Superman and Lois season 1, episode 15 – the finale/ending explained

By Jonathon Wilson
Published: August 18, 2021 (Last updated: January 26, 2024)
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Superman and Lois season 1, episode 15 - the finale/ending explained
4.5

Summary

“Last Sons of Krypton” delivers a near-perfect finale to an up-and-down season, effectively wiping the slate clean for a continuation while paying off all the subplots and character dynamics that have made this first outing such a surprising joy.

This recap of Superman and Lois season 1, episode 15, “Last Sons of Krypton”, contains spoilers, including a discussion of the Superman and Lois ending.


I’ve been nothing but complimentary about Superman and Lois ever since it premiered back in February, and despite a wonky release schedule with several drama-sapping breaks, the show has continued to improve – and with it, so has my slightly hyperbolic praise. And it’s hard to be taken seriously when you’re claiming that a small-screen superhero show – on the CW, no less – is one of the best shows on television, and one of the best stories about a character whose most essential stories have been told and retold over more than eight decades. And yet, here we are. “Last Sons of Krypton” proved that despite all the breaks, reworked storylines, and reimagined characters, the show never lost its heart or sense of self.

This almost note-perfect all-action finale is a showcase for all the things that Superman and Lois has always done well, and not just the superficial ones, though the visual effects are top-notch, and the show continues to have by far the best “super-speed dash off-camera” moments of any show or film about Superman, maybe ever. But it’s also heart-warming, and sometimes wrenching, and deeply about family and togetherness in a way that genuinely moved me more than once. It’s as much about Clark Kent’s relationship with his wife, as per the title, as it is his role as a father, a friend to a former enemy, and a potential threat to a world he has come to love so much. It’s about small-town pride and values, too, even as the stakes become world-ending. Sure, there are some “huh?” moments, and some eye-rolling attempts to fold in various abandoned subplots that the show long-since decided it didn’t have any use for, but it’s nonetheless an impressively bombastic and earnest conclusion to easily the year’s most surprising show.

Superman and Lois season 1, episode 15 recap

The setup runs thusly: Morgan Edge, having kidnapped Jordan and implanted his awful father Zeta-Rho’s consciousness inside him, has begun converting unsuspecting DoD soldiers into Kryptonian supermen, leaving a brainwashed Jordan to run interference while Edge and his new goons run roughshod over Smallville. This is too much potential calamity for even Superman to handle alone, so he teams up with John Henry Irons to battle Edge while Lois and Jonathan have to work together to save Jordan using the memory device from “A Brief Reminiscence In-Between Cataclysmic Events”. Amidst all this, “Last Sons of Krypton” doesn’t neglect the people of Smallville, who rally around Lana and Kyle as their beloved hometown is razed around them.

The Superman and Lois ending smartly repurposes the whole memory-exploration debacle. When it was used earlier in the season, the point was to flesh out Lois and Clark’s relationship with each other, but here it’s intended to solidify Jordan’s relationship with himself; a lonely boy who has always felt different finally finding his inner strength. When, earlier, Zeta-Rho confronts Superman in Jordan’s body, he makes a point of saying that Jordan is easily manipulable, which we know is because he believes himself to be weak. Part of Lois’s rescue plan is helping him to overcome the social anxiety and self-doubt that has crippled his relationships and made grappling with his burgeoning powers a disaster waiting to happen. Does it play out as a little contrived? Yeah, I guess so, but it’s also so completely well-intentioned that I couldn’t help but get on board with the idea.

This stuff isn’t as “fun” as Steel throwing his hammer from the upper atmosphere straight into Morgan Edge’s face, obviously, but it’s more lasting and poignant, and the fact that the finale bothered to make space for it is proof that it isn’t just interested in Superman saving the day, but how everyone fares the next day, and the day after that. So, the fighting stops with plenty of time remaining for an epilogue that is careful to check in on everyone and make a point of what they’ll be doing next season. Let’s do a quick run-down:

Superman and Lois ending explained

The Cushings are re-embraced by Smallville after their acts of heroism, Kyle is given his old job back, Lana remembers that Clark is her best friend and Smallville will always be home, and Sarah confesses her love for Jordan.

Lois buys half of the Smallville Gazette and goes into business with Chrissy, and their first big story is a candid interview with Superman, who explains what went down, why, and details how his own moral compass will remain at true north whether or not people see recent events as an excuse to mistrust Kryptonians. Tyler Hoechlin’s is one of the best portrayals of both Superman and Clark Kent ever, and I’ll be taking no questions on the matter at this time.

Steel resolves not to stick around in Smallville in a touching scene at the Cushings’ barbecue during which he explains to Lois that being around her, even though he knows she isn’t really his beloved late wife, is just a little too much pressure for him to deal with. Then, in a shocking cliffhanger, his daughter crash-lands on the family farm and immediately greets Lois with a stammering, “Mom?”, which ensures we haven’t seen the last of this particular storyline.

But this is the only moment that isn’t explicitly upbeat and optimistic, which only feels right for this show, which has effectively introduced a refreshingly original take on the Superman mythos. It hasn’t been a simple season, and it certainly hasn’t been a perfect one, but “Last Sons of Krypton” was near-perfect in how it managed to clear away all the debris in time for an already-greenlit second season.

Endings Explained, The CW, TV - Ending Explained, Weekly TV
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