408a: L&C and B&C and Kids
I had an idea once, that what would happen if the 3rd and 4th seasons were rewritten, everything in the plots kept the same, except they were set 10 years in the future… L&C had been married for 10yrs, and have 2 and 1/2 children
I took all of the plots, and scenes from the L&C message boards
(
www.lncmbs.com/scripts,
JuST ONE FAVOUR TO ASK...
THE EPISODE ADAPTATIONS WITH KIDS as far as I know, is my idea... I would love to be able to do as many as possible.... so if you could leave it to me, that would be great
most of the dialogue comes from these scripts
I have just twigged them a little in order to fit in some changes with the fact we now have three children on our hands…
The usual disclaimers apply, I’m not getting any benefit out of these stories except for my own enjoyment and literary development… so hear they come
You get the idea, if you want anything else… ill tell u later
Any comments are welcome…. Sendit2helena@hotmail.com
My new stories are going to be titled similarly, but with new episode guides…
3xxA, and 4xxA
this one is:
408a-L&C and B&C and kids
I HOPE TO COMPLETE SOME MORE IN THE NEAR FUTURE
"Bob and Carol and Lois and Clark AND KIDS"
EPISODE EIGHT
Written by
Brian Nelson
AND Helena CANARIS
"_Bob and Carol and Lois and Clark_"
1 EXT. STREET - NIGHT #1 1
LOIS and CLARK walking. Lois fiddles with her cell phone.
LOIS
I just don't know why we're bothering.
CLARK
I met him playin' basketball. Our boys play little league with theirs. He said he had a nice wife. I said, 'I have a nice wife.'
LOIS
You also have a wife who thinks it's just maybe impossible to find a couple where you like him and I like her and they like us and we like them. Plus don’t forget the kids getting along is also a plus.
(re: cell phone)
Is this working?
CLARK
Yes.
LOIS
I don't know why we're even
bothering, Clark. This kind of
thing's been one disaster after
another for us, I just know we're gonna hate them and --
CLARK
(suddenly beaming)
Hi!!!
They are just outside the restaurant and another attractive,
early thirties COUPLE is approaching. Meet BOB AND CAROL
STANFORD. Bob wears glasses. (X)
CLARK (CONT'D)
(shaking hands)
Bob.
BOB
Clark.
CLARK AND BOB
This is my wife Lois/Carol --
They all laugh.
2 EXT. RESTAURANT PATIO - NIGHT 2
Bob and Carol and Lois and Clark having a great time.
CLARK
I mean, it's the weirdest song.
BOB
I know, I know... We like it, but... (X)
CAROL
But, I'm sorry -- a fly in your chardonnay is not ironic.
LOIS
Making thirty million dollars on a song called 'Ironic' that isn't even about irony --
EVERYONE
-- _that's_ ironic.
Everyone laughs. Lois checks the cell phone on the table in
front of her. Clark smiles.
CLARK
Lois...
LOIS
I... don't usually keep one of
these in sight at all times...
CAROL
Expecting an important call?
LOIS
I'm trying to land an interview
with Grant Gendell. I'm waiting to
hear. Sorry.
CAROL
Are you kidding? If the richest
man on the Eastern Seaboard were
calling me, I'd be checking my
phone, too.
(CONTINUED)
LOIS
Well, it's just his lawyer...
BOB
How'd you ever score an interview
with Grant Gendell? No one's even
seen the guy in what, twenty --
LOIS
-- twenty-three years. But I don't
have the interview yet, just a shot
at it.
CLARK
Lois wrote an article defending
Gendell when he got hit with his,
what was it? His two thousandth
lawsuit a couple years ago?
CAROL
A rich guy like that'd be a target
for every wacko with a lawyer.
LOIS
I think that's what drove him into
hiding in the first place. But now
he wants to come out. Be
reintroduced to the world. Anyway,
blah, blah, blah, let's talk dessert.
CAROL
Let's talk chocolate.
LOIS
My thought exactly.
3 EXT. STREET - NIGHT 3
Lois and Clark stroll home afterward --
CLARK
So? How do you think it went?
LOIS
They seemed nice.
CLARK
But...
LOIS
But.... everything in stages.
Right now we're in Possible
Friendship, Stage One; next
comes –
4 EXT. ANOTHER STREET - NIGHT 4(X)
Bob and Carol. (X)
CAROL
-- Stage Two. In one minute.
BOB
But you think tonight went all
right?
CAROL
It went fine.
