan intervenes, but the man says Candice had better have his money by tonight.

Sam Lane is temporarily out of retirement and back on active duty, leading the manhunt for Anderson.

Superman is back in the good graces of the Department of Defense and got a formal apology from General Hardcastle.

Sam Lane discovers that the pendant had been stolen from where it should have been when Anderson went AWOL.

Ally and her followers take Chrissy to the Shuster Mines.

Lucy sends a text to Lois and Sam that sounds like a good-bye, saying she is tired of feeling incomplete.

Sam has the ability to track Lucy's phone. He does so while Clark checks her home.

Ally reveals that there is a portal to what she calls the Inverse World in the Shuster Mines and that Kit Falkner found it before her death.

Ally and her followers start going into the portal, but most of them scream before they disappear.

Anderson takes Yellow Mist before snatching the pendants from Ally Allston and vanishing.

Superman stops Ally, Chrissy and one man from entering the portal before it vanishes. 

4 of Ally's followers, including Anderson, apparently went across. Lucy Lane is presumed to be one of the other four.

Clark forgets to pick up John Henry and Natalie at the hospital because of the crisis at the mines. John Henry forgives him, but Natalie tells him off.

Lois goes to the Department of Defense with Sam to watch Ally Allston be questioned.

Natalie was put into hibernation for six months while she was trapped between worlds.

Jordan figures out that Claudia was the X-Kryptonite dealer Jonathan was trying to protect.

Jordan agrees to keep Jonathan's secret after learning he was trying to protect Candice, who he loves.

Lana asks Kyle for help with the debate after Emily bails on her.

Kyle tells Lana they have to prepare for Dean to attack her on Family Values because that's his most likely point of attack because she can't be touched on actual policy.

Sam tries to grill Ally, but she turns the tables on him and says she knows he has a hole in him from when his wife left him.

Lois tries to question Ally, but she refuses to speak to her without a lawyer present.

Sam blames himself for Lucy's death and tells Lois she was right about Ally all along.

Clark talks with John Henry about Natalie. He suggests he put in some time with her to prove he isn't the monster who killed her mother.

Clark hears someone in Lucy's apartment. He goes there and finds Lois, desperately looking for some proof Lucy is hiding somewhere.

Candice meets with Jonathan at his work. She identifies the man who was bugging her about money as Mickey.

Candice says she is staying with her friend Kim. Jonathan offers to walk her home.

Jonathan's boss is Mr. Olowe. 

Candice tells Jonathan that she loves him because he makes her laugh even when things are bad.

Mickey and several of his friends follow Jonathan and Candice.  

Mickey uses X-Kryptonite and throws Jonathan when he tries to defend her.

Jordan overhears the fight before going to the diner to meet Sarah and Aubrey.

Jordan helps to drive off Mickey and his friends.

Clark finds Natalie and John Henry a place to rent that isn't the Kent barn. It is revealed to have an old machine shop.

Jordan skips out on meeting with Sarah and Aubrey, due to his knuckles being bloody and him being bruised in a way that can't be easily explained.

Lucy shows up at the Kent house. She says that Lois' warnings finally got to her and she bailed on Ally and her followers as they were going to the mines.

Sam takes Lucy back to her place.

Lucy comments that Sam has loosened up, and that the old Sam Lane would never go to brunch or wear Hawaiian shirts. 

Kyle asks Lana if she'll ever forgive him but she doesn't answer as she realizes she's late in picking up Shopie.

Kyle says he has his own place now and isn't living at the firehouse anymore.

Jonathan tells Clark and Lois that he walked Candice home. Clark tells him that from now on he is to be at work or home or moving between them with on exceptions.

Lois says she thinks that was kind of harsh given Jonathan was walking his girlfriend home at night.

Jonathan thanks Jordan for saving him.

Jordan asks Jonathan why he couldn't just tell him he was trying to protect Candice. Jonathan said he thought Jordan had enough on his plate without being his secret-keeper too.

