2x03 The Prometheon

[7.8/10] This episode is simple, but effective in its simplicity, and bolstered by the superb design and animation work that helps bring the basic story to life. I just love the look and design of the Prometheon. It resembles Clayface from B:TAS, but making it a lumbering, heat-sucking titan gives the creature a different air about him. Something about the white eyes and blocky exterior makes the thing feel simultaneously alien and familiar, and its kaiju-like movements through Metropolis's outskirts is pretty cool.

The episode also does the King Kong routine much better here than it did in “Monkey Fun.” Everything from the Prometheon wriggling in his asteroid chains, to his futzing around with a submarine under the sea, to him chasing Superman-qua-firefly into a reservoir gives the sense of a giant toddler who doesn't fully understand what he’s doing, while creating a sense of dread as he lurches through so many nearly-populated areas.

While I don’t like the fact that we get his backstory here (it doesn't really add much), I do like the heat-seeker gimmick. It gives the Prometheon a clear goal, and a clear point of contention and diversion between Superman and the prickly General Hardcastle. While a lot of the science here is pretty shaky (which is fine for a superhero show), the reservoir/chemical freeze scheme to stop it is a good one. I particularly appreciated the eeriness of the silence once Prof. Hamilton gets the city to shut off power (dropping the music for a minute is a nice touch), and how Superman uses his smarts to beat this thing by luring it with a spark and a (conveniently loaded) boat, rather than just punching it to smithereens.

Overall, there’s not a lot of depth to this one, but it’s a great visual showcase for Supes vs. a giant, and the cause and solution to the crisis is well done.