BOB
As usual, your sources were right
on the money. Gendel did pick
Lois Lane to spill his guts to.
CAROL
(smiles)
When have I ever let you down? Now
let's go... (X)
5 EXT. FIRST STREET - NIGHT 5(X)
Clark stops, listening.
LOIS
What?
CLARK
Fire over on East Third.
They step into --
6 EXT. A SECOND ALLEY - NIGHT 6
Clark loosens his tie. Lois reaches up and takes his
glasses.
LOIS
No such thing as a Sunday for you.
7 EXT. FIRST ALLEY - NIGHT 7
Bob and Carol enter the alley, he is loosening his tie. (X)
Carol takes off Bob's glasses.
CAROL
Amazing.
BOB
What?
CAROL
The whole take off your glasses and
nobody recognizes you thing...
BOB
Well, there's the glasses and then
there's --
He pulls open his shirt to reveal a shiny, skin tight suit. (X)
8 EXT. SECOND ALLEY - NIGHT 8
Clark opens his shirt, exposing the S --
LOIS
I _love_ watching you do that...
CLARK
Meet you back home?
LOIS
Be careful. I’ll tell the sitter you went for drinks with Bob, and that Carol and I both went home to the kids.
She kisses him, Clark hurries off.
9 EXT. FIRST ALLEY - NIGHT 9
BOB
(smiles at Carol)
I'm always careful!
CAROL
(kisses him)
Meet you back home.
BOB
You know... It's too bad.
CAROL
What?
BOB
That we're eventually going to have
to kill Lois.
CAROL
Well, nobody said being friends
with us is easy.
And Bob hurries off as we
FADE OUT.
_END OF TEASE_
ACT1:
FADE IN:
_ACT ONE_
FADE IN:
10 EXT. FIRST ALLEY - NIGHT 10
DR. JAY KOBIYASHI comes out the side door of his brownstone.
Closes and locks a door, which reads: 'DELIVERIES HERE FOR
DR. KOBIYASHI, DDS. Dr. Kobiyashi hears something, looks
up and sees --
Bob, in head to toe shiny neoprene, no glasses, looking very
Super-Villian. Kobiyashi knows this can't be a good thing
and shrinks back. Bob -- who we shall here forth know as
DEATHSTROKE when he's out of glasses and in the tights -- (X)
holds out his open palms close to Kobiyashi.
As if drawn by an incredibly powerful magnetic force,
Kobiyashi slides into Deathstroke's hands, which instantly clamp down on his shoulders. Immediately the air around the
two men PULSES and SHIMMERS. Kobiyashi is in pain. He
clutches his heart, tearing at his, shirt. Then goes limp.
The SHIMMERING dies down. All this happens very quickly,
without much struggle.
Deathstroke releases the dead Kobiyashi and slumps against
a wall. Carol comes out of the shadows.
CAROL
You all right?
DEATHSTROKE Yeah. Just takes more out of me as
I get older.
CAROL
Well, not much longer, honey.
(down at the dead DDS)
Stage Two complete.
(whips out medical
records from her valise)
Onto Stage Three.
She fishes the keys out of Kobiyashi's pocket and opens his
door. She and Deathstroke slip in. As they do, WE GO
TIGHT ON the file in Carol's hand. It says: 'GRANT
GENDELL.'
11 INT. DAILY PLANET NEWSROOM - DAY #2 11
PERRY is talking to Clark.
(CONTINUED)
--page break--
"BOB AND CAROL AND LOIS AND CLARK" (#8) Blue R. 10/8/96 6A.
11 CONTINUED: 11
PERRY
I tell you, I'd forgotten how much
fun it is goin' out with another
couple 'til you and Lois hit the town with us the other night.
CLARK
Yeah, it sure was... something.
PERRY
I mean, I'm one lucky fella to've
found Candy. Most old fools my age
fall for some brainless knockout
with all the substance of a whipped
dairy product.
CLARK
And Candy's...
PERRY
... the exact opposite.
CLARK
That's... what I was trying to...
yeah.
PERRY
I mean, for a professional bowler
who was once Miss Farm Belt USA,
this girl's got a lot goin' on. I
could see she and Lois clicked like
sisters.
CLARK
You saw that... did you?
PERRY
Can't wait to do it again with you
two. How's your weekend look?
CLARK
You know what? I've got to check
with, uhhh...
He gestures to:
12 LOIS 12
She leans against her desk, listening to JIMMY talk about
his babe du jour, AURORA, 18, a Gothic poster child for
urban angst.
