Is Lex an ally? Is he an enemy, a wolf in sheep's clothing? Is this new amnestic Lex truly and ally? Or is the whole thing a ruse? Writer Joshua Williamson let's us peek behind the curtain, bringing us back to the earliest moments of this run and letting us hear Lex say his plans. But the amnesia from Brainiac must have been an unanticipated event, changing things. (I do wonder if Williamson had this all mapped out, including that turn, when the book was initiated.)
But this is a stuffed issue. So we get to see Mercy continue her heel-turn. We see Marilyn Moonlight for the first time in a while. We get to see more of the Red-K poisoning. And substantial movement in the Superwoman arc. And we get the introduction of a villain with a name that I can't believe hasn't been used before. Kudos to Williamson!
The art is done by a trio of superstars - Jamal Campbell, Dan Mora, and Eddy Barrows. It was good to see Campbell back on the book, especially since his pages are the flashback to the beginning of the book, the arc he drew. Gave it some artistic weight. Barrows and Mora finish the book with some flair, including the use of 2 page splashes and oversized panels. Mora also gives us this wraparound cover.
I know it is going to sound insane but that jacketed Supergirl look has really grown on me. I wonder how much of that is Mora and how much is the look.
From the very beginning of the book, when Lex said he wanted to work with Superman, to form SuperCorp, and do good, I have wondered if he has really meant it. It has been interesting to try to peer into the mind of the villain.
In the opening flashback pages, drawn by Campbell so echoing the book when these events happened, Lex sounds downright nefarious. It is all some ploy. He certainly doesn't seem like someone who turned over a new leaf.
And look how far Mercy has gone in two years. From capped chauffeur to CEO!
We switch to present day, drawn by Barrows.
We see now that Project X-El is the super-powered Lex clone from last issue. Lex didn't think it was stable but Mercy has put in some new touches. And let's not forget her Metallo upgrade.
Love this double splash with the left page showing us key moments in the recent past including House of Brainiac. That was such a cool arc.
But this is the key scene in the whole book for me. The real villain here is Mercy.
In a black-and-white scene with pencilly art by Barrows, Lex professes his love to Mercy. He is a new man, the new Lex. He isn't the evil man he was.
She looks absolutely devastated. She wanted what she calls 'the real' him.
It is crazy. That Lex had no feelings for Mercy and yet she loved him. And this kinder Lex who does love her ... well she has no interest in him.
And so she released what she thinks is the Uber-Lex, X-El, a super-powered clone with the thought patterns of the old Lex.
Remember Marilyn Moonlight? We haven't seen her in over a year. Heck I was thankful for the editors note!
So it seems a little bit of a shoehorn to have her try and enact justice on Lex as he is being brought to jail. Why not any time before?
But it does give Lex a trip back to the city after Lena warns him of Mercy's treachery.
But it does give Lex a trip back to the city after Lena warns him of Mercy's treachery.
I like Moonlight. I like her look and attitude. So I was glad to see her back.
Meanwhile the X-El instability starts to kick in and he becomes more Bizarro like.
How has X-El, the name of a Bizarro Lex, never been used before?? X-El is Lex backwards!! It has been dangling out there for years!! Significant kudos to Williamson for seeing it!
With Superman and Superwoman still out from Kryptonite exposure, the only one left to fight X-El is Lex in a powersuit.
How cool that this Lex jumps into the fray to defend the city and work with our heroes.
The X-El clone really begins to Bizarro-ify.
But he certainly has the old Lex's thoughts. Metropolis is his city. And if he can't have it, no one will.
Great panels by Barrows with X-El floating over the city, looking down on it.
Chilling that he would destroy what he can't own.
And X-El is no joke.
He pounds on Lex.
He pounds on Superman, almost making that Red K fury fever erupt.
And then he is about to pound on Superwoman ... but first he says he is going to track down Lois' family and hurt her son.
And that don't fly.
Lois goes all Dragon Ball Z here, unleashing a kamehameha level heat vision blast to X-El.
Great pages by Dan Mora here. The splash is amazing. The insane panels showing the fallout of the blast are tumbling around, showing the power. That far view showing the size of the blast dwarfing buildings. Brilliant.
I love how Lois' protective mom instincts just flared up.
Battered, X-El still insists he is the true Lex.
But the real Lex knows what to do, showing he *is* the true Lex.
He offs X-El.
It is interesting how it shakes out after.
You might recall how Superman has been suspicious of this amnestic Lex for a while. Calling him 'Luthor'. You might remember the Lex Luthor special where it was implied this Lex was recalling the dastardly thoughts of his old self.
So is Superman's anger at this Lex's act over the top? X-El was a disintegrating clone who was going to try and destroy the city. Was it truly evil to stop it? Was it even murder to eliminate this pseudo-life?
And how sad that Mercy's activation of X-El forced Lex to do this questionable act. He sure sounds like the old Lex saying that he did 'the right thing', declaring himself the hero of tomorrow.
He is and isn't the old Lex. Superman has the right to be angry but also maybe not this angry. There is always another way.
It is a delicious philosophical conundrum ... interrupted by Lois saying her powers are gone.
Whoa! Nice ending, especially when you remember that mean they most likely have returned to Zod. And Time Trapper Doomsday said a whole lot of badness goes down when Zod returns.
In case you can't tell, I really liked this issue, a delicious brew of character growth and action with a dash of pathos on the side. The art was stellar. Williamson and crew are crushing it.
And X-El as the name for Bizarro Lex!
Overall grade: A
3 comments:
Mercy's twisted love is probably the most realistic thing in the issue. Men and women have been falling for abusive and distant others for as long as mankind has existed. And has she ever been JUST a chauffeur? I always saw here as an all-purpose, talented henchperson hidden in plain sight by that cap.
Lex did do the right thing by X-El. Have clones been established as legally human beings? It wasn't morally wrong. It just isn't what Clark would do. Heck, there are actual heroes who would have done it. The more interesting yet less enjoyable Vigilante certainly would have.
And the second big ongoing thing I dislike went away with Lois' powers. Lois with powers diminishes her to me and I could never figure out how Zod was within range or how she was changed biologically head to toe. She had to have ben made into a Kryptonian and that felt different than any other power swap by far. What remains to annoy me is Lex being written as if his kinder, gentler persona somehow should get him off the hook for being a mass murdering sociopath. A face turn should not get you off the hook for your previous actions. Give him a lab monitored by Mister Terrific in Super Max and call it a day.
Nailed it with the review, Anj. The only thing I’m perhaps not on the same page as you is as regards Lex at the start of the book. Yes, he wants to use Superman to stop Pharm and Graft, but for does seem genuinely OK with good stuff that gets done along the way.
I hope we see X-El again. A little thing like having his head blown off shouldn’t slow him down too much.
Steve, great idea about Lex and prison lab… mind, what always happen when Lex has access to even the smallest bit of tech?
If it's a true face turn, that wouldn't be an issue but he could always give others his ideas to implement. Of course, even if the intention for Lex stay good, kt won't stick. Making him eeeevil again is as certain as Aquaman being deposed and Atlantis being destroyed again.
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