Is This Lois Lane's Future?
There's been some speculation about what Lois Lane's place will be in the post-Flashpoint universe. It's too early to even speculate, but if the first issue of Lois Lane and the Resistance is a glimpse into the character's future, we have a lot to look forward to. This is an entertaining and well-written book that shows Lois to be a strong, resourceful character who can carry a series in the main DC continuity even without superpowers.
The story starts with Lois and Jimmy Olsen covering a fashion show in Paris just before the city is submerged by an Atlantian attack. Lois makes it to safety (Jimmy's fate is left ambiguous) only to be taken to an Amazon re-education camp in England. There she accidentally discovers and subsequently joins the underground resistance to the Amazon occupation. These plot points fly by--at one point, six months pass in two pages--but things never get confusing, thanks in no small part to Eddie Nunez's smart, uncluttered layouts.
Still, on my first read, I found myself wanting to see more of what went on during Lois's "processing" at the Amazon camp. I couldn't help thinking back to Evey's torture in V For Vendetta, and how great a character-building device it was. However, on a second read, I realized that writers Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning were telling a different story. Unlike Evey, Lois didn't need a traumatic experience to spur her to action against an oppressive ruling power. The story here is what action Lois will ultimately take, not whether she'll be prepared to take it.
That said, I still would have liked this book to be grittier than it ultimately is. Other Flashpoint books (especially Emperor Aquaman and World of Flashpoint) have done a better job of portraying the Atlantian/Amazon conflict as horrific and oppressive. We don't really get a sense of the trouble Lois is really in until the final pages. That's a good way to build interest in the next issue, but it left this one feeling a little flat.
Regardless, Lois Lane and the Resistance is an easy recommendation, and makes a nice companion to Emperor Aquaman and Wonder Woman and the Furies. One word of caution, though: the cover of this issue has absolutely nothing to do with what you'll find inside--you know, just in case you were really looking forward to The Demon showing up.
