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septixtrash · 2 years

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Payback and Retribution Pt 2

Pairing: Soldier Boy x Supe!Reader

Warnings: language, mentions of death, mentions of gore (very little), mentions of drugs, depression

Word Count: 1.2k

Summary: You finally meet The Boys.

A/N: I'm so sorry it took me so long to publish this, my app I use to write deleted my original file so I had to rewrite it all over again. I haven't said what powers the reader has because it's a secret for the next chapter! Hope everyone enjoys this, I'm so thankful for all the support on Part 1! ❤️

Taglist: @spnwoman @veronicawritesstuff @atrxdxs @globetrotter28 @bronze-metal @deanwinchesterwifesstuff @buckybarnes-1917 @octobers-snow @faithm120601 @siospins2 @liuope @bxwitched @itsdesiree86 @epiphany-of-a-madwoman @bxrbiewrites @caffeinefueledfangirl @secretdreamlandmentality

“You must be well fucked in the head, agreeing to this…” Butcher tells you as you follow them both down to the parking garage.

He's right…

You walk right up to a beat up van, reaching for the handle. Butcher grabs your shoulder, scoffing. “Oi, just 'cause we're wanted doesn't mean we drive shitty cars…”

“That ain't mine.” He clicks a car alarm and points the opposite direction. “She is.”

“No fucking way…” You run up to an old black 87 Cadillac Brougham. It's in good condition too…

“I always wanted one! Vought wouldn't let us drive ourselves, had to have someone else drive for us. Ugh.”

Hughie grins. “I thought the same thing. He really looks like he owns a van!”

“Fuck off. Get in the car so we can fucking leave.” Butcher hops in the driver seat, Hughie sitting next to him.

You barely have time to climb in before he speeds off… dickhead.

“You didn't know the truth, did you?” Hughie turns around in his seat. “Before we came?”

You shake your head. “If I'd known sooner, they'd already be dead.”

It's still hard for you to wrap your head around the thought of it all… Ben's alive. Your own team betrayed you. Vought was behind everything and you'd been blindsided. It somehow hurts more, knowing that you’d been set up, that you’d been lied to. You think it would've been easier if you never found out the truth. Because through all the heartbreak, the tears, the endless nights high off your ass, desperately trying to savor the memories of him, it all meant nothing in the end.

As much as you'd rather be out hunting them all down, you knew you had to find Ben first. It wouldn't be right, getting revenge without him…

Hughie looks up at you, “I know how you feel… in a way at least.”

You raise an eyebrow, “and how's that?”

“A-Train killed my girlfriend Robin. Ran right through her… We were on the sidewalk, she took one foot off it, and then… then she was gone. The only pieces of her left were her arms that I held. He kept running, said he couldn't stop. He didn't bother apologizing, he lied to the media and Vought covered it up. They tried to buy my silence, but I-I couldn't take the money. It didn't feel right, being quiet about what happened. Why should I keep silent when he doesn't suffer any consequences. Butcher found me soon after…”

Poor kid. “I’m sorry… No wonder why you hate supes.”

You wonder what's Butcher's story…

“Don't be. Not all supes are like that, you know. You were always one of my favorites?”

You laugh. “Seriously, me? Why?”

“You weren't born a supe. You know what it's like being ordinary. You fought for the little guys, showed us that anyone can be a hero. I remember my Dad playing your old films, I used to want to be just like you…”

Your ears turn red. “T-thanks kid.”

You never felt you deserved to be a supe. To be called a hero. You just did what you felt right and helped others, because that's who you were, even before taking Compound V.

Maybe that's where it all went wrong, signing up for Vought's experimental program. At the time, it seemed like a good idea. You were young and needed the money, you were already struggling to make enough to get by. They offered a good hefty paycheck to those willing to try a serum they were working on. Of course you said yes, what a fucking mistake that was…

Pain, unlike anything else you'd ever felt. The serum rushing through your veins made it feel like you were dying. At first you thought you were.

They didn't tell you that most of the other subjects died. Their bodies rejected the serum. You somehow were lucky.

You got powers, but they came at a cost…

Vought made you their superhero. Dressed you up in latex and spandex and made you part of Payback, the first official supe team.

You thought you were fighting for freedom, but you were only fighting for a corporation.

You killed whoever they asked, saved whoever they wanted, all for ratings. That's all that mattered. How well the public responded to you.

You had it all, the fame, the drugs, the freedom…

You put on a face in front of the cameras, made it look like everything was fine, but in reality you were breaking inside. You'd never been so stressed before becoming a supe, but Ben, he made it look easy.