Lucy drugs Sam and takes his work ID, revealing that she was left behind as the fail-safe in case something happened to keep Ally from going into the Inverse-World.


Location

John Henry and Natalie Irons' unnamed Earth, One Year Ago.
Bizarro World


Untelevised Adventures

This episode marks the first time Jordan has used super-speed. Given how good a handle he has on it, this suggests he has been practicing that ability off-camera for some time.


The Bottom Line

Another amazing episode, where all the subplots are firing on eight cylinders.

Superman and Lois: Season 2, Episode 7 - Anti-Hero

  For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

As Superman pleads with Anderson to investigate Ally Allston from the confines of a red sun cell, Lois struggles to help Lana take the fight to Mayor Ford. Meanwhile, relations between Jordan and Jonathan strain further as Jonathan's secret is exposed to his family and Sarah seeks advice from an unexpected source.


Influences

The Supermen of America series and Euphoria (anti-drug storyline)


Goofs

After disabling the red sun filter in their cell, both Tal-Rho and Superman are able to escape their cell at superspeed. However, as shown in previous episodes of Supergirl and Superman and Lois (most notably in Crisis On Infinite Earths) a Kryptonian needs to be exposed to yellow sunlight before their powers are restored even partially after an extended period absorbing red sunlight. 


Performances

Once again, Elizabeth Tulloch steals the show, selling Lois' torment over what her sons have done and the idea that she's failed them as a mother.

The interactions between Tulloch and Emmanuelle Chriqui are also incredible. It's gratifying to see Lois and Lana discussing motherhood and their own issues with barely a mention of Clark and the friendship is well played here.


Artistry

The fight scene between the various Supermen and Anderson is fantastic.


Super Trivia

This episode was originally titled "Fallout." The same title was previously used for episodes of Arrow, The Flash and Supergirl.


Technobabble

The Smallville sheriff does not classify X-Kryptonite or Yellow Mist as a drug, but does have dogs trained to sniff the substance out.


Dialogue Triumphs

(Lois and Lana discuss Mayor Dean's strategy.)
Lois: If it was up to me, I would run your ads for free every single day up until the election, but I'm afraid that would violate every campaign finance law imaginable.
Lana: So what do I do? I mean, Dean's got the power of his office and the town gossip all working in his favor.
Lois: But you have the truth. Don't underestimate that. 

Tal-Rho: I pity you, brother. I mean, after everything you've done for humanity, to find yourself here...
Superman: Do you ever stop talking?
Tal-Rho: Cast out, imprisoned. It's humiliating.
Superman: Yes. Well, the real punishment is having to listen to you. 

Lana: Please just promise me--
Sarah: Not to smoke space drugs? Yeah, I'm not that stupid. 

Mayor Dean: But my point is this... if you can't keep control of your own family, if you don't really know what's going on in your own home, how are we supposed to trust that you'd know what's going on with all of us?
Lana: Because I love this town, George, and everyone in it.
Mayor Dean: Well, Lana... I just can't be sure, given your current situation, if we can be sure of that.
Lana: Well, I guess I'll just have to make it clear to everybody during our debates. But what should really be in question here, George, is what kind of person you are-- someone so willing to attack a member of this family during one of the most painful moments of their life.Does that sound like family values to you?

(Clark comes into Jonathan's room.)
Jonathan: You're back.
Clark: Yeah, I am, and you know what? I was not expecting to hear what your mother just told me.
Jonathan: Dad, I can explain.
Clark: Jonathan, no! Your mom gave you multiple chances to tell her the whole story, you chose not to.
Jonathan: I'm sorry.
Clark: What were you thinking?
Jonathan: I just--I-I wanted to be better.
Clark: By taking drugs? Have we taught you nothing? Have not heard a single word that either of us has ever said to you?
Jonathan: Yes.
Clark: Then, damn it, act like it. Tomorrow you will go, and you will apologize to Principal Balcomb. Then you will apologize to Coach Gaines. And after that, you will apologize to the entire football team. Your mother and I are gonna figure out how you're gonna finish out the school year, whether it's in the next town over, online, or somewhere else. And after all that, Jonathan, you and I are gonna have a long talk about all the important things I thought you already knew so that you don't ever misrepresent yourself or this family again. Do you understand?
Jonathan: Yes, sir. 
(Clark leaves. Jonathan immediately starts crying. Clearly his father's disapproval was the last straw.)


