I have to ask you, is it humanly possible to have a cooler name than that? When I saw this baby on Ebay I just had to have it. It's as cool (in my usual dorky sense) in person as it is in this picture.

For some reason I love Superman. I was never into superheroes and comics until my late twenties, which is a bit unusual, but there you go. To me the man of steel is likely the best of them all, but I have to say I'm definitely biased since my guilty pleasure is the drama-laden Smallville. For another insane reason I love comic book covers and cartoonish book jackets. Of course posters work here as well. To have a blown up print of this one would be orgasmic, if only to see people look at me even more strangely than they already do when they walk into my apartment.

Anyway, my favorite theme of Superman is his rivalry with Lex Luthor, the greatest 'criminal mind of our generation.' Here Lex is as determined as ever to destroy the Kryptonian savior, intent of once again becoming Metropolis' favorite son. His latest scheme of wearing a Kryptonite ring backfires, however, as it turns out the green meteor rock is not harmless to either. After losing his hand and learning he has a mere year to live, Luthor appears to commit suicide by diving his plane into a mountain.

It's interesting to witness Superman's reaction to everyone's adoration of Luthor and their reaction to his 'death,' a bit similar to his reaction to Luthor becoming President in 'Lex for President.' He can never figure out why the public is constantly fooled and follows the head honcho of crime so much, just as his contender never understands how the public can embrace an alien, no matter whether he saves their lives or not. The age-old conflict between the two is a classic example of good vs. evil, sometimes in black and white as in the earlier days, but when they show true emotion on both sides (no longer just one-dimensional) things can get even more appealing for fans of the red-caped patriot.

One of the best stories (by John Byrne ) is when Lex is using a supercomputer and witty scientist to unlock the mystery of who Superman actually is. When it spits out an image of Clark Kent and a seemingly logical explanation, Luthor almost immediately balks and dismisses the machine altogether. How could someone like Clark Kent have that much power and then choose to be a reporter of all things? Unthinkable in his mind. The other three continue the trail of Luthor's hatred and envy of Kent, bringing forth "Lex Luthor II" and paving the way toward a continued rivalry. ( )