JIMMY
So then Aurora pulls me into this
maintenance duct for the subway,
and we walk past all these rats and
broken glass, and just when you
think you're about to meet the Mole
People, there's a Rave…
A real party going on right there
in the subway tunnels!
AURORA
(throaty whisper)
The children of the night, what
beautiful music they make, y'know?
(then; to Lois) (PAUSE)
By the way, love your haircut.
LOIS
Oh? Thanks. After seeing myself
all over town on 'Wanted' posters,
I figured it was time for a new
look.
AURORA
Makes me wanna get My hair cut.
LOIS
Like this?
AURORA
No. Bald.
Lois stares then exchanges a "save me" looks with Clark, who
comes over, as:
JIMMY
You guys wanna come with us
tonight? We're doin' a sewer.
LOIS
(diplomatically)
Oh. Gee. Sounds great.
(PHONE RINGS; too eagerly
dives on phone)
Whoops -- gotta get that.
JIMMY
Whaddaya say, C.K.?
CLARK
Can I get back to youI've got to check with uhhh....
He gestures toward Lois, on phone, and we PUSH IN on her.
LOIS
Hello?
INTERCUT WITH:
13 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S TOWNHOUSE - DAY 13
Carol on the phone with Lois, in a home that we will
gradually discover is decorated with features and fixtures
remarkably similar to those in Lois and Clark's place --
CAROL
Lois? I hope you don't mind my
calling you at work --
Lois covers her relief as Jimmy and Aurora linger in the
b.g.
LOIS
Hi, Carol, no, not at all...
CLARK
Hey do you guys want any coffee?
CK USHERS Jimmy and Aurora off screen
CAROL
I hope this isn't too much of an imposition, but we're going through swatches from that drapery place you recommended and I'm not having much luck narrowing the field...
Carol reviews a note pad that lists "Foods Lois Likes".
CAROL (CONT'D)
... could I trade you a second
opinion for a homemade chocolate
éclair?
LOIS
Are you serious? I
_love_ chocolate éclairs? (X)
CAROL
(a cool smile)
Well, isn't that amazing. Five
okay?
LOIS
Sure. I think the guys are playing
Basketball while the boys play little league, at 5.
CAROL
Great.
CAROL OUT. Clark joins Lois.
CLARK
Perry and Candy invited us to a
monster truck rally; Jimmy and
Aurora want us to go tunnel
hopping...
LOIS
(unenthused)
Oh. Uh-huh. Well, I don't wanna
hurt anyone's feelings....
CLARK
Well, me either....
LOIS
So say we unfortunately already
have plans. With Bob and Carol.
CLARK
We do?
LOIS
(grabbing her phone book)
Soon as I make 'em.
CLARK
I thought we were in cautious Stage
One...
LOIS
We are, but if it means a real,
adult, normal night out, I say we
move into a Stage Two fast.
She picks up phone as Perry moves over to them.
PERRY
Clark, that series of deaths you've
been following... the weird patches
on the bodies?
CLARK
Yeah?
PERRY
Just got a report of another one
over on Kelton Drive. Might want
to hustle.
CLARK
Right, Chief.
14 EXT. FIRST ALLEY - DAY 14
The body of Dr. Kobiyashi is sheeted and being wheeled off.
There's an O.S. WOOSH, a kick of wind and Clark comes around
the corner, straightening his tie and flashing his press
credentials.
(CONTINUED)
CLARK
I'd like to see the body, please.
TWO COPS stand in his path. A man in a grey suit and rep tie comes between them. This is AGENT RAWLINS.
AGENT RAWLINS
Let him through, guys. Hey, Kent.
CLARK
Pete. What's the NIA doing here?
AGENT RAWLINS
Mysterious deaths --
He pulls the sheet back on Kobiyashi. He tore his shirt
open as he died and the exposed chest is blotted with red.
AGENT RAWLINS (CONT'D)
-- in healthy individuals, leaving
these marks around the heart.
CLARK
Have I stumbled onto something big, here?
AGENT RAWLINS
Maybe.
He throws the sheet back over the body and signals for it to
be taken off.
AGENT RAWLINS
What I'm about to tell you is off
the record, for now.
CLARK
Okay.
AGENT RAWLINS
Normally, we could handle this
ourselves but... you see anybody
standing next to me?
CLARK
No.
AGENT RAWLINS
That's because there isn't anybody.
They fired my partner.
The fired everybody's partner.
