The series had something of a "Moonlighting" vibe thanks to the adversarial/romantic thing going on between Lois and Clark, but didn't rely on sexual tension to carry the series. Instead, the true competition and friendship between them made for fun adventures, tinged with the excitement of a two-person love triangle, with Clark desiring Lois and Lois desiring Superman.

Of course, there's a fourth member of the triangle, and that's Supes' archnemesis, Lex Luthor (John Shea, the poor man's Warren Beatty). Wanting Lois and hating Superman, Luthor is the polar opposite of Batman, a man without powers, who has built himself into a being with a one-track mind, who is capable of overwhelming evil. This season sees the Luthor story travel what seems like an entire story arc, to a somewhat silly and unpredictable end.

Though the series is definitely focused on the everyday lives of the two reporters, there's no lack of action. But despite Supes' presence, only a few "supervillains" actually make appearances, and none are of them are of the tight-wearing type. Most are either criminal masterminds, cronies of Luther or plotters who are in over their heads. Unless some kryptonite is in the mix, Superman doesn't have much competition, allowing his adventures to remain mostly rescues, and not overwhelm the Lois/Clark storylines.

Cain was quite a find to don Big Blue' suit, as he was able to strike a balance between movie-star good looks and good-guy personality, so as to appeal to men and woman. Those are just the kind of traits that Superman needs to work as a character. He's got to be big and strong to be a believable Superman, and down-to-earth enough to fool people as Clark Kent (even if he shouldn't be able to do it with a pair of glasses.) Cain fits the bill and he had good chemistry with Hatcher.

Though she had a pretty good career up this point, on TV and in films, Hatcher also broke out in this show. Portraying Lois allowed her to show a full range of acting ability; playing her as sexy, smart, tough and sweet. The actress playing this role was always going to be the center of the show, and a lot would ride on her ability to play a strong-willed woman without tipping over the edge into "bitch" territory, and losing half the audience. Hatcher, thanks to a natural sense of humor, does this quite well.

Accompanying the two leads was a fine supporting cast, including the best Perry White for my money, Lane Smith. A father figure and a dominant personality, Smith's Perry was exactly the kind of editor I would want to work for at a newspaper. Meanwhile, Tracy Scoggins filled the sexpot role to a pair of T's as gossip columnist Cat Grant, giving the show the jiggle-factor that would keep the guys hanging on between battles. The only member of the planet's staff that didn't work was a big one, and that was Michael Landes as Jimmy Olsen. Landes was a bit too cool for Clark's sidekick, and the decision to replace him with Justin Whalin in the second season was a smart one.

With the big city ably stocked, Clark's hometown retreat of Smallville would need a Ma and Pa Kent, and the casting director found a pair of gems in Eddie Jones and K Callan. I can't even think of Superman's adoptive parents without seeing these two. It probably has a lot to do with how the series kept them tied in with their son throughout the series, starting with their involvement in the pilot. Making him so connected to his home grounded Superman and made his "aw shucks" persona much more believable.

Shot on location and on film, the show has a great visual style, with colorful, almost comic-book inspired sets, especially at The Daily Planet. There's no one style you could use to describe this show, as the mix of writing styles affects the way the stories are told, and the series can go from sitcom comedy to workplace drama to superhero action before landing on romance. It could have ended up as a hodgepodge failure that tried to be everything to everyone, but instead became a nice, entertaining blend of genres.

Of the first season episodes, there are several highlights, mostly episodes that cover major developments in Supes' life. "Neverending Battle" is a big costume episode, as Luther puts his foe through his paces to determine his weaknesses, while Clark learns more about himself through a globe in his ship, in "Foundling," which introduces the Kryptonian's father Jor-El to the show. "The Man of Steel Bars" represents Superman as a public enemy, as he is blamed for a winter heat wave. And the best of the bunch is probably the two-part season finale, which packs a ton into the storyline, setting up changes for the second season.

