DC just made Superman’s Darkest Story even worse after 4 tries

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Superman & Lois season 4, episodes 1 and 2.One of the darkest Superman stories of all time has been adapted excruciatingly well into Superman & Lois. The death of Superman is an iconic Superman comic storyline from the early 1990s that pits the Man of Steel against the nearly unstoppable creature known as Doomsday. In a destructive brawl, Superman and Doomsday perished, shocking readers—even if Superman’s death would, ultimately, be short-lived. Despite Superman’s resurrection, the story remains one of his most famous storylines, with significant ramifications for the DC Universe itself. The death of Superman Set up these Reign of the Superman arc and Green Lantern: Emerald Twilight.

Not surprisingly, given its cultural significance and resonance among Superman readers and viewers, The death of Superman has been adapted by many properties, including multiple animated movies, a video game, and even a partial adaptation in the DC Extended Universe. Portions of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and both iterations of Justice League Take inspiration from The death of Superman And Reign of the SupermanBut the Arrowverse also brought the iconic story arcs into the realm of live-action. The death of Superman was referred to in the Crisis on Infinite Earths storyline and directly adapted by Superman & Lois.

Superman & Lois season 4 makes the death of Superman story so much sadder

The Superman & Lois The Season 3 finale sees Lex Luthor experimenting on the show’s version of Bizarro, who hails from the Reverse World (the show’s iteration of Bizarro World from DC’s comics). Luthor discovers that every time Bizarro dies, he comes back to life even stronger, leading him to kill him repeatedly until he no longer resembles an alternate version of Superman but instead a monstrous creature. The new version of​​​​Luthor was tasked with killing Superman and retrieving his heart Doomsday battles Superman in the opening episode of season 4, brutally killing the Man of Steel.

Superman & Lois Makes the already tragic death of Kal-El even more difficult by including lightning bolts to his early years with Lois, fatherhood and early conflicts with Lex Luthor, referring to the long history of his iteration of both Clark Kent and Lois Lane. In addition to giving Doomsday a fresh start, Superman & Lois Also had him survive his battle with Superman, leaving a major threat alive with no Superman to stop him now. The episode ends with Lois and her sons mourning Clark while Doomsday delivers his heart to Lex Luthor.

Why Superman and Lois was destined to be the saddest adaptation of The Death of Superman

Superman & Lois s Adaptation of The death of Superman is always going to be sadder than other iterations for several reasons. One is that The series took three seasons to endear viewers to his iteration of Superman before depicting his death. Although Henry Cavill’s iteration of Superman quickly and deservedly became a favorite among viewers, he only made one film appearance before his death in Dawn of justice. This was also the case for the 2007 animated film Superman: DoomsdayWhich was the first installment of its respective universe.

The animated films The death of Superman And Reign of the Superman They were part of the well-established DC animated movie universe, so they missed that issue, but there’s another factor. Clark and Lois’s family is a major focus of Superman & LoisSo Clark dying was always going to be especially devastatingGiven the amount of time the show puts into developing his relationships with his wife and sons. Naturally, the devastating fallout of Superman’s death is the focus of the second episode of season 4, with Lois, Jordan and Jonathan looking for ways to resurrect Clark.

Superman & Lois’ devastating adaptation of Superman’s death can make his revival even better

Considering that Superman returned from the dead less than a year after his battle with Doomsday in the comics, it is unsurprising that almost every adaptation of The death of Superman Also includes his resurrection. The various iterations are different, with the comics revealing Superman to be in a regenerative coma and the DCEU having the Justice League use a Mother Box to resurrect Clark. Superman & Lois Did Clark die in the opening episode of season 4, so He will likely be resurrected before the season ends.

Superman & Lois has given viewers perhaps the saddest adaptation of The death of Superman Until now, and for that, His revival may be the most satisfying Because of this. Season 4 opened with Superman dead, his resurrection seemingly irreversible, and Lex Luthor and Doomsday still at large. But Lois and her sons lead him back, Superman & Lois Will likely make Superman’s return as heartwarming as his death was devastating.

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