Maybe that's why you fell for him. He didn't have to put on an act, he was truly himself on and off the camera. He didn't care what anyone thought and that's what drew you to him. He taught you that you how be yourself again. But no one knew that…

Butcher turns around facing you. “Oi, we're here.”

You exit the vehicle and follow closely behind Butcher. He leads you all to a industrial looking building. Climbing the staircase, he stops in front of a door and unlocks it.

Stepping in, you have three pairs of eyes following you.

The place definitely didn't read: ‘We're wanted criminals.’ It was almost like an office, something you didn't expect from someone like Billy Butcher.

You face towards the only other woman in the room, a woman with long black hair.

“Hi!” You wave at her. “Nice to see Butcher has a woman on his team, I can already feel the testorone building in the room."

The woman uses sign language, signing hello.

Hughie laughs, Butcher just rolls his eyes. A man with a buzzcut stands up, “She doesn't talk. Her name's Kimiko. I'm Frenchie."

"Couldn't of guessed with your accent..."

The other man in the room turns away from you, grunts rolling his eyes. "Can we just hurry this up?"

“Who are you?” you ask, curious as to why the man clearly didn't like you being here.

“That's M.M.” Frenchie looks over at him. “He's got issues with Soldier Boy.”

Soldier Boy wasn't a good person. Everyone knew that. But he was only good to you.

There was so many things Ben didn't tell you; dark things he wasn't proud of.

Butcher pulls you from your thoughts. “Now that everyones here, let's go over the plan.”

You take a seat on the couch next to Kimiko.

“Your boy’s in Russia. We have a favor to our source, kill a target. Kimiko and Frenchie are already keyed in that. Once they're finished we'll be given the location.”

Kimiko pouts, signing something to Frenchie. He shakes his head at her then shrugs.

“You don't know where he is?!”

You should've known things weren't fully fledged out, but you expected a little more especially when these people were widely known supe killers.

“Oi, calm down will ya?” Butcher shouts.

Hughie looks away, rubbing his neck. There's a lot of tension in the room...

You face Butcher. “Who’s your source?” You rub your temples, sighing.

“Russian mobster, Little Nina. Frenchie here used to have a thing for her, now he owes her a favor. She told us if he does this for her, she'll tell us where the facility is.”

There has to be more than he's letting on… “What's the catch? Surely it can't be that easy, what's the favor she want?”

Frenchie speaks up, “She needs someone killed. But not by me…” he faces Kimiko who frowns. “Kimiko is the only who can do it.”

“Why her? No offense…”

“Because she's a supe like you. Little Nina knows that Kimiko doesn't want to do it, that's exactly why. She's doing it to get to me,” He sighs.

You get up from your place on the couch, rolling your shoulders, cracking your neck. “Well, when do we leave?”

#x reader #soldier boy imagine #soldier boy x reader #the boys imagine #soldier boy x supe!reader

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marksbear · 1 year

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just unearthed my obsession with the boys with that one 😍

could you make a pt2 or just something similar with smut where as hughie sort of starts to see how reader could actually be the bad guy, kinda confronts him about it, and then reader would either

a. deny it, convince hughie he's good and loves him (shows him with sex)

b. embrace it, convince/tell hughie he still loves him and be all like "what would you do without me" to hughie (also shows him with sex 💀)

(i had those two ideas and couldn't pick one so i'll leave a or b up to you, and sorry if b didnt make sense or was worded weird, i hope you can still understand what i'm trying to say lmao)

Hell yeah I can make a part 2! I'm going to choose B then write A maybe later tonight or tomorrow 😘. I just love villain supe reader!

HUGHIE CAMPBELL X SUPE MALE READER

Warnings, Y/n is mean and evil as HELL, manipulator Y/n, hard smut, blowjobs, fingering, Y/n killing someone with one punch, ofc Homelander a little. The boys being NOSY AF

The H/n and The Homelander.

The two superheros did it again. Almost every single week the two are trending about being the best superhero duo ever. Even though the two are in the best superhero group in the world the two are always out shine the rest.

Hughie looks at the news on his phone watching all of the new interviews of you and reading the new articles about you smiling to himself.

Y/n and Hughie have been going great with each other for the longest. Y/n has gotten more serious in the relationship so has Hughie. The two spend everyday with each other.

Mostly Y/n has been planning all of their hangouts and dates. Hughie was confused at first why Y/n was spending so much time with him. In their relationship in the past Y/n has been always busy with hero work and with meetings and all that.

