Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman: Difference between revisions

A'''''Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman''''' was a live-action television incarnation of the ''[[Superman (Comic Book)|Superman]]'' mythos from the 1990s, and one of the first superhero series aimed at women as much as men. The series is notable for its engaging cast, a few minor [[Post Modernism|Post-modern]] aspirations, a fair amount of wit and the close focus on the romantic complication between the title characters. Airing from 1992 to 1997, Dean Cain portrayed Clark Kent/Superman while Teri Hatcher played Lois Lane. "''L&C''", as it came to be known among fans, continued the trend of [[Post-Crisis]] Superman stories in identifying Clark as the "real" personality, with Superman as the role he puts on.

The show suffered, to an extent, from a known problem with live-action superhero shows: restraints on budget and their effect on the story (modern technological capabilities have reduced this somewhat, as can be seen on ''[[Smallville]]'' and ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]''). Superman rarely fought someone who was a physical match for him, with most villains either being secretive like Luthor or resorting to kidnapping innocents. Making up for this were the particularly well-thought-out character dynamics, the strong acting, and most of all, the phenomenal chemistry between Cain and Hatcher.

A [[Broken Base|bit controversial]] amongst sectors of the fanbase, particularly fans of ''[[The Adventures of Superboy (TV)|The Adventures of Superboy]]'' TV series, which may have been killed by [[Warner Bros]] to avert the possibility of [[Dueling Shows|two competing Superman shows]]. In the final analysis, both series are unique in their own right, so pick your poison.

** The only way to ever explain why Dr. Klein does not clue into the fact that Superman and Clark Kent are the same person is that he is a total absent minded professor.

* [[Adaptation Dye Job]]: Lana Lang is a blonde in this incarnation.

** If you want to get technical about it, Dean Cain has brown eyes (as opposed to Superman's trademark blue).

*** Hell, one episode has Lois describing Superman's eyes as blue when Cain's eyes are so obviously brown which is bad enough, but she previously described Superman to a sketch artist who also drew him with brown eyes.

** [[Bizarro Universe]]: Charlton Heston is President, and Jimmy is the owner of the Daily Planet (with Perry as his [[Yes-Man|Smithers]]). It also seems that Elivis Presley served for a time as President of the US and evidently has lived into the 1990s.

** Clark passes for this. [[Show Runner]] Deborah Joy Levine notes that Dean Cain, who is 1/4 Japanese, has an unplaceable 'look' to him that seems otherwordly. This does not apply to the vanilla-looking New Kryptonians.

{{quote| '''Perry''': Why don't we just think of it as '''[[Take This Job and Shove It|our divorce -- PERIOD]]'''.}}

** In "Dead Lois Walking", Clark compares Lois' [[Frame-Up]] to that of Richard Kimble in ''[[The Fugitive (TV series)|The Fugitive]]''. All they have to do is find the real killer!

{{quote| '''Lois:''' How long did that take?<br />

* [[Badass Arm-Fold]]: Dean Cain's Superman does this often, Clark Kent so rarely it might be part of his disguise. [[Flanderization|Flanderized]] in later seasons to the point of Superman constantly strutting around with his arms folded.

** The actor justified it by saying that Lex is probably rich enough to regrow his hair.

* [[Beethoven Was an Alien Spy]]: [[HGH. G. Wells]] really did have [[The Time Machine|a time machine]], and shows up in a few episodes, usually hot on the trail of [[Conqueror From the Future]] Tempus.

** Averted hard with [[Always V. Sexy|Veronica]] Kipling.

* [[Big Eater]]: Bobby Bigmouth, the informant who [[Food Asas Bribe|accepts food as legal tender]].

* [[Call Back]]: Most of them involve the Villain of the Week picking up where a previous criminal left off, be it re-assembling their weapon or avenging their defeat.

** Kenneth Kimmins does a spot-on impersonation of [[Sean Connery]]. And no, it doesn't pertain to the plot.

* [[Catch Phrase]]: "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TSrm2ihybw DUH!]" -- Tempus—Tempus

** "[[Oh My Gods|Great shades of Elvis!]]" -- Perry—Perry

*** "[[Judas Priest (Music)|Judas Priest]]!" -- ''Also'' Perry

** Season 1's Jimmy Olsen tends to exclaim "''Real'' smooth!" when impressed. The phrase was dropped along with the actor.

* [[Chronic Backstabbing Disorder]]: Mindy.

* [[Clark Kenting]]: Lois, a decorated investigative journalist, is unable to realize that her partner, Clark Kent, is just Superman with glasses. This was not helped by Dean Cain not really changing his voice, posture, or facial expression between the two personae, as Christopher Reeve famously did. Teri Hatcher's monologue on ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' parodied this, demonstrating her general inability to recognize people with glasses.

{{quote| '''Lois''': I think I've got you figured out<br />

'''Clark''' : Really<br />

{{quote| '''Tempus''': Look (puts glasses on), I'm Clark Kent. (Takes glasses off) No, I'm Superman! (Puts glasses on) Mild-mannered reporter. (Takes glasses off) Superhero! [...] Well, that was worth the whole trip. To actually meet the most ''galactically stupid woman'' who ever lived.}}

** Although future generations considered it more a "blinded by love" than being stupid thing. [[HGH. G. Wells]] tells us so.

*** Lois dismisses her first statement about Clark and Superman looking alike, said while under the influence of an inhibition removing perfume, by saying that "every women thinks her man is Superman". Lois seems to be blindable by love, and to various extents Superman and Clark blind her discernment, Clark more so as time goes on.

** Actually Cain ''did'' attempt change his mannerisms and delivery between Clark and Superman, [[Overshadowed Byby Awesome|he's just not quite as good at it as Reeve]]

** The one possible exception is Perry White. Perry is a good editor so he knows that secret sources are too be garded, thus he may suspect the connection but knows that if he tells Clark what he suspects, this will convince Clark the disguise has been blown and cause him to leave, destroying the source sturcture that Superman gives the paper.

*** When they are posing as newly weds, before their relationship has even moved past the phase of just being business partners, to spy on a corrupt politician, there is one scene where Clark after using his X-ray vision to see an incoming cleaning maid, uses superhuman speed to hid their equipment under the covers and put Lois in a convincingly romantic embrace. There is even time for Lois to give him a look of death before the door opens and she realizes he saved their cover. Why Lois does not make him give a real explanation of how he was able to anticipate this situation, slap him silly or realize then and there he is Superman is never clear.

*** Lois never even seems to try to figure out if Clark and Superman are the same. It is almost as if she knows at some level, but wants him to tell her the truth instead of having to ferret it out. While everyone else may be truly fooled and unaware, it seems more like Lois hopes Clark will tell her the truth.

** Lex sports a fedora & sunglasses while on the run from the law.

{{quote| "You see, Miss Lane, in a world with no Superman, there'll be no Utopia in the future. Just a lot of sex and violence and me."}}

* [[Cover-Blowing Superpower]]: Clark, all the time.

** As time went on and the LOISCLA-L fan email list increased in population and loudness, at least one member of the writing team joined as a lurking member. [[Acronym and Abbreviation Overload|Abbreviations and codes]] used on the list turned up on the ticker, including WAFF (Warm and Fuzzy Feelings) and FoLC (Friends of Lois and Clark).

* [[Cut Lex Luthor a Check]]: [[Averted Trope|Averted]] with Lex himself, but a lot of villains fall into this category.

** Veda Dooson in "Brutal Youth" has to resort to abducting pizza delivery men in order to test her [[Fountain of Youth]] machine, allegedly because she can't get a grant.

* [[Death Byby Secret Identity]]: {{spoiler|Lex in Season 3}}.

* [[Defector From Decadence]]: "Hank West" -- the—the pseudonym for one of [[Those Wacky Nazis]] -- grows—grows fond of American pop culture and is reluctant to give up his music stardom. His compatriot accuses West of getting soft, then [[Villainous Demotivator|shoots him]].

