Superman & Lois review, Episode 210: “Bizarros in a Bizarro World”

Things get bizarre (geddit?) this week on Superman & Lois as Clark finds himself smack dab in the middle of a world of Bizarros. Everything, including the language, was backward, or rather, drawkcab.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about the episode overall; it wasn’t a train wreck, but it wasn’t one of my favorites either. I loved exploring Bizarro world and getting to see all of the characters in a different light. However, there was something cringe and cheesy about all of it, mainly because of the visual effects. Usually Superman & Lois is so good about that, but something was off here.

Anyway, there was a lot going on in this week’s episode, the first new one after a brief hiatus. I had almost forgotten that Superman had gone into Bizarro world!

There’s some fun things to talk about so without further ado, let’s get right into it! And remember: MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD! 

Superman & Lois welcomes you to Bizarro World

What if Clark Kent (Tyler Hoechlin) and his son Jonathan Kent (Jordan Elsass) hated each other? Or if Lana (Emmanuelle Chriqui) and Tal-Rho (Adam Rayner) were married and living the villain life together? The Bizarro World is where these kinds of questions are answered.

The first person I want to talk about is Jonathan, who has the powers in this world. He’s super emo and disconnected from everything, and deeply resents his superhero father. So do Lois (Bitsie Tulloch) and Jordan (Alex Garfin), who can’t get over the fact that Superman is becoming a celebrity. It’s a bit too much for them, and it doesn’t help that this Superman is soaking it all in.

Jonathan is eager to go out into the world and be a superhero, but that’s not what Superman or Lois want for their son. Given that he’s pure evil in this world, Jonathan is also a follower of Ally Allston (Rya Kihlstedt), who “supports” him more than his parents.

What happens in Bizzaro World, stays in Bizarro World

It’s jarring for Clark to see this alternate version of his family where Jonathan is emo and hates his guts. And as a sidenote, I was not digging Bizarro Lois’ hairstyle. I’m okay with “our” world’s Lois Lane.

Clark is also surprised to learn that, in Bizarro World, Tal-Rho and Lana are married. They first meet at a bar while Clark and Tal-Rho are having dinner and Lana is their server. Incidentally, I liked how the episode split itself up so each Bizarro character has their own section. We don’t just see them in the present, but also see enough of their pasts to understand why they are the way they are when we meet them.

Anyway, in this world, Ally Allston and her Bizarro World counterpart are hoping to get their hands on the pendants that Lt. Anderson (Ian Bohen) brought from his world. It leads up to a clash between Ally’s team on one side and Superman and Lt. Anderson on the other.

A Bizarro World fight

There are some strange visual effects during the fight. Usually, the show’s VFX is the best of the Arrowverse shows, but this looked wonky.

Apart from that, I enjoyed watching our Superman battle it out with Bizarro Jonathan. I didn’t know I wanted to see that until I saw it. It was also exciting to see Lt. Anderson fight alongside our Superman after apologizing for everything he did to him back home.

There’s a moment in the episode when Lt. Anderson realizes that Superman is actually Clark Kent. This is a big moment because Anderson understands that everything Superman did back home was for his family’s protection. It’s a special moment made sad when Anderson stays back to fight so Superman can whiz through the portal and go back home.

Oh, and I loved that Bizarro Tal-Rho had empathy for his otherworldly brother. After Ally Allston and her Bizarro counterpart begin to merge (they get their hands on the pendant), they tell Bizarro Jonathan to go to the other world and merge with his other self. Bizzaro Tal-Rho lets Superman go so he can get home and stop it! I love to see that because we’ve only ever seen a mean, evil version of him, so of course a kinder version exists in Bizarro World.

The episode comes to a chilling end as Bizarro Jonathan arrives at the farm to merge with regular Jonathan. Here’s hoping that Superman shows up in the nick of time to save his son!

Superman & Lois always has a surprise up its sleeve. This episode wasn’t the strongest, but it was entertaining. I found it to be a bit cringe, but all in all, I think it had some interesting plot developments that could set up some fun stuff for the back half of the season.

I’m looking forward to seeing how the Bizarro Jonathan storyline is going to play out. Is he really going to merge with the other Jonathan? And what will that mean for the rest of the Kent family? Also, now that the Ally Allstons have merged, is the world truly over?

So many questions, but we must wait a week to find out where things go. Until then!

Grade: B

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