The unequivocally best 1st season of a Superman tv show comes to a fitting conclusion with the Last Sons of Krypton.
Tom Cavanaugh takes a break from Central City and steps into the director’s chair. He does a great job of capturing the fears Clark and Lois have. The climactic battle between Tal-Rho and Kryptonians vs Superman and Steel is well done from an action standpoint.
Bitsie Tulloch and Tyler Hoechlin have been phenomenal throughout this first season. In Last Sons of Krypton, Tulloch and Hoechlin are incredible as parents trying to find their son. They fear for Jordan’s safety and have to compartmentalize their role as parents with the fate of the world. John Henry Irons is around to lend a helpful hand.
I also enjoyed the continued improvement of Kyle Cushing as a character. I didn’t really like the attempt to flesh out Kyle’s character in the last episode. However, the decisions he, Lana and Sarah make throughout the episode make sense and work well to flesh out Last Sons of Krypton. Depending on how the writers proceed in season 2, I’m intrigued with where Lana is heading.
There were a couple of minor issues with the episode. Tal-Rho serves as a distraction from the much more interesting father-son battle between Jordan and Clark. The Sarah-Jordan relationship takes an unnecessary leap.
Despite those quibbles, Last Sons of Krypton is an excellent entry to close out the first season for the Kents.
With the non-spoiler details out of the way, let’s dive into superhero theatrics, family drama and more in Last Sons of Krypton. There will be spoilers. Superman and Lois is airing on The CW and streaming on the CWTV app.
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Clark vs Jordan in the Last Sons of Krypton
The bulk of the episode is devoted to Lois and Clark doing whatever they can to find Jordan. Lois fears what Tal-Rho is doing to Jordan. Clark shares her fear but manages to be somewhat reassuring as he promises to find him. In a really nice move, John Henry Irons is by Clark, Lois and Jonathan’s side throughout the episode.
Tal-Rho’s father, Zeto-Rho, is in control of Jordan’s body. Jordan does try to resist and even manages to get a signal out to his Dad. Meanwhile, Clark is zooming around the planet like a madman trying to hear his son’s voice. Once Superman finds him, Zeto-Rho regains control of Jordan. Superman tries to get through to his son to no avail. It’s also possible that Zeto-Rho allowed Jordan to gain control as a diversion. Although it’s not entirely clear.
Regardless, the father-son fight serves as a diversion. Tal-Rho shows up in Smallville. He uses his powers as the Eradicator to turn some of the soldiers into Kryptonian vessels.
Lois and Clark regroup. Clark and John Henry will focus on Edge/Tal-Rho, while Lois and Jonathan focus on Jordan. First, they have to get Jordan back to the Kent farm.
Steel is able to catch Jordan/Zeto-Rho off guard with a well-timed blast knocking him unconscious. Steel takes Jordan back to Smallville, while Superman focuses on the Kryptonians.
Lois uses a device to enter Jordan’s mind. Jordan wakes up, but a prepared Jonathan uses Kilgrave’s shockwave gun to knock Jordan down. Jordan recovers and with his hand clasped around Jonathan’s throat takes to the air. With Lois and Jonathan’s help, Jordan is able to break through, Zeto-Rho is vanquished and the Kent boys embrace.
This show does such a great job of making Lois and Clark vulnerable without ever crossing the line into making them appear weak. Their resilience as parents is the lynchpin for the show. Throughout the season, Jordan has felt like a freak, but ever since moving to Smallville, his parents and Jonathan have been by his side. Jordan feeling loved allows him to break free of mind control. This wonderful character development makes Superman and Lois a special tv series.
Made of Steel
Wolé Parks continues to excel as John Henry Irons. He risks his life to save Jordan and a world that isn’t his in this episode. The blast he uses to incapacitate Jordan takes almost all of the energy out of his suit. John Henry takes Jordan back to the Kent harm. In spite of his energy draining rapidly, he returns to help Superman without hesitation.
There’s a great exchange between Superman and Irons that completely embodies the optimism of Superman and the realist in Irons.
Irons: So…Terrible odds
Superman: Sure. But better together.
The fight scenes between Superman and the Kryptonian soldiers are great. The fight starts on the ground, but after Irons rescues Jordan, it takes to the sky. As Superman flies towards space, the soldiers begin piling on him. Steel returns to the fight and a well-placed hammer throw knock all of the Kryptonians out of the area.
With the suit power continuing to deteriorate, Superman flies full speed ahead toward Tal-Rho. Steel throws the hammer from space as the power goes to zero. Superman is able to get behind Tal-Rho and hold him in place. Tal-Rho takes the hammer shot at full force, which rids him of his powers.
An unconscious John Henry is rapidly descending towards Earth. Luckily, Superman catches him.
The decision to have Steel and Superman team up in these last few episodes has paid off big time. With the events at the end of the episode, I’m curious to see where Irons goes from here. I’m happy they didn’t kill off this promising character.
Aftermath
Kyle, Lana and Sarah are faced with a dilemma in Last Sons of Krypton. Leave Smallville as it’s on death’s door or return to help a town that has turned its back on them. They choose to stay and help. When Smallville residents attempt to drown out the voice of General Sam Lane, it’s Kyle who steps up and convinces the town to listen.
Kyles gets his job back, so the Cushings decide to stay in Smallville. After Jordan’s rescue, he and Sarah have a heart-to-heart. They exchange “I love you’s.” They simply haven’t been a couple long enough for such a leap. There’s a very stern look that Lana gives the mayor of Smallville. After everything the mayor has said about her family, a run for local office could be next for Lana.
Lois buys half of The Smallville Gazette from Chrissy, which makes them partners. Sam has decided to retire from active duty to spend more time with his family. John Henry is committed to making the most out of life on this Earth. Staying in Smallville is just too hard for him. Before he can leave, a ship crashes in front of them. Natalie, John Henry’s daughter from the other Earth emerges, they embrace and the season ends with Natalie uttering one word “Mom.”
It’s gonna be fun to see Natalie in the mix with the Kent boys next season.
Last Sons of Krypton Final Thoughts
This show has an almost perfect Lois, a great optimistic take on Superman and strong side characters. In addition to the superhero theatrics, Superman and Lois is a stellar family drama.
If Superman and Lois can find a captivating villain next season, then this show could very well be the best superhero show ever. It’s easily the best one going right now. However, season one of The Flash was outstanding. Unfortunately, The Flash wasn’t able to maintain that pace and faltered rapidly after the 2nd season. Here’s hoping Superman and Lois can keep soaring to new heights
The Review
Season 1 Finale
PROS
- Bitsie Tulloch is just terrific as Lois Lane.
- The pairing of the optimistic Superman and ultra realistic Steel is outstanding.
- Choosing to stay and help a town that has turned its back is a strong character moment for Kyle, Lana and Sarah Cushing.
- The action and special effects were on-point.
CONS
- Jordan and Sarah's relationship takes an unnecessary step.
- The series just couldn't find a way to make Tal-Rho interesting.
