Oddly, despite a few plot hiccups, this still manages to be one of my favorite episodes, due to having several rather unique and interesting aspects.
I always really love it when this show, or any Superman thing, really, has plot lines that focus heavily on Clark Kent's journalism. After all, the perpetual problem for Supes is that "everything is too easy for him" and thus it's not that impressive, but clearly superpowers doesn't give him a (big) advantage in reporting, so it enables me to respect the character a lot more and it helps illuminate the fact that there's much more to him than muscle. What makes things extra interesting, though, is that in this case, he's not just the "crime-busting" reporter we see in other episodes, as great as that is. He's doing something much more peaceful and "small" - selecting the Daily Planet "Citizen of the Year". It's always nice to see this side of the character illuminated. Obviously, most of the show is based around the character's crime- fighting, but it's always nice to see his more positive, gentle, "human" side. For me, this manifests that aspect of the character in a subtle way.
Along the same trail of thought, it's really nice to see Superman doing something as a part of his job that some might dub "insignificant", especially compared to the anti-crime stuff, but still seeming to put care into it. It makes him seem more human that he should have to do something that's not really that earth-shaking, and more endearing that he seems to put care and thought into doing his job - that he seems to think doing something like selecting the Citizen of the Year is important, even though he's also the person who puts countless criminals behind bars. It also emphasizes something compelling about this particular version of Superman: how he's so deeply involved in his community. In some versions of Superman, it feels like what Superman does isn't very connected to everyday people's lives. He's always just flying off and taking down some distant supervillain. In this show, though, it really feels as though he's in the midst of us, that he cares about the same things we care about. The truth about Superman is that Clark Kent is just another Metropolis citizen who cares and is concerned about his community. Superman is just one way he tries to help out, but really, his caring about the people around him is something that characterizes his entire life - whether he's writing an expose of a major criminal enterprise or something as simple as a Citizen of the Year column.
Clark Kent writing a Citizen of the Year column is nothing fascinating or unusual in and of itself. But what's interesting is that it's a major focal point of the episode, the springing-off point for the entire plot line. To me, it says a lot about the writers' priorities and how they saw Superman.
Aside from that, the major thing I really love about the episode is the fact that it actually has a message to send. Of course, this show as a whole can be seen as morally educational, giving kids a great role model in the form of Clark/Superman and obviously teaching that crime doesn't pay. But here, it's something more than a generic "moral of story", and it doesn't even seem to be primarily aimed for children. It's a very specific message that ex-convicts should be given a second chance. It can be seen as a simple moral message, "people can change", but it can also be seen as something mildly political. But it's not presented in a remotely polarizing way; the way it's framed makes it seem more like something that anyone who believes in basic moral truths like justice, mercy and forgiveness would listen to. In short, not only is this episode trying to send a message that's not just a simple moral message, which is very unusual for this show, it's doing so in a really effective way. It conveys its message with the utmost clarity, but without insulting anyone or the viewers' intelligence at all. I really, REALLY wish more shows and movies could manage to do this. Even if you don't actually agree with the message and think that ex- cons should be treated with caution or whatever, it's hard to deny that the way they present it is awesome, and it's hard not to admire that the writers actually tried to create a positive change through this show.
One final aspect that I find pretty interesting: at one point, Clark actually tries to cover up the fact that Dan Grayson is an ex-con. What I find so fascinating about this is that it takes something that'd typically be seen as completely negative – a reporter covering up negative information about someone he likes – and puts a different spin on it, enables us to see it from a different perspective. I kind of wish Superman media would do stuff like this with Supes' civilian job more often. I mean, reporters are not seen solely in a positive light; how about highlighting some of the more negative aspects of Clark's profession, but from his perspective? There are also other things you can do with the more negative aspects of reporting, like having Clark object to some other reporter's bad tactics, or having bad reporting by Clark or some other DP reporter damage Superman.
Anyway, aside from those specific admirable aspects that really stand out, this episode is a pretty fine, solid plot line, though it's not exceptionally clever in its "plotting" or anything. It's fairly average, to be honest. But the things just mentioned really make the episode for me. Definitely worth watching, maybe even more than once.
