Krypton season 2, episode 5 review: A Better Yesterday

As the Superman-inspired space-opera reaches its midseason, characters loyalties are put to the test as Krypton pulls one of its boldest twists yet.

It seems General Dru-Zod (Colin Salmon) has all but won the Kryptonian Civil War. Most of the rebels on the moon of Wegthor are dead due to poisoned oxygenators. Lyta-Zod (Georgina Campbell) and her Sagitari squad captured Adam Strange (Shaun Sipos) and Kem (Rasmus Hardiker).

Nyssa-Vex (Wallis Day) has taken off with Jax-Ur’s (Hannah Waddingham) Codex DNA bomb. Jax herself is running out of options, while Val-El (Ian McElhinney) continues being the hopeful optimist.

Of course, all isn’t lost for our heroes on Krypton. Seg-El (Cameron Cuffe), after almost becoming reconditioned, discovered that a part of Brainiac (Blake Ritson) still exists in his head. He also knows that his beloved Lyta was reconditioned as well. Looks like it’s time to give his son, Zod, a Kryptonian-style spanking. He’s not the only one.

As we move into the fifth episode of Krypton’s second season, Jayna-Zod (Ann Ogbomo) and Dev-Em (Aaron Pierre) have stopped feeling sorry for themselves in the Outlands and head to Kandor to kill Zod. Yet as “A Better Yesterday” unfolds, we’re reminded that, for a Superman-based television series, Krypton doesn’t play safe.

By the time this episode ends, it pulls off one of the most shocking developments the series has ever done. It’s arguably bigger than Seg being Zod’s father, or the “S” on Superman’s cape turning into the House of Zod symbol.

There are spoilers, obviously, and we’ll get to those in due time. But for now, let’s talk about Zod.

A man of vision

If there’s one thing to take away from “A Better Yesterday,” it’s that’s Zod has a vision for Krypton. We know this because in almost every scene, in almost every dialogue exchange, somebody mentions or talks about “Zod’s vision.” Especially if that person is Zod.

If you haven’t figured it out by now, Krypton doesn’t real deal in subtlety. But if there is a character on Krypton who does deal in subtlety, that’s, oddly enough, Zod himself.

Whenever we think of Krypton’s maniacal general, we instantly think of Terence Stamp’s “Kneel before Zod!” from Superman II, or Michael Shannon screaming “I will find them!” in Man of Steel. Both performances are so wonderfully over-the-top it’s impossible to forget them.

However, what’s great and distinctive about Colin Salmon’s performance is how calm, methodical, and manipulative his Zod is. The character’s supposed to be a military genius, after all.

Shifting sides?

I’ve said before that Krypton tries very hard to be “Superman meets Game of Thrones.” A defining trait of Thrones is how neither side of a conflict is completely good or completely evil – there’s good and evil people on both sides.

Alliances shift. Loyalties are called into question. Sacrifices must be made. It all makes for compelling drama, of course. Hence why Krypton attempts to follow suit.

Even so, it does seem a bit much when you have multiple characters in the span of 40 minutes unironically say, “It’s hard to tell who’s on which side anymore?” Problem is, this isn’t really a correct assessment. All the major characters, save Lyta, are against Zod at this point. Even Jayna wants to kill Zod, and he’s her grandson!

What is clear, though, are the lengths characters are willing to go in order to stop Zod. Already Nyssa is feeling the consequences of her actions. Realizing her intel about the oxygenators is what led to the rebel ground forces’ deaths, she rescues Adam and Kem. Now she’s become, in her own words, “a traitor on both sides.”

Another character now willing to do whatever it takes? Seg. Having failed to erase Brainiac, Superman’s granddad once again adopts “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” approach. Considering how well it worked last season when Seg sided with Zod against Brainiac, this doesn’t bode well.

It does, however, give Seg even more super powers, including split-second reaction time and “improbable aiming skills.” Watching Seg effortlessly blast Sagitari via Brainiac’s guidance, and Dem and Jayna’s reactions, are priceless. It’s definitely the highlight of the episode, and makes you eager to see what other tricks this Seg-Brainiac partnership will bring later on.

“Don’t be like him!”

One character, though, who truly takes extreme measures against Zod is definitely Jax-Ur. We sometimes forget that before joining the rebellion, she was the leader of the Black Zero terrorists. The last episode showed her willing to commit genocide on the Sagitari to win the war. If anything, the rebellion against Zod has made her into even more of an extremist.

And poor, naïve Val-El. After being proved wrong about Nyssa, he still believes they can get through to her by telling her that Seg’s alive and about Zod’s reconditioning. Never mind, of course, that Lyta already knows this. He’s equally wrong about Jax, too.

All throughout the episode, he keeps telling Jax not to be like Zod, that she’s better than him. He doesn’t seem to understand that the Codex bomb alone moved her well past that point.

Still, it comes as a complete shock when, after Lyta offers terms for the rebels unconditional surrender, Jax kills a bunch of Sagitari (and reveals her cybernetic eye also shoots lasers) and takes Lyta hostage. She then broadcasts to Kandor that, unless Zod removes all Sagitari from Wegthor, Lyta dies.

It’s a pure strategic gamble. If Zod agrees, he appears weak; if he doesn’t, it shows he’s willing to sacrifice his mother for the sake of power. Either way, the people of Krypton will turn against him. Of course, as Seg points out, killing Lyta could also have the opposite effect.

Sure enough, it looks like Zod agrees to pull his troops from Wegthor to save mom. That is, until Adam and Kem accidentally uncover Zod’s real plan: Seems he dressed prisoners in Sagitari uniforms and sent them back, while the real Sagitari troops are lying in wait to raid the rebels underground base.

When Jax learns of this plot, she makes another live broadcast to Kandor, reveals Zod’s deception…and slits Lyta’s throat!

Next. Krypton season 2, episode 4 review: Danger Close. dark

That’s right, Krypton just killed off its female lead. It also means that Zod, once again, watched his mother die. Even worse, Seg saw Lyta’s death, too, which means he’ll be gunning for Zod and Jax. If this isn’t a fake out – I really hope it isn’t – then this is a genuine game changer. At the very least, it’s a gutsy way for Krypton to wrap up its midseason.

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