Took away my car with all the cool
stuff in it. Had an ejection seat,
you know. A real one.
CLARK
I'm sorry about that, Pete.
AGENT RAWLINS
Budget cuts. Anyway, there's been
a series of deaths in town, all
with striking similarities. We
think they're the work of an
assassin. Code named 'Deathstroke'. He always leaves
these marks...
(the marks on the chest)
... and signs of an apparent heart
attack.
(as Clark jots)
He's said to be a male, possibly
wears some sort of jumpsuit,
possibly works with a female
accomplice, settles down in a big
city and makes a home before the
kill. Word is, his next mission's,
not for money. It's for revenge.
CLARK
So if he's known to settle and make
a base, you should --
AGENT RAWLINS
I already made a list of all new
residents --
(bitterly)
-- but with no partner, my staff
laid off and my cool car --
(stops himself)
Anyway, if you dig up anything let
me know. I'll do the same and --
CLARK
-- I'll tell Superman to keep an
eye out.
AGENT RAWLINS
Thanks, Kent..
15 INT. DAILY PLANET - NEWSROOM - DAY 15
The phone RINGS. Lois picks up.
LOIS
Lois Lane.
VOICE (O.S.)
Miss Lane. I'm afraid you won't be
hearing from Grant Gendell's lawyer
today --
(Lois' face drops)
-- because this is Grant Gendell.
Lois' eyes widen.
LOIS
Mr. Gendell. Hello. Thank you for
calling.
16 INTERCUT: GENDELL - TIGHT ANGLE 16
GRANT GENDELL. In his 60's, crafty, nervous, but back-lit
in a high-back chair so we can't fully see him or his
surroundings.
GRANT
So. What do you think of trying to
write something that makes me look
halfway human to the world?
LOIS
I guess that all depends. Are you?
GRANT
That's what I like about you, Miss
Lane. All grit and no bull.
People trust you. You write
something good about me, people'll
buy.
LOIS
I don't write puff pieces. I'm
going to ask a lot of questions you
might not like.
GRANT
It's not the questions I'm afraid
of, Ms. Lane. It's whether or not
I can trust the person asking them.
You'll be checked out thoroughly...
and if I smell something I don't
like, you'll never see me.
Before she can respond, he hangs up. GENDELL OUT.
17 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S TOWNHOUSE - DAY
Lois sits on the sofa, sipping coffee as she examines fabric swatches attached to cards with paint samples. Lois is rocking B & C’s baby boy (6months?) in a baby rocker/bouncy thingy… next to the baby, 2yr old Elizabeth Kent pours out some pretend tea for a group of teddies and dolls around a child-sized table. Carol returns a coffee decanter to a table behind Lois, during:
CAROL
You actually talked to him? Grant
Gendell?!
LOIS
Yep.
During the following, Carol will ease Lois' cell phone out
of her purse and replace it with one hidden in a potted plant.
CAROL
Think he really wears Kleenex boxes
for shoes and eats cold soup from can?
Lois opens another swatch book, compares with first one.
LOIS
I don't know, I've heard all the same stories you have. Something
kind of charming about him, though. And I get the sense he wants
to come out of hiding for a specific reason.
(re: swatch)
This is the exact colour we almost
went with
(at another swatch)
-- and this is what we actually chose.
She turns to show it to Carol, who, mission accomplished, spins swiftly away from the purse.
CAROL
You're kidding.
LOIS
I don't know what you were so
worried about, Carol. This place looks great.
ELizabeth tugs on Lois' skirt
ELIzabeth
Mummy, mummy! Ere is your Tea
She gives Lois the empty pink cup, and climbs onto her lap... clinging to a 2nd cup, she then "drinks" her own drink. Lois reaches down and pours some real milk into the pink plastic cup.
CAROL
I just think you have to feel at
home when you're, well, at home.
Especially when you have a husband
who's always rushing out to save the world.
LOIS
You too?
(catching herself)
Not that Clark literally saves the
world. But --
CAROL
(coming over)
I mean, I'm a chemist, I have a
professional life, too... But (X)
Bob's work is so... (X)
LOIS
All consuming, I know all about it.
CAROL
He'll give me a hug and say,
'You're important, too, honey, but
this is an emergency'--
LOIS
A job for...
CAROL
Superdoctor.
18 EXT. BASKETBALL COURT - DAY 18
Clark scores a basket off Bob, trying not to make it look
too easy.
BOB
Where'd you learn those moves?
CLARK
Trying to keep up with Lois.
