Clex

Clex is the slash ship between Clark Kent and Lex Luthor from the Smallville fandom.

Season One:
"We have a future together, Clark, and I don't want anything to stand in the way of our friendship." – Lex Luthor to Clark Kent in Pilot

Clark and Lex's first encounter occurred the day Clark's spaceship crashed to Earth, during the meteor shower of 1989. Lex was in a nearby cornfield and was injured. Jonathan Kent and Martha Kent discovered Clark and decided to keep him; as they were driving away from the crash site with their newfound son, they encountered Lex's father Lionel Luthor, who begged them to help his injured son. The five of them then made their way to safety.

Young Clark tried to bond with Lex on the way to Smallville Medical Center, but Lex was still in shock from his ordeal. After this, Lex blanked out his childhood, yet he always felt that his life had been deeply affected by the meteor shower and investigated it throughout his adult life, leading him closer to discovering the Traveler, not realizing that this was in fact, Clark.

Clark and Lex met again when Clark was 14 and Lex was 21, when Lex drove his car off of Loeb Bridge, hitting Clark and sending both of them into Elbow River. Clark rescued Lex from drowning; in return, Lex showered Clark with gifts and favors to show his gratitude. Despite Jonathan's dislike of Lex and the rest of the Luthors, Clark wanted to see the best in Lex and they quickly built up a friendship.

Jaded by his father's upbringing, Lex seemingly saw Clark as the personification of everything a person should be and a direct contrast to his own destructive and self-serving youth. He also idolized Clark's relationship with his father, seeing it as something he would love but would never obtain with his own father, even sharing his regrets about his relationship with his mother with Clark. Clark viewed Lex as worldly and informed, quickly misjudged, and intriguingly out of place in the small country town.

Clark was impressed with Lex's experience and maturity. He frequently took advice from Lex, particularly concerning the troubles in his love life, as he yearned for Lana Lang, despite her dating a football player called Whitney Fordman. Lex tried to help Clark win the girl of his dreams by offering them tickets to a concert and a free ride in a limo. Lex said he considered Clark much like a younger brother, trying to use his influence to improve Clark's quality of life. Although Clark never called on these favors for himself, he was willing to use them to help his friends.

Despite the good-natured facade of their relationship, both kept some secrets from each other. While Clark kept his alien origins and superhuman powers a secret from him, Lex started an investigation into the Kents in secret, suspecting that Clark was far from normal due to the anomalies in the original bridge rescue, although the temporary loss of Clark's powers to Eric Summers halted Lex's investigations.

Season Two:

 * "Clark Kent and Lex Luthor. I like the sound of that." – Clark Kent to Lex Luthor in "Red".

Despite Clark Kent's father Jonathan discovering that Lex was investigating Clark through Roger Nixon, Clark remained friends with Lex after Lex proved his allegiance when he protected them from Nixon, killing him. Lex even invited Clark to his wedding to a Desiree Akins a few months later. However, Lex's new relationship with Desiree caused problems in his relationship as he was being manipulated by Desiree's meteor-enhanced pheromones. Desiree had initially planned to use her powers to seduce Clark and make him kill Lex in a jealous rage, allowing her to inherit Lex's fortune. When Clark proved immune to Desiree's advances, she told Lex that Clark had come on to her and framed Clark for arson. Although Lex admitted that these actions were out of character for Clark, Lex was under Desiree's spell. Nevertheless, when Clark proved Desiree's guilt, his relationship with Lex was repaired.

Lex was led to believe that Clark was his half-brother when his father's former mistress, appeared in Smallville looking for her long lost son. Although Lex was skeptical and Clark knew that it wasn't true as he was an alien, both Clark and Lex admitted that it would be cool if they were brothers, indicating how close they felt to each other. Clark relied on Lex's help to save the Kawatche Caves from being destroyed, although Clark's trust in Lex over this was foolish, as Lex began to investigate their connection to Clark. When Lex planned to marry for a second time, he again chose Clark as his best man. Clark was pleased, although because he prioritized dealing with the threats of his Kryptonian father Jor-El by destroying his spaceship, he failed to make it to Lex's wedding.