* [[Die Hard Onon an X]]: In "Flyhard", the Daily Planet is held hostage and Clark must rescue them.

* [[Distressed Damsel in Distress]]: [[Once Per Episode]] (at least) with Lois. She does put up some good fights, and at times breaks out of bonds without the help of Clark.

* [[Distressed Dude in Distress]]: Perry and Jimmy, to add variety.

* [[Dogged Nice Guy]]: Clark can definitely take what Lois dishes out but she does boss him around and take advantage of his nice guy behavior to the point where this trope is noticeable.

* [[Domino Mask]]: Resplendent Man and Ultrawoman.

** While traveling through time, Clark is forced to wear this as part of his Robin Hood/Zorro ensemble.

* [[Dramatic Thunder]]: Used shamelessly.

** [[Empathic Environment]]: A variation occurs in Lex's subway haunt, when {{spoiler|Clois spills Superman's identity}}. Cue the flickering electricity and rumbling trains!

* [[Drop in-In Character]]: Lois' [[Psychic Powers|psychic]] downstairs neighbor, Star.

** The Kents should qualify, since the cost of all that airline travel is conspicuously swept under the rug. On at least one occasion Clark does offer to personally fly them into town the next time they need to come.

{{quote| '''Reporter''': So, Mrs. Church, with your husband in prison, you devoted your life to helping the destitute?<br />

* [[Elvis Lives]]: Spinning headlines detailing {{spoiler|Luthor's death}}, with the last being a "photograph" of him alongside Elvis in Hawaii.

* [[Everything's Better Withwith Spinning]]: As the series progresses, Clark no longer needs to duck into a room to change clothes, instead spinning furiously and coming to a stop in his Superman outfit.

* [[Evil Is Petty]]: Jefferson Cole adds Dr. Klein to his revenge list for his "unhinged and insane" remark.

** Randy Goode, a world-famous philanthropist, does not take it well when the Nobel Peace Prize committee snubs him in favor of Superman.

* [[Fake Defector]]: Clark pretends to resign from the floundering Daily Planet and join a rival paper, The Metropolis Star, in "The Rival".

* [[Feminine Women Can Cook]]: Lois is a Type 2.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' I only know three recipes, and this is the only one that [[One-Note Cook|doesn't involve chocolate]].}}

** Subverted at the end of "Ghosts", in which she inherits cookery talent from the spirit of a disgruntled housewife who possessed her.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' You getting anywhere?<br />

* [[For Want of a Nail]]: The alt-universe Clark [[Being Good Sucks|has it rough]]. In his world, the Kents were killed in a car crash when he was still a child, and Lois Lane is presumed dead after [[Chekhov MIA|disappearing while on assignment in the Congo]]. (At the end of "Lois and Clarks", though, H.G. Wells hints that he can bring her back).

** A lowly software developer gets blamed for his boss' murder in "The Ides of Metropolis".

{{quote| "It's nine! I thought you'd be naked. Uh, ready."}}

* [[Going for Thethe Big Scoop]]: Lois.

* [[Good Is Boring]]: Why Tempus can't stomach his [[Utopia|utopianutopia]]n timeline.

* [[Green-Eyed Monster]]: Lois flips her wig after Clark wins a journalism award instead of her -- despiteher—despite winning the same award three times previously.

* [[Groin Attack]]: Lois delivers one to the Prankster, causing him to double over in agony.

{{quote| '''Mayson Drake:'''''(to Superman)'' Do you have a license to chase criminals? Do you read them their rights? [[Straw Man Has a Point|If you injure someone, are you insured?]]}}

** Baron Tempos and Tempus Tex (Tempus' [[The Middle Ages|medieval]] and [[The Wild West|Wild West]] ancestors, respectively) deliver the exact same ultimatum in two separate time periods, causing Tex to get weirded out.

* [[Hot Chick in Aa Badass Suit]]: Lampshaded in "Ultrawoman", when Lois she starts wearing a suit tie to disguise her superhero costume underneath (just like Clark does).

* [[Human Popsicle]]: {{spoiler|Lex Luthor}} is a postmortem example; his remains are frozen throughout Season 2 as his physician works on a "cure" for death.

** A [[Call Back]] to this episode occurs in Season 4, when {{spoiler|Lex Luthor}} Jr. threatens to kill Lois if Superman refuses to do his bidding. Superman opts to [[Take a Third Option]] and freeze Lois, thereby tricking Junior into believing his leverage is gone.

** And then there was the time Superman tossed a [[It Makes Sense in Context|deadly microwave oven]] into space.

* [[Hypocritical Humor]]: Lois spends the bulk of "I'm Looking Through You" complaining that Superman has [[Sell Out|sold out]] and gone commercial, although even at this point she admits her main worry is that Superman will forget about her. When Clark later greets Lois in her apartment, she's wearing a Superman t-shirt under her pajamas. It is pretty clear though that Lois is mad that Superman is not paying as much attention to her but instead having his attentions taken up by lots of other people making demands on him.

{{quote| '''Joey Bermuda''': No, Cheryl Marie, you can not stay up past 9:00. Yes honey, you can watch TV, just none of that gratuitous violence, okay? [shoot hole through a cut-out of Superman] I'll see you tonight.}}

{{quote| '''Garret Grady:''' When the world sees what [[Kill Sat|The Annihilator]] can do, nations will beat their swords into ploughshares, and [[Utopia Justifies the Means|mankind will live in perfect, blessed brotherhood]]...or I will blast the hell out of them!}}

* [[I Do Not Drink... Wine]]: Superman once tells Lois that he doesn't need to eat, but he likes to. Which is fairly evident since his pantry is stocked with almost nothing but junk food. He also never misses the morning donuts at the office. This ties in to the OTHER DC comics TV adaptation on the air at the time, the much overlooked and quite excellent [[The Flash|Flash]] which also portrayed Barry Allen this way.

** Both of {{spoiler|Lex Luthor}}'s sons [[Abduction Is Love|abduct Lois]] at some point.

** {{spoiler|Lex Jr.}} in particular is a chip off the old block, right down to his [[Bond One-Liner|one-liners]] and [[Wicked Cultured|affinity for opera]].

{{quote| '''H.G. Wells:''' You are a fiend beyond comprehension!<br />

{{quote| '''Superman:''' Well, wouldn't your father be proud? His son turned out to be as sick and deranged as he was.<br />

* [[Ironic Nickname]]: Little Tony.

{{quote| '''Diana:''' I made [Superman] swallow a radioactive substance.<br />

{{quote| '''Clark:''' We were on assignment!<br />

* [[It Runs Onon Nonsensoleum]]: [[HGH. G. Wells]]' time machine is fueled by gold. He doesn't even have to smelt the stuff; he just tosses assorted coins/bling down a chute.

* [[Leaning Onon the Fourth Wall]]: Perry White and Jimmy Olsen in the season 2 finale.

{{quote| '''Jimmy''': Chief?<br />

'''Perry''': Yeah?<br />

'''Jimmy''': Instead of always standing around, watching Lois and Clark, wondering what they're doing... What if we, uh... Got lives of our own that were a little more interesting.<br />

'''Perry''': Now son, you've just hit the bulls-eye. It's like we're supporting characters in some TV show that's only about them.<br />

'''Jimmy''': Yeah, it's like all we do is [[Greek Chorus|advance their plots!]]<br />

'''Perry''': To tell you the truth I'm sick of it.<br />

'''Jimmy''': Yeah, me too.<br />

{{quote| '''Tempus''': Only thing that would ruin this would be a commercial.<br />

* [[Lie Detector]]: In "Strange Visitor", {{spoiler|fake}} government agents hook up Clark to a lie detector as part of their investigations into Superman. Clark's 'baseline' questions are 'Is your name Clark Kent?' and 'Are you Superman?'; he's supposed to say yes to both and get a 'lie' response on the second. However, when he gets a no-lie flatline on both questions, Clark is forced to use his super-breath to push the needle.

