Krypton’s Heroes Falter While “In Zod We Trust” 

Obviously, different people deal with grief in different ways.

In the aftermath of Lyta’s execution, Jayna, Dev, and Seg wander the Kandor alleys in shock. Eventually, Seg screams his agony and then siphons his energy into opposing Dru-Zod’s plans and trying to make Lyta’s death “matter”.

Jayna sinks into a disbelieving depression and sees no future that doesn’t include her daughter. Her misery binds her even closer to Dev who is devoted to his former Primus.

Dru-Zod, on the other hand, throws a Sagitari officer out of his office, high above the city. You’d think he was upset or something. It seems that he didn’t think to plan for a world that would never include his own child-self.

Furthermore, when Nyssa points out that SHE would do anything for her family, he visibly recoils at the unspoken accusation he wasn’t able to save his.

And that pushes him to issue the ultimatum to the rebels on Wegthor. And, later, to go hunting Doomsday on his own. Risky behaviors all round.

Now, the change in command in the rebel forces is something I’m not sure I buy wholeheartedly.

Yes, Jax-Ur was brutal in her message that Dru-Zod’s duplicity would not have consequences and, yes, killing Lyta on a globally-broadcast feed was extreme.

However — and this might just be me — if I was in the rebel group, I probably wouldn’t be jumping on Val-El’s “we-have-to-be-the-better-people” wagon. When dealing with Dru-Zod, it’s very clear that the better people end up as the deader people.

Kem gets it. When Dru demands Jax-Ur, he immediately advises Val to turn her over. Adam’s a bit more circumspect, pointing out that it’s only a stop-gap since Dru will still kill them all eventually, instead of immediately.

I do what has to be done, however ugly, not because I enjoy it… because no one else will. If that means people see me as a monster than so be it. Never stopped me before and it won’t stop me now.

Jax-Ur

Imprisoned by Val-El’s supporters, Jax-Ur and Arami share a lot of private and revealing thoughts. Jax comes to grips that she’s never going to be as well-liked/respected as Val-El. Arami voices her concerns about their situation, a departure from the unwavering “good soldier” persona she usually presents.

And then Jax goes and blows all the warm fuzzy feelings she’s fostered in viewers by digging some tech out of her own arm with a hairpin from Arami’s topknot to MacGyver their escape.

The confrontation between Jax and Val and the subsequent destruction of the space elevator base is another bit of flawed characterization to my thinking.

No sooner does Val-El tell Adam and Kem that Jax-Ur simply cannot be reasoned with any more than he convinces her quite quickly to hand over her weapon.

Furthermore, despite all his semantic arguments that they are “freedom fighters” and not “terrorists,” Val-El is strangely speedy in deciding to press the button on destroying the space elevator base, causing what to my accounting are the FIRST civilian casualties at the Resistance’s hands.

As much as I question Seg’s ability as any sort of hero, Val’s choices as a resistance leader are just as doubtful.

Letting Jax-Ur just “disappear” so she can find herself (seriously?) is ridiculous. Not only is she super-villain level smart, it’s pretty obvious that without Val’s moral compass to balance out her amoral leanings, she’s liable to find herself using far more expeditious means to her ends than Val could ever imagine.

Also, she’s still on Wegthor. The space elevator base has been destroyed. She supposed to “find herself” in one of the mining shafts with no resource supplies or established community? Can’t imagine her Wegthor fortress of solitude is going to be enough to keep her busy for long.

Speaking of women who we probably haven’t seen the last of…

With Nyssa bringing the Codex back to Dru, it occurs to me that Lyta may not be gone for good. After all, Nyssa was a replacement for the OG-Nyssa who died in the skimmer crash as a child with her mother. Chances are good that the Codex has Lyta backed up as well.

Whether Dru (or Jayna) know this or not is the big question.

Since Dru seems more intent on weaponizing the Codex, using its record of Kryptonian DNA to aim his new superweapon, I feel like that discovery might be on Jayna’s shoulders.

Trust Brainiac to break the tension of Seg, Jayna, and Dev discussing Lyta’s death and reconditioning. One can’t help but see his perspective as this emotional setback is definitely causing the team to spin its wheels.

And, once again, he furthers the plot better than any of the core characters. Despite not even having a body to call his own.

It’s painful that it took Seg so long (and it STILL required a nudge from Brainiac) to realize that the only way to defeat Dru is by using his neural hitchhiker’s skills.

I mean, yes, his plan to break Nyssa out of Zod headquarters worked but it was also his self-indulgent moment of stink-eye that gave Dru the chance to damage the skimmer. Add “bad getaway driver” to Seg’s list of meh-abilities.

This adventure ends off in a rather unsatisfying way as Dru hunts for Doomsday with the weapon I’d assumed was for the Wegthor rebels. The fact that he seems to need no gear to wander through the Outlands is interesting. That he thinks going up alone against a killing machine with an untested weapon is proving Val’s claim that he is truly delusional.

Well, we’d already decided there were too many villains in this kitchen, hadn’t we? This’ll be a quick end to a couple.

Krypton airs on Wednesday nights at 9/10c on Syfy.