Graphic Novel Review: LEX LUTHOR: MAN OF STEEL

LEX LUTHOR: MAN OF STEEL is a Superman story that's really not about Superman. Instead, it's a tale about Lex Luthor, Superman's arch nemesis. At face value it seems strange that Superman's greatest foe isn't another alien or a human with super abilities. Most of the time when Luthor fights Superman, he doesn't even face him: Luthor uses others to do his dirty work and is a master of covering his trail. Instead, Superman's greatest foe is a man who believes just as strongly in the American Way as Superman does. Luthor also believes in man's ability to rise above himself. However, Luthor believes that he knows best and in his mind Superman must be stopped at all costs because he isn't human.

LEX LUTHOR: MAN OF STEEL is a five-part series that illustrates a plan by Luthor to bring Superman down. The plan is multi-layered and isn't completely revealed until the final few pages of the story. The story does offer a picture of Luthor that isn't always seen in the comics: a man who has risen above his circumstances to the highest echelons a human being can achieve, a man who really does believe humanity can succeed and excel on its own without help from a supernaturally gifted alien, and a man who desperately longs to be loved. Yet, although the story touches upon those aspects of Luthor's character, it never really delves into them. The reader is left understanding why he wants to get rid of Superman, but that's about it. There's no explanation of where Luthor came from or why he does some of the things he does.

Most of the story is like that, too. Superman and Batman have a fight, but we aren't given any explanation why Batman wants to fight Superman: they never really hated each other like that in the comics and the few times they did fight, Batman never tried to kill Superman. Until the end of the story, there's no real explanation of where Hope came from either. Even then, the explanation that is given is quite short and leaves more questions than answers.

Besides the lack of answers, I also didn't like the way that Superman is portrayed in this story. There is one shot of Clark Kent, but other than that, every time Superman is shown his eyes are either closed or they are glowing red. Superman's eyes only glow red when he uses his heat vision.

The illustrations are really well done. It's just a shame the story isn't as strong as the illustrations are.

Overall, although LEX LUTHOR: MAN OF STEEL attempts to provide an inside look into Lex Luthor, it really doesn't reveal anything new about Luthor.

Superman Gets Pranked

"Mother Goose and Grimm", Sunday, March 16, 2014

Short Animated Video Tribute to Superman

So, Superman turned 75 this year and just a couple weeks before MAN OF STEEL opened in cinemas all around the globe, Zach Snyder (director of MAN OF STEEL) showed this short video that shows Superman through the years and his different transitions. As a lifelong fan of Superman, I have to admit it's a pretty darn good video.

The New MAN OF STEEL Trailer and a Few Thoughts About Superman

Superman has always been my favorite Superhero. I was never much into comics growing up, but when I did read comics, I drifted more towards DC instead of Marvel. When I was younger, DC was a much cleaner universe than it is now. Good guys occasionally did bad things and bad guys occasionally did good things, but you always knew who were the good guys and who were the bad guys. To me, Superman represented everything that was supposed to be good about the world at large. My friends hated that. The ones that were really into comics hated the DC world and were all about Marvel (Wolverine, The Punisher, etc.). The few who did like DC prefered Batman over Superman. Despite the ridicule I received ("Superman just isn't cool, Tom!"), he was my favorite.

Movie-wise, other than the first Star Wars film that I caught in a re-release, SUPERMAN with Christopher Reeves was one of the first movies I remember seeing in a movie theatre. The effects look a little dated now, but I still enjoy watching that original Superman movie.

Since that time, I've learned a lot about the world. There's other characters in the DC world that I really like (Hal Jordan's Green Lantern, for instance) and I can appreciate certain aspects of the Marvel world. However, Superman is still my guy. In terms of pop culture, the Marvel universe is cooler than the DC one and in the DC world, Batman is still more popular than Superman. But go back and watch that trailer again. I know it's marketing and it's just a three minute clip, but just watching that trailer fills me with hope. That's kind of what Superman is all about. He represents the best in humanity that we all hope and long for. Now, I just hope the movie is really as good as the trailers.

