Lex Luthor finally achieves everything he ever dreamed of. Superman faces the specter of a real death.

In All-Star Superman, Luthor delivers the coup de grace by poisoning the Man of Steel’s sun-absorbing cells with the very source of his powers, sunlight. That’s just within the opening scenes.

The plot of “All-Star Superman” drags at times, but moves forward into the psyche of Superman as reality sets in. The Last Son of Krypton spends time coming to terms with his possible mortality, doing things like revealing his identity to Lois Lane. Wait…haven’t we seen this one already?

He brings her to the Fortress of Solitude, re-imagined as a geological structure absent ridiculous crystals and Marlon Brando. When Lois — always the paragon of journalistic integrity — gets paranoid and nosy, she finds that Superman is keeping a secret from her. But just as her trust with the blue boy scout is breached, she finds that there is only one thing Superman would keep from Lois Lane. After all, he showed her the room with the kryptonite laser and the gravity-gun. It turns out he has a romantic surprise for her, at least his idea of one.

This time, instead of flying her over the world in his mighty blue embrace, Kal-el lets Lois fly herself. Superman kept the surprise in a secret room, a vial of a concoction made to endow a mortal with all of Superman’s powers. That could never fall into the wrong hands, could it?

Finally, they have a romantic kiss on the surface of the moon. After they have a great little adventure and Superman arm-wrestles two super-suitors after his girl, Superman lets her know that he is dying.

He flies the bottled city Kandor into space, immediately after the plot flies spinning into comic-book-nerd insider ball.

Upon his return from space, he faces two Kryptonians bent on conquering the world. In a true demonstration of decency, Superman overcomes their hatred by helping them. The script avoids a catastrophic explosion of violence between them and Superman — even though the heightened sunlight infusing his anatomic structure jacks his powers even further than ever imagined.

In the mean time, the United Nations finds out how Lex poisoned Superman and decides to put him in the electric chair. They make this exception to their anti-death penalty stance to punish Luthor for crimes against humanity, but the criminal mastermind has other plans. He drinks a cocktail, eats 1,000 volts, busts the restraints, and stands there as the guards pump rounds into him.

Didn’t somebody mention something about a Superman-power-imbuing concoction?

Suffice it to say that Superman faces even more peril as some giant sun-eating robot — who would be cooler if voiced by Orson Welles — turns the sun red, stripping Superman of his powers just as soon as Luthor gains them.

The DVD/Blu-ray combo hits shelves February 22, so you diehards can wait until next week to see how it ends.

A meteor just crashed in Fawcett City causing a fiery explosion to interrupt a teen make-out session. Out of the flaming wreckage steps a villain with mythic power that springs straight from the gods, Black Adam.

This Tuesday “Superman/Shazam: The Return of Black Adam” hits shelves on Blu-ray and DVD.

Comic fans know the face of the villain, but uninitiated have no idea the powerful forces at command of the black-clad powerhouse. Voiced by Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy), the newcomer lets the viewer in by clapping to create a sonic concussion and level a diner where the unsuspecting reporter Clark Kent interviews the poor orphan Billy Batson.

After being slapped through a series of buildings Kent reveals his identity to the newcomer. Reprising his role as Supeman, George Newbern (Justice League) announces that he has no intention of letting the rampaging sociopath kill the boy.

The titanic battle that ensues highlights that what animators can accomplish these days is limited only by their own imaginative powers.

Just as Black Adam capitalizes on his realization that Superman is weak against magic, Billy Batson goes through a Harry Potter-like train sequence where he meets the wizard Shazam.

When the wizard grants him powers similar to those of Black Adam, Billy jumps at the chance to save The Man of Steel.

As he first attempts to return the favor, it becomes very clear, very quickly that Black Adam is quite comfortable in his own powers. In the ensuing throw-down Black Adam demonstrates the battle prowess of a 5,000-year-old warrior. Needless to say, it’s awesome.

This animation presents the master-crafted jewel for the crown of animated shorts from Warner’s DC showcase. The Blu-ray retails for $29.99, and the DVD for $19.99, featuring The Spectre, The Green Arrow, and Jonah Hex. Even though these are 10-12 minutes each, the 22 minute title feature makes it worth the cash. Checking out producer Bruce Timm’s favorite picks from previous Warner Bros. shows adds nostalgia value, for fans of Justice League Unlimited, or Batman: The Animated Series.