But now this time Y/n he has been spending so much time with Hughie. Y/n has a reason for this. He has been keeping so many secrets from Hughie he doesn't even know more. He doesn't want Hughie one day to look for him and he's killing a civilian.

It's not like he'll ever do that right. Since you know hes H/n and all...

One day Butcher and threw a fit about H/n how hes a "Stupid killin bastard" And of course Hughie was in denial. So Billy grouped up all The Boys and went to a place where H/n will supposedly be stopping a villain at.

Somehow Billy was right and H/n was here to stop them. The Boys watch in the shadows as H/n fights. It doesn't take long for Y/n to take down the villains goons.

The villain begs for his life as Y/n stalks up to him all bloody with a sinister smile on his face. Y/n laughs at the poor man and says. "I ain't going to kill ya. Thats Homelander job... I'm just gonna--- f-fuck!" Y/n head starts to spin. He quickly knocks out the villain.

Y/n gets his phone out of his pocket calling Homelander. "Mi---ssion complete. Need you to pick... me." Y/n falls on the floor past out as Homelander hears Y/n falls on the floor and sighs. "Gotta stop using that power all the time H/n. I'm tired of picking you up all the time." Homelander hangs up and goes to his college mission to pick him up.

Billy picks up the villain telling everyone to go. Hughie stands back looking at Y/n worried and runs up to him giving him a quick kiss on the head before running away with the gang.

Somehow Y/n wakes up early as soon as Homelander arrives about to get him. "Where the hell did he go!?! I had the fucker on his knees begging for me not to kill him." Y/n says angrily standing up not even caring about his headache.

"And my phone is gone too! just my luck. Homelander can you be a good number one and carry me to an electrician store." Homelander let out a huff and picked up Y/n flying him where he wanted to go. Y/n waves Homelander off making sure hes actually gone before going to Hughie's house.

Y/n opens the door and shouts. "Sorry for not telling you that I was coming! Hughie! The most bizarre---- V/n?" Y/n stares at the villain that he was just hunting down. He sees stacks of paper about him on the table and Y/n walks up to them. He sees his phone unlocked and on his hidden. His hidden is filled with dead victims Y/n killed brutally.

"Y-y/n why did you lie." Hughie says throwing more papers from years and months ago about him doing evil things some even a couple days ago. How could this happen... Y/n made sure to use his hidden power to delete and hide every bad thing he had done from the face of the earth.

"Hughie... How did you get all of this? AND why do you have my phone?" Hughie becomes silent at the phone part and looks away.

"You were there!?! Weren't you Hughie! I told you to stay out of my missions! And don't follow me when i'm working! We can't be seen together Hughie!" Y/n grips the papers and out of anger he throws them around.

"AND YOU EVEN GOT V/N HERE! That's how you got all this information didn't you Hughie!" Y/n doesn't even try to mask his anger. He walks up to V/n and gives him one strong punch hearing a crack from V/n skull killing him instantly.

"Y/n. You lied. I trusted you! You told me you weren't like the others! I believed you. I even love you Y/n!"

"Hughie...I love you so much. But you have to understand I love it. I love the thrill of the kill. I love the thought of being caught. And just rule the world and no one can touch me or say anything about me because I am the best thing god made on this sick planet. I am the chosen one."

Hearing Y/n confession scares him and he backs away. But Y/n was faster he took Hughie's wrist softly pulling him into his chest.

"We both know that were made for each other. What would you do without me? You would have been dead right now without me... I am your savior, i'm your hero and most of all i'm your fucking boyfriend." Y/n lets go of his wrist and moves his hands to Hughie's cheeks pulling him in for a kiss.

One part of Hughie hates himself for giving into him. He hates how his cock begins to get hard from Y/n rubbing their crotches together. He hates that he keeps moaning in his evil boyfriend's mouth. Y/n guides him to the couch basically tackling him on the couch.

He is so mad at himself for begging you to fuck him. He hates the spell you have him locked in. He hates the way he grinds his own ass into your hard bulge. He hates everything about you.

But god why did he love it so much. He liked the way you made him feel. You make him feel happy, more confident, safe you made him feel that he was loved. And boy he loved you too.

Both of y'all's clothes were ripped off by Y/n who was eagerly jerking his own cock off as he watches Hughie finger himself. The two of you get more and more turned on by the other beautiful sight. Both of you watch each other like prey and a predator. Hughie adds two more fingers into his ass and becomes a moaning and whining mess. Hughie cock twitches and the precum starts to leak out of the tip. Y/n lets go of his own cock and goes down on Hughie's cock licking around the tip lapping all of the precum in his mouth.