Book Bite: SUPERMAN: THE BLACK RING, VOL. 1

Following the events of the “War of the Supermen” and “Blackest Night” storylines, SUPERMAN: THE BLACK RING VOL. 1 finds Lex Luthor back in control and at the top of the world. After helping saved the world as a bearer of an orange ring of avarice, Lex has been pardoned of his past crimes and is back in charge of Lex Corp. Not only that, but Luthor’s greatest foe, Superman, has left Metropolis on another self-imposed exile. Luthor should be at the top of his game, but his experiences during the “Blackest Night” saga have changed him and left him hungering to possess a power ring of his own. Luthor believes it’s the only way he can gain the power to make himself the ruler of humanity. Seeking the source of the power that gave the black power rings their energy, Luthor begins an intergalactic quest. The initial stages of his journey take him all across the globe and allow him to display his keen intellect, but he end of Volume 1 ends on a cliffhanger of sorts as Luthor comes face to face with an old friend now turned foe.

Luthor is the most overused of all of Superman’s villains. However, in the right hands (such as those of Paul Cornell), he’s a fascinating character. Pete Wood’s illustrations are vivid and vibrant and add some layers to Cornell’s story. A must read for anyone who likes or admires Lex Luthor.

Superman's Birth

I found this comic surprisingly funny. It's the April 4, 2011 "HijiNKS ENSUE" webcomic.

Book Review: SUPERMAN & WONDER WOMAN WHOM GODS DESTROY

Set in alternative timeline where the Third Reich didn’t lose WWII and Germany and much of Eastern Europe is still under control of the Nazi regime against a backdrop that the gods, goddesses, and monsters of mythology are actually real and have returned to meddle in human affairs, the four-part SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN: WHOM GODS DESTROY is one of the worst Elseworld stories I have ever read. Most Elseworld stories are kind of hooky, but charming with about as much substance as a dime-store novel. There have been a few Elseworld stories that are quite spectacular, e.g. RED SON. However, sometimes there’s an Elseworld story that attempts to be monumental but is in really just trash, such as SUPERMAN: AT EARTH’S END. SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN: WHOM GODS DESTROY is another.

The basic plotline begins with an elderly Lois Lane is having nightmares about Superman going around the world and joyfully killing people. She confides in her BFF, Lana Lang. Meanwhile, Superman is living in semi-exile in his Fortress of Solitude on the moon. Old Supes discovered the hidden remains of the Holocaust a few years ago and went postal. He’s been banned from even the airspace of the Third Reich with a promise that his very appearance will be seen as a declaration of war from the U.S. Anyway, Lana Lang gets kidnapped and starts having some dreams that are even more bizarre than Lois’. Lois and Clark fly to Germany to discover what happened to their mutual friend, but along the way their plane is attacked by harpies. Yes, harpies. Superman rescues the plane, but when it lands Lois and Clark are taken into custody. They meet with one of the leaders of the Reich, Adonis. Readers eventually find out that the Greek gods of mythology have tired of staying out of human affairs and want to be important again and similar to the tragedy that was the Trojan War, they’ve decided to start a conflict. The stakes are high. Superman is bewitched by Circe and turned into a centaur; Lana Lang is given the power of the Oracle of Delphi and turns young; and when one of the Greek goddesses dies after a battle with the German army, she bestows all of her powers to Lois who becomes a new Wonder Woman. The original Wonder Woman has betrayed her brethren of Paradise Island and has joined the Nazis. That’s only the first half of the story.

I read SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN: WHOM GODS DESTROY because the basic premise of Superman and Wonder Woman fighting incarnations of the Greek gods was one I found interesting. However, I was appalled by the storyline in which the premise is delivered. The characterization of Superman is completely off with the Man of Steel behaving more like a troubled teenager than the hero he is. Then there’s the whole concept of the Third Reich still existing. Anytime a comic book has to fall back on a Third Reich that somehow won WWII and wasn’t defeated, you know the story is going to be bad. In fact, the only real reason I can see that this entire plot was brought about was so that Lois Lane, Lana Lang, and Superman could end up in a menage a trios.

This series was written by legendary Marvel writer Chris Claremont. Claremont wrote some amazing stories for Marvel and the X-MEN, but he apparently didn’t know much about the DC universe. SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN: WHOM GODS DESTROY is the second worst Superman story I have ever read, beaten out only by SUPERMAN: AT EARTH’S END.

The only reason I can offer for reading this book is for the eerie prediction of Sept. 11^th from Superman’s typewriter and Lois Lane’s nightmare in the first book of the series. Other than that curious trivia, there’s no reason to waste your time reading, let alone buying this comic book story.