Plot summary: Controversial shock jock Leslie ‘Livewire’ Willis gains amazing electrical superpowers and holds Metropolis for ransom.
Notes and Trivia
Episode: 18 (S2.E5)
Original Air Date: September 13th, 1997
Directed: Curt Geda (4)
Written: Evan Dorkin (1) & Sarah Dyer (1)
Animation: Koko Enterprise Co., LTD & Dong Yang Animation Co., LTD. (11)
Music: Harvey R. Cohen (3)
This episode was originally intended for Season 1 but wasn’t able to come together in time and got pushed. I don’t know if it was meant to be a 14-episode season or if they pulled something forward to take its place.
Livewire’s shock jock personality is based on Howard Stern. Much like Harley Quinn, she was created for the show and was so popular she was ported over to mainline comics later.
As I originally only planned to cover Batman when I started this project I’ve actually already reviewed the episode ‘Girl’s Night Out’ that featured Livewire teaming up with Harley Quinn & Poison Ivy.
Recap
Lois and Clark interview controversial radio personality Leslie ‘Livewire’ Willis, who insists on the interview taking place on-air. She grills Lois about her relationship with Superman, who she frequently targets.
Clark spots a crane accident and excuses himself to save the day, narrowly rescuing a construction worker, a baby and its mother before flying away to great applause.
Later that day Livewire’s public concert/event goes ahead despite a torrential storm, inciting the crowd to pelt the police with eggs when they demand she shut it down.
Superman tries to be the voice of reason and is booed, but when lightning strikes the stage people finally start to scramble. Willis stands pat, but ends up getting badly electrocuted despite Supes trying to take the hit for her.
Miraculously surviving, Livewire discovers she now has fantastical electricity-based powers and swears revenge on Superman, who she feels is responsible for her condition.
Causing general mayhem downtown, Superman confronts her but can’t do anything but look on as she drains all the power and throws the city into a blackout.
Superman has to work overtime to keep everybody safe, diverting two planes from a collision course as Livewire demands all utility bills be sent to her going forward as she will be providing power.
However when her power appears to dip, Supes smirks and follows his hunch to a hydroelectric plant where Livewire attempts to recharge.
Protecting himself with rubber gloves, Superman still struggles to take her down, forcing the battle outside the planet where she eventually ruptures the dam, weakening herself on contact with water.
Supes seals the dam and then takes her unconscious body to the authorities. Some time later citizens of Metropolis express that they miss her radio show, while she receives the finest care… funded by Lex Luthor…
Best Performance
OBVIOUSLY it’s Lori Petty. Like what are we even doing here? She appeared in one episode of BTAS in a much smaller role and it was probably one of the 10 best performances in the entire show. So giving her sole focus and some actual pathos to play with? Fughetabout it. I didn’t even know she was a former shock jock when I reviewed that episode, and Petty understands that assignment 1000%. She never shuts up at any point in the episode and it’s glorious. 10/10, absolutely zero notes.
Brad Garrett gets another stab at Bibbo, and it’s about the same as before, but he does sneak in a genuinely fun little talking head on the radio at the end.
Episode Ranking
Good shows make their setting feel alive. They depict a variety of random citizens going about their days and don’t cut corners on their designs. They have semi-recurring characters they can throw the ball to situationally. It grounds everything, and ups the stakes when people are in danger. That also works here with the montage of listeners to Livewire’s radio show, from a construction worker (who will soon be a victim), to Jimmy and the Daily Planet gang, to Bibbo the sailor.
They also get some cute mileage out of having Superman be publicly attacked, first by demonstrating Clark’s good natured ability to rise above hate, and also by providing the audience with fun rebuttals, such as Superman saving a construction worker while Livewire claims he’s never around when you need him. Said construction worker agreed with her anti-Supe sentiments moments earlier, which only enhances the previous point that Clark is fundamentally a nice man who saves people whether they like him or not. In this section Livewire almost becomes a surrogate to those people who think Superman is boring because he’s so powerful, as we see him struggle while she’s claiming everything comes easy, which is consistent with their take on the character that works so well in the show. Not only is it difficult to halt the rapidly falling crane, the part he’s holding it by snaps, so it falls even faster and he’s got less time to avert disaster. Obviously he still saves the day (he’s the main character in a television show) but there is legitimate tension and gradual escalation in what should be a generic action sequence. That’s why this is some of the best Superman media.
These are all relatively minor flourishes that bolster the central premise of another strong villain debuting and Superman having to get creative to stop them. I’ve enjoyed almost all the bad guys to date, but this is honestly a BTAS-level ‘Villain Spotlight’ episode, giving the foe a somewhat sympathetic backstory and challenging our hero physically and mentally, as she’s able to not only kick his ass repeatedly, but also turn a portion of the city against their sentinel, which gradually gets under his skin. They even have the Batman-style down ending as she’s locked up and made to look pathetic, but they tease she’ll be back.
On top of all that it’s another great looking episode, particularly all the white lightning crackles, Livewire floating through the air, the sprawling scale of Metropolis lit up at night and my absolutely favourite moment: Livewire beaming herself inside a giant neon ad board so that she appears to tower over the Man of Steel. And all of THAT is before we’re treated to a spectacular few minutes of animation with all the creative shadow work during the blackout. There are consistent light sources. You can tell who is who from their silhouettes due to their strong designs. You get changes of colouring depending on how dim it is.
Oh! And Harvey Cohen’s score fits like a glove, with plenty of grungy guitar to fit Livewire’s radio show and aesthetic. Truly, take a bow everybody involved.
By the time you get to cute little extra ideas that are well executed visually like Livewire sending dozens of faxes of herself pulling faces, or Lex paying for her treatment because they showed him enjoying her show for 10 seconds at the beginning, they’re really just taking a victory lap. Honestly I have more to say but this is already really long. Best episode in the show so far. As good as almost anything in BTAS.
- Livewire (NEW ENTRY)
- Fun and Games
- The Last Son of Krypton
- Stolen Memories
- The Prometheon
- Tools of the Trade
- The Main Man
- Blasts from the Past
- The Way of All Flesh
- My Girl
- A Little Piece of Home
- Feeding Time
- Speed Demons
- Two’s a Crowd
Rogues Roundup
Livewire (Lori Petty) (first appearance)
Obviously she’s obnoxious and as the audience we know her feelings about Superman are profoundly untrue, but there’s a kernel of sympathy to be felt in her comments about needing to get ahead and having to work twice as hard as men. Plus she’s anti-cops, so that’s cool.
Anyway, she’s got a really striking look with the spiked up blue hair, chalk white skin and lightning-bolt emblem cut out of her costume. Plus her powers are insanely cool, not just able to conjure lightning, but also turn herself into electricity and travel through the power grid. She even conjures her own costume from her powers, reaching true classic Magneto levels of all-situations sci-fi mumbo-jumbo. They’ve already established strong electrical currents can hurt Superman, so she’s yet another legitimately formidable foe for him. But like any good villain she’s got some firmly established weaknesses.
Honestly she has it all, including an outstanding guest voice actor, so she’s going straight to the top. Toyman also has an excellent gimmick, but Livewire offers more personality/depth as she feels like a real person (minus the superpowers).
- Livewire (NEW ENTRY)
- Toyman
- Lex Luthor
- Brainiac
- Metallo
- Lobo
- The Preserver
- Parasite
- Bruno Mannheim (and Intergang!)
- Kanto
- Mala & Jax-Ur
- The Prometheon
- Earl Garver
- Mercy Graves
- Darkseid
- Weather Wizard
The Matt Signal 
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