Ricky Church continues his countdown to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice with Luthor…
Many of the best villains in fiction are the heroes of their own story. Lex Luthor is no exception as he believes he’s the only man on the planet able to see Superman for who he truly is: a threatening alien biding his time conquer Earth and strip mankind of everything they hold dear. Writer Brian Azzarello and artist Lee Bermejo made Lex the focal point of their story Luthor, formerly titled Lex Luthor: Man of Steel.
Luthor’s vendetta against Superman is told from his point of view as he works to undermine Superman’s public image and authority. One facet of Azzarello’s depiction of Lex that is a bit more nuanced than most other depictions is this Lex seems to be a relatively good man who feels forced to make tough and harsh choices in order to do what’s best for Metroplolis and protect humanity from Superman.
Aside from believing Superman himself poses a threat to humanity, Luthor also believes Superman’s mere presence, as well as that of other superheroes, will strip humanity of their potential to rise to new heights. He thinks people will look to Superman to solve their problems for them, such as saving themselves, curing diseases or travelling space, eroding all of mankind’s greatest scientific and philosophical achievements. They’ll be so enamoured with Superman’s own special abilities they’ll forget they have that same potential within themselves, falling into Superman’s trap to be looked at as humanity’s sole hope for the future.
The dichotomy explored between these two foes is given a lot of great depth, especially since Superman hardly appears throughout the story. The times he does actually appear, he’s depicted as how Lex sees him: an angry, aggressive alien with heat vision ready to explode at a moment’s notice. Which brings me to my next point: even if you think the story sounds lame or are uninterested in seeing Luthor’s perspective, give it a read purely for Lee Bermejo’s artwork. It is simply gorgeous from start to finish, giving each character a life of their own. With Bermejo’s frightening rendition of Superman, you’d be forgiven for buying into Luthor’s paranoia about Superman’s ulterior motives.
One interesting element in this story is Luthor’s brief interactions with Bruce Wayne. Lex seeks Bruce’s help on a project to fight against Superman, ensuring humanity’s survival should their fears regarding the hero come to pass. This results in a brief confrontation between Batman and Superman, forcing Bruce to agree to Lex’s deal. Perhaps audiences will see something like this play out in Batman v Superman as Lex manipulates both sides into fighting each other.
Ricky Church
Originally published February 16, 2016. Updated June 30, 2023.
