LexCorp

Elliot S! Maggin has been writing Superman for more than 50 years. In addition to a remarkable run on Superman comics, he has also written several Superman-related novels. The most well-known were published concurrently with the first two Christopher Reeve Superman films: Last Son of Krypton and Miracle Monday. Often mistaken as film tie-ins, these are original novels and truly compelling Superman stories. I named the blog after one, so of course, I’m a fan!

I was ecstatic when I heard that Maggin was writing a third Superman novel titled “LexCorp”. Like the recent reprints of the other two novels, this would be a self-published print-on-demand novel. No affiliation with DC Comics this time around. Ultimately, that works for Maggin as he has the freedom to do what he wants. I’d guess this is part of the reason Superman never appears in the book (Lex doesn’t like speaking his name), but we’ve got plenty of clever references. Without mentioning them by name, we also get Metallo, the Fortress of Solitude, and even Professor Pepperwinkle (pretty much).

I don’t want to spoil what the book is about, but it’s clear pretty early on what Maggin is doing with the story, and I loved it. It has clever anti-billionaire and environmentalist themes that we’d maybe never associate with the “villain”. Then again, this is Lex’s book; he’s not the villain here; he is the hero!

If I had any complaints, it would be the printing quality of the cover. Not quite as high quality as I’d like. But we don’t judge books by their covers here. The actual novel itself is awesome, and the cover quality doesn’t stand out when on the shelf next to its peers.

If you enjoyed Maggin’s other novels and are wondering what Lex is up to these days, this book is highly recommended. If Warner Books were smart, they would slap a picture of Nicholas Hoult on this thing and sell it next year as a tie-in to the movie.

Interested in hearing more from Maggin? This recent interview about the book was excellent: