Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for the Superman and Lois season 3 premiere.The premiere episode of Superman and Lois season 3 featured the surprising appearance of the Green Arrow villain Onomatopoeia, who never appeared on Arrow or in any Arrowverse series. Superman and Lois season 3 already promised to be full of villains, featuring its versions of popular Superman adversaries Lex Luthor and Intergang leader Bruno Mannheim. This made the introduction of Onomatopoeia all the more surprising, particularly given the way the character was changed from the comics to make them a more formidable threat.
Superman and Lois season 3, episode 1, "Closer," also brought back the villain Atom-Man, who was one of the first supervillains Superman ever faced. Atom-Man had been upgraded considerably, however, now possessing real superpowers in addition to his power armor. Atom-Man was seemingly gunned down before he had a chance to finish Superman off, but a quick scan with his X-Ray vision determined that there were no bullets in Atom-Man's body, despite Superman hearing gunshots. The source of the gunshots was Onomatopoeia, who took advantage of Superman's distracted state to disappear with Atom-Man's body. This suggested that Superman and Lois' Onomatopoeia has sound control powers, unlike his comic book counterpart.
Green Arrow Villain Onomatopoeia Explained (Comics Origins & Powers)
Onomatopoeia has never been given an origin story or any background beyond being a serial killer who targets non-powered vigilantes. Onomatopoeia first appeared in Green Arrow Vol. 3 #12 in 2002 and was created by writer and filmmaker Kevin Smith and artist Phil Hester. His codename, which he gave to the heroine Virago before killing her, is based upon his habit of only speaking with words based on sounds, such as shouting "BANG!" or "BLAM!" when firing a gun.
Onomatopoeia targeted the second Green Arrow, Connor Hawke, in his first appearance and later fought Oliver Queen and Dinah Lance when he broke into a hospital to finish the job. Apart from a few cameo appearances, such as in Infinite Crisis where he was seen among the members of the Secret Society of Super-Villains, Onomatopoeia has only appeared in comics written by Kevin Smith. In Batman: Cacophony, Onomatopoeia helped Joker escape from Arkham Asylum as the prelude to his own battle with Batman. He also had a surprising role in the miniseries Batman: Widening Gyre.
Onomatopoeia has not been confirmed to have any metahuman powers beyond an ability to shrug off damage like John Wick. While he may not have natural superpowers, it is clear that Onomatopoeia is an enhanced human. In his battle with Oliver Queen, Onomatopoeia was somehow able to survive being shot with five arrows (including one through his right foot) and evade capture after falling off a seven-story building. Onomatopoeia is also as capable of dishing out damage as he is taking it, being a master of hand-to-hand combat, multiple melee weapons, and an accomplished marksman on par with Deadshot.
Why Arrow Never Properly Used Onomatopoeia
Despite his origins as a Green Arrow villain in the comics, Onomatopoeia was never directly adapted for Arrow. He did, however, get indirectly introduced into the Arrowverse canon through a cameo in the Arrow Season 2.5 tie-in comic set between Arrow seasons 2 and 3. While not identified by name, a man wearing Onomatopoeia's costume from the comics was shown fighting Stephen Amell's Arrow in a montage depicting Oliver Queen's battles with "each drug dealer, mobster and psycho" in Starling City, in the closing pages of the series' final issue.
Onomatopoeia was planned to make an appearance in the Arrow season 1 episode "Home Invasion" but was replaced by an assassin called Mr. Blank, who had the quirk of killing anyone who saw his face, including his own clients once the job was done and he was paid. This was reportedly due to the belief of Arrow's executive producers that Onomatopoeia's habit of speaking in sound effects would not work well in a live-action superhero show. Onomatopoeia co-creator Kevin Smith initially agreed with this assessment, saying that Onomatopoeia "works great in print and on a comic book page. I don’t think that character would translate very well outside of that."
Smith changed his mind years later after directing several episodes of The Flash. While Smith never got the chance to write or direct for Arrow, he did imagine a way Onomatopoeia could be adapted for the Arrowverse. Smith suggested that Onomatopoeia could leave cards with sound words written on them for his victims to find before attacking them and creating the appropriate noise. This would work with the character's theme and offer a visual element akin to the word balloons utilized in the 1960's Batman show. However, Smith still doubted that Onomatopoeia "audibly making noises would ever work in the real world."
How Superman & Lois’ Onomatopoeia Is Different To The Comics
Superman and Lois season 3 addresses this issue by giving its version of Onomatopoeia the power to mimic and project sounds. This is shown when Onomatopoeia first encounters Superman, who flew off after suddenly hearing gunfire and screaming in the distance. The sound went away after Onomatopoeia escaped with Atom-Man's body. Onomatopoeia's mask was also shown to shake like a speaker, confirming that they were the source of the sounds. It is unclear if Onomatopoeia's new sound powers in Superman and Lois season 3 are the result of a metahuman ability or if they are technology based. In either case, their powers give them a unique ability to manipulate Superman.
The final scene of the Superman and Lois season 3 premiere confirms that Onomatopoeia is working with Intergang leader Bruno Mannheim. This suggests that Onomatopoeia's new powers are technological in nature, given that Intergang in the comics were defined by their use of advanced technology in their illegal activities, most of which was given to them by Darkseid's followers from the planet Apokolips. This could potentially make Onomatopoeia into a physical threat to Superman, presuming his powers also allow him to generate focused sonic blasts akin to those used by Black Canary and Pied Piper. For all the Man of Steel's strength, his ears are sensitive and a weak spot.
Superman and Lois season 3 continues on Tuesdays on The CW.
