All is not well in the Kent household. Clark struggles to deal with his new DOD liaison. John Henry Irons and his daughter struggle to adjust to a world in which they don’t belong.

Considering the massive high on which the previous season ended, it’s a bold move for the writers to start this second season on such a low note. Doubly so when you consider that a key appeal of that maiden run was the strength and love that ran through the Kent family. But here we are.

After a brief recap of exactly how last season had ended (with Natalie emerging from a crashed ship and mistaking Lois for her mother) the show skips forward three months and… all is not well. Lois has become withdrawn and snappy. Even Clark cannot get through to her and her relationship with both him and her sons (and her new business partner for that matter) are becoming strained.

Over at the Lang-Cushing household, things are… well, sort of as tense as usual. Yes, Lana and Kyle may have made up and grown closer with Sarah and her (seldom-seen) little sister as a family unit, but there’s still a little tension in the household. A surprising moment between Clark and Kyle shows that each may have a little bit of advice to give the other, and cements the fact that whatever hatchet existed between the two has long since been buried. It’s nice that the show is taking this angle – in real life, just because the major problem gets solved doesn’t mean all the problems go away, and what’s important is that there is evidence of character growth as well.

As for Sarah, well, she’s back from a month away at summer camp and Jordan is extremely excited to see her. However, Sarah herself doesn’t seem quite as enthused. Though we get nothing more than the occasional awkward silence and far off look to go by, it’s obvious that Sarah isn’t as into this relationship as Jordan, though what isn’t obvious is why.

And on the subject of awkward relationship moments for the Kent men (and boys), Jonathan completes the trifecta when his mum catches him in an eye-wateringly embarrassing position – something made worse by Lois’ current mood. Between this and his continuing struggle to be taken seriously on the school football team, I’m starting to wonder if the poor kid is ever going to catch a break.

As if trouble at home wasn’t enough to be dealing with, Clark has ‘professional’ issues as well. His new liaison with the DOD now Sam has retired is a tricky customer to deal with – he has a very fixed idea of what he wants from Supes and Clark is uncomfortable with what he’s being asked to do. There’s a nice glimpse here of an issue that feels very contemporary being addressed, and I hope we see more of this going forward.

Trouble with new colleagues aside, Clark is also experiencing the occasional fluctuation of his powers, not helpful when your job is saving people from disasters. What’s causing it may be hinted at in the final pre-credits shot, but we shall see on that one.

Which brings us to John Henry Irons and his daughter. Feeling rejected by Lois, Natalie is struggling to come to terms with living in a world that looks so much like her own, populated by familiar faces who don’t know her at all. There’s a lot to unpack here, both for Natalie and Lois, and the show takes some time to give us both sides of this very real emotional struggle, Interestingly, the reason for Lois’ reaction isn’t quite what you might expect given what little information we had seeded in the previous season, and it’s again nice to see the writers take a nuanced, complex approach to an emotional issue.

All things considered, the show hits the ground running, setting up numerous new plot threads and intrigues and giving a taste of some juicy stuff to come. Consider this viewer a happy one.

Verdict: Bold choices and strong writing combine with great performances to make a great start to the new season of Supes. 9/10

Greg D. Smith