[explosion]
-[Superman] Is anyone here? -[man grunts]
Hold on, you're gonna be all right.
-[man screams] -No!
What was...
-[coughing] -Are you all right? What's your name?
Silas Stone. I'm okay. But...
[woman] Help! Somebody help me!
I have to go. Are you sure you're fine?
I... I am now, Superman.
[sighs]
Aw, look at that.
You made it out.
Oh, I hate that it came to this.
Just imagine what could have happened if your son had been home.
He's what? Nine? Ten?
You know what you need to do.
[cell phone beeps]
It's gone. All of it.
Perfect.
And what else are you going to do?
I'm going to keep my mouth shut.
[opening music playing]
We're building a safer tomorrow
and safer communities.
Which is why we're opening our latest manufacturing plant
in Metropolis.
But don't take our word for it.
Take mine.
I'm Dr. John Irons,
lead engineer at AmerTek.
I grew up in Metropolis.
Right here in Bakerline.
On behalf of my community,
I'm proud to welcome AmerTek to the neighborhood.
[remote clicks]
Flip, for the last time,
I am not sending you to cover stories on your own!
You are ten!
[Flip over phone] Mr. Olsen, I am 11,
-and I'm confident that this will change your mind. -[cell phone buzzes]
A toy helicopter?
[Flip] The Flying Newsroom.
It's a fully functional, Wi-Fi enabled helicopter
with a totally illegal camera attached.
-I got it for my birthday. -Psst. Jimmy.
We can use it to cover stories for Flamebird!
Also, full disclosure, uh, me and Gaby might have attached
a totally safe, but maybe not totally-legal...
-[whispers] My clothes. -...glitter gun to it?
Now, I know what you're going to say, Mr. Olsen,
-but hear me out. -[sighs] Great.
-[Flip gasps] Really? -No, not you. Hold on.
-Hey, Mr. Lane-- -General.
Uh, right. My bad. I had a thought.
Maybe you can clean.
There's a garbage can right over there.
And turn my back to the exit?
-Never turn your back to the exit, son. -[Jimmy groans]
[Flip over phone] Oh! We got a hit on the tip-line about "crazy robots."
-Can I cover that? -No!
-Olsen, when you're staring down the barrel of a gun... -Psst.
-You learn to watch your exits-- -That's it!
Flip, you will not report on crazy robots with your toy helicopter.
I'm your boss, which means you have to do what I say,
and I'm telling you it's not happening!
And you should really clean up after yourself.
Good luck, buddy.
Good... morning, Mr. Lane--
And where were you last night?
[mumbles]
I woke up and you were gone. And it's not the first time.
That's when I put some pieces together.
And I realized that...
Uh...
You are...
[shuddering]
A flake!
You're clumsy.
You're late for everything, you're oblivious.
And one day your screw-up act is going to hurt my daughter.
-Mr. Lane, I'm-- -[cell phone ringing]
I'm late to meet Lois for coffee!
[cell phone keypad beeping]
Lois! Hi, I'm behind Waid's Cafe now--
[Lois] Oh, uh, I can't make it.
Mr. White sent me to cover the press conference at AmerTek.
AmerTek? Like John Irons AmerTek?
Oh, wow, he's a robotics genius.
And his work in the community--
[chuckles] But that's not why I wanted to meet.
There's something I really need to talk to you about, Lois.
Clark, I know my dad is a lot, but he needs a place to hide.
That's not what I meant.
But speaking of family, I have--
Uh-oh, uh, the conference is starting.
I gotta go. But we'll talk later, I promise.
[cell phone beeps]
[sighs] Okay. Today's not going great.
-But I'll talk to Lois later... -[cell phone dings]
After I write that article I forgot about.
Hello, Metropolis!
My name is Thomas Weston,
and I am here to welcome you to...
Please don't make me do this.
-Hit it, Audrey! -[groans softly]
[rock music playing]
The AmerTek revolution!
Streets so safe, you can send a baby out alone.
Crime reduced to zero.
All this and more will become reality, when AmerTek rolls out...
The Metallo!
[powering up]
[Thomas] Yeah! The firepower of a tank.
Strength greater than Superman's!
Plus they're 100% green, thanks to...
Amer-Fusion!
Cleaner than fossil fuel,
Amer-Fusion reactors will power the Metallos,
as well as this plant when we open tomorrow.
-[crackles] -[gasps]
Hmm.
[beeping]
[chuckles nervously]
Well, well, thanks for coming, and, and--
-CEO Weston, I have-- -I have a question!
Vicki Vale, Gotham Gazette.
How does Amer-Fusion work?
Lois Lane, Daily Planet.
Where is your lead engineer, Dr. Irons?
[stuttering] He's busy.
He's been your PR face since the beginning.
So does his absence mean there's a problem?