Bob has the ball, starts to move.
BOB
Aggressive on the court?
CLARK
Let's just say ambitious.
BOB
Carol's the same.
CLARK
Keeps you on your toes, huh?
BOB
I wouldn't have it any other way.
CLARK
Me either. Listen, you're a doctor. Remember that guy I was
telling you about? The one with the weird marks around his heart.
No one in the coroner's office knows what those are.
BOB
Huh.
CLARK
You're a doctor. Any theories?
BOB
Sounds like some kind of clotting.
BOB
Sounds like some kind of clotting.
CLARK
But what if this were murder? (X)
Hypothetically, that is. (X)
As Clark tosses him the ball and Bob considers this --
BOB
Murder?
CLARK
The death fits a pattern of a
number of other mysterious deaths.
BOB
You got any idea why somebody'd be
killing all these people?
CLARK
Not a clue.
Bob shoots. The ball hits the rim, isn't going to go in.
Clark sends a little SUPER-BREATH at it and it drops (X)
through. Bob is amazed. (X)
CLARK
Nice shot. (X)
19 INT. LOIS AND CLARK'S PLACE - NIGHT #2 19
Lois pours wine glasses as Clark hangs up fresh capes in his
secret compartment.
LOIS
How was your game with Bob?
CLARK
Great. You and Carol have a good time?
LOIS
I have to admit, we could be
Super-speeding through all the
cautious Friendship Stages here.
She's really nice... funny, down to
Earth...
20 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S TOWNHOUSE - NIGHT
Bob inspects his own selection of black supersuits.
CAROL
She's finally starting to melt.
The research on them really paid
off. How'd it go with Clark?
BOB
I haven't made moves like that on (X)
a court in... ever. It's like (X)
someone was helping me. How 'bout (X)
you? Did you slip her the phone (X)
with the bug in it?
CAROL
(nods)
I thought it was going to be harder
to distract her but when Lois opens up, she's quite a talker. In --
21 INT. LOIS AND CLARK'S PLACE - NIGHT 21
LOIS
-- fact, something Carol said was
really interesting...
CLARK
Yeah?
LOIS
About how hard it is: everything
she and I are trying to do in our
careers, the way you and Bob are so
driven; the juggling of work and family, especially with kids so young. It sometimes feels like it never lets up. So I said, 'How does a desert
island and a few million dollars sound?'
As Clark closes his secret compartment --
22 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S TOWNHOUSE - RESUME 22
-- Bob closes his own secret closet.
BOB
You're kidding. Lois said that?
CAROL
For a second, I thought, oh, my
God, they know... they know our
whole plan...
Y'know, Clark kept talking about
the murders...
CAROL
But we knew he was writing about
that before we targeted them. No,
the panic passed and I realized:
this is normal, Lois and I just
think --
23 INT. LOIS AND CLARK'S - NIGHT 23
LOIS
-- the same way, like good friends should.
CLARK
See? I told you this was gonna work out.
They kiss.
24 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S - NIGHT 24
They kiss.
BOB
It's all going to happen, isn't it?
We're finally going to stop
running, finally going to settle
down and have a normal life. And
we're finally, _finally_ going to
kill Grant Gendell...
CAROL
... but more to the point, hon,
we're going to get all his money.
Revenge is nice. But a desert
island is better.
FADE OUT:
_END OF ACT ONE_
_ACT TWO_
FADE IN:
25 INT. DAILY PLANET CITY ROOM - MORNING - DAY #3
CLARK
A doctor, a contractor, a retired
cop who became a.bodyguard. Now a
dentist. What do they all have in
common... why would Deathstroke
want them dead?
JIMMY
Okay. I've seen how you and Lois
do this; let's step back and look
at the pattern. They're all men.
Over thirty-five. Lived in
Metropolis...
(stares blankly)
Aaaand I really suck at this.
CLARK
We need to deep background these
guys, see where their paths cross.
Your Dad's still NIA?
(he nods; Clark hands
over his notes)
Get online with him, see what' he
can tell us about Deathstroke.
JIMMY
Hunting Deathstroke. Now you're
talking.
He heads off. Clark gets up. Lois' phone RINGS. She
snatches it up.
LOIS
Lois Lane.... Yes, Mr. Denzler.
(to Clark)
Gendell's lawyer.
