Soldier Boy: The Villain Nobody Wanted to Lose 

Should probably clarify the whole “Soldier Boy is gay” thing bc a couple of y’all are a lil confused- so this is just my interpretation of the information Butcher was given from MM at the beginning of season 3 (ep. 2). This was regarding Gunpowder and the abuse leveled at him when he was SB’s sidekick. It’s never *explicitly* stated that this abuse is sexual. Butcher makes a joke alluding to this, but it is Butcher…so who knows? Gunpowder does deny it. People in the comments have reminded me that this is not a sure or confirmed thing (except for the comics version, apparently). I do think it is rather open-ended though. It could’ve happened, but it’s not an absolute certainty. Either way, should not have said that he was gay. (Even if he did sleep with men, which he most likely didn’t, he does still sleep with women in the show so technically he’d be bisexual.) Just some extrapolation on my part and I apologize for the confusion! Thanks to everyone who pointed this out to me! P.S. *No*, I didn’t assume he was gay just bc he’s hot.

I think fans like Soldier Boy because he never switches sides or lies. He is 100% consistent.

Counterpoint, Jensen Ackles is a very attractive man

Another reason why people like him is because he was the only character with more than 2 brain cells in the finale.

So crazy to think that Jensen Ackles considered playing Captain America for the MCU at one point, Jensen is literally Soldier Boy, he was literally BORN to play him. I can’t see anyone else play Soldier Boy.

to add to his complexity, he seemed to have genuine remorse for killing a bunch of people when he exploded in the streets after his PTSD episode

Another reason is that he wasn't enhanced by the Russians He was TORTURED For years And after he came out he did seem different and somewhat emphatic of his past Him not joining homelander and even agreeing to take down homelander down was enough for the fans to hope he might become somewhat good Butcher turning on soldier boy cost them an opportunity and now there is a stronger mini version of homelander that's growing up to be evil.

At a few Supernatural conventions, Jensen Ackles has been asked the difference between playing a hero like Dean Winchester and a villain like Soldier Boy, and he said an inspiration for his performance was Lee Marvin's response to a similar question: that he has "never played a bad guy in his life." Soldier Boy genuinely believes he is a good guy. That sincerity is hilarious and awful in one so wrong-headed, but a strong performance can make it almost sympathetic. The audience might end up rooting for such a character to become the good guy he believes he is, and maybe part of the tragedy of the character's story is that mismatch between the audience's hopes and the character's reality. Who doesn't love a good redemption arc, but what happens if the character in question tramples all over that arc? Makes me wonder where Soldier Boy's story is headed, if he even returns at all (I hope so).

It honestly felt like half way through the season they realized “ah shit, we made him way too likable” and started editing the script to make him more of a piece of shit but the damage was already done by that point

Soldier Boy is liked because he feels flawed but redeemable, unlike Homelander. We see several examples of him caring for others. For one, he seems genuinely remorseful when he accidentally blows up in New York. He also seemed to care for Crimson Countess, looking devastated when she says she hates him. The next time we see him, he's angry about what happened in Afghanistan after having presumably served there, further showing some semblance of care about what he was fighting for. After being tortured for 30 years, he's disgusted upon coming into contact with Homelander because he realizes how Homelander is a reflection of the horrible person he himself used to be.

it’s hard to hate jensen

Not to discredit soldier boy at all, but I think part of the reason we love him so much is because we hate homelander so much(mostly because Anthony Starr as homelander is God tier acting), that we are willing to put up with soldier boy just to finally kill homelander

While morally grey characters can be interesting, there is something refreshing about an unrelenting piece of work as a villain that makes them a palate cleanser for people who are tired of mushy characters who won't own their behavior or give excuses. The man is a jerk and he makes no bones about it

Soldier boy is liked because he does not care. He does not try to hide anything, he act the way he is. In a show where nearly every character is manupulative he stands out as different.

