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.

As a pop culture institution for 85 years, there have been a number of animated Superman projects. This week gives us the start of another one: The long-awaited My Adventures with Superman which drops at midnight Thursday, July 6 on Adult Swim. If you don’t have Adult Swim, it’ll be on the Max streaming service the next day.

Featuring The Boys’ Jack Quaid as Clark Kent aka Superman, Alice Lee (Heathers: The Musical) as Lois Lane, and Ishmel Shahid (Jury Duty) as Jimmy Olsen, this project gives us slightly younger versions of the iconic trio than we are used to seeing at the Daily Planet. Clark and Jimmy are best friends, Lois is not yet taken seriously as a journalist, and all three are presented as contemporaries on the ground floor of the Daily Planet. If I were to compare their interaction to any previous Superman project, I’d compare them to Clark, Chloe, and Pete in the early seasons of Smallville… except in this case, Clark is actually into Lois, where he wasn’t into Chloe in that way. They even have a Wall of Weird… err, “murder board” in their little hideaway at the Daily Planet.

Without getting into spoilers, I do have a few things that I’d like to point out in my review.

It’s fun: That’s probably my biggest takeaway. My favorite aspects of Superman & Lois, for example, are the flashbacks, where Clark and Lois are new and excited and happy and not getting irritated by their kids. The interplay here is similar, except that it’s often very fun. Sure, there’s occasional drama – when isn’t there? – but in this show, you have three lead characters who seem to genuinely enjoy being around each other.

The chemistry: Between the animation and the voice acting, you can tell that, like every other version of this story, this Clark and this Lois are very into each other. Their friendship with Jimmy and their interactions with Perry White are similar. As such, when there are complications in their relationships, the characters are visibly affected.

Characters: One thing I really like about this series is that Lois, Clark, and Jimmy are all their own complete characters. They have hobbies and interests. They don’t all fit into a box. It’s also interesting to see, say, a more sensitive side to go-getter Lois, or to notice that the way Jack Quaid voices Clark and even the way Clark moves is different from the animation and voice of Superman. That is cool. The Neckbeard Brigade might make a complaint about the characters not all being white, but this series feels like it’s going from a stance of “what if these characters were created in 2023?” Why would they have to be white? Frankly, what matters most to me is that the characters act like they do in the comics and media I’ve loved for so long; that they respect the core of what makes them what they are. Lois, a steadfast, determined journalist? Check. Clark, an awkward farmboy who wants to help people in his alter ego? Check. Jimmy, dork with a camera? Check, again. So, I’m quite good here. (Side note: Ishmel Shahid’s Jimmy might be the most involved Jimmy Olsen to the story since Michael Landes in the early episodes of Lois & Clark… possibly the most involved since Jack Larson. He’s really, really good). And hey… the show is called “My Adventures with Superman” which says to me that it’s not necessarily Clark at the center, but that Lois or even Jimmy may be the “My” here, in a “The King and I” sort of way.

The villains: One thing that I found particularly interesting here is that the villains aren’t immediately identified, leaving it to the viewer to guess who they are. As such, the new, young audience might be introduced to these characters at the same time a longtime fan is! I was a little bit disappointed, though, that one of my hunches was proven correct by the closing credits, especially since 7 episodes in, I don’t think they’ve said that particular character’s name out loud even by that point. It’s not a spoiler to say some notable DC characters and villains do show up, though.

The animation: The animation almost gives me a circa-2000 anime feel which is actually a big compliment coming from me. All of the characters are very cute, but at the same time, the movement and designs are all seamless. I love how Superman flies, for example. I’m glad it’s not, say, evoking and copying Superman: The Animated Series just like I’m glad it’s not a huge departure like The Batman (which I did like, don’t get me wrong). The opening and closing titles are also A+… stay tuned at the end of every episode for a photo that would represent something lingering from what you just watched.

Fun for all ages: I’m old enough that I was already almost finished being a teenager when the 1996 Superman animated series came out. Yet, I thoroughly enjoyed the show as much as a young person would now. My Adventures with Superman makes Superman fun for a new generation without needing to know a million things before going in.

What’s the Catch? I’ve been really glowing here. So… what don’t I like? Honestly, just one thing: I worry that with all of the recent changes to the industry, from Warner Bros. Discovery and HBO — err “Max” to budget cuts everywhere — that the lifespan of My Adventures with Superman won’t be as long as I’d like for it to be. Which would be a real shame, because this show is a winner and everyone involved did a phenomenal job.

Krypton Rating: I don’t think it would be fair to nick it because of the possibility of not going on for too long, so I’m going to give this a 10/10. Highest possible recommendation. Whether you’re 9 or 90, you’ll find this fun.