This is a very interesting topic.
I actually think that Lois going for Lex is quite understandable. Didn't he become president in some incarnation ?
Real life is full of examples of people who are so charming and likeable that they swindle very smart people out of millions of dollars. I went to high school with a guy like that -- he was so fun and nice. And he did all kinds of favours for peopel too. Too bad he was also a huge crook ! I think Lois was kind of swept off her feet by his charm - and lets face it, it must have been pretty fun being on such a rich man's arm. But in the end, she did call it off. That took a lot of guts.
Not recognizing Clark as superman has always been harder for me to get. AT least after they became friends. Before that , its easy to think she didn't REALLY look at him. Once they were friends it was , well, galactically stupid.
