- "The people of this planet will kneel before me!"
- —General Zod[src]
General Zod (died 2018; resurrected 30th century)[1] is a Kryptonian criminal and former military general, as well as one of the few survivors from the dying planet of Krypton. He is considered Clark Kent/Superman's greatest and most feared enemy.
Biography
Early life
At some point, Clark Kent/Superman had a fight with Zod that deeply affected him. The "Man of Steel" ultimately won but chose to spare Zod’s life.[2]
Hallucination
Superman hallucinates Zod before him.
When Superman had been poisoned by Silver Kryptonite by Rhea, he began to hallucinate his cousin Supergirl as Zod, hearing his threats against him and the people of Earth.[2]
Death
At some point in 2018, General Zod had encountered Superman again. This time however, the Man of Steel didn't spare the rogue Kryptonian's life, likely finding himself in the position of being forced to kill his enemy.[1]
Battling the Legion
In the 31st century, a somehow resurrected Zod battled against the Legion, who managed to find Kryptonite to use against him.[1]
Powers and abilities
Powers
- Kryptonian physiology: Normally, like all Kryptonians, Zod's capabilities are no greater than a normal human of his physical conditioning. However, once charged by the energy of a blue or yellow sun and metabolized into his body, he becomes able to perform various inhuman feats. While generic for his race, being an highly trained military have allowed him to use these abilities with far greater control and a equally greater levels of raw power compared to other Kryptonians. Zod's power has been shown to be a challenge to Clark, as he almost killed the Man of Steel before being ultimately defeated by him.
- Solar energy absorption: While Zod's powers are dependent on the energy spectrum from a blue or yellow sun, his body is able to constantly and passively absorb such energy while exposed to it, essentially keeping his reserves fully charged near-constantly. Direct exposure to sunlight will also accelerate his recovery from any injuries he does manage to sustain.
- Accelerated healing factor: Zod's solar charged metabolism accelerates his healing and allows him to burn calories at a fast rate, making him resilient to weight gain.
- Contaminant immunity: Zod has an immunity to all forms of disease and contaminants on Earth.
- Flight: Zod is able to manipulate his own gravitational field to generate thrust and propel himself through the air, often at supersonic speeds, much faster than he can travel by foot. As such, he is able to levitate and fly past Earth's atmosphere and near the planet's orbit.
- Super leaping: Zod is able to jump several stories in a single bound without having to fly.
- Heat vision: By concentrating every solar energy reserve he has in his body, Zod can emit blue energy beams of variable intensity and temperature from his eyes. Due to his control over the beams, he is capable of burning though stone and welding metal, causing small explosions and fires, and physically repelling enemies with similar durability, making it useful in combat.
- Invulnerability: Zod has nearly impenetrable flesh and bones, making him essentially immune to all Earthly weapons, with bullets simply ricocheting whenever they come in to contact with his skin. This allows him to take far more damage than a normal human and have a higher resistance to pain. However, it is possible for him to be harmed and killed killed by beings of sufficient power, as Superman was able to defeat Zod in their first encounter and even was later proven capable of killing him.
- Longevity: As a Kryptonian, Zod's life span is considerably longer than a normal human and likewise ages much slower.
- Super breath: Zod is able to exhale powerful gusts of air from his mouth which are similar to force winds. He can also cause the temperature of his breath to drop, therefore able to freeze nearly anything.
- Super hearing: Zod has super-sensitive ears that can perfectly pick up sounds from miles away and even through structures.
- Super speed: Zod possesses the ability to move at super-sonic speeds, both through flight and on foot.
- Super strength: Zod's strength is enhanced under a yellow sun, enough to easily kill a normal human if he were to attack them directly. He is strong enough to match and almost defeat and kill Superman in their past fight.
- Telepathy immunity: Zod is immune to most forms of telepathic powers, even from someone as powerful as J'onn J'onzz.
- X-ray vision: Zod is able to see through all solid objects; except for lead.
- Solar energy absorption: While Zod's powers are dependent on the energy spectrum from a blue or yellow sun, his body is able to constantly and passively absorb such energy while exposed to it, essentially keeping his reserves fully charged near-constantly. Direct exposure to sunlight will also accelerate his recovery from any injuries he does manage to sustain.
Abilities
- Expert hand-to-hand combatant: As a former Kryptonian general, Zod is an expert in unarmed combat, able to go toe-to-toe with Superman, an expert fighter in his own right, and almost defeated him before ultimately being beaten.
- Expert tactician: As a former Kryptonian general, Zod is an expert tactician.
- Multilingual: Zod is capable of fluently speaking English and Kryptonese.
Weaknesses
- Kryptonite: Like all Kryptonians, even while empowered, Zod is vulnerable to the exposure of Kryptonite, a radioactive mineral from his home planet Krypton. Depending on the nature of the said Kryptonite, it will cause a different adverse affect on him;
- Green Kryptonite: Green Kryptonite not only physically hurts Zod and weakens his physical attributes, leaving him vulnerable to weapons and anything in general that can kill a normal human, but if he is exposed to it for too long, it will kill him.
- Red Kryptonite: If exposed to Red Kryptonite, it gradually destroys Zod's inhibitions and turns him into a corrupt version of himself. Left without morality, compassion, rationality, or any cares whatsoever, Zod will become malevolent and prone to hostility and aggression, making him a danger to everyone around him.
- Silver Kryptonite: If exposed to Silver Kryptonite, it will cause Zod to go in a deep and frightful hallucination where nothing from the outside world can stir him out of it until it leaves his system.
- Solar energy overload: If Zod absorbs too much solar energy, it will act as a poison and kill him.
- Extreme energy: Extreme amounts of energy can be enough to damage or kill Zod.
- Red sun energy: Zod is powerless when exposed to the energy of a red sun.
- Blue sun energy: Zod is powerless when exposed to the energy of a blue sun, it's radiation is also fatal to him as well as all men.
- Solar energy depletion: Using his powers to its maximum for an extended period can significantly drain his solar energy to the point where Zod loses all of his powers and is rendered more human-like for at least a day or more. This renders him as weak as a human, allowing Non to get injured and killed as easily as normal humans.
- Lead: Even with his X-ray vision, Zod cannot see through lead.
- High-frequencies: Though considered a strength, Zod's hearing does have its disadvantages. Since his hearing is more sensitive than a normal human's, higher pitch noises (sonic screams, etc.) can disorient him and cause pain in his ears, leaving him vulnerable in a fight.
- Sound-dampening technology: The D.E.O. designed frequencies to block super-hearing and cause Zod slight pain when trying to use it in areas protected by the technology.
Appearances
Supergirl
Season 2
- "Nevertheless, She Persisted" (hallucination)
Season 3
- "For Good" (mentioned)
Trivia
- While Zod holds the same rank as Astra in the Kryptonian Military Guild, their uniforms are completely different; Astra's suit is similar to a black tactical suit, while Zod's has a Nazi-esque attire.
Behind the scenes
- In the DC comics, General Zod is a warlord from Superman's home planet of Krypton that also survived its destruction and came to Earth, only to become one of Superman's greatest enemies.