[NAS] Chi Of Steel

TV Programme: The New Adventures Of Superman
Season: 2
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 05/07/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 1 month, 6 days.

I'm starting to realise that this season is nowhere near as good as the last. It's not that the episodes themselves are inherently bad. It's just that the environment is fundamentally changed, and the writing hasn't really caught up to that change. There are several key factors which, while watching this episode, really became apparent to me as the reasons behind the failings of this season so far.

First and foremost, I feel like I don't know what the stakes are anymore. First season, Clark had just moved to Metropolis, he was just getting used to the whole idea, always calling his parents and asking for some help. But now, he is pretty confident; pretty much inside his comfort zone. And unlike season 1, they don't really do much to throw him outside of that zone, for example giving him the key to the city and making him appear on a big stage, or putting him behind bars because he is thought to be causing more harm than good. So I don't really know that this thing has a direction.

These insane schemes like the one above (from last season's "The Man Of Steel Bars") were generally orchestrated by Lex Luthor, a great villain from this show who is noticeably absent from this season. Also noticeably absent is Cat, who always stirred things up in the office, and the original Jimmy Olsen, who was much better than this one. So that's the second thing - the characters.

Thirdly, it's the fact that after last season's dramatic finale, things should have changed significantly. I mean, Lex is gone, Lois was caught up in all that, her and Clark were brought closer together, and the entire thing has almost been forgotten, left on the sidelines in favour of some pretty mainstream stories.

As for this episode - well it was actually one of the best so far this season. Like I said - the episodes aren't bad (and I particularly like the ones with DC comics characters) but it's more just the whole setting. In particular this episode had a pretty complex storyline which kept you guessing right up until the last minute. It took so many twists and turns that you could hardly keep up with it. Once what was really going on had been made clear, there was a final fight sequence that was, I think, appropriate for the episode. Sure, it was a bit silly, but then Superman using ancient martial arts is always going to be a bit silly.

There were quite a few side-stories in this episode. Lois's battle against sexism was interesting but not necessarily enjoyable. It's bringing out a character trait of that particular character that's just so well-known that it didn't really add anything. Then there was the thing about Perry's investments, which also didn't add anything whatsoever; it seemed very pointless and really just a way to get Justin Whalin into the episode. Finally there was this whole comparison between the son and Clark, who looked very much alike. This turned out to be a red herring anyway because this guy wasn't the hero, so again, pointless.

All in all this was quite an exciting episode to watch, but for the aforementioned reasons, I'm still rather disappointed with this season as a whole. Nevertheless, I still want to persevere and get it finished, then start on Smallville Season 5, as I'm determined to not be watching two Superman mythology-based shows at the same time.