Though the mantle of Nightwing is now much more associated with the world of Batman, it was Superman‘s mythology that introduced Nightwing to the DC Universe. This concept would later be revisited in the twilight hour of the Pre-Flashpoint continuity, doing so with a rather unexpected ally of the Man of Steel.
General Zod is most known as one of Superman’s deadliest enemies. However, his son was not only adopted by Clark Kent; he later became a hero in his own right. Now, here’s the story behind Lor-Zod and how his family relationships and heroism gave a new twist on the Superman/Zod set-up.
WHO IS CHRIS KENT?
Lor-Zod, or Chris Kent, debuted in Action Comics #844, and was created by Adam Kubert, Geoff Johns and Superman: The Movie director Richard Donner. His introduction reflected the comics bringing in a version of Zod closer to Donner’s movies, and the name Chris Kent was even an homage to Christopher Reeve.
Chris Kent was a young boy whose ship landed in Metropolis, with the markings in that ship confirming that his name was Lor-Zod. Taking away by the Department of Metahuman Affairs, Superman saved the boy from their custody and decided to raise the boy with his wife Lois. Given the Batman-forged human identity Chris Kent, he was sent to boarding school while wearing a watch that blocked his natural yellow-Sun powered abilities, and he became fast friends with characters like Tim Drake.
Unfortunately, his appearance on Earth also released Kryptonian criminals like his parents General Zod and Ursa from the Phantom Zone. They quickly went to conquering Earth, forcing Superman to team up with Lex Luthor and a gaggle of his other villains to stop them. After Zod’s defeat, Chris chose to chase the rogue Kryptonians back into the Phantom Zone. Doing so also meant that he would be trapped there for the time being, leaving his adoptive parents Lois and Clark devastated. This was particularly tragic given that, in this continuity, Lois and Clark could not have a biological child together due to genetic differences.
NIGHTWING AND FLAMEBIRD
Chris later escaped the Phantom Zone when New Krypton was placed in Earth’s orbit, which gave the several surviving Kryptonians a new home. He and his new friend Thara Ak-Var were tasked with finding the rogue crooks that had begun hiding on Earth and rounding them up. They did so under the Kryptonian identities of Nightwing and Flamebird, inspired by the legendary Kryptonian heroes that Superman told Dick Grayson about years ago. At the time, Grayson had temporarily replaced Bruce Wayne as Batman, so the Nightwing moniker was open.
Due to his birth in the Phantom Zone, however, Chris developed several strange conditions, namely his rapid aging into an adult. This allowed him to pursue a relationship with his partner Thara, the latter of whom was shocked to see how close her boyfriend was with his “human” side. He emotionally reunited with his adoptive mother Lois, ironically after a farewell to Ursa.
It was eventually revealed that Chris and Thara were in fact hosts of the ancient Kryptonian Nightwing and Flamebird entities — which are somewhat analogous to Marvel’s Phoenix — and they use the powers of these entities to defeat Jax-Ur and a false version of the sun god of Krypton, Rao. Sadly, the duo would split forever when Thara sacrificed herself to restore the Earth’s sun. Chris would later aid Superman one last time to send Zod back to the Phantom Zone, and upon returning there, he became a young child once again.
Chris’ original incarnation was wiped out by Flashpoint, but he was finally brought back in a much different form in the DC Rebirth era. This Lor-Zod was actually loyal to his father and helped him rule over the planet Jekkul. This brought them into conflict with several of the Green Lanterns and cemented that this Lor-Zod was not like the previous iteration. This was likely done due to Chris Kent’s place being taken by Jon Kent, the biological son of Lois and Clark. With Dick Grayson firmly back in place as Nightwing too, the roles that Lor-Zod once filled have since been taken up by their usual holders, the DC Universe just wasn’t big enough for this Kryptonian Nightwing to fly again.
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