Painkiller (comics)

Painkiller debuted in Black Lightning, Vol. 2 #2 (March 1995), written by Tony Isabella and illustrated by Eddie Newell.[1] The character dies just two issues later in Black Lightning, Vol. 2 #4 (May 1995).[2]

Painkiller, a high-level mob enforcer, is hired by the Brothers Who Rule to stop Black Lightning's pursuit of them. Painkiller sets a trap for Black Lightning as well as the cops, a crack house full of teenagers, where he plans to kill Black Lightning and force the cops to open fire on the teenagers. However, Black Lightning's powers provide a level of protection from Painkiller's abilities and Black Lightning is able to prevent the massacre before battling with Painkiller, a battle that ultimately kills the latter.[1][3]

As a metahuman, Painkiller exhibits superhuman strength and can induce anesthetization on any part of the human body, thus dulling the senses of his victims. He is also a skilled fighter and has knives on the ends of his dreadlocks, which he uses as additional weapons.[1]

Painkiller appears in The CW television series Black Lightning, portrayed by Jordan Calloway. The character debuts in the series' second episode "Lawanda: The Book of Hope" as Khalil Payne and recurs throughout the first season before becoming a series regular in the second season.[4] Khalil is introduced as a high school track star who wanted to go to college and eventually the Olympics. However, a stray bullet severed his spine, leaving him paralyzed. Embittered and depressed, Khalil breaks up with his girlfriend, Jennifer Pierce, and drops out of school. Crime lord and 100 leader Tobias Whale, offers Khalil working legs in exchange for becoming his right hand. Khalil accepts and receives cybernetic enhancements that grant him enhanced strength and the ability to generate a paralytic agent via arm-mounted dart launchers; becoming "Painkiller".[4][5] Despite his allegiance with Tobias, he still has feelings for Jennifer and expresses regret. In season 2, Tobias places a bounty on Khalil after the latter refuses to carry out a hit, and goes on the run with Jennifer. Though they later return in exchange for Khalil receiving police protection, Tobias gets ahold of him and rips out his spinal implant, eventually killing him. By the season two finale however, Khalil is revealed to have been resurrected.[6] By season three, Khalil ends up in the A.S.A.'s custody and forced to serve them after being implanted with an obedience chip. Later in the season, Jennifer (having become Lightning by this point) fights him and later helps nullify his Painkiller programming with TC's help, granting Khalil control of his body again.

On November 12, 2020, it was reported that a Black Lightning spin-off, titled Painkiller, is under development for the CW. Jordan Calloway will reprise his role as Khalil Payne, who will have undergone a transformation from a supervillain to someone who strives to "bring justice where he once gave out punishment" while simultaneously struggling "to deal with and harness his darker side, Painkiller." The backdoor pilot is expected to air as the seventh episode of the upcoming fourth season of Black Lightning.[7]