Season Three:
During Lex's honeymoon, his plane crashed and Lex was suspected to be dead. Despite being influenced by red kryptonite, Clark attended Lex's funeral, although he stood back from the group of guests. After Clark's red kryptonite ring was destroyed, Lex returned to Smallville unharmed, much to Clark's delight and relief. Clark and Lex maintained their strong friendship.

Lex discovered that Lionel had killed his parents, as well as witnessing a car crashing into Clark and that he's unharmed by it. Lionel has Lex committed to Belle Reve shortly after. While there he reflects on his discovery of Clark and considers how to exploit the situation only to realize he is wrong in considering it, then promises himself to be a more trustworthy friend. Unable to persuade Lex to keep the knowledge of the murder a secret, Lionel responds by wiping his memories.

Claiming to be scared about what Lionel would do if Lex re-discovered the truth, Clark went to Lionel for help in stopping Lex from trying to recover his memories, leading to Lionel's calling him on his true motivation: Trying to keep Lex from discovering his secret. When Lex discovered this, he was disappointed in Clark but, after Clark's insistence, Lex believed that Clark had Lex's well-being in mind.

When mythology from the Kawatche Caves started to come true, Clark learned that either Lex or Lionel would become his ultimate enemy, as the Starblade dissolved at their touch after the prediction that this would happen when Naman's ultimate enemy touched it. While Clark continued to believe the best in Lex and concluded that Lionel must be his ultimate enemy, Martha warned Clark that it could be Lex. Clark only considered this to be a possibility after Lionel gave Clark a key to Lex's secret room, which contained the evidence of Lex investigating Clark's secret. This caused the breakdown of their friendship, and Clark found it hard to trust Lex after this.

Season Four:

 * "Don't give up on me yet." - Lex Luthor to Clark Kent in "Bound".

Clark's perception of Lex changed somewhat when Clark discovered that Lex had been protecting Chloe Sullivan from Lionel before his trial. Lex tried to buy back Clark's friendship by providing the Smallville football team with new jerseys after he found out that Clark had joined the team. When Clark was not impressed, Lex went further to repair their relationship by visiting the loft to hand over all of his research about Clark. As Lex arrived, Clark had been weakened by a kryptonite drink and then attacked by a jealous Jason Teague, who was under the influence of a love potion. Lex was concerned about Clark's injuries but, as the kryptonite wore off, Lex became suspicious of Clark's healing wounds. As Lex had scared off Jason, Clark agreed to listen to what Lex had to say and, after he was convinced that Lex had dropped the investigation into his life, they came to a tentative reconciliation.

Lex continued to try to completely win back Clark's friendship by giving him tickets to a Metropolis Sharks football game. Lex confided in Clark that he saw him as a brother, and became more open and honest with Clark by asking for his help with his investigation into a manuscript with Kryptonian symbols. This helped Clark trust Lex again, and he started to confide in Lex and rely on him for help, particularly when he blew his university interview and needed Lex's help to build bridges. Clark also confided in Lex about how hard it was to see his old girlfriend with his football coach. However, Clark felt that this trust was betrayed when Lex subsequently reported this immoral relationship to the school board, damaging Clark's relationship with Lana. Clark questioned Lex's motives for this, making him realize that their relationship was not yet back to where it used to be.

Despite their ongoing problems, when circumstance called for it, Clark continued to come to Lex for help. Clark also helped prove Lex's innocence when he was accused of murder. During this investigation, Clark discovered that Lex regularly had one-night stands and then made the women feel worthless by paying them off with diamond earrings. Clark was disappointed with Lex's treatment of these women and, when he confronted Lex about this, Lex admitted that he had treated them terribly but requested that Clark not give up on him yet.

A series of controversial LuthorCorp experiments added to Clark's disappointment in Lex. First, LuthorCorp accidentally released a dangerous toxin that endangered the lives of many civilians, and then Clark discovered a project that experimented on dogs. Clark saw Lex's obsessive nature re-awaken, as he fiercely searched for the Stones of Power. Lex's fascination with unexplained phenomena ran concurrently but separately with his curiosity about Clark's background. Lex was willing to forgo parts of his investigations that directly involved Clark, but eventually, the two inevitably coincided.

