Season 1, Episode 11: "A Brief Reminiscence In-Between Cataclysmic Events" (SPOILERS)

[Mani-Man]

I dont know what to say...those 20-25 minutes of Flashback were...Magic.
20 Minutes to summarize what it is, what people love about Clark, Lois, Superman.
20 Minutes that did the characters more justice than anything in the last 20+ years.

As much as i like the show as it is, this made me want a Prequel show even more.
Even i as a hardcore Batman fan got emotional at seeing those flashback scenes that get the core of the characters and understands them.

 

[Snow Queen]

Much as I love them as good parents, I kinda want to see this show now. Can they do both at the same time?

 

[Time Captain]

Like I said, Hoechilin would have been ideal as the younger 'year one' Superman and all the optimism that carries. I'm still not sold on him as the 'elder statesman' father of teenagers Superman. You could see how much more engaging his performance was when in Metropolis playing the dorky Clark and the boyscout Superman finding his footing.

Tulloch..I could take or leave. She's okay. Plays it pretty straight, without any spunk, extroverted personality or charm we usually see in young Lois. She works better as the mom version.

An interesting note about the chronology of this show.. we got our first date reference. Tal Roh was around 18 in 1987.. which places him at about 50 in the present.


Also, this show could very well take place after Supergirl's series finale. Kara could have already left Earth by this point. Perhaps to the future, where the character traditionally ends up.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Well I wasn't too hot on last week, but this week was special. Like Superman and Lois love special.

- Teenage Emo Clark is legit the worst live action Clark. I now know where Jordan gets it from.
- Tal-Rho looks more like Jor-El then Clark does.
- The random callbacks to other shows/movies throw me every time.
- The scenes with Clark and his mom were so sweet.
- The zoom in on the ring murdered me. It was hilarious.
- If Lana had waited a few years, she'd of had the sexist man on the planet. But I understand. Teenage Emo Clark wasn't anything to write home about.
- Clark went from super depression, to the luckiest man on the planet.
- Did he have grenades in his helmet?
- How did Clark's suit survive the fire? His mom made it for him.
- Lois with the stun gun.
- Best answer to the "American way" line, ever.
- Of course she picked Clark.
- Also, she knew two months in.
- The introduction of Clark to his mom.
- The little montage of Clark and Lois through their Honeymoon. I can't handle this. It's too good.
- For every bit as good as Tyler is as Clark, Elizabeth is as Lois. I love her.
- Tal-Rho interputting my journey through Clark and Lois' relationship is the single most evil thing in the history of Superman.
- Please take the headband off.
- Of course he wanted a brother and not a sister.
- Lois was ready to throw down with her fist.
- Very rude to say living in the desert is worse then living in the cold. Just saying.
- Wow, he out emo'ed Clark. That is impressive.
- Baron Harkonnen?
- No more evil Superman, goddamnit!

Not that I don't love the show we have now, but I want the show with young Clark and Lois. Because that is the best Superman material ever put to film. It was magical.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Like I said, Hoechilin would have been ideal as the younger 'year one' Superman and all the optimism that carries. I'm still not sold on him as the 'elder statesman' father of teenagers Superman. You could see how much more engaging his performance was when in Metropolis playing the dorky Clark and the boyscout Superman finding his footing.

Tulloch..I could take or leave. She's okay. Plays it pretty straight, without any spunk, extroverted personality or charm we usually see in young Lois. She works better as the mom version.

An interesting note about the chronology of this show.. we got our first date reference. Tal Roh was around 18 in 1987.. which places him at about 50 in the present.


Also, this show could very well take place after Supergirl's series finale. Kara could have already left Earth by this point. Perhaps to the future, where the character traditionally ends up.

I see Tyler with those boys. It most certainly works imo.

I 100% disagree with your view on Tulloch. She is 100% Lois, at every age.

 

[Time Captain]

I liked that part. She's tough. She's just not fun, or charming, or witty.

Perhaps that's a reasonable change after the Hatcher, Durance and Delaney versions.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I liked that part. She's tough. She's just not fun, or charming, or witty.

Perhaps that's a reasonable change after the Hatcher, Durance and Delaney versions.

I found her very charming and witty. Not that they had a lot of time to display it, but I got all of that. As to fun, I honestly don't know what you mean with that one at all. That scene, the bit in the elevator, the honeymoon, etc. How is she not fun?

 

[Dr.]

I was underwhelmed by Tulloch in the prior crossovers. But she's 100x better in her own series. Starting right from the pilot.

