Letters to SUPERWOMAN: FOR TOMORROW #1

First of all, that cover is glorious. Well done, Mr. Howard.

I think Steve is firing on all cylinders with this event, and I'm hoping there's an opportunity to continue working on stuff with him moving forward after Ten Years Later. We've talked a lot about Kara's new costume (I'll post some of the rejected designs at some point, because they're all beautiful but we had to really figure out how we wanted to present the character visually), as well as Lena's look. More on that later. He is beasting every single cover idea and I'm looking forward to seeing more of his stuff across the event.

I liked this. Great start to what I'm sure will be a strong story. Kara feeling the burden of her legacy is some juicy meat for a story and you really dig into it. Plus it makes a nice parallel with Lena and her own fatherly issues.

I was worried that it was too heavy for Kara, but this girl has been through a lot already in the DC2, and like how Kara was different when Jeph Loeb and Michael Turner debuted her compared to the original, she's going to be quite a different character that we're going to move in different and new directions. The Lena Luthor story is going in a very specific direction.

I'm also glad Kara has a support staff with Lena and Karen and a fresh start in Ivy Town. I don't know where this is going but I'm eager to find out.

The relationship between Kara and Karen was so important to me in this book, and I think it's something I'll build on in the present day if opportunity allows.

And then there's the action, which is appropriately big and exciting and well written. Brainiac makes for a good bad guy to handle and the fight with Amazo was...interesting. I'll be honest, Kara using her voice to reprogram electronics feels like a Golden Age thing, where Superman got a new power every week, but I suppose that's one of those things I'm gonna have to roll with.

In the original draft Kara utilised the established ability of super-hypnosis, but I started talking to Don about it and he came up with this really cool extrapolation that resulted in the ability to verbally / wirelessly program electronics. It's very Golden Age, but it also makes sense for Kara, being a character very much of the 21st century, being a young woman, to push her abilities in different ways that Clark would never think to. I was really pleased with how it ended up, and it helped me with the later Brainiac scene too.

Sept 24, 2015 17:34:13 GMT -5 UltimateDC said:

Still, this was overall a pretty strong issue; engaging, entertaining, and most of all, human, which I think was the point of this. Nice work. Looking forward to the next.

And unbelievably hard to write. I'll post more on that later.

Sept 24, 2015 17:34:13 GMT -5 UltimateDC said:

Also, who is Lena's mother?

Keep reading.

HoM
Administrator

Writer

Posts: 12,622

Letters to SUPERWOMAN: FOR TOMORROW #1 Sept 26, 2015 13:37:49 GMT -5 David likes this

Quote

Post by HoM on Sept 26, 2015 13:37:49 GMT -5

This issue is a triumph. In the midst of all this DC2 "end-times" talk (well, mostly from me, I suppose, but still!) Charlie has given us a story that reminds us that--- even in a world without Superman--- life goes on, and it can be awesome and challenging and fun; I will resist the urge to regard this sentiment as an intentional metaphor for DC2 at 10YL, but it did cross my mind.

If the metaphor fits! I've been very steadfast in saying I'm not going anywhere. While everyone is celebrating Ten Years Later with their "final stories", I'm nowhere near finished, and I'm plotted a year or two ahead with Green Lantern Corps and Justice League. In fact, I just broke the new big arc of GLC and I'm excited where to take it, even if the issues look like they're going to hit in mid-to-late 2016. Such is life!

Kara's twin conundrums of where does she fit in? and how can she fill her cousin's shoes? make for intriguing character work, as she bounces off the superhero community, Ma, Lena, and Power Girl. It never becomes navel-gazing, as just about every scene moves the plot along, or does some world-building...

Like I said in response to UDC, I'm really relieved the scenes didn't come across as too much of a downer. I wanted to have three figures discuss the new world order after Superman left-- Karen being Kara but with 10 years on here, Ma being the conduit to the past and then Lena Luthor being the potential nemesis. Each was building toward the understanding that Supergirl needed to stand up and represent, but that she shouldn't take the whole world on her shoulders mentally, even if she will, at times, do it physically. Now that we've lain that groundwork, we can move forward, and the idea with the next two issues is to continue skipping across the years and show how life moves forward, especially when it's a decade.

...and it makes us feel like this is a character we've known all along for the last ten years, when in actual fact, Kara Zor-El has been extremely under-used since her introduction. No matter. In this issue, Charlie makes her his. And by the end, I can see Kara taking her place in the pantheon of DC2 "big guns."

