Invisibles: Even when it was coming out, it was old hat. Hail Eris. All hail High Weirdness. Get Reverend Strang laid!
At least, that was always my impression. I’d seen it before, again and again and better and worse. But hey, it’s always the FIRST time you see something that breaks the mind.
That demon of the alphabet… does he have a hold on Americans? Many go through an entire lifetime without saying the last syllable of his name, after all…
Well, except that unlike all its predecessor secret histories, the Invisibles weren’t actually the heroes of The Invisibles.
–Cliffy
But if any of you weird people 
outside the NYC region want a copy of a “Special Edition” Batman comic that came as a free “NY Post Exclusive” in the middle of today’s paper, let me know. I got 2 copies and was going to throw them in the round file - but figured I could to my part for recycling and mail them to someone who might appreciate having one.
I refuse to look inside for fear I’ll lose much needed brain cells, but can describe it as follows:The front cover says Batman (obviously) Special Edition! / NY Post Exclusive with the names of 3 literary giants I’ve never heard of across the top: Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee & S.Williams.
The back cover has an ad for some movie starring Christian Bale, Liam Neeson & Katie Holmes.
I guess it’s about 30 pages.For all I know, it was given out free in tabloids throught the country today as a plug for that movie on the back cover … but in NYC area, it’s only available via the Post.
:raises hand:
Please sir, I’d like to see it.
Hey, I’d love to have one.
It’s a reprint of Batman #608, the first chapter of the “Hush” storyline.
You admit to opening up the NY Post and you’re afraid a Batman comic will cause lost brain cells? Just reading the Post’s headlines causes irreversible brain damage.
Sorry, I overlooked this the first time around.
Back in the old days, Lex was set on the path to evil when Superboy stupidly caused a lab accident that destroyed young Luthor’s work (and hair). Luthor believed SB did it on purpose out of jealousy for Lex’s superior intellect. I know Elliot S! Maggin, at least, used the subtext that Luthor was trying to distract Superman, so he wouldn’t be able to consolidate his hold over the world. This was back in the 1960s and 1970s.
Now, this stuff was all pretty subtle, and to some extent only existed in the writers’ own minds. After all, it was the Silver Age, and DC, and we couldn’t have all this characterization and moral philosophy distract from the fight with Lex’s new Kryptonite-Belching giant robot monkey. But it was there. The biggest nod to this was the stories of Lexor, a world were Lex ended up considered a hero, and Superman a villain.
Post-Crisis, as I’m sure you’re aware, Lex shifted from a mad scientist to a machiavellian business magnate. But he was still angry at Superman for taking the public eye off of humanity, and more to the point, him. He’s gone back to mad scientist mode, but his basic motivations haven’t changed.
I can’t quite believe I’m defending this series. I didn’t like it. It’s too talky, Batman was out of character, and the art does little for me. But Lex’s character was both consistent with everything we know about him, and quite interesting. He’s an utter bastard. But at least part of the time, he’s convinced that he’s the hero of teh story, and that the ends justify the means.