Smallville's Erica Durance: Lois Lane Finds Her Place Among the Superheroes

Though Smallville's Lois Lane (Erica Durance) is surrounded by superheroes, Daily Planet's intrepid reporter will soon make her mark on the world.

She was last seen attending Hawkman's funeral before passing out with the rest of the supers. For the first time, there she was with the growing Justice League. "You start to see how she fits in," Durance tells TVGuide.com.

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"She's finding her way in little tasks that she can do," the actress says. "Of course, she doesn't have the special powers so she does it Lois Lane-style. She goes undercover, she investigates, she goes nose-to-nose with people."

One way in which she'll help is by working with Clark (Tom Welling) to create the persona of Superman. "That's one of the things that I find really exciting that Lois gets to do," Durance says. "She realizes he needs to find a way to disguise himself even more. There's a few different ways she tries to mess with his outfit and all that stuff. She's also part of helping Clark discover the difference between Clark Kent and Superman."

At the same time, she's coming to grips with the weight of Clark's position. "She's a little bit overwhelmed with this whole other side of Clark," she says. "She hasn't seen this whole infrastructure. She's a little bit in awe. Seeing him embody what she's always held so true to herself — he's this larger-than-life character that is true and just."

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But being engaged to the Man of Steel won't be easy. "Lois still has those commitment issues and is still terrified of being left. There's going to be part of her that still tries to look for the 'I'll leave you before you leave me' kind of thing. It's a huge thing to think of all the danger he could be putting himself in, and how she can protect him and keep him believing in himself and the good that he can do."

He'll be repaying her plenty. After all, what would Smallvile be without Lois also needing to be saved by Clark? "That's part of what Lois' role is," Durance says. "She encapsulates this woman who is independent, self-sufficient and strong, but she also becomes the damsel in distress because Clark needs to save his lady love. Let's face it: Some of us need our burly men to come rescue us."

Smallville returns on Friday at 8/7c on the CW.