Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman

Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman is an American superhero drama television series based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. It stars Dean Cain as Clark Kent / Superman and Teri Hatcher as Lois Lane. The series aired on ABC from September 12, 1993, to June 14, 1997.
Developed for television by Deborah Joy LeVine, the series loosely followed the modern origin of Superman, established by writer John Byrne, in which Clark Kent is the true personality and Superman a disguise. The series focuses on the relationship and romance between Lois and Clark as much as the adventures of Clark's alter ego, Superman.
Premise
On May 17, 1966, Jonathan and Martha Kent witness the crash-landing of a small spaceship in Shuster's Field outside of Smallville, Kansas. They discover the baby Kal-El inside and raise him as their own, naming him Clark Jerome Kent.
The series opens twenty-seven years later, on the day Clark moves to Metropolis after leaving his position as a newspaper editor of Smallville Press and interviews for a job at the Daily Planet under editor Perry White. Clark becomes acquainted with photographer Jimmy Olsen and gossip columnist Cat Grant. Metropolis is a much more vibrant place than Smallville, but also more dangerous, and Clark becomes concerned at the difficulty of using his superhuman powers to help people without exposing his extraterrestrial nature and therefore ruining all chance for a normal life. His solution is to wear a costume, enabling him to freely use his powers in an alternate identity. However, he also frequently has to find a way to use his powers in secret, without the opportunity to discretely change into costume.
Soon after being hired at The Daily Planet, Clark is partnered with star reporter Lois Lane. Clark falls in love with Lois, but she instead becomes infatuated with Clark's alter ego, naming him Superman, while initially dismissing Clark as a dimwitted and sentimental hick. Where Clark excels at reporting human interest stories, Lois specializes in exposing political scandals and criminal operations, leading to her frequently ending up in perilous situations from which Superman must rescue her.
A hologram-projecting globe later reveals to Clark that he was not abandoned by his biological parents, but that they sent him to Earth in order to save him from the destruction of his home planet, which his parents were unable to escape.
Superman's mission interferes with the illegal dealings of Lex Luthor, a Metropolis business giant and philanthropist. Superman alone knows of Luthor's evil nature, and Luthor perceives Superman as a worthy opponent and a relief from his ennui.
Series history
Season 1 (1993–1994)
Teri Hatcher and Dean Cain received critical praise for their performances. The scene in the pilot in which Clark walks up a wall was accomplished with a special rotating room, which required Cain to time his approach to the wall to coincide with the room rotating to leave the wall on the bottom.
Luthor develops an interest in Lois Lane and through most of the season tries to woo her. Although Lois is receptive to his romantic advances, she remains infatuated with Superman. Lois also develops feelings for Clark, but represses or denies them. Luthor orchestrates multiple illegal schemes to acquire profit and power, in most cases with even Superman never realizing his involvement, and unable to prove that involvement in those cases where he is aware of it.
In the episode "The Green, Green Glow of Home", the Kents' neighbor Wayne Irig unearths a large chunk of kryptonite near the landing site of Clark's spaceship and sends a small sample of it to a lab for analysis. Clark destroys the large chunk in the same episode, but the small sample is stolen and would pass from one set of wrong hands to another throughout the series.
The season concludes with a two-part story in which Luthor's criminal activities are publicly exposed and he commits suicide to escape justice.
Lois & Clark was second in its time slot during the fall (behind Murder, She Wrote) and scored high with adults ages 18 to 49, a key demographic for which advertisers pay a premium, but finished at No. 65 out of 132 prime-time programs. ABC considered this an overall disappointing performance, though they approved a full second season in hopes that the changes being made to the production staff would yield an increase in ratings.
Season 2 (1994–1995)
In season two, the character of Cat Grant was dropped, Lex Luthor was eliminated from the main cast and became an occasional guest character, and Michael Landes was replaced with Justin Whalin as Jimmy Olsen. The Olsen role was recast because the show's new producers felt that Landes was too similar to Dean Cain in age and type. Series creator Deborah Joy LeVine wanted Lex Luthor to remain a regular cast member, but the network felt that having Superman fight the same villain every week without ever defeating him ultimately made Superman seem inept, and preferred a rotating cast of villains which would give the characters a variety of threats to overcome. LeVine, the visual effects supervisor, and the entire first-season writing team were also dismissed. Robert Singer, who took over from the original executive producer just six episodes into the first season, planned a stronger focus on action; the show also shifted its focus onto the budding romance between Lois and Clark.
With the show's budget increased and new visual effects supervisor Mark Zarate on board, the second season used more elaborate and convincing special effects than those seen in the first season. Zarate filmed lasers and composited them into shots to create more realistic visuals of Superman's heat vision and X-ray vision. The destruction and rebuilding of the Daily Planet building at the end of season one also gave Singer an excuse to build a new Daily Planet set, one more suited to the production demands of a weekly television show.
