Black Noir | |
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The Boys character | |
First appearance |
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Last appearance |
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Created by | Garth Ennis Darick Robertson |
Based on | Snake Eyes (Costume) Deathstroke (Weaponry) |
Adapted by | Eric Kripke |
Portrayed by | Nathan Mitchell Fritzy-Klevans Destine (young; Earving) |
Voiced by |
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In-universe information | |
Full name | Earving (television series) |
Alias | Noir |
Species | |
Gender | Male |
Title | Black Noir Silent Knight |
Occupation | |
Affiliation | Vought-American |
Family |
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Children | Baby Butcher (comic series) |
Religion | Roman Catholic (Earving) |
Nationality | American |
Abilities | Black Noir (Clone) and Black Noir II:
Black Noir (Earving):
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Weaknesses | Tree nut allergy (Earving) Narcolepsy (Black Noir II) |
Black Noir [4] is the name of three characters from the comic book series The Boys , created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, and the television series and franchise of the same name, developed by Eric Kripke. In both the comic and television series, Noir is a member of the hedonistic and reckless Vought-American superhero group the Seven and is depicted as a "silent ninja" type parody of Batman, Snake Eyes and Deathstroke.
In the comic series arc Over the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men , Noir is revealed to be a clone of the Homelander and enhanced with Stormfront's DNA, created to replace him if he ever went rogue. Driven insane by a lack of purpose, Noir resolved to frame the Homelander for various atrocities as part of a plan to gradually drive him insane and replace him. However, after the Homelander and Billy Butcher team up to face him, he is ultimately killed by the latter. In the television series adaption, Noir, portrayed by Nathan Mitchell and Fritzy-Klevans Destine, is instead depicted as a brain-damaged African-American Supe named Earving, who is loyal to Vought CEO Stan Edgar. In The Boys Presents: Diabolical , Noir is depicted guiding the Homelander in his early career. Following Earving's death in the third season finale of the main series, starting with the fourth season Mitchell is portraying a replacement Noir in the series called Black Noir II. [5]
In the comic series, Black Noir is depicted as a member of the Vought-American-sponsored superhero team, The Seven, and the only superhuman created by Vought-American who can beat the Homelander in arm-wrestling. Until the events of the series' climax, it is implied that the Homelander had raped Billy Butcher's wife, Becky, who then died giving birth to a superhuman baby Butcher had then killed, a crime actually perpetrated by Black Noir, who has been impersonating the Homelander during his free time for years. In Issue #40, the Boys receive a series of incriminating photos seemingly showing the Homelander engaging in grisly acts of murder, cannibalism, and necrophilia against men, women, and children. The series eventually reveals that the Homelander cannot remember either these incidents or the rape of Butcher's wife, and suggests that the Homelander has dissociative identity disorder and may have sent the photographs to Butcher himself. In private, Homelander shows signs of suffering a mental breakdown, talking to his own reflection in a mirror, and having bouts of nausea over the images, genuinely confused and horrified by their contents, events which a secretly watching Frenchie decides to keep from Butcher. Concluding he is "damned" for the acts depicted in the photos, the Homelander decides to give in to any intrusive thoughts that cross his mind.
