Superman TAS S02E23 Review: The OTHER Man of Steel

Superman: The Animated Series, Season 2, Episode 23: Heavy Metal

I really like Steel. But the episode that he properly debuts as Steel is... not that spectacular, I'm afraid. There are many, many attempts to tie this in to the big Darkseid finale, but it's not a very well-done episode. Sure, Metallo's surprise return, and the fact that he's working alongside Intergang, is a neat twist, and I really love how Metallo's just bantering with Steel with metal puns throughout the episode... but the fight scenes are protracted and honestly not very interesting, and there's the constant focus on the random citizens just to emphasize that hey, Steel is an ethnic hero. Which I didn't really feel necessary, and while the African-American characters are generally portrayed positively, there's still shades of stereotypes there. Not going to talk a lot about that, though, because I'm not as qualified, but still, it feels relatively blah.

Despite every single previous episode showing that kryptonite only weakens Superman for a brief moment of time, for whatever reason the upgrade that allows Metallo to shoot Kryptonite beams disables Superman for the entirety of the episode, even though John and Natasha shoves Superman under a yellow sun bed. It's fine if you kind of want the entire episode to be Steel's day to shine, but the one that beats Metallo in the end is Superman, who wakes up for ten whole seconds to whack Metallo out. Although Steel does get the last blow, whacking Metallo in the chest with his hammer, it feels a bit weird that the episode wants to spend so much time on Steel yet doesn't let him properly shine. I dunno. It just kind of feels unpolished compared to other DCAU episodes, though not exactly bad. 

DC Easter Eggs Corner:

• In addition to the obvious references to 'Prototype', Metallo refers and calls out Superman for leaving him under molten lava in 'Action Figures'. Intergang was last seen in 'Tools of the Trade'. Bibbo Bibbowski references the fight between Superman and Titano in 'Monkey Fun'. 
• Natasha Irons, John's niece, is a supporting character of Steel and Superman, and would later take up the mantle of Steel after John's apparent death. (In the New 52 reboot, Natasha would gain actual superpowers and fight crime under the codename Starlight)