Clark was reminded of Lex's potential for evil when black kryptonite split Lex in two, which caused the emergence of Lex's darker side. While he was divided into good and evil personas, Evil Lex committed murder, imprisoned his good side, discovered Clark's secret, shot Jonathan and attempted to coerce Clark into helping him rule the world. Although Clark was able to reverse the process and reunite the two sides of Lex, he remained wary of Lex's true nature.

This concern was justified, as Lex took advantage of Clark's amnesia by trying to get Clark to reveal secrets about the Kawatche Caves. When Clark's memory was restored, he remained unaware of the occurrences during his amnesia, although he was suspicious of Lex. After this, when Lex offered Clark and his parents a safe passage out of Smallville to be saved from the oncoming meteor shower, Clark refused.

Season Five:
Lex still felt that Clark was not being honest with him, and confronted Clark to find out if he had been in the caves during some strange goings-on just before the second meteor shower. When Clark continued to lie, Lex was visibly frustrated and disappointed that his friend still could not trust him. As a result, Lex released three meteor freak criminals who held Clark's parents and Lana hostage to force Clark to reveal his superhuman powers (Ironically, at a time when Clark's powers had been taken from him). When Clark discovered that Lex was responsible, he angrily confronted Lex and viciously attacked him; this marked the end of their friendship and the beginning of their lifelong enmity, as well as at least temporarily dispelling Lex's abilities when video footage showed Clark being injured and their subsequent confrontation left Clark with a bloody lip.

Despite their new animosity towards each other, Clark continued to go to Lex for help when the need arose. They remained civil to each other for a time, but without the positive influence of the friendship to sustain him, Lex descended into cruelty and manipulation to get to the bottom of super-powered individuals, believing himself to be serving the greater good of humankind. Although Lex's attempts to torture and control Clark's new friends Arthur Curry and Victor Stone increased Clark's hostility towards him, Clark nevertheless refused to allow invisible hit-man Graham Garrett to kill Lex, his high value for life overriding his dislike for Lex.

Lex was disappointed about the breakdown of his relationship with Clark, as he dreamed of a world where he was much closer to him again. He finally expressed his regret at the loss of his friendship with Clark when they were forced to work together to find Lionel and Martha when they were kidnapped by Lincoln Cole. Lex hoped that they would be able to find some common ground between them. However, when Lex witnessed a video feed of Lionel saying how "special" Clark is, Lex was reminded of Clark's constant secrets and lack of trust in him. Also jealous of the growing bond between his father and Clark, Lex wanted Clark's life more than ever, which led to him secretly pursuing a relationship with Lana. When Clark received an expensive plasma TV, he suspected Lex was trying to get back into his good graces but, as he arrived at the Luthor Mansion, Clark found Lex kissing Lana, thus ruining any chance of a reconciliation between Clark and Lex. After this, when Lex was in danger from Milton Fine, Clark made sure that he was safe, although he was unconcerned about any injuries that Lex sustained, marking a change in their relationship.

Season Six:

 * "I don't know, Clark. You were the only real friend I ever had, but somewhere along the way, you saw me as your nemesis and turned your back on me." – Lex Luthor to Clark Kent in "Nemesis"

