Reviewed by: Steve Younis
Originally Aired: August 4, 2023
Story by Aman Adumer, Angela Entzminger and Cynthia Furey
Teleplay by Angela Entzminger
Directed by Kiki Manrique
VOICE CAST:
Jack Quaid as Clark Kent/Superman
Alice Lee as Lois Lane
Ishmel Sahid as Jimmy Olsen
Joel De La Fuente as The General
Jake Green as Dr. lvo, Soldier
Jesse Inocalla as The Brain
Andre Sogliuzzo as Monsieur Mallah
Unable to get Jimmy on the phone, Lois prepares to go to the camping site to apologize to him for missing their planned trip. Clark is at her door as she prepares to leave, and even though she’s still angry at him for lying about being Superman, their worry over not being able to contact Jimmy is more important, and they head off to find him.
Even though Clark had flown over the area multiple times, he saw nothing, but Lois’ tracking skills enables them to find a secret facility hidden in the woods. They find Jimmy’s phone on the ground, and a video he recorded shows him being taken by what appears to be Bigfoot.
Inside the facility Jimmy wakes up… and is confronted by a talking gorilla and a brain in mechanical body. As they prepare to experiment on his brain, Jimmy manages to connect with the gorilla (Monsieur Mallah) on a personal level. Sparing his life, Mallah takes Jimmy on a tour of the facility.
Outside, Clark and Lois are attacked by high tech robots, and even though Clark is able to fend them off, something is making him weak.
Mallah tells Jimmy that Project Cadmus was once a government facility in which the scientists were tasked with making weapons, but instead they decided to be creative instead of destructive. Mallah was created, and worked alongside the main scientist. However when the General in charge found out they were not producing the weapons as instructed, a fight broke out… and the black hole being contained within the facility broke from its containment, destroying much of the facility and ending the battle. Cadmus fell to ruin, and the scientist, suffering major injuries, was forced to save his brain and his heart in a mechanical body.
When those inside become aware of Lois and Clark’s intrusion, Mallah and The Brain go on the attack… but Jimmy stops the attack and introductions are made. As Lois and Clark apologize to Jimmy for missing the camping trip, Clark tries to tell Jimmy his big secret… but Jimmy reveals he’s known all along. He just figured Clark would tell him in his own good time.
Their reunion is cut short when the robots attack from the woods. The robots however are not from Cadmus! The friends run inside the facility, while Clark tries to hold the robots at bay with help from The Brain. During the fight facility’s power is disrupted, and the black hole (which was reformed years ago) once again becomes unstable. With the red sun protective dome (which kept the facility hidden) no longer operational, Clark regains his full power. The robots are defeated, and the black hole forms into a wormhole, a gateway to another dimension.
Mallah and The Brain decide to go through the wormhole in the hope of finding a place where they’ll be welcomed instead of shun. Jimmy farewells his new friends, as he and his Daily Planet pals prepare to head back to the Daily Planet.
With Cadmus back on the radar, The General and Dr. Ivo enter the facility, prepared to use anything and everything within the facility to destroy Superman.
Rating – 3 (out of 5): While there was a lot to like about this episode, boy was there a lot of exposition. The backstory behind Cadmus, Mallah and The Brain was quite complicated and involved. I had to watch it twice to be able to understand it all fully.
Nevertheless, I felt better for Jimmy here. Not only was he vindicated regarding his ideas and theories, but he took the moral high ground when it came to dealing with Clark and Lois. The fact that he knew Clark’s secret all along, but decided to keep the secret until Clark was ready, says a lot about Jimmy’s character.
Mallah and The Brain were likeable characters. I hope we get to see them again, and learn about the new dimension they went to. I have a feeling it might a world run by sentient gorillas. Grodd anyone?
The introduction of Cadmus was another nice nod to the comic books. Nothing good will come of The General taking over the facility with Dr. Ivo. Superman and his friends should be worries.
While not the best episode of the season so far, “My Adventures with Mad Science” did add a lot of new elements that should prove for some good stories moving forward.
