Superman & Lois seems to be foreshadowing an evil transformation for Superman - even though it doesn’t feel like a direction that the Arrowverse would ever take. The idea of an evil Superman has been explored in alternate timeline stories, but it’s hard to imagine it happening with the primary version of the character.
It was believed that Crisis on Infinite Earths had put an end to alternate Earth doppelgangers popping up in Arrowverse shows, but that hasn’t stopped Superman & Lois from exploring the concept of an evil Kal-El. Apparently, John Henry Irons aka Steel (Wolé Parks) comes from an Earth where a black suit Superman turned on humanity and led an army of Kryptonians in an all-out attack on the planet. Ever since, Steel has remained convinced that the Arrowverse’s Superman will embark down the same dark path. It’s this belief that has fueled his crusade against Tyler Hoechlin’s character.
The Superman of Earth-Prime is obviously a different person to the one Steel knows, but the Arrowverse has strangely been dropping hints that he at least has the potential to go bad. In episode 6, being shot with Kryptonite bullets by American soldiers caused Superman’s eyes to turn red, as if he was about to obliterate his attackers. But Clark held in his anger and the feeling ed. Something similar happened again in the latest episode when an angry Superman was about to punch Steel, despite that the fact that he was clearly in no condition to fight back. Thankfully, Lois Lane (Elizabeth Tulloch) snapped him out of it by telling him that the fight was over.
It’s likely Superman giving into his rage in either of these incidents would have resulted in some loss of life. That would be huge, considering that the Man of Steel has a strict no-killing rule. Plus, that’s how most “evil Superman” stories tend to begin, such as the one that played out in the Injustice video games. It looks like the Arrowverse is trying to create the implication that Superman could evolve into a villain, but it’s not a possibility that viewers are likely to buy. It could be that instead of convincing audiences of the threat that Superman could pose to the Earth, their aim is actually to make it a real fear for the people around him, while simultaneously reinforcing the concerns of Steel.
It’s all but guaranteed that Lois’ faith in Superman will remain unshaken, but the same can’t be said for people like General Lane (Dylan Walsh). After all, Superman & Lois has already been setting up Lane being at odds with Clark at some point down the road. Superman may face more temptations to break his no-killing rule in the episodes to come, but it’s in his nature to overcome them no matter what. It could be that while Superman will continue to resist the urge to use excessive force, not all Arrowverse characters who maintain their confidence in his moral foundation. If so, that could result in characters like Lane and possibly more ing in Steel’s efforts to take him down.