And that's exactly what I want to do. When it comes to character progression, I'm one of the people on the site who fully embrace every single aspect of the continuity we've established, be it Kara landing on a jungle planet first, or Hank Henshaw becoming a back-up Green Lantern back in the day. Roy Flinchum, who was writing Action Comics at the time, and Daniel Palmer, who wrote Green Lantern prior to myself, weren't content to just rewrite and rehash old storylines, they took the pieces off the board, threw the board out, and built an entirely new one. Without those two guys, the stories I'm writing now wouldn't have-- to me-- the same resonance.

I was disappointed Kara was never really picked up and used on the DC2, but I think that's better than soft rebooting her every twelve issues like DC did when they debuted the modern Supergirl in Superman / Batman. Every time a new writer came onboard they tried to reestablish her, and I think that it was such a shame because nothing really stuck. Let's take what we've got and continue to build. Let's not say "ignore that, focus on this", which I think betrays the work previous talent have done.

One of my favorite aspects of the issue was Kara's relationships to Power Girl and Lena Luthor. Lena is a stand-out, outshone only by Kara as a brilliant creation. With her last name, you almost have to expect some kind of rivalry, but the curious friendship between these two woman is sort-of heart-warming. I really don't want to see Lena go bad! I like her too much. True story: Charlie previewed for me the scene outside of Camp K, and one of the first things I said to him was something like, "the way you write her reminds me of Natalie Dormer" which I suppose was his idea all along (take a look at Steve Howard's pic of her).

A quick divergence... I've not read any of the nu52 Supergirl issues, and apparently no one else did because now it's cancelled. Considering there's a new show coming up with the character, that's a massive oversight, but hey, if it wasn't working then you have to sometimes let the character lay fallow until you know the best way to move forward. Figuring out how to write the character meant looking back at a whole host of sources, a lot of 90s DC-- back when she was Matrix-- as well as reading the Palmiotti, Gray and Conner Power Girl series (which is perfection, by the way). That meant remembering how massive they planned to make the character around Infinite Crisis, but that false started and she was back to being a B-lister. But she's so cool and I wanted to write a relationship I've not really seen explored in comics in this title. Power Girl-- and she's still Power Girl even after X amount of years-- is great fun. Takes no crap. Really excited to continuing working with the character.

Now Lena, when that clicked with me, it clicked big time. You'll see more of her childhood in #3, but when I started getting into comics big time Our Worlds At War was something I could pick up from the library and she plays a really interesting role there, having been aged up and brainwashed by Brainiac 13. But it really struck me that we could do something no one's really done before, and that's replace Lex Luthor-- you having told me he was leaving the planet-- with someone who's got roots in story, but never really been used before. I think that's what it's all about for Ten Years Later. Trying to use characters in ways we can't really do in the present day. Like, I'm not going to kill off Supergirl in the present day. That's not fair. But after a time jump, leaving lots of times for other stories to be told, who knows what could happen?

With regards to Lena looking like Natalie Dormer, that's exactly who I suggested to Steve she look like. Especially with her look from The Hunger Games, where she's got the half bald head. It was serendipitous. Plus she's beautiful, so YES.

Her relationship with Kara should be weird, but somehow it isn't. It's a strange thing to be confronted with one's own self, but these two woman have had very different lives and have turned out to be (essentially) two very different people. Yet they have a bond, and the sister-vibe in this issue hits all the right notes.

This is a relationship that will span ten years. There will be ups and downs and it's going to be a wild ride. Lot to cover in a decade.

The confrontation with Amazo was... unique. I think this might be the first time a superhero actually just "talked it out" with a rampaging villain. I think UDC hit it on the head in his comment, so I won't belabor it, except to say it was actually kind of a nice change of pace.

So this scene was a late addition. I wanted Supergirl to be pushing herself really hard to cover for her cousin, being obsessively heroic, which is kind of unhealthy. So I thought I'd throw her at New Zealand because I wanted to get global (and pay homage to that really cool Red Tornado sequence in 52) and when I realised that New Zealand doesn't reeeally have her own heroes, I had some Australian guys come over. Amazo is Justice League-level. Her talking him down was originally down to the very Silver Age super-hypnosis scene, but after talking it through with Don he suggested expanding her powerset, taking the Kryptonian physiology and expanding what it can do under a yellow sun.

