Lex Luthor - evil man

I've never really read much Lex before.  That sounds odd for a Super family fan, I know, but the Super issues I've picked up haven't tended to centre on Lex, and I dropped Action Comics when Superman left it.  So, my knowledge of Lex is the movies and Smallville.

Hence, I was surprised to find a number of differnet portrayals of him within Adventures of Superman.
From issue #552:

The point of this is he doesn't usually lose control, or get his hands dirty.  He tends to hire goons to do his dirty work.  Or renegade Amazons:

He rules by fear, manipulation, blackmail and politics.  He's clever, devious, ruthless and arrogant.  This was demosntrated nicely in last week's Action Comics 900 when he got ultimate power.

Anyway, learning all this, this next page put the wind up me:

I knew he was once president, that wasn't a surprise.  That is a nice piece of comic art though - he looks so foreboding, and, well, evil.

Long live Lex.  One of comic's most interesting characters.

Lex Luthor/Superman team up?

Well, when it's been inadvertently engineered by Mxy you know it will be fun.

Who shall wear the rings?

Thinking back on Blackest Night, I reckon the rings went to some of the wrong people (no shit I hear you cry).  So, I'd like to have seen them go to these people:

Orange (Avarice): Lex Luthor.  The canon choice works for me.
Yellow (Fear): Scarecrow.  As for Lex.  The guy peddles in fear, an obvious choice.
Green (Willpower): Hal.  Well why not.  Superman Red Son: Elseworlds convinced me of his willpower even if the GL comics didn't.
Blue (Hope):  Superman.  Because, c'mon.  he's the foremost icon within the DCU.  The symbol of all that is good and all that humanity can strive for.  He keeps our egos in check and makes everyone who meets him feel like they can be a better person and make a difference in the world (unless you're a villain, then you're fucked).
Indigo (Compassion): Wonder Woman.  As was noted in the blogosphere at the time, Diana's emotions and feelings for the world are centred around compassion, not love. Making her the pink lantern was a supremely sexist choice, made worse by that godawful outfit.
Violet/Pink (Love): Wally West.  Because of Linda being his anchor.  Those two are, to me, the most perfect example of love within the DCU.  More so than the Hawks.

Thsi leaves Red (Rage).  Mera didn't really work for me, her transition to Red Lantern felt forced, altho once turned, she made a very good angry vomity hero.  I really don't know who I'd pick.  If this had all occured back when Kara was new returning to the DCU, she'd have been a good choice.  If somewhat ineffective (because I feel that she wasn't trained well enough and would be a loose cannon.  Maybe that would make her very effective, I don't know).

Guy got a red ring then was cured, so I don't want to count him.

Other than that I came up with the Hulk.  Yeha I know, wrong universe.  I'm not too good on DCU villains (other than the rogues who certainly aren't rage filled).

What do you all reckon?  If I get enough answers I'll put up a poll.

Bad eyes, December shopping and plans for new posts

Over at Supergirl Comic Box Commentary the following picture was posted:

I was convinced that Babs was giving Matrix Alfred...Then I read the text to go with it and saw that it's actually Luthor. Which, while making far more sense isn't half as much fun as Matrix wanting Alfred for Christmas.

In what I bought in December news, I suspect that it being Christmas helped me not buy crap for myself. Or that it'd true that I mostly just buy comics. Anyway, here goes:

• Presents for family and friends - mostly new stuff but also containing edibles. Mostly bought form small independent local shops.

• Wrapping paper - I've always thought this was a total waste but people get the hump if you present them gifts wrapped in newspaper or plastic bags. So I bought yellow wrapping paper with dinosaurs on, from a local independent department store. :D

• 2 birthday cards for the same person as I lost (and then found) the first one. Doh.

