**************************************************************** * LOIS AND CLARK: THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN * * Detailed Episode Summaries * * * * Prepared by Jeffery D. Sykes * * sykes@ms.uky.edu * * * * Season 1: Episodes 4-5 * **************************************************************** These summaries should be distributed free of charge. Before including them in any other source or archive, please contact me at the above address. All of my summaries, as well as my Episode Guide, are available via ftp and e-mail. See my regular posting for more information. 4. I'M LOOKING THROUGH YOU ----------------------- US Airdate 10/10/93 Written by Deborah Joy LeVine Directed by Mark Sobel It's Superman Day in Metropolis, and the city is celebrating with a carnival in his honor. The key to the city is given to him (passed down from Lex Luthor, last year's recipient), and he is asked to give a speech. Some- what overwhelmed by the whole event, Superman quickly expresses a brief bit of gratitude and then leaves the stage. He seeks a momentary shelter in an empty alley, looking for a chance to fight off his discomfort. But almost immediately, he is mobbed by rabid fans. Cat breezes past Lois in the conference room and proceeds to plant a forceful kiss on Clark, who reacts with surprise and embarrassment. Perry walks into the room, eyes affixed on Lois, and asks for Clark's whereabouts. After Clark makes him aware of his presence, Perry apologizes, "Oh, Clark. Didn't see you there." Perry confirms that Lois and Clark are still working on the Superman Carnival story and then turns to the rest of the crew for new story ideas. Jimmy points out a tabloid story about an invisible Robin Hood, but Perry is indignant about the source. They also discuss a police report about the escape of a hardened criminal by the name of Barnes. As Lois leaves the conference room, she is flagged down by Murray Brown, a talent agent who wants to represent Superman. She explains that she has no way to get in contact with Superman, and Murray leaves. Before she can return to her desk, the newsroom is interrupted by a television story on another invisible bandit robbery -- this time, a catering truck was stolen and the food was given to a homeless shelter. Upon finally reaching her desk, Lois finds yet another person requesting her attention -- Helene Morris, who claims to be the Invisible Man's wife! Helene takes Lois and Clark to her house, where she shows them down to her husband Alan's lab. She explains that she and Alan had been growing apart -- that he spent all of his time in the lab and that they rarely spoke anymore. One day she went down to the lab to look for him and he wasn't there. But suddenly the door opened, Alan's voice told her good-bye, and the door closed again. Helene pleads with Lois to write her story and to ask Alan to come home to her. Once back at the station, Lois maintains her disbelief in the idea of invisibility. She expresses her desire not to write the story, but Clark points to a TV screen and indicates that it no longer matters -- Helene is giving a press conference. Sitting somewhere in a shadowed room, a dark figure is also watching the press conference. Soon after, a jewelry store is robbed at gunpoint by the Invisible Man. Even with the jewel heist captured by surveillance cameras, Lois will not believe. She and Clark receive a phone call from an agitated Helene, who tells them that Alan's lab has been trashed. When they arrive at the lab, Helene tells them that Alan was not responsible for the jewel heist or for trashing the lab. Of course, Lois and Clark have a hard time swallowing the idea that there are more than one Invisible Man. Before leaving, Clark takes a torn piece of cloth hanging on some glass. Driving back, Lois and Clark disagree on the feasibility of Helene's story. They finally drop the discussion, and Lois admits that she's got a hot date tonight ... with Superman! This is news to Clark! Actually, Lois was referring to a bachelor auction being held at Lex's penthouse. After a short bidding war, Lex is auctioned off for $10,000. Then Superman shows up, much to the delight of most of the ladies present. Bidding begins, with Lois and Cat angrily bidding against each other. But their available funds are eventually superseded by a $50,000 bid. Lois spends a lot of time at the refreshment bar, drowning her disappointment. Lex tries to cheer her up a bit, and they reschedule the lunch they had missed. (See NEVERENDING BATTLE.) As Superman begins to leave, he is caught by Murray, who makes him an offer. But Superman politely refuses. Clark then returns to the party as himself, and