When Don said that, everything clicked. It's an obvious extrapolation of Kryptonian enhancements and is a far more logical extrapolation of new powers instead of that 'super flare' that's appearing in Action Comics at the moment. He pointed out that we don't have to stay within the boundaries of established continuity, and it made even more sense that Kara will have started to develop new directions for her powers? Unlike Clark, who was raised in a very analogue era, Kara was raised in a super science society, then hit Earth as a teenager, when technology was as massive part of growing up. Why shouldn't it occur to her to try and use her voice like that? It wouldn't occur to Clark, as he was raised in a different era. So in the future, we're going to see her going in different directions, expanding on established powers and natural extensions of what's there already.

The confrontation with BRAINIAC (why all caps, btw?) was EPIC (Extremely Perfect, Interesting & Cool). Next to Luthor (who's in a class by himself), Brainiac is my favorite Superman villain, and I will always regret I didn't finish my Action Comics run that brought him into the DC2. The concept is done well here, and illustrates why Kara deserves to be a top-tier Justice Leaguer. Her talking BRAINIAC out to Circus Maximus (nice!) was an awesome moment. This was a high stakes fight, and probably could have been a whole issue unto itself. But it fit in here nicely. In fact, this issue has a lot of bang for the readers' buck.

Ha! That was my mis-remembering Brainiac's naming convention. We take a lot from the Smallville continuity, and over there he was the Brain InterActive Construct (BRAINIAC for short), so I wanted to honour that, but also differentiate this version of Brainiac from others you might see on the site. I have a full narrative essay on Brainiac coming where every different version of him is represented, be it your Brainiac 1, my BRAINIAC, Milton Fine, Brainiac 5, all the way to 13. To avoid people being taken out of the story I've put it back to being lower case, but I'll still follow through on the story idea I have... very soon.

The Circus Maximum (yes, it's not a typo) made perfect sense and we might see it established in the present day Justice League title, but I don't think it's going to be in existence after the fight it just witnessed. The Brainiac / Supergirl fight, as well as Brainiac's overall plan, is a wink toward an Earth-2 story I've discussed with Brandon (and half written, uh oh) and also a way to fully highlight how powerful Supergirl is when she lets loose.

On the topic of Superman villains, I've always struggled to find the right villain to put Superman against. I've used a lot of the nineties guys, a lot of minor guys, because my runs on Action Comics have always been hampered by a sudden realisation that I had no idea how to write the character outside of team books. Lex Luthor is the nemesis you have to write (and he's currently appearing in Green Lantern Corps #shamelessplug) and Brainiac is one of the big ones, as well, but they're so hard to write! Superman is so powerful, the characters have to be on that level too, and it just became too difficult. That's how I started writing the Guardian in Action Comics, that's how it became a bloody team book, but with Superwoman, I'm hoping I can deliver big time on the threats the world-- the universe-- is about to face. Hell, I think I used Thaddeus Killgrave once. For crying out loud...

I love how Charlie ties this into the emerging continuity of 10YL, doing what he does best, investing us in the shared universe of DC2, but if I have a criticism at all of this issue, it's with the (to my eyes) starkly different presentation of Lex Luthor. I certainly get it, though, especially in light of Lena Luthor's character arc here, and I can easily overlook it in my overall enjoyment of this story.

The one problem with there not being any Group Editor for this event, or for any of the titles, is that events are running in different directions when they should be taking part simultaneously. I had written Lex Luthor being in Camp K months ago and sent it to you soon after but then I had to really rejig it after your issue hit, which was really aggravating. My Lex Luthor is a monster in a cage. Be it a real cage, or the prison of civility, this guy is a narcissistic sociopath and I don't see him as someone who can be redeemed (and that's coming from me) so I won't be writing him in any heroic light, which is what I think you're doing. Thankfully he's off Earth, so Lena has an opportunity to really grow beyond her name, and hopefully change the connotation that comes with it, like she says. But what happens when you're known as the daughter of Lex Luthor? Of a supervillain? When the government had a problem, even if they hated doing it, they'd go to Luthor to solve it off the books. So when a problem arises and there's no Lex, well... there's going to be an expectation there.

As I've said, this was the mini from Charlie that I was most looking forward to seeing , and it didn't disappoint in the slightest. Thanks for the great read!

Thanks, David. This is a book that can keep going beyond three issues (I'm contemplating going for four, uh oh) and I'm excited to deliver.

Unfortunately, it's also been really bloody hard. I've got a document with about 7k words that I had to cut from #1, because I couldn't break the story successfully. The first draft featured a gathering of Superman villains under the direction of... Black Zero. I thought, if I'm going to celebrate ten years, then I should revisit one of my most notorious stories and "do it right". I got a massive way into that story then realised it wasn't what it should have been... it showcased the Daily Planet staff, the Special Crimes Unit, Steel (both of them) and more, but it just wasn't working. But over the last week or so since your issue hit I went into overdrive.

