Forget Superman. If we ever wind up in trouble, we want Lois Lane to save us!

If you’ve read this week’s SUPERMAN #22 by Peter J. Tomasi, Patrick Gleason and Doug Mahnke, you know what we're talking about. Despite his name being on the cover, Superman doesn’t show up until the very end. Prior to that, we’re treated to eighteen pages of mystery, suspense and action starring none other than the Daily Planet’s most intrepid reporter.

If you remember the prior issue, Superman, Superboy and Robin saved the town of Hamilton from an attack by a giant squid, and the very worried Lois hasn’t heard from any of them since. Heading into town to investigate, Lois is very surprised when she sees Candice from the local paper—who had been badly injured in the battle—looking perfectly hale and hearty and heading for town hall. Lois trails her, surprised when Candice enters through the back entrance and heads down to the lower levels…

Yes, that’s Clark and Jon onscreen, both in and out of their suits. Whatever is going on down here, the people responsible clearly know all about the Kents and who they really are. But Lois doesn’t have much time to ponder this as she’s confronted by an armed Candice. Lois easily takes her down with some pepper spray (ouch!) and immediately heads home, only to find several prominent people from Hamilton in her living room, including Mayor Goodwin and Candice. But how on earth did Candice get there so quickly?

Clearly all is not as it seems, and as Lois rushes upstairs, she’s attacked by the seemingly superpowered Hamiltonians. Fortunately, Lois has stashed away a little “souvenir” to deal with threats like these—the glove from Batman’s Hellbat suit. She uses it to torch the attackers as she makes her way outside and into the yard where she’s greeted by a surprise—the Batmobile!

Seriously, can you believe that all this just happened? And what’s going to happen next? What’s the deal with the not-so-kindly Mr. Cobb and his granddaughter Kathy? When last we saw her, she was using some sort of superpower against Damian and Jon. (And where are her parents? Have we ever seen them or been told where they are?) There are still so many mysteries to be solved, and you’d better believe we’ll be back on May 17^th for the next installment of the “Black Dawn” storyline because we need to know what’s going on!

However, there is one thing we know for certain right now… DON’T MESS WITH LOIS LANE!