Hughie hips bolts into Y/n mouth making him take his cock all the way in his mouth. Y/n lets Hughie fuck his mouth until his jaw goes limp and his chin is all covered in spit and cum. Y/n rest his head on the base of Hughie cock as Hughie fucks the back of his throat. Y/n grows bored and slips Hughie cock out of his mouth. Y/n uses his hand to gather all of the cum and spit from Hughie's own and applies it to his own making his cock all wet and sticky.

Y/n holds Hughie by the waist aligning him up so his hole is above the tip of his cock. Y/n spits on his cock head a few times before moving his cock forward into Hughie's insides. Hughie moans and screams fill the house as he arches his back holding onto the cushions of the couch for dear life. Y/n stops moving until only the tip is in fucking him with the tip for a while until Hughie begs for more. "Y/n!! please mo--re! I need more!~" Y/n slams his cock all the way inside Hughie.

Y/n thrust is animistic like he's using Hughie like if he was just a toy. Y/n grip on Hughie hips tighten probably gonna bruise for the next few days. Y/n only chases down his own orgasm not even caring about Hughie's own pleasure. "H/n! f-fuck h/n plea---se slow down!~" Hughie beg was filled with moans. Wet skip slapping is heard throughout the house. "Fuck! Hughie I'm close!" Y/n warns aiming his thrust into Hughie's prostate showing Hughie a bit of kindness. Y/n pulls himself down kissing Hughie jaw and chest.

"C-cum with me Hughie! I- I aM cumming!! Fu---uck I'm cumming!" As Y/n asks Hughie he cums with his boyfriend. Y/n doesn't pull out just yet looking at the mess he made with Hughie.

"I told you that you're nothing without me. No one can fuck you the way I can or love you like me."

THE END!

#hughie campbell #hughie campbell x male reader #the boys x male reader #x male reader #the boys #male reader #the bear club

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geneticmisfit · 7 years

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youtube

BEHOLD. FIRST TRACK FROM DANNY ELFMAN’S JL SCORE

#honestly the first half sounds so?? bland to me????#ONCE THE CHOIR KICKS IN THO #NOW THAT PART IS GOOD SHIT #; science jams ( music )#elfman always does best with choirs #the I suppose 'Main Theme' part of it sounds like every other Heroic Music I have heard??????#it's not an instant bop like zimmer's supes theme or red capes are coming #without the mid-choir bit it just sounds like every other 'We Are Hopeful Heroes of Heroism' music #I'm sure there will be at least one track in this movie that knocks my socks off tho lmfao #this ain't it for me

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zepskies · 5 months

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Why We Love the Boys

As promised, here is my review of Supes Ain’t Always Heroes. I actually used to write book reviews in my high school journalism days, so here we go!

What this book is: A masterful deep dive. A study on character psychology, the source of the comic and show’s inspiration, and the narrative themes illustrated in The Boys that parallel American culture and our real lives.

It includes interviews from one of the comic’s creators, Darick Robertson, The Krip himself (Eric Kripke), and actors Jim Beaver (Robert Singer), Aya Cash (Stormfront), Chace Crawford (The Deep), Jessie T. Usher (A-Train), Nathan Mitchell (Black Noir), and of course, Jensen Ackles (Soldier Boy).

It also includes a small but significant ode to the creativity of fans and fandom (with a mention of fanfic writers)!

I’ll admit, I felt seen. 😊

Who wrote it: Psychologists Lynn S. Zubernis and Matthew Snyder. Zubernis is a self-proclaimed fangirl of not only this show, but Supernatural and Eric Kripke in general. (That aspect definitely comes through in her writing.)

She is also editor of Family Don’t End with Blood: Cast and Fans on How Supernatural Changes Lives and There’ll Be Peace When you Are Done: Actors and Fans Celebrate the Legacy of Supernatural. Both of which I now want to read.

Several other authors also contributed to this book, as their expertise and backgrounds lend to the subjects they’re covering, such as racism, sexism, the entertainment industry, the comic’s inception, and more.

Who wants to read this book: Anyone who enjoys learning about what makes characters tick. What drives their choices, their sense of morality and justice, and their trauma and strife that lead them to do heinous things. This book will help you better understand your favorite characters (and how to write about them).

Perhaps most importantly, this book is for anyone who wants to read it put into words, why many of us love The Boys, as well as Supernatural.

