Superman and Lois – The End and the Beginning review S4 E1

With The End and the Beginning, Superman and Lois returns for its final season (boo).

It feels like a long time since the last surviving show of the Arrowverse’s great purge on The CW wrapped up its third season. To recap, Lex Luthor (Michael Cudlitz) created his version of Doomsday (yawn) that he sends to kill Superman. Doomsday is such a problematic villain basically whenever he surfaces. He exists to kill Superman and he kinda has to in every instance otherwise he could just be any other villain.

Gen. Lane made a love connection with Gretchen (Rebecca Staab) only to learn she was a mole working for Luthor. She and Otis (Ryan Jefferson Booth) take him hostage as a means to force Lois to retire from journalism. This is a dumb Luthor plan and is goofy bullying that seems completely beneath the great Alexander Luthor.

Superman and Lois has done an exceptional job of navigating cliche and stupid subplots. Last season featured an amazingly emotional and compelling saga with the Manheim family. The final two episodes with Luthor were easily the worst aspects of the season. It’s not because Cudlitz is a poor actor.

He’s just an awful fit for Luthor. And maybe it’s not so much that he’s a terrible fit but that the writers want to do this thug, leather jacket neckbeard version that only resembles Luthor in name only. Ironically, Cudlitz’s take on Luthor would’ve made for a better Manheim. And Chad L. Coleman’s Manheim would have made for a far better Lex Luthor. The End and the Beginning suffers largely from Luthor’s brooding machinations where his scheming calculating nature is sorely absent.

Lex bought the run-down hotel across the street from the Smallville Gazette, a move that puzzles his assistant Amanda (Yvonne Chapman) — have mercy.

Lois has Jordan focusing on trying to track down Gen. Lane as she starts having flashbacks on various memories with Clark. Like the first time they had sex, which was also Clark’s first time period. That’s right on brand for this take on Superman. A wholesome one woman and one woman ever type of guy. She also recalls an incident after Superman took down some gangs and Lois has to pick a tiny Kryptonite shard from his neck.

It’s not so much a secret, but The End and the Beginning reinforces what keeps driving this show. Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch are perfectly cast. Nostalgia tugs super hard, but they’re just behind Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder as the best Clark and Lois. And if Hoechlin could bulk up like a Henry Cavill he’d probably even surpass Reeve as the best Superman. I know. Movie actor blasphemy.

Jordan is worried Clark can’t beat Doomsday while Jon encourages him that Superman will, and that Jordan can find their grandfather. Alex Garfin has always handled his role as the “baby” twin really well, but it’s so impressive how smoothly Michael Bishop fit into the series after debuting as the new Jon last season.

On the moon, Superman is still battling Doomsday. I remain a massive non-fan of Doomsday also having heat vision. The dude is a hulk-sized mammoth with jagged appendages and is stronger than Superman. Let the Man of Steel have some power advantages.

For a superhero show on a network bleeding money, Superman and Lois has always had film-like quality action sequences. The End and the Beginning likewise went all out for the Superman/Doomsday battle. Zack Snyder would have appreciated the amount of slow-motion. This was a very solid fight on a level we rarely see on superhero TV shows.

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Luthor comes to the Gazette to threaten Lois again. And then he tries to intimidate the twins at the diner. This grunt is so not something Lex Luthor would do, but there’s so many reasons why he also wouldn’t have stayed in prison for nearly 20 years too.

Gen. Lane manages to overpower Gretchen, but somehow forgets Otis was also keeping watch on him. Lex kicks Gen. Lane into an open grave and tells Otis and Gretchen to make sure the dirt is wet so it’s more painful when he’s buried alive.

Jordan’s efforts to channel his chi prove worthwhile as he tracks down Gen. Lane and saves him before he suffocates. Too bad Otis and Gretchen got away, which seems weird since Jordan should be able to track them down as easily as he did the general. It’s not like they were going to sit in silence on their way back to Lex.

Back at the moon, Superman is bracing for his final stand. This doesn’t end well for him (shockingly!). Doomsday pulls the biggest c.b. move in stopping Amanda and Lex from having a little Sexy Lexy time. Amanda retried a device from Milton and in case the reference flew over viewer’s heads she said that Brainiac doesn’t need any more encouragement.

Doomsday comes bearing gifts. Superman’s heart. Well, that’s gruesome.

Oh no Doomsday killed Superman on the first episode of the new season. Does that make The End and the Beginning the series finale? Oh wait, it’s a two-episode premiere. Is it time for the Funeral for a Friend homage?

It seems pretty hard for Superman to regenerate a heart no matter how many solar rays he absorbs. The End and the Beginning certainly wasn’t boring with some significant developments. Let’s see if the momentum continues. Time to head to this next episode.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Photo Credit: The CW

Check out the Superman: Funeral for a Friend trade paperback on Amazon.

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