The Truth is out there and Lois Lane has officially figured it out (again). Hopefully you've been keeping up with the current news on Superman and the Truth storyline. As first seen in the May Free Comic Book Day issue, we saw Superman's secret identity had been exposed and it turns out it was Lois that told the world. In the Before Truth storyline in the SUPERMAN volume, we're seeing the events leading up to this reveal.
Note: There will be some spoilers for SUPERMAN #42.
This isn't the first time Lois has found out about Clark Kent's secret. The previous big moment was in 1991's ACTION COMICS #662. It was (obviously) a different time and situation.
In this previous story, Lois and Clark had been dating for a while. It got to the point where they were even engaged to be married. Clark figured he had to finally come clean. She deserved to know before they got married. After an interruption by Silver Banshee, Clark finally did it.
It was a shock for Lois and she needed time to deal with it. She mentioned that in her heart she must have known for a while but her brain just didn't allow her to believe it. They went on to eventually become married and lived relatively happily ever after until the New 52 relaunch happened after Flashpoint.
Things are a little different these days. First off, Lois and Clark are not dating. They're just friends. Clark has recently discovered that someone (HORDR_ROOT) has figured out his secret and was getting blackmailed into doing his bidding. When Clark, Jimmy, Lois, and a woman working with HORDR_ROOT were attacked by shadow ninjas, Clark had to jump into action. This was the final straw Lois needed to put it all together.
There are some pros and cons in the way both revelations happened.
In the 1991 version, Lois and Clark had established a relationship without Superman being an issue. We know in the first issues way back, Lois was more interested in Superman and would barely give Clark the time of day. By them becoming engaged before she found out, there wouldn't be a question of did she want to marry Clark or Superman. Yes, they're the same person but it was clear she wasn't just interested in the flash and excitement of Superman, something fans of Lois already knew.
The bad part of the 1991 revelation was Lois needed Clark to tell her. Often the butt of jokes, it would often be questioned how a prize-winning journalist couldn't see past Clark's disguise of glasses and poor posture.
In the current continuity, Lois figured out the secret herself. Within just a few panels, she made it clear how she figured it all out. The fact that Superman's powers are currently wonky and slightly diminished may have helped but she didn't need Clark to confess. This shows her ability as an investigative journalist to crack one of the biggest secrets in the DCU.
The downside is, this changes how any future relationship could form or grow. Lois is a little hurt over Clark not trusting her with his secret. He even admits that she and Jimmy have been a big part of his life. It becomes worse because Clark did confide in Jimmy but not Lois. She had to figure it out on her own so there will be some tension. Then there's also the matter of if they ever do become romantically involved (Superman is still dating Wonder Woman), we'll have to assume Lois would be able to see past the fact that Clark isn't just a regular guy. She may choose to avoid even getting into a relationship with him.
We still have to see why exactly Lois decides to tell the world about Clark's secret. If you've been reading SUPERMAN, it's becoming clear she has a good reason and isn't just doing it to make a killer headline. We'll have to watch to see the rest of the story unfold. Gene Yang and John Romita Jr are cranking up the suspense and excitement in SUPERMAN. There's no telling what will happen next and that's a good thing.