| Chris Kent | |
|---|---|
 Chris Kent asNightwing on the cover ofAction Comics #883 (January 2010). Art by Pere Pérez. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Action Comics #844 (December 2006) |
| Created by | Richard Donner Geoff Johns Adam Kubert |
| In-story information | |
| Full name | Christopher Kent/Lor-Zod |
| Species | Kryptonian |
| Place of origin | Phantom Zone (place of birth) |
| Team affiliations | Justice League Superman Family |
| Partnerships | Flamebird (Thara Ak-Var) |
| Supporting character of | Superman |
| Notable aliases | Nightwing K'Riss Superman |
| Abilities |
|
Chris Kent (Lor-Zod) is asuperhero appearing inAmerican comic books published byDC Comics. The character first appeared inAction Comics #844 (December 2006) and was created byRichard Donner,Geoff Johns, andAdam Kubert.
As the biological son ofGeneral Zod andUrsa, he is aKryptonian and the foster son ofClark Kent (Superman) and his wifeLois Lane. A different Lor-Zod was reinterpreted as asupervillain inDC Rebirth.
An adaptation of the villainous Lor-Zod appears in the animated seriesYoung Justice, voiced byPhil Morris. Another interpretation of the character appears in the animated filmJustice League: Gods and Monsters, voiced byBenjamin Bratt.
Chris Kent first appeared inAction Comics #844 (December 2006), in the story arcSuperman: Last Son, and was created byRichard Donner,Geoff Johns, andAdam Kubert. The character has assumed the role ofNightwing. FollowingFlashpoint, DC revisited the concept of Zod's heroic son. On Earth-16, he succeeds Clark Kent who’s his biological father on that earth as Superman and is best friends with the new Batman,Damian Wayne.
A new version of Lor-Zod was introduced in 2017 duringDC Rebirth in theAction Comics series during the "Revenge" storyline, this time as a villain.[1]
When a spacecraft falls towardsMetropolis, it is diverted to a relatively safe landing bySuperman. After its landing, Superman was surprised to discover a young boy inside. Echoing his own arrival in his youth years before, Superman saw that the boy was completely unharmed. The Kryptonian writings on his ship stated that his Kryptonian name is Lor-Zod. He is taken to the east coast lab of theDepartment of Metahuman Affairs (under supervision ofSarge Steel) for observation. However, Superman takescustody of Lor-Zod and decides to raise him.[2] Superman contactsBatman, who gives Lor-Zod the human identity ofChristopher Kent.[3]
Chris attends the Ellsworth School, an elite private school, where he has difficulty concealing his powers. Superman and Batman develop an implant concealed in a wristwatch that usesred sun radiation to block Chris' powers until he learns to control them.[4] However, the wristwatch fails due to being calibrated on the metabolism of an adult Kryptonian and explodes, wrecking Clark and Lois' apartment.[5]
Superman holds a press conference to inform the world that Chris is under his care. At that time,Bizarro, sent byLex Luthor, attempts to kidnap Chris. It is later revealed that Chris is the biological son ofGeneral Zod andUrsa. His arrival on Earth released Zod,Non, and Ursa from thePhantom Zone.[6] He was born and raised in the Phantom Zone within a prison that is immune to the "timeless" effects of the zone.[7] After Zod and his army are defeated, Chris pursues them into the Phantom Zone to ensure that they cannot escape, since the entrance to the Phantom Zone will remain weak as long as he is on Earth.[8]
After returning to the Phantom Zone, Chris enters the Kryptonian prison where his parents had made shelter. There, he finds a piece ofBrainiac's technology that gives him a mental link toThara Ak-Var, security chief ofKandor.[9] When the citizens of Kandor createNew Krypton, Chris and Thara task themselves with bringing in the Phantom Zone Kryptonian criminals hiding on Earth as sleeper agents. Since the belligerent government ofAlura and Zod had tarnished all Kryptonians' reputations on Earth, Chris and Thara decided to act as a newNightwing andFlamebird duo.[10]
Chris, due to his birth in the Phantom Zone, undergoes uncontrollable growth spurts: when Thara saved him he was still the young boy raised by Lois and Clark, as Nightwing he is shown as roughly 15 or 16, and after another growth spurt of about seven years, he ages to 23 years old.[11]
His mother, Ursa, begins stalking him to exact revenge. Chris had been shown denying his heritage and insisting Thara address him with his "human" name, despising her attempts to transliterate it as a Kryptonian name, and never going by his true Kryptonian name of Lor-Zod.[10] After being attacked by Ursa, Thara is left gravely wounded by aKryptonite knife and Chris is forced to bring her to Lois for medical assistance.[12]
Upon bringing Thara to Lois, Chris and Lois have a tearful reunion. Lois is happy to see him again but is concerned about his advanced aging. Lois callsDoctor Light for medical assistance while Chris goes back to the fortress and is again confronted by Ursa.[13] Light brings Chris to her colleague Doctor Pillings, who is secretly the Kryptonian sleeper agentJax-Ur.[14] Jax-Ur cures Chris, reverting him to his young adult form.[15]
During theWar of the Supermen event, the Sun is turned red by the combined efforts ofGeneral Lane andLex Luthor. Thara sacrifices herself to restore it to its yellow coloration, becoming a charred skeleton.[16] In the final confrontation between Superman and Zod, Chris pushes Zod back into the Phantom Zone. Once in the Zone, Chris returns to being a young boy.[17]
In 2016, DC Comics implemented a relaunch called "DC Rebirth", which restored its continuity to a form much as it was prior to "The New 52". A new version of Lor-Zod is introduced who is loyal to his father General Zod.[1] The House of Zod rules over Jekuul, a planet with two yellow suns.[18]
Chris Kent possesses the average abilities of a Kryptonian, including superhuman physical abilities, heat vision, x-ray vision, and ice breath.[2][4][6][19][12] Due to being born in the Phantom Zone, he is resistant to Kryptonite and possesses tactiletelekinesis similar toConner Kent, but rapidly ages outside the Phantom Zone unless he is wearing a special armband created by Jax-Ur.[10][12][20][21]
After fusing with the Nightwing entity, Chris gains the ability to manipulate shadows and teleport via them.
A son ofGeneral Zod appears inJustice League: Gods and Monsters, voiced byBenjamin Bratt.[28] This version is the genetically engineered child of Zod andLara Lor-Van who was rocketed to Earth as a child fromKrypton after Zod killedJor-El, adopted and raised by the Guerra family, a group ofMexican migrant farmers who named himHernan Guerra. After facing discrimination, Guerra became short-tempered and withdrawn from humanity and developed a deep contempt and resentment for authority. He later becomes his universe's version ofSuperman and the leader of theJustice League, but faces opposition due to his brutal methods. While foilingWill Magnus's plot to subjugate the world using nanites and learning his father was responsible for Krypton's destruction, Guerra realizes the consequences of his brutality, earns back public favor, and considers using less lethal methods.
TheGods and Monsters incarnation of Superman appears in theJustice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles episode "Bomb", voiced again by Benjamin Bratt.[28]