The DVDs
The 21 first-season episodes are spread across six DVDs, with two on the first platter (including the 90-minute pilot (two hours with commercials)), four on discs two through five and three on the final disc. The DVDs are packaged in a five-panel digipack, inside a holofoil-cover slipcase. The discs are packaged two per panel, one partially overlaying the other, though not touching. The packaging includes episode listings, including the writer, director and airdate and a summary.

The discs feature animated anamorphic widescreen menus, with footage from the show. Choices include a play-all option, episode selections, special features and language set-up. Oddly, four of the DVDs have no bonus materials, but still have the option, which leads to a blank menu. The episode selection menu has titles for each episode, while language options are limited to one English track and subtitles in English, Spanish and French. The episodes also have closed captioning.

The Quality
At first, the video didn't impress as hoped, as the full-frame image often features dull color and excessive grain. It also suffers from softness that reduces the level of fine detail in the transfer and some pixilation can be seen as well, with the special effects shots being the worst offenders. But, in its favor, the transfers are pretty consistent, and the problems mentioned above aren't always present. A remastered set of transfers would have been a nice touch, though the episodes in the second half of the season look much better than the first half.

The audio is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0, and comes across crystal clear. Dialogue and musical soundtracks are delivered distinctively, and sound effects are nice and loud when needed. The speakers don't see much in the way of stereo separation, but the sound has a nice power to it.

The Extras
The first disc has a nearly 20-minute presentation reel that series creator Deborah Joy LeVine first unveiled at the San Diego Comic Con. The reel begins with a video introduction by LeVine, in which she explains the pressure she felt, and proceeds to illustrate the main concepts of the pilot episode through short snippets of the show. It's the same footage seen in the pilot on this disc, but it's an interesting piece of history and a chance to see a work in progress (hint: look for the wires.)

The disc also includes a commentary track on the pilot episode with Cain, LeVine, and director Robert Butler. As it's the only commentary provided, it's a combination of a screen-specific commentary and a season overview, providing plenty of behind-the-scenes info and stories from the production. Anyone who's a fan of the series should find this very friendly chat an entertaining listen.

The next four discs are barren in terms of bonuses, but the sixth disc picks up some of the slack with a pair of featurettes. "From Rivals to Romance: The Making of 'Lois & Clark'" covers the creation of the series in some depth, featuring interviews with several cast members, including Cain and Hatcher, some of the crew, and even Superman comic editor Mike Carlin. In combination with the pilot commentary, this 25-minute featurette should leave few questions unanswered.

Clocking in at under seven minutes is "Taking Flight: The Visual Effects of 'Lois & Clark,'" a look at how the series' many special effects were created. New interviews with the cast and crew are mixed with before-and-after footage to show how shots were achieved. There's nothing all that high-tech, but nonetheless it's fun, and the cast and crew seem to enjoy talking about it.

As a nice bonus bonus, the 7th volume of Warner Brother's 50-Years celebration DVDs is included in the package, and this time the inclusion makes sense, as it's the fourth-season premiere of "Smallville," the episode entitled "Crusade." Thankfully, despite the disc being marked "Standard," it's actually presented in anamorphic widescreen. The fourth season isn't released on DVD until September, so it's a chance to get a quality widescreen copy of this episode early.

The Bottom Line
"Lois & Clark" represented one of the first post-modern takes on popular superheroes, a comic-book show that didn't rely on the tights to entertain. By focusing on the man behind the Man of Steel, the series could tell stories that previous versions of the character couldn't touch, while still incorporating enough action to keep the comic-book geeks interested. The DVD collection is a bit wanting in terms of extras, considering the amount of discs, and the picture quality seems rather blah for most of the season, but the series still holds up more than 10 years later, and the extras, what there are of them, are pretty good. This set is recommended for anyone who enjoyed it when it was originally on the air.

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*The Reviewer's Bias section is an attempt to help readers use the review to its best effect. By knowing where the reviewer's biases lie on the film's subject matter, one can read the review with the right mindset.