I’m stunned by Bitsie Tulloch and Jordan Elsass’s performances in “Holding the Wrench.” They both had such powerful moments together and separately on the screen.
The episodes started with Lois Lane (Bitsie) in a therapist’s office, worried that she would hurt someone she loved if she lost her temper again. Then, we flashback to her, Clark Kent (Tyler Hoechlin) and the boys having a much-needed talk after everything that happened in “Man of Steel.” Jordan (Alex Garfin) was helping his dad fix the truck while Lois was talking to them, making sure they were okay. Jonathan (Jordan) tries to give his dad the wrench, but, of course, he doesn’t need it.
This scene leads to a nice parallel later in the episode where Lois says she’s used to being the one left holding the wrench when she’s trying to help.
Since he wasn’t any help with fixing the truck, Jonathan decides to help his mom with the RV. Lois discovers that the Lois on John Henry Iron’s (Wolé Parks) earth was married to him, and they have a daughter named Natalie.
We find out tragically that Lois suffered a miscarriage. The girl was named Natalie.
Jonathan goes back in the RV later, looking for not just clues but weapons. He watches the other Superman kill other Lois. Then he finds the guns, but that sets off the security system. The shudders close, and the lasers come out.
This scene was intense. Lois tried to get to him but couldn’t open the door, so she had to call for Superman, who barely makes it in time to cover Johnathan and take the bullets.
Johnathan was understandably a mess. He feels that what happened is even more justifiable as to why he was looking for weapons. I have to give major props to Jordan for this episode. The emotion he brought to all these intense scenes was incredible. You could truly feel his fear and desperation to protect himself and to help.
Jon’s brush with death led to Lois losing it. She yelled at him for being reckless and stupid.
She had never grieved her loss of Natalie. She just focused on her work and told herself that they’re normal. And when Jonathan almost dies, that helplessness overtook her.
Bitsie was also incredible in this episode. I don’t think we’ve ever seen Lois that mad. There were so many emotions going on in that scene, and the actress portrayed all of them. We may not have understood the depth of what was going through the character’s mind at the time, but we did understand it there was more going on than Jon putting himself in harm’s way and almost dying.
The therapist was right. Lois does have more control over her life than most. Losing an unborn child isn’t easy for anyone, but for a woman with so much control of everything around her, it has to be crushing to know that there wasn’t anything she could have done to prevent it. The mother probably feels like Jonathan in harm’s way could have been stopped, which is part of what caused such a strong reaction. Not to mention, she hasn’t finished the grieving process.
We know Lois doesn’t have any powers, but her super reporter skills can sometimes overshadow that fact because she’s always charging in to get answers. But she is only human. She found her way to help through her work.
I loved when she said to Jonathan, “we are extraordinary humans in a family of super people.” It’s so true. I love Jon’s want to help. If I’m wrong and he doesn’t have superpowers, it will be nice to watch him on his journey to find out how he can help. Lois is a powerful woman within the human world. He can find his calling too.
Even Superman has weaknesses, though. He went in knowing he was heading to a room with stuff meant to kill him. He struggled but still found a way to defeat Morgan Edge’s (Adam Rayner) creation.
Superman & Lois certainly shows that no one is invincible.
Maybe the scariest thing is that John Henry is not entirely wrong. It’s not Superman leading the army, though. It’s Edge. For reasons unknown at this point. What happened in his world could happen on this one, but Superman will fight against them.
What did you think of Bitsie and Jordan’s performances in “Holding the Wrench?” Tweet me @MandyTTCarr or comment below.