Though there was no central villain this season, the criminal organization Intergang served as an overarching menace; nearly half of the villains this season were directly or indirectly affiliated with Intergang. The removal of Lex Luthor as the main villain also allowed other villains from the comics to appear (such as The Prankster, Metallo, and the Toyman, though they generally went by their civilian names rather than their supervillain codenames). This season also featured the debut of fan-favorite villain Tempus and H. G. Wells appeared as a time-traveler.
The new writing staff all enjoyed coming up with excuses for Clark to use to terminate conversations so that he could run off and change to Superman, so these excuses and Lois's increasing hurt and frustration at them were made both an ongoing subplot and running joke throughout the season. To further increase the romantic drama, the writers introduced recurring characters to serve as romantic rivals: Mayson Drake, a district attorney who takes a romantic interest in Clark but has a total lack of regard for Superman, and Dan Scardino, a DEA agent who is a self-professed "loose cannon" in the tradition of Martin Riggs. In the season finale, Clark proposes to Lois but Lois' response is not shown as a cliffhanger for the next season. Season two became a success and garnered higher ratings in its initial airings, ending the season in 58th place.
Season 3 (1995–1996)
Season three averaged more than 18 million viewers per episode and ranked 44th for the season. Due to this strong performance, ABC renewed the series contract for an additional two seasons instead of just one.
In the premiere episode, Lois responds to Clark's marriage proposal by revealing that she figured out Clark's secret identity during the events of the season 2 finale, and she expresses concern about how she can trust him when he's kept that secret from her for so long. After they separate for a time, she and Clark carry out assignments where they either pose as a married couple or are alone together for an entire weekend, and they resolve their disagreements.
Lois finally accepts Clark's engagement ring in the seventh episode, "Ultra Woman". ABC announced that the wedding would occur on Valentine's Day weekend, with ABC sending heart-shaped "wedding invitations" to ABC News staff. A controversy erupted when ABC presented the viewers with a bogus wedding, with Clark unwittingly married to a clone of Lois. This was the start of a three-part story in which Lois is kidnapped by Lex Luthor and replaced by a clone. Once the real Lois is recovered, Lois and Clark's wedding plans are again interrupted when two other Kryptonians come to Earth, one of whom claims to be Clark's wife. Clark leaves Earth forever to become ruler of Kryptonian's world, New Krypton, in order to preempt the ascension of the evil Lord Nor to the throne and avert a civil war. Lois cannot accompany him because humans could never survive the conditions on New Krypton.
Season 4 (1996–1997)
The final season began with the resolution of the story involving a previously unknown colony of Kryptonians. Lois and Clark finally wed in the episode "Swear To God, This Time We're Not Kidding". The same week, DC Comics released Superman: The Wedding Album, featuring the marriage of Lois and Clark. The series ended on a cliffhanger in which Lois and Clark find an infant in Clark's old bassinet, along with a note that claimed the child belonged to them. Brad Buckner, executive producer, and writer for the third and fourth seasons, later revealed the planned story was that the child "was Kryptonian royalty, stashed by his mother to keep him safe from assassins".
The series weakened in its Sunday 8:00 pm timeslot and was shifted to 7:00 pm in January, and was moved to Saturdays in the spring. The ratings dropped even further, and the show finished its last season in 104th place, averaging less than 10 million viewers per episode. It was removed from the schedule in May 1997. When the network canceled plans for season five, the producers and writers of the show were unprepared. ABC paid an undisclosed sum to Warner Bros. in order to get out of the second half of the two-season commitment they signed at the end of season three.
Cast
Main
Recurring
Production
DC Comics president Jenette Kahn had been working for several years to sell the concept of a Superman television series, with the title "Lois Lane's Daily Planet". In 1991 Leslie Moonves and Deborah Joy LeVine helped sell the series to ABC television network with a new title, Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. LeVine had never read a comic book before and was more interested in pursuing a romantic comedy angle than the superhero themes.
A few episodes directly emphasized that Clark was the dominant personality, not Superman. Unique to the series was the depiction of Clark Kent and Superman's traditional hairstyles being reversed—in this series, it is Superman whose hair is slicked back and Clark whose fringe falls more naturally. An additional element that reflected the post-Byrne comics was the portrayal of Lex Luthor as a corrupt corporate tycoon rather than the traditional mad scientist.
The illusion of Superman flying was accomplished by suspending actor Dean Cain with a flight harness and wires which were erased from the shots in post-production; anyone Cain was carrying was independently wired.
