Broken Frontier

When Lois Lane inadvertently ends up at the forefront of the Amazon-Atlantean war, France crumbles and Great Britain is taken. In a world where she can't whistle for Superman to save her, it's up to Lois to become the hero of the resistance that she's capable of being. Does she have the willpower to sneak undetected in the Amazons' stronghold city of London?

Giving a book to a character that hasn't headlined since the days of Superman's Girlfriend, Lois Lane is one of the many perks that Flashpoint offers up. Much like Cyborg, this new timeline makes a character into a greater hero than they ever were, when faced with such adversity of a global war, coupled with the absence of Superman. Maybe Lex Luthor was right by implying that a world with Superman is a world where humanity doesn't need to try as hard.

Lois and Jimmy, still very much Daily Planet staff in this reality, are in Paris for Fashion Week, when Aquaman begins to sink the country. Saved by the Amazons, Lois finds herself in the resistance, with humanity wanting to get back to the world it had before Aquaman and Wonder Woman waged their war. Lois Lane is still much her classic self, if lacking the position and power that her mainstream iteration has. It'd be a stretch to see the Lois that married Superman covering Fashion Week, but she's still the same enterprising reporter. Jimmy Olsen and Perry White are more on-cue, but given their relatively limited roles in this book, it's less chance for them to screw up. The book moves rather briskly, featuring two successfully done time jumps. The first page covers the year since the wedding of Aquaman and Wonder Woman fell apart, and a latter two-page spread covers 32 weeks of secret espionage that Lois happens to fall into.

Eddie Nunez's art is hit and miss. He manages to do great with focusing on Lois Lane in a dress, even if she's a little too wide-eyed at times. Given that this book focuses on the Amazonian occupation of Europe, he gets tons of chances to draw statuesque women with nobody being able to complain; the Amazons are supposed to be Amazons. Many facial expressions even hint toward future greatness, even if they're a little overwrought at the moment. When it comes to pacing, it seems as if he excels at framing and getting the shot down, but fails at adequately displaying actual movement. One glitch in particular features Jimmy handing Lois an item at the top of the stairs, with the next panel (from the same angle) showing the results of him being swept away at the bottom of the stairs. It feels as if there's a panel or two missing between these moments that are so obviously linked by seconds.

Lois Lane and the Resistance is a nice focus feature on a character that usually is relegated to a supporting character role, but is one of the strongest women in the DC Universe, superpowered or not. While it has a few awkward beats that knock it from being perfect, the book is still a great read.