The only scene that really stayed was the Camp K scene, but that went through rewrites after you read it and gave feedback months ago. Don pointed out that the book felt more like a team book than a Superwoman title, so I added the Brainiac sequence. The terrible thing about having so much lead time, and so many commitments... means you don't actually write anything until it's the last minute, which is completely unlike me.

I just kept writing and writing, and then I went off on tangents that are going to be seen in #2 and #3. Which are, by the way, are currently called... "The Last Stand Of Old Krypton" and "The Haunting of Lena Luthor". Lots of exciting stories to tell, and a certain fifth dimensional imp visit that I really need to figure out how to fit in. I'll figure it out!

Lantern Lad
Moderator

Graphic Designer

Posts: 2,014

Letters to SUPERWOMAN: FOR TOMORROW #1 Nov 3, 2015 18:47:48 GMT -5 HoM likes this

Quote

Post by Lantern Lad on Nov 3, 2015 18:47:48 GMT -5

I thoroughly enjoyed it! It felt like a great evolution of the character. I enjoyed Lena, and Karen's parts... especially the defiance in Lena toward her father.

Something I really liked was how you were able to get the female pretty effortlessly without making it feel forced. That's something I struggled with for a while, and still continue to do sometimes. I combat it by always making the female the leader, or the 'smart one' in the story. I dunno...

Anyway, on the technical side, there were a few typos in there, and I kicked myself for not having a pen handy to mark them for you.

You did lose me for a bit in the very last section where Kara referenced another event (the increase in her abilities), but only because I suddenly wanted to read that.

I will download and read #2 this weekend!

"It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."

Lantern Lad Moderator Graphic Designer Graphic Designer Posts: 2,014	Letters to SUPERWOMAN: FOR TOMORROW #1 Nov 3, 2015 18:49:17 GMT -5 HoM likes this Quote Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Back to Top Post by Lantern Lad on Nov 3, 2015 18:49:17 GMT -5 P.S. - the comment about Lena imagining a Graphic Designer sitting behind a desk coming up with logos was so damn accurate it made me chuckle.
	"It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."

HoM
Administrator

Writer

Posts: 12,622

Letters to SUPERWOMAN: FOR TOMORROW #1 Nov 4, 2015 15:39:42 GMT -5

Quote

Post by HoM on Nov 4, 2015 15:39:42 GMT -5

I thoroughly enjoyed it! It felt like a great evolution of the character. I enjoyed Lena, and Karen's parts... especially the defiance in Lena toward her father.

When it suddenly struck me to use Lena Luthor in the book, the possibilities just became endless. I don't like Lex Luthor as a person-- but as a character, a villain-- he's great, and having someone suffering through the reputation of her dad and having people give her the side-eye for things he did, and no matter how hard she tries being tarred with the same brush, that's great story fodder to me. Karen was great, and I think I'll try and find a place for her in the present day stories I'm telling, because there's just so much there, and she's just... she's just bloody great!

Something I really liked was how you were able to get the female pretty effortlessly without making it feel forced. That's something I struggled with for a while, and still continue to do sometimes. I combat it by always making the female the leader, or the 'smart one' in the story. I dunno...

One of the most important things to me is trying to ensure that I pass the Bechdel Test when it comes to the use of women in my stories. For those of you aren't aware, the three main rules are as follows:

The movie has to have at least two women in it,
who talk to each other,
about something besides a man.

So while there was a lot of "oh no my cousin went away" and "oh no my dad is the worst" talk going on here, when you have these really vibrant characters who can be really sharply drawn, I think that it should be really easy to have fun with using them, and I think George RR Martin said it best:

BOOM. So yeah, writing women is great, but I think-- and to be quite blunt-- we're used to writing white, straight men as our leads, or used to reading them, and it doesn't occur to us to put diversity into our work. A lot of the characters we grew up reading were just that (with some obvious exceptions) and so that's what we accept as being normal. And now, when social issues are being seen in comic books (or any fiction) it feels forced. I don't think we're writing these stories ignorantly. It's not because of some broader social issue, it just doesn't quote unquote matter in our heads at the time. Am I a sexist for having Guy Gardner, Hank Henshaw and John Stewart as my leads in Green Lantern Corps? I should I force a female Green Lantern in the book? No, because then it wouldn't be the same title for me because I want to write those guys. Should I make efforts to write characters who are vibrant, and shine when read? Yes. That should always be the focus. But like I said, sometimes people force the issue, and then it's heavy handed, but other times it can come out naturally, flow well, and it's not on the nose. I think there IS a diversity issue-- of gender, race, culture and sexuality-- in stories, and it's fun to be able to try and dodge those pitfalls by working on stories like this, with amazing characters who do amazing things.

