Superman & Lois: Season 3
Based on: DC comics characters
Developed by Greg Berlanti Todd Helbing
Written by:
Brent Fletcher, Todd Helbing, Katie Aldrin, Jai Jamison, Juliana James, Andrew N. Wong, George Kitson, Adam Mallinger, Aaron Helbing, Kristi Korzec, Max Cunningham, Max Kronick, Michael Narducci
Starring:
Tyler Hoechlin (Superman/Clark), Elizabeth Tulloch (Lois), Michael Bishop (Jonathan Kent), Alex Garfin (Jordan Kent), Erik Valdez (Kyle), Inde Navarrette (Sarah), Wolé Parks (John Henry Irons), Dylan Walsh (Sam Lane), Emmanuelle Chriqui (Lana Lang), Tayler Buck (Natalie Lane Irons), Sofia Hasmik (Chrissy Beppo), Chad L. Coleman (Bruno Mannheim)
Superman & Lois season 3 trailer:
I wrote a glowing review for this show's awesome first season. I wrote a glowing review for this show's epic second season. And now I will proudly write a glowing review for this show's beautiful third season.
In an unexpected tonal departure from the first two seasons, this one placed Lois Lane more center-stage. When she's diagnosed with breast cancer, both she and Clark are pulled way out of their depths: Clark, who's used to being able to either punch or outwit a bad guy as Superman, and Lois, who's used to being able to strategize, confront, and expose her enemies with an article, are both left without recourse. Against this villain, all either of them can do is wait and hope.
And the show paints this wonderfully. Forced out of their respective larger-than-life roles, both characters are pulled kicking and screaming back into their humanity to walk the hurtles of life like the rest of us. The extraterrestrial element of their marriage makes for an even more compelling dynamic as Clark, who doesn't even face human sickness or death, has to try and not only comprehend but empathize with his wife's mortality and what it could mean for his own life--while being present and supportive of her in every possible way. Meanwhile, half the season is rightfully spent with Lois sneaking out and 'missing' chemotherapy appointments as journalistic updates continually arise, demanding her attention. It takes the full supporting cast of kids, Sam, and even Chrissy to talk her down and convince her of her own priorities. There's a moment in that struggle where they debate the ethics of her body and where she goes being her choice while also urging her to understand that her choices affect them also, and I love that the series zooms in to all of this and gives each of these valid points of view its space. Unusual and beautiful for a superhero comic-based series, to say the least.
I would be remiss not to add the teenagers being given their moment, also, which is written and performed with the same high quality, tact, and respect for the material as everything else. This is especially impressive considering the behind-the-scenes drama: Michael Bishop has replaced Jordan Elsass as Jonathan Kent this season after Elsass bowed out from the role last minute (seemingly of his own accord, I should note). Naturally, I figured there would be some growing pains as all viewers adjusted to Bishop's new face in the role and all associated actors formed new chemistry. However, in a testament to the talent of Bishop himself, his immediate opposite actors, the quality of the written material, and the various directors, this pain was minimal to nonexistent. I noticed only in terms of the actor's face itself being different. In fact, I had to intentionally pull myself away and go "oh yeah!"; the scenes themselves did not break the immersion for me. Just a few episodes in, I realized that the actors had all done it-- the immersion was full and complete, the interactions compelling, and chemistry solid. When Bishop's Jonathan yelled in agony at Lois for some form of frustration or unintentional neglect he had experienced earlier in the season or series, I felt their lifetime spent together. I felt like Bishop had been the one in that place for the whole series. And that's not easy for any actor to achieve.
Back to my main point: the script serviced the kids' struggle with Lois' diagnosis as well, which it needed to. Alongside the despair Clark felt at losing his wife, the kids faced the impossible-to-comprehend possibility of losing their mother alongside their equally impossible task of giving her space while taking intentional time together and encouraging her to take care of herself. Boundaries were crossed throughout the season by all parties involved, emotions flared, and apology after apology were served as the whole lot--family and friends alike--struggled to cope in the best way they knew. Finally, for the purpose of this season, Clark's alien nature served only as a weakness, and the show leaned into this in the best way possible.
Needless to say, this was not the only plot. Any superhero show needs a villain to punch (with exceptions, of course), and Superman and Lois always serves. In this season, Lois' investigation uncovers a major crime boss (Coleman's Mannheim) who's developing weapons of superstrength-- which ultimately leads to the creation of classic comic villain Doomsday. As an article by Collider eloquently explains, the series leads up to Doomsday's reveal and battle in a much richer, more complex, and more potentially devastating way than the DCEU had. While I loved Snyder's DCEU, it's true that the deep emotional stakes just weren't very developed in his movies due to various reasons that I won't get into (including WB's interference). My present point is (and to summarize that article)-- Superman and Lois can and does achieve those emotional stakes. With a full prior two seasons of falling in love with the Kent family and seeing their dynamics together, seeing them fight for each other and loving each other through thick and thin, we're very much devoted to and invested in this family, and that investment is what makes Doomsday's threat so effective. After the Kent family pulling through season 3's devastatingly emotional cancer arc, season 4 now presents an equally devastating threat for Superman. Just as we genuinely don't know whether Lois could survive cancer, we genuinely don't know whether Superman can survive Doomsday.
Sadly, even more behind-the-scenes drama might disrupt season 4. As I referenced in my review of Gotham Knights, the CW network is undergoing something of a shakeup and getting rid of most of its scripted series in favor of reality shows. It announced some months ago that it would only be renewing one of its DC adaptations. While I was thrilled to hear the renewal ended up being this show for its fourth season, the conditions were still devastating: to tighten budget, the show will only be bringing back its core characters, which translates to letting go more than half the cast, all of whom had heavy-hitting storylines that will now never conclude. Additionally, we'll only be getting ten episodes in season 4.
Still, I always say that it's better to be happy that it happened instead of being sad that it's ended (or in this case, changing). Despite the tight budget, I'm thrilled that the writers will get ten more episodes. The series hasn't been officially canceled, but it's seemingly progressing with a gun to its head. I have no doubt that the writers will write the season in prep for a cancelation, like they did with Stargirl's final season. As sad as that is, I'm also grateful for the foresight they've been given, and I'm more than exited to see how everything concludes.
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