** Amusingly, the agents think that Clark might just be ''that'' mild mannered that even the lie detector can't pick up his obvious "lies".

* [[Locked in Aa Freezer]]: Happens often with Lois. In the "Ides of Metropolis", Lois and Inspector Reed are thrown into a [[The Walls Are Closing In|trash compactor]]. That same season, Lois and her college rival Linda King are roped together inside a literal freezer. Lastly, "Operation Blackout" finds Lois and her ex-friend Molly trapped on a military base with a [[Kill Sat]] aimed directly at them.

** Even if you factor Superman's "protective aura", Lois could not have been enveloped in Superman's forcefield when falling so far from him. She should also have gotten severe frostbite, unless he was using his heat vision from far away to radiate warmth, and -- nevermindand—nevermind.

* [[Lonely Atat the Top]]: In "The Night Before Mxymas", William B. Caldwell serves as [[The Scrooge]] archetype.

** In "Bob and Carol and Los and Clark", Grant Gendell is presented as a proxy of Howard Hughes, a hyper-paranoid billionaire who lives in a hermetically-sealed apartment. When confronted by Deathstroke -- whoDeathstroke—who seeks to [[Kill and Replace]] the old man -- Gendellman—Gendell finds the notion of anyone wanting to be ''him'' unthinkable: "I live in a cube!"

* [[Loves My Alter Ego]]: Lois also starts off this way, not caring about Clark and loving Superman, but she [[Character Development|gets over it]] as the series goes on. When Clark finally proposes at the end of season two, he deliberately waits to tell her his secret so that he knows she's marrying him for Clark, and not because he's Superman. Unfortunately she's already figured it out. Yet Clark had been ready to tell her the secret two days earlier, with no clear plan of proposing first.

** After Lois and Clark begin dating, Bobby Bigmouth remarks: "I want you to know how happy I am for you, and that there are [[Medium Awareness|a lot of people out there]] that are really pulling for this to work out."

* [[Modesty Bedsheet|Modesty Cape]]: [[Real Life]] example: the show made quite a splash with a promotional photo of Teri Hatcher wearing Superman's cape -- andcape—and nothing else. This has become something of a ''Superman'' staple; Margot Kidder originated the pose, followed by Hatcher and [[Smallville|Erica Durance]]. In the case of Hatcher, the image almost [[The Internet Is for Porn|broke the internet]].

** When an enemy blows up his secret closet where he keeps his Superman suits and they're all ruined, the first thing he says is "Mom's gonna kill me."

* [[Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate]]: Let's save ourselves some time: Doctors are bad. ''Period''.

** Lois' first guess as to the Prankster's identity is a diminutive nerd with the surname "Loomis", like his comic counterpart. In the show, however, Loomis is revealed to be just a [[Red Herring]].

** Leslie Luckabee (aka "{{spoiler|Lex Luthor Jr., well actually just a front man for such}}") claims he's been living in Australia since he was child, thus explaining his sudden reemergence. {{spoiler|During the 90s, the comic book Lex Luthor [[Brain In Aa Jar|had his brain transplanted]] into a younger-looking clone of himself. He then masqueraded as his own hitherto-unknown son, Lex Luthor II, complete with a false backstory about having been bred in Australia}}.

** Clark's landlady drops by his apartment just as he's grappling with Tez. When the door flings open, Tez has morphed into a blonde bombshell, and Clark is standing with his shirt torn open.

** Perry embracing Lois -- whoLois—who is [[Sweet Polly Oliver|disguised as a man]] -- in—in the middle of a bustling street. Oops.

{{quote| '''Jonathan Kent:''' We don't do much bowing here in Kansas.<br />

* [[New Neo City]]: New Krypton.

* [[New Powers Asas the Plot Demands]]: Super-memory, super-sketch drawing, super-smell, super-fingerprint analysis, and [[Up to Eleven|super-teleportation]].

** Lois' family is completely overhauled from Season 2 onward. [[Saving Private Ryan|Harve Presnell]] and [[Seventh7th Heaven|Beverly Garland]] take over the roles of Sam and Ellen Lane, respectively (it helps that Garland looks a lot like Teri Hatcher). Lois' sister Lucy is played by two women before dropping off the map altogether.

** [[Weekend At Bernies (Film)|Terry Kiser]] plays H.G. Wells in two episodes out of four, with Hamilton Camp standing in for him as an older incarnation.

* [[Paparazzi]]: Leo Nunk and his [[Camera Fiend]] sidekick. In pursuit of a scoop, he leaks the details of Lois & Clark's wedding to the villains, and gets [[Rewarded Asas a Traitor Deserves]].

* [[Pass the Popcorn]]: Tempus munches on popcorn while watching a live feed of Lois dangling from a ledge. A callback to this occurs in Season Four, when he casually eats a banana during a nuclear launch countdown.

* [[Pink Means Feminine]]: Ultrawoman. Mindy is also fond of this color.

* [[Power Perversion Potential]]: Clark nearly uses his x-ray vision to cheat at poker, but Lois' admiration of Superman convinces him to do otherwise. Lois doesn't share his moral fibre; as Ultrawoman, she uses her x-ray vision to see Clark naked.

* [[Psychic Link]]: The survivors of New Krypton all share this ability.

* [[Put Onon a Bus]]: Lucy Lane.

** Lois' uncle runs afoul of Bill Church by refusing to sell his café.

* [[Redemption Equals Death]]: {{spoiler|Clois}} [[Taking the Bullet|takes the bullet]] for Superman by jumping in front of Lex's [[Disintegrator Ray]], zapping both herself {{spoiler|and Lex}}.

** Leslie Luckabee turns out to be [[Not Quite Dead]], tackling {{spoiler|Lex Jr}}. before he can activate his weapon. In doing so, he activate Junior's [[Self-Destruct Mechanism]] (which [[Hoist Byby His Own Petard|was meant to ward off Superman]]), blowing both of them to smithereens.

* [[Remake Cameo]]: Nods to previous ''Superman'' continuity include casting Phyllis Coates as Lois's mother in "The House of Luthor", and Jack Larson as an old Jimmy Olsen in the episode "Brutal Youth". Coates played Lois Lane for the first season of ''[[The Adventures of Superman]]'', while Larson played Jimmy throughout the series' run.

** Leslie Luckabee is played by Patrick Cassidy. His father, Jack Cassidy, played the sleazy Max Menken in the 1966 Broadway musical, ''It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman!'' (In the 2010 revival, Patrick played his father's old role).

* [[Screwed Byby the Network]]: The series was actually a lock to return for a fifth season early on in the fourth, but the network wanted out (likely due to declining ratings). The series wound up being put on hiatus for a time, but when it came back, there was no promotion and ratings fell even further. Even worse, by the time cancellation was definite, the series was stuck with one heck of a loose end.

* [[Shirtless Scene]]: Plenty peppered throughout the series but who the hell ''wouldn't'' want to see that?

** When thinking of a secret identity to help people, Clark was [[Costume Test Montage|trying different outfits]], with each looking similar to [[Spider -Man|Kraven]], [[The Green Hornet]], [[The Flash]] and [[Captain America (comics)]].

** Perry meets with a [[Mysterious Informant|shadowy informant]] twice, spoofing ''[[All the President's Men (Film)|All the Presidents Men]]'' both times.

** In a reference to ''[[The Mask (Filmfilm)|The Mask]]'', Clark simply spins at superspeed to change into them to Cuban music and once satisfied, he notes "Smokin'!" before he [[Off Like a Shot|darts off]].

