There’s a new Superman TV series hitting the air this month, but it doesn’t actually star the Man of Steel. Instead, Krypton will dial the clock back a couple of generations to focus on Superman’s grandfather and the events that preceded Krypton’s destruction.
This is hardly the first time the planet Krypton has been featured on television, but the new series promises to give fans their closest look yet at the world that birthed a Superman. To help prepare for the show, here’s everything you need to know about Krypton’s comic book origins.
In its prime, Krypton was home to one of the most advanced civilizations in the DC Universe. Kryptonians look pretty much identical to humans, but they enjoyed technology and resources centuries ahead of anything humanity has to offer. Unfortunately, that technological superiority, combined with a growing sense of xenophobia, caused Krypton to shut itself off from the rest of the universe. And when respected scientist Jor-El found evidence that the planet was about to be completely destroyed, few of his fellow Kryptonians were willing to listen to his pleas. The planet died, taking the entire Kryptonian civilization with it. Only Superman and a handful of other survivors remain to carry the torch for this once-great civilization.