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Recap of Superman & Lois
Season 1, Episode 4
Haywire
Tropes:
- Ambiguously Evil: Sam puts some kind of safety protocol in motion, possibly to take down Superman.
- Badass Normal: Killgrave is a regular human being, who is able to threaten Superman with his vast intellect and weaponry.
- The Bad Guy Wins: Edge gets granted the mining rights in Smallville.
- Calling the Old Man Out: Lois makes it clear that if Sam doesn't back off from putting her husband under pressure, he will no longer be welcome at their home, also bringing up the General's own failures as a parent.
- Cover Innocent Eyes and Ears: Sarah covers her sister Sophie's eyes when their parents start getting extra-affectionate in front of them.
- Creepy Monotone: Killgrave's manner of speaking.
- Cryptic Background Reference: Lois offhandedly mentions that Tag will be sent to what is implied to be an Academy of Adventure to hone his powers. Jonathan thinks it's pretty cool but Jordan doesn't.
- Fake Brit: In-Universe, Lois apparently thinks Edge is one, as she accuses him of having a "faux-British accent". (He insists it's "quite genuine").
- Flashback: There is one to 6 years ago with Morgan Edge witnessing the raining down of X-Kryptonite on Earth.
- Foreshadowing: General Lane reveals that Tag developed his powers due to being exposed to a material with a yellow phosphorescence during the explosion. The ending reveals that the Shuster Mine, where this took place, is full of X-Kryptonite.
- Four Eyes, Zero Soul: Killgrave is a ruthless supervillain who wears glasses.
- Heroic Second Wind: Clark takes a beating from Killgrave's sonic blaster, but hearing his sons calling out for help is all he needs to overcome it.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: Lana and Lois go out for drinks after the vote to grant Edge mining rights, Lois because Clark missed the opportunity to speak and Lana because she found Edge to be overbearing at dinner.
- I Warned You: Morgan Edge's assistant Leslie handed Lois a letter from her boss that he threatened to sue her if she continues to publish against him. She tells Lois Edge was going to "crush" her.
- Internal Reveal: Sam learns about Jordan having powers.
- It's All My Fault: Jordan blames himself for Tag's condition, as his heat vision seems to be the triggering incident. Sam later explains that his heat vision merely dispersed a material that was already present, and that caused Tag's abilities to manifest.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Sam may be rough but he has a point that the sudden absence of Superman has caused crime in Metropolis to rise with criminal groups like Intergang suddenly feeling bolder.
- Kick the Dog: Coach Gaines takes time to mock Tag for his injury in front of the whole team.
- Loud of War: Killgrave uses a sonic weapon against Superman. The vibrations are so intense that Superman's skull seems to be superheating from the attack.
- MacGyvering: Killgrave breaks out of his prison transport, using a (in his own words) temperature-sensitive synthetic polymer resin he made in the sink of his prison cell, which is highly mercurial at an atomic level. The explosion is triggered by the vibration produced by the wristwatch of one of the guards.
- Mythology Gag: Glenmorgan Square is named after the owner of the Daily Planet in Action Comics (New 52).
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Sam tells Jonathan and Jordan that they shouldn't waste Clark's time since he has larger obligations and lives are in the balance. This leads to Jordan trying to stop Tag's out-of-control powers by himself and earning an accidental Super-Speed haymaker for his trouble. Sam gets quite the earful from Lois when the boys reveal his part later on.
- Oh, Crap!: The boys are surprised to learn from Sam that there exists a special school where some metahuman kids are sent, and that their parents even know of it. Sam not answering their questions about the place due to, "It's classified," only adds to the discomfort.
- Papa Wolf: Clark does this again while Killgrave has him on the ropes. When Clark hears Jon and Jordan in trouble, he disarms the guy with a Shockwave Clap, destroys his weapon, and speeds off to help his sons.
- Parental Sexuality Squick: The Cushings' end of the episode ends on a high note, with Lana and Kyle's marriage looking up. Sarah, on the other hand, is disturbed by the sight of her parents getting flirty over breakfast, even covering her little sister's eyes to shield her from it.
- Power Incontinence: Tag gains Super-Speed, but can't control it. He snaps a huge chunk of table by accident, and sends Jordan flying when Jordan tries to hold him still.
- The Resenter: Jonathan admits that he has been jealous of Jordan's powers and achievements, not being used to suddenly being an outsider. He doesn't let it get to him and continues to serve as Jordan's emotional support in spite of it.
- Based on her speech to Sam at the end of the episode, Lois is this over his lack of parental skills.
- The Reveal: Edge wants the mining rights to Smallville because it contains X-Kryptonite, which grants superpowers to humans.
- Shockwave Clap: Superman does this to disable Killgrave, which knocks out everyone else nearby.
- Slave to PR: As much as she wants to go after Edge, Chrissy Beppo cannot risk a full-on lawsuit due to financial reasons.
- What the Hell, Hero?:
- Sam calls out Clark for neglecting his responsibilities as Superman in favour of spending time with his family.
- In turn, Sam himself receives one of these from both Clark and Lois for telling Jordan and Jonathan to not call for help unless absolutely necessary.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: After being frustrated that she wasn't able to stop Edge from getting the mining rights, Lana gives Lois a much-needed pep talk at their Girls' Night, saying that she brought out the best in Clark.
