Krypton season 2, episode 10 review: The Alpha and the Omega

The final episode of Krypton’s second season sees the end to the Kryptonian Civil War, and the start of plenty of storylines to delight diehard DC fans.

During the previous episode of Krypton, General Zod (Colin Salmon) sent the Black Mercy-infected Doomsday to crush Val-El’s (Ian McElhinney) rebellion. And crush it Doomsday did… almost. Were it not for the heroic sacrifice of Seg-El’s (Cameron Cuffe) best friend Kem (Rasmus Hardiker), and some timely placed explosives, the surviving rebels wouldn’t have escaped. The result wasn’t just the death of a major character (for real this time), but the destruction of Krypton’s moon, Wegthor.

As Wegthor also contained Krypton’s main source of fuel, it also means Zod’s can kiss his plans for the creation of interstellar fleet and the conquest of the galaxy goodbye. So then why does “The Alpha and the Omega” open with Zod’s fleet already setting course for Earth? Something feels off, especially when the scene then cuts back to “twelve hours earlier,” as metroites from Wegthor rain down on Kandor.

The answer behind this apparent discrepancy results in a truly gratifying season finale, especially if you’re also a DC Comics fan. That’s because “The Alpha and the Omega” offers just enough fan service-laden twists to whet one’s appetite for season 3. How long you’ll have to wait for it is another matter.

The extended family of House El

Of course, in light of what happened during the previous episode, things do feel a tad depressing. Many of the characters assume Seg died once again, forgetting all about his modified Skimmer. After their momentary joy that Seg survives, it’s soon back to mourning when they learn that Kem is, in fact, dead. No wonder Seg later says that “Krypton without [Kem] is going to laugh a hell of a lot less.”

One good thing does come out of all this melancholy, though. Val declares that Kem will no longer be considered one of the Rankless. He will now be recognized as belonging to the House of El and “the brother of Seg-El.” As established by the series, only Kryptonians of noble birth are allowed surnames. Kem being posthumously adopted like this is a huge honor. The scene itself, where Seg hears his grandfather say this, comes off brilliantly, with just the right amount of restrained, but tearful emotion from Cuffe’s performance.

But let’s not forget about the other unofficial member of the House of El, Adam Strange (Shaun Sipos). Having lost the use of his legs last episode, Adam now feels even more useless than he has all season. He also realizes that Krypton has become more important to him than just Superman’s birthplace. As he tells Val, Krypton is as much his home as Earth, and the Els are the family he never really had. It’s a monumental shift in Adam’s development and his original mission. After all, if Krypton now means this much to him, can he or should he restore the timeline back to the way it once was?

We also learn a significant amount of Adam’s back story, courtesy of some Kryptonian meds. This includes his being transported to the planet Rann, befriending the scientist Sardath and falling in love with Sardath’s daughter, Alanna. We also learn that the Zeta-Beam device wasn’t originally designed for time travel until Adam tweaked it and still keyed into Rann. Listening to all of this Nyssa-Vex realizes the Zeta-Beam device holds the key to finding her son, Jor-El. Thus she takes the device and sets off for Rann to find Sardath, a decision which we’ll see potentially lead to some huge ramifications.

“General? Would you care to step outside?”

Meanwhile, there’s a rebellion our heroes must win. Mobilizing back to New Loven in the Outlands, Lyta-Zod (Georgina Campbell) decides that now is the time for the Resistance to wage an all-out attack to overthrow her son. Unfortunately, having tortured one of Lyta’s Sagatari double-agents, General Zod is now fully aware of the planned strike and sends his all his forces to attack New Loven. This, Seg realizes, is a huge tactical blunder the rebels can exploit.

So while the rebels and Outlander exiles are holding off wave after wave of Sagatari, Seg and Lyta fly towards a now defenseless Kandor to rally the populace against Zod. As it so happens, Seg’s plan is ridiculously easy. Between Zod’s brutality, his reconditioning dissenters, and the revelation that he made a subservient clone of his own mother, even his own loyalists have grown sick of him. Not to mention Zod’s “I took away your freedom to save Krypton” isn’t what you’d call a crowd-pleaser. Plus, it’s hilarious in how Zod’s so fixated on Seg that he literally didn’t see Lyta walk up behind him until she spoke.

It’s then that Seg challenges Zod by saying the iconic line from Superman II quoted in the above heading. Sure, they’re already outside so the line doesn’t make a lot of sense in context. But it doesn’t matter, because what follows is a glorious fist fight between Seg, Lyta, and Zod for the future of Krypton. Cheesy as it might be, it’s a fitting David vs. Goliath moment that’s been building even before Zod’s arrival. With this single act, Seg, with Lyta’s help, doesn’t just defeat Zod; he publicly restores honor to the House of El.

As for what happens to Zod when he loses? Seg and Lyta decide the only thing they can do is infect him with the Black Mercy, which also explains the episode’s prologue. It also might be just a tad hypocritical of Seg and Lyta considering Zod did the same thing to Lyta. Not to mention that they now know their future son has the potential of becoming a megalomaniac, which you’d think would put a damper on their romance. Nevertheless, it all makes for a fitting resolution for Zod’s storyline while, of course, leaving room for his possible return.

The path to season 3

Now that Kryptonian Civil War is over, where does the series go from here? Well, for starters, viewers are given a whole basket of DC Easter Eggs. Val gives Adam an exo-suit allowing him to walk, which also resembles his costume from the comics, complete with jetpack.

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Also, who should show up for the victory celebration but the best character this season, Lobo (Emmett J. Scanlan). It seems the Main Man’s none to happy that Brainiac is still alive. Since Brainiac was inside Seg’s head for a good chunk of the season, he’s hoping “Siegel” can give him some intel. Instead, Seg offers Lobo a deal: help him get Jor-El back from Brainiac, and Lobo can do whatever he wants to the green-skinned automaton. Lobo agrees, which potentially means more Seg, Adam, and Lobo comedy gold for season three.

But while the victors are getting drunk, Dev-Em (Aaron Pierre) and Jayna-Zod (Ann Ogbomo), who’ve now all but lovers, have detected a heat signature from a crashed meteor from Wegthor. Thinking it could be survivors, they race to the crash site only to find…Doomsday, still alive and frozen in ice.

Meanwhile, Nyssa, having arrived on what she assumes in Rann, finds herself on a deserted beach. Well, it would be deserted if not for the charred humanoid remains, a severely burned man who dies right in front of her. She also finds an Omega symbol on a cave entrance drawn in blood. Then, up the sky, she sees hundreds of winged soldiers carrying what look like maces. You know, kind of like Hawkman? That’s right, DC fans. You’re potentially getting the fabled Rann-Thanagar War with a dash of Darkseid!

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And what about baby Jor-El? Well, it seems Brainiac has decided he’ll raise him as his own son, and is taking him to a place where he’ll “become a god.” And as the episode ends, we see that Brainiac’s Skullship has set a course for a planet several millions of light years away — a planet called Earth. That’s one way to set up season three, although SyFy still has yet to announce it. It’d be a real shame for the series to end on a cliffhanger like this, that’s for sure.

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