REVIEW: Superman & Lois S3 Ep 12: Injustice
Although the episode was greatly affective in establishing what to expect from Lex going forward, the season feels like it greatly shifted around his presence. That being said, it appears the finale is going to make up for the snippets of Superman action we’ve had so far and set up some story-based reasons for next seasons limited cast.
Superman & Lois S3 Ep12, “Injustice” brings a different Lex Luthor into the show. In and of itself, the episode is fairly intense as Michael Cudlitz’s portrayal of Lex leans into the more sinister aspects of the character. Although a solid episode on its own, this entry felt disjointed from the rest of the season as it plays out more akin to a season premiere than a penultimate one.
With the Mannheim’s arc concluded, the evidence they fabricated to help imprison Lex comes to light issuing Luthor’s immediate release. We’re then treated to some fantastic use of flashbacks that quickly and effectively set up the kind of Lex Luthor this show is getting. Focusing more on his inherit need to control every situation, Lex comes off more cold and menacing than suave and calculating. It’s definitely a different approach than we’ve seen in live action Lex’s prior and a tad jarring following the complex nature of Chad L. Coleman’s performance of Bruno Mannheim. It will be interesting to see how Luthor’s return will affect the show going forward, especially with his personal vendetta against Lois (Bitsie Tulloch) whom he directly blames for his incarceration.
Written by Michael Narducci and directed by Sudz Sutherland, “Injustice” not only plays on Luthor’s wrongful sentencing, but also falls upon the lives of the teenager cast of characters. The former mayor’s son Junior (Dylan Leonard) continues his hunt for his super powered rescuer causing Jordan (Alex Garfin) to suggest whomever they are must be pretty awesome. Sarah (Inde Navarrette), feeling her life has come apart at the seams, mistakes Jordan’s attempt of collaboration as bragging which cascades into Jordan being benched from superhero outings. Meanwhile, Jonathan (Michael Bishop) feels Kyle (Erik Valdez) has started treating him differently at the firehouse since being let in on the family secret. Trying to rectify the situation, Clark (Tyler Hoechlin) ends up complicating Jonathan’s problem more by talking to Kyle about his son’s feelings. Thinking Jonathan should’ve come to Kyle first adds more rockiness between them.
Jordan ends up disobeying his parents as he chooses to help his father with a natural disaster and willingly allows his presence be known as he takes congratulatory selfies with people he helped save. His outing obviously goes viral which drastically complicates and compromises Lois and Clark on how to handle Jordan now that his alter ego is the topic of national news outlets. This segues into Lex arriving at the Kent farmhouse to confront/threaten Lois with an ultimatum to retire from reporting. This also leads to Lex discovering Bizarro’s existence in Mannheim’s basement lab going into next week’s season finale.
For a season that focused on character developments and relationships as well as complex, yet villainous, motivations, the tone of this episode felt darker and slightly out of place. Although the episode was greatly affective in establishing what to expect from Lex going forward, the season feels like it greatly shifted around his presence. That being said, it appears the finale is going to make up for the snippets of Superman action we’ve had so far and set up some story-based reasons for next seasons limited cast.
Haven’t watched Superman & Lois S3 Ep 12: Injustice yet? You can watch it for free NOW via The CW website.
