Superman & Lois: The Complete Second Season Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		4.0

Superman & Lois: The Complete Second Season Blu-ray Movie Review

Operation: Not Doomsday.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III October 5, 2022

Aside from square-jawed good looks and godlike powers, Superman has a pretty rough life... what with the identity crisis, perpetual isolation, and guilt of not being able to save everyone, all the time. So hey, wouldn't it be cool to add in the emotional challenges of domestic family life just for fun? That's the premise behind the CW's Superman & Lois, which finds the titular couple (Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch) more than a decade deep into marriage with the blessing and curse of fraternal twin teenage sons, jock Jonathan (Jordan Elsass) and introvert Jordan (Alex Garfin). Its solid first season rose to the challenge of decent world-building and establishing a strong starting tone, only faltering a bit by trying to juggle too many balls in the air at once. While that subjective criticism hasn't been fully resolved yet, Superman & Lois feels like a more engaging and effective show during its second year around the sun.

For starters, what made the first season good -- and maybe even better than my initial rating suggested -- is mostly retained and sometimes even improved here, which practically begins and ends with its overall tone and atmosphere. Simply put, Superman & Lois provides a stronger balance between adult and teenage drama than the franchise's last similar iteration Smallville, not to mention better casting and visual design. Multiple season-long through-lines maintain viewer interest during key stretches, ranging from personal conflicts to new small-town developments and, of course, the emergence of a strange and formidable threat. The show's writers deserve praise for yet another successful baddie bait-and-switch: this time around, it was heavily rumored and all but confirmed to be Doomsday but ended up being Bizarro, Superman's evil doppelgänger (Tyler Hoechlin, pulling double duty with help from pretty impressive Deepfake technology, as mentioned in one of this Blu-ray's bonus features); his reveal is effectively built up during the first three episodes and preceded by a few very intense physical and emotional freak-outs by The Man of Steel himself, who intermittently loses total control of his mind during Bizarro's slow emergence from a local quarry.

Year two isn't all about Bizarro, of course, even if his presence drives -- or at least contributes to -- most of this season's meatiest narratives. Early episodes set the stage in short order with a new candidate running for mayor to replace corrupt long-time incumbent George Dean (Eric Keenleyside), the growth of "X-Kryptonite" (or "X-K", which is used like a recreational drug and grants its users temporary, unpredictable powers), a growing threat in Ally Allston's "Inverse Society" cult, the appearance of "new Supermen" under the direction of Lieutenant General Mitch Anderson (Ian Bohen), and the regular presence of John Henry Irons / Steel (Wolé Parks) and his daughter Natalie (Tayler Buck), who are invited to stay with the Kent family under... unusual circumstances. There's more during these 15 episodes -- much more -- but it doesn't overwhelm as much as Season 1 thanks to the fact that we know most of these players already. Balance is achieved much more regularly here... although if there's one character who's given the short end of the stick, it's Lois herself. For whatever reason the writers made her overly unlikable during early episodes and, later on, she's mostly relegated to a supporting role in major conflicts with little to do independently.

That's small potatoes if we're looking at the whole plate, though, because for the most part this is a more interesting batch of episodes for a show really staring to find its voice. Despite the franchise's continued presence in pop culture during the last eight friggin' decades, Superman & Lois feels like a pretty fresh take on the material, and the show has a welcome warmth within its modus operandi that seems to focus on regular people understanding each other even when their personal differences might otherwise divide them. It also continues to portray Superman as an international figure rather than an American symbol first and foremost, which as always contrasts quite nicely with his occasional (but usually understandable) smaller failures at home. All things considered, this is a good enough batch of episodes that I'll probably re-evaluate Season 1 in the near future now that I'm more settled into its formula.

