Smallville gained another hero on Tuesday’s Superman & Lois, which found the Man of Steel in need of an extra hand… or two.
That hero was none other than Natalie Irons, who finally got to test out her super suit during the team’s latest run-in with Ally. Of course, it took a bit of convincing for John Henry to “allow” his daughter to join the fight. To say that he wasn’t thrilled upon discovering Natalie’s suit would be an understatement. It was kind of like when King Triton stumbled upon Ariel’s hidden trove of human treasures. Big mad.
“He obviously still views her as a kid, while she sees herself as more mature” Tayler Buck tells TVLine. “She’s been through so much, but he’s still trying to shield and protect her, even though she’s been the one having to protect him lately.”
John’s A.I. informing him that Natalie’s suit had “surpassed” his own was “the final click in his mind that told him Natalie has really thought about this.”
Not only was Natalie suddenly thrust into her first-ever battle, but when Superman found himself on death’s door, it was up to her to pull him back from the brink. (“This is such a big deal for her,” Buck recognizes. “She saved Superman’s life!”)
With Superman now temporarily incapacitated, Natalie and John will have to “pick up the slack” in the crimefighting department. And with just a handful of episodes remaining this season, they’ll definitely have their hands full. Buck is especially excited “about a few scenes in the finale where you really get to see Natalie’s determination come into play.”
In fact, that determination is one of the things Buck admires most about her character. “And she’s so smart,” Buck adds. “She’s an actual genius! She helped John Henry build his suit when she was just 14, which is so cool. She’s so smart for being so young, and when she really wants something, she goes for it.”
Natalie’s new path is made all the more exciting by the fact that Buck never imagined playing a superhero — at least not at first.
“When I auditioned, it was under a completely different [character] name,” she recalls. “When I got the part and learned my name, I looked it up. There were no [DC Comics] characters named Natalie Irons, only Natasha Irons, so I looked into her and was very excited to see that she becomes a superhero. Still, I didn’t want to get my hopes up in case it didn’t happen.”
Trying on the suit for the first time was an “out-of-body experience” for Buck, who recalls the whole situation being “mind-blowing.”
Your thoughts on Natalie joining the fray? Drop a comment with your thoughts on Tuesday’s Superman & Lois below.