#no narrative integrity whatsoever in this cursed show. References are fun but relying on them is just pandering.

[jesncin]

Idk if it's just me but Lois calling Clark 'Smallville' in MAWS never seems natural? Like, it feels forced? Idk. Like just another thing off the Superman adaptation checklist and they gotta do it because the old show did.

YES ACTUALLY!! It felt very "well the fans are expecting Lois to call Clark 'Smallville' so she better do that" instead of being an established city girl + country boy dynamic like in STAS (MAWS doesn't have this dynamic at all). STAS!Lois considers Clark a country bumpkin and judges him for it. Meanwhile in MAWS it just sorta happened for the sake of a reference.

Many things in MAWS felt this way. Like Jimmy calling his persona Flamebird (that's random? oh that's a superhero mantle name reference), Ivo naming his suit Parasite (what idiot names their suit something so un-brand friendly and gross sounding?? oh it's a Superman rogue), the existence of newsie kids (why do we somehow still have child labor in this futuristic Metropolis with robots and holograms? oh it's a nod to outdated characters at the expense of plot and logic) all for references to the comics that take you out of the experience. It's intrusive instead of being smartly integrated.