Roughly 540 years in the future, the human race is at war with an intergalactic alliance of alien races called the Covenant. A genetically engineered warrior — the last of his kind — fights fervently to drive back the advancing alien force. Soldiers of the United Nations Space Command fight at his side, know his name, and spread his legend, Master Chief John -117. Welcome to the universe of Halo. Climb deeper into it — or explore it for the first time — with the animated feature that hit shelves last week.

The seven animated stories in “Halo Legends” unfold over eight episodes. The artificial intelligence Cortana narrates “Origins,” the first two animations in the set. The plot gets somewhat labyrinthine as she explains the origins of all life in the fictional universe. A trip to the Halo Wiki might help, if you get lost.

“Origins 1″ — narrated to the unconscious Master Chief — details the rise of what are called the Forerunners. Cortana tells Master Chief that these advanced beings reached technological heights thousands of years ago. It was all fun and games until they met a biological terror called the flood. The flood was to the universe what a really bad virus is to your hard drive; to wipe it out you have to wipe out your hard drive. The Forerunners fixed the problem by wiping out all living things in the galaxy. But they were smart. They backed everything up and started from scratch. Once the universe was rebuilt, human history could begin.

“Origins 2″ picks up were the first one left off. Humanity, it turns out, was rather good at making war. Once humanity spread to the stars the ability to blow itself to kingdom come became cool on a whole new level. Fighting over land and resources was equally fun in space. When the Covenant joined the party, humanity turned their attention away from killing each other and toward killing the aliens. Then the flood showed up again, and the real fun started. These two stories bring you nicely to a place where you have some idea of what is going on if you are unfamiliar with Halo.

“The Duel” quickly puts places you in unfamiliar surroundings, where you have no idea what’s going on. The story takes place on the alien world of the Elites. The water-color style animation follows the Arbiter, a general of his species, as he defies the Covenant. The Covenant has another Elite fight him in a Samurai-style duel. By this point, it would be nice to see some Spartans kill some aliens.

“Homecoming” gives you just what you are thirsting for: alien blood, and lots of it. The story intertwines with a flashback. Daisy, a Spartan who wears red close-quarters battle armor, is helping some soldiers escape an over-running Covenant force. As she assists them, by blowing aliens of various sizes away with a shotgun, she remembers attempting to escape from the facility where she was turned into a Spartan.

“Odd One Out” raises a new question for Halo fans. What if Halo was more like Dragon Ball Z? A Spartan falls out of a passing ship. When he hits the ground he encounters kids dressed like cavemen whose dinosaur tries to eat him. The children have a big brother and big sister who help the spartan fight a crazy Brute creature. Just when you can’t stand any more ridiculous antics it ends.

“Prototype” provides some relief by being pretty awesome. This sergeant is trying to get his men to safety after executing a mission. He does this by using an armor suit of high-tech weapon systems to blow tons of Covenant forces off the face of the planet.

“The Babysitter” details a mission where Orbital Drop Shock Troopers deploy with a Spartan. In the course of their sniper mission together the team and the Spartan earn each other’s respect. The Spartan has to buy a Gravity Hammer in the face to do it, but there has to be some downside to being a super-soldier.

“The Package” delivers the goods. It does this by answering an important question. Where the hell is Master Chief in these stories? Not only is there quite a bit of Master Chief, there is quite a bit of shooting aliens and even some first person animations.

Overall the feature contributes to the lesson of Halo. Generations to come will learn that if there is one thing aliens need it is to be shot in the face, or stabbed in the side of the head with a close-combat knife, or even smashed in the skull with the butt of a rifle.

Grenade, grenade, fire, fire, melee. Master Chief can do more than that quick combo, which almost always gets you a kill in multiplayer, in the upcoming Halo animated feature.

“Halo Legends” will hit DVD and Blu-ray on February 9. Distributed by Warner Home video and produced by 343 Industries, part of Microsoft Game Studios, the CG and traditional anime will explore the history and origins of the Halo universe and some of its characters. The eight episodes will cover seven storylines, which will also be available via On Demand and Digital Download.

The episodes will fall inside Halo’s 26th Century continuity as humanity battles aliens to protect the ever-expanding space colonies of Earth. Halo fans will recognize some characters and locales from the games. Each episode will be 10 to 17 minutes long, with about two total hours of viewing.