finds Lois just a bit tipsy. She dejectedly relates how her bidding money had been long-saved for a trip to Tahiti, but that she would have gladly given it up for Superman. She expresses her concern that Superman doesn't know that she's alive. But Clark tries to console her with the thought that maybe Superman is himself afraid of letting her know how he feels. The next day, the gang learns that the Invisible Man struck again, stealing many rare gold coins and nearly killing the elderly store-owner. Clark has meanwhile discovered that the cloth he had taken from the lab was designed to reflect visible light as ultraviolet light, which is invisible to the human eye. Of course Lois claims she was right to not believe, since the appearance of invisibility is not the same as invisibility! That night, Clark has an odd nightmare about working late at the Planet. In his dream, Lois, Cat, Jimmy, and Perry are all there. They each remove their coats to expose a Superman costume underneath and then begin flying around the newsroom, all the while laughing at Clark. He awakes drenched in sweat and floating several feet above his bed. Meanwhile, Lois is awakened from sleep by several knocks on her door. She opens the door to find nobody there. However, after she goes back into her apartment, locks the door, and steps into the kitchen, she hears a voice call her name. She whirls around and turns on the lights. Seeing Alan Morris' head floating before her, she screams and collapses. After Clark comes over, Alan explains that someone else has been committing the recent violent crimes, and several other of his invisibility suits had been stolen from his lab. He further explains that he originally designed the suit so that, by becoming invisible, he would be noticed again. Clark suggests that Alan stay with him, and as they leave, Lois' robe falls open and he sees her Superman pajamas. He makes his disappointment obvious. Meanwhile, Barnes returns to the Penitentiary wearing a large overcoat. At the same time, Clark has returned home, and he is discussing with his parents how he is concerned that he is losing himself to the image that is Superman. In doing so, he lets it slip that he saw Lois in her pajamas, a revelation that his parents are very interested in! But they remind him that he and Superman are the same person -- that he can't really lose one to the other. Returning to Metropolis, he finds that the Invisible Man has freed several hardened criminals. This invisible man is actually Barnes, and he has big plans for the inmates and his new suits. Back at the newsroom, Lois and Clark finally make the connection that all of the new heists have been gold-related, and this leads them to Barnes as their suspect. A front page story about the Metropolis Gold Repository leads them to his next job. Back at Clark's apartment, Lois mentions that she and Lucy used to play a game where they had to choose between flying and invisibility. She explains that she always chose invisibility, because she wanted to get behind closed doors. When she asks Clark, he says that he'd rather fly. Lois responds that they then have Superman in common -- Clark wants to fly like him, and she wants to fly with him. When she and Alan wake the next morning, they find Superman there. He explains that Clark had gone to the courthouse to do some research and asked him to stay with them. He makes a point of telling Lois that she doesn't need to bid for his attention -- that she'll always be special to him. They begin to discuss the Barnes situation and how his x-ray vision won't help him against invisibility. But when Alan mentions fluorescent bulbs, Superman figures out a way to make them visible. He speeds away to get something, and Lois and Alan decide to go to the Repository in two of the suits. While they are there spying on Barnes' gang, they are captured, and Barnes locks them into a vault. The size of the vault means that their air will run out in a matter of minutes. Meanwhile, the invisible gang exits the building and begins firing at the police barricade outside. Just then, Superman returns with a bag of phosphorous, which he proceeds to pour on the gang. This causes their suits to become visible. Barnes tries to escape to the side, but Superman cuts him off. Barnes tries to shoot him, but Superman ignores the bullets, bends the gun, and turns Barnes over to the police. He then asks about Lois. Realizing she is inside, he bursts through the wall of the vault to rescue them all. In the aftermath of the bust, Superman is once more approached by Murray Brown. But this time, Superman allows him to represent him -- as long as all proceeds go to charity. At the Morris's, Lois