The Boys' Version of Captain America Is Their Saddest Joke
The Boys' version of Captain America is a massive joke. While Captain America is one of the most respected, stoic heroes in the entire Marvel Universe, Soldier Boy does not command that same respect and is widely ignored as a serious hero despite his aspirations to be a member of the superteam, The Seven.
When it comes to doing satirical takes on popular characters, The Boys from Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson isn't subtle about turning heroic, beloved characters into unlikeable, power-hungry corporate superheroes. It's why the comic series version of Batman and Iron Man (Tek Knight) is a sex addict, Martian Manhunter (Jack From Jupiter) is a racist, and Wolverine (Ground Hawk) is just a grumbling figure with hammers for hands. But, one hero who's amalgam isn't very forgiving is Soldier Boy, who is Captain America but a complete joke.
Soldier Boy first appeared in The Boys spinoff series Herogasm, which focused on the supes lying about universe-ending crises to have orgies instead. Soldier Boy is the leader of Payback, a team that doesn't respect him as their leader. Desperate to get into The Seven, Soldier Boy has sexual relations with Homelander, thinking it's some sort of test when in reality, it's just sex. He's gullible and completely unaware of the nature of supes and their more fraudulent intentions and is very easily manipulated. With super strength and durability, Soldier Boy isn't useless as a fighter, but his idiocy and nativity really outshine his powers. He even shouts out U.S. States while attacking... because why not?
Ultimately, Soldier Boy never makes it into The Seven despite Homelander's promises that he's on the right track. He's used by the powerful hero and ultimately, he's killed by Billy Butcher before he can ever make the jump to the main hero team. In a comic chalked full of monstrous heroes, it's sort of sad to see such a naive, stupid character get used and discarded. Although, Soldier Boy doesn't do himself any favors.
It will be fascinating to see which version of Soldier Boy makes his way to The Boys television series. The character is later revealed to be a legacy character with previous iterations. With Jensen Ackles (Supernatural) taking on the role, it's possible they'll make the character more of a threat than the blatant idiot of the comics. Series co-creator Eric Kripke has already hinted he'll be playing the first superhero. While he can keep his "oh gosh" mentality and innocence, it would be fairly shocking to see the show borrow much from the comics storywise - as Homelander's story has veered quite different from his comic, so whatever version of Soldier Boy viewers get will likely be equally different, otherwise, things are about to get really weird in the TV show.