Continuity

As the episode opens, Superman is locked in the same cell as Tal-Rho.

Anderson tells Superman he will remained locked up until he reveals the location of Bizarro.

Superman says he'll gladly hand Bizarro over for trial, but they need to destroy the pendant Bizzaro had first.

Anderson says he has no intention of bring Bizarro to trial or bargaining with Superman. He also blows off Superman's warning about Ally Allston.

Sam Lane tells Lois he's still trying to work his connections to get details about why Clark has been arrested and that he's trying to arrange a face-to-face meeting with General Hardcastle.

Lois tells Jordan and Jonathan to settle whatever dispute they have themselves because she doesn't have time to deal with it.

Lana Lang came from a broken home and hoped to avoid putting her daughters through the same thing.

Sarah helps Lana with gathering Kyle's belongings and says she blames Kyle for this situation - not Lana and says Lana shouldn't blame herself either.

Lana sees that Mayor Dean has an add in the paper, billing himself as a Family Values candidate and promoting a meeting to discuss that topic.

Sarah is ignoring Jordan's calls and texts. He goes to her before their first class and tries to empathize, but Sarah says she doubts he can really understand what is going on.

Candice meets Jonathan at his locker with more Yellow Mist. However, Jonathan tells her he is done taking the drug.

While they are talking, the sheriff's office arrive with drug-sniffing dogs, apparently trained to look for Yellow Mist.

Jonathan takes all of Sarah's stash with the intention of dumping it. However, the dogs single him out before he can walk away.

Lana confronts Lois at the office regarding Mayor Dean's add.

Lois says that Dean paid $3000 for the advertisement which is far more than Lana can afford.

Lois is called about Jonathan being caught with the Yellow Mist.

Anderson puts a Kryptonite collar on Tal-Rho and threatens to kill him slowly if he doesn't tell him where Bizarro is hidden.

Lana confronts Sarah over Jonathan using Yellow Mist. Sarah denies knowing about it or using the drug herself, but she says Jordan is freaking out over it.

Sarah tells Lana that she knows Jordan means well, but that the biggest problems he has with his family is Clark wearing nerdy shorts when he's at work as a football coach. 

Lana suggests Sarah find another friend she's comfortable venting to to discuss her father.

Jonathan was caught with 20 Yellow Mist inhalers.

Jonathan denies selling drugs and claims he was going to get rid of them when he was found with them.

While the Sheriff is not pressing criminal charges against Jonathan (X-K is not technically a drug) the school is still discussing whether or not to expel Jonathan. 

Jonathan refuses to explain how he came into that much X-K.

Jordan walks in as Lois is grilling Jonathan and is asked if he knew anything about this. Jordan presumes she means Jonathan using Yellow Mist and admits he found out the night before. This is actually the first inkling Lois had that Jonathan was using Yellow Mist and not just protecting a drug dealer.

Jonathan admits to using Yellow Mist for a couple of weeks, but says he swore he'd quit after Jordan caught him with it.

Superman lies and tells Anderson that Bizarro is at 76.2 N longitude, 100.4 W latitude. This is later revealed to be the location of his old Fortress of Solitude. These coordinates would place it somewhere in Northern Russia in our world, on the land mass between the Kara and Laptev Seas.

Lois goes to Lana to vent about the situation with Jonathan.

Lana advises Lois that sometimes listening is the best thing you can do for your teenager.

Lois says Lana is a great mom and suggests she take the fight to Mayor Dean regarding his "family values' talk.

Jordan confronts Jonathan and asks if he was dealing drugs. Jonathan tells him to leave him alone.