{{quote| '''Tempus:''' Herb, did your books actually sell? Because you're kind of a bore.}}

** Deathstroke and his wife Carol manage to befriend Lois & Clark by posing as a suburban couple that looks, dresses, and acts exactly like them. In reality, they are more like [[Evil Counterpart|Evil Counterparts]]s, but the gag is repeated throughout the episode: Deathstroke lampshades the absurdity of nobody recognizing him when he wears glasses, and the couple have a revolving bookcase in their apartment concealing their lair.

* [[Spared Byby the Adaptation]]: Jonathan Kent. The show allowed him to live while other previous television shows and movies allowed him to die.

** Sweet Tart, Jack Olsen's treacherous sidekick.

* [[Stage Magician]]: Of the evil variety. [[Penn & Teller|Penn Jillette]] plays a suspected terrorist (which would have been ''awesome''), but he turns out to be a [[Red Herring]].

* [[Straw Vulcan|Straw Vulcans]]s: The entire New Kryptonian population.

** In "Super Mann", [[Those Wacky Nazis]] awaken from their slumber just in time to see Superman catch a falling billboard. Since it's a [[Flash Back]], the footage is ripped straight from the pilot episode (when Dean Cain had longer hair).

* [[The Teaser]]: Sometimes they had an opening gag with Clark doing something and mildly showing his powers. One in particular had him accidentally coming across Bo Jackson and playing basketball with him. Jackson was completely dominating him until Clark decided to do a slam dunk from half-way across the court.

{{quote| "Bo don't know how to do ''that''..."}}

* [[Those Two Guys]]: Perry and Jimmy. (See "[[Leaning Onon the Fourth Wall]]")

* [[Trigger Phrase]]: Used a few times. In "Illusion of Grandeur", a stage magician hypnotizes Perry into exclaiming [[Hypno Fool|"That's brilliant"]] whenever Jimmy says anything. In the same episode, the Villain Of The Week uses the trigger phrase "The moon and the stars" to manipulate others, including Superman.

** In "Target: Jimmy Olsen", the titular character is programmed into a [[Manchurian Agent]] who tries to kill Lois.

* [[True Meaning of Christmas]]: Dean Cain played Clark as a big kid who is completely gaga about Christmas, in contrast to Lois who sees only commercialism.

** [[Disposable Sex Worker|"Long Legs" Lulu]] gets this treatment for attempting to warn Lois about Intergang. Her nickname is apt, since all Lois finds is a pair of stiletto-clad legs [[Stuffed Into the Fridge|sticking out of a trashbin]].

* [[Villain Withwith Good Publicity]]: Lex, obviously. Most of Intergang's sleeper agents fit this trope.

** Tempus in season 4.

{{quote| '''Tempus:''' I am the [[President Evil|most popular President]] the world has ever known! Even [[Ronald Reagan|Reagan]] in his heydey couldn't have gotten away with ''this. (pushes bodyguard out a window)''}}

* [[Villain Withwith Good Publicity]]: The Church family, who own a series of monolithic Wal-Mart type stores and give money to the needy.

{{quote| "Hey, I tugged on Superman's cape!"}}

** Jefferson Cole says of his human-targeting Kryptonite rainstorm: "Nobody will be [[Singin' in Thethe Rain (Film)|singing in THIS rain]]."

* [[What Happened to The Mouse?|What Happened To Thethe Mouse?]]: A literal mouse example. A villain tests a device for transferring Superman's [[Powers Asas Programs|powers to others]] on a mouse. The 'supermouse' dashes straight out of its metal cage at superspeed into the outside world and is never seen again. [[Fridge Horror|An ultrafast, invincible, nigh-immortal predator is basically free to pounce on or through anything in the world.]]

{{quote| '''Lex:''' Have you ever read Sun Tzu's ''[[The Art of War]]''?<br />

* [[Will They or Won't They?|Will They Or Won't They]]: This is teased for so long, that when they finally do the episode is called [["Not Making This Up" Disclaimer|"Swear to God, This Time We're Not Kidding"]] because of the [[Snap Back|Snap Backs]]s, Clones, and so forth.

* [[Woman Scorned]]: In "Pheremone, My Lovely", a perfume manufacturer goes berserk after Lex dumps her for Lois.

* [[Written Byby Cast Member]]: Dean Cain wrote "Season's Greedings" and "Virtually Destroyed" (from a story by himself and Sean Brennan); Teri Hatcher co-wrote the notably Lois-centric "It's A Small World After All."

* [[You! Get Me Coffee!]]: Perry and Jimmy's relationship.

{{quote| '''D.A. Clemmons:''' I suggest you keep your emotions in check, Mr Kent. You obviously have no idea who you're dealing with, here. <br />

* [[All Girls Want Bad Boys]]: In "Smart Kids", Lois' influence rubs off on Clark, who swipes incriminating evidence out from under a suspect's nose. Lois [[Squee|squeessquee]]s when she finds out. Really.

* [[Amnesia Danger]] / [[How Do I Shot Web?]]: In trying to intercept an asteroid, Superman is slammed back to Earth -- withEarth—with amnesia. When Clark is wandering around, his parents find him and try to get him to remember he is Superman. Of course, Jonathan Kent can't really explain how he can uses his flying ability ("You just... will it to happen?")

* [[Antagonist in Mourning]]: As Lex takes his leave of Superman, leaving him to die in a krpytonite cage, Lex seems to have second thoughts.

{{quote| "But am I making a mistake? Will the pain of losing the challenge that you represent be worse than the pain of constantly losing to you? [beat] [[Parodied Trope|Nah.]]}}

{{quote| '''Clark:''' We'll get to see the [[Beauty Pageant|Corn Queen Pageant]], [[Incredibly Lame Fun|the Huskoff, the Corn-o-Rama, popcorn, cream corn, corn on the cob]]. ''We'' are in luck.<br />

* [[Big Bad]]: Billionaire Lex Luthor, as long as he still had hair...

* [[Book Ends]]: Season One begins with Lex boasting about his building being the tallest in Metropolis, and how everyone must gaze up to see him. {{spoiler|He ends up leaping from the roof in the season finale}}.

* [[Cut His Heart Out Withwith a Spoon]]: Lex, in colorful terms, explains why his clone Superman can beat the real thing: "Because if it means the difference between winning and losing, he'll pick up a passenger train filled with people and use it to bash Superman's skull in."

* [[Catapult Nightmare]]: Early in the series, Clark has a nightmare of his co-workers [[BigNon LippedSequitur Alligator MomentScene|all wearing Superman paraphernalia and cackling insanely at him]].

* [[The Cavalry]]: Moments before Clark (weakened by Kryptonite) is killed, Smallville's Sheriff rolls in and fatally shoots Trask.

* [[Challenging the Chief]]: Toni Taylor ejects her brother, leader of the Metro Gang, after he proves too stubborn to adapt to legitimate business. This turns out to have been a tad hypocritical, as Toni was working with Luthor all burn down Metropolis' waterfront properties.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' Did you really think I hadn't figured out what it was with you and Superman?<br />

'''Clark:''' What do you mean?<br />

{{quote| '''Lex:''' It's always such an embarrassment, [[Dirty Business|having to do away with someone]]. It's like announcing to the world that you lack the savvy and the finesse to deal with the problem more creatively. I mean, there have been times, naturally, when [[You Have Failed Me...|I've had to have people eliminated]], but it's always saddened me. I've always felt like [[It's All About Me|I've let myself down somehow]].}}

* [[Confessional]]: With Superman is still missing, and a failed attempt by the military to destroy the asteroid with nuclear missiles, Cat Grant goes to confessional.

{{quote| "Bless me father for I have sinned. ...And sinned....and sinned..."}}

** Cat being Cat, of course, she makes a pass at the priest. ("Aren't there [[You Don't Want to Die Aa Virgin, Do You?|some things you want to experience before you die?]]") We hear the panel door open and receding footsteps as the priest runs to get as far away as possible from this temptress.