Following Herogasm , in which Black Noir randomly "thumbs up" Wee Hughie's posterior while the latter was infiltrating an orgy (revealed in Highland Laddie to have whispered "good soldier" to the deeply traumatised Hughie while doing so), the Homelander resolves to free himself and the superhero community from Vought-American's control. In Over the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men , he leads the other superheroes in a coup d'etat against the United States, launching an attack on the White House and killing everyone inside, including the Vought-controlled Vice President, under the guise of doing so for the Guy From Vought. During the subsequent confrontation between the Homelander and Butcher, surmising why Butcher must hate him, Black Noir arrives in the Oval Office and reveals himself to be a clone of the Homelander created solely to kill and replace him if he ever went rogue. In addition, he was also enhanced with Stormfront's DNA making him a binary clone. Gradually being driven insane due to not being allowed to kill the Homelander, Noir reveals that he had committed the atrocities documented in the photos amongst other actions (having destroyed the plane during Herogasm) and raped Becky to set Butcher and the Homelander against one another so that he would be given authorization to fulfill his purpose. Outraged, the Homelander attacks Noir, who proceeds to tear the Homelander apart. Before dying, Homelander manages to seriously injure his former teammate, allowing Butcher to later finish him off with a crowbar, before embarking on his own genocidal plan to kill all superheroes and those "Supes" with the genetic potential to become them. [6]
In the live-action television adaptation, Black Noir is portrayed by Nathan Mitchell while Fritzey-Klevans Destine portrays Noir in flashbacks. [7] Largely silent, he primarily communicates in a series of silent gestures and intimidating body language, and possesses a healing factor coupled with a penchant for artistic exploits, standing toe-to-toe with the Female and effortlessly playing classical music on a piano in the first season. In the second season, Noir is revealed to be the loyal enforcer of Vought CEO Stanford "Stan" Edgar, who directs his every action in combat, including killing the super-terrorist Naqib and tracking down Billy Butcher and the Boys. [8] [9] However, Noir also displays simple, friendly character traits of his own outside of combat, such as giving Naqib's son a teddy bear, befriending a Vought programmer while looking for Butcher, and breaking down in tears upon learning his powers originated from Compound V injections given to him by Vought with his parents' consent as a child. Later, while attempting to apprehend the then-rogue Starlight, Noir is put into a coma by Queen Maeve after she exploits his tree nut allergy by forcing him to consume an Almond Joy and kicking his Epi-pen out of reach. [10] [11]
In flashbacks to the Cold War depicted in the third season, Noir is revealed to be a man named Earving who had begun his superhero career and joined Payback, Vought's predecessor to the Seven. However, Noir and the rest of his teammates were subject to career sabotage and physical abuse by team leader Soldier Boy. In 1984 amidst a joint operation with the CIA to stop a communist government in Nicaragua, Edgar secretly assigned Payback to trade Soldier Boy to the Russian government so Vought can eventually replace him with Homelander, who had been conceived with sperm obtained from Soldier Boy. Throughout, Noir complained about having to wear a helmet that covers his face as he wanted to be the "Eddie Murphy" of superheroes, though Edgar told him Vought believed a publicly black superhero was neither profitable nor acceptable at the time. Amidst an attack on their camp by Nicaraguan and Russian soldiers, Noir led Payback in cornering and attacking Soldier Boy. They eventually succeeded in subduing him, though not before Soldier Boy left Noir permanently disfigured, mute, and brain damaged. [12] In the present, upon coming out of his coma and learning of Soldier Boy's return to America, Noir cuts his tracking chip out of his arm and hides out in an abandoned Buster Beaver's Pizza Restaurant, where its mascots and his imaginary friends reenact the abuse he suffered from Soldier Boy to convince Noir to face him instead of running. Upon returning to Vought, Homelander kills Noir for withholding his knowledge of Soldier Boy being Homelander's biological father.
In the 2021–2022 promotional web series Seven on 7 with Cameron Coleman , which bridges the events of the second and third seasons of the live-action adaptation, Noir is revealed to have awoken from his coma and been charged by Vought with tracking down numerous Supes that had escaped from a psychiatric hospital as well as filming promos for Vought's streaming service, Vought+, on which his film Black Noir: Insurrection is to be released. [13] [14]
In the 2020 Amazon Prime Video-sponsored The Boys promotional episodes of Death Battle! , Black Noir gives up his place in participating in the Seven's battle royale to Billy Butcher, in favour of serving as one of the event's hosts alongside Wiz and Boomstick, with whom he communicates via a series of head and hand gestures. [15]
In The Boys Presents: Diabolical prequel episode "One Plus One Equals Two", Black Noir is revealed to have been the "Homelander before Homelander", who Madelyn Stillwell sought to supplant, describing Noir as being built to destroy Homelander. [16] [17] After coming across a then-18-year-old Homelander after he accidentally killed several hostages and eco-terrorists on his first mission as a superhero, Black Noir evades Homelander's attempts to kill him before tricking him into destroying the compound they were in and mercy killing the last hostage in its aftermath to prevent Homelander from killing them both. Successfully gaining Homelander's trust, Black Noir writes him an excusatory speech to provide to the press outside, claiming the eco-terrorists had a bomb which he tried to stop. [18]
Following Noir's death in the third season finale of the main series, Eric Kripke confirmed in July 2022 that Noir's actor Nathan Mitchell would portray a replacement Black Noir in the fourth season; describing the character as a "whole new" and "really interesting and hilarious character". [5] The original Black Noir is replaced by an aspiring actor who wears the same masked costume that hides his identity from the public; however, unlike his predecessor he is talkative in private and shown to be both excitable and nervous about his new role. In addition, Black Noir II has the power of flight but suffers from narcolepsy, and admits that he is uneasy with the violence he is ordered to do.
