Summary
Superman & Loishas been almost entirely isolated from the rest of the now-endedArrowversefrom pretty early on in its run, being literally worlds apart from the franchise’s other heroes. Despite this, the show’s producers still have a sense of responsibility to close things out as the very last vestige of a 12-year legacy.
Superman & Loisstarted out as a spin-off of sorts from the big-budget crossovers that came to define an era of the extremely popular Arrowverse universe of DC shows on The CW, with its titular characters making their debuts there before being sequestered off to tell a very different kind of superhero story in their own corner of the franchise. After three seasons and the dissolution of many of the shows that paved the way for it,Superman & Loisfound itself facing the chopping block as part of the content strategy changes that swept through the industry. It was eventually confirmed thatSuperman And Loiswould be renewed for season 4 despite the uncertainty, though that decision came with a lot of sacrifices and set the season up to only really be the best that the showrunners could manage as opposed to a true 1:1 realization of the initial vision they had for the show’s next installment.
Despite the good news about its renewal, the bad news would keep on piling when it was confirmed thatSuperman & Lois’fourth season would spell an end to the show on The CW, snuffing out the final embers of the Arrowverse in time for James Gunn’s new DCU to establish itself in both theaters and living rooms the world over. Speaking toEntertainment Weeklyabout the final season, showrunner Todd Helbing addressed the pressures of having to put a bow on the show, especially in light of the extra responsibility brought on by the rest of the Arrowverse shuttering before it. “Inherently, there’s so many pressures you feel with a TV show — just writing the script was pressure, and then producing it, and the second that the show began, it’s about Superman and Lois Lane, so there’s a responsibility that comes with that too,” Helbing admitted. “With the Arrowverse, I’ve had 10 years of working in these shows and these worlds, and you want to do it justice, but you have to separate yourself from those feelings, or you are not going to leave your house because it’ll be overwhelming.”
Despite this overwhelming sense of responsibility, Helbing and the rest of the team working on the final season decided to keep their priorities straight for the end. “The best way that we could approach it was to just do the best version for our show,” Helbing explained concerning the goal for the final season. “[As for] Easter eggs, there’s the idealistic version — in a comic book you’d have all these characters at your disposal, so you can have whatever you want. But when you’re talking about schedules and money and budgets, it would be awesome to have [The Flash star] Grant [Gustin] in this, but it’s just not feasible. There are questions like that that come up, and then there’s the reality that hits you, and so ultimately, as we discussed in the room, we can just do what we can do, and I think the best way to honor what has been done for 10 years was to hopefully have the audience watch it and then feel satisfied.” This won’t be as easy as it could be to pull off, asSuperman & Loishad to make more than one big change for its final seasonto get the green light, including cutting back on some characters that were initially slated to have much bigger roles in the season and trimming the ideal episode count down. With these constraints, and more that fans might not be cognizant of, ending the series in a narratively satisfying way really is the only thing the showrunners can hope to promise fans.
WhileSuperman & Loisnever got to be the Arrowverse’s centerand the show’s final lap won’t be an elaborate farewell to the larger franchise like fans might have hoped, there’s nothing wrong with the way things are set to go. In truth, the Arrowverse got its big bow whenThe Flashcame to an end, and that show was a far more fitting choice for the nod to begin with. WithSuperman & Lois, fans will need to find satisfaction in the resolution of its unique, genuine storytelling and say a final goodbye to the characters that are present rather than pine for the ones that have already gone.
Superman & Loisis currently airing on The CW every Monday, with prior seasons available to stream on Max.
