Review: Superman & Lois 4×05 – “Break the Cycle”
[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers!]
Director: Elizabeth Henstridge
Writer: Adam Mallinger
Starring: Tyler Hoechlin, Elizabeth Tulloch, Alex Garfin, Michael Cudlitz, Michael Bishop, Elizabeth Henstridge, Natalie Moon, Paul Lazenby
Reviewed by: Steven Brown
Summary
Superman & Lois 4×05: Lois makes increasingly bold moves as she tries to stop Luthor. Jonathan struggles to balance his personal life and responsibilities, while Clark learns an unsettling truth.
Positives
This episode was an emotional ride from start to finish. With the world now knowing that Superman is alive, Lois is concerned about the return of Lex Luthor — and mainly Doomsday. Clark tries to reassure Lois that he’ll be fine, but even he knows different. Lois attempts to find Lex’s estranged daughter with the hope of talking to her father and stopping his revenge from continuing further.
Lois does make contact with Lex’s daughter, Elizabeth, who makes it clear that she wants nothing to do with Lex at all, even if he is the key to saving Lois and her family. Lex’s whole obsession with destroying Lois’ life comes from the fact that he was left estranged from his daughter while he was in prison, and he intends on making Lois pay for that. Lex’s determination knows no bounds in this episode as nearly everyone is put in his path with the intention on stopping him from going down this road further, with no one coming close to changing his mind.
Negatives
My only complaint in this episode had to be the arrival of Candice back to Smallville. Candice, who is Jonathan’s girlfriend, finds herself confused by Jonathan’s sudden disappearances. Leaving Jordan to explain his absences, this plan goes awry pretty quickly, causing Candice to wonder what exactly is going on with her boyfriend. I suspect in a future episode she may find out about Jonathan’s powers; however, I wasn’t too keen on how this situation played out in this episode.
Verdict
Superman & Lois 4×05 was a good episode that left a lot at the door in the terms of raw emotion. You can tell in every scene that Lois is in that saving her family is top priority. Although Tyler Hoechlin does a great job in this episode, it was Elizabeth Tulloch that brought it home for me — especially after her confrontation with a certain someone. Although Lex does eventually have the meeting with his long-estranged daughter he was hoping for, he still remains determined to end Superman and Lois once and for all, no matter the cost.
Score: 4/5
