SUPERMAN & LOIS 1.14

 

RECAP - SUPERMAN & LOIS  1.14:  "The Eradicator"

The penultimate episode of the first season of Superman & Lois raised the stakes for not just the Kent Family...but for all of Smallville....and now Metropolis. Tal-Rho spend the end of last episode absorbing the energy of not only the Sun...but that of the Eradicator itself, becoming the living embodiment of it.  His evolution is now at that next stage, that he is finally prepared to fulfill the wishes of his father:  to recreate Krypton by taking over the Earth.  And now, he can carry out that plan without the use of Superman.  

The Kent boys, for the most part, spend the majority of this episode on the sidelines of a sort.  As Lois and Clark continue to worry about them...especially Jordan, now that he's in a relationship with Sarah Cushing, and she's got HER own issues to deal with:  Kyle and Lana have decided that they need to move.  They're still outcast from the town, and with the town falling into despair financially...also due to the continued presence of the DoD...have put the town on hard times, and many businesses are leaving.  The Cushings are feeling that heat as well.  But the boys are still trying to be about as normal as they can as teenagers.  At the diner, the trio comment on how Smallville is falling apart, and then the boys get approached by their teammates, including Sarah's ex, about a party they're having.  Sarah decides to take a powder from it, saying she's going to do something with her sister Sophie, and the boys need a "guys night out" scenario.  So, as much as Jordan tells Jon about being aware of their dad calling them, Jon tells them that for once, they just need to be teenagers, and they can put aside all the stuff going on with their dad for a change.  So, they head to the party.  

Sarah heads home, and she is spending time with Sophie, doing her hair.  In the kitchen, Kyle and Lana talk about leaving, having put the house up for sale, but not getting many buyers.  Lana wonders whether or not it's a good idea.  They built so much in Smallville, and it's their home, and she's unsure if leaving when the town is in despair is the right thing to do.  Kyle honestly tells her that it's for the best.  Sarah and Jordan had talked earlier about the move, and she assured him that they're not going anywhere.  They make a promise to not let the distance SHOULD she move stop their relationship.  Kyle goes to the fire station to collect his gear, and he runs into one of this team.  She comments that him leaving is a big blow for this town.  She said that when she wasn't accepted because she was a woman...and black...he stuck by her, because he believed in her as a firefighter.  He never gave up on her---and she won't on him.  Though she talked to the other fire chief, she said they'd be getting a great guy. It leaves Kyle much to ponder on, and he actually confesses to Lana that he might be having second thoughts.  But when they talk to Sarah and Sophie, they both agree that it's time to move.  Sarah isn't down with it, and blasts BOTH her parents for giving up and caving in when things get too hard.  It's a verbal tongue lashing that both had coming, and Sarah calls them out on the carpet.  She storms out, calling them idiots, and leaves them stunned.  I should note that one of the reasons Lana had doubts was with her talk with Clark.  Clark came back, only to be losing his best friend, and has confessed to her that SHE is the heart of the town...especially since his mother died.  He urges her not to go. 

Sarah ends up at the party, telling Jordan that her parents have decided to move, and he's there to comfort her.  Meanwhile, Jon is approached by Tegan Wickham, who's been taking an interest to Jon for some time now, and the last time the two chatted, she grilled him for info about his grandfather and the DoD.  He didn't take that well and bailed. She ends up apologizing, and we get some of HER backstory:  She's originally from Central City herself, and she and her mother left after her father went to prison...which prompts ME to think just WHO he is, and whether or not he's had a run-in with The Flash.  Either way, she understands where both Jon and Jordan come from....transplanting their lives, thinking that it would be better from whence they came.  She really likes him, and still wants to show him around, and her and Jon look like they're on the right track.  However, back at the party, Jordan and Jon get a call from their parents, needing them to head home and lay low with Edge now out of control.  They end up tuning into the TV when they hear the clammer about what's going on in Metropolis, and both boys see the showdown between The Eradicator's new minions, and their father, with John Henry Irons.  They then see their mother atop a building giving a report to the city about The Eradicator and what he's capable of, telling the citizens to seek cover.  Jon and Jordan see the scene where Leslie Larr comes up from behind her, about ready to kill her, when Steel shows up to save her.  Sarah comments on how badass Lois is to Jordan.  

The boys are found by General Lane, and he orders them home...Jordan asks if they can drop Sarah off.  En route back to the Kent Farm, they are attacked by the Eradicator.  The vehicle is flipped and crashed after running into him.  Injured, General Lane has Jon open up his glovebox, and pull out a Kryptonite gun he had stored in there.  Jon goes to shoot Edge, but he disappears, and misses the shot.  Eradicator pulls off the door, and grabs Jordan....then takes off.