Lex became the Kryptonian vessel for Kryptonian warlord General Zod while Clark briefly considered sacrificing Lex's life to defeat Zod but ultimately decided that this was not an option, despite the breakdown of their friendship. After Zod was exorcised from Lex, Lex no longer welcomed Clark in his mansion. Clark wasn't invited to Lex and Lana's engagement party but was invited to their wedding because Lex wanted him to see "what he had lost", indicating the level of resentment between the two. Despite their growing dislike of each other, Clark saved Lex from Duncan Allenmeyer and Oliver Queen drugged-up. However, Clark showed more concern with Oliver's actions turning him into a killer rather than just concern about Lex's life. As matters got worse between them, due to Lex's growing relationship with Lana, Clark was less inclined to save Lex and, when he heard that Lex had disappeared, he prioritized catching an escapee from the Phantom Zone rather than saving Lex. When Moira Sullivan forced Chloe to confront Lex with a gun, Clark also hesitated in saving Lex. Clark joined Oliver's Justice League to put a stop to Lex's Level 33.1 experiments. When Clark discovered that he had seized Chloe to test her meteor abilities and later threatened her, Clark was furious with Lex and vowed to fight him. Lex smugly took this as a personal challenge. Clark and Lex were forced to confront the breakdown of their relationship when they were trapped in an underground tunnel. As they discussed their relationship, Clark questioned if they were ever really friends. Lex insisted that Clark was the only true friend he ever had, causing Clark to wonder if he had given up on Lex too soon. When Clark was trapped under rubble, Lex chose to help him get loose despite having the opportunity to save himself. After they found their way out, Clark confided in Martha that he felt responsible for Lex's descent into evil, as he had given up on Lex. Their heart-to-heart was not enough to repair their relationship, as Lex continued to get involved with dangerous projects, including Project Ares, which resulted in the torture of Wes Keenan and unleashing Bizarro.

Season Seven:

 * "I love you like a brother Clark, but it has to end this way. I'm sorry." – Lex Luthor to Clark Kent in Artic

Clark learned more about Lex's childhood when he was forced to use LuthorCorp's Project Intercept to go inside Lex's mind to uncover information about Kara's whereabouts. He saw Lionel and Lillian Luthor's fractured parenting had caused Lex to become the man he was today. Clark found Lex's innocent inner child and vowed to help the good in Lex, as he could see Lex's evil side taking over. Clark confronted Lex about this and told him that he still cares about what he thinks and that he has seen some good in him. Nevertheless, shortly afterward, Lex started a dangerous relationship with an amnesiac Kara to uncover the truth about the Kent family. Lex mentioned to Kara about his former friendship with Clark, saying they stopped being friends because "he grew up". When this was proving unsuccessful, Lex tortured Pete Ross and only stopped when Clark intervened.

When Clark started to doubt his rekindled hope in the good in Lex, it was ultimately destroyed when Lex killed Lionel. Clark immediately suspected Lex being responsible for his death and met with Lex after Chloe received evidence of the murder. In Lex's mind, his good side tried to get Lex to tell Clark the truth but, instead, Lex requested that Clark leave. When Clark refused, Lex revealed how jealous he had been of Clark's relationship with Jonathan and Lionel, both thought a lot of Clark. Clark retorted by insisting that Lex could have had the same thing if he tried and blamed Lex's inability to sustain a proper relationship. Clark insisted that even he had tried to be his friend, but Lex had been corrupted by power and control and was so caught up in what's been going on in Smallville that he hasn't looked at the people around him. Lex maintained that after so many years of trying to gain Lionel's affections, he focused on Clark instead and wondered why his father would do that but Clark simply said that Lionel probably trusted him more than Lex. By this point, it was clear that there was no going back for the two former friends. Despite Lex insisting that nobody other than him was allowed to be at Lionel's funeral, Clark attended, believing that Lionel deserved better. When the two met at Lionel's grave, Lex walked away in disgust, as Clark's presence reminded him of his father's closeness to somebody else's son over his flesh and blood.

When Jor-El sents Clark into a reality where Clark didn't exist, Clark sees that Lex is the President of the United States. Much to Clark's shock, Lex is worse due to Brainiac's manipulations. When Clark encounters Lex, Clark tries to get Lex to change his mind about the bombs but Lex says the best way to fix something is to start over and says that the best and brightest people have been taken to bunkers all over the world. Using Kryptonite bullets, Lex coldly shoots Clark and Kara. When Lex has the briefcase, Clark calls from the floor for Lex to change his mind but Lex doesn't listen and initiates the launch. After he wakes up with blue light surrounding him and in one of Jor-El's pocket dimensions, Clark realizes that the world wouldn't be better without him and also that his and Lex's association as former friends was effective in shaping who Lex was as a person.

