Throughout Superman’s comic book history, he has encountered several characters who strangely share the same initials of ‘L.L.’ The odd overlap makes it seem less weird that Martha Kent and Martha Wayne have the same first name. From Clark Kent’s high school girlfriend Lana Lang to his Daily Planet reporter wife Lois Lane, and his archenemy Lex Luthor, there are even more Superman-related characters in the DC Universe who coincidentally have two names beginning with ‘L’.
In the Golden and Silver Ages of comics, alliteration in character names was common, but not constant. From the Hulk’s Bruce Banner to Spider-Man’s Peter Parker, and the original Captain Marvel’s alter ego, Billy Batson, superheroes were named by creators similarly to cartoons, with catchy, memorable names. Today, characters tend to have more authentic-sounding names, rendering many love interests, villains, and fellow superheroes a product of their time.
In contrast to the broader DC Universe, Superman’s large cast of characters stand out for the retro naming convention. The distinction echoes the brighter tone of Superman comics, as opposed to Batman’s darker rogues gallery in Gotham City. Through his many adventures, Clark Kent has fallen in love with Lana Lang, met her mother Laura Lang, met her father Lewis Lang, married Lois Lane, met her sister Lucy Lane, and has fought Lex Luthor, who has a sister Lena Luthor and a son Lex Luthor Jr. Superman has also teamed up with Supergirl, who has taken the alias Linda Lee. However, this is just a small sample of the many characters who share the initials in the grand scheme of Superman stories. Mr. Mxyztplk addresses the trope in Adventures of Superman #646, written by Greg Rucka with art by Karl Kerschl, Wayne Faucher, and colors by Tanya Horie and Richard Horie.
Even the fifth-dimensional imp theorizes a reason for the frequency of the initials, connecting it to the Kryptonian alphabet. If someone were to know the reasoning behind the convention, it is Mxyztplk, who operates outside of the DC Universe as a fourth wall-breaking presence. The tradition has usually been ignored in modern comics, as many creators have leaned into grounding the Man of Steel, with stories like Superman: Earth One and The New 52’s rebooted take. However, it would be a breath of fresh air for Mr. Mxyztplk to continually call out such relics of a past era which continue to stick around.
Similarly, fans have wondered if the commonality stems from Kal-El’s original spelling from Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel’s initial run, which spelled it as “Kal-L.” However, characters introduced to the Superman mythos in modern stories who share the initials tend to be a clear homage to the trend, such as Lex’s father Lionel Luthor in Smallville and some comics. While DC consistently updates elements of the universe, the ‘L.L.’ has stayed for the longterm.
As noted, writers have called out the strange naming convention in the past. Writer Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale’s Superman: For All Seasons incorporates three of the most important people in Superman’s life, with Lois Lane, Lana Lang, and Lex Luthor as central characters. With the frequency in which the graphic novel shifts between each other perspectives, it sets up an organic opportunity to reference their shared initials. When Lois wonders who else could possibly have her initials, the next panel shifts to LexCorp. After mentioning Lana, she questions Clark, asking, “How many people do you know that have the initials L.L.?” Although writers have thought about it, evidently characters in-universe haven’t been made aware.
It’s been a long time since DC made a nod at such intrinsically comic book elements. While films such as Man of Steel might try to ground Superman in reality, the piece of his comic book history remains to be a cornerstone of the mythos. Instead of renaming characters, giving a bizarre canonical reason behind the initials, or winking at the frequency of ‘L.L.,’ it’s probably for the best that Superman comics take it seriously.