• 3 second hand comic trades for me

- JSA Presents Stars and Stripes, which I haven't actually finished yet.
- 52 the Companion, Great. The Black Adam, Steel, Renee, Animal Man and Booster stories are all worth reading.
- JSA Ghost Stories. Also very good. Lots of Power Girl, alternate universe Superman and Lois, an unenlightened Ma Hunkel, lots of Jay Garrick and some beautiful art showing the highwayman when he was young.

• Underwear for me - definitely allowed as I can't buy that second hand.

• Train tickets.

• Many comics, both new ones and also old stuff bought from a friend.

• Food and drink. So much spent on food and drink.

• 2 new books bought for myself when I was getting my Dad's Christmas present. Books are a weakness of mine, and I didn't want to wait to get them out the library. Not really any excuses there. Especially when I finished them and saw how little space I have my book shelves. when did that happen? I haven't bought books regularly for months.

Anyway, the first book was the Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar, which was rubbish and will be heading to the charity shop very shortly. The second one was The Night Watch by Sergei Lukyenenko which was very very good. I saw the film a year or so ago, but didn't follow it very well, and I have been put off reading the book because my past experience with Russian novels is they are very difficult to read because of the style of writing and the translation. Not so with this one. The translation is excellent and I couldn't put it down. Highly highly recommended.

• A comic book box. I have run out of space on my shelves. That box filled up very quickly with my oversized UK comics (original 1980s Thundercats run and some 1990s Superman titles). I need to get a second one now and all my minis and one shots will be put into that one, leaving shelf space free for the ongoing series. So I'm trying to convince myself that as these boxes will help with freeing up space and are practical they don't count as useless junk and so are allowed. And they are better than using any old box as they are the perfect size.

I think that's everything I bought. I think I didn't do too badly.

Plan for new posts include one but more likely two on Spoiler, also reviews of the last batch of new comics I bought plus the second hand ones bought off friends. It will be a long review list.

It’s been a while but I’ve been busy

So here’s two weeks of comics reviews. Spoilers ahead for:
Buffy #19
Teen Titans #65
Superman & Batman vs Vampires and Werewolves (try typing that with a bad W key)
Superman # 682
Terror Titans #3
Terra #3
Superman/Supergirl Maelstrom #3
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Buffy the Vampire Slayer #19
Evil future Willow has set up Buffy and Faith to fight each other. Also features Fray’s cop sister.
This has lots of Fray future speak, which I like, and can’t quite see why Buffy had such a problem with when she first arrived. It’s perfectly understandable to me. Willow has been lying to Fray, Fray’s brother and Buffy about what will happen when Buffy both arrives in future land and when she leaves for our present day. This turns out to be a long winded ploy to get Buffy to kill Willow. And she does. She murders her best friend, and she does it easily and swiftly because she knows it is what is needed. It’s a clear cut decision. This doesn’t mean she isn’t sorry about it, she is, but she’s a warrior and she’s tough as nails and she does what needs to be done.
This reminds me of Wonder Woman killing Max Lord. Same reasons, carried out in a similar fashion.
Poor Buffy.

Teen Titans #65
Cassie kicks back and beats her crazy nephew (Lycus). I’m not quite sure how she did this. We saw crazy nephew choking her and then her eyes went starry, next thing we know, she’s got a new costume, she’s awake, she’s found her own power and she’s winning. I hope how this happened will be explored satisfactorily later. Her new costume looks pretty darn good, and mature, except….the gold W looks like it’s made of metal, so how’s she moving her arms? They should be clamped to her side..
Bombshell blows up the dog from inside him! Way to go. Violent, icky and messy but she keeps her cool and is hard as. Loving her. But I hope they are not gonna try and make her a Rose substitute, what with the snarking at Cassie. There’s room for two tough as hardcore morally wobbly super powered teenage women on the Teen Titans.
(And despite the previous sentence they aren't clones of each other, but they do have similarities)

Superman & Batman vs Vampires and Werewolves # 4
It’s got Ollie in it. J I like this issue. Far better than the last one. We see a kid turned vampire who hasn’t descended to drinking blood yet and we learn where the Vampires & Werewolves came from. Then Etrigan is summoned and starts rhyming, in a non annoying way. The art is lovely and murky too.
So far so good.