With renewed concern over Lex's evil ways, Clark did everything he could to prevent him from discovering his secret. Nevertheless, Lex finally discovered the truth, having been manipulated by Brainiac, and used the orb to track down the Fortress of Solitude, where he confronted Clark. As Clark tried to reason with Lex, it became clear that Lex felt it was his destiny to defeat "The Traveler". Lex expressed disappointment that Clark had never trusted him with this secret, as he felt that he could have helped Clark become a hero, but Lex's actions had proved to Clark that he couldn't be trusted. After referring to Clark as Kal-El, Lex inserted the Orb into the Fortress' console, which brought Clark to his knees as his powers were taken from him and the Fortress began to fall apart around them. Lex admitted that he thought of Clark as a brother, but insisted that this was the way things had to end between them.

Season Eight:
Four weeks later, Clark was found in Russia, and Lex was presumed dead. Lex's true status remained unknown until the day of Chloe's wedding to Jimmy Olsen. After tracking down some e-mails that Lex had been sending to his protégé Tess Mercer, Oliver warned Clark about the dangers that Lex posed now that he knew Clark's secret. Nevertheless, Clark prioritized Chloe, which made Oliver suspect that Clark still saw the good in Lex, although Clark denied this. Throughout this time Lex, Who was greatly injured after the Fortress collapsed, refused to allow himself to be defeated.

Lex made sure he was able to keep an eye on Clark through nanotechnology unknowingly implanted into Tess's eyes, as well as recovering videotape from Chloe's wedding. Lex re-emerged when Lana stole his only chance of survival, the Prometheus suit. He relied on a kryptonite ring to protect him when he faced Clark while still on life support.

Lex finally got his revenge on Clark by setting up a kryptonite bomb, being fully aware that Lana's Prometheus suit would absorb all the kryptonite, thus preventing Clark from ever being able to be close to Lana again. Furious with this ultimate act of cruelty and spite, Clark tracked Lex down intending to kill him, but Lana stopped him and forced him to re-evaluate his morals. Realizing that he couldn't go through with it, Clark turned to leave his animosity with Lex in the past. However, Oliver then set off a bomb, appearing to kill Lex. As a sign of respect only shown to Jonathan and Lionel at their funerals, Clark also grabs a hand full of debris from Lex's explosion site and lets it fall to the ground, making peace with his once close friend. Once he discovered that Oliver was responsible, he voiced his disapproval. Remarkably, despite everything that Lex had put Clark through, Clark still considered that Lex's life was worth saving.

Season Nine:
Kent Nelson revealed to Clark that Lex will become his ultimate opponent and also pointed out that Clark would one day succeed in triumphing over Lex. In comparison to Major Zod's and Jor-El's relationship, Clark briefly thought of Lex, and how the two of them had used to be so close to each other.

Season Ten:

 * "Lex." - Clark Kent
 * "You still say it the same way: astonishment mixed with a hint of dread but with a hopeful finish." - Lex Luthor, "Finale part two"

After Clark had died after defeating Zod's clone, he found himself in limbo and saw Lex. Clark came back to life and went to Chloe, asking for her help to find anything on Lex's secret facilities since Jor-El told him about a dark force coming and remembering that Doctor Fate had said Lex would be his ultimate adversary. Later, Clark went to Cadmus Labs which was in ruins, and to his surprise found Tess and told that Lex's aged clone destroyed the Lab and handcuffed her so that Clark would be able to come to rescue her and give him a message to meet him out at Lawson's Field.



Clark arrived at the field and spoke with "Lex" who blamed Clark for everything that had happened to him in his original self's life. "Lex," told him that it was pride (the greatest of the seven deadly sins) that made Clark become the man he is. Enraged by the things said to him, Clark strangled "Lex", nearly killing his former friend's clone but stopped when he noticed that the clone's nose began to bleed. "Lex" revealed he was already dying as his mutated body was decaying. But before he died, "Lex" told Clark that he had to make a choice, either save Lois from burning at the first place where the original Lex first saved him or save the people of Metropolis, who are endangered due to "Lex" planting bombs on the rooftop of the  Daily Planet  with the hope that no matter what the choice, Clark would no longer be seen as a hero, not being fast enough to save both. "Lex" died as Clark sped off to prevent the death of Lois at the crucifix and the death of citizens in the rush hour under the falling Daily Planet globe, thus proving Lex's clone wrong.



