Huh, I guess I always figured she'd have accepted it from Superman because she knows that he has sources of information that she doesn't. It doesn't have anything to do with her prowess as an investigator if he knows something she doesn't, and he's more likely to know things without being able to prove them, does that make sense? Clark on the other hand is just a "rookie," so if he figures out something before her, then it reflects on her capabilities. Plus, she still doesn't think of him as a gifted investigator in his own right--which I think I mentioned in this chapter. She realizes she needs to change that. I think it'd be fun to read something about how part of Lois' view of Clark as a rookie comes from his "inability" to hold down a job since he moves all over God's green earth before settling in Metropolis.
Anyway, I think if Clark would have given her hard facts (which obviously, he couldn't, at least not without telling her that he was Superman, or telling her as Superman), she would have been willing to listen. Sadly, he doesn't actually do all that great of a job telling her about Lex. I mean, really, why would she believe him when he says that he knows Lex better than she does at the end of Fly Hard? She's the one dating the man. And Clark is jealous, which I think Lois knows even before he confesses his love--even if it's just at an instinctual level--so she can brush aside the information as coming from a bad motive--like throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
And I like when Clark is writing and he realizes that Lois couldn't let herself see through Lex's facade once she'd said it didn't exist. She's definitely not known for admitting mistakes. I mean, she does it, even from the first episode, but it seems like only when it's "hit you in the face with a two by four" kind of obvious. She gets better throughout the series. But early on she's still got that edgy desperation to prove herself. It's part of why I love that timeframe. It's so fun to work with characters who have that scope for change. My blog this week was on on how much I love the new Star Trek movies because the characters are just richer than the TOS versions, IMO. That raw brokenness in characters is so winsome.
So there, that's my rant about why Lois would have believed Superman and not Clark. Like everything else, I think it's complicated
But also not intentionally hurtful. It's just a part of who each of them is. There's an inevitability to how they handle things because it flows out of who they are.
Thanks! I really love how this one turned out. I love torturing characters and forcing them to grow... it's so beautiful to watch people change!
