Several weeks ago, Smallville stars Michael Rosenbaum and Tom Welling took their “TalkVille” podcast and made it a live performance combined with their exclusive “Smallville Nights” that they’ve had on the convention circuit. Their first stop — extended to two shows after the first sold out — was at the Bourbon Room in Hollywood.

I’ve long said that for fans of the show, it’s costly but you need to do “Smallville Nights” at least once. It’s an interactive thing where fans get to re-enact scenes with the actors themselves, and all get the chance to offer the perfect delivery for “I am the villain of the story!” At the live TalkVille event, this was especially cool because each and every attendee got the chance to do the thing.

The “TalkVille” element of the show was different from I at least hda originally expected — it was more of a freeform discussion between Rosenbaum and Welling, discussing some of their favorite memories of the show, and answering questions from the audience. It would have been fun to see them do an actual show from the podcast in front of the audience, but realistically, that could be a recipe for disaster in case any cuts are needed or anything like that.

One strong thing I felt when watching Tom and Michael on stage is that the source of one of the criticisms of the podcast seems to be identified: Sometimes it has been noted that Michael would interrupt or speak over Tom, when it appears the actual problem is that when recording the podcast, there’s a slight video delay so Michael might not even realize he is talking. So, it’s not a matter of being rude, but perhaps a technical difficulty that might be solved in a future show or two where Tom actually recorded in person at the studio. Both guys (and Ryan!) got time to talk at this event, and there wasn’t any such interruption.

There were some stories told at the event that I didn’t even know or realize — for example, how Kristin Kreuk helped Tom with his audition. Both had a gratitude for the show and I think events like these really make them see it first hand. Tom joked more than once that he tried to cancel the event, but he seemed to do really well with it when it happened. I was touched and surprised that I got a few shoutouts in person… and even hugs when the guys realized I was there! Sadly, there weren’t any individual photo ops or anything, but the memories will remain very strong, and there was a very cool “poster” given to all attendees with awesome artwork by Mickael Journou (MikePosters on Instgram). You can see that artwork up above; hopefully it’s okay that it was used for this post. Apparently, this art was also being sold on a T-shirt, but I didn’t see one!

Beyond getting to see two of the leads of Smallville, a great part of the night was a 45 minute to an hour intermission between Smallville Nights and the TalkVille presentation, and that was also a lot of fun because it gave the opportunity to meet other fans and talk. So many of us started watching the show at different times and it was so much fun to share those experiences with one another. After all, we were all there because of loving Smallville! It was just a lot of positivity and fun, and I met some cool people and hopefully made some cool new friends.

As someone who has covered the show since the beginning, it is also really fun to see Tom being joyful about talking about the show. It really highlights how overwhelmed he must have been when the show was on the air. I still can tell when fans are recreating scenes from Smallville that he still thinks like a director, which is so cool. He’s also such a dad now. His shoes were sticky so he took them off to reveal neon socks, which were actually not as uncool as he thought because…. maybe it was kryptonite. Haha. Still, all in all a good time!

Any negative feedback? A venue with easier parking and a less expensive menu would be nice, but as for the show itself, it was a great time. If and when the TalkVille guys do this again, I highly recommend that you check it out.

Season 3 of Superman & Lois ended with what looked like a fatal showdown between Superman and Doomsday, reminiscent of the events of the legendary Superman #75 comic book by Dan Jurgens over 30 years ago. Now, some new comments from Bitsie Tulloch combined with some analysis from our good friend Ben Rolph of the Ben’s Take YouTube channel (formerly TheDCTVShow) begs the question: Is Superman & Lois adapting “The Death of Superman” in Season 4?

In the original comics, the Death of Superman was followed by an acclaimed storyline called “Funeral for a Friend” as the folks in Superman’s orbit as well as the people of the Daily Planet deal with the loss of Metropolis’ greatest hero. That led months later to a “Reign of the Supermen” story where four folks – including John Henry Irons, making his first comic book appearances – tried to become Metropolis’ new hero, with some including the Cyborg Superman claiming to the the real steel deal.

So what made Ben think they’re going full force into “Death of Superman” territory, and why do we agree with him?

Bitsie Tulloch recently appeared at the Metropolis Celebration in Illinois this past weekend, and she made a certain major tease:

“You guys are not going to believe the first episode,” she teased. “It’s bananas. It’s emotional. What they did was based on one of the comics. It was a very bold decision on their part to do to do this and to pull it off for the first episode of Season 4.”

Bold decision? Based on the comics? Killing Superman would be pretty darned bold, yeah?

You can watch video of Bitsie’s panel below, courtesy of the Superman Homepage, and then leave some thoughts in the comments! Superman & Lois Season 4 – the show’s final season – is scheduled to premiere this Fall on The CW.

