DCU’s Tragic Hero Backstory Change In 2026 Makes Superman Even Better A Year Later

The DC Universe‘s changes to one key hero make their story all the sadder, and in doing so also make the events of Superman even more emotional than they were the first time around. One of the most engrossing aspects of a cinematic universe is the way in which future chapters of a franchise can retroactively improve and change the audience’s perception of prior chapters, making them suddenly feel fresh again even if it’s been years since they first debuted.

This appears to be an approach the DCU is leaning into, given we’ve already had this happen more than once despite being in the earliest days of the franchise. Both Creature Commandos and Peacemaker season 2 expanded on characters and events set up by The Suicide Squad in a way that makes scenes from the 2021 film look and feel different in retrospect, for example, setting an early precedent for this kind of story development.

The second movie in the main DCU timeline, Supergirl, has also done this by fleshing out more of the world, and in particular revealing the altered backstory of one notable DC comic hero, whose tweaked origins make a fair few moments from Superman all the more emotional with the luxury of hindsight in mind.

Krypto’s DCU Backstory Setup Makes Superman’s Story Even More Emotional

Krypto has had a wide range of different backstories in DC’s comic world, as rewrites around Superman have often revamped the story of his beloved pet dog – sometimes removing Krypto’s powers entirely, or in one case making him a trap set by Brainiac to entrap the Man of Steel.

We already knew the DCU had rewritten Krypto’s conventional comic story in order to give him stronger ties to Supergirl as per the ending of 2025’s Superman itself. 2026’s Supergirl delved far more into this, showing that Krypto was a stray puppy Kara picked up on the day of her mother’s funeral, which by itself gives Krypto an even more emotional origin.

However, what makes this all the more pressing to note is that this means Krypto never experienced time as a Kryptonian family dog quite in the way he does in both the classic comics and in his newer backstory. Kara’s mother dies after the destruction of Krypton and the isolation of Argo City, so Krypto is brought into the family both without ever meeting Clark, and after circumstances have become far more dire.

This in turn makes Superman’s decision to rescue Krypto in the Superman movie – which comes at great cost to himself – all the more emotional, since we know Krypto has effectively gone from crisis to crisis from his earliest days onward. Though it’s not clear whether Superman himself knows the full details around Krypto’s life, his sympathy for a character who has been through the trenches since infancy means all the more, meaning this crucial part of Superman is all the more impactful in retrospect.

Krypto’s DCU Backstory Sets Up A Perfect Arc For The Canine Hero

Krypto’s behavior in Superman and Supergirl makes a lot more sense with the context that the Kryptonian canine was first adopted in a world that was already dying, meaning he’s had far less of a chance to learn how to operate in peaceful settings, explaining some of his chaotic behavior further than the seeming prior explanation of him just being a semi-untrained dog.

However, the fact that this is the case means it’d be easy for us to see Krypto become a little more domesticated throughout the course of the DC Universe, especially if he spends more time with Superman, or if Supergirl’s efforts to adapt to Earth following the ending of Supergirl see her also dedicated some time to helping Krypto understand their new home as well too.

Now we’ve seen that some of Krypto’s chaotic behavior seems to originate from his less than stellar early life circumstances – and we know DC Universe architect James Gunn has a penchant for emotional arcs involving animal characters, as seen with Guardians of the Galaxy‘s Rocket and Creature Commandos‘ Weasel – it does seem all the more par for the course that the superpowered pooch will grow alongside his Kryptonian caretakers, particularly given the effort that’s gone into making his overall storyline thus far.

Superman

9/10

Release Date

July 11, 2025