General Zod
From Smallville Wiki
- This article is about General Zod. For the Season 6 episode, see Zod.
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| General Zod | |
|---|---|
| Family | Faora (wife), Davis Bloome (son; deceased) |
| Occupation | Former Kryptonian Major and General |
| Powers and Abilities | All Kryptonian powers under a yellow sun (potentially as Major Zod; demonstrated super strength, super speed, invulnerability, flight, super stamina as General Zod) |
| Played By | Callum Blue, Michael Rosenbaum (Zod possessing Lex Luthor's body) |
| Status | Major Zod (Alive), General Zod (Unknown) |
"Kneel before Zod." – Major Zod, Savior
General Zod was a Kryptonian warlord who thrived on power and conquest. He was partly responsible for the destruction of his home planet Krypton.
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[edit] Physical Appearance
Zod was stripped of his body, and is now a Phantom Zone wraith. Before his body was destroyed, he had facial hair and was noted for wearing black and other dark Kryptonian garments.
During Dark Thursday, Zod was freed from the Phantom Zone and possessed the body of Lex Luthor, taking on his physical appearance.
In his youth, Zod did not have a facial hair, and was athletic, often doing push-ups to increase his strength and muscle structure.
[edit] Personality
Zod's only purpose was to destroy and conquer. He was very ruthless, commanding, manipulative and destructive, standing unfazed by the death and destruction being caused on Earth by Brainiac's electronic virus. Zod also used and influenced many individuals to his own advantage, swaying them to aid in his primary goal of taking over Krypton; he turned Zor-El against the Science Council and corrupted Brainiac's programming. After his imprisonment and release from the Phantom Zone, all Zod was interested in was re-shaping Earth in his own image.
Despite being married to Faora, Zod – upon possessing Lex Luthor – was only interested in human women to cater for his heirs. Even though he created Doomsday to be his son, he presumably did not view him as his rightful heir and discarded the idea in favor of a human/Kryptonian hybrid to continue his bloodline.
Zod kept grudges against those who opposed him, in particular Jor-El and other members of the House of El. After being freed from the Phantom Zone, he banished Jor-El's son Kal-El to the Phantom Zone due to Jor-El sending him (Zod) there in the first place years earlier.
[edit] Powers & Abilities
See: Kryptonian powers and abilities
- Super strength: Zod is very strong, and is a considerable match for Clark. (Vessel, Zod)
- Super speed: Zod has mastered this ability. (Vessel, Zod)
- Invulnerability: Zod is invulnerable to bullets, energy blast, and other attacks. Also, he is immune to human diseases. (Vessel, Zod)
- Flight: Zod has mastered the power of flight. (Zod)
Currently, Major Zod has no powers while under the yellow sun; the cause is yet unknown.
[edit] Vulnerabilities
See: Kryptonian vulnerabilities
Like any Kryptonian, Zod is vulnerable to various types of kryptonite. He was ultimately defeated by Clark Kent with the Crystal of El, which was able to exorcise his wraith from Lex's body.
[edit] Early Life
Zod was born and raised on the planet Krypton. He eventually became the military leader for all forces on the planet; it was this power that turned him into a renegade leader who built up an army with the aim of using it to take over Krypton. Before his attempt to take over, he had a large number of his soldiers give their blood, thus giving them the possiblity of being reborn on Earth using the Orb.
Zod married a scientist named Faora, and the two saw it as their destiny to take over Krypton. They began their campaign and tried conceiving an heir, but discovered that they were unable to have children. Zod and Faora then took their DNA and fused it together with other violent Kryptonian life-forms, creating the "ultimate destroyer." They also realized that they instead could rule Earth with the powers gained under a yellow sun.
When Jor-El created his own version of Dax-Ur's Brain InterActive Construct, Zod was able to corrupt its system, gaining an advantage in his war with the Science Council.
Because his forces became so large, Zod gave massive roles in the war to his closest disciples, Nam-Ek and Aethyr. Learning of the attempt on Jor-El's life by his own brother Zor-El, Zod contacted Zor-El and asked him to be his ally, using the hatred of his brother to his advantage. Aethyr and Nam-Ek would often plan various attacks on major Kryptonian cities after communicating with Zor-El, who would give them inside knowledge of the Council's plans and weak points in their defenses.
After the fusion of his and Faora's DNA was complete, Zod and his wife attached their "son," which was mere genetic matter, to Kal-El's ship which was set on a course for Earth.
Before Krypton exploded, Zod and Faora were captured by the Science Council, who destroyed their physical bodies and placed their essences in the Phantom Zone; the only way either of them could escape was if they found other bodies to inhabit. However, the Council apparently made this especially difficult for Zod, as they removed his intrinsic Kryptonian abilities which would presumably have been passed to such a host when he possessed it, leaving him an incredibly weakened phantom needing the host to possess abilities before he could possess them.
[edit] Season Five
Like Zod himself, the Disciples of Zod were defeated and imprisoned in the Phantom Zone. However, there were still two of Zod's followers who were not in the Phantom Zone; Nam-Ek and Aethyr escaped Krypton inside the Black Ship (that also contained Brainiac) just before the planet exploded. Afterward, their mission became clear in freeing Zod on Earth; however, this mission would take them years to accomplish, needing to find the Stones of Power to do so. Aethyr and Nam-Ek were alerted to the location of the stones when the blood of Genevieve Teague stained one of the stones.
Once Nam-Ek and Aethyr arrived on Earth, they immediately set out to conquer the planet in Zod's name and remake it as a new Krypton, but were thwarted by Clark Kent, formerly Kal-El of the House of El. When Zod's disciples failed to complete their mission, Brainiac created an extension of himself that took on the human identity of Milton Fine and set out to release Zod. Due to Brainiac's machinations, Clark nearly released Zod from the Phantom Zone, but he closed the portal just before Zod arrived. According to Brainiac, Clark was originally intended to be Zod's Kryptonian vessel, but Jor-El's spirit proved to be too strong in Clark so Brainiac was forced to turn elsewhere.
Brainiac eventually chose Lex Luthor to be Zod's vessel, and altered Lex's body so that he possessed Kryptonian powers. To prevent Zod's return, Jor-El gave Clark a Kryptonian dagger and told him to kill Lex. However, Clark could not bring himself to do this, and instead hurled the dagger at Brainiac, stabbing him in the chest. However, with Brainiac accessing the Fortress of Solitude through the dagger, Zod's spirit was released into Lex's body. When Clark demanded to know where Lex was, Zod replied that Lex was dead, and gave Clark an opportunity to join him in conquering Earth. When Clark refused him, Zod imprisoned him in the Phantom Zone.
[edit] Season Six
"Zod doesn't take orders. He gives them." – Zod, to Lana Lang, Zod
Zod kidnapped Lana Lang and held her captive with an order that she sire him an heir as he tried to transform Earth into a new Krypton. When Lana tried to stop Zod, he impaled her hand to a wall with a fire poker. Later, Lana obtained the Kryptonian dagger and tried to stab Zod, but Zod was too quick and too powerful; he threw Lana to the floor and broke the dagger in half.
Clark managed to escape from the Phantom Zone with the help of Raya and confronted Zod, destroying the Kryptonian black box that Zod was using to transform Earth in the process. Unfortunately, Zod, a trained soldier, easily outmatched Clark and beat him into submission. At the end, Zod struck a deal; if Clark submitted to him, then Zod would allow those close to him to live. Clark appeared to do so, but after taking Zod's hand, pressed the Crystal of El into it, separating Zod's spirit from Lex's body.
In Lex's body, Zod absorbed his human intelligence, feelings and memories. With Zod's spirit gone, however, Lex lost his 'found' Kryptonian powers, perhaps due to the power of the Crystal of El. Although, after the crystal burns into his hand, the wound heals soon after, possibly due to the lingering effects of the viral compound administered to Lex by Brainiac.
[edit] Season Seven
When Brainiac returned, Clark suspected the possibility of Zod and Zor-El forming a partnership; however, Kara rebuffed that theory, saying the only thing both of their fathers had in common was their hatred for Zod.
In an alternate reality, Brainiac, in his human guise of Milton Fine, manipulated Lex into wiping out life on Earth and intended to use Kara to release Zod from the Phantom Zone to re-create Krypton on Earth.
[edit] Season Eight
It is revealed that, before being sent to the Phantom Zone, Zod and his wife Faora attached their son's genetic matter to Kal-El's spaceship, which traveled to Earth. On Earth, Zod's "son," Davis Bloome, grew up, appearing like a human to camouflage itself. When Faora escaped the Phantom Zone and inhabited the body of Lois Lane, she found Davis and revealed his origins, telling him that he was destined to become Doomsday and destroy all life on Earth so that Zod's bloodline could rule the planet.
