Lois Lane Must Die

As you can tell from most of my latest posts, I have been on a Superman kick as of late. What can I say…I love Big Blue’s never ending fight against evil…his constant pursuit of freedom. I know he is a total black and white superhero with no grey areas, and that’s what I love about him. No matter what, he is going to do the right thing, come hell or high water. Despite his multitude of powers, at the end of the day, the only true way to test Superman is to attack his humanity (unless you happen to have Doomsday around…but even then Superman can kick some serious ass).

For the longest time, I have always figured that one of the best ways to get a great story line out of Supes would be having Lois Lane murdered at the hands of Lex Luthor.
Yeah yeah yeah….breaking up a combo that is as American as tantamount as apple pie and vanilla ice cream could be sacrilegious in the eyes of some people….but the drama and torment that could be drawn from that could bring a whole new edge to the Big Blue Boy scout.

I mean really, the storyline would be a great exploration of the mythos and psyche of Superman no matter which way it went (which, in my opinion, is only one of two ways).
Just think about it, you would have a Superman who is totally racked with the loss of his love…just completely torn apart and pushed to his breaking point having lost his one true connection to humanity at the hands of his greatest, yet ultimately, inferior foe. Pushed to the breaking point by his arch-nemesis, Lex Luthor, Superman would have no super-power to counter this…only his humanity given to him by his folks in the heartland. Nature vs. nurture…the ultimate exploration of Superman’s powers and how much restraint he has when it comes to truly pulling his “punches”.

If he kills Luthor, he loses his one moral he has always remained true to: never, despite how much power he has, to kill. If he does that, not only will he compromise his integrity and values, he would lose the support of the world that has adopted him. People would fear him, and he would his drive to be their protector; the trust of the people is what gives Superman his greatest power: honor.

If he allows Luthor to get away with it, he would feel like a failure. Supe’s family is biggest piece of his indestructible heart, and the loss of Lois Lane would destroy him. To the world, he may still be Superman, but in his mind, his thoughts would be relegated to those solely of doubt. He would’ve failed the one he loved the most, and if he failed her, how could he protect the billions of others on the Earth.

This wouldn’t be the most action packed Superman story…not by a long shot. It would be a great exploration of his character, and more importantly, what makes him resonate with his readers. I think exploring his human side could be a great insight into exploring our own humanity.

(Also, before anyone points it out, I am well aware of the New 52 continuity and the current status of Clark and Lois’s relationship…it’d still be a great story though)