I always really love it when this show, or any Superman thing, really, has plot lines that focus heavily on Clark Kent's journalism. After all, the perpetual problem for Supes is that "everything is too easy for him" and thus it's not that impressive, but clearly superpowers doesn't give him a (big) advantage in reporting, so it enables me to respect the character a lot more and it helps illuminate the fact that there's much more to him than muscle. What makes things extra interesting, though, is that in this case, he's not just the "crime-busting" reporter we see in other episodes, as great as that is. He's doing something much more peaceful and "small" - selecting the Daily Planet "Citizen of the Year". It's always nice to see this side of the character illuminated. Obviously, most of the show is based around the character's crime- fighting, but it's always nice to see his more positive, gentle, "human" side. For me, this manifests that aspect of the character in a subtle way.
Along the same trail of thought, it's really nice to see Superman doing something as a part of his job that some might dub "insignificant", especially compared to the anti-crime stuff, but still seeming to put care into it. It makes him seem more human that he should have to do something that's not really that earth-shaking, and more endearing that he seems to put care and thought into doing his job - that he seems to think doing something like selecting the Citizen of the Year is important, even though he's also the person who puts countless criminals behind bars. It also emphasizes something compelling about this particular version of Superman: how he's so deeply involved in his community. In some versions of Superman, it feels like what Superman does isn't very connected to everyday people's lives. He's always just flying off and taking down some distant supervillain. In this show, though, it really feels as though he's in the midst of us, that he cares about the same things we care about. The truth about Superman is that Clark Kent is just another Metropolis citizen who cares and is concerned about his community. Superman is just one way he tries to help out, but really, his caring about the people around him is something that characterizes his entire life - whether he's writing an expose of a major criminal enterprise or something as simple as a Citizen of the Year column.
Clark Kent writing a Citizen of the Year column is nothing fascinating or unusual in and of itself. But what's interesting is that it's a major focal point of the episode, the springing-off point for the entire plot line. To me, it says a lot about the writers' priorities and how they saw Superman.
Aside from that, the major thing I really love about the episode is the fact that it actually has a message to send. Of course, this show as a whole can be seen as morally educational, giving kids a great role model in the form of Clark/Superman and obviously teaching that crime doesn't pay. But here, it's something more than a generic "moral of story", and it doesn't even seem to be primarily aimed for children. It's a very specific message that ex-convicts should be given a second chance. It can be seen as a simple moral message, "people can change", but it can also be seen as something mildly political. But it's not presented in a remotely polarizing way; the way it's framed makes it seem more like something that anyone who believes in basic moral truths like justice, mercy and forgiveness would listen to. In short, not only is this episode trying to send a message that's not just a simple moral message, which is very unusual for this show, it's doing so in a really effective way. It conveys its message with the utmost clarity, but without insulting anyone or the viewers' intelligence at all. I really, REALLY wish more shows and movies could manage to do this. Even if you don't actually agree with the message and think that ex- cons should be treated with caution or whatever, it's hard to deny that the way they present it is awesome, and it's hard not to admire that the writers actually tried to create a positive change through this show.
One final aspect that I find pretty interesting: at one point, Clark actually tries to cover up the fact that Dan Grayson is an ex-con. What I find so fascinating about this is that it takes something that'd typically be seen as completely negative – a reporter covering up negative information about someone he likes – and puts a different spin on it, enables us to see it from a different perspective. I kind of wish Superman media would do stuff like this with Supes' civilian job more often. I mean, reporters are not seen solely in a positive light; how about highlighting some of the more negative aspects of Clark's profession, but from his perspective? There are also other things you can do with the more negative aspects of reporting, like having Clark object to some other reporter's bad tactics, or having bad reporting by Clark or some other DP reporter damage Superman.
Anyway, aside from those specific admirable aspects that really stand out, this episode is a pretty fine, solid plot line, though it's not exceptionally clever in its "plotting" or anything. It's fairly average, to be honest. But the things just mentioned really make the episode for me. Definitely worth watching, maybe even more than once.