I got ranty then and I'm terrified I come across in the wrong way. Alas! Onto the next point--!

Anyway, on the technical side, there were a few typos in there, and I kicked myself for not having a pen handy to mark them for youu'.

IRONY?!

You did lose me for a bit in the very last section where Kara referenced another event (the increase in her abilities), but only because I suddenly wanted to read that.

Oh, that's a shame. I'm not quite sure what you mean, though. Increase in abilities? I didn't think there was anything story-centric that was teased and felt like it needed to be read to enjoy the time-jump, but I hope I avoid that in #2.

Thanks for reading, Scott! I'm looking forward to reading Whatever Happened to the Legion of Super Heroes #2 when it hits the site!

oblique
Staff

Posts: 171

Letters to SUPERWOMAN: FOR TOMORROW #1 Nov 13, 2016 19:56:50 GMT -5

Quote

Post by oblique on Nov 13, 2016 19:56:50 GMT -5

Wow! What an amazing issue, this is a fantastic concept and a well-executed story. Out of the mouths of babes, a young girl renames Kara “Superwoman," and a new legend is born. Supergirl is one of my favorite characters and this story has done her more than justice, it serves as one of the best versions of the character I've ever read.

First, you've catprued the combination (to me) of strength, determination, kindness, and intelligence tempered by tragedy and vulnerability that make Kara such a compelling character. You're opening chapter was beautiful (followed by a fantastic cover) and I really liked the "slow" (relatively speaking) introduction of different story elements, different segments of her superheroic life. Her fight with Amazo demonstrated her innate empathy and intelligence (and a nifty new power), while I love seeing Kara with different characters from the Justice League and Superman cast, especially Martha. "You don’t owe the world a thing” reminds me of “Man of Steel," and the definition of a hero, someone who does the right thing because they want to, not because they have to. I loved this whole scene, reminding us that Kara and Kal are family in two ways, both Kryptonian and Terran.

As for Power Girl, if there has to be two of them, then this was probably the best use of the character--she did provide excellent advice--it's just hard for me to appreciate the multiverse/duplication issues that offends my sensibilities.

However, Lena Luthor is vivid, witty, fun "I’m going to love disappointing you/too" were fantastic lines that provided a quick and insightful look into her head. Your Lex Luthor was monstrous, egotistical, derisive--perfect. He sounds like he'll be a good villain in the future.

If there's one complaint, it's that this issue did so much! On the one hand, it was packed with amazing action, on the other hand I felt as if the final fight with Brainiac could have used a little more build-up. Putting aside the action, the emotional drama anchored this story, seeing Kara mourn, learn, and grow with new friends and allies. The hook at the end was unexpected, and I look forward to the next issue.

Last Edit: Nov 13, 2016 19:57:34 GMT -5 by oblique

HoM
Administrator

Writer

Posts: 12,622

Letters to SUPERWOMAN: FOR TOMORROW #1 Nov 21, 2016 13:09:32 GMT -5

Quote

Post by HoM on Nov 21, 2016 13:09:32 GMT -5

Wow! What an amazing issue, this is a fantastic concept and a well-executed story. Out of the mouths of babes, a young girl renames Kara “Superwoman," and a new legend is born. Supergirl is one of my favorite characters and this story has done her more than justice, it serves as one of the best versions of the character I've ever read.

Something about Cat Grant's speech in the pilot of Supergirl didn't sit right with me. That it was okay to be a girl and that Cat Grant was a girl, etc. It seemed really forced? There is nothing wrong with being a girl. There's nothing wrong with being young. But there's also nothing wrong with growing up, maturing, becoming a woman and putting whatever weight on that label that you want as a girl / woman.

It's something I wish I had time to explore for Power Girl... she's ten years older than Kara, that's the timeline I'm working with. So at the start of this, Kara is approximately 18 and Karen is 28. Renaming her Power Woman felt forced, I think, so it's something that would need time to be expanded upon.

First, you've captured the combination (to me) of strength, determination, kindness, and intelligence tempered by tragedy and vulnerability that make Kara such a compelling character. You're opening chapter was beautiful (followed by a fantastic cover) and I really liked the "slow" (relatively speaking) introduction of different story elements, different segments of her superheroic life.

