Kneel Before Zod #1 - Comic Review

 

General Zod is one of Superman's most well known villains, and his appearances in both the 1970's live action films and Man of Steel has made him one of the more recognisable to the general public, likely just behind Lex Luthor. Despite this recognition, it feels like Zod is a character that doesn't actually turn up all that often. Well, now we have a new mini series dedicated to him, following his machinations and family issues on the distant planet of New Kandor, where he intends to reforge the Kryptonian race; and the book is better than I ever expected it to be.

This first issue is mainly set-up, bringing people up to speed on where the character is, and what he's been up to; which as someone who didn't know going into this book is very much appreciated. The book doesn't hold your hand whilst doing this, however, there's not paragraphs of expositional dialogue, nor does the book infodump you with a data page or anything like that. Instead, the we're led through the story in such a way that the book doesn't have to spell things out in simple terms, but you're able to come to the needed conclusions on your own.

We learn that Zod has claimed a world for his own, shutting the native population away into one corner of the planet, where Ursa is conducting work to turn them into soldiers for their coming Kryptonian army, altering their biology to do so. With the help of the Eradicator, who controls a fleet of drone bodies, Zod has been slowly building cities and factories on the planet, preparing for the day when he can release the citizens of the bottle city of Kandor, who will populate what he's built, and then go on to repopulate then species. 

However, Zod is also having to deal with some family issues as his son, Lor (also known as Christopher Kent at one point), discovers a secret weapon that his father has been using, and following an argument about how to use it, Lor is banished. I remember when Lor first turned up, his adoption by Lois and Clark, him becoming Christopher, and it was a story that I really enjoyed; so seeing him having become this cruel and almost evil character is kind of heart breaking. The fact that the argument about using the weapons isn't Lor arguing against it, but wanting to use them to hurt as many as possible just reinforces how changed he's become since that older story. His banishment is also setting up Sinister Sons, so if like myself you're a bit invested in Lor, that's where we'll be able to keep up with his story.

The art on the issue, by Dan McDaid with colours by David Baron, suits the tone of the book well. There's a darkness and moodiness to the art, with a lot of use of thick shadows and blocks of blackness that, along with the dark and moody reds that get used, sell this as almost nightmarish. There's an oppressive quality to things, and it's almost like Zods personality, his very being, is seeping into the book itself. 

This is an interesting start to the series, one that I wasn't expecting to grab me as much as it did. The inclusion of Lor and his changes since I last saw him in Superman: Last Son of Krypton grabbed me and drew me in. The space politics and the United Planets stuff that made me kind of hate the previous runs of Green Lantern failed to detract from the quality, and I'm even a little interested to see what Zod does in regards to them. And Zods hallucinations of Jor-El hint at some kind of mental break or complex inner narrative that the character will be going through going forward. I'm glad I gave this book a shot, and and happy to try out another few issues.

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