In a way, the latter is more escapism entertainment than The Boys. Because in this show, there isn’t much, if any escape.

Despite this being a “superhero show,” as we all know, it’s so much more than that. It’s a mirror held directly into our own faces: about why we enjoy heroes and antiheroes, and excuse the “bad behavior” of the ones we like.

About mental health, grief and loss, nature and nurture, coping mechanisms and the importance of choice in dealing with trauma; of racism, sexism, misogyny, weaponized social media, politics, corporate greed, and the power (and cruelty) of good marketing.

This book explores the true villain of the story (and it ain’t Homelander).

I’m going to get into my favorite aspects of this book—as well as an amazing chapter on Soldier Boy’s character study (and why we love him, perhaps too much).

Though in my opinion, it was missing one small, but key thing…

The Mirror of The Boys on Screen

This world is a gritty, bloody, and at times all-too realistic take on how superheroes would be if they lived in our world.

They are the worst of celebrities, professional athletes, and politicians all rolled into one. They are the shiny products of a company and are marketed as such. And they often buy into their own hype.

Some of my favorite quotes on this topic:

“The Boys often reflects darkness in our real world that is uncomfortable to watch. While we go through the tedium of our daily lives, trying to get by and using television or comics as an escape, it can feel difficult and overwhelming to confront the very real and insidious sources of authoritarianism, nationalism, and corporatism that are not just part of a story. “This show holds up a mirror and forces us to catch a glimpse of things we need to question, and asks us why we so easily believe the talking points of systems with marketing departments and press flacks behind them that carefully massage every word in order to get us to feel enamored with their product or policy.” (p. 227-228)

“The Boys works to reveal the nonaltruistic, sociopathic nature of contemporary US corporate culture. In a sense, The Boys uses the behavior of its characters to diagnose not an individual, but a culture.” (255)

In studying narrative I’ve learned that the best fiction and art serve to reflect the human experience. In this case, it’s something The Boys does expertly, even though it’s packaged in extreme, shocking, and often uncomfortable ways. But also in brutal, hilarious satire that’s fun to watch.

It “exposes real-world abuses, revealing many” of our own frustrations in American culture and in life in general (267).

Major Themes & Questions Explored

Several Boys themes are explored from a psychological, cultural, and narrative point of view, as I mentioned earlier. These are some of my favorite segments:

Toxic Masculinity & Narcissism

A whopper in The Boys, and the main theme of season 3. This book defines clearly what both of these words actually mean from a psychological point of view.

It also takes the bad taste out of your mouth that you might get from just hearing the words “toxic masculinity,” as it’s a phrase that can be carelessly thrown around to describe men and character traits that aren’t truly toxic.

How being emotionally available to your loved ones and not repressive of your feelings doesn’t make you weak, or less of a man. And how “being strong” doesn’t mean being physically violent and domineering. (AKA: the Big Swinging Dick™️ in the room.)

Narcissism is explored in a very interesting way. The book gives a diagram of different aspects of narcissists and how each character (Soldier Boy, Homelander, Butcher, and the Deep) falls into them.

Soldier Boy, for example, is classified as a “Classic Narcissist,” while Homelander a “Malignant Narcissist.” <- This will play into SB’s character study, and the main difference between SB and Homelander.

Butcher, however, displays narcissistic tendencies but is not, in fact, a narcissist. (More of an antisocial sociopath. Yay for him.)

Misogyny & Sexism

The classic superhero world of comics dates back to the 1930s and ‘40s. It has been, and in many respects still is a (White) male-dominated industry, where in narrative, female superheroes typically work under a male leading the team, as in Justice League, Teen Titans, and the Avengers.

As much as I love DC and Marvel comics, female characters have also been drawn wildly sexual for male readers and the male gaze, and non-supe characters have been written primarily as love interests and damsels for the hero to save. (Think Lois Lane, Lana Lang, and Mary Jane.)

Modern adaptions have given female characters more agency, but their foundations were rooted in underlying sexism and the mythic hero—an Odysseus-type with certain characteristics of male strength and heroism. And that goes all the way back to classic literature, like The Odyssey, Beowulf, and the Epic of Gilgamesh.

In The Boys, the female supes go through the same issues as their comic counterparts. And they are treated how women are treated in the real world—marketable as sexual objects. (Starlight’s forced costume change is a prime example.)

Author Danielle Turchiano argues in the book that the women in power at Vought (Madelyn Stillwell, later Ashley) are given only so much power as men like Stan Edgar and Homelander give to them.