Halo Legends will have the same look and feel as “The Animatrix” and “Batman Gotham Knight,” in that each episode will be self contained. Each episode will be presented as imagined by a the director or animator. Children of the 80s and anime fans, alike, will recognize the work of some of these creative contributors including Shinji Aramaki, who did character designs on “MASK;” Mamoru Oshii, creator and writer of “Jin-Ro;” and Hideki Futamura, a key animator on “Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust.”

Extras on the two disc will include a “making of” feature, audio commentary with the directors and a mini-feature detailing the rise of the Halo franchise from an Xbox game to a mammoth property commanding over $1 billion in revenue with games, comics, novels and other merchandise. The Blu-ray will retail for around $35, the two-disc set for around $30 and the DVD for around $20.

The economy is at an all-time low, violence has led to martial law, and with the death toll rising the desperate American public turns to the one man who can save them, Lex Luthor. In a world where the bad-guy has control of the White House, what happens to the good-guys?

This Tuesday Warner Brothers Animation released “Superman Batman: Public Enemies” on DVD.

For those not familiar with the graphic novel created by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness, this is the story that pits the “world’s finest” against the full force of the United States government.

But animations like Justice League Unlimited have done similar stories, so what’s new?

Most noticeably, the visual feel is different from many other Warner Brothers comic book based cartoons. The animation, based on the art Ed McGuinness drew for the graphic novel, is charged with excitement.

The mainstays of the animation are the same, however. Kevin Conroy’s iconic voice breathes life into the caped crusader as it has from Batman the Animated Series, in 1992, all the way through Batman: Gotham Knight- the 2008 DVD animated companion to the films starring Christian Bale.

Two of the major voices from JLU are also back. Tim Daly reprises as Superman, and Clancy Brown as Lex Luthor.

The story is a bit more politically charged than any previous animated features about the titanic team-up. First of all, Luthor is president. It begs the question; if things got really bad, how far would the American public be willing to go to make things right?

In this world we elect a man with the savvy to do whatever is necessary to keep the citizenry safe. When a country-sized asteroid comes hurtling from space the president’s resolve is tested.

And that asteroid is pure kryptonite.

In a live televised address, President Luthor calls for a meeting with Superman. When the man-of-steel meets the Commander In Chief, a new addition to the Secret Service lends a super-powered hand putting the hurt on the Last Son of Krypton. The confrontation quickly turns south for Superman, and the results lead to a perfect opportunity for a set-up. President Luthor issues a bounty for one billion dollars. Maybe he should put a pinky to his lip? But instead he unleashes all kinds of super-powered heavyweights, to slug it out with the man of tomorrow and the dark knight, who stands by his buddy through thick and thin.

The pair find themselves in deep trouble when Mongul and Solomon Grundy show up in the first wave of stringers looking to cash in on the bounty. Shit hits the fan when the bounty hunters are finished and the President plays his ace card, some top-tier members of The Justice League. These are probably best left a surprise, but suffice it to say there are two heroes whose name begin with “Captain” who slug it out with the big “S.”

The battles can be summed up in one word, for anyone who is into superhero cartoons, nerdgasm.

One key difference from the comic book is noticeable. The climax. In Loeb and McGuinness’s version Batman and Superman confront Lex in the Oval Office. Batman tells Superman that they can “make it look like an accident.” Direct threats on the chief executives life, in the land’s highest office, might not be politically prudent right now. The cartoon opts for a more discreet location and no consideration by the teamed-up superheroes to kill the president, but it does leave room for a question. If a sitting president ever took truth and justice too far, would the world have any way to check the might of the only real super-power?

Gamer Doc, a California-based start-up billing itself as an alternative video game retailer, is expanding to the East Coast and plans to have new stores in Boston by the end of this year, the company’s president said recently in an interview with Blast.

“My whole belief is that the community of gamers all over the world, including Boston, is insulted by commercials, bored with TV content and is looking for a source of entertainment with more depth,” said Gamer Doc president Jim Belanger, 54. “Video games are providing that.”

“They want true freedom to play what they want when they want,” Belanger said. “They’re kind of rejecting the old ways of marketing.”

Gamer Doc has generated news buzz in local and national markets.‚  They sell games, but instead of just putting product on shelves, there are video games being played all around with game systems being repaired in the back and gaming-related events and contests going on in the middle.

This interactive “gaming community” experience promises to be unique.

“We’re like a Gamestop, a Blockbuster, an arcade and a repairs center all rolled into one,” said Jason Renfro, 37, who opened the first Gamer Doc in Los Angeles.

