Superman & Lois Season 2 Explores the Man of Steel's Allegiance to America

Andy Swift
·3 min read
1

Whose hero is he, anyway?

That’s one of several key questions broached in Tuesday’s season premiere of Superman & Lois (The CW, 8/7c) as the Man of Steel begins to feel the heat from his new U.S. Army liaison. And if you thought General Lane was a thorn in Superman’s side, just wait until you meet Lt. Mitch Anderson (played by Tyler Hoechlin’s former Teen Wolf co-star Ian Bohen).

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It’s in Anderson’s best interest for Superman to swear his allegiance to the red, white and blue. But as Superman explains in the Season 2 trailer, he already “gave it to the world a long time ago.”

“America benefited from where he landed, but if you’re Superman — or on our show, because he’s Clark Kent, and because he had these fantastic parents — he has a responsibility not just to Smallville or to Kansas or to America, but to the world,” Superman & Lois showrunner Todd Helbing tells TVLine.

Explaining that this touchy subject “ties into the mythology that we’re doing this season,” Helbing adds that Anderson’s arrival marks a significant shift in Superman’s working relationship with the military. “Sam Lane had done that job forever, and he obviously has all of the benefit of knowing who Superman really is, that he’s married to his daughter, their history, all of that. He can get away with things and hide things in a way that someone coming in who doesn’t know that secret wouldn’t be able to do. We’re playing all of that in conjunction with the idea that if you have someone like Superman at your disposal, and you’re a country, you want that person fighting for you.”

(As mentioned in a recent edition of Matt’s Inside Line, it’s also quite possible that we’ll eventually hear Superman utter his revamped motto: “Truth, justice and the American way a better tomorrow.”)

So, where is General Lane while all of this is going down? Helbing teases that we’ll reunite with Dylan Walsh’s character in Episode 3, though you might not recognize him in his new element.

“With a job like his that he’s had for so long, he just needs a break,” Helbing says. “He’s out there doing things you wouldn’t normally see General Lane do. The writers had a lot of fun coming up with fun things to do if you’re a retired ex-military person. When we see him, he’s enjoying life and retirement, but he gets folded back into the family and all of their problems. Ultimately, he starts doing some stuff with the boys that maybe he shouldn’t be doing.”

Hit PLAY on the trailer below for a taste of the Superman & Lois premiere, then drop a comment with your hopes for Season 2.

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