Backtracking here, we go back to Lois and Clark's sequence of events, which started with Sam arguing with Lois about the article Chrissy Beppo wrote about the DoD's continued presence in Smallville.  The townsfolk are pissed, and want answers.  Sam is doing what he's doing to protect THEIR family, but the article is only making it worse...especially with the Town Hall meeting coming up.  After Clark's visit with Lana, both he and Lois head to the meeting, and the citizens are visibly upset, and want answers.  Lois had been at the paper to see Chrissy earlier, and she feels that Chrissy needs to be the one to ask the tough questions to her father.  Chrissy informs her, however, that she's been offered a good deal of money by a corporation to sell the paper.  She informs Lois that she can't keep the doors open.  Her...like so many other business in Smallville...are closing up shop because of Morgan Edge, and how he left the town worse off then when he arrived.  The town hall meeting doesn't go well for Sam, who TRIES to explain what the DoD is doing.  Chrissy asks if Edge is in custody, and is the town still in danger---to which Sam agrees, but says they're doing all they can...along with Superman, to find him and stop him.  The town wants to know why they're closing up the mines, thinking whatever's there has to do with money, and Sam quells that idea.  Derek Powell's mother shows up, telling the town that the DoD has lied to them, and knows what happened to her son.  She wants Sam to admit it, but he's not at liberty to give up info.  Just then, that's when He and Lois get notice that Edge has shown up in Metropolis after breaking Leslie Larr out of their prison.   They leave the town to head to Metropolis, leaving the Smallville citizens to rant and rave.  

Once in Metropolis, They see Edge just hovering in the sky.  Leslie mocks Lois and Superman, saying that Tal-Rho isn't Tal anymore---and Superman can confirm it.  And she goes on to say that it's fitting that the first city to fall should be Metropolis.  Eradicator already has turned a few citizens into Kryptonians, and they fly off to begin the assault on the city.  Superman and Steel take off to battle the converted Kryptonians.  Eradicator watches, and Leslie takes off as well.  Lois heads off to warn the citizens, and her friend Janet Klyburn is on the roof of the Planet, as she uses the TV camera to give Lois a chance to warn the citizens of Metropolis to take cover.  Superman and Steel manage to defeat the underlings of the Eradicator, and Leslie is given another mission:  kill Lois Lane.  That is where we left off with the boys at the party, watching their mother on TV, and Jon seeing Leslie creep up behind her in the air....about ready to fry her alive.  But Steel manages to intercept her, and take Leslie down.  The Eradicator flies off before the battle is over.  

Bringing us to the end of the episode, as Sam, seriously injured, and having watched Jordan get abducted by The Eradicator...calls out to Superman, and he arrives, and tells him that Edge got Jordan.  Superman speeds off, and he's searching feverishly for his son.  Superman arrives back at the farm, and  informs Lois that he can't locate their son.  She cries in his arms, wondering what Edge has planned, and what will they do. In some undisclosed location, however, we see that the Eradicator has now put Jordan through the process of conversion, and has given him Tal-Rho's father's presence in Jordan's body---and they're now ready to complete their long mission.  

This episode amped up the danger, and gave us a real sense of dread going into the season finale.  This show continues to deliver, and next to Stargirl, is the best of the CW Arrowverse shows.  With Jordan now being the host body for Tal-Rho's father, he and the Eradicator are now dead set on finishing their mission of reviving Krypton.  Choosing Jordan was the easy choice because HE has the powers of his father, though weaker.  With the imbued Kryptonian DNA of Tal's father, Jordan's going to now be as powerful as Superman, and that's going to put the Man of Steel in a VERY precarious scenario...to where he must battle his son in order to save him.  Not sure how much Lois' strength and will can handle it---watching her husband fight their son in order to save him.  Lois is a strong, powerful woman in her own right, and has faced MANY threats....but this is different.  This is Lois Lane:  mother.  It takes on a new dynamic when you have your child's life hanging in the balance.  Tal wanted to make sure that he chose the next host to ensure either Superman's obedience, or to force Kal-El to do what he wouldn't do:  kill.  It's Tal's ultimate payback towards Kal-El...taking the one thing he loves most...and turn it against him.  

With Jordan having been abducted, I am curious as to how much Sarah will NOW be curious about in regards as to WHY Edge chose Jordan, of all people, and not Jon, or General Lane.  How much closer will she get to find out the family secret?  And as HER family goes, will the Cushings honestly move?  Or will Lana and Kyle step up, and be the community leaders they know they can be?  Lana has always had self doubt, no matter how much she's loved the town...but she doesn't think she has it in her to rally the town and save it.  But Clark does what he can to instill all the confidence in his best friend as much he can.  The town needs leaders...and Kyle and Lana need to step up.  

It was about time we got to know a little more about Tegan.  She isn't what everyone has made her out to be, and we see that she had to relocate to Smallville for a "better life" in much the same way the Kents did.  She can relate to how Jon has felt trying to adapt to a new town.  We also find out HER family has a chequered past, what with her father having been a  criminal in Central City.  That makes me wonder about her father, and whether or not he's had ANY time he might've crossed paths with The Flash.  But knowing HER story, and her understanding of Jon's scenario...we don't have as much a negative opinion of her as we did before.  She'll be an interesting character to watch down the road.  

General Sam Lane got it on all sides this week:  A verbal lashing from the Smallville faithful, and having to get it from his daughter as well.  But then to get hurt in a car accident by The Eradicator.  We don't know how badly the General is hurt, but he's been put into some precarious situations...much of it his own doing.  But I've no doubt about his convictions.  He is a soldier and protector of America first...then the world.  But I also know that HE has to do what HE can on his part to also protect the family secret:  Clark's secret ID as Superman.  Even HE has to walk that fine line, and it's tough.  As much as I have wanted him to get belted upside the head, I can also sympathize with him.  

Overall, this show has been great, and I have loved the ride from day one.  EVERYONE has delivered in their roles, and have told a VERY convincing and well rounded story.  It's got me excited about season two, but I am all-in on an exciting season finale.  What about all of YOU?  Subscribe, leave me a comment, and YOUR opinions...lemme know what you like/dislike about this show.  

Until next week's season finale....Up, up, and away!