Gamer Doc hopes to launch three stores in the Boston area this year

Locations provide services based on the needs of the customer. By talking with staff, gamers and new players can increase their knowledge of specific games and systems. Customers can actually play games and participate in events in the store like tournaments, gaming leagues, new game demonstrations and release date events.

In the original Gamer Doc location, the model seems to have worked too well — “In December there was so much business in the store that we had to cancel all the events,” said Renfro.

When events do happen,‚  Gamer Doc locations will often recruit regular customers to help out the staff. Knowledgeable gamers can be a great asset to the community in a Gamer Doc location, Belanger said.

“They are key to our success,” he said. “We have a process of recognizing, and involving, the knowledgeable gamers to get them into the system.”

Belanger said GamerDoc planned to open three franchise stores in and around Boston

A franchise store is paid for by a group of investors. An agreement between Gamer Doc and the investors defines the market area. The challenge for the company is to find qualified franchisees, this will affect the timetable for store openings in Boston, Belanger said. The company sees benefits to franchising.

“The benefit to the owner is to be part of a growing and exciting brand,” the founding president said. “For the customers, we find generally, franchisees are more committed to the customer experience.”

Belanger and David Huether started the company in 2007. Many of the staff members on the current roster have been with the company from the beginning. There were many retailers selling video games at the time, but the pair had a different idea. Instead of simply selling the video games, they wanted to begin recognizing the role of “hardcore gamers” in the store.

“On the Xbox 360 there were these malfunctions called ‘the red ring of death’ that made the system inoperable,” Belanger said. “Hardore gamers were amazed when we gave them loner machines, so they could get back to playing their games,” Belanger said.

The focus on hardcore gamers will be reflected in the layout of the store. Locations will even have a specific line where gamers can quickly pick up their games and go if they want.

“Our idea is to make it so that people can get their games, and get to playing them right away,” Belanger said.

Belanger has been gaming since 1977. His first game was a “cocktail” version of the Pac-Man arcade game that sat two people for simultaneous play. His first console was an Atari 400. He currently owns an Xbox 360 Elite, a PlayStation 2 and a Wii.

He ended any ambition of PC gaming after repeated destruction in World of Warcraft, at the hands of his co-workers.

“Overall, I see the gamers of today are as the golfers of my generation, you have to play every stroke every time, or you’ll never know if you’re really good.”

Saints Row 2 shipped for Windows PC Tuesday, THQ announced.

Play control will be the essential difference in the PC gaming experience with the game looking and sounding nearly the same on the PC as it does on consoles, a THQ spokesperson said. The difference would be using a keyboard and mouse instead of a console controller.

Some gamers prefer using their PC to a console, said Craig Mitchell, a spokesman for THQ. “We want to reach gamers where they play.”

Offering these types of advanced games on the PC sometimes proves to be problematic. Different PC gamers use different hardware depending on the machine they use. Some gamers could simply run the game on a home computer. Other gamers might run Saints Row 2 on a machine custom made for gaming. Such machines could give a crisp look to the graphics, Mitchell said.

Saints Row 2 allows players to roam free in a city environment. The main character in the game is in a street gang called the Saints. The title references the street where the gang lives. Players can interact with this environment as they choose.

“Saints Row 2 is the first title to offer PC gamers an open-world experience,” Mike Kulas, vice president, product development and general manager of Volition Inc., said in a THQ press release. “We’ve spent a great deal of time optimizing system specs for Windows PC to ensure gamers the same high quality experience no matter what system they choose.”

Volition Inc. internally developed the game, for THQ, to include an open-world action environment similar to the original Saints Row, with a few improvements. The sequel features customizable character design, but ads customization options to the gang and your crib, or place of residence.

Gameplay centers on the actions of shooting, fighting and driving. Some of these elements were designed in the same way as the original Saints Row. Others have changed.

Shooting works in the standard third person style. Weapons have been added, but this element is essentially the same as the first game.

Fighting has become a combo system with four distinct styles. The player starts with a brawler style. Depending on which gangs the player interacts wit the fighting style evolves to include a grappling style, a Kung Fu style, or a Caribbean style.

Driving changed in Saints Row 2, because of the addition of new vehicles including motorcycles, boats, helicopters and planes.

The story centers on the Saints taking back the city from a corrupt corporation. The corporation is attempting to gentrify the city and eliminate the gangs, including the Saints. “They have their own private security force to fight you, particularly when you go on company property,” Mitchell said.

Boston retailers should have the game on shelves this week. It will retail for around $40.