 

[vantheman77]

I know the pilot was over an hour, but I wish they did a 2-hour pilot after seeing those extended flashbacks.

 

[Time Captain]

It could just be the dialogue, or the way she plays it straight.

My personal preference for Lois Lane is when she is exuberant, energetic and quick with witty dialogue. Almost like the female version of RDJ's Tony. I prefer comedic Lois over melodramatic Lois.

I didn't mind Tulloch's more sterner and more mature approach.

Like I said, it works in the context of her as a mother of teenagers.

 

[Karelia]

Best episode since the pilot. Top three episodes have to be the Pilot, this one, and then the Steel reveal. All have been great. I think this is shaping up to be the best season of any Arrowverse show, in my opinion.

 

[hopefuldreamer]

- How did Clark's suit survive the fire? His mom made it for him.

In Lois and Clark they said that anything within a few millimeters of his skin was contained within his 'super aura' and therefore protected.

Doesn't explain the cape though

 

[KillerMcQueen]

The extended flashbacks in this were fantastic, I wish those had lasted the entire episode.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

In Lois and Clark they said that anything within a few millimeters of his skin was contained within his 'super aura' and therefore protected.

Doesn't explain the cape though

Good enough! I will take it. Thank you.

 

[ArmsHeldOut]

This is the episode that I was most looking forward to, and I've gotta say: it definitely lives up to the hype. There are a few different scenes that resonated with me quite a bit, the one where Supes gives Lois a calming look all the while shielding her from Atom Man's attack being chiefly among them. But really, the whole manner by which Clark's origin story is revisited was done beautifully IMO.

With their respective performances, both Tyler and Bitsie continue to impress and elevate the material even when it comes across blatantly Donner-esque in some of the laziest of ways. They're the glue that holds everything together as far as I'm concerned.

The mind probe trope isn't anything novel, especially with respect to superhero fare, but here it serves a twofold purpose not only in providing additional backstory for our titular characters but also in pushing the plot forward through Tal-Rho's machinations. My only real gripe—and it's a small one—is that last bit with Lois telling JHI that Superman may have already been turned. Her read of the situation doesn't feel quite accurate to me, but in saying that, I do get where she's coming from. Things have clearly escalated, and with so many lives hanging in the balance, preemptive measures need to be taken ASAP. It's just a shame that Daddy can't see her now. He'd maybe do the single tear thing.

Anyway, those are my initial thoughts on first viewing. I can't wait to watch again.

 

[flickchick85]

- How did Clark's suit survive the fire? His mom made it for him.

In Lois and Clark they said that anything within a few millimeters of his skin was contained within his 'super aura' and therefore protected.

Doesn't explain the cape though

That's not just Lois & Clark, it's the Byrne Post-Crisis take on his powers. Basically, the way I see it, anything touching him is contained in that "bio-electric field" and that cape IS touching him (AND the suit which is already contained in the field)...so by extension, it is also contained in the field.

Honestly, that field/aura doesn't get enough credit, as it's kind of his best power, lol. It's the reason he can hold a building (or a bridge!) up without it crumbling - the field holds it together as long as he's touching it. It's why bullets don't harm him (without the field, with his muscle/cellular density, they still wouldn't be deadly, but they'd at least bruise him), and why anyone he's holding in an explosion or some such scenario is safe from harm. It's also the explanation for why he can fly instead of just super-leap, as it's also said to be a "telekinetic field" that he can control to lift himself into the air. It's like the best post-Crisis addition to his powerset, imo, as they basically used it as fix-all for all the physics-based problems with his powers. In my own headcanon, when he starts to lose his powers for whatever reason, that field is the first of them to go, so he's still hard to kill, could survive a fall out of the sky, is stronger than human, etc, but without the advantages of the field, he's no longer invulnerable, can't fully fly, etc.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

That's not just Lois & Clark, it's the Byrne Post-Crisis take on his powers. Basically, the way I see it, anything touching him is contained in that "bio-electric field" and that cape IS touching him (AND the suit which is already contained in the field)...so by extension, it is also contained in the field.

