Comics Lex with red hair?

[WolverineX]

I'm currently reading a book a friend gave me, the return of superman.

I'm confused, why does Lex have all that red hair and a beard?!

 

[The Question]

Lex was dying of cancer, so he faked his death and placed his mind in a clone body, claiming that he was his own son.

 

[Spike_x1]

He also wasn't fat for the first time since MOS.

 

[The Question]

Yes. And now he's a health nut who once beat the crap out of Nightwing.

 

[Spike_x1]

Well, unless it's been retconned like everything else in Superman's continuity, Lex technically has physical perfection, which was granted to him by Neron after his clone body became infected with a special clone disease that started hyper-aging him. I thought that Nightwing's line in Public Enemies, "go to hell," and Lex's response "I've been. It's overrated" was a nod to Lex's deal with Neron and the reasoning behind him so easily beating Nightwing (aside from the nerve gas, I mean).

That physical status, combined with armed and unarmed combat training from both Hope and Mercy, means that Lex is about the furthest thing from being anything close to a pushover in a fight, whether he has his now-clichéd battlesuit or not.

Sadly, this does seem to have been forgotten, judging by Lex's portrayal in "Up, Up, and Away!" (seriously, he really should've easily kicked powerless Superman's ass in that final fistfight). I just hope it was only forgotten for the time being, and not completely retconned by Superboy Prime.

Dear DC Comics, as much as you try to forget it (God only knows why), Superman did actually have a set continuity of stories during the 90's (so very hard to believe, I know). Use them to your advantage, for God sakes.

 

[storyteller]

No lex was on essentailly banes steroids in a modified form. Thats why was able to beat nightwing up like that.

 

[CConn]

If I ever happen to come into control of DC Comics, the first thing I'm doing, is retconning the red hair.

 

[Spike_x1]

No lex was on essentailly banes steroids in a modified form. Thats why was able to beat nightwing up like that.

...yes, that PLUS everything that I listed earlier.

 

[Arach Knight]

Ah...clone lex and protoplasm Supergirl. What an era of books. As for the whole Lex vs. Nightwing thing, that was an utterly unfair fight.

-Lex had Venom in his system
-Lex used nerve gas on everybody there
-Lex had been innoculated for the nerve gas

Nightwing was resistent because of his training...but the nerve gas still left him feeble. We all know Lex wouldn't do anything but get his behind handed to him by ever member of the Bat crew.

 

[Spike_x1]

I think Lex could believably hold his own in a hand-to-hand fight with each member of the bat family from that scene, with the exception of Batgirl.

I'm not saying that he'd definitely win in a straight-up fight, but since we know that he has peak physical perfection and the best combat training money can buy (retcon status pending for both of those), I could swallow it if we're ever shown a scene where Lex fights Nightwing, Huntress, or whatever (definitely not all at once, but one at a time), without the nerve gas or venom, and doesn't get utterly beaten down, but instead puts up a decent challenge to the other fighter.

I think a fight between Lex and (for example) Nightwing (Dick's not really that high up on the martial artists scale of the DCU) could possibly go either way, depending on how much credibility the writer wants to give to Lex's training.

 

[The Question]

Lex taking on a member of the Bat Family isn't entirely far fetched, I'd say. I mean, they're all good fighters by the nature of what they do, but I really dislike it when people start atributing quasi-mystical martial arts steriotypes to their skills.

 

[Arach Knight]

I never said they were some sort of mystical martial artists (Cassandra some what withstanding), but they are all clearly highly trained combatants in world class martial arts (for the most part). Huntress is the only one i'd question, but even then it would be only by a small margin. I do agree that Lex would do a pretty decent job of defending himself...but I would base that on strength alone, as Lex probably wouldn't have the number of years of training under his belt, that the Bat crew does.

 

[The Question]

I never said they were some sort of mystical martial artists (Cassandra some what withstanding),

Cassandra isn't in any way mystical. She was trained from about the age of three to become a living weapons. Her training would give Batman nightmares. Not mystical, just really ****ing brutal. I remember one scene with her and Tim where Tim was tending a wound of hers. He noticed round scars on her back and said "They look like exit wounds from a bullet. But they're too big." Cassandra just turned to him and said "I grew."

but they are all clearly highly trained combatants in world class martial arts (for the most part).

I really don't thing the specific martial art is as important as how well it's used. But yes, they're all very well trained fighters.

Huntress is the only one i'd question, but even then it would be only by a small margin. I do agree that Lex would do a pretty decent job of defending himself...but I would base that on strength alone, as Lex probably wouldn't have the number of years of training under his belt, that the Bat crew does.

Well, I'd think that practical experience is more important than years training. Especialy since many military combat techniques are designed to be learned within months. But yes, the Bat crew also has more practical experiance than Lex.

 

[Arach Knight]

I thought the reason she used to not speak, was related to her training and some degree of mysticism? I could be wrong, as I never read any books with her in it before. Though I did just check out a Batgirl graphic novel from my public library, that looks to go in depth. They actually have a panel where she is playing in a room and a man sneaks up behind her, and shooters in the right shoulder. It was part of her training. I didn't read past that though.

 

[The Question]

I thought the reason she used to not speak, was related to her training and some degree of mysticism? I could be wrong, as I never read any books with her in it before. Though I did just check out a Batgirl graphic novel from my public library, that looks to go in depth. They actually have a panel where she is playing in a room and a man sneaks up behind her, and shooters in the right shoulder. It was part of her training. I didn't read past that though.

There was nothing mystical about her being mute. Her father simply never taught her how to speak.

 

[The Leaguer]

It's not really a matter of not teaching her how to speak, it's a matter of her father purposely not teaching her to speak.

David Cain kept his daughter from learning any kind of spoken or written language at all, so that the entire area of her brain devoted to language would instead learn to read body language. Consequently, she learned to read body language as well as any top-notch linguist can speak or listen.

 

[Arach Knight]

Well there ya go. Learn something new everyday.