The sets were designed to have a timeless appearance, such that the show could seem to be taking place in the 1950s or the near future and not become dated in later years.
Casting
Initially, LeVine so strongly felt that Dean Cain was too young for the part of Clark Kent/Superman that after Cain finished his audition and left the room, she snapped at the casting director, "We're casting Superman, not Superboy!" However, after auditioning over a hundred prospects with none of them standing out as perfect for the role, Cain was included among the handful who got a callback for the part. Kevin Sorbo was the runner up for the part and was nearly cast in the role until the producers changed their minds and went with Cain. Levine said what ultimately won Cain the role was his reading for the scene where Clark talks with Jonathan Kent about feeling he does not fit in.
After Lane Smith was cast for the part of Perry White, LeVine decided to replace the character's catchphrase from the comics with "Great shades of Elvis!", since she thought it implausible that a Southerner would ever say "Great Caesar’s ghost!". This led to Perry being portrayed as a consummate Elvis Presley fan.
John Shea was chosen for the part of Lex Luthor because he had the looks and charm of a romantic leading man; LeVine wanted a Lex Luthor who could serve as a romantic rival for Superman.
K Callan distinguished herself from the other actresses auditioning to play Martha Kent by wearing a pink track suit. Whereas the other actresses presented themselves as stereotypical farmers, Callan understood that the show's producers were looking for a modernized Martha Kent.
Broadcast
United States
From September 1997 to August 2003 all four seasons of the show were aired on TNT television network. The entire series became available on HBO Max in August 2021.
United Kingdom
The series premiered on BBC One on Saturday, January 8, 1994, with repeat showings until 2002. During its run on BBC One, the series was retitled "The New Adventures of Superman". The BBC held the rights to premiere the first three seasons. It also aired on CBBC's Saturday Aardvark strand (later known as Planet Saturday) at 8:30 am. BBC Two has also repeated the series at tea times alongside The Simpsons, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and many others. Sky One held the premiere rights to the fourth season in 1997 and broadcast the show under the original full title. The BBC broadcast the episodes a few weeks later. Sky One broadcast seasons one, two and three just before the premiere of season four in early 1997. UK Gold, Sky Living, Bravo, Channel One and ITV2 have also repeated the series. BBC2 last repeated season one in late 2005. Satellite channel Syfy repeated the first two seasons and the first half of season three in 2012, before replacing it with Smallville.
Republic of Ireland
The series aired on RTÉ One from 1995 to 1998 and regularly rerun on TG4 from 2000 to 2002.
Home media
Warner Home Video has released all four seasons of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman on DVD in Regions 1, 2, and 4.
Awards and nominations
Soundtrack
Mastered at Capitol Records, Hollywood
Digital editing, pre-mastering: Bruno Coon
Engineers:
Greg Townley (all orchestral recording)
Michael Eric Hutchinson
Bobby Fernandez ("Main Title Theme" recording & mixing)
Ray Pyle ("Main Title Theme extended mix" recording & mixing)
Art Direction: Doerte Lau
Design: Andreas Adamec
Novels, collected editions and related merchandise
Lois & Clark: A Superman Novel by author C. J. Cherryh, based on the television series, was released in 1996. The novel was published in a Science Fiction Book Club hardcover edition and a paperback edition by Prima Publishing.
Other novels based on the series include:
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman: Heat Wave
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman: Exile
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman: Deadly Games
DC Comics published a comic book trade paperback collected edition Lois & Clark, The New Adventures of Superman, in 1994, which featured a selection of modern era stories by John Byrne and other writers and artists. The collection includes an introduction by Byrne, with the show's stars Dean Cain and Teri Hatcher as Lois and Clark on the cover:
Lois & Clark, The New Adventures of Superman – collects The Man of Steel #2, Superman Annual vol. 2 #1, Superman vol. 2 #9 and 11, Action Comics #600 and 655, Adventures of Superman #445, 462, and 466. (192 pages)
Skybox released in 1995 a series of trading cards based on the first season of the show. 90 trading cards were issued alongside 9 special cards, a series of temporary tattoos and two illustrated cards by well known artists Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell.
References
External links
Official Warner Bros. site
Official DC Comics site
First Person Account from Season One Supervising Producer
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman on SupermanHomepage.com
1990s American drama television series
1990s American romance television series
1993 American television series debuts
1997 American television series endings
American fantasy drama television series
American romantic drama television series
American action adventure television series
American superhero television series
Cultural depictions of H. G. Wells
Fictional couples
Television shows based on DC Comics
American Broadcasting Company original programming
English-language television shows
Saturn Award-winning television series
Superman television series
Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios
Television shows set in the United States
Television shows adapted into novels