Reasons no one wanted to lose soldier boy: 50% because Jensen Ackles aka dean winchester plays him 50% he isn't scared to run the fade with HL

I don't think Soldier Boy knew about the Bill Cosby arrest. He was just bringing up someone he thougt he knew from before he was captured. Also with how strong Soldier Boy is he probably didn't realize the drinks were spiked. Huey said there is a lot to unpack there. Also yes he is a bad person but he at least isn't an active threat to civilians as long as his PTSD doesn't trigger. Even when he saw people doing stuff he doesn't agree with he didn't go over beat the hell out of them he just rolled his eyes or said some jab while watching the TV.

We like him, because 1. He's consistent on what he does. He doesn't kill anyone without a reason. Yes, collateral damage is present, but it's mostly due to him fighting someone. The two times that he exploded and people died were due to his PTSD, which is understandable. 2. He has an understandable motivation for what he's doing. 3. He's macho man, but he makes it work and it's not looking like a stereotype. 4. Jensen's acting and charisma - yep, he brought this character to life and made him smth bigger than he appeared to be at first.

I think people like Soldier Boy because he contrasts Homelander directly. Homelander is an ill-intented guy who poses as if he's perfect, and Soldier Boy is a somewhat well meaning guy who's too stubborn and self-centered to accept that he isn't.

I think its 3 key reasons. -Homelander is worse to deal with -Jensen ackles as an actor. -And soldierboy being fun even though hes a bad guy. I'm genuinely glad jensen and jared managed to avoid the CW curse.

I think the reason people were upset about Butcher turning on Soldier Boy in the finale is that its shown his powers remove compound V from supes and it doesn't usually outright kill them. Ryan and Homelander likely would've survived the blast but been left powerless. Ryan could've gone on to live as normal as a life as a kid put in such a horrible situation could and Homelander could've been taken off the playing field for good.

Whenever Soldier Boy was on screen I was always entertained

I think you forgot to mention, Soldier Boy was technically Right. Many people would still be alive if Butcher didn’t turn on him. Homelander would be dead and yes Ryan too but with what is happening to Ryan now it may have been better that way.

Another reason for liking him that a lot of people don't give him enough credit for is that he seemingly gets shit done. A lot of superhero shows, and TV shows in general for that matter these days, have characters constantly fretting over whether or not they're doing the right thing. Equally, main characters get in dire straits because they won't kill the villain/have to make some grand social commentary gesture. In a show that is ostensibly a satire of superheroes, The Boys has their characters do that superhero cliche constantly. So when a character, even if they're the bad guy, skips that crap and just does "the thing," it becomes a relief. After all, someone has to advance the plot.

MM's family was a mistake, and Ryan is a second homelander in that fight. No where is it clear that he "loves" killing children, and compared to the rest of the superheroes he's not THAT bad.

gay dudes trying not to project their gayness on fictional characters challenge (impossible)

I will point this out. Soldier Boy only hit Ryan because the kid blasted him with heat vision. When he was about to use his beam weapon on Homelander, Ryan just happened to be in the way. If Butcher had bothered to answer his phone, he would have known that Ryan was there at Vought. They could have made a plan around that. While I don't condone killing kids, this was their best chance to kill Homelander.

"I'm not thirsting over this mAn"💅💅💅

I thought it was, from a purely "greater good" point of view, illogical turning on soldier boy for one reason: soldier boy has been and can be contained. Sure he was going to murder a child, but in exchange of finally ridding the world from the stain that is Homelander, someone who actually can't be contained, it was worth the sacrifice.

only one reason i have respect for soldier boy. Hes the only one that kept his word. Even tho he was a jerk he made a deal with billy to take down homelander and DESPITE finding out homelander was his son and he had a grandson he was STILL gonna honor that deal. All billy had to do was get the dumbasss kid out the way smh

Soldier boy was likable tragic and a product of his time. Jensen's portrayal was perfect.

I wish they explained soldier boy killing MM's family better I still have no idea how tf that all went down. I know he threw a car into their home but why and how? was he fighting someone and the car he threw accidentally killed MM's family or did soldier boy just decide "fuck this family in particular"?

Wait Soldier Boy was a villain? News to me.

Part of it is probably to do with Jensen Ackles just OOZING charisma. He's the one guy who could kick a puppy and a significant number of people would probably be like "oh okay, thats fine".

