Could this be the beginning of the end for the traditional superhero girlfriend?

(Some spoilers ensue...)

Man of Steel has many things - a few gaping plot holes like (SPOILER) why on Earth General Zod, having never met Lois Lane or indeed set foot on our planet invited her onto his spaceship along with Superman so she could be around to help him escape, (END SPOILER) some breathtaking flying scenes and two fantastic dads instead of the typical Jor El/Jonathan Kent face-off where you can only really get behind one of them. What it also has is a Lois Lane who just kind of seems like a regular person and never once gets told by Superman that she shouldn't fancy him because it would just be too dangerous for her.

The whole point of a lot of superheroes is the dichotomy between their heroing public life and their (attempts at) regular private life, with secret identities, conflicting interest and fear of loved ones getting hurt because of their choices. Still, you couldn't help but rejoice when Kirsten Dunst's Mary Jane told Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man in his older movie outings that it just wasn't up to him to decide who she could love. Self-sacrificing Spidey was trying to convince MJ that being with him was a massive mistake since he couldn't guarantee her safety, but she was having none of it. It's all very noble when the superhero tries to protect the ones he loves, but there's a few problems with it as well (speaking strictly about movies here). 

First off, there's more than a whiff of the old misogyny about the whole thing, or at least there will be until Wonder Woman is in her own movie telling Steve Trevor that it's just too dangerous for him to be hanging around. Aside from that though, it's just not all that believable that a strong, opinionated, principled person like a superhero should always choose a lover (male or female) who's basically a massive drag - constantly getting into trouble, needing rescuing and mucking up perfectly good plans to kick the bad guy's ass. It has often seemed like superheroes either get together with each other or they pick their polar opposite if they're going for mere humans.

The usual response to trying not to have a wilting violet around is to turn them into a caricature of a badass, which doesn't exactly get the job done either. What's far more interesting is when they're just normal but well-rounded individuals. Man of Steel's Lois Lane has not picked up any incredible fighting skills from doing kickboxing and kung fu to keep fit or learned to shoot and carry a gun everywhere because of the mean streets of Metropolis. (SPOILER) She's also not the annoyingly nosy but clearly dimwitted reporter that is completely fixated on Superman but somehow fails to figure out - through, I dunno, actual investigation? - that Supes is Clark Kent. In this movie, she figures that out pretty much straight away. But she has this thing called integrity, where she realises that if she broadcasts that to the world, she might a) ruin his life and b) cause unknown consequences for mankind when they find out they're not alone in the universe. (END SPOILER) This Lois actually thinks things through. And when she is called on to get into some fighting action, she acquits herself as well as any person who's reasonably fit, in fear of their lives and with some natural talent would - which is fine, not badass, not wimpy, just fine.

Even better, Lois doesn't tell Superman that things aren't too dangerous for her and she can take care of herself. She never has to, because Superman never once tells her to stay away from him and his dangerous ways. Nor does he say that he's an alien superhero and she's a regular person and this might not work out, although that could still come later. (SPOILER) He actually fancies her, so he just goes with a kissing opportunity when it comes up and gives every appearance of enjoying it without immediately regretting it. Zack Snyder has torn up the rulebook and stamped up and down on it and it's a good thing. Lois knows Clark Kent is Superman, she pretty much met them both at the same time and she just likes him because there's only one him. (END SPOILER) Movie-makers have been willing to shake things up for superheroes, making them darker, more human in some ways but mainly richer in character, but they've tended to leave the supporting cast as one-dimensional as ever. Here's hoping that more characters like MJ and Lois get revamped along with their heroes.