After accidentally transporting himself to an alternate Earth where Metropolis was ruled by an alternate-reality Lionel Luthor, Clark Kent learned that his doppelganger Clark Luthor was his adopted brother's murderer after being branded with an "L" on his arm, much to Kent's horror. Meanwhile, Luthor revealed to Tess that he respected Lex for killing Lionel in Earth-1. Sometime later, Clark and Tess had discovered that "Alexander Luthor"/Conner Kent is a hybrid clone of Clark and Lex, with Clark's example helping Conner turn away from his Luthor heritage to focus on following Clark's example.



While Clark was looking for Tess for answers involving a planet coming towards Earth and after Lex had been restored thanks to the alternate-Lionel's "change of heart", the two met at the Luthor mansion's remains.

Lex told Clark that it was not family or friends that defined who people become, but their enemies. Clark tried to tell Lex that he could change, but instead, Lex said that they will both be great men in the world because of each other, with Clark on the one side and Lex as his opponent. Clark told Lex that he will always be there to stop Lex, and Lex said that he would be counting on it and that their story hasn’t been written yet.



<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Calling Clark by his birth name Kal-El, Lex told Clark that he can only be as great as Clark becomes and tells him about what he learned in the Veritas journals about Darkseid. Lex told Clark that they both know who can save the world, Clark apologized for not being able to save Lex, then abruptly departs, leaving Lex in the ruins of his home. When Jor-El showed all of Clark's "trials", the first one was when Clark saved Lex. When Lex "killed" Tess, she rubbed a chemical on his face which made him forget both his friendship and destiny with Clark and thus ensuring that Lex completely forgot Clark's secret.

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Season Eleven (Comics):
The comics pick up where Season Ten left off. Lex routinely watches Superman's flight above the city. He thinks that Superman is a danger to the Earth. Later, he met Clark Kent on the street. Lex introduced to Clark because he doesn't remember Clark. Lex only knows Clark from the newspaper clippings that they were friends when they were young. Lex hardly recognizes Kent. Clark is surprised that Lex knows that they knew each other years ago. After seeing Clark's clumsiness, Lex doesn't understand how they could ever be friends. Clark responds 'As you said, we were younger'. After talking Lex turned around to see Clark gone, having sped away after hearing a siren to help. Suddenly, Lex heard a voice and turned around to find that it was his deceased sister Tess.

On the day of the LexCorp launch, the shuttle explodes forcing Superman to rescue the crew from being destroyed. Hank Henshaw wakes up on a stretcher, with burns from the radiation exposure. Superman learns that the shuttle explosion was not a misfire.

On the roof of LexCorp Plaza, Otis nervously confronts Lex with the results from his research, but Lex interrupts him, saying he wishes to savor the moment. Otis, confused, explains that the situation is terrible for LexCorp and questions his apparent cheerfulness. But Lex explains he has a good reason to be cheerful, stating he and Superman are about to have a very interesting conversation.

In LexCorp Plaza, Lex arrives in his penthouse office, as Superman angrily breaks his glass window by clapping. Superman accuses Lex of activating the Guardian Platform mid-flight, but Lex dismisses the claim, saying the accident could have been avoided had the military not forced the hand of the private sector.

Superman accuses him again, nearly attacking him, until three military helicopters show up, demanding that Superman step away from Lex. Lex claims that Superman's appearance at the Korolyov and Guardian incidents, as well as his apparent attack of LexCorp Plaza, Superman, had given Sam Lane a reason to intervene. The military tells him he is under arrest, but Superman refuses as the ready their guns.

A day later after their last encounter, Superman returns to LexCorp meeting with Lex where he attempts to offer an apology for misjudging Lex. But Lex informs Superman that he arranged the Guardian Platform shuttle accident as means for attracting Superman to subsequently covered him in an iso radiation as a means to track Superman's whereabouts anywhere, anytime on Earth with his satellites. Superman realizes what this means for him and responds to Lex that "This isn't over Luthor" as he leaves.

