Nah, he's just a guy with a Tormach. Okay, he has good artistic sense, too. Fine, I have a lot of damascus and 1st runs with Onion's name on it, and they're some of the best out there. But there are plenty of greats less well known. Butch Ball, Warncliffe, Brend, Reeve, Emerson, Anso, Ikoma... it's a neat field because it's wide open! Knives, especially pocket knives, are fetish items in economics. Their value and sales have little to do with anything beyond the buyer/owner's intrinsic value in them. That means it's not governed by supply and demand, and value has little to do with the cost of raw materials. It's all about how someone feels when they hold, view, or use the knife. You can create that feeling. You want to create that feeling, that's what Ken Onion has done with his knives. In fact, I have a first production CRKT type 405 with a limited thin stainless frame right here in my pocket. CRKT knives are okay, they use midrange Japanese blade steel similar to AUS 8, not expensive or fancy. But I like the way this knife feels, it's a fabulous design that meets a few of my criteria- flipper opening, bearing pivot, lanyard hole, frame lock, no no no $%^&* serrations, but the best thing about this one is the texture. It will never fall out of my pocket or slip out of my hands. Ken Onion said the architecture of the convention center in Maui (or some other island with pineapples) inspired the design of the frame after he ended his contract with KAI/Kershaw.
I home in on some very small design cues when buying knives, and sometimes I wonder if I'm getting too picky- but no matter how long the criteria list is, there are always good designs that meet my requirements. It's a fascinating market. The funny thing is that I don't need another knife, ever. But I find so many that I can't live without. I don't even want to admit to what went into my collection, but my most expensive knives were still under $200.
I also like how down to earth knife makers are. I ordered Leroi Pierce's knife mechanism book, and he sent it to me with a $20 tucked inside with a note that said "Thanks for buying my book, I wanted to buy you a beer." That was something else!