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"Superman: "When Superman Defended His Arch-Enemy!"": Lex Luthor manages to break out of jail by using a pin-wheel to hypnotize one of the guards. Free once more, Luthor returns to Luthor's Lair. The police manage to track him to his hideout, and while his scien

Quote1 Now I suppose you think you're going to drag me back to Earth to serve out my prison sentence? Ha! Let me remind you that you have no jurisdiction beyond the solar system. Quote2
Lex Luthor

Action Comics #292 is an issue of the series Action Comics (Volume 1) with a cover date of September, 1962.

Synopsis for Superman: "When Superman Defended His Arch-Enemy!"

Lex Luthor manages to break out of jail by using a pin-wheel to hypnotize one of the guards. Free once more, Luthor returns to Luthor's Lair. The police manage to track him to his hideout, and while his scientific defenses keep the police at bay, Luthor escapes in the bases gigantic statue that is secretly a rocket. With Superman away on a mission, a Superman Robot attempts to capture Luthor, who destroys it with his Vibro-Gun and makes an escape from Earth.

When Superman and Supergirl return from their mission, the Man of Steel learns of Luthor's escape and flies into space to track down his arch-nemesis. Luthor meanwhile, has landed on the planet Roxar. Upon landing, he is confronted by a robot who demands that he turn over his dangerous weapons. Luthor then uses his vibro-gun to destroy the robot. Just as he has done so, a pair of muscular humanoids disarm him and take him into one of the cities to answer to his destroying the robot.

To Luthor's surprise, the entire planet is controlled by robots who accuse him of murder. The robots explain that their master left them to tend to their world before he had passed away. In the convening years, the robots had come to consider organic being to be inferior and threaten to put Luthor in suspended animation. When Superman arrives to take Luthor back to Earth, the arch nemesis attempts to escape but is easily stopped by the robots superior technology. No wishing to see a man condemned without a fair trial, Superman agrees to defend Luthor. However, the robots will not listen to his defense unless Superman can prove that he is not as inferior as they believe all living beings to be.

Superman passes all the tests and is allowed to act as Luthor's attorney in his trail for murder. While on trail, Superman manages to defend Luthor and have all charges dropped when Superman arrives with the robot that Luthor had destroyed and shows that it is in perfect functioning order. After the trail, Superman explains that he salvaged the parts of the destroyed Superman robot to rebuild the robot that Luthor had destroyed. When Superman is about to take Luthor back to EArth Luthor tells Superman that he has no jurisdiction to bring him back. Superman agrees but gives Luthor a device to call him should he change his mind and return to Earth. Luthor gloats how he is never going to return home and intends to become a space pirate and is about to escape in his ship when he realizes that the radium-power source has been removed.

In a final jest, Superman explains to Luthor that the radium-power was taken to power the robot that he had originally destroyed, and that in order to escape the planet he either has to agree to go back with Superman and be returned to prison or destroy another robot and risk being put in suspended animation. Superman then leaves the planet laughing with Luthor cursing the Man of Steel and vowing to get revenge against him someday.

Appearing in Superman: "When Superman Defended His Arch-Enemy!"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

Other Characters:

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:

  • Colossal Statue/ Radium-Powered Rocket
  • Police Car


Synopsis for Supergirl: "The Super-Steed of Steel!"

Supergirl has several dreams about Comet the Super-Horse, a white super-horse who performs amazing feats. Later, she and her parents go to a "Supergirl Dude Ranch", where they meet with the real Comet, a white horse whom only she (as Linda Danvers) can claim. Comet demonstrates that he really has super-powers and, by taking her to the giant image of Supergirl outside the ranch, indicates to Linda that he knows her secret identity. She promises to make him a red super-cape to wear later on, and wonders where Comet came from.

Appearing in Supergirl: "The Super-Steed of Steel!"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Other Characters:

  • Helen of Troy (Mentioned only)
  • Horses
    • Firebrand (On a TV or computer screen)
  • Krypto (In dream sequence only)
  • Mace Greede
  • Pop Hadley (Mentioned only)
  • Superman (Mentioned only)

Locations:

Items:

  • Ray Guns (In dream sequence only)
  • Trojan Horse (Mentioned only)

Vehicles:

  • 1961 Chevy Impala SS
  • Japanese "Kamikaze" Suicide Plane (In dream sequence only)
  • Space Craft (In dream sequence only)
  • Submarine (In dream sequence only)

Notes

Trivia

  • In "When Superman Defended His Arch-Enemy!", Luthor states that one day he would add his own statue to the Hall of Heroes. He already did so in Action Comics #277.


See Also


Links and References

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