Clark finds himself in unfamiliar waters. Jordan’s patience starts to wear thin. Kyle and Chrissy must reckon with what exactly they are doing. Lois makes a new friend.

Week after week, this season of the show is really hammering home what has been one of its core tenets from the get go – that for all his strength and power, there are some things that Superman just can’t overcome. This week, the focus on that turns inward, when Clark’s struggle becomes not against a disease he can’t beat, but against his own sense of denial.

There’s a powerful scene early on which sees Clark in group therapy with other spouses of cancer sufferers, and the pain is visible all over Clark’s face as he listens to someone describe something he himself cannot imagine doing. In a normal relationship, this might lead to sniping or sulking, but this being Clark, it leads to an over-abundance of his trademark ‘can-do’ attitude, which becomes increasingly toxic both to him and those around him as he fights against truths that even Lois herself has been forced to accept.

And that becomes a problem with regards to Jordan, who is gaining in power and confidence daily. Jordan wants to do more, to help his father and even go out on ‘saves’ by himself, but Clark is so focused on protection and preserving his family unit that he can’t allow even for the possibility of his son being in harm’s way. Things come to a head between them and when the crunch comes, it’s both heartbreaking and revelatory for Clark in ways that he can’t even begin to predict.

Elsewhere, Chrissy is getting a little tired of sneaking around behind Lana’s back, as it were, but Kyle is reluctant to add to the burdens of his ex-wife and daughters by openly admitting he’s in a new relationship. When Sophie is left in his care along with her sister for a few hours, a quick sneak out for a meetup proves the final straw to his youngest daughter who wanders off alone, leading to all sorts of complications. I was rooting for Kyle and Lana to make it but such is the strength of the writing and character work here that I now really hope Kyle and Chrissie make it and that Lana can be happy for them. One suspects when she’s calmer she may well be.

As for Lois, she struggles to continue her treatment while chasing down whatever leads she can about Mannheim. A new friend at treatment offers a new outlet and perspective on things, and it’s nice to see Lois have someone she can share things with who ‘gets it’.

Perhaps the star of the episode though is Jonathan. Poor Jon, no powers and outshone by his father and brother, booted from school for destroying the football team and generally down on his luck and stuck with the ‘apprentice shirt’ at the fire station. It’s Jon who comes through at a pivotal moment, and when he does, his speech reiterates that for all their powers and strength, the other two Kent men are by no means overshadowing Jon when it comes to heart, courage and empathy. In a show which constantly reckons with the limitations of Superman rather than simply deifying his strengths, it’s a perfect moment, and cements exactly why Jon is far from the ‘fifth wheel’ in his household.

Verdict: Often easy to forget this is ‘just’ a comic book show. 10/10

Greg D. Smith