| Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman | |
| Season 3, Episode 18 | |
 | |
| Air date | March 10, 1996 |
| Written by | Grant Rosenberg |
| Directed by | James Bagdonas |
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When a doctor in the clinic where Lois is staying begins to brainwash his patients to commit murder, Clark must not only stop the doctor before Lois becomes his next assassin, but also deal with Lois's doctor, who wants Lois's love for himself.
Plot[]
Clark checks Lois, who is suffering from amnesia, into a neuroscience clinic. Her doctor, Maxwell Deter, institutes a radical form of treatment: Lois is confined to the clinic grounds 24/7 and can receive no visitors apart from Clark, who himself is restricted to one five-minute visit every two days. Moreover, Clark is forbidden from talking to her about work or their relationship, and from telling her that Deter has restricted her visitors and topics of conversation. Deter threatens to deny her treatment if his rules are challenged.
Deter turns Lois over to head of the clinic, Dr. Elias Mendenhall, for use in his research program. In actuality, his program brainwashes the patients by playing "Battle Hymn of the Republic" to make them commit murders. The military grade murder weapons have their serial numbers filed off, the patients wipe off their prints, and the final treatment in Mendenhall's program causes a fatal stroke, thus stymieing police efforts to crack the cases. Calling himself "the Hangman", Mendenhall hires his brainwashed assassins out to criminals for premium rates.
Clark investigates the two latest murders and finds red seeds from a rare plant at both crime scenes. Reading his articles on the case excites Lois' love for investigative reporting, and she presses him for details. Though he tries to follow Deter's rules, when she suggests that working on the case could stir her memories, he relents and shows her a pod from the plant.
Perry White has been running editorials linking several business owners to Intergang, which prompts the mayor to send a liaison, Sally Reynolds, to demand he stop. Perry doesn't back down, and he and Sally hit it off. While they are on a lunch date, thugs hired by the Intergang connections Perry was antagonizing try to kill him under the guise of a robbery. Superman saves him. The Intergang associates decide to engage the Hangman's services.
Deter finds he is falling in love with Lois. He confesses his feelings to her (thus breaking his own rule that Lois receive no emotional shocks), cuts off her visitors entirely, and steals a bouquet of flowers sent to her from Clark, replacing the platonic card with a romantic one signed with his own name.
Lois finds the red seed pods near a secret gate at the clinic and notices that two of Mendenhall's patients have suffered strokes. She breaks into his office and takes files on patients of his that have had strokes. She then sneaks out of the clinic and goes to Clark's apartment to discuss her findings. He dismisses her suspicions as impulsive. Lois storms out, but Clark takes great comfort in her angry remark that he "always walk[s] on egg shells", seeing it as a sign that her memories of him are returning.
Clark and Dr. Deter both attribute Lois' belief that Mendenhall is brainwashing her to commit murder to a paranoid mental breakdown. However, Jimmy finds that not only did all five patients whose files she pulled suffer strokes, but the dates of the strokes all coincide with unsolved murders. Clark arrives as Superman in time to prevent her killing Perry. They return to the clinic to expose Mendenhall. Mendenhall plays "Battle Hymn of the Republic" over the clinic's PA system, summoning all his patients to open fire on them. Superman seizes the patients' guns and uses heat vision to melt them. Mendenhall is arrested.
The adventure reminds Lois of her past exploits with Clark, triggering a massive return of her memories. However, she still does not remember the romantic aspect of their relationship, and tells Clark she is in love with Deter.
Cast[]
Main cast[]
- Dean Cain as Clark Kent/Superman
- Teri Hatcher as Lois Lane
- Lane Smith as Perry White
- Justin Whalin as Jimmy Olsen
- K Callan as Martha Kent
- Eddie Jones as Jonathan Kent
Guest starring[]
- Larry Poindexter as Dr. Maxwell Deter
- Charles Cioffi as Dr. Elias Mendenhall/The Hangman
- Audrie Neenan as Nurse Reilly
- Julie Cobb as Sally Reynolds
- Patrick Cranshaw as Homer Blackstock
- Lilian Adams as Agnes Moskowitz
- Vasili Bogazianos as Detective McCloskey
- Steve Kehela as the robber
- Michael Lee Gogin as the shifty-looking man