and Clark find that Alan has destroyed all of the suits and that he has been hired by Luthor Technologies -- Clark's facial expression indicates his displeasure with that news. Clark then verbalizes what both he and Alan have learned, it's the man under the suit that matters. Back at the newsroom, Lois puts on her best "I told you so" voice and points out to Clark that there is no such thing as an invisible man. As she walks away, Clark mutters, "Yes there is, Lois. Yes there is." ***************************************************************************** 5. REQUIEM FOR A SUPER-HERO ------------------------ US Airdate 10/17/93 Written by Robert Killebrew Directed by Randall Zisk In the teaser, Clark plays baseball, using his super-speed to play all of the positions and his power of flight to rob himself of a home run. Perry, desperate to fill the table, "convinces" Clark to join in his poker game. That night, he toys with Clark constantly. Once, when deciding how much to bet, he teasingly asks Clark about his salary! Jimmy brings up the idea that Superman would be a great card-player, since he could look at everyone's cards with his x-ray vision. This sets Clark's mind in motion. Perry reminds Jimmy, however, that Superman wouldn't do such a thing -- it's not his way. Clark begins to look at Perry's cards, stops himself, and then folds. The next morning, Perry lets Lois know that she and Clark are getting teamed up, in spite of Lois' opposition. He then assigns them to cover the Ultimate Street Fight, a heavily-promoted boxing card. This sets Lois off just a little bit more, as she *really* doesn't want to handle sports. She asks if the assignment has to do with the connections she has through her father, but Perry feigns ignorance. The two proceed to Menken's gym, where half of the fighters on the card train. Clark is completely enthralled with the trophy/memorabilia case in the gym. He begins to share the boxing memories that the case arouses in him, but finds that Lois keeps correcting his memories! She finally clues him in to the fact that he was mixing up two different fights. Then, once it finally dawns on him that she knows so much about the sport, she admits her connection -- her father, Sam Lane, is a legend in the field of sports surgery. They continue across the gym, stopping by the ring, where Tommy Garrison, one of Menken's fighters, is promptly thrashing his sparring partner with crashing blows. As they watch, Lois is greeted by an old friend, Allie Donello. She tries to get some information from him, but he tells her that Menken is keeping the press away from the fighters. Garrison overhears the conversation and tells Clark to get into the ring if he wants to talk to him. Contrary to Lois' wishes, Clark steps in and subjects himself to several moments of Garrison's taunts. Finally fed up, Clark shoves Garrison back, and Menken steps in just as Garrison is about to retaliate. After Menken throws them out, they run across Lois' father on his way in. Lois barely stops to say hello, then brushes him off, making an excuse to keep from having dinner with him. Lex receives a call from Menken, who is concerned about the reporters getting close to his fighters. Lex points out how rich he is ($20 billion with an annual income of $2 billion more) and tells Menken that he should solve his own problems. Clark hangs around late, and Lois interprets it as him trying to get her to talk about her father. She becomes very defensive, and basically tells Clark to mind his own business. She then receives a call from Allie, asking her to meet him -- he has information about the fighters. Much to Lois' surprise, Clark lets her go alone, explaining that it will make Allie more comfortable. She arrives at the meeting, only to see Allie run over by a truck. Lois, still very upset by the incident, goes to see her father. She lets him know that it was not a simple hit and run, but murder. She tries to probe him for further information about Menken and his fighters, but he warns her not to dig deeper and tells her that he doesn't know anything. That night, she convinces Clark to break into Dr. Lane's office with her. Inside, they discover that all of Menken's fighters had similar surgical procedures performed on them by Dr. Lane. They continue to search the office and Clark, using his x-ray vision discovers a secret room behind a bookcase. He pushes it open, explaining to Lois that a relative has the same setup in his home. Inside, they find a bunch of robotic parts and realize that Dr. Lane has been turning the fighters into "bionic" men. Before they can leave, Clark hears Menken and Garrison approaching. He quickly closes Lois