Krypton’s history gets more and more complicated in “Civil Wars.” They’ve already set off so many ripples in the time line I’m not sure this will end up being the same world, much like Gotham isn’t Batman’s past anymore. Then again, from the way some of the characters are both looking and acting, I’m not sure it’s the same world anyway.

The mysterious commander is finally identified when Adam Strange gets a look at him and promptly pulls a gun on him. This man turns out to be a fellow time traveler, and a foe of Superman’s that most know the name of, although he looks completely different here. Adam advocates killing him here and now, which is scarcely a heroic attitude, but then, this Adam isn’t much of a hero so far.

Ona offers prayers to Rao, and gets questioned by the Voice. Knowing what we do, these questions are fairly ominous. Elsewhere, Daron, Nyssa, and Jayna continue their plot, which is descending to some serious violence, and Jayna decides to drag in Dev-Em as well. I can’t see this going anywhere good.

Adam keeps his gun on the commander, but doesn’t actually fire. Both Seg and the commander try and talk Adam down. I can see Seg being confused by all the changes in his life lately. Adam accuses the commander of working with Brainiac, and the man actually seems offended by this. The commander claims he’s there to stop Brainiac and save Kandor, making an interesting claim about the eventual destruction of Krypton. The commander also reveals the future of the planet to Seg, which Adam hasn’t shared, and things turn against the Earthman. Finally, Lyta and Seg decide to play it safe with the two competing stories.

Seg listens to both the commander and Adam’s claims. The commander is carrying a sigil that looks slightly familiar, and claims it is the way to find the big weapon he wants. The commander acknowledges that the people they’ve been avoiding in the tunnels will guard the weapon with their lives, which isn’t going to make anything any easier.

Dev-Em gets summoned to Jayna’s office, which usually would be a bad sign. It arguably is, I suppose. She makes a few vague comments to test him out, and he shows how smart he is by figuring out where she’s going. Jayna takes a big risk, and Dev-Em shows the kind of man he is. It’s kind of nice to see more of Dev-Em then “Lyta’s sort of love interest.” Jayna even almost smiles, which is amazing for her.

Adam is worried about handing over a powerful weapon to a man he knows as a supervillain. He admits he didn’t do things perfectly, and, in his defense, it is something hard to bring up. “The future depends on your grandson becoming a hero and your world dying,” isn’t easy to work into casual conversation. Adam also reveals more about the information he has about his mission, which angers Seg. Lyta makes a reasonable suggestion, which Adam doesn’t go for.

At the Nova Cycle ceremony, or one of them since this seems to keep going on, Dev-Em takes steps as part of the conspiracy, and gets some back up from Nyssa. Lyta calls Adam insane, down in the tunnels, and to be fair, time travelers often sound that way to people who don’t know what’s going on. Of course, Adam isn’t helping his own case on a few fronts. The commander overrides Adam’s protests, saying the fate of a world is more important than any one survivor, which I can sort of understand. Adam overplays his hand, and Seg and Lyta decide to side with the commander. At least they don’t shoot Adam. Those three go in search of the legendary weapon, and the commander offers a twisted version of why he and Seg’s famous grandson don’t get along.

Ona and the Voice have another creepy scene, made worse for the viewers since we know what’s wrong with the Voice and Ona doesn’t. Daron, in full Cowardly Lion mode, frets about Dev-Em’s earlier mission. One of Jayna’s soldiers is asking a lot of questions, and it’s scaring Daron. Of course, Daron’s shadow probably scares Daron. Jayna offers a particularly scathing opinion of Daron, and gives us some of his history, which really isn’t impressive. Daron lays out his grand plan, and Jayna has her doubts about it. So do I. Daron does make at least one valid point about the Voice.

Taz-Ran, the lieutenant with all the questions, has a brief scene with Dev-Em. Taz isn’t stupid either, and deftly avoids a potential trap. Adam tries an old gambit to try and escape, but ends up getting a surprise from an unexpected direction. Taz brings his suspicions to Jayna, and that’s a rough scene for both of them in different ways. Jayna isn’t going to come out of this as the same person she was before, that’s for sure.

Lyta and the commander talk about disruptions to the timeline, which the commander doesn’t seem to have any worries about. He comments on how different Lyta is now from when he knows her in the future. Seg and Lyta get some banter out of her supposed future when he catches up with the other two. Lyta worries about some things she’s already learned about her future, and Seg decides to just focus on today. I can’t say I blame him, really. Then the three of them get ambushed and a big fight ensues, with more jokes afterwards.

Daron and Dev-Em set up their plan, and we hear some drama-inducing facts about how things are going to work. Daron asks about the luckless Taz, and gets told he’s been dealt with. Daron, for a coward, then gets weirdly explicit in what he says over their coms. I guess those don’t get recorded or monitored? The Voice asks a question of Ona and then makes a decision that complicates the plan against him. Dev-Em tries to wiggle out of it, but the Voice is insistent.

Seg and company finally find their way to the weapon. The commander makes his big play, and it’s very anticlimactic. Dev-Em brings the new complications to Daron Vex, who doesn’t care. That’s no shock. What is surprising, if understandable, is that Jayna doesn’t support Dev-Em either. The Voice goes on with his new plan and address, and Dev-Em blows their plan, not able to bring himself to be that ruthless. Good for him.

Seg and company try and figure out another way to the plan. Finally, they make an observation about some of the symbols in the area and Seg draws on his experience from the Fortress. This is about when Adam gets there, yelling at them to stop, and revealing what the weapon is. I will point out that the name Adam uses for it shouldn’t have a meaning on Krpyton, since it was given that name by an Earth hero in the future. This ends up in a fight as more combatants show up. Seg saves Adam, but then tells him to go back where he came from and not return, which bodes ill for the preservation of the timeline. The episode ends with Dev-Em getting the Voice back to his chambers, and then a series of ugly surprises happening.

What I liked: The reveal of who the commander is was a surprise, but it sort of fits. The weapon was a much bigger surprise. That’s something they really shouldn’t be messing with. I admire Dev-Em for sticking by his principals, and I understand why Jayna didn’t. Nyssa manages to be crafty without being slimy, a trick her father can’t seem to manage.

What I didn’t: Daron is a self-serving coward, no matter what he tells himself. I mentioned the issue with the weapon name above. I have no idea how they’re going to stop the new version of the Voice, unless that ends up being the justification for unleashing the weapon, which is also a bad plan. Adam isn’t doing himself any favors by the way he’s been acting, and that’s having some consequences for him now.

I’ll give this a 3 out of 5. I admit I’m curious to see how this is going to play out.