Krypton season 2, episode 2 review: Ghost in the Fire

DC’s intergalactic, psychopathic and loopy bounty hunter, Lobo, steals the limelight and lightens the mood in an otherwise somber episode of Krypton.

During the season premiere of Krypton, General Zod (Colin Salmon) was preparing the Kryptonians for galactic war and conquest. Val-El (Ian McElhinney) and Jax-Ur (Hannah Waddingham) escaped to the moon of Segthor to mobilize the resistance. Nyssa-Vex (Wallis Day) saw her father, Daron-Vex’s (Elliot Cowon) head get blown off just before she was captured, then forced to spy for Zod while he held her and Seg-El’s (Cameron Cuffe) infant son, Cor, hostage. Also, Doomsday is currently stomping around the Kryptonian wilderness.

Meanwhile, Seg-El and Brainiac escaped the Phantom Zone to the latter’s home planet of Colu. Seg then caved-in Brainiac’s skull, then reunited with Adam Strange (Shaun Sipos). That’s when they had the misfortune of meeting up with a gray-skinned, red-eyed, dreadlocked, muscle-bound freak in biker leather who likes to say “frag” a lot. If you’re a DC Comics fan, you might have heard of him. He”s Mister Machete, the Last Czarnian, the Scourge of the Cosmos, the Ultimate Bastich, the Main Man himself. He’s also more commonly known as Lobo.

“You never heard of me?”

One of the weird complaints about season one of Krypton is that, for a series about Superman’s ancestors, it seemed to take itself a bit too seriously. Even with Adam Warlock acting as the occasional comic relief, this was a series in which, despite being based off a comic book, wanted to be seen as a mature, sci-fi epic. Lobo’s presence in this season’s second episode, “Ghost in the Fire,” completely tosses any such notions out the airlock, and it is glorious.

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For those unfamiliar with the character, Lobo, like Superman, is a super strong, near-invulnerable alien who’s also the last of his kind. Unlike Superman, however, he killed his entire race with a swarm of mutant scorpions. So yes, Lobo is a bit nuts. He’s also a bounty hunter who never breaks a contract and is always true to his word, even it means thinking up creative, gruesome ways of removing your intestines. And for this episode, Emmett J. Scanlan perfectly embodies the character and then some. Sure, he may seem like Deadpool without the fourth wall breaking, but, like Marvel’s Merc With a Mouth, Lobo is also meant to be intentionally ridiculous as he is deadly.

He also plays off extremely well with his two captives. The normally calm, rational Seg, or as Lobo calls him “Siegel” (yes, Krypton now openly acknowledges that the main character is named after one of Superman’s co-creators), is completely flummoxed at how to reason with this psychopath. Adam, who obviously knows who Lobo is, tries his best to get on his good side, even though the Last Czarnian couldn’t care less. Also, kudos to the costume designer and make-up artist in making Lobo’s appearance completely right.

As for what Lobo is doing on Colu (aside from promoting his own upcoming series on the SyFy channel), he’s hunting for Brainiac out of revenge for bottling up one of the cities from Czarnia before he had to chance to destroy it. Problem is, Seg already killed Brainiac…or did he?

Family drama, Kryptonian-style

The rest of the episode, sadly, focuses on interpersonal conflicts, specifically between the female leads. Nyssa arrives on Segthor and infiltrates the resistance, telling Val and Jax the truth about being forced by Zod to act as his spy. To prove she’s still on their side, she provides counterintel about Zod’s plans. Of course, Jax doesn’t trust her and she shouldn’t because to nobody’s surprise, Nyssa telling the truth was Zod’s plan all along. Two episodes in, and already the resistance subplot is the weakest of this season.

Back on Krypton, Lyta-Zod (Georgina Campbell) has been ordered by Zod to train new Sagitari, including one hunky cadet who bears a striking resemblance to her beloved Seg. Just when things start getting a little too hot for teacher, though, Lyta beats the cadet to a bloody pulp. In order to get her mind off of Seg’s (false) death, Zod decides to give Lyta Cor-Vax for her to raise as her own son. Not exactly sure what Zod is thinking here, considering he needs Cor as a bargaining chip for Nyssa’s loyalty. Also, Lyta immediately becomes attached to Cor, remarking on how much he looks like Seg. Clearly, the show did this just to sow even more tension between Seg two love interests.

Speaking of the Zod family, we also have the return of Lyta’s mother, Jayna-Zod (Ann Ogbomo), who’d been left to die in the snowy wastes of the Kryptonian outlands last season. Here we see she’s reunited with her long-lost brother, Vidar. It’s here that Jayna undergoes some serious character development, in that she realizes just what a bad mother she’s been, and how her family has trained nothing but killers. We also get a nice bit of lore about Krypton’s creation myth, specifically the significance of Flamebird. A set-up for Jayna to adopt that persona, perhaps?

“He’s inside you.”

Of course, it just wouldn’t be Krypton if there weren’t some surprise twists, three to be exact. For starters, Vidar-Zod isn’t real. Jayna just imagined her brother was still alive as her own survival mechanism. Or perhaps, in keeping with the title of the episode, his actual ghost. Whether the case, we get a nice bit of “Footprints in the Sand” imagery, or this case footsteps in the snow, clearly indicating Jayna has undergone a religious experience during her time in the wilderness.

Jayna also takes part in yet another twist–Lyta’s betrothed, Dev-Em (Aaron Pierre). is also still alive and hiding out in the Outlands. Seems Zod’s new regime has also branded Dev a traitor. Looks as though he’ll be teaming up with his would-be mother-in-law. Maybe he’ll adopt the identity of Nightwing, who, like Flamebird, also has religious significance on Krypton.

Next. Krypton, season 2, episode 1 review: Light-Years From Home. dark

As for the last twist, Lobo does find Brainiac…in Seg-El? Yes, somehow Brainiac predictably uploaded his consciousness into Seg before being killed. The good news is that, for the moment, Seg seems to be in complete control, which also means he now has telepathy, telekinesis, and a computer-like brain. The bad news is that Brainiac doesn’t like staying in the backseat, and the episode ends with Seg eyes turning black. Of course, the previews and sneak peeks show Seg doesn’t turn evil, at least not yet. Guess we’re in for lots of mind games and psychological warfare next time.

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