25A INTERCUT LIMO - TIGHT ON DENZLER - ROLLING - DAY 25A(X)
He's in the front seat, on car phone. Behind him, the (X)
privacy panel is up. (X)
DENZLER
Well, Ms. Lane, completely against (X)
my better judgment, I am on my way (X)
to meet with you. Are you ready? (X)
LOIS
(into phone)
Yes, I am... (X)
DENZLER
You understand the ground rules. (X)
You will come alone. You will ask (X)
no questions. You will not be (X)
concerned with where you're (X)
going. You will bring no cameras (X)
or recording devices. And until (X)
Mr. Gendell has agreed to the (X)
interview you will print nothing (X)
about him or this meeting. Do you (X)
agree to all this? (X)
LOIS
Yes, I do... (X)
DENZLER
(sighs)
I was afraid of that. (X)
PAN DOWN to Lois' cell phone in her purse: the one Carol switched.
DENZLER (V.O.)
How soon can you be downstairs? (X)
LOIS
-- any time you want to --
DENZLER
Now. (X)
26 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S TOWNHOUSE - DAY 26
Bob and Carol listen in on their bugging device.
DENZLER (V.O.)
The car will pull up. Open the (X)
rear door yourself and get inside (X)
immediately. (X)
26A DENZLER 26A
DENZLER
If there's any hint you've been (X)
accompanied, the car will leave (X)
without you. (X)
27 BACK TO LOIS 27
as she frowns and looks at her watch.
LOIS
I'll be there.
She hangs up, as Clark looks over to her curiously.
LOIS (CONT'D)
In a limo, downstairs, now.
CLARK
Now?
LOIS
These guys bring new meaning to the
word 'paranoid.' Wish me luck.
As Clark gives her a kiss, she grabs her bag and whirls off --
28 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S PLACE - DAY 28
Carol slaps the cell phone shut as they dash for the door.
CAROL
Hurry! She's meeting the lawyer any second --
29 EXT. DOWN THE STREET - CONTINUOUS 29
Agent Rawlins watches from an unmarked car, talking on his
cell phone.
AGENT RAWLINS
Yes, Sandy, I'm now onto Couple
Number Nine...
CAMERA ADJUSTS to see Bob and Carol rushing to their parked
car, jumping in.
AGENT RAWLINS (CONT'D)
They're just leaving now...
Bob and Carol pull away, Rawlins sighs and puts his car in
gear.
30 EXT. EMBASSY STREET - LIMOUSINE - DAY 30
The limousine pulls to a stop and parks outside the
building.
31 INSIDE THE LIMO 31
Lois finds herself alone, except for a video screen and the
chauffeur.
LOIS
Why're we stopping? Are we meeting Mr.
Denzler here?
The chauffeur (DENZLER) speaks through a glass panel.
DENZLER
I'm Denzler, Ms. Lane.
LOIS
I'd have thought Grant Gendell
could hire a driver for you.
DENZLER
Can't trust drivers. Do you know
that they let almost anyone have a
driver's license? Without asking
anything about their personal
relationships?
A shadowy silhouette of Grant Gendell appears on the video
screen VIA LIVE FEED -- During the scene, Grant will relate (X)
to Denzler as if sitting next to him.
(X)
GRANT
(on screen)
I'm sorry about this, Ms. Lane, but
Denzler is paid to be paranoid.
It's a trait I admire.
LOIS
I... understand.
DENZLER
(testily)
I'm one of the few people who have
actually met Mr. Gendell, and if it
were up to me, it would stay that
way.
GRANT
Forgive me, Ms. Lane, but we have a
few routine security questions for
you...
32 EXT. STREET - DAY 32
Across the street, Bob and Carol's car pulls to a stop and
parks. Behind them, Agent Rawlins rounds the corner, parks
some distance back from Bob and Carol.
33 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S CAR - DAY 33
Bob's behind the wheel. Carol has a laptop computer; a
small speaker with an antenna rests on the dash.
GRANT (V.O.)
Have you visited a foreign country
in the last seven months?
LOIS (V.O.)
Does New Jersey count?
34 INT. AGENT RAWLINS' CAR - DAY 34
He sits aiming a tiny shotgun microphone with a parabolic
dish at Bob and Carol's car. On _his_ speaker box:
BOB (V.O.)
Is he giggling or is that a death
rattle?
CAROL (V.O.)
The old goat's completely charmed
by her.
35 INT. LIMO DAY 35
DENZLER
Is anyone in your life familiar
with the use of Plastique, AK-47s,
strychnine, or similar explosives
weapons or poisons?
LOIS
Only my mother.
GRANT
(on screen)
I like this girl ...