Three weeks later, Lex continues to monitor and notices that since dousing Superman, His heroic activities have increased four hundred percent more than before causing Lex to wonder what was holding him back. When a hostage situation unfolds in downtown Metropolis by a bunch of thugs holding a School Bus with children hostage suspended in the air by a crane. Superman arrives on the scene and discovers the leader of the gang is wearing a teleporter vest that was manufactured by LexCorp. After rounding up the thugs' Superman goes directly to Lex who was presently having a business lunch meeting at the Ace of Clubs with Bruce Wayne which was interrupted by Superman's arrival.

Superman and Lex's journey to LexCorp R&D facility and discover the tech is LexCorp Tech but it was stolen by various groups commenting industrial heist on several companies. Superman & Green Arrow had captured one of the groups before the cargo bay port several weeks ago. Superman inquires why Lex never made a complaint to the police regarding the theft.

Lex replied by saying he didn't want anyone to know he could be taken advantage of to which he asked Superman directly how's the radiation treating him. Superman ignores Lex's attempt to get on his nerves and simply remain focused. by uncovering who is the mastermind behind allowing this technological weaponry available to criminal gangs on the streets of Metropolis. Lex informs him that whoever he is he must be familiar with LexCorp tech. Superman realizes who it is, The Toyman.

When news breaks out of about fight occurring on Stryker's Island between Batman and Superman, Lex watches the play-by-play recap from his office at LexCorp with Otis. Lex is most intrigued by how The Dark Knight was able to penetrate The Man Of Steel in combat enough to make him bleed.

Lex watches with delight Oliver's humiliating defeat by Nightwing. Lex also enjoyed watching a clip of Nightwing beating Green Arrow with great delight and concluded that Gotham's Heroes aren't afraid to fight dirty.

Later on, as the night wore on into the morning, Lex witnesses a breaking news telecast of a possible Homicide proclaim Superman's death at the hands of the Batman who is being man hunted by the feds for questioning. Lex discusses with Tess and discovers that she cares for Superman as she watches his ISO signature beacon displayed from Lex's satellite marking his current location.

Lex then uses Project Intercept to unearth Tess's memories hoping that within them he'd uncover any information related to Superman. Unfortunately for him, Tess's consciousness fends him off from discovering Superman's information. Superman warns Lex to be careful as his past will come back and haunt him.

The procedure is interrupted by Otis who informs Lex that an attack on the city by a former disgruntle Luthorcorp employee Dr. Simon Jones, a genius with psychokinetic and telepathic abilities calling himself Psimon. Psimon blames Luthor for his metamorphosis that was a result of experiments conducted for Project Ares under Lex's supervision. As Psimon is about to attack Lex, Superman intervenes and rescues him by flying him at supersonic speed out of Metropolis and bringing him to a rooftop in Italy. Superman warns Lex it's only a matter of time before more ghost from his past come back to haunt him for the past aggression he inflicted upon them, Lex doesn't appreciate Superman lecturing him about his safety or rescuing him. Despite this Superman still offers to help him if needed, Lex believes the only reason he'd offer his assistance is related to the public opinion of how they'd preserve him if he failed, but Superman corrects him and state he's not there to discriminate when it comes to saving lives innocent or not, he does it because it's the right thing to do. Superman leaves Luthor to find his way back to Metropolis. Superman confronts Lex at LexCorp. Many nights later, Lex heads towards his office only to find that the lights aren't working. As he calls for Otis, Superman steps out of the shadows. Lex is slightly taken back as he realizes that Superman has found a way to remove the Iso tracker from his body somehow. Superman reveals his reason for seeing him as he wants to retrieve something Luthor stole from him. Lex pretending to be clueless attempting to find out just what exactly he's referring too.