No! No, no. Absolutely not.
No problems. He's, uh, busy in his lab.
And I'm busy too.
So, no further questions, thanks!
-[grunts] -[Vicki] Lois.
I should have guessed you'd be here, after your promotion.
[chuckles] You... You know about that?
I keep my eye on rising stars.
And the rebuttal you wrote to my Superman article
was outstanding.
[chuckles nervously] You read my writing?
I mean, that's nice.
Um, but if you excuse me,
I've... I've got a CEO to catch, so...
Sorry, Mr. Weston is unavailable.
Okay, well, tell him that Lois--
Palmer Tech is hiring,
I know their recruiter, and I need ten minutes.
You can have eternity. You and--
Just me. Exclusive.
Sorry, Lois.
You're doing great, but no one scoops Vicki Vale.
[groans]
[yawns]
Huh. We'll see about that.
Okay, Kent, you can speed-type.
All you need is an idea.
[groans]
Clark! We have a problem.
Flip's gone! I thought she was just mad about the Flying Newsroom,
long story, but then I heard this.
[Dr. Irons on recording] Flamebird, I have to get this information out
before it's too late.
There are killer robots in Metropolis.
I hear something. I have to go.
Maybe Flip didn't follow up on this very dangerous sounding story.
[Flip] Hi, Mr. Olsen,
I looked up how to trace a call online.
Me and the Flying Newsroom are on it.
[beeps]
Dr. Irons. Sorry to intrude, I'm...
Whoa.
Huh?
John Irons,
1324, Sycamore Street.
Great, I'll head there next.
Ahh! What are you doing here?
Same as you.
Weston refused to answer any of my questions.
So I snuck away to find out why.
And here we are. No Dr. Irons.
And a lab blown to smithereens.
Something's going on at AmerTek.
[both] And I'm gonna figure out what it is.
[guard] Hey!
What are you doing here?
-[both] Cheese it! -[grunts]
[alarm blaring]
Okay, which way do we go now?
-Ha! We? -[grunts]
-[beeps] -Ugh!
Sorry, Lane, but no one scoops Vicki Vale!
[guard] Halt! Stop! She can't be here.
Stop, lady! Stop!
[horn blaring]
-[Lois laughs] -[guard panting]
[scoffs]
Hi, Superman. Hi, Jimmy.
Don't "hi, Jimmy" me. Killer robots, Flip.
The tip wasn't for crazy robots.
It was for killer robots!
I know. Cool, right?
No. We are going to go, and get out of this
charming brownstone. Wait, where are we?
Oh, thank goodness.
You brought Superman.
I... I didn't know who to call, but my niece, Na--Natasha--
she's a "Flamebro?"
She showed me your videos, Mr. Olsen,
and I thought you could help.
Look, I'm sorry, I sound crazy right now. I'm--
John Irons. Lead engineer at AmerTek.
I've... I've seen you on TV.
Um, Dr. Irons, what's going on?
It's easier to show you.
When AmerTek first hired me, I was thrilled.
I could move back home,
be part of my niece's life, give back to my city.
And I knew exactly how I was going to do it. The Steel Mech Suit.
They're for first responders.
They can withstand fire, sub-zero temperatures, you name it.
But Weston wanted something flashier.
So we rushed production on the Metallos. And then...
The flaw in the Metallo power cores
that makes them deeply unstable.
We didn't realize it when we were working with only one prototype.
[Dr. Irons] But when more than one activates, they meld together.
And when they hit critical mass...
The Amer-Fusion core that powers this plant is identical to these,
but 300 times bigger.
We haven't made a safer Metropolis.
We built a bomb. We have to shut everything down.
-[Thomas] No. -No?
You just saw--
[laughs] A one-off. A fluke.
Grab the nerds, order a pizza, and fix this.
Thom, this is not a "fix it by morning" kind of problem!
Then make it one!
There are dozens of other companies
trying to replace Amazo as top dog,
and you're asking me to give up my chance to be number one?
I told people that AmerTek was here to help.
This is my home.
And this is my shot.
Which do you think is higher priority?
Silas and I recorded this in secret.
But everyone we tried to talk to was paid off by Weston.
He fired us.
And then today, Silas wiped out our records remotely
and disappeared.
Silas Stone.
There was a fire at his house last night.
-I thought it was an accident, but... -[gasps]
I'm the only one left with evidence.
Which means whoever got to Silas...
I'm next.
[knock on door]
[straining]
[exhales]
Dr. Irons! Lois Lane of the Daily...
Superman? Jimmy? Flip?
[straining] Dr. Irons! Vicki Vale of the--
Superman? Ooh, this just got good.
Uh, Mr. Olsen?
Not right now, Flip!
We have to get you somewhere safe.
Not until I get an interview.
