 They knew they did not want to kill him, because they wanted the ability to bring him back at some point in the future, so they came up with this "noble, heroic, send-off" for the character.For Lex, this episode featured the moment when he finally began to contemplate what his life would be like if his father was no longer a part of it.As Rosenbaum sees it, the moment that Lex hesitates to free his father from the support beam that collapses on him is the moment that the audience gets to see a hint of the evil man they know Lex will one day become.