Originally. They were going to make him just as bad/much worse than Homelander. They were going to make the 'hazing' of Gunpowder and the rest of Payback much worse. But Jensen Ackles had the showrunners change the script because he refused to play a child abuser, being a parent himself. People don't like Soldier Boy because he is a good person. It's that compared to Homelander he's a much nicer and less evil guy. Homelander is just *that* bad.

I don't really see soldier boy as a villain, just an asshole with superpowers, he didn't "murder MM's family" on purpose, he was just being an idiot and throwing a car into a house without thinking about the consequences, i don't think he's good, just alot better than Homelander

Wait hold on where is it stated that he is homosexual in the show, I’m genuinely curious that caught me off guard, in the comics he is I mean everyone fucked everything in there but when is it said in the show wat episode?

Soldier Boy really is one of the best additions to the Boys that makes this Series more, he’s like a washed up Steve Rogers that grew up in a Harsh Environment that he became the same Trauma that created him, you can feel Sympathy but you know he’s Completely Unstable, and you know he’s Dangerous but he’s Funny in a Dark Humor and in a Way he’s not technically Wrong but he’s as Abusive as his Father, all in all I’m hoping we get to see him return in the Future.

Soldier Boy wasn’t gay💀

I never thought about Termite being permanently small, since the blast removes your powers.

Jensen Ackles is one of the only actors (in my personal opinion) who's performance is so good no matter what role he plays due to the subtle micro expressions and his eyes that are very expressional. It gives so much more depth in his acting. (If you've seen Supernatural you probably know what I mean)

The actor is charismatic by nature. Love his character from "Supernatural". Was hopping for a reunion as many more.

Bro loved them GILFS! What’s not to love?!

It’s because of his lines. “You know what I do when I’m sad or scared? Fucking nothing because I’m not a fucking pussy”😂

It’s funny cause the whole time this guy is complimenting soldier boy you can hear him smiling like he’s gushing about his school crush.

To be fair he didn’t know about the bill cosby grape stuff

Bro called soldier boy a homosexual 😂... we watching the same show?

0:25 someone has to tell bro about Anakin skywalker 😭

The most character defining moment was when he didn’t switch up despite HL being his son, having his grandson presented to him, but for butcher to be the one who switched up

My problem was I only saw Dean from Supernatural in a costume so thats why I didn't want him to lose

Long story short. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. He’s garbage but at least a HINT of sympathy, NOT EMPATHY, just sympathy. Homelander is gonna peak and be crazy and no can stop him. Why not fire a glass canon? At least they know how to stop Soldier Boy if need be. But he also listens to “reason” can be persuaded and even better…looks a good drink. That’s an easy enemy to keep down and out of politics and offing more people with his recklessness

Jensen Ackles just has a swagger about him that makes him always likable.

The thing is, I don't think he is a villain. His motives aren't exactly evil anymore and they don't exactly oppose our heroes. He's a bad person, but his goals aline with our heroes and each are about the same culpability for his action in modern day. I still say that they didn't need to stop soldier boy to save Ryan because his goal wasn't to kill the kid, just uphold his deal and think he'd understand if butcher said he has his own deal to uphold. I think this is why I still see him as anti-hero/occasional antagonist, not really a villain and probably adds to his likeability

6:24 "his homosexuality" What?

Honestly, a great twist I was hoping would occur in s3 was Homelander simply dying, and then they could pivot into making Soldierboy the new main antagonist. It would have been shocking, but I think it could have really worked too!

