Superman on Television

Superman: The Animated Series - Episode Reviews

Season 2 - Episode 21: "Prototype"

Original Air Date: October 11, 1997

Reviewed by: Jeffrey Taylor

"Part man, part machine ... all cop."

4Rating - 4 (out of 5): This was an excellent episode that stood on its own without need of seeing any earlier or later shows. It also set up a plot that would air two episodes later (or 4 weeks for those following chronologically). Fans of the comic books will recognize John Henry Irons who later became the superhero "Steel." He first appeared in the final pages of Adventures of Superman #500 and was a major player in the "Reign of the Supermen" storyline before starring as the title character in his own book until 1998. His character was ancillary this episode, but certain plot threads were set up this time so they could pay off later.

Irons created a super suit for Lexcorp, which made perfect sense given that he would soon make a similar suit and become Steel. In this episode it was worn by Corey Mills from the Special Crimes Unit of the Metropolis Police Department. Lex Luthor contracted the creation of the suit ostensibly so he could have an army of supermen, in many cases even improving on Superman's normal abilities. The prototype, which connected directly with Mills's brain, began to make him act irrationally as though he was addicted to it and feared that it would be taken away from him.

The title of the episode "Prototype" actually set up that John Henry Irons would soon perfect the suit and become a superhero himself. The final stages of development were just two episodes away. Also, keep an eye out for Irons wearing a sports jersey with the number 5 on it, which obviously looks similar to Superman's iconic letter "S" that Irons wore as an emblem in his early (and most recent) appearances in the comics. In the final scene, Superman told Irons that if he can make the suit work, it would be nice to have a little help for a change.

Prototype The opening scene showcasing the suit's capabilities was slightly disturbing when scrutinized. While demonstrating its impact grenade launchers, Mills exploded a pile of munitions, what appears to be a dog house, then finally a mockup of an ambulance.

This episode had an abundance of solid action sequences starting with the team up of Superman with Mills to save the people (and a cat) from a burning building. Superman saved most of the lives, while Corey snuffed out the fire and saved a cat. The first hints of Mills's mental deterioration were when he shook Superman's hand and squeezed hard enough for the Man of Steel to feel it.

Several days later, Mills had become addicted to the prototype and began playing too roughly with the criminals he dealt with. He nearly killed several thugs working in a chop shop. Much to his girlfriend's surprise, he shaved his head because he claimed it allowed the contact points between the suit and his brain to connect more easily. And it's clear that something was going horribly wrong when Mills began talking about himself and the suit as "we."

AWESOME RANDOM MOMENT: Maggie Sawyer beats Dan Turpin at gin. Watch the reaction. It's hilarious.

The prototype's contact points that connected Mills to the movements of the suit were scrambling his brain. It would have been more interesting if Mills had become drunk on the power he commanded while in the suit to show that even a stable, reliable soldier can crack under the pressure. Or even better, what if both possibilities had been hinted at, but left for the audience to guess.

Prototype Mills confronted Luthor for trying to take the suit away from him, but Luthor reacted in his usual calm demeanor before temporarily deactivating the suit, or so he thought. Mills ended up breaking the shark tank in the wall so that Lex was almost eaten by a great white.

Wait, back up a sec.

Luthor has a giant shark tank in his office this episode that has never been there before. For just about any other character in the history of fiction, I would have called shenanigans and blamed the writers for throwing in added spectacle at the cost of verisimilitude. However, I will totally buy into the idea that Lex Luthor would have a giant 50,000 gallon shark tank (complete with a great white shark) installed in his office on Monday, get sick of it Wednesday and on Thursday have it replaced with a nice potted plant.

Superman writers always fight an uphill battle when setting up fight sequences that showcase the Man of Steel actually having a hard time winning. There were some great moments in the final fight this episode where the audience had to wonder "how's he gonna get out of this one." By this time in the series' run, the creators were raising the bar on how heated and intense these battles would be.

However, when Superman was blinded and relying on his super hearing, I refuse to believe that when he threw the truck at Mills that he intended to miss and have the truck hit him on its way back down to the ground. At best, it was a one in a million accident that gave Superman the upper hand.

Superman put Mills down for good by completing a circuit that electrocuted both of them, but Superman healed and Mills ended up in a coma, perhaps to return (but it never happened).

With the inclusion of John Henry Irons from the "Reign of the Supermen" story in the comics, I have to wonder why Mills, an original character, wasn't replaced with Hank Henshaw, also from the comics. Henshaw's mind became electronic and he inhabited computers and cybernetics. Given Corey Mills's final conscious moments, it's too bad that this direction wasn't considered.

Sgt. Cory Mills was voiced by Xander Berkeley (Air Force One, TV's 24). Berkeley's performance was unfortunately uneven and unbefitting of the animation. He is a wonderful actor in live action, but fell severely short here. His exclamatory remarks throughout the episode felt forced and it undercut the character as he could have stood among the myriad of Superman villains created for The Animated Series.

Michael Dorn (Worf on Star Trek: The Next Generation) played John Henry Irons. He also played Kalibak earlier this series, but more on his performance for a later review where Irons plays a major role.

Trish Mills was Corey's girlfriend or wife. It was unclear in the episode, but the credits seem to suppose the latter. She was voiced by Cynthia Gibb (Short Circuit 2, TV's Fame).



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