The latest episode of Superman & Lois featured an important reframing of an earlier scene, showing how necessary it is that the DC Universe hero does not use the same tactics as Batman. While the cast of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice did an excellent job examining the differences between the two heroes, Superman & Lois has followed up on this in a subtle and original way. With recent events coming under the microscope, Superman’s resorting to methods closer to Batman’s own have impacted him poorly.

Batman and Superman, as the pillars of DC Comics and the cinematic universes that they have created, have each played important roles in the brand’s perception. With a new DCU Batman coming soon, there are some fundamental components of the hero that must be recognized. Perhaps the easiest contrast to recognize between Batman and Superman is how they embody darkness and light respectively. Following from this perception leads into an examination of Superman going down a more violent path in the recent CW series.

Superman & Lois Season 4 Highlights Why Superman Can’t Operate Like Batman

Superman Is Held To A Higher Standard In The CW Series

Superman & Lois season 4, episode 6 contained an intense scene where Clark and Lex did battle beneath a number of red streetlights that inhibited Clark’s power. This scene was shockingly brutal, and saw the culmination of much of the bad blood between the two characters coming to a head. However, the aftermath of this scene saw Lex presenting footage of this event on GODFREY!, where the Man of Steel looked genuinely bad and incredibly violent to all of the audience watching.

With Superman’s identity revealed, and with his whole brand being built around hope, it is important that people do not see the hero acting in this kind of brutally violent manner. While Batman relies on instilling fear in criminals as the most important component of his heroism, Superman is on the other side of the coin as a heroic inspiration to people. The two create an interesting and important duality in the DC Universe, and it is necessary that each of the heroes stays on their own complex path.

Superman & Lois’ Story Proves It Doesn’t Make Sense For Clark To Consistently Work As Batman Does

Clark’s Character Journey Is Different From Bruce Wayne’s

The reveal of Superman’s identity, and his full place in the world, contribute to the perception of the hero in Superman & Lois. While Clark has always served as a symbol of goodness and hope, this becomes even more important now that his identity has been shared with the world. The hero is set to face even more scrutiny than ever before, and it becomes important that he hold himself to a higher standard, as the rest of the world will surely continue to do the same.

A more destructive and violent Clark does not make sense in this DC Universe, and indeed would only justify Lex Luthor’s perception of the hero. The DCEU spent time showing how terrifying a darker Superman could be, and that avenue does not align with the story of this series. Superman is an incredibly powerful being with the ability to crush humans with barely a thought. If there is no accountability for that, there is no way that anyone can see Superman as the hero that the world needs him to be.

Superman and Batman will remain important characters in any DC media, and it is somewhat of a disappointment that no Batman was ever introduced in this Arrowverse story. It would be exciting to see how the brand explored a Batman as a counterpoint to Tyler Hoechlin’s Superman. Still, the core of how a hero like that would be received in this world was shown in this recent episode. It now remains important that Superman & Lois interact with those themes and ideas in thoughtful and introspective ways.