I believe that he is liked because although he is what we with our modern social mores would consider a villain (and I believe that overall, he does qualify as maladjusted), he is also actually what the ancients would consider a hero. Consider: the Greek tales of Achilles had our 'heroes' trying to sack a city and quarrelling over women like they were literal trophies/spoils of war. The Greek gods themselves were considered 'just' and 'good' even though they did things like bedding married women, forcing themselves on mortals they deemed attractive, and (ab)using their magic on mortals for slights to their egos (Athena turned Arachne into a spider for besting her at a weaving contest, and Hera constantly tormented Hercules and gave him a troubled life just because Zeus happened to father him). In the East, we have tales of divine caprice creating celestial features (the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl are victims of Heavenly micro-management) and nearly destroying the universe (Kali went on a rampage, nearly destroyed the universe, and her husband let her step on him so she could calm down). However, to the Ancients, these were actually flaws that were very understandable. What they emphasized was that the gods always kept their promises, made fair judgements (even if there was some collateral damage involved), and were valiant in war. Soldier boy made a promise, and kept it, even though it was his own son who was the target (and his grandson who was the collateral damage - but that happened because Ryan refused to move out of the way). Though his teammates despised him and deserved to be rid of him, selling him out to the Soviets (their mortal enemy at that time) was a step too far. Him hunting them down and killing them was not the right thing to do, but also not totally unfair. He might be destructive, but there are also rules to the destruction he inflicts. He was a bully (which everyone loathes), but there is an element of restraint with him: He wouldn't have gone after Ryan if Ryan hadn't gotten in the way, and despite being rough to Hughie and a huge bully to his own teammates, you notice that he only picks on those he thinks can take it (his teammates are super-powered and more durable than humans). And finally, his prowess in battle is evident to all. Based on all this, I would submit that Soldier Boy qualifies as a modern villain, but also as an ancient hero/god. In D&D terms, he would be deemed as being a Lawful Evil character that happens to be on the side of the United States.

Homelander: Liquid Snake Butcher: Solid Snake Soldier Boy: Big Boss Hughie: Naked Raiden Venom Snake: Black Noir

I think he does so well with this part because Dean from supernatural had a similar archetype.

Sodierboy is based. I like how he talk.

I don't think Soldier Boy would've worked 10% as well if it wasn't Jensen freaking Ackles.

6:27 you do realize that not every character who’s a masculine male that appears in media Hass to be a closeted homosexual right they could just be a very overly masculine character who has their demons and given how he treated gunpowder I would say that it was more like how his dad probably would’ve treated him trying to beat the weakness out of him but also making him stronger for it

The single and only reason I love Soldier Boy: Jensen Ackles. Jokes aside, this was my first introduction to this actor and my first thought was “that is the manliest looking and sounding man I’ve ever seen”. It’s like impossible not to get jealous as a guy when you see him lol

Soldier boy is basically dean Winchester dialed to 11 and that's alright because it worked

The answer is because its Jensen Ackles

A major part of it is that he was played by Jenson Ackles. He's just got this charisma that he just brings to every role he plays. Highly underutilized actor.

I simply believe it's just Jensen's charisma. Dude is just like JDM's Negan. Absolute monster of a human being but we as viewers just love him.

People miss one thing about his interest in old women, thinking this is kink which isn't. He's like from 90 to 100 years old. So his love for old women makes sense, since he was frozen in time by compound V or its prototype, everything he knew vanished, world changed since he became Soldier boy, but not him. He stays the way he was in the moment when he was injected by drug, in his 20-30's. So, this lust for old women is more emotional connection for him, with times his familiar. OK maybe they younger than him on 20-30 years, but they mentally close to him than girls in their 20's of era he awake. For him women in 20's of this time-line he's right now more children than adults or different species, but this as I see. And everyone wants something familiar, or someone who understands you emotionally and mentally. If he weren't Soldier boy it would look like an old man flirting with old women, which makes sence. We seen something like this with Captain Amarica as he acts, speaks, thinks etc, but without interest in old women. They both became misfits of time that vanished. People also said right, Soldier boy is historically accurate Captain America, If Steve Rodgers wasn't censored by Marvel he would probably be more attractive emotionally to someone as Peggy Carter. In terms of age when he saw her in Civil War movie or a little bit younger , and yes I think if we had a comic book like this, writers would try to show us it doesn't matter he's from different time and he can fall in love for somebody from time he lives now, but I think for Steve a girl of time he stuck would be probably hard to make bridges since they from different times and mentally different, like a human tries to connect with an alien, but who knows what scriptwriters wound try imagine.