DENZLER
Are you now or have you ever been
employed by Gendell Technologies or
any of its subsidiaries?
LOIS
No --
GRANT
-- or acquainted with any present
or former employee?
LOIS
Not until today.
(CONTINUED)
DENZLER
Ah-hah.
GRANT
She means _you_, you idiot.
DENZLER
Oh.
36 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S CAR 36
Carol is staring at the sideview mirror.
CAROL
I think we're being followed.
BOB
NIA again.
CAROL
We'll see.
Carol picks up a small camera, aims through the rear window
of her car. Shoots. Then plugs a wire protruding from the
camera into her laptop.
GRANT
Your kind words on my behalf (X)
didn't go unnoticed, Ms. Lane. (X)
You flew into battle even (X)
though...
36 INT. BOB AND CAROL'S CAR 36
Carol is staring at the sideview mirror.
GRANT (V.O.)
... we'd never met and I'm (X)
supposed to be a half-insane (X)
potentially dangerous hermit. (X)
That took guts, a trait I also (X)
admire, so I guess what I'm trying (X)
to say is... (X)
CAROL
(during last of the
above:) (X)
I think we're being followed.
BOB
NIA again?
CAROL
We'll see.
Carol picks up a small camera, aims through the rear window
of her car. Shoots. Then plugs a wire protruding from the
camera into her laptop.
GRANT (V.O.)
... I like you, Ms. Lane. (X)
LOIS (V.O.)
Thanks, I think.
37 INT. DAILY PLANET - NEWSROOM - DAY 37
Clark at his computer as Jimmy walks by.
JIMMY
Anything?
CLARK
Waiting on a search. You?
JIMMY
This Deathstroke's a ghost.
Nobody's seen him, talked to him...
The list of people they think he
killed is pretty amazing. Check it
out.
Jimmy hands him a list. Clark whistles, impressed.
JIMMY (CONT'D)
My Dad says nailing him's been a
top priority for the NIA but they
can never agree: is he in London,
L.A., Hong Kong, here in
Metropolis? And with the budget
cuts...
CLARK
I know, I heard.
Clark's computer BEEPS. They lean in.
CLARK (CONT'D)
Okay, here we go... accessing all
data banks, where do these guys
cross?
JIMMY
Three of them have the same hat
size.
CLARK
All four have been paid by a
company called Denzler Limited.
Denzler, that sounds so --
(stops)
Gendell's lawyer. All four of
these men worked for Gendell's
lawyer.
(jumping up)
When did Lois say she was coming
back?
JIMMY
She didn't. C.K., where you goin'?
But Clark is already dashing off across the bull pen.
38 INT. LIMOUSINE - DAY 38
Grant wraps up the preliminaries on the video screen: (X)
GRANT
... I'm beginning to realize, I (X)
suppose, that a man like me (X)
belongs to history whether he
likes it or not. So I'd just as (X)
soon have the history be correct. (X)
Good day, Ms. Lane. (X)
The video screen now displays static. Denzler shuts it off
with a remote control.
DENZLER
I could have done without the
sarcasm of your answers, but it
appears that Mr. Gendell trusts
you. As much as he trusts anyone.
LOIS
So I have the interview?
DENZLER
Meet me again in front of the
Planet building, tomorrow, at noon.
Lois is thrilled. Denzler puts the car in gear.
39 EXT. SAME STREET - BOB AND CAROL'S CAR - DAY 39
Bob and Carol listen.
BOB
Tomorrow at noon. We're almost
there.
CAROL
Not quite.
Carol points to her computer screen. On one half, the
digitized, long lens photo she just took of Agent Rawlins.
On the other side of the screen, Rawlins' official NIA
photo, name and ID number.
CAROL (CONT'D)
He's NIA, all right. And he's made
us.
BOB
(angrily slamming hand (X)
on dashboard) (X)
Just like Berlin! When are these (X)
people going to leave us alone?
Abruptly, the metal speaker box scoots across the (X)
dashboard, adheres to Bob's exposed hand. Carol glances at (X)
it coolly, detaches it. (X)
CAROL
Careful. When you're emotional, (X)
you get a power surge. (X)
(then) (X)
Bob, soon we'll disappear into (X)
whole new lives. Until then, (X)
we've got to take care of _him_.
(nods toward Rawlins) (X)
Pull into that alley up there,
he'll follow us.
Bob nods, grimly.
40 EXT. DAILY PLANET - DAY 40
The limousine pulls up and Lois hops out. As it pulls away,
SUPERMAN lands before her.