Anderson and his team discover what remains of Bizarro's armor at the old Fortress of Solitude site. He takes this as proof that Superman has been lying to him and that all the Kryptonians are working together.

A fight breaks out between Superman and Tal-Rho, after Tal-Rho threatens to reveal Superman's secret identity to Anderson. However, this is all part of a plan to lure the guards into their cell to try and break up the fight, allowing them to get their guns and use them to disable the red-sun lamps.

Anderson tracks both Superman and Tal-Rho back to the new fortress in the Bad Lands. He goes chasing after them, despite having an order to report to General Hardcastle over what just happened.

Anderson takes a supply of Yellow Mist the Department of Defense apparently confiscated with him, along with a gun and Kryptonite bullets.

Bizzaro says that, on his world, he and his version of Tal-Rho were inseparable allies until his Tal-Rho betrayed his family and his wife tried to kill Bizarro. (While this is not confirmed directly, it is believed this might be the shadow Lana Lang seen in 206.)

Sarah meets with a girl named Aubrey at the diner in Smallville. She is confirmed to be the girl at camp whom she kissed once.

Aubrey lives in the town of Clover, which is a two hour drive from Smallville.

Sarah apologies for not keeping in touch after camp, but Aubrey says she understands the kiss weirded her out and made things weird since she had a boyfriend.

Aubrey's parents also went through a rough divorce, so Aubrey knows exactly what Sarah is dealing with.

Sarah says part of her wants to talk to Kyle, but she thinks it is disrespectful to Lana to do so.

Aubrey tells Sarah that she didn't talk to her dad for a year and it didn't help things. In fact, she thinks it made her meaner and she got into two fights that semester and chipped a tooth.

Sarah and Aubrey agree to be friends again and to stay in touch.

Jordan tells Lois he doesn't think Jonathan was selling drugs and is covering for someone.

Lois thanks Jordan and says she hopes he's right but he still isn't off the hook for not telling her Jonathan was using X-K.

Jonathan admits he started using X-K to try and keep up with Timmy Ryan because football was the one thing he could do that made him as great as everyone else in the family. He once again denies selling drugs.

Lois says she thinks Jonathan is telling the truth but she's still incredibly disappointed.

Jonathan still refuses to say where he got the Yellow Mist from, even after Lois tells him that the principal told her that he'd be expelled unless he could prove the inhalers weren't his.

Anderson fires a missile at the new Fortress and attacks the Fortress single-handed, manifesting heat vision as he uses the Yellow Mist.

Tal-Rho takes several Kryptonite bullets intended for Superman.

The hologram of Lara releases Bizarro and begs him to save her sons.

Anderson's green Kryptonite weapons do nothing to Bizarro. However, he figures out that the X-Kryptonite weakens him and begins using it like pepper spray to weaken Bizzaro before killing him.

Superman uses his heat vision to vaporize the Kryptonite fragments in Tal-Rho.

Superman takes Tal-Rho back to his cell. He says Anderson is a wanted fugitive and that he has made his peace with the Department of Defense.

Tal-Rho apologizes for hurting Jordan and Superman addresses him as "brother" after telling him that maybe someday he can apologize to Jordan himself.

According to Sam Lane, Anderson is wanted for going AWO and stealing X-K and Kryptonite weapons from Project 7734.

Sam Lane offered to lead the manhunt himself, despite being retired, since he had suggest Anderson be promoted into the position of replacing him.

Clark likes red wine and Chinese food after a long day.

Lana confronts Mayor Dean and says she doesn't think a person with family values would attack someone during one of the worst times of their life. This gets several people to walk out of the meeting with Mayor Dean after she leaves.

Sarah tracks down Kyle as he's grocery shopping and asks to talk to him.

Clark reads Jonathan the riot act and this finally causes Jonathan to breakdown crying.

Anderson goes to Ally Allston and gives her the pendant Bizzaro had.

Location

The undisclosed location where Tal-Rho's cell is kept.


The Bottom Line

Another great episode that moves all the subplots forward  and builds the drama across the board.