I haven’t seen any of the new Superman movies. I am willing
to admit that there were four Superman movies, but none of them was made in the
21st century. As far as I am concerned, there is only one Superman,
and the fact that there have been two new Supermen in as many movies … I think
that makes my case.
For me, the story of Superman as it appears in film is the
story of Lois Lane. Margot Kidder’s Lois Lane made me want to be a reporter,
the only one of my childhood when-I-grow-up fantasies I actually pursued. I
spent four years in the exciting world of newspaper journalism. Lois was my
idol – the spirit of “wherever it breaks, whatever it takes.” I can’t say I
actually got to be Lois; my world was far less exciting and utterly devoid of
Superman. But I tried hard to be Lois Lane for four years, and I had a great
time doing it.
It is usually about here that someone mentions that Lois
spent all those years right next to Clark without knowing he was Superman. I
can’t argue with that. But I can explain it.
It makes sense to me that Lois was slow to see that Clark
was Superman, but I’ll go a little farther than that. I think each of us has
had a similar experience. That’s because the most effective secret identities,
while they are created by the superhero, are actually maintained by the rest of
us. We are doing most of the work.
I feel guilty telling you how this works. Once you see the
Superman beside you, your world is going to change in a way you can’t take
back. But I can’t help myself.
Lois doesn’t see that Clark is Superman because when she
looks at Clark, she can only see Clark. Clark is shorter than Superman. He’s
soft-spoken. He’s a little naïve. Good Lord, look at those glasses.
But most importantly, Clark carries around this protective
shield of Dorkiness that proclaims him Not Superman. The shield is so effective
that she could take those glasses off and look him in the eye and still think, “No.
What was I thinking? He’s not Superman.” That’s how it starts.
Clark is set in Lois’s mind as Not Superman. And so it doesn’t
matter that Clark – timid, nervous, far from bulletproof (as far as she knows)
Clark – once stepped firmly between Lois and the mugger’s pistol. She only sees
Not Superman. So what if Clark recited the exact contents of her purse moments
later? Clark is Not Superman. It doesn’t matter that Clark and Superman are
never in the same place at the same time because Clark is Not Superman.
Similarly, in Lois’s mind, Superman is Not Clark. When
Superman catches her as she falls from the top of the Daily Planet building –
and then he catches the helicopter falling right behind her – Lois isn’t paying
any attention to the fact that Superman looks an awful lot like Clark without
the glasses. No way this guy, who leaves her speechless and lightheaded, is
Clark. The man who flies her from Metropolis to New York and back again is
absolutely Not Clark. (How far is Metropolis from New York? I imagine it’s a
short trip if you’re flying.) Clark’s convenient appearance on Lois’s doorstep
seconds after Superman leaves only cements things in Lois’s head. Clark is Not
Superman.
If she stopped long enough to challenge this in her mind –
something Lois finally does in the Donner Director’s Edition of Superman II –
she would see that she’s been right next to Superman for a pretty long time. But
let’s be fair. How often do any of us stop to challenge the things that are set
so firmly in our minds?
Seriously, look around. Every day, I look at the people on my
day job and smile to myself. I imagine that they see me as Not Erotic Romance
Author. And I wonder how far off the mark my own preconceptions are. Not
Musician. Not Triathlete. Not State Trooper.
My day job is great for this, by the way – I’ve met a
musician, a triathlete and a state trooper, and I wouldn’t have guessed any of
that to look at them.
Here’s a challenge for this month. Look around at those
closest to you. Ask yourself what you’re not seeing. And remember that Superman
might be right next to you, behind the protective shield of Dorkiness.
Alexa Day’s Illicit Impulse is a Top Pick at Night Owl
Reviews. She’s hard at work on her next story, but you can keep up with her on
the first Wednesday of the month, right here, on her own site, and on Facebook
or Twitter. See you there!