* [[Defrosting Ice Queen]]: Lois in the first season, coupled with healthy doses of [[Jerk Withwith a Heart of Gold]].

{{quote| '''Lex''': And then the Wolf said to Little Red Riding Hood: "[[Insurance Fraud|Are you sure the policy is in your name?]]" }}

* [[Devil in Plain Sight]]: Clark blasts the much-beloved philanthropist Lex for being evil incarnate, to no avail.

{{quote| '''Perry:''' What happened to that mood piece I gave you about the razing of that old theater on Forty-Second Street?<br />

* [[Die Hard Onon an X|Die Hard In A Newsroom]]

** Living in Metropolis, though, you'd think we'd see those signs more often.

* [[Evil, Inc.]]: "Apocalypse Consulting." Seems trustworthy enough.

* [[Fake-Out Make-Out]]: In "Honeymoon in Metropolis", Clark and Lois are spying on a couple bad guys across from their hotel when Clark sees the cleaning lady coming in with towels through the door. He then tosses Lois on the bed and this trope ensues. A short [[Post-Kiss Catatonia]] occurs for Lois afterwards.

* [[False Reassurance]]: When Lex Luthor tells you, "Your final payment is waiting for you [[External Combustion|in the helicopter]]. I promise, there [[He Knows Too Much|will be no loose ends]].", you should probably take a cab.

* [[The Family for Thethe Whole Family]]: The Metros. Really, the gang of chome-suited nimrods in hardhats are more menacing.

* [[Flashback Echo]]: "Fly Hard", in which the main cast members double as [[The Roaring Twenties|prohibition-era]] gangsters in the past.

{{quote| '''Lex:''' Superman has morals. He has ethics. He is unrelentingly good. Because of that, I will win.}}

** Trask? [[X -Men|Hmmm]].

* [[Get a Hold of Yourself, Man!]]: When Luthor's accomplice in "Smart Kids" starts having a panic attack at the thought of being exposed, Luthor smacks him a good one. He seems to enjoy it just the tiniest bit, too.

** After sending Bill Church and his son to the slammer, the ''new'' chairman of Intergang -- Mindy -- isIntergang—Mindy—is seen smoking a stogie.

* [[Gretzky Has the Ball]]: While convering a story at a sports gym, Clark tries to impress Lois by listing a string of boxing statistics -- allstatistics—all of which Lois casually shoots down, like she's [[The Rainman]] of sports trivia. This is a segue to revealing that Dr. Sam Lane, a renowned figure in sports medicine, is Lois' father ("Requiem for a Superhero").

* [[Hall of Mirrors]]: The climax of "Illusions of Grandeur" takes place in one.

** Happens again in "Pheromone, My Lovely", when Clark overhears Cat Grant [[Obligatory Joke|getting serviced]] by a repairman.

{{quote| "You must be some kinda '''angel''', brother!" }}

* [[I Cant Take It Anymore|I Can't Take It Anymore]]: In "Pheromone, My Lovely", Clark repeatedly turns down Lois' sexual advances (including dressing up as a [[Belly Dancer]]) on the grounds that she's under the influence of a powerful pheromone. Finally, he cracks. By this time, however, Lois has regained her senses.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' Clark! Have you lost your mind?! ''(glances down at outfit)'' ...Or have I lost mine?}}

* [[I Love the Smell of X In Thethe Morning]]: Perry: "I love the smell of fear in the newsroom."

* [[ISO Standard Urban Groceries]]: Lois' arms are full with "Metro Mart" bags when she trips on her apartment stairs, to the [[The Freelance Shame Squad|cackling laughter]] of the Smart Kids.

* [[Kick the Dog]]: Oh that Lex Luthor, he's incorrigible. A running gag throughout Season 1 is Lex's over-the-top animal cruelty, usually in the form of recreational hobbies. In "Neverending Battle", he's shown playing with pet hawk, [[Faust]], while ordering him to go kill pigeons.

** Following the awards ceremony for Superman in "I'm Looking Through You", Lex decides the best way to cheer himself up is to go hunt alligators in the Everglades; he later returns wearing alligator skin boots.

** Lastly, in "Man of Steel Bars", Lex readies his power plant to empty boiling-hot water into Metropolis Bay. Even his butler, Nigel, thinks this is a bit extreme given that it would cause an ecological disaster; Lex shrugs this off, since there's "Plenty of fish in the sea, Nigel."

* [[Latex Perfection]]: Lex's [[Body Double]].

* [[Let No Crisis Go to Waste]]: The ''Metropolis Star'' - "[[Trouble Entendre|We Make Things Happen.]]"

* [[Love Is in Thethe Air]]: In "Pheromone, My Lovely", a [[Woman Scorned]] sprays the Daily Planet's offices with this. When this fails to get desired results, she hijacks a crop dusting aircraft and nearly pollutes the whole city with it.

{{quote| "I'm doomed."}}

{{quote| "Bye, Lois."}}

* [[Not a Date]]: In the Pilot, Lois needs an escort to avoid going to Luthor's party alone. After exhausting all of her other alternatives, she picks Clark.

{{quote| '''Clark:''' So, this would be like a date?<br />

* [[Not Listening to Me, Are You?]]: Lois is distracted on the way home after an evening out with Lex Luthor. When she doesn't respond to his comments about the production of ''[[Othello]]'' they just saw, Lex says, "Did you know that Shakespeare didn't write ''Othello'', it was actually written by [[Dr. Seuss]]?" Lois just nods and says "Mm-hm".

* [[Open-Heart Dentistry]]: Lex is shot in the shoulder by one of the armed hostage-takers. Unable to reveal his identity to his co-workers, Clark is forced to cauterize the wound with an "herbal remedy" utilizing [[MacGyvering|random crap lying around the office]], such as tea bags, orange juice, and chewing gum.

* [[Open Mouth, Insert Foot]]: Lois scoffs at Clark's assertion that the folks of Smallville are all "normal", pointing out that the fat guy running the barbecue ([[Right in Front of Me|Howdy, Pa Kent!]]) is probably a crossdresser.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' You know, I'm getting really tired of [[Obligatory Joke|fumbling]] around with these sports metaphors.<br />

** In "Foundling", Perry sits down next to a troubled Lois, who tells him to "lay it on me." But the sage Editor-in-chief is oddly reticent.

{{quote| '''Perry:''' Oh. I suppose you expect me to pry into your life to try and find out what's bothering you and then relate it to some obscure event in the life of Elvis Presley. Well I-- I'm just not gonna do that.<br />

'''Lois:''' Why not?<br />

* [[Or Are You Just Happy to See Me?]]: Lex, after gunning down a mercenary and commenting on the kryptonite in his pocket.

* [[Paranoia Gambit]]: In retaliation for Lois stealing his story and submitting it under her name, Clark scribbles a phony map to Superman's "spaceship" and leaves it on his desk for Lois to find. Later, Lois returns from her little expedition, covered in mud and carrying the broken heel of her shoe. The only thing Lois found down there was the "Metropolis Sewer Reclamation Facility", and a [[Godzilla]] doll dressed up like Superman. (Earlier, Jimmy had said that Godzilla was the only one who could [[Brick Joke|teach Lois a lesson]].)

* [[Password Slot Machine]]: Superman did it at least twice - once with ''[[Citizen Kane (Film)|Citizen Kane]]'' (the bad guy's favorite film), and another time with a word he knew was related to Norse mythology.

* [[Resignations Not Accepted]]: Nobody has ever from resigned from Bureau 39 and lived -- atlived—at least to hear Trask tell it.

* [[Saw Star Wars 27 Times]]: Perry saving a life-size cutout of [[Elvira, Mistress of the Dark]] from the trash bin. "Jimmy, she's the reason why I've seen ''[[The Return of Godzilla (Film)|Godzilla]]'' 115 times."