2024 is almost here, and at some point in the new year we will be getting the fourth and final season of the Superman & Lois TV series. The CW has not yet announced a premiere date, but especially considering the new season hasn’t started filming yet, it may be late Spring or Summer before we see our favorite characters again for one last 10-episode run.

To celebrate the new year, though, we’re listing our Top Ten Hopes for the final season of the series…. things we’d like to see or not see in 2024. Here goes!

#1. Superman Lives… though I’d also accept a “Reign.” Sure, the Season 3 finale didn’t look too encouraging there, but it’s not like The CW’s new budget would be so cheap that they’d get rid of Superman. The show is called Superman & Lois, after all! We better see Tyler Hoechlin and that “S” again pretty swiftly… though if they want to do a “Reign of the Supermen” with Tyler playing an Eradicator and a Cyborg version of Superman, I might allow it. We’ve already got John Henry Irons/Steel and surely The CW casting folks could find a fun Superboy. This story has never been fully adapted in live action and it’s a key part of my Superman comics reading experience. (If you’ve never read “Triangle Era” Superman comics, you are missing the best of Superman’s 85-year run!)

#2. No more Superman vs. Superman. Now, obviously if they did “Reign of the Supermen” I’d take this wish away, but in three seasons + Crisis and Elseworlds crossover appearances, Superman & Lois has managed to have Tyler Hoechlin fighting another Tyler Hoechlin Superman like 8 different ways, or playing different “evil” versions of Superman. Enough with that already! It’s the same trap The Flash would run into with different speedster villains every season. Variety can be good, and while part of me would love to see other Superman actors from across the multiverse show up, such as Brandon Routh or Tom Welling, I’m honestly pretty Multiverse-d out at the moment.

#3. Other Kryptonite. Blue, red, rainbow… we haven’t seen too many variations of these on Superman & Lois, and it might be cool, and so specially Superman.

#4. Continued presence for some no-longer series regulars. Like many, I’m bothered by the demotions of several actors who were series regulars on the series, now being guest stars. With a few exceptions, we don’t know how much they will show up again… but it would be a real shame to not have John Henry and Nat around, and while I am 100% against more Jordan and Sarah angst, I really want Sarah to stick around. They’re a part of the tapestry that makes the show good, just like the Kents are.

#5. A better costume for Jordan. He looks like a huge dork with those goggles… sorry, Alex. Give him something cool!

#6. Let the family be happy! Sometimes I feel like Lois and Clark hate their children, with the amount of times they yell at them every episode. After how emotionally taxing Season 3 was especially, I hope the Kents get to have fun sometimes. Remember the time they were painting the house together and Superman had to go do a save with paint all over his hand? That was charming and cute. More please.

#7. Metropolis and the Daily Planet. The Daily Planet is as important to the mythos as Lois, Clark, Perry, and Jimmy are. A return to the great metropolitan newspaper would put Lois back at the top of her game, especially now that the paper isn’t owned by a bad guy anymore (that we know of… I mean, Lex Luthor might try something). If the Planet isn’t available, WGBS will do! And hey… maybe if Jordan is following his father’s side of things, Jonathan could take an interest in journalism and start working with his mom?

Beyond that, it appears the Kent Farm house is taken down. It could just be relocated, or they might just use stock footage from here on out, but if it’s gone, it might be worthwhile to go to a new setting for Season 4… returning the Kents to Metropolis. Also – let’s see the show’s version of Jimmy Olsen, now that we know the show isn’t on Earth-Prime.

#8. An actual conclusion. We know Season 4 is the last; the show isn’t moving anywhere else, and The CW isn’t renewing it after the ten episodes of Season 4. For those of us who have stuck with the show for all four years and 50+ episodes, I want a satisfying ending. Don’t leave us on a cliffhanger. Imagine if the 2023 strikes made the studio and network decide “we’re not doing Season 4 after all.” That would have sucked.

#9. A set visit for KryptonSite. Set visits seem to have fallen by the wayside, but it would be so cool to visit and interview the cast as we go into Season 4. Apparently there was a trip considered prior to Season 3, but we weren’t included on that list.

#10. A flash forward. As DC welcomes David Corenswet as their new Superman, combining with my own personal hopes for a happy ending, I’d love to get a glimpse into the future to see Clark and Lois happy decades from now, their children continuing their legacy. The Superman and Lois of Earth-WhateverThisIs deserve it.

There are surely other things that could have made this list — “Uncle Tal,” a Jordan Elsass cameo, and Supergirl being high on the list — but I’m sticking to ten with this one. What do you think? Leave your wishes for the final season on the KryptonSite Forums – registration is easy and free!