The actor also did an AMAZING JOB. I mean, Jensen Ackles is just an amazing actor

I stopped watching after the phrase "he killed MM's family" - IT WAS AN ACCIDENT HOOOLY SHIT that's the WHOLE POINT of that happening, we were SUPPOSED to realize he's not a monster by knowing it was an- nah fuck this i'm out

It was surprising just how quickly how Soldier Boy became one of my favorite characters, thanks in no small part to Jensen, he is just so charismatic. One issue I did have with the season was at the end of the fight in the finale where they administered the gas to knock him out, where MM douses him in it and calls him a ‘racist’ piece of shit. Honestly, that made me blink because it feels like something that came out of nowhere, and I asked out loud ‘how is he racist?’ Sexiest? For sure. Toxic? Most definitely. But racist? Huh? I know the obvious point people would bring up is that he killed MM’s family, who were all black, but when confronted with that from MM in Herogasm, Soldier Boy said ‘which one?’ While this could imply that he murdered multiple black families on purpose, I always saw it as he killed so many people and families, not just black, that him saying which one meant that he didn’t bother to care and that many of them may have just been collateral damage, not purposefully and racially done. If the show was trying to portray him as racist, they probably should have done more to show that before they threw out that line, because all his interactions say otherwise. He beat up Black Noir because Soldier Boy felt that Noir was trying to ‘move on up in the world’ and challenge his popularity, he even says that Axel Foley is funny while Noir isn’t. He was apparently friends with Bill Cosby, and when he saw a gay couple on the streets of New York, he didn’t even look disgusted or anything, just surprised, even befuddled. Not really trying to defend him, he is still a shit human being, but I feel like the show was trying to depict SB as something he wasn’t or didn’t put in the work enough to show this ‘racist’ side. It could just all be from MM’s perspective but if the show did show more instance of this I would be okay with it, it’s just a weird nitpick that I can’t help but point out and cringe at.

It’s mostly because Jensen Ackles is such a great actor and his charm is just too damn good. Plus having a villain that makes you love him and hate him is hard to do and great in the long run.

I love him for his toxic outdated takes. He could say something so out of pocket, but make it funny because of Heuys' reactions. I would love a movie of a character with outdated ideals, time traveling, and dealing with a modern person. Soildier boy and Huey vibes.

It confuses me why people call Soldier Boy a "monster" espically within the context of the Boys Universe. The worst thing he did was accidently kill MM's family while trying to stop a carjacking and not care about it, which isn't a unique mindset to have as a supe. Maybe I forgot about some of the other things he did but it seems like he did pretty negligible stuff. I mean A-Train ran through Hughies girlfriend lied and laughed about like it was nothing and then he killed Popclaw, somebody he actually loved for Homelander.

im pretty sure its as simple as jensen ackles charisma hes incredible

random blink and you miss nudity at 2:46

The reason we love him is because of Jensen Ackles

Things i like about soldierboy, he looks tuff and has an iconic looking outfit, power and shield. he acts tuff and goes ham on anyone he sees both verbally and with asswhooping. AND the most important thing, he still has his weaknesses and bad side like any tough character needs. which im guessing disney is missing cause their recent characters are flawless people. when people arent flawless but still manages to be strong and menacing. thats when you got it right! this goes for so many characters that are well written, vader, thanos, ironman, batman, captain america... uhh i could mention more but you get my point

Jensen Ackles as Soldier Boy is the ONLY reason I even tuned in for Season 3 of The Boys.

He's charismatic more pessimistically realistic captain america that people wanted to see for years, and one of few characters to never betray his own morals and agenda, of course everyone loved him.

If they wanted us to hate him, 1) pitting him against Homelander and 2) making him JENSEN ACKLES was a bad idea

Soldier boy is the only fearless sigma in the entire boys series 🥶🗿 He is the definition of Masculinity 🔥

i think we all love soldier boy because yeah we hate homelander but also because he has the most potential to be good, like a train or lamp lighter. (but judging on how the show is i dont expect them to be redeemed expect homelander tbh. which lowkey sucks but i guess that is what keeps me interested is seeing what they do) edit: also how can you hate a man who is hunting down his "friends" who threw him in a RUSSIAN experimental prison

The actor is too charming. Soothing voice and pretty face. He is a singer too, did you know that?