Stillwell, Ashley, and even Stormfront “drink the Kool Aid” of the misogynistic infrastructure of Vought, but they’re not truly “powerful” in and of themselves. (112)

And I would add that the only female characters that have or find true agency are Grace Mallory, Annie January/Starlight, and Maggie Shaw/Queen Maeve. Even Victoria Neuman is trying to work the political schematic and Vought by operating “within the system” Vought has created.

Mental Health, Trauma & Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms

This is a huge section, and rightly so. It kind of spans throughout the book, really, because all of these characters have traumas that inform who they are as adults making the (often grotesque) choices they make.

For many of these characters, it stems from their upbringing and fraught relationships with their parents, whether explicitly or implicitly explored in the show.

Butcher: Is an antisocial sociopath with narcissistic tendencies. Arrogant, emotionally manipulative, violent, and obsessive. He was also physically and emotionally abused by his father, led to use drinking and violence as a means to cope and express himself. His rage is so deep under his skin—he loathes himself for it (and his father), but struggles immensely to escape it.

Homelander: A malignant narcissist, the height of arrogance, and emotionally manipulative. He lacks empathy for others' pain, and in fact enjoys inflicting it. Yet he was a sensitive, gentle child who only wanted connection and love. Vogelbaum raised him like a lab rat and fostered him in a cold, detached cell. He was raised to be entitled and to believe he was an all-powerful god, the lord of his own kingdom within his mind, excused from the responsibility of his actions.

Soldier Boy: Also a narcissist; violent, arrogant, misogynistic, and often indifferent to the damage he causes, emotional or physical. Yet he was also emotionally abused by his father, who set impossible standards for what it meant to be a man. It drives Ben to try and prove his worth to his father, though he’s never able to. It fosters the lack of self-worth he feels as he seeks validation through fame and what he believes power to be.

These three characters have many similarities, but also notable differences that set them apart from one another. And both Butcher and Soldier Boy use substances like drugs and alcohol to cope with their traumas—ones that their forced stoicism and sense of manhood won’t allow them to easily express.

“We see Soldier Boy use substances almost continuously in season three to deal with his PTSD from the childhood emotional abuse he received from his father, the betrayal and assault from his team, and the torture he endured from the Russian scientists.

“In the short term, the use of drugs and alcohol to avoid thoughts and feelings about traumatic experiences can be felt as helpful, but in the long term, it hinders one’s ability to process emotions and can cause a deeper depression from the guilt and shame of both avoidance and substance abuse.” (27)

Heroes, Antiheroes & Villains

This book explores two key questions that the show encourages you to think about:

Who the hell is the hero of this story?

And who is the villain?

The surface-level answer is that Homelander and other supes like him are the villains, and Butcher and his band of bros are the heroes (or antiheroes). But they commit just as questionable, sketchy, and downright murderous acts as the supes they’re trying to take down.

“Butcher is not really a good guy. He’s manipulative and self-centered. His reasons for wanting to take down Homelander are utterly personal. That it serves the greater good is almost a coincidence.” (9)

And if Butcher is not a hero, but a vengeful vigilante, then why do we root for him so much?

Well, we see his incredible flaws. But I sympathize with his struggle in losing his wife and the life he could've continued to have with her. I root for the underdog going against the hydra head of Vought and the psychopathic Homelander.

And I see in Butcher, as I also do with Homelander and Soldier Boy, their traumas and their internal conflicts, their deep-rooted self-loathing, and a desire, deep, deep down…to be loved.

(And to foster connection with others, even if they’re unable to sustain them.)

On the flipside, we have antagonists in this show who do truly heinous things. What makes them compelling and even sympathetic, yet again, are their painful upbringings that have shaped them to be who they are. The supes of this show are byproducts of being treated like products.

Like the saying goes: Villains aren’t born, they’re made.

That’s why the real villain of this story is Vought International. It’s an allegory, and an indictment of the ruthless corporate greed that pervades American culture—and much of the world.

It’s why Stan Edgar is sometimes scarier to me than even Homelander (and was the true villain of my story, Break Me Down), if far more insidious.

Speaking of BMD, let’s get to it, shall we?

Here’s a (lot) bit about the Soldier Boy section of the book.

Soldier Boy: Why We Can’t Hate Him

I had to laugh out loud at the title of Soldier Boy’s chapter:

Loving the Villain: The Confusing Case of Soldier Boy

I’m not gonna lie. I felt called out. 😂

It is a confusing dichotomy. Soldier Boy is an absolute asshole. Misogynistic, narcissistic, arrogant, callous, violent…

But also deeply traumatized, a man-out-of-time, emotionally abused, byproduct of the historically and culturally different time he was raised in, a man who just doesn’t get it…

And also charming, adorably grumpy, and undoubtedly attractive.