Warner Bros.' new Blu-ray edition of Superman & Lois: Season 2 serves up all 15 episodes on three discs... and surprisingly enough, there are noticeable improvements on the A/V front this time around. (The show's visual effects have gotten much better too, which certainly doesn't hurt either.) Perhaps its only downgrade is in the bonus features department, but overall this is a better release than the first season in all the areas that matter most.

Superman & Lois: The Complete Second Season Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Since most TV-on-disc releases rarely evolve in the visual department from season to season, I'm usually tempted to partially re-write existing video quality evaluations and call it a day. But while the fundamental look of Superman & Lois hasn't really changed since the first season (which means my review of that release's 1080p transfer still applies here to an extent), the series holds up to scrutiny much better on Blu-ray this time around thanks to presumably better disc compression. Almost entirely gone are the odd compression artifacts and clear signs of banding that wreaked havoc on some of the show's darkest moments, even though naturally-lit and daytime scenes still remain generally unaffected. This goes a long way to providing a more pleasing visual presentation, not to mention one that occasionally flirts with big-screen ambition thanks to its improved visual effects. The trade-off this time around, however, is noticeably lighter black levels: that's not to say true "widescreen bars" black isn't achieved from time to time, but many of the show's darkest moments kind of flounder in dark gray territory; they're still readable, of course (and I'd rather have that than artificially boosted contrast and the black crush that comes with it), but a more comfortable middle ground could have possibly been achieved here. Still, it's a step in the right direction so fans should be pleased.

Superman & Lois: The Complete Second Season Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Superman & Lois' DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix likewise shows improvement this time around, and surprisingly to an even greater degree. Mostly gone is the crackly distortion heard in Season 1's front-channel dialogue (not sure what happened there), although conversations still mostly stay far away from the left/right/rear channels on all but a few predictable occasions. It's still mostly fitting for the show's mostly indoor locations, but in most cases may just be part of its intended sound design. However... things kick into overdrive quite often during numerous actions scenes, as well as the early "freak out" moments during Bizarro's slow emergence, and there's more than enough rear channel and LFE support to give Superman & Lois a massive scope that even rivals many of DC's big-screen productions. The dynamic range is very impressive but not overcooked, so you won't necessarily need to adjust receiver volume regularly during these episodes. Simply put, it's a much more dialed-in and robust sonic presentation that consistently works to the show's advantage, and perhaps one of the strongest TV-on-disc mixes I've heard this year.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles including are included during all 15 episodes and both extras.

Superman & Lois: The Complete Second Season Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This three-disc set ships in a hinged keepcase with attractive cover art and a matching slipcover (not a slipbox). The interior print includes an episode list but it's kind of ruined by holes from the eco-friendly case -- not sure why these are still a thing. The extras, while a step down from Season 1, are decent and can be found on Disc 3.

• Fractured: The Heart of Bizarro (9:59) - This short featurette pairs up executive producer Tod Helbing and co-executive producer Kristi Korzec, who mostly talk about the careful choice of Season 2's primary villain, the character's comic roots versus his on-screen portrayal, and the fertile creative territory that comes with it. There are obviously some pretty major spoilers here, so be sure and watch this after the season finale.

• The DC Heroes: Path to Glory (17:22) - The previous two participants -- as well as The Flash executive producer Eric Wallace and Batwoman executive producer Caroline Dries -- take a broader look at the Arrowverse characters on their respective shows and others. Topics are varied but mostly focus on their shared similarities, DC lore and childhood memories, and how specific characters fit in with and reflect modern times.

Superman & Lois: The Complete Second Season Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This second season of Superman & Lois sees the show quickly finding its legs, as established fans are treated to an overall more interesting batch of episodes centered around characters that are easy to care about. It continues to offer a fresh take on well-established material and is even more effective now from a technical standpoint, flirting with big-screen ambitions during some of its larger moments. Warner Bros.' three-disc Blu-ray set likewise improves in the technical department, serving up a better A/V presentation but dialing back on the extras. It's still an impressive release and certainly Recommended, although newcomers should obviously start from the beginning.