s7 could have been so much better! The Veritas retcon was weird, but the Davis one is still worse. I mean, the flashbacks gave me little Ollie who I remember thinking was adorable at the time, but Lex and Jason having known each other when I don't think they were all that familiar when they met in s4 was certainly a choice. The s7 finale at least had that nice Clois hug/comforting moment and I can be petty about the fact that Lois was the one who gave Clark the application but overall, it wasn't great. I almost quit the show after s7 but the promise of Clois and JH returning got me to stay.

I also still think Hero isn't bad if you ignore the fact that it's a OneRepublic/Stride commercial. Pete had some good character growth by the end!
LOL I remember making those jokes when it aired and I wasn't alone. I was just kind of over Pete. I was like "really, why is he still like this" in the beginning/middle of the episode and thought he should've had that growth already, but they obviously felt they needed to show it.

I'm sure she would have some very interesting perspective but as you said, she's very diplomatic and gracious so I don't think we'll get much shade. I am still very happy she pushed for that kiss not happening in "Infamous" though- it was very obvious she was invested in her character and her arc, even when the show didn't give her as much as she deserved.