* [[A Shared Suffering]]: Clark suggests that "Superman" is sad that Bizarro Superman is gone, because it might have been nice for Superman to have a brother.

* [[She Cleans Up Nicely]]: Inverted. After being dragged (kicking and screaming) to the Smallville corn festival and mixing with the locals, Lois resurfaces wearing a [[Going Native|purple prairie dress]]. The expression on Clark's face goes, "Yowza."

{{quote| '''Clark:''' Elvis never cheated on Priscilla!<br />

* [[Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace]]: The cops bust in on Luthor's wedding right before he and Lois are wed.

{{quote| You'd like that, wouldn't you? Me, home alone, in a schlumpy robe, crying into a tub of Rocky Road? In your dreams, Kent. }}

{{quote| '''Perry:''' ''(holds up front page)'' What's wrong with this picture? I'll tell you what's wrong with this picture. The problem is that we ''have'' no picture. Superman is the biggest story of the day. Now, can someone please explain this to me?<br />

* [[Wrong Guy First]]: Lois nearly marries Lex Luthor. Good grief.

* [[X Days Since...]]: Happens non-comedically. The counter at a base is reset to zero because of something happening in the episode.

* [[Xanatos Gambit]]: When their scheme falls through, Lex betrays his associate by shooting him just as he's about to kill Lois ("Requiem For A Superman"). When Superman shows up, Lois instead runs over to Lex, all, "[[Angel (TV)|How can I thank you, you mysterious black clad hunk of a night thing?]]" Lex kisses Lois' hand, then turns and makes a crack to Superman about [[Bastardly Speech|how lucky it was that]] ''one'' of them got there in time.

** Superbly done in "I've Got a Crush On You". Luthor's business partner is now in jail, but that's one less cut of the profits, [[Amirite]]? Metropolis harbor is all his. As an added bonus, Lex plans to reverse-engineer the Toasters' flame guns for later use.

* [[All Love Is Unrequited]]: Mayson Drake.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' The [[Psycho Psychologist|last psychiatrist]] that I saw had [[Evil Knockoff|an exact double of me]] made and tried to have me killed.<br />

* [[Audible Gleam]]: Secret Service Agent Navarro. "You can't protect the President if you don't protect your teeth."

* [[Back Fromfrom the Dead]]: {{spoiler|Lex Luthor}}.

{{quote| '''Tempus:''' I don't belong here! I'm from the future! [[Cassandra Truth|I have to get out of here so I can build another time machine!]] Hey! Anybody listening to me? }}

{{quote| "Gold card? ''{{[[[Sniff Sniff Nom]] nom nom}})'' Like hell it is."}}

{{quote| '''Lois:''' Clark, this isn't just ''any'' beer!<br />

* [[Brainless Beauty]]: While on the rebound from Lois, Clark gets roped into dating Veronica, a dim museum attendant.* [[Broke Episode]]: During a citywide blackout, Perry orders everybody to prepare tomorrow's edition using old-school printing presses. It pays off, and the ''Planet'' is the only paper with a new issue that following morning.

{{quote| '''Lois''': I'm not naked. These are just new fashions from... France.}}

* [[Complaining About Rescues They Don't Like]]: The premise of "Whine, Whine, Whine" is that Superman saves a musician from being crushed by a falling amplifier... only to have the resucee [[Frivolous Lawsuit|sue him for "spraining" his arm]]. The rest of the episode features a lot of [[Ambulance Chaser|Ambulance Chasers]]s trying to cash in. At the trial, the court room is rigged with a C12 bomb, and Superman bursts through the ceiling to fly off with it, saving everyone... and the musician claims to have gone blind from getting plaster dust in his eyes. Finally his wife gets fed up, reveals that he's just pretending to be injured, and dumps him in front of the entire court.

{{quote| '''Tempus:''' Don't I know you?<br />

* [[Coolest Club Ever]]: Stoke Club. He even has [[Amazonian Beauty|amazons]] for [[Bouncer|bouncersbouncer]]s!

* [[Cowboy Cop]]: Clark lampshades Dan Scardino's not-so-subtle resemblance to [[Lethal Weapon (Film)|Mel Gibson]].

* [[Cut His Heart Out Withwith a Spoon]]: Lex negotiating with his accountant.

{{quote| '''Lex:''' If you cross me, Bender, [[Squick|I will cut open your chest, and sew up a rat inside]].}}

* [[Death Byby Falling Over]]: Lois uses her [[Waif Fu]] to overpower Lenny Stoke's bodyguard, [[wikipedia:Cory Everson|Cory Everson]]. She looks a bit embarrassed as she lolls on the sidewalk and 'faints'.

* [[Death Is Cheap]]: After the tumble he took, {{spoiler|Lex}} ought to be hamburger. But Dr. Tasha Yar freezes his body, and he turns up again in Season 2 no worse for wear.

* [[Defensive Feint Trap]]: Lois needs to get inside the Stoke Club, but two burly ladies are guarding the door.

{{quote| '''Lois''': Hi! I just thought I'd give you girls a tip. Lenny told me he really likes his women to be...well... how should I put this? 'Smaller than your average milk cow? [...] Should I be using smaller words? [run away]}}

* [[Delivery Guy]]: Superman, prompting the father to exclaim, "I've just thought of the perfect name."

* [[Directed Byby Cast Member]]: "Season's Greedings",was directed by Dean Cain. His real-life mother, actress Sharon Thomas, has a brief cameo as the customer who gets into a fistfight with Lois over a toy doll.

{{quote| '''Frank James:''' Jesse, it happens to every man once in awhile.<br />

'''Jesse James''': Not to ''me''!<br />

'''Frank James:''' Look, it's not your fault. [[Double Entendre|His was just plain bigger]].<br />

'''Jesse James''': Size never made no difference before.<br />

* [[Foreign Cuss Word]]: When Clark arrives at Lois' apartment for Christmas dinner, she proclaims "''You'' are going to get stuffed!" The line made quite a stir in Australia.

* [[Get Back to Thethe Future]]: "Tempus Fugitive":

{{quote| '''Tempus:''' Well, Lois Lane, independent career woman of the 1990s, you're about to be [[Trapped in Thethe Past|stranded in 1866]], [[Fate Worse Than Death|without the right to vote, own property or write for a great Metropolitan newspaper]]! God, I love irony.}}

* [[His Name Is--]]: Bill Church's lawyer is about to finger his boss as the head of Intergang--unawareIntergang—unaware that Church is listening in. One remote control button push later, and [[Stuff Blowing Up|blammo]].

{{quote| '''Jonathan:''' Oh boy. What am I doing playin' with lasers on a farm?<br />

* [[Hopeless Suitor]]: Mayson Drake and Dan Scardino.

* [[Hospital Hottie]]: Diana Stride, in one of her many disguises.

* [[It Seemed Like a Good Idea At Thethe Time]]: Clark's response after being called out by Lois for having a secret identity.

* [[It's All Junk]]: Clark surprises Lois with a batch yellow flowers ( "[[Flower Motifs|yellow is for friendship]]". This after the Prankster had been sending her using romantic gifts as [[Trojan Horse|Trojan Horses]]s for his crimes, and to make her miserable. Lois assumes the flowers are another trap, and bins them immediately.

* [[Magic Plastic Surgery]]: The imposter hired to frame Lois.

* [[No Honor Among Thieves]]: Following his return, Lex promptly gets backstabbed and usurped his former butler, Nigel. Nigel defects over to Intergang for little while, but is poisoned by an accomplice.

* [[Note to Self:]]: Before losing her memory at the end of "Tempus Fugitive" Lois leaves herself a note reading "<small>CLARK KENT IS SUPERMAN</small>". Clark manages to intercept it, though.

* [[Off Onon a Technicality]]: "Baby Rage", a street punk who happens to share legal represented with Intergang.

