Superman is dead – and Lex Luthor is coming for Lois…

The shortened final season of Superman & Lois benefits from the writers and producers knowing well ahead of time that this was the endgame – indeed, the final third of the tenth episode chronicles events into the far future, leaving plenty of space for a reunion movie (oh come on, you didn’t really think Superman was dead, did you?!). There are callbacks across the seasons to events in the first three years, as well as an abundance of flashbacks, including Clark revealing his secret to Lois and then to Sam Lane.

Michael Cudlitz is at the heart of the drama across the season, making the role of Lex Luthor very much his own. This is a different Lex from the ones we’ve seen in the movies – he has a legitimate grievance against Lois and Superman and he’ll do whatever it takes to get his revenge. That pushes things into areas that might not be feasible to maintain had the show been heading for further seasons, but allows developments that hit at the very core of the mythos – and make them work. (I have no doubt that every option that’s explored here has turned up at some point in the comic books!)

Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch’s Clark and Lois are the emotional heart of the show, and I defy you not to shed a tear in that final section; Alex Garfin and Michael Bishop are both put through the wringer as Jordan and Jonathan – the latter also owning his part completely now after some hesitancy when he arrived in season 3. Budget cuts meant that we didn’t get as much of the Smallville soap opera as previously – equally, there wasn’t as much room for it in the curtailed season – but all the key players are present and correct for what they are needed for, and whereas before we might have, say, seen John Henry Irons at the DOD, it’s simply referred to, and honestly, works just as well.

A lot of the effects budget seems to go on Doomsday walloping Superman – and that doesn’t work as well as it should on occasion – but there is plenty to admire, and Dan Romer’s score pulls at the heartstrings when necessary and stirs the sinews at other times.

This looks as if it’ll be the last burst of the Arrowverse, and I’m glad that the CW’s new owners went with finishing the show off in style. It’s the only one of the shows I’ve stuck with from start to finish – and I’m very glad I did.

Verdict: A worthy capstone to not just the CW’s Superman but their whole superhero strand. 9/10

Paul Simpson