I'm not sure about this interpretation, but I think there is some kind of causal relationship between the movements of the children with head gear on and the people that are moving in fast motion. It's just a theory but it does help to understand what it going on here.
Robert Z'dar looks like just some guy in this. He's got a real normal haircut and just some plain ol' clothes. That's a horrible misuse of Robert Z'dar. I do think it's very realistic that he'd lose a fight to Destro, though.