It’s hard to indict “Ben” as an unredeemable villain in the same way I do Homelander, the psychologist-labelled Malignant Narcissist.

Therein lies the main difference between Soldier Boy and Homelander: Soldier Boy doesn’t take joy in harming others the way Homelander does. But he still harms people, whether he means to or not.

Zubernis confirms many of my own conclusions and ideas about Soldier Boy, and why I still rooted for him to be better, and didn’t want him to die at the end of season 3.

As Zubernis rightly exclaimed during her own watch of the finale: “Noooo, don’t kill the Danger Grandpa Baby Murder Kitten!” (175)

Because Jensen did what he does best in his roles: He made us feel Ben’s pain.

“What’s funny is, in regard to Jensen playing Soldier Boy, you know he’s fucking fantastic, he’s just so good at bringing the audience, and it’s almost like—what I laugh about is, he was probably a little too good at his job!” Kripke said. (180)

And he continues, “In part it’s because of the fandom. So many people took his side in the finale, they’re like, Were’s on his side, fuck everyone! And you’re like, but he’s the bad guy and he’s trying to kill a ten-year-old.”

Were there fans who held this viewpoint? I’m sure. There are some radicals who don’t give a fuck and will side with their favorite character, come whatever. But while I can’t speak for others, that’s not how I interpreted that moment in the season 3 finale.

Yes, I think Soldier Boy was (wrongfully) willing to fight Ryan. Do I think he would’ve killed him? I’m not sure. I think he would’ve done what he had to do to get Ryan out of his way in his fight with Homelander. Maybe he would’ve been more violent than he intended, in the callous collateral damage he’d shown throughout the season, or maybe he would’ve gone that far, if provoked.

It’s a tough call, as I think this character can go one way or the other in terms of his “villain” nature. We just haven’t seen enough of him in the series yet for me to make that conclusion on the canon-version of Soldier Boy. (In fanfic, I’ve explored my own interpretation.)

But overall, I think The Krip once again underestimated the power of Jensen’s acting.

…And the ardent nature of his mostly female fanbase. 😂

Why We Love Soldier Boy

The author cites multiple reasons for why we love Ben more than we probably should:

It’s Jensen Ackles. Fair enough. His talent speaks for itself.

Soldier Boy’s backstory: He was emotionally abused by his father and as a result, he has a complex regarding his self-worth, “something to prove,” and a secret need for attention, validation, and praise.

He has trauma and PTSD: He is displaced from what is familiar to him and confused when the boys find him, and that is the least of it. He’s been tortured for 40 years. Can you even conceive of that?

He’s charming: in a sexy grandpa, adorably grumpy, lovable asshole kind of way.

We’re drawn to danger: dangerous “edgy” types are fun, especially when you’re physically attracted to the character.

He has his moments of vulnerability: Jensen’s ability to play the nuance in the character is the ultimate draw. I felt his pain, could see his torture, and his resulting PTSD. He longs for a family, even if his ability to bring up those children is questionable at best. 😅

But I think the one aspect the author doesn’t consider is the character’s capacity for change.

Soldier Boy’s Potential

Again, I don’t think you can write off Soldier Boy’s potential for positive character development the same way you can Homelander, or even Butcher.

For one thing, we just haven’t spent enough time with the character. A lot of his collateral damage after he escapes imprisonment has been accidental, or PTSD-induced. Though we can’t discount how he murdered M.M.’s grandfather via collateral damage (and was callous about it).

I think this is what drew me to write about Soldier Boy. “For all his arrogance, his chauvinism, his massive ego and general bastardry, there’s still humanity in Ben.”

In the book, Nathan Mitchell also says something amazing about his own character (Black Noir) that resonated with me about Soldier Boy as well:

"One of the ingredients of a compelling character is contradiction. How does one aspect of our personality contradict with one another? [...] Who is he underneath? How might his true nature contrast with the demands of his job?"

Or coded for Soldier Boy/Ben: The pressures he puts on himself to be the type of man he thought his father wanted him to be.

Again, his sexist, misogynistic ideals are shaped by the time he was raised in, by being a product of Vought, and of his father’s emotionally abusive upbringing. Does this excuse or justify all of his behavior? Of course not.