into the secret room and simulates an Earthquake by running in place up against a wall. This scares off Menken and Garrison. Back at the Planet, after Jimmy and Lois have a minor argument about whether or not there was an earthquake, Clark begins to feign ignorance of the whole robotics story. He points out that since her story might make her father a target, she might do well to forget the story herself. Lois and Clark eventually give Perry their story on the hit and run. Perry has a hard time believing that is all there is to the story. But he gives in a bit when Clark backs her. Lois then goes to see her father. She lets him know what she knows about the fighters and that she killed the story anyway. He responds that she should have written the story. Not writing it compromises her professional ethics. In the course of their discussion, they begin to mend some old wounds -- he assures her that he did care about her. His work was a noble cause and he *had* to stay away for long periods of time in pursuit of that cause. Finally he repeats, "Write your story." Back at the Planet, Perry assigns Lois to cover the auto show and Clark to cover the Police Academy Graduation -- he calls the stories "confidence- builders." Menken, in conference with Lex, doesn't see past the boxing uses of the surgical procedure. Lex, however, envisions stronger and stronger men -- eventually culminating in an army of Supermen. Menken then returns to Dr. Lane and orders him to make them stronger. When Lane refuses and tells him that he wants out, Menken explains that would not be a good idea, and he confesses to Allie Donello's murder. The next morning, Lane meets with Lois and Clark and gives them a tape of his conversation with Menken. They hug and tell each other to be careful. Then Dr. Lane disappears. The next day, Perry asks Lois for her piece on the auto show. Instead, she gives him their story on the enhanced fighters and the murder of Donello. (Clark, of course, has his story on the graduation as well!) Perry is *very* impressed and incredibly excited, calling for the advertising department to promote Lois and Clark as the greatest journalism team ever! The edition carrying their story is released before Fight Night. Menken has run scared to Lex, who simply tells him that he can not escape the fall. He also orders Menken to take care of Dr. Lane, but Menken informs him of Lane's disappearance. Lex then suggests that Lois is the means for getting to Dr. Lane. At the ring, the fights are canceled and all of the enhanced boxers are suspended. Garrison is so steamed that he goes to the ring anyway, and he screams for Superman to face him! Meanwhile, Lex has gone to see Lois, primarily to put on a front about her father -- about wanting to contribute to his rehabilitation. Menken enters with a gun and takes Lois hostage. As he leaves, Lex and Clark look at each other and simultaneously announce that they are going for help. Superman shows up in the alley as Menken exists the building, but he is detained by some of the other fighters. He quickly disposes of them and hurries after Lois, but Lex shows up first and rescues her by shooting Menken. Lois is quick to show her gratitude to Lex, and Lex is quick to point out how Superman was just too late. Back in the ring, Garrison continues his tirade until Superman shows up. As Superman turns to get ready for the bout, Garrison gives him a sucker- punch, knocking Superman to the ground. An elderly lady at ringside asks if he is hurt, to which Superman responds that he's not hurt -- he just caught him off guard. She tells him to keep his left up. He gets up and stands before Garrison, who proceeds to land three very solid blows to Superman's face -- each of which has no effect. Superman responds with a little tweak of his finger to Garrison's head, which throws him up onto the ropes and knocks him unconscious. Lex agreed to testify as a character witness for Dr. Lane and against Menken, and as a result, no charges were brought against Dr. Lane. Clark expresses his disappointment at not being there for Lois when she was in danger, but she tells him not to worry -- even Superman was late! Perry asks Clark once again to join in the poker game, but Clark declines, saying he has other plans. That night, Clark puts himself through a boxing workout, bursting two punching bags before doing a high-speed version of jump-rope and skipping away from the darkened ring. ***************************************************************************** Jeffery D. Sykes University of Kentucky sykes@ms.uky.edu Department of Mathematics (606) 257-6806 *****************************************************************************