Superman #682
Ok so I do like this New Krypton cover.
Bizzarro mourns Pa Kent. Kryptonians are idiots, and as some other astute blogger observed, (who exactly I can’t remember, if anyone knows please tell me and I’ll credit them) if they are going to go to the trouble of locking up Supe’s enemies, they really should have put Lex out of action first.
I’m surprised Kara went along with her folks requests. I thought she had more mind than that. Renato Guedes draws an awesome Silver Banshee.
That page is just so colourful, so sunny and bright, (and Kara's wearing pants!)

Superman/Supergirl Maelstrom #3
God Superman is a dick. I am completely with Kara here. He is acting like her father, and a very short tempered dictatorial father at that. They’re cousins, she should be treated as an equal human being, not as someone of lower status who should be deferential to the mighty Kal.
Teaching her not to be reliant on her powers is a good thing, but taking them to a hostile planet with a red sun where they could be killed by all the aggressive attacking wildlife is not a good thing. It’s a stupid stupid thing. And arrogant. What if they were to die? What would their loved ones back home do? What would it do to Lois if they were to die off planet where (presumably) no one knows where they are?
And Kara's origin? Rocketed from Krypton as it exploded? I thought her last issue fixed it so she rocketed from a bubblised Argo City after a rampaging Brainiac was set on destroying it? And I got the impression this was Argo City after it had separated from Krypton and Krypton had exploded? Did I misunderstand?

The cover is beautiful though, especially Kara.

Terror Titans # 3
Well Rose won her match against Aquagirl, and I’m sure she’ll win against Static. Whoever the hell he is. I’m still appreciating the art (women with muscles!). Terry (a bad guy whose code name I’ve forgotten) fused his Dad into a wall. You can see the horror and the anger.

Terra #3
Still good fun. I’m loving the under earth civilisations. It seems that Terra, or Atlea, is not a simple clone of the previous Terra and I think it works. No Peej in this issue, sadly. The art is still looking gorgeous though, and Terra’s outfit is brilliant.

JSA: Ghost Stories
Trade paperback, incorporating ‘Ghost in the House’ and then the first 5 issues from 1 year later. I did enjoy this - the Gentleman Ghost flashback sequences are beautifully rendered. The rest of the art, pencilled by George Perez, Rags Morales and Jerry Ordway, I did not like. The story was fun, but I think may have bored me if I’d read it as a floppy monthly title.
Finding out Wildcat comes from English nobility tickled me. I was cringing through the fight sequences in London, at Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London and possibly Westminster Cathedral, cringing because I was thinking you can’t fight there, you’ll destroy our national treasures!
That’ll be the first patriotic thought I’ve ever had.

Smallville - Persona

Oh lexy. Lexy Lexy Lexy, what have you done? Oh my heart bleeds for you.

Smallville Gemini

Ok so I'm a little behind the times with this one.
Oh Lana, Lana Lana Lana, I realise you're rather mad but shouldn't you know Clark will never go for spying on Lex like that? You've met his morals right? Oh Lana, you're so fucked up in the head. And didn't Lana and Clark have a break up at the end of episode 8? Or some sort of heavy cooling off discussion?

I did like Chloe and Jimmy being discovered in the lift. The looks on their faces. It was just squishy.

Have I missed Chloe experimenting with her powers? Last I saw it was all with the tears of healing, now it's the firey glow of healing? Well I can go with that.

And lastly, yay for Bizarro! Quite excited about next weeks installment now. More excited about Black Canary though. I feel a crush coming on. Pity the set looks so cheap. I'm not sure about the actress's face though. It's a similar feeling with the Kara actress. They just look a bit wrong . Maybe it's just the short hair. We'll see. And with any luck they'll bring Ollie into it, by which point I'll be so excited I may just wet myself.