The origin of Doomsday gets revealed in the latest episode of Krypton, one of three separate plot threads in this installment. Another thread takes Seg-El and Nyssa to the El fortress, a major location in the first season of the series. And lastly, another thread deals with Kem and Adam Strange on Wegthor.
Kem (Rasmus Hardiker) has been given more status this season, but I have to admit, I just don’t care for him. I like him even less when paired with Adam Strange (Shaun Sipon). It feels like the Kryptonian version of Dumb and Dumber. Even though their plot thread is quite serious in this episode, hunting down the Saggitauri that are still on Wegthor, the scenes get infused with forced attempts at humour that fall flat. For me, this plot thread single handedly dragged down an otherwise strong episode.
The Doomsday thread was much better. The monster has fallen into the hands of General Zod (Colin Salmon). Zod spends a lot of time posing, as he views the memories of the creature, while operating the machine that twists the minds of Kryptonians to make them his devoted followers. The backstory that Doomsday is given, which we see in these memories, adapts the origin from the comics, making the character a Kryptonian from a thousand years earlier, experimented on by members of the Houses of El and Zod. The man was born with a mutation that the scientists are exploiting, essentially killing him over and over again, then bringing him back to life, now immune to the last method of death. This takes place hundreds of time, transforming him from a normal looking person into the monstrous form we are familiar with. It’s a well done thread, though with few surprises.
But that’s ok, there are enough twists, both positive and negative, in Seg-El’s story. Seg (Cameron Cuffe) and Nyssa (Wallis Day) manage to get to the fortress, and are desperate to separate Seg from Brainiac (Blake Ritson) once and for all. They succeed. Sort of. This is the thread that plays the best. Not only because there are some interesting and unexpected plot developments, but also because it has the strongest emotional core. It’s been great to see the changing dynamics of this couple over the past two seasons. Both Day and Cuffe have really found the tortured hearts of their respective characters.
I looked at the ratings for the second season a few days ago, and they are not impressive. Even worse, they are stable. It seems like those who dropped the show during or after the first season are not giving it another chance. That is a real shame. If there was ever a show that deserved to be given another opportunity, it’s Krypton.