6:22 i dont ever recall soldier boy ever being homosexual in the comic or the show 😶‍🌫️ i even went to make sure and googled other sources and everything points to him being extremely heterosexual 😅

Yeah, I've started calling it the Bobby B effect. It's when you cast a likeable and charismatic actor in the role of a complete scumbag.

Soldier boy is like that old fashion high school bully but will do what he wants to do and stick to it

They need to wake him back up!!!!!!!! Butcher was my favorite character until Soldier Boy woke up.

Only Jensen Ackles could make this character work.

Soldier Boy did nothing wrong

Soldier Boy very much feels like the “Cotton Hill” of The Boys. You usually don’t agree with what he does or says, but you love watching him because he’s so damned entertaining.

The reason Soldier Boy is so awesome is that Jensen is an epic actor.

Jensen as soldier boy has such a soothing voice saying the weirdest shit.

I will say that the #1 reason I like soldier boy is cause he’s played by Jensen Ackles.

Anthony Starr is obviously the heart of the show. His acting is so good that it makes the viewers anxious as to what he'll do next. Having said that, the show was at its peak when Soldier Boy / Jensen was part of the show. The man oozes charisma.

Short answer? Because Jensen Ackles might be one of the most charismatic people on the planet

Simple reason why i love him: he doesn't let MORALITY stand up between him and the thing that needs to be done (i love morals we all do but in a world that something as diabolical as homlander+ voght exists morality brings you know where) That's why i also love butcher but find starlight and MM annoying in a lot of occasions (Hughie is arguably the best character in term of pure goodness with the highest morality out of everyone but he isn't unrealistic, clingy or straight up stupid and is willing to sacrifice his morals if the actual push comes to shove)

An important thing to not misunderstand is that there's two versions of people being annoyed at Butcher for turning on Soldier Boy. Yes, there's a substantial group of people who (very disturbingly) think Soldier is genuinely a good person. BUT many were annoyed at the LOGIC of how Butcher turned on Soldier Boy, not his moral motivation for doing so. Yes, it makes sense that if Butcher is faced with the choice of killing Homelander or protecting Ryan, he'd choose to protect Ryan. But that's not what happened. Butcher WAS NOT forced to make that choice. Butcher initially lasering Soldier Boy to interrupt his nuclear blast makes sense. Homelander was standing over Ryan, meaning the blast was going to hit them both. But once Butcher and Homelander's laserbeams launched Soldier Boy out of the room, all Butcher needed to say after "Not the kid" was "I'll grab the boy, you and Maeve take out Homelander." Soldier Boy would have been pissed, since obviously Homelander was no longer restrained and without Butcher helping, he might be able to kill both SB and Maeve. But SB is an arsehole, not an idiot. He's just alienated Homelander beyond reconciliation. Homelander is a WAY bigger threat than Ryan. Ryan is unconscious. And SB WAS NOT after Ryan. He just didn't care if Ryan died since he was pissed that Ryan lasered him. There is absolutely NO REASON that Soldier Boy wouldn't have said "Fine, but you get him the f**k out of my sight before I f**king all three of you." But instead because plot, Butcher attacks Soldier Boy rather than just communicating with him.

it's not a very complicated matter. When he said "you just made all those words up" I fell in love and that was it

Its Jensen Ackles so you know it was already gonna be great

I think a part of it is that he is a soldier, coming from a time of war. Soldiers are expected to be rough, they fight and kill and do that for a cause. He isnt a maniac who kills unexpectedly for childish reasons. Plus we actually see him sit down, talk to people, and those oversized shirts and domestic scenes definitely helped with the perception of him as a person. And most of the stuff that makes him bad in modern standards are just what many people saw as values so we hear those sexist, racist stuff from our grandparents too. He isnt out there torturing people with every interaction, making them suck each other for humiliation or anything.

Solder Boy isn't a villain, he's a jerk. He has collateral damage when he is on a mission, but so do other characters. However, he doesn't really set out to purposely kill innocent people and doesn't view normal humans as inferior. He actually likes to hang around drinking and such with the regulars. When Hughie got in his face and called him out on the war stories being fake, Soldier Boy hit him and walked away but obviously held back. That is unlike Homelander who is racist and views normal people as nothing more than ants which he will step on just for enjoyment.