** "Ms. Goodbottom" counts as [[Hilarious in Hindsight]], since it predates Teri Hatcher's role in ''[[Tomorrow Never Dies (Film)|Tomorrow Never Dies]]'' by about two years.

* [[The Plague]]: In "Resurrection", a lunatic plans to unleash a bio-weapon on Metropolis as payback for being fired from STAR Labs.

{{quote| '''Perry:''' Clark, if Jimmy calls, tell him I know it feels like [[Hurricane of Euphemisms|the bottom of the ninth with two outs and two strikes against him but that the Planet is gonna mount a full-court press, and we won't stop until it's game, set, match]], OLSEN!}}

* [[Remember the New Guy?]]: "Don't Tug On Superman's Cape" introduces Bad Brain Johnson, an escaped criminal who blames Lois and Clark for his conviction -- whichconviction—which was never shown. Yet the episode treats Bad Brain as a returning villain.

* [[Subliminal Advertising]]: Ariana Carlin's newspaper column, in which the first letter of each sentence forms an acrostic ("SUPERMAN IS EVIL").

* [[Too Kinky to Torture]]: Diana Stride's henchman, Rolf.

{{quote| "Oh. Am I....in ''trouble''? Are you going to...''punish me?''"}}

* [[We Will Not Have Pockets in Thethe Future]]: Tempus in his first appearance.

* [[Ain't Too Proud to Beg|Ain't Too Proud To Beg]]: In "Seconds", {{spoiler|Lex}} weakens Clark with a "[[Disintegrator Ray|matter disintegrator]]", then orders him to beg for mercy while holding his parents at gunpoint.

{{quote| '''{{spoiler|Lex:}}''' That's good. You grovel with style, and that's important. Because I'm going to tell every criminal in the world who you are, and I'm going to give them the design of this weapon, [[And Your Little Dog, Too|your parents' address]], and you're going to spend the rest of your life running...or ''hiding!'' And believe me, they're both equally humiliating.}}

* [[Alien Abduction]]: Subverted. Lois ''thinks'' she's been abducted by aliens, but those memories are implanted by an evil [[Bill Gates]] proxy.

* [[Aliens Steal Cable]]: Zara's puzzlement at Clark's unwillingness to consummate their union.

{{quote| '''Zara:''' And are the intimate habits of men and women on Earth so difference from ours? This fact never appeared in my briefing manual.<br />

'''Clark:''' That's not what I meant.<br />

* [[The Ark]]: Larry Smiley's couples counseling & wilderness retreat!

* [[The Baby Trap]]: A woman from the [[Deep South]] announces to the world that Superman fathered her son --– which is hard to refute, since the kid is bench-pressing sofas. {{spoiler|It turns out he was a passenger on a plane which was rescued by Superman. [[Lightning Can Do Anything|Lightning struck the wing]], temporarily infusing the boy with Superman's powers}}.

{{quote| '''Perry:''' Oh, look, I know I've been [[Grumpy Old Man|uptight and irritable]] lately, quick to judge, quick to condemn, sometimes I've been [[Mean Boss|downright mean]]. What I'm trying to say is that you...you...well-- you can expect more of the same.}}

* [[Black Shirt]]: [[Sleazy Politician|Sen.]] [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast|Xander Truman Black]] is one of several high-profile figures who try to reboot the Nazi party.

* [[Cloning Blues]]: Clois has the mentality of a [[The Ditz|valley girl]], exploits Superman to get rich, and eventually trying to bump off the real Lois so she's can't interfere. Oh yeah, [[Turned Against Their Masters|she shoots Lex]], too. You really start to feel for Lex after a while.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' Call the cops and see...<br />

'''Clark:''' ...if there was another robbery yesterday...<br />

'''Lois:''' ...at exactly 3:00, particularly at a...<br />

'''Clark:''' ...a high tech firm. Ask for everything...<br />

'''Lois:''' ...they've got!<br />

'''Jimmy:''' ''(beat)'' Did you guys practice that?<br />

* [[A Glitch in Thethe Matrix]]: Jaxon Xavier's virtual world in "Virtually Destroyed". The pedestrians are seen walking alongside [[You All Look Familiar|copies of themselves]], holes in the walls get fixed instantly, etc.

* [[HeelDeadly Face Door SlamChange-of-Heart]]: Bill Church really did seem reformed, even if his "new" methods were a bit strange. Nonetheless, he ends up back in prison thanks to his unscrupulous wife's manipulation. It almost seems a little tragic, considering that his reformation was triggered by his feelings for his manipulative wife.

* [[Her Codename Was Mary Sue]]: Lois is perpetually writing a romance novel. In the third season, Jimmy cracks her password ("Superman", naturally) and discovers that the main character, Linda Detroit, has two love interests: "Clark" and "Kent". One is reliable and strong (her relationship with Superman), while the other is kind but flaky (her relationship with Clark).

* [[If I Wanted You Dead...]]:

{{quote| '''Tempus:''' Herb, if I wanted to kill (Lois), I'd [[Cut His Heart Out Withwith a Spoon|beat her to death with a frozen lamb chop]] and then eat it [[A Glass of Chianti|with a nice merlot]]. }}

* [[Let Me At Him]]: When faced with Lois' (brainwashed) announcement that she's quitting the Daily Planet and moving to France with [[Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate|her psychiatrist]], Maxwell Deter, Perry lunges straight for the Doc.

{{quote| '''Perry''': Just take your cue from [[Hypocritical Humor|the master of cool]] here, huh? Slow and easy.<br />

''(a minute later)'' <br />

{{quote| '''Clark:''' ...He's [[Bond One-Liner|a broken man.]]}}

* [[Moral Dilemma]]: In "Sex, Lies, and Videotape", Superman is photographed kissing Lois (now married to his alter-ego), causing a scandal. After [[Malicious Slander]] threatens to derail Superman's peace talks between two nations, Clark comes pretty close to divulging his secret identity.

* [[No Doubt the Years Have Changed Me]]: Baron Sunday is {{spoiler|a patsy who was (unwittingly) ruined by Clark Kent's expose on weapon smugglers. He was brought [[Back Fromfrom the Dead]] by [[Witch Doctor|Witch Doctors]]s and returned to get revenge on Clark and the others who framed him}}.

{{quote| "And remember, at Century 22 we bring the future to you!"}}

* [[Phlebotinum Battery]]: A villain has a disintegration weapon that's capable of hurting Superman but they aren't positive they can kill him while using it. To ensure Superman is weakened, they make a catastrophe in an underground missile silo so that while using his powers he doesn't have a backup charge. Superman wins when Lois shorts out the silo door controls, opening them so he could recharge.

* [[Playing Withwith Fire]]: Baron Sunday.

* [[Sadistic Choice]]: Ching kidnaps Jimmy/Perry and ties them to a bomb in an undisclosed location, while doing the same with Clark's parents in another location. The bombs are set to go off a the same time. They give Superman a choice of saving his friend or his parents, as he only has enough time to find and disarm one bomb. Supes decides to [[Take a Third Option]] and uses a beam splitter to fry both bombs with his laser vision from the sky.

* [[Sunglasses Atat Night]]: An overly-cautious weapons smuggler in "Seconds."

* [[Take That]]: Lois judges a grainy photo handed to her by Clark.

{{quote| Look! There's Elvis...and Jimmy Hoffa...and the plot to ''[[Showgirls]]''!}}

* [[Timmy in Aa Well]]: Subverted in "Ultrawoman". The "baby" in question is just toy doll planted by the villains to lure Superman to them.

* [[War for Fun Andand Profit]]: Randy Goode leaks a compromising photo of Superman to the press, sabotaging a vital peace talk which the Man of Steel is mediating.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' {{spoiler|Who's asking? Clark..." *swipes glasses* "...or <small>SUPERMAN</small>?}}.}}

{{quote| '''Lord Nor:''' Oh, "prisoners" is such a pejorative term.<br />

'''Leeza Gibbons:''' What would ''you'' call them?<br />

* [[BLAMNon Sequitur Scene Episode]]: "Soul Mates", which involves Lois & Clark jumping between [[Hollywood History]] time periods. Each time, Clark is a heroic rogue with a mild-mannered alter-ego, while Lois is trapped in a [[Shotgun Wedding]] by Tempus.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' Foreplay is great, but [[Arc Fatigue|this is ridiculous!]]}}

* [[Captain Obvious]]: In "Shadow of a Doubt", a killer has strangled a scientist in his office, despite there being no sign of break-in. Dr. Klein lends his expertise:

{{quote| "Self-induced strangulation is very rare."}}

* [[Cassette Craze]]: A tape recording of {{spoiler|Lex Luthor}} exposing Superman's secret identity.

* [[Cool Bike]]: In "Faster Than a Speeding Vixen", Dr. Klein is revealed to ride a Harley Davidson to work.

* [[Creepy Cathedral]]: The belltower where Jefferson Cole plans to release a toxin rain onto Metropolis.

* [[Decoy Leader]]: Leslie Luckabee is presented as {{spoiler|Lex Luthor's illegitimate son}}, with the deformed "[[Mr. Smith]]" as his valet. Actually, it's the other way around.

* [[Distaff Counterpart]]: Spoofed with Ultrawoman.

* [[Doppelganger Replacement Love Interest]]: After Superman is trapped in Tempus' time warp, H.G. Wells enlists his [[Alternate Universe]] counterpart for help. Things get a little awkward between him and Lois, particularly since the Lois Lane of alt-Superman's world has been missing for years and is presumed dead.

* [[Evil-Detecting Dog]]: The teaser to "The Night Before Mxymas" shows a dog barking angrily at Mr. Mxyzptlk, who retaliates by turning it into a toy.

* [[Expendable Clone]]: Tempus' [[Body Double]], planted by Andrus so nobody would notice him missing from the asylum. Later, Tempus tricks Superman into capturing the fake Tempus.

* [[Five Rounds Rapid]]: Col. Ambrose Cash orders his tanks to open fire on Lord Nor's [[Deflector Shield]]. It's about as effective as throwing rocks.

* [[Groundhog Day Loop]]: Myxy puts a different spin on it - he, Supes {{spoiler|and, eventually Lois}} are the only ones fully aware of the loop, but everyone is ''subconsciously'' aware of it, causing them to become increasingly fatalistic. After enough loops, World War 3 is on the horizon.

* [[Hidden in Plain Sight]]: In "Voice From the Past", Superman is busy looking for Lex Luthor Jr.'s hideout. It turns out to be in an abandoned subway station ''directly underneath'' the Daily Planet.

* [[Immortality Immorality]]: Connor Schenk, an elderly convict, enlists the help of a scientist to steal Jimmy's [[Liquid Assets|life force]] via a machine, thereby transforming himself into a young man while Jimmy rapidly ages.

* [[It Works Better Withwith Bullets]]: Bad guy Ethan Press holds his brother Eric hostage and forces him to help kill Superman. At one point Eric fights back and grabs the disintegrator gun they stole from the Pentagon, then points it in Ethan's face. Ethan tells Eric he's not "man enough" to do it. Eric pulls the trigger and, as in the description, nothing happens. Ethan gloats, "I disarmed it!" and shows Eric the part he removed.

* [[Licked Byby the Dog]]: Woody Samms makes a [[Heroic Sacrifice]] by [[Body Surf|bodysurfing]] back into his own body, thereby reverting Clark to his old self. Now vulnerable again, Samms is {{spoiler|fatally shot by Little Tony, but survives when the mobster's puppy wanders over to his bullet-riddled body and licks the body-swapping crystal in his hand. ...Yep, Samms is now a quadruped}}.

* [[Living Shadow]] / [[Tragic Villain]]: Edward Hanson, ex-scientist and victim of a [[Freak Lab Accident]].

* [[Mayfly-December Romance]]: "Brutal Youth" focuses on Lois' discover that Clark does not age as fast as a normal human being -- ifbeing—if he aged at all. It is (possibly) resolved when Superman gives up some of his youth to rescue Jimmy from [[Rapid Aging]], and also to de-age the villain of the week into a baby. Clark later suggests he has given up enough of his youth for it to no longer be an issue.

* [[Name's the Same]]: "Deathstroke" has no connection to Marv Wolfman's DC Comics supervillain -- assupervillain—as if it weren't obvious enough by the fact he has [[Selective Magnetism|magnetic powers]], a different surname, and he's not missing an eye.

* [[Not Even Bothering Withwith the Accent]]: "Australian"-born Leslie Luckabee. He blames it on having "[[Hand Wave|watched too many TV shows]]" as a kid.

{{quote| '''Lois:''' Well, even ''you'' must be surprised by your surge in popularity given that, well, no one knows ANYTHING about you.<br />

{{quote| '''Tempus:''' Too late! You need an abort code to-- ''(SMASH)'' ..Or--Or that, you could do that.}}

* [[Powers Asas Programs]]: See entry for [[Lightning Can Do Anything]]. In "Ultrawoman", a red kryptonite laser transfers Clark's powers to Lois, then Lois to Shelly Long, then Long back to Clark.

* [[Phantom Zone]]: Not ''the'' Phantom Zone, but pretty close. In "Meet John Doe", Tempus imprisons Superman within a single nanosecond of time, which resembles a giant...[[When Things Spin, Science Happens|spinny]], [[Timey-Wimey Ball|glass cube-thing]].

* [[President Evil]]: Tempus, courtesy of [[Mass Hypnosis]].

{{quote| '''Tempus:''' [[Prophetic Name|Dragon]], I'm told that you are the cruelest, most sadistic, most feared cutthroat in Metropolis. You [[Self-Made Orphan|killed your parents when you were 3]], and it's been downhill ever since.<br />

'''Dragon:''' That's more or less it.<br />

* [[Runaway Groom]]: Responsible for creating The Wedding Destroy. Yep. [[Exactly What It Says Onon the Tin|The Wedding Destroyer]]. If you haven't figured it out yet, she is basically a psycho who goes around destroying people's weddings.

* [[Save Both Worlds]]: No sooner does Clark leave for New Krypton to prevent a civil war, than Lord Nor lands on Earth and takes it over.

{{quote| "Amazing, isn't it? Out of ''all'' of the villians who've wanted you dead, I am going to be the one to pull it off; a spoiled dilettante with too much time on his hands. [chokes up] Lex would be so proud."}}

* [[Strip Poker]]: [[The Teaser]] to "Lethal Weapon" shows Clark and Lois playing this game at home.

* [[Tempting Fate]]: Clark's repeated assurances to Lois that ''nothing'' will postpone their wedding.

{{quote| "Besides, it's not like [[Lampshade Hanging|the Wedding Destroyer broke out of the asylum]] or something."}}

* [[Trial Byby Combat]]: Superman and Lord Nor's gladiator [[Duel to Thethe Death]].

* [[WalkWalking Onon Water]]: Vixen demonstrates the ability to ''[[Super Speed|sprint across oceans]]''.

* [[We Come in Peace, Shoot Toto Kill]]: Lord Nor's posse of evil Kryptonians take over Earth handedly, but not before handing out friendly brochures.

* [[We Will Not Use Photoshop in Thethe Future]]: A tabloid reporter snaps a picture of Superman kissing Lois, but it's a fake: Jimmy reveals the image was made using 3D models of Lois and Superman and digitally posing them in a lying-down position.

* [[Weakened Byby the Light]]: Edward Hanson, aka the "Shadow".

{{quote| ''"I call the shots, I ask the questions. You are low man, I am top banana, and that's the way I like it, comprende?'' <br />