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The villainLex Luthorabsolutely knows that Clark Kent is secretlySuperman- he just reject to believe it . Superman ’s greatest enemy is one of the undivided saucy human beings in the DC Universe ; a shrewd , calculating businessman , he prides intellect and vital intellection over every other attribute ( especiallySuperman ’s raw strong-arm Kryptonian intensity level ) . But in the classic issueSuperman # 2from 1987 , written by John Byrne with artistic production by Johny Byrne and Terry Austin , Luthor ’s skills of deduction fail in a specular manner - even when presented with a bona fide heap of evidence .
In the backwash of 1985 ’s landmark crossover eventCrisis on Infinite dry land , the DC Universe underwent important changes . Barry Allen , the Flash was drained , Superman was now the only survivor of Krypton , and Lex Luthor was no longer a mad scientist , but a moneyed and power - hungry businessman . He still loathed Superman , whom he saw as a menace ( both to the Earth and to his own power ) , and sought every vantage against the Man of Steel . Thus Luthor decide to search every possible connexion between the Kryptonian and a modest - mannered Metropolis reporter name Clark Kent ; perhaps attack the humankind could draw out the Superman .
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Luthor lease hoodlum to weaken into the Kent farm and pull in picture , bank statements , and everything else they can find on Clark . One of Luthor ’s scientist , Amanda McCoy , feed the datum into a supercomputer , along with every known fact about Superman - eye and hair’s-breadth color , height and build up , and vocal patterns . Luthor require to know if Clark is Superman ’s acquaintance or even a household penis … but when the electronic computer crunches the numbers andconcludes that ClarkisSuperman , Luthor laughs in the aspect of the figurer ’s " flawless logical system . "
" Yes … a soulless machine might make that deduction . But not Lex Luthor!“cries Luthor , superscript as ever . “I bang that no man with the power of Superman wouldeverpretend to be a mere human being ! Such power is to be always exploit . Such power is to be used!!“Luthor pronto fire McCoy , deriding her for flunk to"see the obvious . “This is a prime instance of how healthy people can be blinded by their own self - assurance and hubris - and an example of how Luthor view the nature of force . In his mind , no being with the might of Superman would ever wish to hold in that might to hide among average human . From this point on in comics , Luthor rarely bothersto search for Superman ’s secret identity- because , in Luthor ’s mind , Superman plainly doesn’thaveone .
It ’s deserving note that this storey was written in the recent 80s during the rise of " yuppie " civilization in America , when those who worked in business were entirely fearless of flash their wealth and power ( and their unvarying desire for more ) . Luthor fails to connect the pane because he believes everyone on Earth - including Superman - thinks precisely like him . InLex Luthor’smind , private identity are useless- they ’re a path to hide one ’s top executive ( which he would never do ) , and thusSupermancouldn’t possibly be Clark Kent .
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