Lois and Chrissy pursue new leads in the Mannheim investigation, which distracts Lois from other, more important commitments. Lana, Sarah and Kyle struggle to adjust to the new order of their lives. Jonathan has some relationship issues.

How do you challenge the Man of Steel? Other media have done it with bigger, badder galactic villains, crazed scientists and mad megalomaniacs. This show chooses to go for the jugular, confronting Clark with the one sort of enemy he can’t overcome – his own fear at the mortality of his wife.

Cleverly, the show quickly dispenses with the idea that there will be any magical Kryptonian doodad lurking in Clark’s fortress that can wave Lois’ cancer away, and the series focuses on what it does best – showcasing the full complexity of human emotions and interactions through the medium of the various families involved.

Lois has to start treatment, but she gets distracted when Chrissie identifies a new lead and suddenly she’s having to reschedule, more than once. What’s interesting here is that a weaker show might use this as a way to manufacture additional drama or introduce character tangents. Not here, Clark is as besotted with his wife as ever but terrified she’ll put less important things before her own health. Sam is furious that his son in law ‘let’ his daughter get away with dodging treatment, but deep down it’s clear he knows even Superman can’t tell Lois Lane what to do. Chrissie is still walking the fine line between her slight awe that she’s working with Lois Lane the Legend and her concern for Lois Lane her friend. It all plays agonisingly, as you suspect from the start what the reasons behind Lois’ distraction will be but that doesn’t make it any less crushing when it’s confirmed.

Elsewhere, Nat has an idea for a gift to Lois to let her know everyone is rooting for her, but John Henry is not convinced it’s the right thing to do. Once again, what could be a straightforward Dad Yells at Teen Who Yells Back ‘You just don’t understand me’ becomes an opportunity for the show to add layers to two characters and their relationship.

However, trouble intrudes when Jonathan’s truck is suddenly disappeared with said gift inside it. Trouble for Jonathan on more than one level when he makes the mistake of accusing someone of the crime before getting all his facts in order. Here the show throws a slight curveball, leaving us with the obvious answer actually being the right one and avoiding what seems to be the opportunity to teach a moral lesson on judging books by their covers. At any rate, three heads are better than one when facing a challenge, and when those heads include a super powered individual and a certified genius then the challenge is considerably lessened.

As for the Cushing-Langs, they’re all struggling to find their way through the aftermath of the family breakup. Not just the obvious of Kyle and Lana’s complex feelings in the wake of the divorce, but the sort of emotional pinball that can occur with a teen daughter in the mix. When Lana crosses a line, it’s to the show’s credit that it doesn’t overdo the thing itself nor underplay the drama. Against a backdrop of nefarious criminal overlords, cancer and the like it could have been framed to be an almost trivial matter, but it seems from this that it really won’t be.

Verdict: Ironically on a show involving Superman I am running out of superlatives. Forget genre TV, this is simply some of the best TV out there, full stop. 10/10

Greg D. Smith