Much Like “Where’s Wally?”, Except JLA Cleared That Up.

Today’s exercise for the reader is an answer to the question “Where is Onyx?”

However, for many readers, particularly those who aren’t interested in the Bat-books or Green Arrow, this should be prefaced by “Who is Onyx?”

This is she:

Onyx used to be in the League of Assassins, but she reformed. I love this origin. No rape, no child abuse, no special woman!reason to fight crime - just a straight story of evil she’s done and a personal quest for redemption. Sometimes she reforms by beating the crap out of criminals and monsters, and sometimes she reforms by sitting in an ashram and meditating. I think the monastery thing is why she’s bald, but it’s also a good way of ensuring that at least no one will fuck up her hair.

Onyx is funny, bold, and very, very good at her job. She’s sparred with Shiva (and survived) and she held off both Batman and Batgirl for whole minutes – it was a trick fight, designed to make her look dangerous, but she is dangerous, and she made it look real. (Afterwards, Batgirl asked if they could fight again sometime “just for fun”.) She’s aware of the wrong she’s done, but she’s not paralysed by it. She takes a certain delight in hurting those who deserve hurting, but she won’t kill again.

And she’s a black, female martial artist. That’s important, because non-powered, non-white-or-Asian heroes who will just kick your teeth through your skull are very rare in the DCU. Vixen (whose name is Vixen, guys, come on) has spirit-of-animal powers. Empress has voodoo (and where is she these days?). Steel has powered armour. John Stewart/Green Lantern has a fancy ring. They’re all great characters who have done fantastic work addressing and exploding stereotypes, but they’re all powered-up in some way.
Black people should also be represented by Bat/Arrow-style heroes, who don’t have superhuman powers, just guts and ability and a mission. The only non-powered black hero who easily comes to mind is Mister Terrific, and he’s chiefly known for being the “third smartest man in the world” and those spiffy holographic spheres. And I can’t think of a single black woman in the DCU who keeps pace with the best of them armed with nothing but fists and feet and consummate skill.
Other, that is, than Onyx.

So she’s totally awesome, whenever we see her. But we don’t see nearly enough of her. Post-ashram, she worked as Orpheus’ bodyguard for a while, then after he died in War Games she worked independently in Gotham - the only independent vigilante Batman allows in his town. She had a run-in with Jason Todd and then… she disappeared.