Superman fever has caught DC fans once again thanks to the cameo appearance of Henry Cavil’s version of the Kryptonian in Black Adam. In addition to that, rumors of a Man of Steel sequel as well as the appointment of James Gunn as DC Studios’ co-CEO have also caused the euphoria to surge to an all-time high.
With the latest developments come all sorts of possibilities, including the revisiting of early DC projects such as Smallville. Fans would be thrilled to see some characters return and the one who shouldn’t be left behind if such an opportunity arose is Michael Rosenbaum’s Lex Luthor. That’s because the villain is quite comic-accurate when it comes to his personality.
Lex’s Passion For Politics
Lex Luthor passion for politics on the show is seen through his successful run for Kansas state senator. Clark also has a vision of 2013 where Lex is a presidential candidate. And in the alternate reality seen in Season 7, Lex is the president, with one of the most powerful Superman villains, Brainiac as his chief of staff. Lex joins politics too in Lex Luthor (2000) #1 and eventually becomes president.
Rosenbaum’s Lex fights for office with the same zeal as his comic counterpart. And even though the character’s political journey is smoother in the comic, the decision to make things harder for him in the series helps make him more interesting. His motivations aren’t hidden either. Becoming a politician means being able to set up laws that make the lives of superheroes harder.
Lex’s Jealousy And Competitiveness
Lex is physically weak, but he is often willing to fight just so he can prove himself better than superheroes. This need leads to his engaging in a deadly one-on-one against Oliver Queen, aka Arrow. In Action Comics #544, Lex creates the “Warsuit” to help him beat Superman so that he can show the world he is better. Furthermore, he goes as far as getting training from the Amazons of Themyscira.
On TV, Lex Luthor’s jealousy and competitiveness make even more sense because Oliver Queen is a billionaire like him. The two happen to be former schoolmates too hence there is a need for each to prove they are doing better than the other in life. Additionally, Lex is unhappy about the fact that other than making a lot of money, Oliver can also fight. As for his feud with Clark Kent, it all emanates from his previous encounters with aliens, which weren’t always nice.
Lex’s Aggressive Style Of Doing Business
As the owner of LuthorCorp, Rosenbaum’s Lex is aggressive in his business practices, so much so that he buys the Daily Planet and names himself CEO. Lex also founds one of the evilest organizations in comics, LexCorp, in Superman #416 and uses it to acquire Inter-Continental Airlines and Southwestern Petroleum.
World domination is a common desire for supervillains and Lex’s penchant for acquisition is inspired by his dream of being in charge of every little thing essential for the human population. Buying the Daily Planet, specifically is a wise move for him because it grants him the opportunity to broadcast all types of propaganda about himself. It’s, therefore, no surprise that he gets elected president in the future.
Lex’s Social Nature
As evil as Lex might be on the show, he is very friendly. It’s because of this that he becomes close to Brainiac. He and Clark also get to banter on a couple of occasions. Such mannerisms can be traced to the comics where Lex befriends many baddies, including one of the best Batman villains, the Joker.
Since he is charming, Lex never has a problem making friends or getting a new lover. Keeping them is what’s harder for him because he is a self-centered person. A trend is thus seen in the series where Clark occasionally understands him and chooses to work with him only to get disappointed again and label him a threat.
Lex’s Innovativeness
From creating a composite clone of himself, the LX-Ø, to erasing his memories in order to increase his brain functionality, there is no limit for Lex when it comes to experiments. On the pages, most of his experiments involve creating a subservient version of Superman, and he almost achieves that in Titans United (Vol. 1) #2 when he makes Kon-El.
If there’s someone that’s going to change the world, Lex believes it should be him. After all, he has the brain and resources needed to do it. To him, changing the world also means getting rid of Superman, and it’s this view that works as an incentive. For a miscreant with no special abilities, dealing with one of the most overpowered superheroes of all time also calls for some creativity, hence the reason Lex always comes up with unique inventions.
Lex’s Hatred Towards Family
Lex is never fond of his family. He murders his father, Lionel, illegally clones his brother, Jonathan, and stabs his half-sister, Tess. In the comics, his anger is mostly directed toward his father, who abused him as a child.
The brutal manner in which Lex deals with his family in the series only serves as a reminder that he isn’t an antagonist who won’t let anything stand in his way. And even though his hatred towards his father is totally justified, he comes off as totally malicious by the manner in which he deals with his fellow
Lex’s Thirst For Knowledge
Rosenbaum’s character has a strong thirst for knowledge and his desire to learn has made him become multilingual. Having read many books, he also quotes historical figures on the regular. Events in New Super-Man #9 also reveal that the illustrated Lex not only knows Mandarin and Korean but also reads frequently.
Plain villains are never memorable and depicting Lex as a person who values knowledge, makes him more iconic than the beat-em-up types. A baddie who claims to know why Julius Ceasar’s downfall happned is unlikely to make the same mistakes as him. Hence, when he survives numerous dangerous situations, the events are believable.
Lex’s Poor Handling Of Relationships
Just like the Comics Lex who never has any meaningful relationships, the TV Lex is mostly clueless on how to please his romantic partners. That’s why he has an on-and-off relationship with Lana Lang. His marriage to Helen Bryce fails too.
Bad guys are mostly designed to fail hence watching Lex struggle to keep a relationship whereas Clark has a wholesome love life is all part of the dynamic. In both the comics and the series, Lex either tries too hard or doesn’t try hard enough. Even more interesting is the fact that he is always unbothered about the outcome.
Lex’s Condescending Nature
Rosenbaum’s Lex is extremely bossy when dealing with LexCorp and Daily Planet employees. And so is the character on the pages, who takes his condescending nature all the way to the White House.
With much power comes arrogance hence he is seen adopting a can’t-tell-me-nothing attitude throughout the show. At the same time, anyone who works for him or with him has to do his bidding, or else they pay dearly. It’s one of the few traits that Lex shares with many other movie and TV villains.
Lex’s Outgoing Nature
Whether it’s going to the Fortress of Solitude or entering the Katawtche Caves. Lex never ignores an opportunity to go on adventures. Such is also the case on the DC pages where Lex always puts himself on the frontline despite having people he can send.
Fans would accept nothing less than an adventurous Lex Luthor since the billionaire inventor is known to be in the Type A personality category. Moreover. A lot goes on in the world of Superman and to keep up with it all, Lex has to be out here too. In the comics, the character has obviously toured more territories since he has been around for ages, but the younger TV version tries to keep up too.