Honestly, that field/aura doesn't get enough credit, as it's kind of his best power, lol. It's the reason he can hold a building (or a bridge!) up without it crumbling - the field holds it together as long as he's touching it. It's why bullets don't harm him (without the field, with his muscle/cellular density, they still wouldn't be deadly, but they'd at least bruise him), and why anyone he's holding in an explosion or some such scenario is safe from harm. It's also the explanation for why he can fly instead of just super-leap, as it's also said to be a "telekinetic field" that he can control to lift himself into the air. It's like the best post-Crisis addition to his powerset, imo, as they basically used it as fix-all for all the physics-based problems with his powers. In my own headcanon, when he starts to lose his powers for whatever reason, that field is the first of them to go, so he's still hard to kill, could survive a fall out of the sky, is stronger than human, etc, but without the advantages of the field, he's no longer invulnerable, can't fully fly, etc.

I knew it sounded familiar.

 

[Web-Head]

 

[Sithborg]

That's not just Lois & Clark, it's the Byrne Post-Crisis take on his powers. Basically, the way I see it, anything touching him is contained in that "bio-electric field" and that cape IS touching him (AND the suit which is already contained in the field)...so by extension, it is also contained in the field.

Honestly, that field/aura doesn't get enough credit, as it's kind of his best power, lol. It's the reason he can hold a building (or a bridge!) up without it crumbling - the field holds it together as long as he's touching it. It's why bullets don't harm him (without the field, with his muscle/cellular density, they still wouldn't be deadly, but they'd at least bruise him), and why anyone he's holding in an explosion or some such scenario is safe from harm. It's also the explanation for why he can fly instead of just super-leap, as it's also said to be a "telekinetic field" that he can control to lift himself into the air. It's like the best post-Crisis addition to his powerset, imo, as they basically used it as fix-all for all the physics-based problems with his powers. In my own headcanon, when he starts to lose his powers for whatever reason, that field is the first of them to go, so he's still hard to kill, could survive a fall out of the sky, is stronger than human, etc, but without the advantages of the field, he's no longer invulnerable, can't fully fly, etc.

TACTILE TELEKINESIS!!!!

That was a very good episode.

I think my favorite detail of the early days was that Lois was not one of those obsessed with Superman. Its a simple and slight, but very effective tweaking of their relationship that I love. Doing away with her being interested in both, in my mind, makes the relationship stronger. And it may also explain why Clark is in Clark mode, even among his family.

I also have to say, this is perhaps the nicest I've ever recall seeing Jor-El. A Jor-El that actually seems to show emotion to his son? I hope he returns.

 

[flickchick85]

I knew it sounded familiar.

Yeah one of the little things I loved in Lois & Clark was when Jonathan and Martha were visiting Clark in Metropolis, and they had "switched jobs" temporarily so Jonathan did all the household stuff, in his first attempt at ironing Clark's cape, he burned a hole in it. At that point, that cape had already survived multiple explosions and barrages of gunfire while Clark was wearing it, but couldn't survive a day in Jonathan Kent's care.

 

[fan4stic]

Jordan got the girl and finally that storyline can be wrapped up and they can start the "we're dating and you're keeping things from me"

Ah, the classics! I'm not being sarcastic when I say I'd be entertained to see Smallville clana re-enactments with Jordan and Sarah. lol!

We know that Crisis rewrote Clark and Lois’s personal history — at least regarding a single infant son becoming teenaged twins. But it now appears that Clark and Lois never had a yearlong sabbatical on Argo to give birth; the boys were born in Metropolis.

(I remember Argo being destroyed during the events of Crisis. But I don’t recall if it was magically restored. Is Alura still alive?)

Anyhoo… yet another indication of S&L distancing itself from the prior, Supergirl/Arrowverse continuity…?

Based on this having the kids be born, seemingly before Kara gets to earth, or around the same time, Supergirl wouldn't have discovered Argo, for Lois to give birth there.

My broadcast had a Superman/Seinfeld ad right after that line

God is funny!

 

[Gaultheria]

The unsubtle Christ allusion of Clark leaving his human family as a young man, communing with his otherworldly father, and coming back a decade later as fully formed Superman persona.

Pair that with metaphorically encountering the devil in the desert.

 

[ArmsHeldOut]

- Also, she knew two months in.

Clark's secret you mean? Given that the flashbacks seemed to be jumping ahead in time to varying degrees, I figured that at least a couple more months had passed since the DP exclusive.

 

[flickchick85]

Clark's secret you mean? Given that the flashbacks seemed to be jumping ahead in time to varying degrees, I figured that at least a couple more months had passed since the DP exclusive.

I think he meant she knew she was in love with Clark after dating for 2 months.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I think he meant she knew she was in love with Clark after dating for 2 months.

Yep. Always love it when they emphasis it's Clark she loves. That she seemed to know pretty much from the start here worked even better imo, especially with her general indifference to Superman because of it.