Let me try and sum up my criticisms clearly and concisely, just so I'm not misunderstood.
1) My biggest problem is the one I've touched on the least, actually, which is simply that the writing of nearly every episode feels like a first draft. Episodes follow an "and then and then and then" story structure instead of a "therefore/but" story structure (
example of what I mean in the link). There are regular plot holes and leaps in logic that could be cleared up on a second draft (like the portal-proof room suddenly not being portal-proof anymore as soon as Mxyzptlk wants to leave, or the League of Loises opening fire on Superman simply because he was helping a con artist who is known for manipulating people into trusting him). The plot contrivances, like the LoL bringing Lois and Jimmy along for not particular reason, are also an issue. The Mxyzptlk episode is one of the most recent ones I watched, so that's where my memories for examples are freshest. On a related note, the dialogue is also, in my opinion, kind of bad. A lot of cliche lines like Deathstroke's sinister "we're the good guys," or the punk cyborg Lois' unhelpfully cryptic comments about Superman.
2) I'm not sure the writers actually do have the best grasp of the characters they're writing. Lois comes off as very controlling and entitled towards Clark, a co-worker she's only known for a few weeks, and extremely hypocritical about her "secrets are bad" philosophy, and I'm not sure the writers see that. Clark's romantic gestures toward Lois are VERY extreme and over the top for someone who he's only just started dating, and I'm not sure the writers realize that. Jimmy just feels like a watered down version of Sokka from ATLA, but without the arc or the insecurities. And of course, there's the fact that the journalistic ethics of characters like Vicky Vale should and would get them fired in the real world, not promoted to editor.
3) As I said before, I really don't like most of the villains. Deathstroke and the government guys are okay, but that's about it for me. None of the changes made are better, or even all that interesting. Intergang was a massive criminal conspiracy that required the skills of Clark Kent to defeat just as much as Superman. Now they're team rocket. Ivo/Parasite is written like an SNL parody of Elon Musk, he doesn't feel like a character in his own right. He feels extremely flat and one dimensional, like a character from a satire and not like a villain who is a credible threat. He's too goofy, and he lacks the intensity or menace of EITHER of the DC villains he's based on. I've got no problem with changes, but these changes all feel unmotivated. They all feel, to me, like the writers thought "okay, HOW do we make these characters different" instead of starting from a place of having a really good new idea. The changes they made, to me, bring no improvements, and strip away the characters' personality. Silver Banshee was a scorned and cursed woman looking for revenge. Now she's just a thief. The Mist was an assassin from a family of assassins. Now he's just a thief. Livewire was a shock rock radio DJ drunk on power. Now she's just a thief. Parasite is the only one who actually has some kind of personality and vibe, and that vibe is just a watered down MCU Justin Hammer. The villains are all a miss for me. Except Mxyzptlk. He was fun. And "Alex"... that whole thing with "Alex" is just a miss for me.
4) The anime references all feel pretty shallow to me. That's all I have to say about that.
5) While yes, I agree the show has themes it is going for, I don't think it dramatizes those themes effectively, or treats them as a narrative priority. Way more attention is put on making Clark and Lois hot and living them "kawaii" moments where they blush, than on actually exploring themes of identity and friendship. It seems like this show is working on the J.J. Abrams "Mystery Box" school of storytelling, and the themes only ever come up when we peak into the mystery box. In the scenes where they don't, it's just cute anime antics peppered with lip service payed to "a normal life" every now and then. That's my problem with the show's themes, not that they aren't clear, but that the writing doesn't live up to them.
These are my problems with the show in detail. I just wanted to make sure I was clear.
