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Wednesday, March 6, 2024

TV Show Review: Superman & Lois - Season 3

Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: Writing and acting beautifully tackle tough subject with other stories
Cons: For some, the cancer story will be too hard
The Bottom Line:
Tackling cancer
With other storylines, too
Makes a strong season




“Where Are the Paperweights?”

It’s no secret that I’ve been loving Superman & Lois, the last of the DC Comic shows on The CW.  Season two got a little strange for me, but I still liked it.  I found that season three made some surprising choices but was ultimately stronger for it.

The season opens as Clark Kent and Lois Lane (Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch) are getting ready to celebrate the 16th birthday of their twins, Jordan and Jonathan (Alex Garfin and Michael Bishop stepping into the Jonathan role).  With Clark joining the staff on Smallville’s paper, they think that everything will be going well in their world.

However, bad news is just around the corner, and this time, it is something that Superman can do nothing about.  Lois has a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer.  As everyone attempts to deal with it emotionally, Lois thinks it might be the best way to continue her investigation of Bruno Mannheim (Chad L. Coleman), a criminal she’s been trying to nail on and off for years.  He runs a state-of-the-art cancer treatment center in Metropolis.  But will that be too much for her health?

Yes, there are storylines going on beyond Lois’s cancer this season, but it is front and center in every episode.  I felt it was respectfully done and showed the ways that everyone impacted by it reacts realistically.  However, that does come with a warning for those who are dealing with it or have gone through it.  It might be too much.  Go in cautiously, and if it gets to be too much, step away.

But I have to give the writers credit.  They could have taken some easy ways out, and they didn’t.  They faced things head on, and the result was good.  I think it will be cathartic for some people.  It will certainly be hard for those dealing with it currently or in the recent past.  Only you know how you will react.

As I said, there are other storylines going on.  Mannheim and his evil empire is a large part of that.  I wasn’t familiar with this particular villain, so I enjoyed watching how all of that played out.  There were some great twists.

Meanwhile, Jordan is still trying to figure out how to use his new powers, and how to use them appropriately.  And Jonathan tries joining the local fire station.

And there are the Cushings.  I’ve got to admit, I have struggled some with what they did with those characters in season two.  I was a bit happier with where they left them at the end of this season, but I still wish they’d made different choices for the characters.

And it’s a good thing that I am happy with much of where the characters are.  We are going to get a season 4, but only the Kent family is coming back as regulars.  The rest of the cast coming back for guest spots or as recurring characters hasn’t been ruled out, so I’m hoping we’ll see more of these characters pop up in multiple episodes if not every week.  I’ll miss the Cushings, the Irons, General Lane, and Chrissy if they don’t.

I already praised the writing, but the actors all nailed it every week.  I didn’t want to look away because the actors were pulling me in with their performances.  There’s lots of drama this season, which the cast excels at, but they make the most of some lighter moments, too.

There are thirteen episodes in season 3.  It was a struggle to wait from week to week to watch them.  Now that they are all out, I bet you race through them.

I’m going to miss Superman & Lois when it is over.  The strength that was season 3 of the show proves just how wonderful it is.

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