Superman Reveals Shocking Real Origin of X-El (& It Has Huge Consequences)

So far, the Superman run by Joshua Williamson has been full of massive status quo changes for the Man of Steel and his entourage of supporting characters. It saw Lois Lane becoming the Daily Planet’s Editor-in-Chief, Jimmy Olsen and Silver Banshee begin dating, and most impactfully, the creation of Supercorp and the redemption of Lex Luthor. However, the end of last issue took a turn for the worse with the betrayal of Mercy and the unveiling of Lex’s newest evil creation; X-El, a clone of Lex with all of Superman’s strength, and all of the pre-redemption Lex’s contempt for him and Metropolis.

The landmark issue #25 has revealed X-El’s origin, and exactly why Mercy unleashed the disastrous clone on the unsuspecting City of Tomorrow. The issue started with a flashback set some time before the current run started, detailing Lex’s plan to get arrested and begin working with Superman. Mercy questioned if he planned to use X-El as a backup, and he said that the clone was far too unstable to be used and must never be unleashed. She should have listened.

What is X-El?

X-El is a clone with all of Superman’s powers and Lex’s mad genius. Unfortunately, that includes his obsession with making Superman pay for “stealing” Metropolis’s love, and punishing Metropolis for “betraying” him. Mercy has spent the past several months upgrading the clone with the memories of Lex before his mind was wiped in the battle against Brainiac, and the data she collected about Superman’s abilities from working with him. He’s at least on the same level of strength as the Man of Steel. And unlike Superman and new Superwoman Lois Lane, he wasn’t bothered by the Kryptonite Mercy used to weaken them.

RELATED: Lex Luthor Isn’t Really a Villain (And Yes, I’ll Die on That Hill)

However, that resistance to Kryptonite might come from the fact that X-El isn’t just a clone of Superman and Lex, he is based on the same cloning process Lex used to create his own Bizarro a few years ago. That hidden detail manifested as he battled Superman, Superwoman, and the actual Lex Luthor, as his mind and appearance began to degrade as he struggled not to say the opposite of what he meant. A Bizarro version of Lex with all of Bizarro’s strength is the last thing Metropolis needs, and he made sure to prove it by trying to destroy the city.

How Do You Stop a Mad Lex/Superman Hybrid?

This Bizarro Lex was completely obsessed with killing Superman and eviscerating Metropolis, and stood a darn good chance of doing so, even with Lex, Superman, and Superwoman working together. The latter two were still weakened by Kryptonite and tried to run support until X-El promised to kill Superwoman’s entire family, including her son Jon. Superwoman didn’t take that kindly, and unleashed a blast of heat vision so powerful it could be seen as a red pillar from outer space.

Unfortunately, the massive blast exhausted her, and she collapsed next to Superman, who was still fighting his Red Kryptonite infection. The now almost fully Bizarroed X-El looked like he had won, until Lex returned to his own ways and executed the clone, deeming him too dangerous to keep alive. This, Mercy revealed, was her plan all along, to force Lex to return to his more villainous tendencies and make dark choices for the greater good. Now Superman and Lex Luthor are once again at odds with each other.

It seems that X-El didn’t just arrive as one of Superman’s most dangerous foes, but also heralded the potential end of Lex Luthor’s tenure as one of Superman’s allies. X-El is the combination of Lex and Superman, similar to Superboy, except that this clone was the metaphorical representation of the corruption of Superman’s power with Lex’s evil personality. He was Lex’s worst thoughts and feelings given form, and having been forced to confront that, it might be that Lex will once again stray from the path of the righteous and towards more unsavory choices as he has so many times before. Time will only tell if X-El was more than a Bizarro Lex, which is already bad enough on its own.

Superman #25 is on sale now.