• Welcome! The TrekBBS is the number one place to chat about Star Trek with like-minded fans.
    If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman

Gaith

Gaith

Vice Admiral
Admiral
Doesn't look as though there's been a thread devoted to this 1993-97 show for years, if ever. I recently picked up a S1 DVD set for three or four bucks from a secondhand store, and found the double-episode extended pilot fairly enjoyable. (Hot take: it's actually more enjoyable than any Superman movie to date, though not as good as Smallville's pilot, though it does have several moments of cringe.)

Anyhow, I was wondering if anyone has or knows of an episode guide, or has any particular S1 favorites? The user ratings on IMDb are pretty uniform...

And here's a nice, spoiler-tastic full series retrospective that's as long as an episode itself:

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
 
Tosk said:
Scorching. :)
Click to expand...

It's a low bar. Reeve is perfect as Superman, but I really dislike his overcooked bumbling Clark shtick, Kidder's Lois is super-meh, Hackman's performance is a joke, and Donner's direction is deathly dull. Routh is fine as Clark and Superman, but the only part of Returns that really works is Spacey's A+ Luthor performance (which totally feels like a natural endpoint of Rosenbaum's villainous arc). Cavill had potential, and Amy Adams is great, but Man of Steel is migraine-inducing, and BvS and Josstice League are all-time trainwrecks.

IMHO, there are only four great live-action movies (primarily) about a flying superhero from another planet who wears a red cape, and they're all about a certain Asgardian, not a Kryptonian.

Take your shot, Gunn. :p
 
Gaith said:
Kidder's Lois is super-meh, Hackman's performance is a joke, and Donner's direction is deathly dull.
Click to expand...
Hey, I'm convinced. ;)

I honestly couldn't articulate why I never dug Lois & Clark very much, but it just never quite worked for me. I gave it a fair chance though, stuck with it for about three seasons back in the day.
 
Gaith said:
It's a low bar. Reeve is perfect as Superman, but I really dislike his overcooked bumbling Clark shtick, Kidder's Lois is super-meh, Hackman's performance is a joke, and Donner's direction is deathly dull. Routh is fine as Clark and Superman, but the only part of Returns that really works is Spacey's A+ Luthor performance (which totally feels like a natural endpoint of Rosenbaum's villainous arc). Cavill had potential, and Amy Adams is great, but Man of Steel is migraine-inducing, and BvS and Josstice League are all-time trainwrecks.

IMHO, there are only four great live-action movies (primarily) about a flying superhero from another planet who wears a red cape, and they're all about a certain Asgardian, not a Kryptonian.

Take your shot, Gunn. :p
Click to expand...
Well, that's certainly a hot take.
house-burning-down-burning-house.gif
 
I haven't revisited this show in years, but it was definitely a favorite when I would get to watch it as a kid. When people mention the Superman theme, it's never John Williams that springs to mind for me, it's either the music from the Fleischer cartoons, or the opening credit sequence from this show. (I didn't see the movie until I was an adult, but those two were such a part of my childhood.)
 
Loved this show when it first premiered on BBC1 in January 1994. Watched religiously for the first two seasons, continued with the third (though felt a drop in quality) and didn't get past the first few episodes of season 4. I had subsequently revisited seasons 1-2 in 2005/6 (when the series was released on DVD) but not much more. Recently, I purchased all four seasons while on sale on Prime Video for a complete rewatch. I am on season 4 episode 14 so nearly at the end.

It's STILL a great show. The writing, especially in the first couple of years, is mostly great. Love the whole "Superman is what I can do, Clark is who I am" idea. Teri Hatcher is a wonderful Lois.

Season 4 does take a nosedive in quality, but it's still watchable.

Not perfect, but I feel the series is underappreciated.

In terms of favourite season 1 episodes... I feel this is the best season overall and most are pretty good, but particular faves:

I've got a Crush on You
Man of Steel Bars
Witness
The Rival
Fly hard
Barbarians at the Planet/Never-ending Battle
 
Watched this series as a kid. Have mostly fond memories but havent rewatched in a decade or two. John Shea stole the show as Lex Luthor before Micheal Rosenbaum and Smallville came on the scene. Perry White was good too, cant remember the actors name in L&C, but it was the great Micheal McKean in Smallville.

IIRC, there's a L&C later episode in season 3 or 4 with both Jonathan Frakes and the 89 Batmobile in it.

Also think I remember reading there were plans for a season 5 with some ideas of the stories they were going to do. I think season 4 ends on a cliffhangar.
 
Frakes in a Lois & Clark?! I see that's S3's "Don't Tug on Superman's Cape," and I'll have to check it out! Frakes' non-Riker live action roles are far too few. :bolian:
 
CommanderTrip said:
Watched this series as a kid. Have mostly fond memories but havent rewatched in a decade or two. John Shea stole the show as Lex Luthor before Micheal Rosenbaum and Smallville came on the scene. Perry White was good too, cant remember the actors name in L&C, but it was the great Micheal McKean in Smallville.
Click to expand...

Lane Smith if I recall correctly.

I too enjoyed it when I was younger (and have all the seriess on dvd) but it's been a while. I'll have to do a rewatch.
 
Oh boy oh boy. Before Trek, there was Lois and Clark. :lol:

It was my first obsession. I knew my Superman fairly well before I saw it (big into comics and cards - mainly Marvel - between 6 and 11). Anyway, was in my early teens and going thru dumb teen stuff. I didn't watch it when it premiered, but it was on repeat all the time before season 2.

I was transfixed by Hatcher's Lois (like I said early teens) and lapped up all the drama between Clark / Lois / Supes / Luthor.

I've never been able to resist a good villain. My first was Frank Langella's Skeletor when I was in single digits. My next was John Shea's turn as Luthor, who remains my favorite incarnation of the character. Shea left the show as he did not want to commute the long distance between home and production.

I believe there was a change in showrunners after S1. The show began to feel less grounded S2. But still, it was entertaining, and the tension between the two leads keep me hooked.

Season's 3 and 4, well ... at the time, I loved it! Well, season 3 at least. Though season 4 was just a continuation / increase of the prior seasons' tonal shift, it was where the wheels really fell off. I stopped watching and didn't see it thru until I purchased it on DVD several years later.

But fantastic first season.

Anyway, episodes. I watched S1 so many times I'm assuming when I look at the titles in the IMDB link every detail will fly back into memory.

1.1 Pilot (obviously)
1.3 Neverending Battle (good Lex episode and also lore-important)
1.7 Smart Kids (not one I'd call a classic, but still a bit of fun)
1.8 The Green, Green Glow of Home (Lois meets the Kents - must watch)
1.10 Pheromone My Lovely (I feel like watching this one now actually)
1.12 All Shook Up
1.16 Foundling (another good Luthor / lore episode)
1.20 and 1.21 (two-part season finale - solid)

Also, as @CorporalClegg already pointed out, Lane "Great Shades of Elvis!" Smith was essential to the chemistry of the show as it went where it went. Traci Scoggins as Kat was fun.

If you end up liking S1, you should enjoy most of S2 (and some of S3; YMMV).
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Sign up / Register


Back
Top