First appearing in season four, the second Black Noir debuted where he, the Deep, and A-Train killed three Homelander sympathizers and planted their bodies near a riot between the Homelander sympathizers and the Starlighters in light of Homelander being found not guilty for killing a Starlighter that threw a bottle at Ryan Butcher. While visiting A-Train on the set of Training A-Train which A-Train is starring in with Will Ferrell, Black Noir II asked about them killing those Homelander sympathizers as A-Train reminds him that the original Black Noir never spoke. Black Noir II later took part in the filming of Ryan Butcher's first rescue. While having not been invited to Tek Knight's party, the second Black Noir unmasks to drink a beverage and confides in the Deep (who was also not invited to Tek Knight's party) over his insecurities. While still claiming that he doesn't know how his predecessor acted, Black Noir II also mentions that his predecessor has a bunch of Buster Beaver memorabilia in his closet. The Deep tells Black Noir II that he must kill to be equal to his predecessor while bringing up one of Black Noir's previous assignment in Asia. Black Noir II and the Deep are dispatched by Homelander to attack the Boys at their headquarters. After briefly nodding off during the fight, Black Noir II was shown to both fly and speak, surprising Butcher. When A-Train comes to the Boys' aid, Black Noir and the Deep are repelled. Later that day, Black Noir II and the Deep witness Sister Sage leaving Vought International after Homelander kicked her out for withholding information that A-Train was the leak. Both of them are surprised that Sister Sage slept with both of them. In the season 4 finale, after Homelander has ordered that Black Noir II and the Deep kill every employee who may have any incriminating information on Vought and The Seven, Black Noir II is seen killing "Also Ashley", the personal assistant of Ashley Barrett. When the Deep exclaims that Black Noir II has killed the wrong Ashley, even remarking that the murdered Ashley wasn't even "on the list", Black Noir II seemingly shows no remorse, and is then later seen acknowledging a "murder boner", seemingly completing his transition to the mindset of his predecessor.
In October 2020, following news of the development of several spin-off series of The Boys , Black Noir actor Nathan Mitchell expressed interest in a potential " Mr. Bean -style comedy" solo series focused on the character, tentatively entitled The Secret Life of Black Noir. [19]
In the comics, Black Noir is a long-time member of the Seven, almost always shown in silhouette with his face obscured. His powers include super strength and supposed skills as a pilot. He is stronger than even Homelander; Mother's Milk states he can "[...] bench a dozen Mack trucks". While initially an enigma, it is revealed at the climax of the series that Black Noir is actually a clone of the Homelander, developed by Vought-American as a contingency, in case the leader of the Seven became a liability, and as such, has all of his powers, including heat vision, super strength, durability, flight, and enhanced vocal cords.