But I think those 40 years in captivity changed him from the careless alpha dog we saw in 1984 Nicaragua…

He admits to Crimson Countess, with tears in his eyes, that he’d loved her. That he waited for her and his team—arguably the only social system he has in his life—to save him. He’s gutted to realize that not only did she and the rest of the team never love him, they hated him. They traded him for nothing. Just to get him out of their lives.

For all he claims to be afraid of nothing, tough as shit, he is afraid when he goes to face Mindstorm. He knows what the supe is capable of, and he visibly takes a shaky breath and tries to steel himself.

For a moment, he drops the “Soldier Boy” persona that he wears like a fine tailored suit. And he tells Butcher that the backstory Vought created for him was a lie; he grew up a rich kid who got sent to boarding school, but flunked out, because "he was a fuck up." And his father couldn’t be bothered to discipline him, implying he didn’t care enough about his own son to even lay a hand on him.

He is reluctant to kill Homelander when he finds out he’s Ben’s son (sort of). He even claims that he would’ve been willing to share the spotlight “with his own son.” — Something I doubt even Homelander would do.

Ben even seems to be fighting tears when he levies the same vitriol at Homelander that his own father did at him:

Homelander: “Weak? I’m you.”

Soldier Boy: “I know. You’re a fucking disappointment.”

Let me be clear. I don’t think it’s up to someone to change him (like a love interest). I don’t subscribe to that thinking, that a woman can “change” a man.

For example: In season 2, Butcher tells Becca, “Who was I before you? Nothing.”

And yet, she tells him that he put her on an unrealistic and unsustainable pedestal, in which she felt like she wasn’t allowed to fully be herself, unable to keep him from flying off the handle in rage. That kind of relationship (where one is dependent on the other to “keep them in check”) doesn’t work as a lasting, satisfying redemption arc, and it doesn’t work in real life either.

I do think, however, that a person is capable of change if they’re broken down enough (pun intended), and if they themselves have a desire to change. Someone they encounter can inspire them to be better, like Butcher with Hughie. That person can help support the other.

At the end of the day, however, it’s Ben that has to want to change.

If he wants love and connection, he’ll have to somehow want it, and try (and sometimes fail) to get it, thereby giving him agency and a redemptive character arc.

Now, obviously, it’s up to The Krip where Ben goes from here. He seems to have a more indicting vision of the character than I do (at least, so far). But we’ll see! The fan demand to bring back the character has already had Kripke confirming that Soldier Boy will be back.

Maybe it will encourage him to give the character a more satisfying ending than Dean Winchester got in Supernatural. Though granted, that one wasn’t his doing, apparently he was in favor of the ending the writers came up with.

Comparing Dean & Ben

In his interview segment, Jensen talks about what, if any, are the comparisons between Dean Winchester and Soldier Boy. AKA: Wanting a father’s approval, and an undercurrent of “John Wayne”-esque masculinity in John Winchester that Dean sought to emulate.

Jensen also talks about where he drew from to not only embody the character of Soldier Boy, but bring nuance to him—and show the peeks of vulnerability under the bravado and stoicism.

“He’s so fragile and his ego is fragile. Just like Homelander. These bigger-than-life powerful heroes really have a glass jaw… “And everyone walks on eggshells around him [Soldier Boy], and they tell him that they love him, and it’s the same with Homelander. Then when all of a sudden he faces his old team and Crimson Countess says we never loved you, we hated you—that’s a gut punch for him. Because even though on some level he may have known that, he never thought he would hear it. “And he probably propped himself up around trying to believe otherwise, because how can you walk around knowing everyone you’ve ever cared about hates you? It’s too painful.” (191)

It really is. And I inherently felt this about Soldier Boy/Ben when I watched season 3 for the first time. That’s exactly what I got from his performance and thought, there’s more to this guy than the toxic masculinity he represents.

This guy just wants to be loved, like everyone else. He wants to feel important, and even after his father’s dead, “show him” that Ben is the man his father wanted him to be. And so, he bought into the illusion Vought painstakingly crafted for him.

Whether he can come back from that remains to be seen. But I choose to be optimistic until evidence points to the contrary. 😅 (We’ll see in season 4!)

So that’s my personal take on Soldier Boy and this awesome book. 💚 Thank you again @kaleldobrev for recommending it to me! I hope you all enjoyed my long-winded review and want to check this out.

And if you do read it, I hope to read your thoughts as well!

Tagging people who said they wanted to read my review on this book: @venus-haze @jessjad @kristophalis @sl33pylilbunny

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