545 – Clark Messing With Time

A panel from Superman #84, July 1953
A panel from Superman #84, July 1953

In “Superman’s Other Life!”, a story in Superman #84 (July 1953), Clark gets fed up with Lois Lane always trying to prove that he is Superman. Rather than tell the truth to this woman he obviously loves, he decides instead to travel back in time and change the timeline so he never gets a job at the Daily Planet. Oh that pest, Lois Lane!

Superman does this by racing around the Earth at super-speed until he breaks the time barrier and winds up in Metropolis just as he was about to start his career.

Another panel from Superman #84, July 1953
Another panel from Superman #84, July 1953

Clark gets a job as a disc jockey at a radio station and never goes to work at the Daily Planet, though he finds a snoopy assistant causes him similar trouble. After she resigns her position, Lois Lane ends up applying for the job and it is at that point that Clark reasons that he is destined to be hounded by Lois. He reverts the changes to the timeline.

While I understand the story is just meant to be a fun “What If?” type scenario, it is not presented that way. Clark just one day casually decides to change the timeline because he is annoyed, replacing years of history and relationships on a whim. And that method of time travel… racing around the world brings him back in time and displaces his old self? Does that mean when he reverted the timeline that he had to live all those old moments over again? Maybe I’ll just chalk this story up as a daydream that Clark has one day.

Anyway, Merry Christmas, y’all!