WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for the first three episodes of The Boys Season 2, available now on Amazon Prime Video.
One of the most effective ways to show off how impressive a character is involves showing very little at all, and The Boys gets this right most with the superhero Black Noir. Easily the Seven's most mysterious member, throughout most of Season 1, the hero received adoration from his allies and fear from his foes, which is amplified in Season 2's premiere, proving why he's one of the few heroes Homelander truly respects.
Very little happened with Black Noir in the series' first season, but the tidbits dolled out were pitch perfect. Whereas many of the other heroes wear their flaws on their sleeves, with self-obsessed abusers like A-Train or the Deep hurting others with little regard while also making it apparent how shallow they are, Black Noir never says a word. Much of what viewers have to go by about him was based on other characters' interactions with Black Noir. Perhaps one of the most notable interactions involves Homelander's commendation.
"Lately, some of you have been a little out of sorts," Homelander says in a private meeting of the Seven during Season 1. "Erratic. Unreliable. Downright sloppy. Not you, Noir. You've been great."
The moment shows how much Homelander domineers over the others, bludgeoning them with his authority and power. However, he spares Black Noir his wrath and instead hands out a compliment, something extremely rare from the patriotic crusader. A little later in the season, fans understand why, as Black Noir proves to be one of the deadliest heroes.
Black Noir puts Kimiko down in a fight, trading blows with her and cutting her open several times with his daggers. At one point he pins her foot to the ground before disemboweling her, leaving her to bleed out in the street. If it wasn't for her regenerative abilities, she would've died.
Kimiko has proven a capable threat in her own right, fighting off A-Train and breaking his leg. She's also escapes from him before, even after having her head bashed against a wall at ridiculous speeds. While A-Train isn't a true threat to her, Black Noir takes her out with ease.
It's one of the few hints of action Black Noir sees in the series until the second season's debut, and said debut further bolsters his reputation. After stealthily infiltrating the super terrorist Naqib's base, Black Noir appears behind one of Naqib's allies and puts a blade through his chest. When Naqib activates his ability to create a massive explosion from his body, Black Noir takes it. The windows and walls get blown out; however, Black Noir stands strong with only some scarring around his face and chest. He then decapitates Naqib.
This goes to show there's even more power lurking beneath the dark mask than audiences may have suspected. In the fight with Kimiko, the hero displays some level of superhuman durability, but the emphasis seems to be more on his speed and skill than his raw, physical capacity. Against Naqib, Black Noir shows off both while also showing there's more to his super powers than expected.
This explains why Homelander holds the hero in such high regard. His lethality and strength would not only deserve Homelander's respect on their own merits, but his silent obedience and dutiful nature means he doesn't stand in Homelander's way.
Some deeper mysteries linger around Black Noir. For instance, he sobs after the revelation that his powers were man made, showing he's one of the heroes who was left out of the Vought loop. There is more to come from Black Noir's story to be sure, and the time may come to see just how far Homelander's respect will go for him.
Amazon Studios' The Boys stars Karl Urban as Billy Butcher, Jack Quaid as Hughie, Laz Alonso as Mother's Milk, Tomer Kapon as Frenchie, Karen Fukuhara as the Female, Erin Moriarty as Annie January, Chace Crawford as the Deep, Antony Starr as Homelander, Aya Cash as Stormfront and Simon Pegg as Hughie's dad. New episodes of Season 2 release Fridays on Amazon Prime Video.