Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Superman and Lois season 3, episode 2, "Uncontrollable Forces."A classic DC Comics Superman story inspired the twist at the heart of the Superman and Lois season 3 episode "Uncontrollable Forces." The hit series has adapted a number of story elements from the comics, but most of those involved action sequences or notable supervillains. The twist in Superman and Lois season 3, by contrast, comes from a much quieter story and involves a problem that not even Superman's near-infinite strength and fortitude can defeat.
The Superman and Lois season 3 premiere, "Closer," found Lois Lane getting some unexpected news while posing as a patient and trying to get an interview with an uncooperative doctor with a connection to John Henry Irons' doppelganger. The doctor felt there was an excellent chance that Lois was pregnant based on her symptoms, but they needed to run more tests to be sure. The episode concluded with Lois being called with the news that she wasn't pregnant, but the test results were anomalous enough to require another round of testing in Metropolis. This seemed to be setting the stage for bad news to come.
Lois Lane Is Diagnosed With Cancer In Superman & Lois Season 3
The bad news was confirmed in Superman and Lois season 3, episode 2, "Uncontrollable Forces," with the opening montage suggesting that Lois was hiding her test results from Clark and her sons. The truth came out later in the episode, as Lois tried to prevent a blackmailed judge from taking her own life by empathizing with her and revealing that she understood the judge's fear of crime boss Bruno Mannheim because Lois was also hiding a secret and facing a seemingly invincible enemy. Seeing her husband flying overhead, Lois revealed to the judge and to Superman that she had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer.
Lois later went into more detail with Clark and her sons in private, revealing that she had a rare form of inflammatory breast cancer. Inflammatory breast cancer is notable in that the patient might not develop the tumors commonly associated with advanced cancer, making it more difficult to diagnose and treat. While Stage 3 inflammatory breast cancer is treatable, the cancer also has a high chance of returning even after surgery and therapy.
Lois Lane's Cancer Storyline In DC Comics Explained
While Superman famously faced cancer in Grant Morrison's All-Star Superman, the Superman and Lois season 3 storyline seems to be drawing inspiration from Superman & Batman: Generations. Written and illustrated by comics' legend John Byrne, Generations is set on an alternate Earth where Superman, Batman, and the other Golden Age superheroes aged in real time following their first appearances in the days before World War II. Published across three separate miniseries from 1999 to 2004, Superman & Batman: Generations offered a thoughtful look at the legacies of Superman and Batman, following the family lines of Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne as the decades passed.
The Lois Lane of Superman & Batman: Generations is shown to be a habitual smoker, eventually being diagnosed with lung cancer in 1969. This would not have been unusual for a woman in the 1930s and fit Lois' portrayal well into the 1970s, where Christopher Reeve's Superman famously used his X-ray Vision to confirm that Lois Lane didn't have lung cancer in Superman: The Movie. Despite the diagnosis, Lois managed to live for another ten years, ultimately dying as a result of Lex Luthor's scheme to kill Superman's family before finally destroying the Man of Steel himself.
What Lois Having Cancer Means For Superman & Lois Season 3
The great challenge facing all Superman writers is how to challenge a hero whose powers and resources make him all but invincible in a physical battle. The best writers have addressed this by having Superman tested by real-world problems that superpowers can't fix and that real people must face on a daily basis. This not only serves to make Superman more relatable as a character but is far more interesting than pitting him against a never-ending horde of super-powered bruisers.
By having Lois Lane battle cancer, Superman and Lois season 3 presents a greater challenge than villains like Lex Luthor or Bruno Mannheim could ever pose to the Kent family. While the season to come is sure to present many challenges, the cancer threat will affect every member of the cast. It may be that Superman's greatest challenge will be watching the woman he loves and the strongest person he knows slowly weaken while being powerless to save her. This is the kind of drama not typically seen in a superhero show, which is why Superman and Lois continues to be a must-watch show.
Superman and Lois season 3 continues on Tuesdays on The CW.
