Ann, Olympe, Arawn - so many interesting thoughts.
I would go so far as to say that the original Superman mythos is at least in parts a depressing story about revenge: it is about the geeky loser in love who becomes the mighty Atlas just so that he can get back at the girl and turn her down himself. There is something sad, selfish and depressing about this.
As you went on to say, Ann, there's more to it than that, but that was originally part of the huge appeal, I guess, to many teenage boys at the time.
But hey, what's this? Lois still rejects Clark, even though he is now smart, sexy and personable, and she rejects him in a really cruel, mean way. This is something I don't recognize and don't understand. In fact, her behaviour is so hard to understand for me that I don't take it too seriously.
I do, though, because I think it shows the complexity of S1 Lois.
If you look at the whole season, you see lots of signs that Lois is attracted to Clark. In fact, classic approach-avoidance behaviour on her part. She's always touching him, something she doesn't do with others. When she senses she's about to take a step closer to him, she pushes him back. "Don't fall for me, farmboy" .
In S1 we see a woman who's been burned in her emotional relationships with men. (no need to go over these<g>). So what does she do? She throws herself into her work and it defines her - besides she's good at it. That's her pride, her satisfaction.
So what to make of the new co-worker, Clark Kent? I think Arawn may have a point when he suggested that Lois was a big city girl and the ways of the small town farmer's son were alien to her - there's a bit of a cultural gap there.
But more importantly, Is he a threat to her job? Why has her boss decided she needs a partner? What's Kent up to? (it's a cut-throat workplace on big city newspapers) What's with these moves he's putting on her? No guy before has ever done that without being after something. So what does Kent want?
And yet, she meets his eyes, they laugh together, she touches his arm. And in PML, we know who she wants. <g>
And then, Superman! A hero - remote and so he's safe. It's okay to have a crush on him, to admire what he does. And amazingly he seems to like her. He holds her in his arms, touches her hair, tells her she's "special to him".
Now here comes the complication. In ASU, it's clear Lois has more than fully accepted Clark. She's got feelings for him. So what does Clark do? Absolutely nothing - no dates, nothing to move his relationship with her ahead. What is Lois to make of that? As well, we see none of the intimate Superman-Lois scenes either.
So here's Luthor, a man she's know about but met for the first time the day (a day later?) than she met Clark. In his own way, he's a Superman - think Bill Gates maybe - corporate giant, philanthropist. Plus he's attractive, sophisticated, and he's clearly interested in her. He's a lot older than her - is there a bit of the father substitute thing going on? She's always been rejected by men she cared for in her past, but Luthor isn't rejecting her - that's got to be appealing to her.
Now for That Scene in the Park - you know the one I mean - the one over which even Ann, Major Defender of Lois Lane, gags.
Me too.
But....
Watch the scene, and look at Lois's face and her posture. She's genuinely distressed by Clark's confession to her. And she does love him - she tells him that and I don't think we doubt it, especially given how she pursues him in HoL. She thinks, now that she loves him like a brother, but in HoL she understands the truth about her feeling for Clark. Again the conflict within.
And what is Clark Kent doing proposing to a woman he hasn't even dated?
And now for the Truly Insensitive, She Should be Burned at the Stake request to Clark - could he bring Superman to her?
But Lois needed to talk to Superman at that point. She thinks she loves the guy. He's given her some reason to think he cares - and just as Clark had burnt his bridges with her that morning, she's now about to do the same thing with Superman. So stupid.
Okay, I'm assuming that Lois's need to talk to Superman at that point was as reasonable as Clark's need to talk to her that morning in the park. But... how was Lois to contact Superman? She had no way, other than to yell "help Superman" , a hugely unethical action if her life was not in peril. It didn't even cross her mind. But she'd long suspected that Clark was able to get in touch with Superman. And she had no way of contacting him. What was she to do?
So she asks him the Evil Question. And she knows it's not quite right - watch the scene and look at her face.
So why Lex? Rebound - her emotions were not totally engaged. As well, she's 27 - not unusual for a woman to be thinking about marriage at that age. A tougher woman would have shrugged and said if I can't have the man I love, that's life. I have my Work. But a lot of woman settle.
Why not Clark? How could she go back to Clark and say, Okay, Supes dumped me so I'm available?
Now the big question - why didn't she know Luthor was Evil? Well, she had no proof - nothing to even hint in that direction. Plus lots to hint that he was okay - all that philanthropy. She didn't have the "inside" information that Clark Kent had about Luthor.
But yeah, her instincts should have warned her, and they didn't. And that makes her story interesting.
anyway, my take on it.
c.