In the television series, Black Noir is depicted as a normal man imbued with Compound V. As a result, he gained superhuman strength, a regenerative healing factor and "silent ninja" aesthetic, with his only weakness being his tree nut allergy, in reference to both Superman's weakness to kryptonite and his actor Nathan Mitchell's real-life tree nut allergy. However his abilities are all far lesser than in the comics; for example, his skin can be penetrated by knives and pistol bullets. [20] [21]
In September 2020, The Boys television adaptation's producer and showrunner Eric Kripke confirmed that despite the apparent foreshadowing of Homelander often comparing Black Noir to himself, that the plot twist of Noir being Homelander's clone, capable of killing him, would not be used, choosing instead to portray Black Noir as his own character and amalgamating the comics character's psychopathic traits with Homelander. Noir's role as a "failsafe" against Homelander was similarly supplanted by that of Homelander's son Ryan Butcher (primarily portrayed by Cameron Crovetti), a loose adaptation of the Supe baby killed by Butcher in the comic series after it killed his wife while she was giving birth to it, [22] [23] [24] with Kripke saying: [25]
[W]hat makes Noir 'Noir' is he's just this complete cipher; like, you just don't know anything about him and he's just completely mysterious. But then he has these strange reactions, like he'll make the teddy bear dance, or he'll cry, and he'll reveal some vulnerabilities, emotional vulnerabilities. Then he'll just return to just being this completely still, horrifying Terminator of a character, and that's kind of what I like about him, I have to say. Every so often, it comes up like, 'We should really learn who he is.' And I'm like, 'But should we know? Isn't it more interesting that we just never really quite understand how he got that way?' So I think Noir definitely remains as mysterious as always. [25]
On the third season reveal of the first Noir being a black Supe named Earving (portrayed by Fritzy-Klevans Destine) who had been "tasked by Stan Edgar to do away with Soldier Boy on Payback's Nicaragua mission [in 1984], which result[ed] in Soldier Boy searing Noir's face, after which he goes silent" from the resulting brain damage to become Edgar's unquestioning assassin by the present-day, who sees his imaginary friends as a result, Kripke stated that: [5]
"Young Noir grew up going to this pizza chain called Buster Beavers. It's like a Chuck E. Cheese. He sees the animated characters. They come to life and they have a lot of interaction with him. Like everything on the show, it's sort of this organic road to hell, I guess. We wanted to see Noir sort of Dark Night of the Soul . It's hard to do that because he doesn't communicate. We knew we had to go inside his head and someone pitched, like, he goes to a cabin. And I said, 'He should go to a cabin, but all these Snow White animated creatures should be flying around all over him' and that we strongly implied they've always been there. And then someone said, 'Well, it might be a little corny. What about like a Chuck E. Cheese?' So it just evolves." [5]
On the use of animation for Noir's imagination, inspired by his development of The Boys Presents: Diabolical , Kripke further revealed that "[w]e worked with this amazing [animation] company called 6 Point Harness, which did create all the animation for us [right at the level of real Disney hand-drawn animation]. But what I love about it most of all is it's definitely implied that for the entire run of the series, these characters just hang out with Noir. If you were to cut [back] into Noir's point of view [during the first two seasons], he'd have these animated characters that he's interacting with. And that just brings me no end of pleasure." [5]
To promote the third season of The Boys, Amazon Prime Video licensed a line of Black Noir action figures from MAFEX, NECA and the Japanese company MediCom Toy Incorporated. [26] [27] [28] [29]
Inspired by Batman, the character and Mitchell's portrayal in the series (considered a breakout character) have received critical acclaim. [30] Black Noir II also received praise for his sudden and humorous dialogue.
The character has been compared to slasher film villains such as Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers, and to the Marvel Comics antihero Deadpool. [31] [32]
The Boys is an American satirical superhero television series developed by Eric Kripke for Amazon Prime Video. Based on the comic book of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, it follows the eponymous team of vigilantes as they combat superpowered individuals who abuse their powers for personal gain and work for a powerful company that ensures the general public views them as heroes. The series features an ensemble cast that includes Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Dominique McElligott, Jessie T. Usher, Chace Crawford, Laz Alonso, Tomer Capone, Karen Fukuhara, Nathan Mitchell, Elisabeth Shue, Colby Minifie, Aya Cash, Claudia Doumit, Jensen Ackles, Cameron Crovetti, Susan Heyward, Valorie Curry, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
The Homelander is a fictional supervillain and one of the main antagonists in the comic book series The Boys and the media franchise of the same name, created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. He is depicted as a psychopathic and sadistic narcissist who serves as the extremely powerful leader of The Seven—a group of corrupt and hedonistic superheroes grown and funded by Vought-American—and the archenemy of Billy Butcher. Beneath his public image as a noble and altruistic hero, the Homelander cares little about the well-being of those he professes to protect. Described as the living personification of how the world sees America, the character has received critical acclaim along with Starr's portrayal in the series. Homelander has also been compared to Superman and Captain America.