Green Arrow appears as well being more direct with Lex he mentions to retrieve Tess, Lex tries to intimidate the heroes by claiming to contact the local news to report them breaking as well as harassing him in the middle of the night. But Lois appears in the doorway of his office with a flashlight Shawn right into his face declaring she's on top of the situation reporting it. As Green Arrow is about to use a taser arrow, Lois slaps Lex knocking him unconscious. The following morning Lex is woken up by Otis.

Notable Quotes:
<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Clark <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">: Lex, if this friendship was so important, why'd you lie to me for so long?

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<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Lex <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">: I don't know, Clark. There's a darkness in me that I can't always control.

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">I'm starting to think that's my curse, why every relationship I have ends badly.

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<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Clark <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">: We all have a dark side, Lex.

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;">

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Lex <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">: Yeah. But I can feel mine creeping over the corners. <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Your friendship helps keep it at bay.

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true"> It reminds me that there are truly good people in the world. I'm not willing to give up on that. --Season Four,  <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Devoted

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;">

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Lex <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">: Clark, the days of you barging into my home to give me sage advice is over.

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Clark <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">: Lex, don't bother trying to cover it up. The days of me believing your lies are over.

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Season Five,  <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Aqua

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;">

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Lex <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">: Our story hasn't been written yet, Kal-El. And every villain is only as great as his hero.

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true"> But, you see, that all relies on you saving us from the coming Apocalypse.

<p style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Season Ten,  <span style="color: rgb(14, 16, 26); background: transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt;;" data-preserver-spaces="true">Finale, Part 2

Fanon
In Fanon, Lex Luthor tends to be slightly flanderized, being portrayed as more of a stoic woobie than being outright evil or having a very dark nature like in canon. This is due to the fact that most fans tend to be more sympathetic towards Lex than they are typically other characters on the show, because Lex has an controlling narcissistic father. In contrast, Characters like Lana Lang tend to act and look worse than they did on the show, due to a popular dislike of the character. In many Clex fanfics, Lana is often portayed as a screeching harpy who Clark passes up in favor of Lex.

Depending on the type of fanfic, Clark tends up being a overly innocent blushing farm-boy or being more mature than he really was in reality and making more mature choices than he did on the show.

Some of the tropes often used in most Clex fanfics:

- Fix-it fanfics. Many fans often don't like how an episode or an entire season turned out, so they set out to fix that. The most common type of story there is. and naturally this ends in Clex...

- Alien!Clark: Clark succumbs to his primal alien urges, exhibits pon farr-like behavior. Or, this is simply used as an excuse to make him exhibit unusual mating rituals, be into werid kinks, and so on forth.

- Speaking of Alien biology, this also often leads to Mpreg.

- The reveal. Where Clark chooses to reveal himself as an alien to Lex, or Lex finds out by accident.

- Hurt-comfort. Scenes where Lex gets injured, and it's Clark to the recuse. Sometimes it's Clark who needs taking care of instead.

- Dark fics. Where instead of Lex being turned to the good side thanks to Clark, it's Clark that gets pulled over to the dark side because Lex's a corrupting influence...

- Under the influence--tons of Red Kryptonite fan fics out there, and with good reason...

- Immortality --- it was often strongly implied on the show that Clark would live forever, outliving most of his family and friends. But what Clark didn't know, is that the same applies to Lex Luthor too.... often used in Future fics.

- reconciliation. From friends to enemies, enemies to loved ones....

- aging up and down characters.

- Character transformations. Turned into animals/children/etc for a day or a week, ends up being taken care of by the other character. cue both parties seeing a new side of each other that they've never seen before.

- Superhero/Villain role-playing kinks.

Fandom
FAN FICTION
 * Clark/Lex (Smallville) tag on FanFiction.net
 * Clark/Lex (Supergirl) on FanFiction.Net
 * Superman/Lex (Superman movie) on FanFiction.Net
 * Clark/Lex (Batman v. Superman) on FanFiction.Net
 * Clark/Lex (Young Justice) on FanFiction.Net
 * Clark/Lex (Justice League) on FanFiction.Net
 * Clark/L. Luthor (Superman comic) on FanFiction.Net
 * Clark/L. Luthor (Superman comic) on FanFiction.Net

WIKIS
 * on