Ricky Church reviews the sixth episode of Krypton…
The latest episode of Krypton delivered several answers as well as twists as Seg and Lyta discovered more about the mysterious Black Zero member – now revealed as a time travelling General Zod – as the situation in Kandor went from bad to worse. It was a good example of how the various plots are beginning to meld together and reveal the bigger game at play as the characters and audience learn there is much more going on that what we were told in the series’ pilot.
Picking up right from the conclusion of last week, Krypton dealt with the stunning revelation that General Zod was in the past attempting to save the planet from Brainiac as well. Colin Salmon gave a good portrayal of Superman’s enemy, though one presenting a much calmer and honourable front than we usually know him for. This development, however, served as an even bigger reveal that Adam Strange may not have been sent back to stop Brainiac, but to stop Zod himself.
The questions over the series’ time travel aspect both answered some questions, yet raised even more with Zod’s reveal. If he is to be believed, Brainiac’s coming invasion was always destined to happen as it sets off the chain of events that will see Krypton destroyed, eventually seeing Kal-El become Superman. It certainly raises the stakes as their mission to save the future just got more complicated know that Seg and Lyta know if they do nothing, Krypton and all its inhabitants will die, but possibly for the greater good of the universe since Superman will save it time and again.
‘Civil Wars’ also put Seg and Adam at odds even more with Adam’s ‘betrayal’ by withholding some key information on Krypton’s future. Cameron Cuffe and Shaun Sipos both gave good performances as their characters came to blows over this new information. It was even interesting to learn that Adam had travelled back in time before gaining full knowledge of the threat as he believed it was Brainiac, not Zod, who was sent back. Sipos’ performance was particularly good as he bounced back between desperate explanations and anxious worry over what Seg and Zod would unleash upon the universe with the reveal of yet another famous Superman villain.
As I said above, Colin Salmon gave a bit of a different take on Zod as a ‘good’ guy, but clearly already has a long and bitter history with Superman that he’s not being completely honest about. He seems honourable and Salmon also has good chemistry with Georgina Campbell, even going so far as to crack a couple jokes with her. We all know, however, that while Zod does fight for a better and stronger Krypton, he’s not exactly the world’s nicest guy and often believes he’s the hero of the story despite the actions he takes. It will be interesting to see where General Zod goes from here.
Meanwhile, things in Kandor developed at a faster rate as the Vexes and Jayna-Zod made their move against the Voice of Rao. Both stories intermixed pretty well together as the political machinations in Kandor were just as intriguing, if not more so, as Seg and Lyta’s mission. This was also the first episode where Aaron Pierre’s Dev-Em really played a more significant role than just supporting one and also got to act alongside someone other than Campbell for the majority of the episode. He held his own weight against Jayna and Daron-Vex throughout the story. In particular, his scene where he called out Vex’s moral bankruptcy as they plotted to sacrifice hundreds of civilians just for a shot at the Voice was his best performance yet.
Of course, though, thing backfired immensely due to Dev-Em’s honour as he couldn’t go through with bombing civilians, instead hatching a plan to ambush the Voice. This led to a pretty cool cliffhanger where Brainiac, though the sentry implanted with the Voice, attacked the group in a scene that once again showed off the impressive visuals of the show. The design on the Voice’s Brainiac-ravaged body was quite well done even though it was onscreen for a short time. Though Blake Riston was rather ‘normal’ looking here, it still makes the prospect of seeing him as full on Brainiac for more than a few seconds that much more exciting.
‘Civil Wars’ definitely raised the stakes with its revelations and places Seg and Lyta in interesting new positions. The question is now whether they save Krypton from its destructive future or let things play out as they did before in order to preserve it, even at the cost of their lives as well as that of the planet’s. Its brought in a moral dilemma that wasn’t there before, making it more intriguing to watch. Another question to be answered is who exactly sent Adam to the past if he didn’t even bother listening to the full message? The second half of Krypton‘s inaugural season has already raised the bar even more than its first half did.
Rating: 9/10
Ricky Church
