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Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman

Don't Tug on Superman's Cape

Season 3, Episode 6, Aired Nov 05, 1995

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Lois and Clark decide to forget the word "marriage", at least for the time. One of the richest couples of Metropolis has a plan to capture and add Superman to their collection of treasures. They capture Lois to get Superman. In the cage, Lois and Clark begin to talk, and the conversation makes them start to lose their fears about marriage.moreless

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Cast & Crew

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GUEST STAR
Joe Ochman

Daily Planet Staffer
GUEST STAR
Genie Francis

Amber Lake
GUEST STAR
Jonathan Frakes

Tim Lake

K Callan

Martha Kent
Dean Cain

Clark Kent/Superman
Teri Hatcher

Lois Lane
Lane Smith

Perry White
Justin Whalin

Jimmy Olsen (seasons 2-4)
Eddie Jones

Jonathan Kent

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Fan Episode Reviews (1)

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Clark and Lois both have heavy doubts about commitment and have the dreams to go with it. Soon both of them find themselves traped as part of a collection for a millionare couple.moreless

9.5

"Superb"

By sh811a, Jul 27, 2006

The plot in the episode is a typical comic book plot but the real story is in the doubts both Lois and Clark suffer from. The theme of the whole episode is on fear of commitment. It's a bit of a comidy as usual, it's funny seeing the dreams both of the main characters have which of course are in the form of a couple of Classic TV shows I Love Lucy and Dragnet; and the movie franchise James Bond. The parodies are key on with the characters psyches although the James Bond fantasy that Lois has is ironically funny since Teri Hatcher was in a James Bond film.

But it's also a through examination into the theme. We see a parallel between both Lois and Clark and the villianous couple played well by Johnathan Frakes (Star Trek: Next Generation) and Genie Francis (General Hospital). They portray a couple the seems all too perfect, from common interests, thinking alike, and always happy since they always wear smiles on their face like plastic toy figurines. But we see underneth this idalistic facade of the perfect couple lies an emptyness, there seems to be no real pashion or any feeling for that manner. Could explain why they have this constant need to collect things to fill in a pashionless void.

That's why Clark and Lois are a couple that are destined to make it, because both of them don't have a perfect relationship. Both are different in both interests and characteristics; they've ran into some bumps in the road which consist of fear, fights, disagreements, like/dislike, rifts and obsticles. But these things always make their love survive and continue to get stronger.

A facinating moment was when both of them are caged, and are a mere distance away from each other, so close yet so far. Obviously this is a metaphor for the rift both of them have created in their relationship which was created by fear. And the protective forcefield symbolism of their own doubts about one another. Both have a long and facinating conversation about where their relationship is going and the fear they both feel. The camera uses close up shot of their faces while their talking, it gives us the feeling of physical closeness as if their both litterally touching one another through their words. And the last moment doesn't disapoint as they both execute a Macgyver like excape.

Like any healthy couple if they can get out of that situation, then they can get out of any situation. And thats why these two work.

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (4)
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- If you look closely at the vehicle that Tim and Amber Lake own in their room of valuable possessions, it looks very similar to the Batmobile of the superhero Batman. Tim says the car is one of a kind and Amber says that they are "Batty" about it.
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- Nitpick: Tim Lake, disguised as Bad Brain pretending to be Superman, is more than a stretch. Tim Lake has a much heavier build than Bad Brain, and Bad Brain is much more slender yet taller than Superman. Bad Brain and Lake also have brown hair, but he doesn't wear a wig.
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- The lost arms of Venus de Milos were also in Lex Luthor's secret collection in "The Foundling" episode.
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- Nitpick: When they cage Lois, then later they cage Superman looks like they swapped cages. But perhaps they moved the cages themselves to make their position within the gallery more aesthetically pleasing to the Lakes.
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QUOTES (5)
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- Clark: (hearing that there's a problem at Star Labs) Something is happening. Lois: Hey! Maybe it's Bad Brain! Can I go? Clark: No! Lois: Oh, come on Clark, why do we go through this? We both know I'm gonna go! Clark: Then why ask? Lois: Trying to be nice.
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- Lois: You gave up everything in your life, for me. Superman: Without you, it wouldn't have been a life.
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- Clark/Superman (speaking to Lois, seeing that his uniform has been almost destroyed): My mom's gonna kill me!
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- Clark ("James Bond"-like dreaming of Lois): The name is Man. Superman.
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- Bad Brain: We wouldn't be discussing Klutz Kent, Nosy Lane and Super Duper, now, would we?
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NOTES (9)
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- One of the dream sequences in this episode parodies the classic sitcom I Love Lucy . George Reeves made one of his few appearances as Superman outside the 50's syndicated series on the I Love Lucy episode "Lucy and Superman", airing January 14, 1957, in which Superman comes to Little Ricky's birthday party.
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- This episode was nominated for a Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Drama Series.
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- In real life, Genie Francis and Jonathan Frakes, who play Mr and Mrs Lake, are married.
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- Clark: In future years, Miss Goodbottom, when I'm doing a series of successful sequels and you've gone on to relative obscurity... Remember, at this moment I was only thinking of you. The irony of this statement is that Teri Hatcher went on to do more work after the series was over and Dean Cain would've gone on to relative obscurity if not for this role and is only recently overcoming the typecast. Another irony of this "James Bond" sequence is that Teri Hatcher went on to be a "Bond girl" in the 1997 film, Tomorrow Never Dies.
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- New opening credit sequence.
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- Robert Beltran and Jonathan Frakes share another thing in common besides guest starring in L&C episodes. Robert Beltran appeared in the first season episode titled "Fly Hard" playing one of the terrorists. Both were first officers in the Star Trek franchise. Robert Beltran was Commander Chakotay on Star Trek Voyager and Jonathon Frakes as Commander William T. Riker on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
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- Jonathon Frakes (Tim Lake) and Michael Harris (Bad Brain Johnson) have worked together before in the 1993 Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Liasons".
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- Jonathan Frakes is best known as Commander Riker on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
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- Genie Francis is best known for her role as Laura Spencer on General Hospital.
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ALLUSIONS (3)
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- Lois and Clark watch an episode of a show very similar in format and host to the real show Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous while researching the Lakes.
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- Dream Sequences This episode opens with a parody of I Love Lucy with Clark playing the part of Ricky, Lois playing the part of Lucy, and Martha and Jonathan playing the parts of Fred and Ethel. In a later dream sequence, Clark fills the role of James Bond, the suave super-spy who can defeat any villain and get any girl. Lois plays Miss Goodbottom, and has a typical "Bond girl" name which can have sexual connotations. In the final dream sequence, Perry and Jimmy are policemen grilling "Clark the absentee father" in a parody of the cop show Dragnet, whose Sgt Joe Friday was famous for his monotone way of speaking.
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- Title "Don't Tug on Superman's Cape"
  This is taken from the song "You Don't Mess Around with Jim" by Jim Croce. "You don't tug on Superman's cape, you don't spit into the wind, you don't pull the mask of the Old Lone Ranger, and you don't mess around with Jim."
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