Hostile Takeover

[arbre_rieur]

Centuries ago, Vandal Savage heard an unusual prophecy. It was foretold that Lex Luthor would one day make his presence felt at a castle Savage owned in Czechoslovakia, and that he would mean Savage harm but inadvertently bring him happiness.

Since then, he's been patiently waiting centuries for that day to come.

Comments

[bluejaybirdie]

Oh hell yes. And I am so looking forward to seeing Pete Woods' rendition of the Six in action.

[thanekos]

Kobra is rather taciturn about that there weapons demo.

also, it'll never not be amusing that Cornell writes Savage with Brian Blessed's voice in mind.. though now I'm wondering if he's ascribed voices to any more of The Black Ring's all-star lineup, other than Sydney Greenstreet as Grodd.

[nezchan]

That's one chunky iPad Luthor's got there.

Personally, I think Vandal's hitting on him. "Charming Czech city" indeed.

[shadowpsykie]

thank god i am not the only one who thought that! LOL

[thanekos]

thing's probably Planet Salvation Run salvage.

said planet's facilities are Apokoliptian in origin, so of course anything from it'd be boxy and awkward to use.

[nezchan]

And it STILL doesn't support Flash!

[mistersandman]

When did Vandal Savage get rid of the Mark of Cain?

[shadowpsykie]

*shrug*

OH wait no, I guess technically Rene Montoya has it.... never really clear on that...

[aeolos_sakya]

I was gonna ask that. Wasn't he supposed to be thrown rocks at wherever he showed up?

[jlroberson]

It's like this:

(a) It was a great idea which they did almost nothing with.
(b) Nobody read that part of FINAL CRISIS. NOBODY. (partly because it was dreadful. And the overt, very specifically Catholic religiousness of it is off-putting)

So therefore, down the retcon hole it goes.

And I'll bet the same will go for Morrison's revelation in RETURN OF BRUCE WAYNE that, thanks to Bruce Wayne wounding him in prehistoric times, he has either a permanent injury, or permanent cancer, in his abdomen. (which is silly because the cancer would have long since metastasized, and while maybe he'd live, his body would be useless by now, much as Dr. Hurt's is now in his grave, where he still lives, crippled and dosed with Joker toxin)

[shadowpsykie]

this was OK... i actually prefered the Jimmy co-feature :) LOVED the scene where Kara admits to love knitting :LOL Ma must have taught her that :)

[superfangirl1]

I enjoy that scene too because it means she must of been taught by ma kent.. :D

Catman look kinda sexy sitting casually in the last image.

[lieut_kettch]

Meh. Been spoiled by too much shirtless Blake. Him in full costume does nothing for me now.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Vandal Savage does not DO subtle, does he? 'We really must get together some time. At this one specific place. Hmm? No no, I've got other places, but I want you to come to THIS one. This one right here. Why? I'M VANDAL SAVAGE, THAT'S WHY!'

[jlroberson]

He's never really stopped being a primitive in many ways. More on that below.

he never takes the possibility that others could outsmart him into account.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Well, possibly because normally, they CAN'T - it's not like he's stupid, after all.

[jlroberson]

Savage has been outsmarted in just about every story I've seen him in.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Well, OK, fine, but you could say that about quite a lot of villains - 'hero outsmarts villain' is one of the standard superhero plots, after all. It's very rare that a hero beats a villain purely by bludgeoning them into submission - even when they DO beat them mainly through muscle, they usually have to think quickly on their feet in the process.
Anyway, Savage may well be a brute at heart who relishes the old 'pummel 'em until they fall down' tactic, but he's clearly not an idiot - he's a successful businessman, for cryin' out loud, and before that, a military leader. (Hell, according to him, he designed Stonehenge.) If he was just a dumb lug, he'd be a thousands-year-old bum, or at most a warrior for hire - instead, he's rich and powerful. He may not be a nimble thinker when it comes to dealing with superheroes, but he must be doing SOMETHING right, or he wouldn't be the threat that he is.

[jlroberson]

Wait, Savage has been a supervillain since the dawn of time and he let Luthor get anywhere near that picture, not suspecting there might be anything else he was up to? I mean, how likely is it that Luthor would be adjusting that right now unless he WAS up to something? This is LUTHOR.

One thing I notice about Savage is that he's never really been that terribly bright. Though he thinks he is.

[jlbarnett]

well... this is Luthor. Arrogant and cocky to a fault. Casually straightening a picture as he describes the situation Savage has put him in could be a way of showing confidence and cockiness.

[jlroberson]

And then doing something about it, which is why he's cocky. If Luthor was not up to something, if he had nothing up his sleeve, he'd be negotiating in some tricky way, or something like that, and I think Savage would realize that.

[redkingcrab]

Vandal Savage is a character with a lot of potential that's never quite used to its fullest. He should be this big-deal criminal mastermind who ranks with Luthor and Ra's, but is distinguished from them by virtue of sheer bloodlust. But he never quite seems to live up to his reputation.

Also, the 'Hey Lex, do you want to come relax with me in my beautiful Czech castle? I heard that Czech masseuses are the greatest in the world." - little suspicious.

[an-idol-mind.livejournal.com]

So...does Lex always keep that painting at an angle just in case someone breaks into his board room and holds him hostage?

Oh wait...this is Lex Luthor. Of course he does.

[daningram.insanejournal.com]

Ya know, for a long destined show down, Savage vs. Luthor, the basic summary is fairly lame. Instead of a battle of wits and masterminds, Luthor hires a team to take out Savage

[jarodrussell]

Paul Cornell successfully made me find a blond, Golden Age, nigh-immortal SPEEDSTER boring. That's like making a cat-themed diamond bauble and having Selina Kyle say, "Yuck," when she sees it. I am Jack's complete lack of surprise that Paul Cornell has managed to setup a Lex Luthor story where instead of pwning Vandal Savage by himself, he has to call in the Secret Six.

[akodo_rokku]

Nobody's commented on the flashback featuring wee widdle Scandal in this issue? Really?

She has pigtails!

I guess I'm gonna have to go post the page.