LOIS
Hey. Guess who nabbed the
interview of the century?
SUPERMAN
Are you all right?
LOIS
Well, yeah.
(suspicious smile)
Were you out looking for me?
SUPERMAN
(awkwardly)
Well...
LOIS
Superman doesn't lie.
SUPERMAN
Okay, yes. But just because those
deaths I've been looking into...
You know, the red marks on the
chest...?
LOIS
(nods)
... the 'Deathgrip'...? (X)
SUPERMAN
... stroke, yeah. Well, his four (X)
victims all worked for Denzler --
LOIS
(taken aback)
Denzler, Limited?
SUPERMAN
Yeah.
LOIS
It's a shell company. Gendell uses
it when he doesn't want records
that could indicate anyone ever
worked for him directly. He only
used it for people he made direct
contact with -- bodyguards --
SUPERMAN
-- doctors, contractors. And
that's exactly who Deathstroke's (X)
been killing.
LOIS
Why?
Superman is suddenly distracted by a CRY that only he can
hear. A MAN'S CRY of agony.
SUPERMAN (CONT'D)
Down the street. Someone's in (X)
trouble. (X)
He exits frame.
41 EXT. ALLEY - DAY 41
Superman LANDS around the corner to find -- Deathstroke (X)
framed in the open driver's door to Agent Rawlins' car. As
Agent Rawlins himself slumps out the door, dying.
SUPERMAN
Deathstroke. (X)
DEATHSTROKE (X)
Superman. You know me?
SUPERMAN
Agent Rawlins is a friend of mine. He'd better be alive.
Superman moves on Deathstroke, but as he places hands on (X)
his foe --
DEATHSTROKE (X)
Or what?
Deathstroke opens his palms, holds the back of his hands (X)
toward Superman, who's surprised to find himself scooting
backwards as if repelled by a magnetic field. Just as
quickly, Deathstroke flips his hands so palms are toward (X)
Superman, and Superman slides forward.
SUPERMAN
That's enough.
And Superman clamps his hands down on Deathstroke's (X)
shoulders. Without flinching, Deathstroke does likewise to (X)
Superman. Deathstroke grits his teeth, sending a surge of (X)
SHIMMERING MAGNETIC FIELD from his hands, arcing down
Superman's body.
Lois comes around the corner, she sees Superman and
Deathstroke locked together. (X)
She approaches them in concern. Only to be thrown back as
she reaches the magnetic field.
Superman finds himself breaking a sweat. His vision is
blurring. We hear the AMPLIFIED, DISTORTED SOUND OF A
SLOWING HEARTBEAT (CONTINUING AND BUILDING THROUGHOUT ALL OF
THE FOLLOWING) -- Deathstroke bears down, and a second (X)
surge bursts from his hands, moves down Superman's body.
Deathstroke isn't doing so well either -- getting dizzy, (X)
gasping for air -- both he and Superman are weakening.
Carol is parked at the end of the alley, unnoticed among
several parked cars, and Lois doesn't see her. Carol looks
out from the car -- she cannot reveal herself, but she
cannot stand seeing her husband in danger, either.
Superman and Deathgrip drop to their knees, neither of them
willing to give way, each of them unsure of how long they
may last --
SUPERMAN
(slowly, painfully)
-- I'm not -- letting go --
DEATHGRIP
(in like fashion)
-- Neither am I.
And as their eyes steel with determination --
Superman and Deathstroke remain locked in -- well, a (X)
deathgrip. Each man's strength is ebbing; they struggle to
regain their footing, but neither will let go of the
other -- Deathstroke seems to be weakening, so in a last (X)
desperate move he delivers a final surge of magnetic power. (X)
THE DISTORTED, SLOWED HEARTBEAT EFFECT CONTINUES
throughout -- Struggling to figure out this new adversary, (X)
Superman is somewhat disoriented. This allows Deathstroke (X)
to break his hold.
DISTORTION lifts. Superman lifts hand to head, dizzy, and (X)
confused. (X)
Deathstroke staggers to his feet and crawls to the end of (X)
the alley and rounds a corner --
Lois races in and puts her arms around Superman.
LOIS
Oh my God....
43 EXT. AROUND ALLEY CORNER - DAY - CONTINUOUS
Carol opens the back door to the car and helps the breathless Deathstroke collapse inside -- (X)
DEATHSTROKE (X)
God, he's strong -- couldn't hold on --
