Hooded Justice

Hooded Justice is a fictional superhero who appeared in the comic book limited series Watchmen published by DC Comics in 1986.

Fictional character history
Hooded Justice is credited with being the first costumed superhero to appear in the Watchmen universe in the fall of 1938. Described as a large man, built like a wrestler, he wore a mostly black and red costume, with a mask that resembled that of an executioner. Almost nothing is known about his origin, and no one, except possibly Captain Metropolis, has seen him without his trademark mask. When Captain Metropolis formed the superhero team the Minutemen, he was one of the first members, later joined by Silk Spectre, the Silhouette, Nite-Owl, the Comedian and Mothman.

Not long into their partnership, dissention was already growing between members of the team, and on one occasion Hooded Justice prevented Comedian from raping the Silk Spectre by beating him mercilessly. To this, Comedian responded that Hooded Justice got pleasure in causing pain and being brutal, implying that his crime fighting activities served as more of a parallel to sexual release. Hooded Justice told him to leave, as the Comedian swore his eventual revenge on him for the assault.

Unknown to the general public at this time, Hooded Justice had a relationship with fellow gay teammate Captain Metropolis, in which Hooded Justice appeared to be the more dominant partner, judging by a letter written by Laurence Schexnayder. To cover up the relationship, Silk Spectre often pretended to be his girlfriend in public. Hooded Justice himself would also have rough sex sessions with young men, adding further validity to the Comedian's earlier assertion.

In 1949, the Minutemen disbanded, and six years later Hooded Justice was ordered to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee for growing speculation that he was a Communist supporter. Soon after, he disappeared and was never heard from again. Not long after that, a corpse tentatively identified as former circus strongman Rolf Müller was found, and immediate speculation began as to whether Müller and Hooded Justice were one and the same. Right wing sources speculated that Müller, a German, was a Communist agent. After investigating and failing to locate Hooded Justice, Ozymandias speculated that the Comedian, sent to track him down for the HUAC, murdered him and then reported failure. The full story of Hooded Justice's life and the events surrounding his death continues to be a mystery.

Powers
Hooded Justice has no powers to speak of, but he does have a tremendous amount of strength and tolerance to pain.

Film
Hooded Justice makes an appearance in the Watchmen film, although the full extent of his actions are unknown. Zack Snyder has confirmed that he "is in there" and that he "beats up Blake", as in the original book.