Well in the movies I don't think he was a good character at all, but in the comics I liked how he was a successful corporate overlord who became President. I haven't read much of his post-fall stuff, though.
Because Lex is a puny man who still thinks he can stand up to God. Read A Superman for All Seasons. Or if that's too much bother, this pretty much sums up my thoughts: http://io9.com/5039123/in-praise-of-the-genius-of-lex
For me (taking from several versions of Lex), the idea of a mere mortal who can go toe-to-toe in both the mental realm and the physical realm through sheer genius, inventiveness, and drive is very compelling--brain versus brawn as it were. Also, the idea of childhood friends who become bitter enemies adds a terrific level of pathos to both Superman and Lex.
Couldn't agree more. I think Lex Luthor in Smallville is a fantastic character and the actor who plays him is awsome in that role. I like it when it flashes back to his childhood when he had ginger hair. Not meaning to stray too far off topic but i'd like to know how the hell in Smallville Clark Kent is supposed to disguise himself with glasses in the future, he's university age and therefore fully developed physically, everybody including Lex Luthor and Lois Lane knows what he looks like without glasses on. He cant exactly just start wearing glasses and expect people to forget what he looks like without them on. What's the plan, some kind of Instantaneous Kryptonian plastic surgery each time he takes his glasses off.
Simple... "Smallville" may have intended, originally, to tell the story of Superman's "start" but it's no longer remotely related to that storyline. They should have killed off the series after three years, and they should have never brought Lois or Jimmy or any of the others into the show. Once they did that, they made it a moot point. No cape, no tights, no flying... no "Superman" name. This is simply an alternative reality where the "Superman" we know never existed. Of course, this is also an alternative reality where Metropolis is in Kansas rather than on the Northeast American coastline, too.
I'll tell you what makes him a crappy character, that damn Kryptonite battle suit. I understand it's to get 13 year olds excited, but really that thing just seems so below Luthor it pisses me off every time I see it. Stinks of penis envy.
It depends on which version of the character you're looking at. The old school Luthor that's just a moustache twirling villian that commits petty crimes...really is not that interesting of a character. Corporate/Political lex is far more interesting. He's not a villian for money or even really for power. He has plenty of both. He's sort of a human supremacist. He believes that the presence of aliens like Superman undermines and belittles human potential. In some sense he is like an inverse Batman. He's very smart and incredibly paranoid. Despite what is often depicted in the movies, Luthor does not want to kill Superman. He's had plenty of opportunity to do so. He want's to destroy the very idea of superman. He want's the world to value what true humans can do. Superman represents a false ideal. He is something that no human can hope to attain. At the end of the day, Lex want's to not only to beat Superman, he wants the rest of the world to see that he was right all along. Thus so much of what he does is about humiliating Superman. When Lex ran for President, he did not do it for the power or money or influence....he did so because he knew thart Superman's code would force him to respect the office and take his orders.
The Mighty God King wrote a fantastic essay on Luthor a few weeks ago. His outline of Luthor is a lot like mine; I see Luthor as, basically, a man, summoning all the resources that genius intellect and business acumen can muster in order to make war on a demigod.
Well I aim to please. See that is the problem I have with the modern day Luthor. I can see why Star Trek fans would like him. He represents the very idea seen time and again in science fiction that humans are special, and that because of this they can overcome any obstacle. It is the same tried old theme and never obtainable dream. Luthor taking on Superman is like hacking into an alien spacecraft with an Apple computer.
He's Professor Moriarty without a Holmes to stop him. Instead he has to deal with a Watson with superpowers. Supes is a great character, don't get me wrong, but he is very straight-laced and sometimes it's more fun to side with the smart and human bad guy and Lex Luthor is certainly that. In spades. Lex Luthor is both the greatest and worst that mankind can be and that makes him a brilliant character. You may not like what he does, but you can't help respecting him.
I've always loved the times, in-continuity, where it's demonstrated that Luthor thinks of himself as the "good guy." That, basically, he sees Superman as a threat to all of humanity, and he's the only one who could keep Superman "in check." I far prefer that to the 1960s version... where the two grew up together and Lex blames Superboy for making his hair fall out! (By the way, remember that Lex Luthor wasn't always bald... I don't recall when they made him bald, but he originally had a full head of hair. It was a couple of decades, I think, before someone decided "totally bald people are scarier." ) Luthor as the "industry baron" type who knows a little bit about Superman's history and sees Superman as a potential thread is by far the most interesting take on the character, IMHO.