William J. "Billy" Butcher is a fictional character and antihero appearing in the comic book series The Boys, created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. He is the leader of The Boys, a group of CIA-sponsored black ops agents who observe, record and sometimes eliminate superheroes artificially created by the mega-conglomerate Vought. He is the Homelander's archenemy, whom he blames for the rape and death of his wife Becky, while also developing an intense hatred for all superhuman beings. Butcher also appears as one of the main protagonists in the Amazon Prime Video television adaptation of The Boys.
Rebecca Anne "Annie" Campbell, known by the superhero name Starlight, is a fictional superheroine in the comic book series The Boys, created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. As Starlight, she is a member of the Seven, a group of superheroes funded by Vought-American, and the love interest of Hughie Campbell. Annie is a former member of the Young Americans group with the ability of flight and light manipulation. Throughout the series, she is portrayed as one of the only members of the Seven with selfless, benevolent motivations, but becomes disillusioned when she sees the dark secrets of Vought and the other members of the Seven. Eventually, the death and destruction she witnesses pushes her to quit her job at Vought and join the Boys alongside Hughie, where they both serve as the moral center of the group.
Hugh "Wee Hughie" Campbell is a fictional character and the protagonist of the comic book series The Boys and its spin-offs Herogasm and Highland Laddie, created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson and visually designed after Simon Pegg. He is a member of The Boys, a group of vigilantes led by Billy Butcher. After the accidental death of his girlfriend Robin at the hands of the so-called superhero A-Train, he joins the Boys to get vengeance on superheroes, who are artificially created by the mega-conglomerate Vought-American. Hughie appears in the Amazon Prime Video television adaptation of the series as one of the main protagonists, where he serves as the moral compass and voice of reason of the Boys.
The third season of the American satirical superhero television series The Boys, the first series in the franchise based on the comic book series of the same name written by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, was developed for television by American writer and television producer Eric Kripke. The season is produced by Sony Pictures Television in association with Point Grey Pictures, Original Film, Kripke Enterprises, Kickstart Entertainment and KFL Nightsky Productions.
The Guy From Vought, also known as the Vought Guy, is a fictional character in the comic book series The Boys and the resulting franchise, created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, an executive officer of the defense contractor/pharmaceutical company Vought-American Consolidated (V.A.C.), a company which publicly owns the Seven, several smaller superhero teams, and their related franchises, and privately is responsible for the creation and distribution of the superpower-inducing Compound V. The most prominent normal human antagonist in the series, whom Homelander often unsuccessfully seeks to impress/cause to fear him, the Guy From Vought is an apparent high-functioning sociopath and practical embodiment of VA, working only in the corporate interest, including orchestrating/ordering: the near-coup of the Russian government, the massacre of the G-Men teams, Payback's ambush of the Boys, and the takeover of the White House via idiotic puppet ruler U.S. Vice President Vic the Veep.
Soldier Boy is the name of three superhero characters in the comic book series Herogasm and The Boys, created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The first character introduced is the elected leader of the Vought-American-sponsored superhero team Payback. He is depicted as one of the only "Supes" with selfless, benevolent motivations, who detests the use of profanity. However, Soldier Boy annually has sex with Homelander alone at the "Herogasm" orgy, under the mistaken hope that the "test" of doing so will convince Homelander to let him join his own superhero team, The Seven. After his most recent dalliance with Homelander, Soldier Boy is captured by CIA black ops agent Billy Butcher and brutally tortured and murdered by him for information on Homelander's recent activities. The original Soldier Boy is later revealed to have been mercy killed by Mallory during his first mission at the Battle of the Bulge, after his "Avenging Squad" inadvertently caused Mallory's men to be massacred, and been replaced by the second for the remainder of the war.
