‘Superman & Lois’ Stars Tyler Hoechlin And Elizabeth Tulloch Wanted An Episode Where Lois Gets Her Husband’s Powers, Something ‘Lois & Clark: The New Adventures Of Superman’ Did 30 Years Before
Superman & Lois showed viewers a different side of the couple than the one usually portrayed on TV. We got glimpses into their domestic life (at least as far as one Earth in the multiverse), the struggles of raising teens with superpowers of their own, and the ultimate price of balancing family and heroics.
The show was a highlight of DC’s last breaths on The CW, but it was nevertheless canceled after four seasons to make way for James Gunn’s Superman and the DCU. This outcome left a lot of questions about what else the show could’ve explored if it lasted even one season longer.
Brainiac was one option – and many fans are still losing their patience over DC’s failure to bring The Collector to the big screen, but we digress. There was another idea that stars Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch would have relished: Clark’s powers passing to Lois, which turns her into a Woman of Steel.
“I wanted an episode – which I feel like we would’ve done if we had gotten the seven or eight seasons that we were told we were gonna do – where Lois had powers. Then I could do my little flying thing. I’d like to get on the wires and fly just once,” Tulloch revealed in a conversation with Screen Rant that took place earlier this year at Fan Expo Philadelphia.
Hoechlin responded, “I would have given anything to see that episode.” It’s interesting that he says that when, if he wants badly enough to, he doesn’t have to look far. It was done 30 years ago, and the series/episode where the above turn of events occurred is available to stream at this very moment.
In the seventh episode of the third season of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, the Man of Steel (Dean Cain) is shot with a kryptonite laser that transfers his abilities to an unprepared Lois (Teri Hatcher). Martha Kent sews her a costume, and Lois assumes the identity of Ultra Woman to fill the void and protect Metropolis. She soon buckles under the responsibility, however, when she realizes she can’t save everyone.
That wasn’t the only time Clark lost his powers on that show, nor was it the only time Lois was embattled with a challenge outside her control. The thing is, Lois & Clark was a romantic comedy that bordered on melodrama when called for. As a 90s series in ABC’s mercurial prime time sphere, it only went so far. With the more serious tone of Superman & Lois, the idea could have been taken further, and beyond a single episode.
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman ran for four seasons and 88 episodes from 1993 to 1997. It was on HBO Max with Superman & Lois, but now, you can only find it for purchase on Amazon Video, Apple TV, and YouTube.