When Doomsday was defeated by Clark by trapping him in a tunnel deep underground, the Orb that had been in Tess Mercer's possession shot a ray into the ground. After a burst of light, Zod appeared, holding the Orb in the middle of his symbol burned on the ground.
[edit] Season Nine
After a younger version of Zod was transported to Earth by the Orb along with his soldiers, he took over the Luthor Mansion, where he imprisoned Tess Mercer. Confused by their sudden appearance on Earth yet having none of the powers they were suppose to have under the yellow sun, Zod's troops soon began to question his leadership, but Zod assured them that he would find the answers that they were looking for or die trying. Trusting his word, all the troops knelt before him. When they left the mansion, they erased all the footage of the past three weeks.
Zod and his soldiers later found a nearly dead John Corben and began experimenting on him with LuthorCorp equipment. They took out Corben's organs and inserted a machine powered by kryptonite to give Corben super strength. Having discovered this, Tess became concerned that Zod was closer to obtaining his Kryptonian powers.
When an airborn virus that turned the human citizens of Metropolis into mutant zombies, Zod discovered the virus was the cause of Coats, one of the Kandorian soldiers. He cornered Coats when he returned, demanding an explanation, figuring that his recklessness could lead to their existence to the humans...even Tess Mercer. Coats came back with information that a Kryptonian hero was on Earth, with powers, and is responsible for saving the humans using his Kryptonian blood. Coats gave Zod a piece of paper with the House of El brand, believing it to be Jor-El who survived like the rest. Coats also relieved a sample of blood to his leader, so he can track the Kryptonian down wherever he may be or whoever. Though he was impressed with his results, still his reckless actions almost put the welfare of the Kandorians in jeopardy, which caused Zod to do away with his soldier.
Zod created the RAO Corporation. During a meeting at the Luthor Mansion with Tess demonstrating a holographic simulation of twin solar towers, Zod appeared to congratulate her on the accomplishment. Zod went to Tess to ask her to find "the Blur", but she asked him to be equal partners in his endeavors, but he denied her request. He told his Kandorian spy, who acted as Tess' security guard, to force her to tell about the Blur or kill her. She ended up overpowering the guard, and gave Zod the guard's bloody dog tags.
[edit] Appearances
[edit] In the Comics
General Zod (full name Dru-Zod) is a DC Comics supervillain and a long-time adversary of Superman, one of the most poignant villains of the franchise due to the character hailing from Superman's home planet of Krypton. Once Military Director of the Kryptonian Space Center, Zod had known Jor-El, Superman's father, when he was an aspiring scientist.
When the space program was abolished after the destruction of the inhabited moon Wegthor by renegade scientist Jax-Ur, Zod attempted to take over Krypton and created an army of robotic duplicates of himself (all bearing a resemblance to Bizarro). He was sentenced to exile in the Phantom Zone for his crimes. Zod was first released by Kal-El during his career as Superboy when his term of imprisonment was up. However, he attempted to conquer Earth with the powers he gained under the yellow sun. Zod was sent back into the Phantom Zone, occasionally escaping to target Superman.
[edit] Notes
- Zod's face while being removed from Lex's body was made to give the appearance of a younger Terence Stamp, who portrayed General Zod in Superman: The Movie and in Superman II, and currently provides the voice of Jor-El, Clark's Kryptonian father, in Smallville.
- In the Silver Age Superman comics, Zod's full name is Dru-Zod. In the Modern Age comics, Zod and his bodyguard Ursa have a son whom they name Lor-Zod, who was adopted by Clark Kent and Lois Lane, and re-named Chris Kent, then aged to adulthood to become the new superhero Nightwing.
[edit] Trivia
- Zod states to Lana, "Zod doesn't take orders; he gives them." Ursa pointed this out in Superman II.
- Believing himself victorious, Zod ordered Clark to "Kneel before Zod." This is the character's catchphrase, as he frequently said it both in Superman II, as well as numerous times in the comics.
- As before, Zod extending his hand to his 'defeated' enemy leads to his undoing. (In Superman II, Superman crushes his hand; in the episode Zod, Clark hides the Crystal of El in his hand, which removes Zod's spirit from Lex's body).
[edit] See Also
[edit] External Links
- General Zod at Wikipedia
- General Zod at DC datebase