I've always had a soft spot for our version of Kara. I'm 26, I missed Peter David's run in the 90s, so my entry point (apart from back issues of those amazing Superman Family anthologies DC used to put out) was a mix of seeing her appear in events like The Death and Return of Superman and Jeph Loeb and Michael Turner's version of her. There always seemed something off with how they used her, because no one had a clue how best to write her until, I think, Renato Guedes was on art duties. That spate of issues, with yet another eclectic mix of writers, actually had her look like a girl. I remember those shorts she started wearing under the skirt-- amazing. I also remember the backlash the art got, but she was supposed to be 15-16, yet was hyper sexualised all the time. It was awful. Yet that's what people wanted to see, and I thought that was really sad. That meant when I write her, I want to write her right.

When Roy introduced her to the DC2, he didn't want it to be a straight lift from the comics, that's why her pod landed on a jungle world-- she didn't come straight to Earth! She was feral when Kal found her and bought her home, and that's something I always kept in mind when coming at the character. It doesn't show here, in this mini, but there's this backstory I have in min when I write her, she's lived a life away from what others might know... the relationship with her cousin(s), the stuff with Kon-El and his eventual transformation to Flamebird... there's a lot going on with her, and she's real and she has to respond correctly, true to what she's been through.

Her fight with Amazo demonstrated her innate empathy and intelligence (and a nifty new power), while I love seeing Kara with different characters from the Justice League and Superman cast, especially Martha. "You don’t owe the world a thing” reminds me of “Man of Steel," and the definition of a hero, someone who does the right thing because they want to, not because they have to. I loved this whole scene, reminding us that Kara and Kal are family in two ways, both Kryptonian and Terran.

The nifty new power came from Don Walsh, one of my favourite collaborators on the site. He always managed to dig in and find some new vein to mine with characters, and he helped me break that aspect of the story-- and therefore resolve the Brainiac thread as well. The Martha moment was extrapolated from Man of Steel, glad you saw the nod (it was on the nose) but it's also very true to Ma Kent as a character. She didn't want her son to be a hero, but she supported him every step of the way.

Phil Jimenez tweeted something I thought was really interesting recently, on November 18th to be exact:
"Controversial opinion: Superman's story is not an immigrant story; it's an adoption story. Supergirl is the immigrant refugee." and I was like oh man that makes perfect sense. And it doesn't diminish either of the characters, but think of the facets it adds?

As for Power Girl, if there has to be two of them, then this was probably the best use of the character--she did provide excellent advice--it's just hard for me to appreciate the multiverse/duplication issues that offends my sensibilities.

Why does it offend your sensibilities? Dave wrote a brilliant Earth-1 / Earth-2 crossover in his penultimate arc on Justice Society of America that I hope you get to, and I know that I want to write my own cross-multiversal-caper at some point in the future (there's just no space on my schedule!!). I think that as long as the universe are kept distinct and aren't repetitive, that's the most important thing. If you get lost due to the similarities then the story has failed. A lot is inferred with Karen's story here, but to my knowledge she's never had a proper story regarding her arrival on Earth-1... maybe something to consider for the present day!

However, Lena Luthor is vivid, witty, fun "I’m going to love disappointing you/too" were fantastic lines that provided a quick and insightful look into her head. Your Lex Luthor was monstrous, egotistical, derisive--perfect. He sounds like he'll be a good villain in the future.

I hate Lex Luthor. He's a monster. He's not redeemable. I like him in All-Star Superman, but also during Up, Up And Away!, the One Year Later storyline that ran through the Superman titles after Infinite Crisis. I think I've always struggled to get a handle on Superman's cast of characters because I feel such intense emotion toward them, rather than coming at them critically, but while David approaches Luthor as a figure who can potentially be redeemed, I think he's a selfish, self-righteous monster who feels insecure about his position in the world. He's so petty, and I don't think you can write him as heroic, unless you do what you should do with any good villain and write them as the hero of their own story. I think I could write an essay on the character, but until I do, here are some choice scenes I think are defining for the guy:

(I have more scans but a poor internet connection. Something to follow up with later, I guess!)

Lena, on the other hand, is a true tragic figure. Tarred by the genetics of her father. You find out who her mother is in the final issue (that I'm still in the process of writing) and I think the story will be really, bloody sad for her. She's a rebuttal to her father's thinking. She's what he could be if he wasn't a monster, but she has that same beast lurking in her history. And with the name of Luthor, you're always going to be second guessed. More on that later on in the run.