-[Flip] Jimmy. -We need to warn everyone first.
-[Flip] Jimmy! -What, Flip?
Who's the other lady outside?
-Get away from the window-- -[Flip yelps]
[electricity crackling]
[chuckles] Sorry, Dr. Irons.
But you and I have business to discuss.
Livewire?
Oh, come on, this was supposed to be an easy one.
[groans]
[electricity crackling]
[grunts]
Fine.
You aren't the job, anyway.
[electricity buzzing]
No!
My evidence.
You didn't tell me Superman would be involved.
I'm not getting paid enough to deal with that, Weston.
[Thomas] I didn't know he would be.
But you took care of him, right? [chuckles nervously]
-[line disconnects] -Livewire? Hello?
What!
No! I can't let them shut me down.
No. Weston's turned on the plant.
Then we have to go, now.
Thomas, thousands of lives are at stake.
You have to stop.
Not a chance.
How do we stop the reactor?
We need to shut it down, but Weston has the controls.
[whirring]
[scoffs]
-[grunts] -[Superman straining]
[Superman yells]
Ah. There you are.
[grunts]
[exclaims]
[grunts]
I'm pretty sure I told you to run, Dr. Irons.
And I thought I told you this is my home.
I'm staying right here.
Well! What now, Doc?
Manual shut down.
Take down those pillars and the energy will harmlessly dissipate.
We just need to get through those Metallos.
[grunting]
[crackling intensifies]
[reactor warbling]
We're too late. The cores are fusing.
The reactor's about to explode.
I can contain it, just take out the pillars.
[screaming]
Weston locked the plant. We have no way of seeing if Superman's okay.
Or getting my story.
That's not true.
I've got a member of my team who's always prepared.
-Flip, do you still have The Flying Newsroom? -[gasps]
[grunts]
[pillar powering down]
[groaning]
Come on.
[pillar powering down]
[straining] I can't hold it much longer.
Hold on, Superman. There's just one pillar left.
Come on!
[grunting] You're not going to stop me!
[groans]
Yes. What now, boss?
Do it, do it. Hit 'em again.
[grunting]
-[Dr. Irons yells] -Dr. Irons!
Hold on.
[Dr. Irons grunts]
[screaming]
[powering down]
We did it, Superman.
All I wanted was to be number one.
Ugh. I'm not a bad guy.
I mean, Superman had to stop you from blowing up the city.
Maybe reconsider some of your life choices?
[sighs]
-Hey, are you okay? -Kinda?
I thought being a boss was just giving orders.
But it's not. And after today...
I don't know if I'm doing it right.
Mr. Olsen, being a leader,
it isn't about telling people what to do.
That's right, Flamebird.
[Dr. Irons] It's about lifting people up, and letting them shine.
...right here.
From where I stand, you're going to be just fine.
Yes! It was a good effort, Lane.
But I just filed my story. Tell Pear-Bear better luck next time.
I would, but I've been writing
my story on my phone all day long.
And it posted ten minutes ago.
That's right. No one scoops Lois Lane.
Ha! What do you say to that?
-[chuckles] -Hmm.
How'd you like the number two reporting spot at the Gazette?
Oh. What?
You're offering me a job?
Lois, you beat me to the punch while clinging to the back of a van.
You have what it takes to be extraordinary.
[gasps] It's my dream to work with you.
But that would mean leaving Metropolis...
Metropolis? Listen. You're ambitious.
Sooner or later, you'll have to move on if you want to move up.
Nothing lasts forever.
Think about it.
-Clark? -[sighs]
Your dad's right.
I'm always late. I'm oblivious to what's going on.
And today, that almost got everyone killed.
Number one, never say that my dad is right again.
And two...
in the end, Superman still saved the day.
He just had a little help.
Huh? That's it. That's the article.
What article? [gasps]
Long story. Just...
I have to write, but, um, we'll talk later, okay?
Okay. We'll... talk later.
[Clark] Yesterday, Superman flew in to save us once again.
But this time, he didn't do it alone.
It was Dr. Irons' courage that alerted Superman to the danger at AmerTek.
And when Superman faltered, it was Dr. Irons who saved the day.
Metropolis is more than a city.
It's the sum of its people.
We aren't perfect, but given the chance,
we can rise to become heroes.
Metropolis is different than it used to be.
But that doesn't mean it's broken.
In this reporter's opinion, as long as we have people like Dr. Irons,
Metropolis will be just fine.
Sorry, but we got orders to escort you off the premises.
-Permanently. -What? By who?
By me. Starting today, AmerTek and all its IP are owned by LexCorp.
Which includes everything in this building.
And that suit.
So make sure to leave it on your way out.
Wouldn't want to have to arrest one of Metropolis' heroes for stealing.
[laughs]
Now, would we?
Hmm.