Mother's Milk, or simply M.M., is a fictional character and antihero appearing in the comic book series The Boys, created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. Born Baron Wallis, he is a member of The Boys, a group of CIA-sponsored black ops agents led by Billy Butcher who observe, record, and sometimes liquidate "Supes" artificially created by the mega-conglomerate Vought.
Vought News Network: Seven on 7 with Cameron Coleman is an American faux current affairs digital series serving as the center of several viral marketing campaigns created by Amazon Prime Video for their streaming television series The Boys. Directed by Matt Motschenbacher, and based on the fictional Vought News Network (VNN)—a parody of the Cable News Network (CNN) as well as Fox News—the YouTube videos initially began as marketing for The Boys—developed by Eric Kripke—and resulting cinematic universe media franchise—an adaptation of the DC-WildStorm/Dynamite Entertainment comic series of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson—and deal with major events between the events of the second and third seasons of the series, and later the spin-off Gen V.
The Boys is an American media franchise, consisting of action-drama/satirical black comedy superhero television series which follow the residents of a world where superpowered individuals called Supes are recognized as heroes by the general public and work for a powerful corporation known as Vought International, which markets, monetizes, and (secretly) creates them, with most being selfish and corrupt outside of their heroic personas. Based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, originally published by DC Comics under its Wildstorm imprint before moving to Dynamite Entertainment, the television franchise debut has garnered success both financially and critically.
"The Name of the Game" is the first episode of the first season and series premiere of the American superhero television series The Boys, based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis. It is set in a universe where superpowered individuals, known as Supes, are portrayed as corrupt individuals instead of the heroes the general public believes they are. The episode was written by the series showrunner Eric Kripke and directed by Dan Trachtenberg.
"Good for the Soul" is the fifth episode of the first season of the American superhero television series The Boys, based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis. It is set in a universe where superpowered individuals, known as Supes, are portrayed as corrupt individuals instead of the heroes the general public believes they are. The episode was written by Anne Cofell Saunders and directed by Stefan Schwartz.
"The Innocents" is the sixth episode of the first season of the American superhero television series The Boys, based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis, and named after its seventh volume. It is set in a universe where superpowered individuals, known as Supes, are portrayed as corrupt individuals instead of the heroes the general public believes they are. The episode was written by Rebecca Sonnenshine and directed by Jennifer Phang.
The Self-Preservation Society is the seventh episode of the first season of the American superhero television series The Boys, based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis. It is set in a universe where superpowered individuals, known as Supes, are portrayed as corrupt individuals instead of the heroes the general public believes they are. The episode was written by Craig Rosenberg and Ellie Monahan, and directed by Dan Attias.
"You Found Me" is the eighth episode and season finale of the first season of the American superhero television series The Boys, based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis. It is set in a universe where superpowered individuals, known as Supes, are portrayed as corrupt individuals instead of the heroes the general public believes they are. The episode was written by Anne Cofell Saunders and Rebecca Sonnenshine, and directed by the series showrunner Eric Kripke.
"The Big Ride" is the first episode of the second season and ninth episode overall of the American superhero television series The Boys, based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis. It is set in a universe where superpowered individuals, known as Supes, are portrayed as corrupt individuals instead of the heroes the general public believes they are. The episode was written by the series showrunner Eric Kripke and directed by Phil Sgriccia.
"Nothing Like It in the World" is the fourth episode of the second season and twelfth episode overall of the American superhero television series The Boys, based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis. It is set in a universe where superpowered individuals, known as Supes, are portrayed as corrupt individuals instead of the heroes the general public believes they are. The episode was written by Michael Saltzman and directed by Fred Troye.
"We Gotta Go Now" is the fifth episode of the second season and thirteenth episode overall of the American superhero television series The Boys, based on the comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis, and named after its fourth volume. It is set in a universe where superpowered individuals, known as Supes, are portrayed as corrupt individuals instead of the heroes the general public believes they are. The episode was written by Ellie Monahan and directed by Batan Silva.